18 Dec 2018; AFP: Yemen's flashpoint city of Hodeida was calm Tuesday as a ceasefire took effect and a team including members of the warring sides prepared to monitor the truce agreed at talks in Sweden.

A lasting ceasefire would be a major step in efforts to end Yemen's devastating war, which has killed thousands and left 14 million people on the brink of famine.

The truce which came into force overnight was due to be followed by a team of observers deploying "within 24 hours", a United Nations official said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and leaders in Congress appeared to be pulling back Tuesday from a government shutdown over his $5 billion request for border wall funds, with the first signs of movement toward a possible end to the standoff.

The White House set the tone early when Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders indicated Trump — who just last week said he’d be “proud” to shut down the government — doesn’t want to after all. The president would consider other options and the administration was looking at ways to find the funding elsewhere, Sanders said.

MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/. Participation in the INF Treaty cannot be suspended, as the US intends to do, this agreement can be only openly violated through the development or relevant armaments, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in an interview with the Kommersant daily on Tuesday.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel submitted his resignation Tuesday amid pressure on his government after the biggest coalition party quit over Michel’s support for a United Nations compact on international migration.

“I am taking the decision to offer my resignation. I am now going to see the king” to inform him,” Michel told Belgian lawmakers.

Before the prime minister gave his notice, lawmakers had been demanding he submit his new minority government to a confidence vote. But Michel refused, and a confrontation this week seemed likely.

18 Dec 2018; AFP: Japan will get its first aircraft carriers since World War II and buy dozens of fighter jets under a new defence plan approved Tuesday that is intended to counter China's growing military power.

The new five-year defence plan calls for the upgrade of two existing helicopter carriers so that they can launch fighters, and is the latest in a series of steps under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to boost Japan's military.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. An anti-radiation food ration has been developed for cosmonauts of the future Russian lunar expedition, Head of the ISS [International Space Station) Crew Nutrition Department at the Institute of Medical and Biological Studies Alexander Agureyev told TASS on Friday.

"The cosmonauts’ food ration for the lunar program has already been developed. These are foodstuffs with the enhanced biological activity and radio-protective properties," the researcher said.

18 Dec 2018; AFP: The British government on Tuesday said it was allocating two billion pounds ($2.5 billion) to fund Brexit and putting 3,500 troops on stand-by after ministers agreed to make no-deal planning "an operational priority".

The news came amid continued opposition to Prime Minister Theresa's May draft divorce deal, just 14 weeks before the country leaves the EU.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. Three Russian engines RD-181 have been handed over to the Orbital Sciences Corporation, the research and industrial association NPO Energromash said on its website on Friday.

"On December 12, three RD-181 engines were handed over to the US customer," the Orbital Sciences Corporation said in the news release.

This is a second consignment of engines delivered to the US company this year. Two RD-181 engines were handed over in June.

18 Dec 2018; AFP: Losses from natural and man-made disasters are estimated to total $155 billion (136 billion euros) this year, down sharply from a hurricane-plagued 2017, the reinsurance giant Swiss Re said Tuesday.

The trio of hurricanes Harvey, Maria and Irma last year pushed losses to $350 billion, but Swiss Re noted that a "number of smaller and mid-sized events, alongside some major man-made disasters" in 2018 were still cause for serious concern.

18 Dec 2018; DW: The Russian foreign minister claimed that Ukraine was planning an "armed provocation" in the coming weeks. Moscow-Kyiv relations have continued to deteriorate after Russia seized three Ukrainian ships at sea.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Monday said it would "return" more than 10 warplanes to Crimea, according to Russian news agency Interfax.

18 Dec 2018; AFP: President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged the Federal Reserve, the US central bank, to not make "another mistake" by raising interest rates.

"I hope the people over at the Fed will read today's Wall Street Journal Editorial before they make yet another mistake," he tweeted. "Also, don't let the market become any more illiquid than it already is. Stop with the 50 B's. Feel the market, don't just go by meaningless numbers. Good luck!"

New Delhi, Dec 18 (PTI) The CBI has booked two Army officers for allegedly taking bribes of over Rs 82 lakh from a civilian supplier in the procurement of rations for troops posted in Nagaland, officials said Tuesday.

The action has been taken on a complaint from Brigadier Rajiv Gautam posted at the headquarters of the Army's 3 Corps.