Globalsecurity.org

The United States has imposed financial sanctions and other restrictions on a Chinese company that developed facial-recognition software and two ethnic Uyghur political leaders of Xinjiang, accusing them of participation in "gross" human rights abuses in China's northwestern region.

An independent, unofficial panel of British lawyers, academics and businesspeople has concluded that China's government committed genocide against Uyghurs, a ruling denounced by China as a "farce."

China and Nicaragua signed Friday in Tianjin the joint communique on the resumption of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Nicaragua.

On 10 December 2021, China and Nicaragua signed the Joint Communiqué on the Resumption of Diplomatic Relations Between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Nicaragua. The two Governments have decided to recognize each other and resume diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level, effective from the date of signature of this communiqué.

Delegates of the China Coast Guard (CCG) participated in the 17th Heads of Asian Coast Guard Agencies Meeting (HACGAM-17) via video link on December 8, 2021.

Recently, at the request of the Egyptian military police of the Super Camp of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) in Gao, the 9th Chinese peacekeeping engineering contingent to Mali started the construction of a new ammunition depot under the complex security situation and the harsh natural environment in local area.

The Chinese and Vietnamese troops participating in the bilateral medical exercise "Peace Rescue-2021" started joint training for the first time in Mong Cai city, Quang Ninh province of Vietnam on December 8, 2021.

The United States has slapped visa bans on the heads of Minsk's notorious Akrestsina detention center for their involvement in "gross violations" of human rights following last year's "fraudulent" presidential election that handed authoritarian leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka a sixth consecutive term in office.

The Morrison Government has taken steps to strengthen the Australian Army's helicopter capability by formally requesting advice from the United States Government on the acquisition of up to 40 UH-60 Black Hawk to potentially replace the MRH90 Taipan helicopter.

Australia will replace European MRH-90 Taipan military helicopters with multi-role American Black Hawks, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton said on Friday.

Citizens across Myanmar marked International Human Rights Day by joining a "Silent Strike" on Friday as a public boycott of junta rule, leaving towns and cities throughout the country eerily quiet.

More than 10 months since Myanmar's military seized power, the country's human rights situation is deepening on an unprecedented scale, the UN rights office, OHCHR, has warned.

Russia has scrambled a fighter jet to escort away a US spy aircraft flying over the Black Sea, amid growing concerns over the risk of a major military confrontation with the Western forces near the Russian border.

As tensions persisted over Russia's military buildup on its western flank and its designs on Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden held talks with Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and the leaders of nine NATO nations as he sought "de-escalation of the current crisis through deterrence, defense, and dialogue."

The American Ground Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD) intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is being developed as a replacement for the ageing LGM-30G Minuteman series of ICBMs, which have been in service since 1962. The Pentagon has been eyeing 2023 for conducting the first test flights of the GBSD at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

As White House phone calls go, the one that Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy had this week may end up being among the most consequential of his presidency.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced the oppression against ethnic Russians in Ukraine's east as "certainly looking like genocide."

The European Union has warned Russia it would face consequences if it invaded Ukraine, as Germany and France called for talks to ease tensions amid growing concerns over Russia's troop buildup near the border with its southwestern neighbor.

The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on former Ukrainian government official Andriy Portnov, accusing him of buying influence in Ukraine's judiciary.

No description