Reuters World News Summary

The failure of efforts to restore a 2015 accord, which would curb Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions that have hammered Iran's economy, risks raising political tensions in the Middle East and further increasing world oil prices, analysts say. Ukraine says Russian forces near Chernobyl could pose new radiation threat A senior Ukrainian official accused Russia on Sunday of "irresponsible" acts around the occupied Chernobyl power station that could send radiation across much of Europe, and urged the United Nations to dispatch a mission to assess the risks.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

U.S. envoy not confident Iran nuclear deal is imminent

U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley said on Sunday he was not confident that a nuclear deal between world powers and the Islamic Republic was imminent, dampening expectations after 11 months of talks in Vienna that have stalled. The failure of efforts to restore a 2015 accord, which would curb Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions that have hammered Iran's economy, risks raising political tensions in the Middle East and further increasing world oil prices, analysts say.

Ukraine says Russian forces near Chernobyl could pose new radiation threat

A senior Ukrainian official accused Russia on Sunday of "irresponsible" acts around the occupied Chernobyl power station that could send radiation across much of Europe, and urged the United Nations to dispatch a mission to assess the risks. Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said Russian forces were "militarising" the exclusion zone around the station, site of the world's worst civil nuclear accident in 1986.

Israeli-Arab summit convenes, Blinken seeks to reassure allies on Iran

Israeli and Arab partners convened for a rare summit in Israel on Sunday attended by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who sought to reassure the U.S. allies over Washington's diplomacy with Iran. The issue is likely to dominate the two-day gathering, which includes foreign ministers from three Arab states that normalised ties with Israel in 2020, even as peacemaking with the Palestinians remained stalled.

German SPD wins Saarland vote in boost for Scholz

Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) scored a clear victory in a regional election in the state of Saarland on Sunday, according to preliminary results, helping Chancellor Olaf Scholz consolidate his power ahead of other regional votes this year. The centre-left party will have enough seats for an absolute majority in the small western state, the first regional vote since the SPD unexpectedly beat the conservatives in a national election last year after 16 years of rule by Angela Merkel.

Russia and Azerbaijan trade barbs over Nagorno-Karabakh

Russia and Azerbaijan on Sunday traded barbs over the movement of Azeri forces in Nagorno-Karabakh where a simmering dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan flared into a six-week war in 2020. Azeri troops in 2020 drove ethnic Armenian forces out of swathes of territory they had controlled since the 1990s in and around Nagorno-Karabakh before Russia brokered a ceasefire.

Kim says N.Korea will keep developing 'formidable striking capabilities' - KCNA

North Korea will continue to develop "formidable striking capabilities" that cannot be bartered or sold for anything, leader Kim Jong Un said, according to state media on Monday, as he visited workers involved with the country's biggest missile test. Kim was meeting with officials, scientists, technicians and workers who contributed to a missile launch on Thursday, which North Korea said was its largest intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), state news agency KCNA reported.

Ukraine willing to be neutral, says Russia wants to split nation

Ukraine is willing to become neutral and compromise over the status of the eastern Donbass region as part of a peace deal, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday, even as another top Ukrainian official accused Russia of aiming to carve the country in two. Zelenskiy took his message directly to Russian journalists in a video call that the Kremlin pre-emptively warned Russian media not to report, saying any agreement must be guaranteed by third parties and put to a referendum.

Houthis say prisoner swap deal includes 16 Saudis, brother of Yemen president

A prisoner swap deal was agreed this month by Yemen's Houthi movement and the country's internationally recognized government, which is supported by a Saudi-led military coalition, a Houthi official said on Sunday. Abdul Qader al-Mortada said on Twitter that the deal, under the auspices of the United Nations, includes 1,400 Houthi prisoners in return for 823 prisoners including 16 Saudis, three Sudanese prisoners, the brother of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and former defence minister Mahmoud al-Subaihi.

Biden says he is not calling for regime change in Russia

U.S. President Joe Biden clarified on Sunday that the United States does not have a policy of regime change in Russia, after his declaration that Russian President Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power." Biden's comments in Poland on Saturday also included calling Putin a "butcher" and appeared to be a sharp escalation of the U.S. approach to Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

Two Arab gunmen kill two police officers in Israel and are shot dead - Israeli officials

Two Arab gunmen killed two police officers on a city street in Israel on Sunday and were then shot dead, as the U.S. secretary of state and three Arab foreign ministers visited the country for a summit. Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on its Telegram account.

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