Antonio Guterres
Chinese President Xi Jinping, bottom second from right, waves as he arrives for the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
In opening of Winter Olympics, chances at politicking abound

By Adam Schreck Feb. 04, 2022 07:08 AM EST

FILE - Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin enter a hall for talks in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, June 5, 2019. The U.S., Britain and a handful of others aren’t sending dignitaries to the Beijing Games as part of a diplomatic boycott, but the Chinese capital is still attracting an array of world leaders for Friday’s opening ceremony. Russia’s athletes will be competing under a neutral flag, but the presence of Putin, an enthusiastic skier and hockey player, will reinforce that they are the Russian national team in all but name and soothe wounded national pride. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, Pool, File)
World leaders: Who's coming, who isn't to Beijing Olympics

Feb. 03, 2022 09:43 PM EST

A visitor to the Shougang Park walks past the a sculpture for the Beijing Winter Olympics in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021. China on Monday, Dec. 6, 2021, threatened to take "firm countermeasures" if the U.S. proceeds with a diplomatic boycott of February's Beijing Winter Olympic Games. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
China dismisses UK, Canada Olympic boycott as 'farce'

Dec. 09, 2021 06:05 AM EST

Russia says Syria can deliver aid, Turkey not essential

By Edith M. Lederer Jun. 22, 2021 07:11 PM EDT
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia’s foreign minister says Moscow disagrees that there is no alternative to deliver humanitarian aid to Syria’s rebel-held northwest...

FILE - In this Dec. 14, 2018, file photo, Myanmar's deposed Leader Aung San Suu Kyi arrives to attend the Myanmar Entrepreneurship Summit at the Myanmar International Convention Center in Naypyidaw, Myanmar. The trial of Aung San Suu Kyi entered its second day Tuesday, June 15, 2021, with the prosecution presenting arguments that she incited public disorder and flouted coronavirus restrictions, part of a package of charges the ruling junta is seen as using to discredit her and consolidate its control. (AP Photo/Aung Shine Oo, File)
Myanmar prosecutors present sedition charge against Suu Kyi

By Grant Peck Jun. 15, 2021 07:08 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 28, 2021 file photo, travelers wait for their luggage at a baggage carousel at Miami International Airport in Miami. The airline industry’s recovery from the pandemic passed a milestone as more than 2 million people streamed through U.S. airport security checkpoints on Friday for the first time since early March 2020. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
The Latest: Brazil president fined for not wearing mask

By The Associated Press Jun. 12, 2021 07:53 AM EDT

Iran regains UN voting rights and lashes out at US sanctions

By Edith M. Lederer Jun. 11, 2021 03:00 PM EDT
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Iran regained its voting rights in the U.N. General Assembly on Friday after making the minimum payment on its U.N. dues and lashed out...

A sign points the way to administrate a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at London Middle School in Wheeling, Ill., Friday, June 11, 2021. After nearly 15 months of shutdowns, limited capacity and sheltering at home, the State of Illinois, including Chicago, fully reopened today. Businesses still can have their own rules for capacity, masks and social distancing. Masks are still required on public transportation and in airports, schools and hospitals. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
The Latest: California to lift most of state’s virus rules

By The Associated Press Jun. 11, 2021 01:19 AM EDT

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, left, speaks as President Joe Biden listens during the G-7 summit at the Carbis Bay Hotel in Carbis Bay, St. Ives, Cornwall, England, Friday, June 11, 2021. Leaders of the G-7 begin their first of three days of meetings on Friday, in which they will discuss COVID-19, climate, foreign policy and the economy. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool via AP)
G-7 pledge to share, but jostle for ground in the sandbox

By Jill Lawless, Danica Kirka And Aamer Madhani Jun. 11, 2021 12:38 AM EDT

People wearing face masks ride a tram in Lisbon, Friday, June 4, 2021. Britain said Thursday that it is removing Portugal from its list of COVID-safe travel destinations, meaning thousands of U.K. residents currently on vacation there face the prospect of 10 days' quarantine on return. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
The Latest: Hawaii emails reveal strain over contact tracing

By The Associated Press Jun. 05, 2021 01:36 AM EDT

A man receives the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the Noevir Stadium Kobe in Kobe, western Japan, Monday, May 31, 2021. The stadium is being used as an inoculation venue for local residents over 65 years old. Japan, seriously behind in coronavirus vaccination efforts, is scrambling to boost daily shots as the start of the Olympics in July closes in. (Yu Nakajima/Kyodo News via AP)
Japan gives $800M to UN-backed COVID-19 vaccine program

By Mari Yamaguchi Jun. 02, 2021 10:04 AM EDT

FILE - In this Friday Dec. 11, 2020, file photo, exterior view of the United Nations-backed Lebanon Tribunal where the court handed down it's sentencing on Salim Jamil Ayyash, a member of the Hezbollah militant group who was convicted of involvement in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and 21 others 16 years ago, in Leidschendam, Netherlands. Ayyash is not in custody and is unlikely to serve any sentence. A U.N.-backed tribunal investigating the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said Wednesday, June 2, 2021 it is facing a severe funding crisis and will not be able to operate beyond July without immediate assistance. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)
UN tribunal for Lebanon may fold due to funding crisis

By Bassem Mroue Jun. 02, 2021 07:51 AM EDT

UN official: Conflicts make controlling COVID more difficult

By Edith M. Lederer May. 25, 2021 09:02 PM EDT
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Despite last year’s U.N. call for global cease-fires to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, many conflicts never stopped including in Syria,...

Spanish U.N peacekeepers pass under a Palestinian flag as they patrol on the Lebanese side of the Lebanese-Israeli border in the southern village of Kfar Kila, Lebanon, Saturday, May 15, 2021. On Israel's northern border with Lebanon, Israeli troops opened fire on Friday when a group of Lebanese and Palestinian protesters on the other side cut through the border fence and briefly crossed. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
UN condemns peacekeeper attacks, urges prosecution, safety

By Edith M. Lederer May. 24, 2021 09:19 PM EDT

Elderly people wearing protective masks line up to be registered to receive their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination centre in Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, in Soweto, South Africa, Monday, May 17, 2021. South Africa has started its mass vaccination drive with the goal of inoculating nearly 5 million citizens aged 60 and above by the end of June. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
UN urges more vaccines for Africa, with only 2 percent now

By Edith M. Lederer May. 19, 2021 06:07 PM EDT

Bangladeshi Muslims protesting against Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza, gather after Eid al-Fitr prayers in front of Baitul Mukarram Mosque and wave Palestinian and Bangladeshi flags in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Friday, May 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu)
The Latest: Israeli airstrike on Gaza house kills at least 7

The Associated Press May. 14, 2021 07:55 AM EDT

An Israeli soldier stands guard next to an Iron Dome air defense system as smoke rises from an oil tank on fire after it was hit by a rocket fire from Gaza Strip, near the town of Ashkelon, Israel,, Wednesday, May 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
The Latest: Netanyahu raps 'anarchy' of Jewish-Arab fighting

By The Associated Press May. 12, 2021 06:40 AM EDT

UN seeks proposals to end force on Sudan-South Sudan border

May. 11, 2021 10:56 PM EDT
The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to extend the mandate of the nearly 3,700-strong peacekeeping force in the disputed Abyei region on the...

Members of a civil society group burn representations of Israeli, U.S. and Indian flags during a demonstration in support of Palestinians during the latest round of violence in Jerusalem, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)
The Latest: Israeli aircraft strike another building in Gaza

May. 11, 2021 09:22 AM EDT

Jewish nationalist demonstrators look at a barrage of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip toward central Israel, in the Israeli town of Ramla, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. The protesters had gathered in an attempted show of strength in a predominantly Arab neighborhood. (AP Photo/Heidi Levine)
Israel, Hamas trade deadly fire as confrontation escalates

By Fares Akram And Josef Federman May. 11, 2021 08:38 AM EDT