World News Roundup: Australian man who lived in China arrested for foreign interference; Taiwan president pledges to strengthen military as Chinese drills ebb and more

Some 5 million of the 16 million residents of Turkey's largest city live in risky homes, official data show, given it lies just north of a faultline crossing the Marmara Sea in the northwest of the country. China's Xi call for deeper practical cooperation with Brazil - state media China and Brazil should deepen practical cooperation, and tap potential to work together in sectors including agriculture, energy, and infrastructure construction, Chinese President Xi Jinping was quoted as saying by state media on Friday.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Australian man who lived in China arrested for foreign interference

An Australian man who had recently returned from China was arrested in Sydney on Friday and charged with a foreign interference offence, police, court officials and neighbours of the man said. Alexander Csergo, 55, will appear before Parramatta local court on Saturday to face a charge of reckless foreign interference, a New South Wales courts spokeswoman told Reuters. The court listing shows it is a criminal case.

Taiwan president pledges to strengthen military as Chinese drills ebb

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Friday thanked fighter pilots who scrambled against China's air force during its drills around the island and pledged to keep strengthening the armed forces, as Beijing's military activity in the vicinity ebbed. China began its exercises, including simulated precision strikes with bombers and missile forces, on April 8 after Tsai returned from Los Angeles, where she met U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, infuriating Beijing.

Man suspected of leaking secret US documents to appear in court

A 21-year-old member of the U.S. Air Force National Guard suspected of leaking highly classified military intelligence records online will make his initial appearance before a federal judge in Boston on Friday. Jack Douglas Teixeira, of North Dighton, Massachusetts, was arrested by the FBI at his home on Thursday without incident.

Sudanese politicians blame Bashir loyalists for discord

Sudan's main pro-democracy coalition said loyalists of former strongman Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted in a coup in 2019, were fuelling a rift between the armed forces and a powerful paramilitary group that has jeopardized a transition to civilian government. The army on Thursday warned of a possible confrontation between its troops and fighters of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), bringing long-bubbling disagreements to the surface.

Ukrainians said to pull back in Bakhmut as Moscow launches new push

Ukrainian troops have been forced to withdraw from some parts of Bakhmut in the face of a renewed Russian assault on the ruined battlefield city, Britain said on Friday, with Moscow pressing to achieve a victory before Ukraine's expected counteroffensive. Ukrainian officials say Russia has been drawing down troops from other areas on the front for a major push on Bakhmut, which Moscow has been trying to capture for nine months to reenergize the all-out invasion it launched more than a year ago.

North Korea says it tested new solid-fuel ICBM, warns of 'extreme' horror

North Korea announced on Friday it had tested a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a development set to "radically promote" its forces, which experts said would facilitate missile launches with little warning. Leader Kim Jong Un guided Thursday's test, and warned it would make enemies "experience a clearer security crisis, and constantly strike extreme uneasiness and horror into them by taking fatal and offensive counter-actions until they abandon their senseless thinking and reckless acts", North Korean state media said.

After earthquake, Istanbul gripped by fear that bigger disaster awaits

The deadliest earthquake in Turkey's modern history has reawakened fears on the other side of the country that Istanbul is an even bigger disaster waiting to happen, sending hundreds of thousands scrambling to find safer homes. Some 5 million of the 16 million residents of Turkey's largest city live in risky homes, official data show, given it lies just north of a faultline crossing the Marmara Sea in the northwest of the country.

China's Xi call for deeper practical cooperation with Brazil - state media

China and Brazil should deepen practical cooperation, and tap potential to work together in sectors including agriculture, energy, and infrastructure construction, Chinese President Xi Jinping was quoted as saying by state media on Friday. In a meeting with visiting Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Beijing, Xi said China has made relations with Brazil a diplomatic priority, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Norway expels Russian diplomats who it says worked for intelligence

Fifteen Russian diplomats expelled by Norway this week had sought to recruit sources, intercept communications and buy advanced technology, the Norwegian PST security police said on Friday. The diplomats' real employers were the Russian GRU, FSB and SVR intelligence services, PST counterintelligence chief Inger Haugland told a news conference.

'Zero capacity to save': Argentines buckle under 103% inflation

Argentines, painfully accustomed to decades of spiraling prices, say that the current 102.5%-and-climbing inflation rate is on another level and is making it almost impossible to get by. "In my case, I have zero capacity to save," said Claudia Hernansaez, a publishing company employee.