World News Roundup: U.S. abortion fight in 2023 to focus on state laws, medication; Zelenskiy shows up failed Russian efforts with visit to east Ukraine and more

Amirabdollahian also added that other parties to the deal should take the "necessary political decision" to salvage the pact during his meeting with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in Jordan. Zelenskiy shows up failed Russian efforts with visit to east Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin said the situation in Russian-held parts of Ukraine was "extremely difficult" on Tuesday while his Ukrainian counterpart drove home the message by visiting a frontline town that Russia has long tried and failed to capture.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

U.S. abortion fight in 2023 to focus on state laws, medication

Six months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, the state of abortion rights around the country remains unsettled, thanks to a patchwork of lawsuits in state courts and emergency court orders. Experts predict that the uncertainty will continue in the coming year, as cases wend their way through courts, and state legislatures consider new restrictions, potentially drawing new battle lines in the fight over abortion rights.

Zelenskiy shows up failed Russian efforts with visit to east Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the situation in Russian-held parts of Ukraine was "extremely difficult" on Tuesday while his Ukrainian counterpart drove home the message by visiting a frontline town that Russia has long tried and failed to capture. Addressing Russia's security services, Putin told operatives they needed to significantly improve their work in a speech that was one of his clearest public admissions yet that the invasion he launched almost ten months ago is not going to plan.

North Korea slams Japan's military buildup, U.S. flies stealth jets

North Korea on Tuesday condemned a Japanese military buildup outlined in a new security strategy, calling it dangerous and vowing counteractions, while also warning of another imminent test of an intercontinental ballistic missile. Japan last week announced its biggest military build-up since World War Two as tension with China and a hostile North Korea, and Russia's Ukraine invasion, stoke fears of war.

Former concentration camp secretary, 97, convicted of Nazi war crimes

A 97-year-old woman who worked as a Nazi concentration camp secretary was convicted on Tuesday for her role in the murder of thousands of people, in what could be one of the country's last trials for World War Two crimes. The district court in the northern town of Itzehoe handed Irmgard Furchner a two-year suspended sentence for aiding and abetting the murder of 10,505 people and the attempted murder of five people, a court spokesperson said.

Analysis-Politics and Islam bring Indonesian compromise on criminal code

Indonesia's new criminal code has grabbed headlines for making sex outside marriage illegal but Islamic parties wanted even harsher punishment for moral crimes in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, accounts of behind-the-scenes negotiations reveal. The so-called morality code is just one part of the legislative overhaul that the Indonesian parliament ratified this month, a 226-page set of new laws that critics say threaten civil liberties, but officials defend as reflective of Indonesia's identity.

Iran calls on Western Powers to adopt "constructive" approach for revival of 2015 nuclear pact

Iran's top diplomat Hossein Amirabdollahian called on Western Powers on Tuesday to adopt a "constructive" approach for the revival of the 2015 nuclear pact. Amirabdollahian also added that other parties to the deal should take the "necessary political decision" to salvage the pact during his meeting with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in Jordan.

Christmas comes early and bittersweet for Eastern Europe's Ukrainian refugees

Many of the millions of Ukrainian refugees in central and eastern Europe plan to mark Christmas early this year in solidarity with their hosts, learning carols in new languages to generate holiday cheer despite fears for relatives back home. Ukrainians generally celebrate Christmas on January 7 in common with Russians, but the country's Orthodox church has gradually shifted from Moscow's orbit in recent years.

Analysis-Russia's grim battle for Bakhmut may yield pyrrhic victory at best

The nearly five-month battle for the small city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine has ground on for so long and wrought so much death and destruction that, even if Russia does prevail, it will be a pyrrhic victory, military experts say. Wrecked apartment blocks, badly wounded soldiers, mud-filled trenches and civilians cowering in cellars under incessant bombardment have become familiar scenes in and around Bakhmut since the fighting began.

EU tells Iran to halt repression, support for Russia

The EU foreign policy chief told Iran's foreign minister that Tehran should immediately halt military support for Russia and internal repression in Iran, reflecting worsening ties as diplomacy to revive the 2015 nuclear deal remains at a standstill. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said his meeting on Tuesday with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in Jordan, where both are due to attend a regional conference, was necessary "amidst deteriorating Iran-EU relations".

China races to bolster health system as COVID surge sparks global concern

Cities across China scrambled to install hospital beds and build fever screening clinics on Tuesday as authorities reported five more deaths and international concern grew about Beijing's surprise decision to let the virus run free. China this month began dismantling its stringent "zero-COVID" regime of lockdowns and testing after protests against curbs that had kept the virus at bay for three years but at a big cost to society and the world's second-largest economy.