BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese agriculture scientists have bred new rice varieties named "Green Super Rice (GSR)" for developing Asian and African countries to reduce hunger and increase the income of farmers.

Supported by the Chinese government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the project has bred 78 GSR varieties for 18 countries with a total growing area of 6.12 million hectares since its launch in 2008, hoping to benefit 30 million resource-poor smallholder rice farmers in Asia and Africa.

LONDON (AP) — European Union lawmakers say British citizens should be allowed to travel in Europe visa-free after Brexit but only if the U.K. grants the same right to EU citizens, as the bloc prepares for Britain’s possible departure without a deal.

The EU’s Civil Liberties Committee voted overwhelmingly Wednesday — 38 votes in favor, 8 against and 3 abstentions — to allow tourism or business trips.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump eased up on his threats to close the southern border as officials across his administration explored half-measures that might satisfy the president’s urge for action, like stopping only foot traffic at certain crossings.

Facing a surge of Central American migrants trying to enter the U.S., Trump last week threatened to seal the border this week if Mexico did not immediately halt all illegal immigration into the U.S., a move that would have enormous economic consequences on both sides of the border.

LONDON (AP) — With Britain racing toward a chaotic exit from the European Union within days, Prime Minister Theresa May veered away from the cliff-edge Tuesday, saying she would seek another Brexit delay and hold talks with the opposition to seek a compromise.

May made the announcement after the EU’s chief negotiator warned that a disruptive and costly Brexit was likely unless Britain broke the impasse that has paralyzed the government and Parliament.

CARACAS, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's National Constituent Assembly (ANC) on Tuesday unanimously approved the revocation of parliamentary immunity for Juan Guaido, the National Assembly president and head of the opposition.

ANC President Diosdado Cabello read the message sent by President of Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) Maikel Moreno, who had asked the governing body to consider revoking Guaido's parliamentary immunity.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump praised NATO countries for increasing their financial contributions to the Western alliance, but he hounded them to pay even more, saying America still shoulders a disproportionate share of the cost of protecting Europe.

The president met Tuesday with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who was in Washington to mark the 70th anniversary of the organization formed to counter Russian aggression.

WASHINGTON, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde said here Tuesday that imposing import tariffs won't eliminate trade deficits and will cause "potentially self-inflicted wounds."

Addressing the 13th Annual Capital Markets Summit held at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce headquarters, Lagarde said it's true that not everyone has benefited from global trade, that there are distortions in the trade system, and that the system needs to be reformed but "trade barriers are not the answer."

BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will travel to Europe on April 8-12 for the 21st China-EU leaders' meeting in Brussels, the eighth leaders' meeting of China and Central and Eastern European countries in Croatia, and an official visit to the country.

Li will make the Europe trip upon an agreement made by the Chinese and European sides, as well as at the invitation of Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, the Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Geng Shuang said here Tuesday.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — The surge of migrant families arriving at the southern border has led the Trump administration to dramatically expand a practice President Donald Trump has long mocked as “catch and release.”

With immigrant processing and holding centers overwhelmed, the administration is busing people hundreds of miles inland and releasing them at Greyhound stations and churches in cities like Albuquerque, San Antonio and Phoenix because towns close to the border already have more than they can handle.

3 Apr 2019; AFP: A Chinese woman carrying multiple cellphones and a thumb drive containing malware was arrested on Saturday at US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida while he was staying there, court documents revealed Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (AP) — “Not any longer.”

And with that, a triumphant Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to close the book Tuesday on a divisive Republican debate, convincing President Donald Trump to shelve plans to replace the Affordable Care Act until after the 2020 election.

“I made it clear to him that we were not going to be doing that in the Senate,” McConnell told reporters.

New Delhi, Apr 2 (PTI) WhatsApp Tuesday unveiled its 'Checkpoint Tipline', where people can check the authenticity of information received as the messaging giant looks to crack down on fake news ahead of the general election in the country.

"Launched by PROTO, an India-based media skilling startup, this tipline will help create a database of rumours to study misinformation during elections for Checkpoint - a research project commissioned and technically assisted by WhatsApp," the Facebook-owned company said in a statement.