Europe

GENEVA, Nov 29 (Reuters) - The United Nations on Wednesday called for the international community to move towards a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying Jerusalem should serve as the capital of both states.

"It is long past time to move in a determined, irreversible way towards a two-state solution, on the basis of United Nations resolutions and international law," said Tatiana Valovaya, Director-General of the U.N. office in Geneva, delivering a speech authored by U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

PARIS, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- The global economy is expected to slow down slightly next year as a result of tightening monetary policies, weak trade and lower business and consumer confidence, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said Wednesday.

Its latest economic outlook report projected the global GDP growth at 2.9 percent in 2023, followed by a mild slowdown to 2.7 percent in 2024 and a slight improvement to 3 percent in 2025.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Tighter water restrictions for drought-stricken northeast Spain went into effect Wednesday, when authorities in Catalonia said that Barcelona may need to have fresh water shipped in by boat in the coming months.

Catalonia is suffering its worst drought on record with reservoirs that provide water for about 6 million people, including Spain’s second-biggest city Barcelona, filled to just 18% of their capacity. By comparison, Spain’s reservoirs as a whole are at 43% of their capacity.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba insisted on Wednesday that NATO allies are showing no sign of war fatigue and remain committed to helping Ukraine defend itself against Russia and take back occupied territory.

Speaking to The Associated Press, Kuleba also said that President Vladimir Putin is miscalculating if he sees any value in keeping his forces in Ukraine at least until presidential elections in the United States in a year’s time, which could usher in a new administration.

BRUSSELS (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the Biden administration would like to see a new extension of the cease-fire agreement in Israel’s war with Hamas after the current one expires to secure the release of additional hostages held by the militant group and to ramp up humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has decided to punish one of his highest-ranking critics, Cardinal Raymond Burke, by revoking his right to a subsidized Vatican apartment and salary in the second such radical action against a conservative American prelate this month, according to two people briefed on the measures.

BRUSSELS, November 28. /TASS/:  NATO needs to be prepared for more fighting in Ukraine, the bloc’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said upon arrival to a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.

"We will, of course, discuss the situation in Ukraine. We see intense fighting along the frontline and we have seen waves of drone attacks against Ukrainian cities and we need to be prepared for more fighting and also more air and missile attacks against Ukrainian cities. This just makes it even more important that NATO Allies continue to support Ukraine," Stoltenberg pointed out.

MOSCOW, November 28. /TASS/: Russian forces destroyed a Ukrainian combat drone training center and three radar stations over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Tuesday.

"The strikes destroyed the Ukrainian army’s center for the training and combat use of unmanned aerial vehicles, an aviation fuel storage facility and three aerial target detection and tracking radars - two P-18s and one ST-68," the ministry said in a statement.

PARIS, November 28./TASS/: TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman has been elected permanent rapporteur to the Bureau of the UNESCO International Program for the Development of Communication (IPDC), Russia’s permanent mission to the organization told TASS.

"This morning elections took place to the IPDC Bureau for the position of rapporteur, which resulted in the election of Mikhail Solomonovich Gusman," the mission said. The only other contender in voting for the position was a representative of Estonia.

MOSCOW, November 28. /TASS/: Moscow notified Tokyo about its withdrawal from the agreement on reduction of nuclear weapons, which will expire on May 21, 2024, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.