The Index

🇺🇦 A Russian missile strike on Kryvyi Rih has killed 2 and injured at least 13, damaging an administrative building, according to the regional governor.

🇧🇫 Burkina Faso’s junta has dismissed interim Prime Minister Apollinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela and dissolved the government, according to a decree from military leader Ibrahim Traore.

🇮🇷 IAEA chief reports Iran is significantly increasing uranium enrichment to near bomb-grade levels. Western nations express concern, seeing no civilian justification for the escalation.

🇰🇷 President Yoon Suk Yeol apologises for declaring martial law, acknowledging public concern. He assures there will not be a second martial law declaration in a televised address.

🇷🇴 U.S. State Department emphasizes that Romanians must trust their elections are free from foreign malign influence. This statement follows Romania’s top court annulling a presidential election amid allegations of Russian meddling.

🇮🇶 Iraqi Shi’ite ruling parties and armed groups are considering military intervention in Syria amid the advance of Sunni Islamist rebels, who have captured two cities and are threatening a third.

🇹🇷 President Erdogan expresses hope for Syrian rebels' advance against Assad but raises concerns about terrorist groups among them.

🇸🇾 UN chief Guterres calls for immediate humanitarian access for civilians in Syria and a return to a U.N.-facilitated political process to end the bloodshed.

🇵🇾 Paraguay cancels a low-level Chinese diplomat’s visa and orders him to leave the country after he urged lawmakers to reconsider ties with Taiwan.

🇷🇺 President Putin appoints Alexander Khinshtein as acting governor of the southern Kursk region, citing a need for “crisis management” in the area, which has been partly occupied by Ukrainian forces since August.

🇰🇷 Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with South Korea’s foreign minister, welcomed the lifting of martial law, and expressed expectation for the democratic process to prevail in the country.

🇰🇷 South Korea’s ruling party leader states President Yoon Suk Yeol must be suspended for national safety due to attempts to impose martial law, but stops short of calling for impeachment.

🌍 Donor countries pledge a record $100 billion for the World Bank’s fund supporting the poorest nations. This replenishment will aid in addressing crushing debts, climate disasters, inflation, and conflict over the next three years.

🇺🇸 President-elect Trump selects former Senator David Perdue as ambassador to China, aiming to navigate complex relations marked by mistrust and trade tensions.

🇷🇺 A senior Russian official states work on the BRICS payment system will proceed despite President-elect Trump’s threat of 100% import duties on countries undermining the dollar.

🇷🇺 Lavrov signals Russia’s readiness to use any means in Ukraine conflict, including hypersonic missiles, asserting no “strategic defeat” will be tolerated by Moscow.

🇹🇼 Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te urges China to “unclench its fists” ahead of expected war games. He warns that Beijing will gain no respect from military drills and calls for an end to unilateral actions.

🇵🇰 Jailed former PM Imran Khan calls for a rally next week and threatens a civil disobedience movement after his party’s deadly protest march in Islamabad.

🇮🇳 Modi’s BJP accuses the US State Department and ‘deep state’ elements of attempting to destabilise India, collaborating with investigative journalists and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi.

🌍 Resurgence of fighting in Syria highlights the significant involvement of foreign powers in the conflict. Their presence and actions have been pivotal in shaping the current landscape of the ongoing crisis.