Reuters World News Summary

Tensions have risen in recent weeks, leading major parties and other organisations jointly to call out the junta on March 31 for not scheduling elections within the promised time frame. Support from 'indispensable' US vital for Ukraine's survival, Japan PM tells Congress Ukraine risks collapsing under Russia's onslaught without U.S. support, a disaster that could embolden China and spark a new crisis in East Asia, Japan's prime minister told U.S. lawmakers on Thursday, urging them to overcome "self-doubt" about the country's role on the world stage.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Mexico calls on World Court to suspend Ecuador pending embassy raid apology

Mexico has asked the top court of the United Nations to suspend Ecuador's membership until the South American country issues a public apology for its raid on Mexico's embassy in Quito, court filings released by the International Court of Justice showed on Thursday. The case filed by Mexico accuses Ecuador of violating international law and a U.N. treaty on diplomatic relations by carrying out an armed raid on the Mexican embassy.

Kishida delights Washington with promise of 250 cherry trees as independence gift

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida drew cheers and applause from U.S. lawmakers on Thursday when he announced a plan to donate 250 cherry trees to the U.S. capital to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. independence. In a speech to the U.S. Congress in Washington underscoring close ties between the United States and Japan, Kishida referred to work the U.S. National Park Service is undertaking to spruce up the Tidal Basin, an area of parkland in Washington that is home to national monuments such as the Lincoln Memorial.

US lawmakers, activists urge action on migration from, firearms to Haiti

U.S. lawmakers on Thursday called for the country to take further action to stop the flow of firearms to Haiti and to halt the forced return of migrants seeking to flee worsening street violence and shortages of essential supplies. Democratic congresswomen Ayanna Pressley, Cori Bush and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick met with human rights advocates and Haitian organizations to call for the extension of temporary protection status for migrants, an end to deportations and stronger controls at Florida ports, which the United Nations considers the main route for trafficking firearms to gangs which control most of the capital.

Iran aims to contain fallout in Israel response, will not be hasty, sources say

Iran has signalled to Washington that it will respond to Israel's attack on its Syrian embassy in a way that aims to avoid major escalation and it will not act hastily, as Tehran presses demands including a Gaza truce, Iranian sources said. Iran's message to Washington was conveyed by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian during a visit on Sunday to the Gulf Arab state of Oman, which has often acted as an intermediary between Tehran and Washington, the sources said.

Russia and Kazakhstan battle record floods as rivers rise further

The Russian city of Orenburg battled rising water levels on Thursday after major rivers across Russia and Kazakhstan burst their banks in the worst flooding seen in the areas in nearly a century. The deluge of melt water has forced over 120,000 people from their homes in Russia's Ural Mountains, Siberia and Kazakhstan as major rivers such as the Ural, which flows through Kazakhstan into the Caspian, overwhelmed embankments.

Russia, Germany and UK urge restraint as Iranian threat puts Middle East on edge

Russia, Germany and Britain on Thursday urged countries in the Middle East to show restraint and Israel said it was preparing to "meet all its security needs" in a region on edge over an Iranian threat to strike Israel. The German airline Lufthansa, one of only two Western carriers flying to Tehran, extended a suspension of its flights to the Iranian capital and Russia warned against travel to the Middle East.

Peru investigating missing military jet

The Peruvian Air Force said on Thursday that it lost communication with a Mirage 2000 fighter plane that was conducting low-altitude training in southern Peru and has ordered investigations to determine "the causes of the accident." The jet lost communication with the La Joya Air Base, located in the Arequipa region, at 10:31 a.m. local time (15:31 GMT) and a search and rescue team was immediately activated by "aerial means and ground patrols," an Air Force statement said.

Major Russian air strikes destroy Kyiv power plant, damage other stations

Russian missiles and drones destroyed a large electricity plant near Kyiv and hit power facilities in several regions of Ukraine on Thursday, officials said, ramping up pressure on the embattled energy system as Kyiv runs low on air defences. The major attack more than two years since Russia's full-scale invasion completely destroyed the Trypilska coal-powered thermal power plant near the capital, a senior official at the company that runs the facility told Reuters.

Malian parties reject junta's suspension of political activities

Malian political parties and civil society groups jointly rejected on Thursday the ruling junta's order to suspend political activities and vowed to mount a legal challenge to what one opposition politician called the "dictatorial" move. The West African country has been under military rule since a coup in 2020. Tensions have risen in recent weeks, leading major parties and other organisations jointly to call out the junta on March 31 for not scheduling elections within the promised time frame.

Support from 'indispensable' US vital for Ukraine's survival, Japan PM tells Congress

Ukraine risks collapsing under Russia's onslaught without U.S. support, a disaster that could embolden China and spark a new crisis in East Asia, Japan's prime minister told U.S. lawmakers on Thursday, urging them to overcome "self-doubt" about the country's role on the world stage. In the first speech to a joint meeting of Congress by a Japanese leader in nine years, Fumio Kishida urged Americans not to doubt the country's "indispensable" role in world affairs, and said Tokyo was undertaking historic military upgrades to support its ally.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)