World News Roundup: Putin accuses Ukraine of provocations in phone call; China says US to blame for tensions over Taiwan and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Putin accuses Ukraine of provocations in phone call with Merkel: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of provocative action in eastern Ukraine that was inflaming the situation there during a phone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the Kremlin said on Thursday. In a readout of the call, the Kremlin said that both sides had voiced concerns about the situation in eastern Ukraine. They also discussed the case of jailed Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny and Libya, the Kremlin said.

China says U.S. to blame for tensions over Taiwan

Beijing blamed the United States on Thursday for tensions over Taiwan after a U.S. warship sailed close to the Chinese-claimed island, asking rhetorically whether China would sail in the Gulf of Mexico as a "show of strength". The democratically-run island has complained of repeated military activities by Beijing in recent months, with China's air force making almost daily forays into Taiwan's air defence identification zone.

Eleven killed as Myanmar protesters fight troops with handmade guns, firebombs: media

Anti-coup demonstrators in Myanmar fought back with handmade guns and firebombs against a crackdown by security forces in a town in the northwest but at least 11 of the protesters were killed, domestic media reported on Thursday. Initially, six truckloads of troops were deployed to quell protesters in the town of Taze, the Myanmar Now and Irrawaddy news outlets said. When the protesters fought back with handmade guns, knives and firebombs, five more truckloads of troops were brought in.

N.Irish leaders set aside bickering to urge end to violence

Northern Ireland's power-sharing government put aside factional differences on Thursday to appeal for calm after more than a week of nightly violence partly fuelled by frustration among pro-British unionists over post-Brexit trade barriers. Hundreds of youths in the British province's capital Belfast set a hijacked bus on fire and attacked police with stones on Wednesday in scenes reviving memories of decades of sectarian strife that claimed some 3,600 lives prior to a 1998 peace deal.

Rallies, religious gatherings aggravate India's worst COVID-19 surge

India's COVID-19 cases have soared 13-fold in barely two months, a vicious second wave propelled by open disregard for safety protocols in much of the vast country. Election rallies led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other major figures, as well as crowded festivals and religious gatherings, have characterised the record resurgence of the new coronavirus.

Kremlin says Russia will be forced to protect its citizens in Ukraine's east depending on scale of conflict: TASS

A senior Kremlin official said on Thursday that Russia would be forced to defend its citizens in eastern Ukraine depending on the scale of the military conflict there, the TASS news agency reported on Thursday. The official, Dmitry Kozak, said that the start of major military action in eastern Ukraine would mark the beginning of the end of Ukraine, TASS said.

Court sentences acting Muslim Brotherhood leader to life in prison

An Egyptian court sentenced Mahmoud Ezzat, the former acting leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, to life in prison on Thursday, months after he was detained in a Cairo apartment. Security forces arrested Ezzat last August in a raid in Cairo's Fifth Settlement district, the latest blow to a movement that has been the target of a crackdown since it was forced from power in 2013.

Opus Dei, leftist, former goalie: who's who in Peru election race?

Peru will vote for a new president on Sunday after a year of political turmoil, with a focus on the coronavirus pandemic, economic revival, corruption and mining policy in the world's no. 2 copper producer. With a fragmented field, the April 11 vote is not expected to yield an outright winner, which would lead to a run-off on June 6. With many Peruvians weary of politics, the race is one of the most unpredictable for years.

COVAX vaccines reach more than 100 countries, despite supply hits: GAVI/WHO

The COVAX vaccine facility has delivered nearly 38.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to more than 100 countries and economies across six continents as of Thursday, six weeks after it began to roll out supplies, a statement said. Despite being hit by reduced supply availability in March and April, and higher demand in India where much of its main jab AstraZeneca is made, it expects to deliver doses to all economies that have requested them in the first half of 2021, the GAVI vaccine alliance and World Health Organization said.

Britons can be confident in vaccine monitoring, health secretary says

Britons should be confident that the system to monitor COVID-19 vaccines is working following the change in advice on giving young people the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Thursday. "People can be reassured that we have the high class safety system run by our world class regulator (...) and then we're totally transparent with all of the side effects, no matter how extremely rare they are like these ones," he told Sky News.

(With inputs from agencies.)