POLITICS

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te warned Wednesday that China's "growing authoritarianism will not stop with" the island and urged democratic countries to unite to curb its expansion.

Barack Obama will hail Kamala Harris as the future of the Democratic Party on Tuesday as she is formally crowned its presidential nominee after a roller-coaster ride in US campaign politics.

It was the hero's send-off he had hoped to defer for another four years but when it came, any lingering bitterness seemed forgotten for a cathartic hour as Joe Biden basked in the adulation of his party faithful.

Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who has claimed he defeated Nicolas Maduro in last month's election, said Monday he was ready to negotiate a transition -- and asked the incumbent to "step aside."

Donald Trump shared doctored images showing Taylor Swift and her fans supporting his presidential campaign, in an apparent effort to tap into the pop singer's mega star power in the US election.

Iran was behind a recent hack targeting Donald Trump's presidential campaign, US security agencies said Monday, accusing Tehran of seeking to influence the 2024 election.

"America, America, I gave my best to you," the 81-year-old Biden said, quoting a patriotic hymn during a nearly hour-long address that ran through his achievements while urging voters to back his vice president against Donald Trump in November.

Less than a month after his stunning withdrawal and Harris's astonishing ascent, Biden can expect a hero's send-off from many of the same people who helped push him out due to concerns about his age.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo hailed his economic track record on Friday in a final state of the nation address before he leaves office in October after a decade in power.

Kamala Harris is expected to take on companies unfairly jacking up prices as she sets out her economic agenda Friday in her first major policy announcement as the Democratic Party's presidential nominee.

Though the Sudanese army is still staying away from ceasefire talks in Switzerland, the US envoy convening the negotiations told AFP they were nonetheless in daily contact -- and making progress on humanitarian aid.

The 37-year-old daughter of billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra became Thailand's prime minister Friday, the third member of the influential but divisive clan to lead the country.

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris made an upbeat show of unity Thursday as they held their first joint public event since Harris replaced the president as the Democratic Party's candidate in November's election.

Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas told a special session of the Turkish parliament on Thursday that he would travel to Gaza.

New Zealand will shakeup its defense forces and "reset" its foreign policy to align with traditional allies, the country's prime minister said Thursday.

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe faces 38 challengers in polls next month, the election commission said Thursday after nominations closed, with ally-turned-rival Sajith Premadasa leading the pack.

The party of Thailand's billionaire ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra meets on Thursday to choose a candidate for prime minister, a day after the kingdom's top court dismissed incumbent premier Srettha Thavisin over an ethics violation.

Mobs vowing to guard Bangladesh's student-led revolution roamed the site of a planned rally for ousted premier Sheikh Hasina on Thursday, beating up some of her suspected supporters with bamboo rods and pipes.

Venezuela's CNE electoral council, under fire after declaring a widely rejected election victory for President Nicolas Maduro, on Wednesday described a UN report disputing the outcome as "rife with lies."

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Wednesday he will step aside next month, ending a three-year term plagued by low popularity ratings and a spluttering economy.

Thailand's Constitutional Court sacked Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Wednesday, branding him dishonest in a ruling in an ethics case that throws the kingdom into fresh political turmoil.

US President Joe Biden's administration on Tuesday approved more than $20 billion in new weapons sales to Israel, brushing aside pressure from rights activists to stop arms deliveries over the death toll in Gaza.

Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir led hundreds of Israelis into the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in annexed east Jerusalem Tuesday and performed prayers marking a Jewish holiday, sources said.

Iran on Tuesday rejected Western calls to stand down its threat to retaliate against Israel for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran late last month.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro called Monday for the state to use an "iron fist" after deadly protests in response to his July reelection, which has been dismissed at home and abroad as a sham.

The leaders of Tanzania's main opposition party Chadema have been released on bail, a party spokesman said on Tuesday, after they were detained in a mass roundup ahead of a youth day rally.

Venezuela's opposition called Sunday for worldwide protests on August 17 to show support for its claimed victory in last month's election over President Nicolas Maduro, who was declared the winner.

Tanzanian police have detained leading opposition figures including Chadema party leader Freeman Mbowe and his deputy Tundu Lissu and rounded up several hundred youth supporters on the eve of a planned rally, a move condemned by rights activists on Monday as "troubling".

Pacific nation Kiribati will begin voting in a general election this week, a poll that will test the strengthening ties between China and the government of the climate-threatened archipelago.