Digest for international stories for week Feb 2 - Feb 8, 2019

Saturday Moscow: Following in the footsteps of the U.S., Russia will abandon a centerpiece nuclear arms treaty but will only deploy intermediate-range nuclear missiles if Washington does so, President Vladimir Putin said Saturday.

Tehran: Iran announced the "successful test" of a new cruise missile with a range of over 1,350 kilometres on Saturday, coinciding with celebrations for the country's 1979 Islamic revolution. Islamabad: China will provide USD 2.5 billion in loans to Pakistan to boost the foreign exchange reserves of its "all-weather ally", a media report said Saturday.

Sunday Washington: US President Donald Trump on Sunday said military intervention in Venezuela was "an option", as Western countries are building pressure on socialist leader Nicolas Maduro to step down and hand over power to opposition leader and self-proclaimed interim President Juan Guaido.

London: British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Sunday she will be "armed with a fresh mandate and new ideas" when she meets European Union negotiators over her Brexit deal. Caracas: Venezuela's opposition leader called on more members of the military to abandon the country's socialist government following the defection of a high-ranking general, while President Nicolas Maduro proposed holding early National Assembly elections that could potentially oust his challenger.

Monday London: The extradition of Vijay Mallya, accused of conspiracy to defraud banks and money laundering offences, has been approved by UK Home Secretary, the British government said on Monday, in a major blow to the liquor baron and boosting India's efforts to bring back the fugitive businessman.

Ottawa: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Monday pledged 53 million Canadian dollars (USD 40 million) in humanitarian aid for Venezuelans amid a deepening crisis. Colombo: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Monday said he is opposed to forming a national government only to expand the Cabinet of ministers, indicating that his rift with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was far from over.

Tuesday Moscow: The Taliban began an extraordinary meeting with high-ranking Afghan politicians -- including women -- on Tuesday in Moscow, where rivals of President Ashraf Ghani called for an interim government as they negotiated without him.

Washington: All 130 foreign students, including 129 Indians, detained in the US for enrolling in a fake university were aware that they were committing a crime to fraudulently remain in America, the State Department has said, amid claims that they knew nothing about the varsity's illegal operation. Paris: At least 10 people died and 30 were injured in an overnight blaze at an apartment block in Paris that police are treating as possible arson, officials said Tuesday.

Wednesday Islamabad/Karachi: A Hindu temple was vandalised in Pakistan's Sindh province by miscreants who set the holy books and idols on fire, drawing a strong reaction from Prime Minister Imran Khan who ordered swift and decisive action against the perpetrators.

Washington: US President Donald Trump will hold a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vietnam on February 27 and 28 to jump-start a diplomatic effort to dismantle the reclusive nation's nuclear and missile programmes. Washington: President Donald Trump Wednesday made yet another strong pitch for merit-based immigration in his annual State of the Union address, saying legal immigrants enrich the US in countless ways, raising hopes of hundreds of thousands of Indian IT professionals who are the worst sufferers of the current per country quota system.

Thursday Brussels: Britain and the EU agreed Thursday to hold more talks to try to avoid a no-deal Brexit, after a "robust" meeting between Prime Minister Theresa May and European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker.

Washington: The US has agreed to sell two advanced missile defence systems to India for two Boeing-777 Head-of-State aircraft for an estimated cost of USD 190 million, a decision that will enhance the security of the planes flying the president and the prime minister. Dhaka: Bangladesh has sealed off its border with Myanmar to stop further influx of refugees fleeing the troubled Rakhine state, Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen has said and claimed that the country's military is now targeting the majority Buddhists and Hindus after cracking down on minority Rohingya Muslims.

Friday Bangkok: Thailand's powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn late Friday described an unprecedented move to make his older sister Princess Ubolratana prime minister as "highly inappropriate" and against "royal traditions".

Islamabad: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Friday said Pakistan would provide all the evidence of "sabotage activities" by former Indian naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on February 19. Washington: Two identical legislations backed by top companies from the Silicon Valley like Google have been introduced in the US House of Representatives and Senate to end the per-country limit on green cards and could benefit thousands of Indian professionals waiting to gain permanent legal residency if signed into law.