World Leaders

France's iconic Notre Dame Cathedral is reopening its doors on Saturday for the first time since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the 861-year-old landmark in 2019. The restoration, a spectacular achievement in just five years for a structure that took nearly two centuries to build, is widely seen as a moment of triumph for French President Emmanuel Macron, who championed the ambitious timeline and a welcome respite from his domestic political woes. Under the luminous stained glass, many world leaders, dignitaries, and worshippers will gather in the evening to mark the occasion a rare moment of unity against the backdrop of global divisions and conflicts. America's first lady Jill Biden, Britain's Prince William and President-elect Donald Trump, along with nearly 50 heads of state and government and personalities 1,500 guests in all will attend the reopening celebration under Notre Dame's soaring Gothic arches, led by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich. Instead of starting from the .

"Ukraine, as one of Europe's strongest military powers, is committed to ensuring long-term peace and security in Europe and the Transatlantic community with the support of our allies. I am looking for

An investigation by French newspaper Le Monde found that the highly confidential movements of U.S. President Joe Biden, presidential rivals Donald Trump and Kamala Harris and other world leaders can be easily tracked online through a fitness app that their bodyguards use. But the U.S. Secret Service told the newspaper that it doesn't believe the protection it provides was in any way compromised. Le Monde found that some U.S. Secret Service agents use the Strava fitness app, including in recent weeks after the two assassination attempts on Trump, in a video investigation released in French and in English. Strava is a fitness tracking app primarily used by runners and cyclists to record their activities and share their workouts with a community. Le Monde also found Strava users among the security staff for French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin. In one example, Le Monde traced the Strava movements of Macron's bodyguards to determine that the French leade

King Charles III told a summit of Commonwealth countries in Samoa Friday that the past could not be changed as he indirectly acknowledged calls from some of Britain's former colonies for a reckoning over its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The British royal understood the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate," he told leaders in Apia. But Charles stopped short of mentioning financial reparations that some leaders at the event have urged and instead exhorted them to find the right language and an understanding of history to guide us towards making the right choices in future where inequality exists." None of us can change the past but we can commit with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to write the inequalities that endure," said Charles, who is attending his first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, or CHOGM, as Britain's head of state. His remarks at the summit's official opening ceremony echoed comments a day earlie

Maduro to Zelensky: Here are all the world leaders Elon Musk has clashed with

PM Modi is far ahead of other world leaders including US President Joe Biden, who currently has 38.1 mn followers, HH Sheikh Mohammed, the present ruler of Dubai (11.2 mn) and Pope Francis (18.5 mn)

World leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, on Sunday denounced the appalling assassination bid on former US president Donald Trump and asserted that violence has no place in politics and democracies. Trump, 78, survived an attempt on his life on Saturday when a young shooter fired multiple shots at him at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, injuring his right ear. The shooting left one person attending the rally dead and two others in serious condition. The 20-year-old suspected shooter was shot and killed by a member of the Secret Service. Prime Minister Modi expressed deep concern over the attack and said violence has no place in politics and democracies. Modi said on X, "Deeply concerned by the attack on my friend, former President Donald Trump. Strongly condemn the incident. Violence has no place in politics and democracies. Wish him a speedy recovery." "Our thoughts and prayers are with the fa

Desire to make an Asia for Asians, without the overbearing influence of the West, is not new

Over 50 world leaders have congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he is set to take oath this week for a third straight term at the top office following the National Democratic Alliance's victory in the Lok Sabha polls. From India's neighbourhood and extended neighbourhood, presidents of Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Iran, Seychelles and prime ministers of Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Mauritius have sent congratulatory greetings to Modi. In a post on X, Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong described the victory of the NDA alliance as "historic" and said he was looking forward to working with his Indian counterpart to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations next year. "Congratulations @narendramodi on the historic victory by the NDA for the third consecutive term. Look forward to working with you to deepen the Singapore-India partnership and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year," Wong said on X. Among G20 ...

Presidents, Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers of several countries on Friday wished India on its 75th Republic Day and expressed their hope for progress in bilateral relations and close people-to-people ties. These leaders included those from the immediate neighbourhood in South Asia and some from far-flung nations such as Australia. Almost all of them posted their greetings on social media handles and some of them wrote letters or messages to Indian leaders. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese extended his warm wishes to the people of India on the same day as his country celebrates its national day and said, We have an opportunity to celebrate the depth of our friendship. Australia and India have never been closer. In a message to President Droupadi Murmu, the British King Charles III said he cherishes the close bond shared between the two countries. I am confident that our ties will continue to flourish in this very special seventy-fifth anniversary year of the ...

King Charles III on Friday congratulated the people of India on its 75th Republic Day and said he looks forward to the UK and India working together to tackle the world's most pressing challenges. In a message to President Droupadi Murmu, the British monarch said he cherishes the close bond shared between the two countries and added: I am confident that our ties will continue to flourish in this very special seventy-fifth anniversary year of the Commonwealth a fitting reminder of the enduring values and aspirations that unite us. Incidentally, King Charles III is the same age as the Indian Republic. It was on January 26, 1950, that the Constitution of India came into force replacing the Government of India Act 1935, a legacy of the British Raj from the colonial times. Congratulating India on a successful G20 presidency last year, King Charles III said, I look forward to our countries continuing to work together to tackle the world's most pressing global challenges. He also said he

At the age of 83, Sheikh Meshal ascends to Emir of the state of Kuwait, one of the top ten largest oil-producing nations in the world

US President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday in San Francisco on the sidelines of the 30th APEC summit

President Joe Biden will use his annual address before the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to make the case to world leaders and the 2024 US electorate that he's reestablished US leadership on the world stage that he says was diminished under former President Donald Trump. White House officials said Biden would make a robust case to members of the world body to continue to back Ukraine's effort to repel a nearly 19-month old Russian invasion that has no end in sight. Biden previewed his thinking in a pair of fundraisers on Monday evening, telling supporters that he stood up to Vladimir Putin's invasion, and questioning whether Trump, the 2024 GOP presidential frontrunner, would have even attempted to help Ukraine stop the Russian land grab if he were in power. I will not side with dictators like Putin. Maybe Trump and his MAGA friends can bow down but I won't, Biden told supporters at a Broadway fundraiser. There will be notable absences as the president makes his case before the

The gala dinner was hosted at the state-of-the-art Bharat Mandapam, the main venue for the 18th G20 Leaders' Summit at Delhi's Pragati Maidan

In a riot of brown, green and shades of vivid orange, hundreds of trees lining roads through which heads of states and foreign delegates will travel during the G20 Summit have been adorned with garlands of marigold. Tree trunks wrapped with marigold can been seen in the Palam technical area, Sardar Patel Marg, Rajghat and other important intersections. This has been carried out on the directions of Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, officials said. "This is the Gujarati tradition of welcoming guests. This is an eco-friendly way and marigold flowers also add aesthetic value," Saxena told PTI last week. Various agencies have pitched in. While the Delhi Cantonment Board has decorated about 400 trees around the Palam technical area (Thimayya Marg and Parade Road), the Public Works Department has done the job for around 200 trees and 100 poles near Rajghat, according to officials. Besides, about 1,200 trees on Sardar Patel Marg and important intersections have been decorated by the

Taliban has called on the international community to recognise the "Islamic Emirate" of Afghanistan, claiming that if recognised, concerns and complaints of the world will be addressed in a better way

The biggest congregation of global leaders will return Monday to the usual snow-laden setting of this Swiss ski resort town with thousands of participants including about a hundred from India set to discuss 'cooperation in a fragmented world'. The World Economic Forum had to host its last annual meeting in 2022 in May as the summit could not take place in the usual month of January due to the COVID pandemic-related restrictions. Before that, the 2021 meeting could take place online only. Though the pandemic is yet to be declared totally over, restrictions are far a few and the war in Ukraine and the economic fallout of geopolitical as well as health crises have made the Davos meeting, often described as the biggest congregation of the global elite, very interesting. Nearly 50 heads of government or state are expected over the next five days for the meeting beginning Monday, while four union ministers -- Mansukh Mandaviya, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Smriti Irani and R K Singh, as also ...

UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, said that the junta needed "more than words of condemnation" and urged the world leaders to take action

The UN climate talks have been extended by a day in an effort to break the deadlock over key issues, including mitigation work programme, loss and damage and climate finance. Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said COP27 was supposed to wrap up on Friday but has been "extended by a day to attempt to take the ongoing negotiations to a logical end". Providing an update on the negotiations in a blog post, he said a lot of issues, including the mitigation work program, the global goal on adaptation, loss and damage, and climate finance are being negotiated as they remain contentious. "COP is a party-driven process and hence consensus on key issues is vital to the process. The extension is an attempt towards achieving just that," he said. In an effort to break the deadlock, the European Union's chief negotiator Frans Timmermans proposed a plan that tied loss and damage with emission cuts. The success of the talks hinges on a fund to address loss and damage, a term used for ...