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28 Apr 2019; AFP: The European Union warned Saturday that US President Donald Trump's rejection of a UN treaty designed to regulate the global arms trade would hamper the global fight against illicit weapons trafficking.

"A decision by the US to revoke its signature would not contribute to the ongoing efforts to encourage transparency in the international arms trade, to prevent illicit trafficking and to combat the diversion of conventional arms," said the EU's chief diplomat, Federica Mogherini.

28 Apr 2019; AFP: US sanctions came into effect Sunday to block Venezuela's economic lifeline of oil exports, in what Washington hopes will be a major blow in its fledgling campaign to topple leftist President Nicolas Maduro.

As of 12:01 am Washington time (0401 GMT), the United States will take action against anyone who deals with state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA, or any entity in which the company holds at least a 50 percent stake.

28 Apr 2019; DW: Xi Jinping raised a glass to his signature foreign policy project at a Belt and Road conference in Beijing. While some countries fear that China is using the initiative for strategic gain, others are flocking to join it.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Saturday that $64 billion (€57 billion) in infrastructure deals were signed at this week's Belt and Road Forum in Beijing.

Beijing, Apr 27 (PTI) Pakistan's relationship with India remains the "only problem" for peace and stability in the region, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said and expressed hope of establishing a "civilised relationship" with New Delhi after the Lok Sabha elections are over.

BOGOTA, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Colombia's state oil company Ecopetrol said Saturday that the Transandino Pipeline (OTA) has been bombed.

It has been the seventh attack against OTA so far this year. The attack happened in a village in Colombia's southern province of Narino.

The oil firm said on its Twitter account it activated a contingency plan following Friday's attack. "The attack resulted in a ruptured pipe and an oil spill," it said.

GABORONE, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Botswana has partnered with the World Bank to develop a renewable energy strategy that would allow the country to be more independent on energy supplies, said President Mokgweetsi Masisi on Saturday.

He made the remarks at an event of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party in the capital Gaborone.

TEHRAN, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry on Saturday denied that it had requested the United States and Saudi Arabia to negotiate over disputed issues.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Mousavi dismissed in a statement the recent western media's reports that Iran has made request for talks with the United States.

PARIS, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Two days after French President Emmanuel Macron offered additional concessions worth billions of euros, thousands of "yellow vests" marched across French cities on Saturday for the 24th weekend in a row, though with noticeable fatigue.

The protest drew 23,600 participants countrywide, of which 2,600 were in the capital Paris, the second lowest turnout since the movement started five months ago, Interior Ministry estimated.

Last Saturday, 27,900 people took to the streets across the country, including 9,000 in the capital.

BEIJING, April 27 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese economy has shown more signs of firming up, with its major industrial firms posting a 13.9-percent growth in profit in March from a year earlier.

The figure marked a drastic rebound from the 14-percent decline in the January-February period, according to data released Saturday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Thanks to the improving performances in March, these firms posted a 3.3-percent decline in aggregate profit for the first quarter, 10.7 percentage points less than that in the January-February period.

BEIJING (AP) — President Xi Jinping called for more countries to join China’s sprawling infrastructure-building initiative as other leaders expressed support Saturday for a project Washington worries is increasing Beijing’s strategic influence.