North America

UNITED NATIONS, September 26. /TASS/: Moscow will take efforts to assist the quickest resumption of talks between representatives of the United States and the Taliban radical movement (outlawed in Russia), Russia’s Special Presidential Envoy for Afghanistan, Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Second Asian Department Zamir Kabulov said on Thursday.

26 Sep 2019; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday urged caution over blaming Iran for the 14 September attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities.

26 Sep 2019; MEMO: King Abdullah II of Jordan has called the continued occupation of Palestine and the expansion of Israeli settlements a moral tragedy, saying it is his duty to protect Jerusalem from religious and political repression.

In his address to the 74th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly earlier this week, the king highlighted the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the occupation of Palestinian territory which perpetuates it.

New York, Sep 24; GANASHAKTI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a USD 150 million line of credit to the group of  Pacific island nations for undertaking solar, renewable energy and climate related projects based on their requirement.

Modi, who attended the India-Pacific Islands Developing States (PSIDS) Leaders' Meeting, also announced a total allocation of USD 12 million to the member states towards implementation of high impact developmental project in the area of their choice.

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Parties to an international agreement on Iran's nuclear program pledged on Wednesday to continue efforts to preserve the July 2015 deal.

In a joint statement after their meeting in New York on Wednesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, ministers from Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and Iran "confirmed their determination to continue all efforts to preserve the agreement, which is in the interests of all."

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday ruled out negotiations with the United States unless the latter lifts sanctions on his country first.

"On behalf of my nation and state, I would like to announce that our response to any negotiation under sanctions is negative," Rouhani told the UN General Assembly General Debate.

Washington, Sep 26 (PTI) Days after US President Donald Trump tried to woo Indian Americans by joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a mega rally in Houston, Democratic presidential aspirant Joe Biden was hosted for a major fund-raiser by this small but rich community.

The fund-raiser in Los Angeles Wednesday night was organised by Indian-American surgeon Sanjay Khurana and his software-engineer wife Mona, at their picturesque Manhattan Beach home. It was attended by about 150 top Indian Americans from in and around Hollywood.

Washington, Sep 26 (AFP/PTI) A homemade submarine carrying more than five tons of cocaine was intercepted in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of South America, the US Coast Guard said.

The 39-foot-long (12 metre) vessel had previously been detected by maritime surveillance, according to a statement published Tuesday.

MEXICO CITY, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Wednesday that the looming U.S. elections and impeachment proceedings could hold up the ratification of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

"We don't want it to be left until the eve of the elections (in November 2020). It's better to wrap it up soon. It benefits the three countries to have the treaty already approved," the president told a press conference.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- The executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday approved the nomination of Bulgaria's Kristalina Georgieva, chief executive officer of the World Bank, to be the IMF managing director for a five-year term starting on Oct. 1.

Noting that it's a "huge honor" for her to have been selected as the next managing director, Georgieva told reporters at the IMF headquarters Wednesday afternoon that she steps into the role as a "firm believer" in the mandate of the global lender.