World News Roundup: U.S. and North Korea to reopen talks; Albanians vote in mayoral polls and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

After surprise Trump-Kim meeting, U.S. and North Korea to reopen talks

U.S. President Donald Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to set foot in North Korea on Sunday when he met its leader, Kim Jong Un, in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the two Koreas and agreed to resume stalled nuclear talks. The meeting, initiated by a spur-of-the-moment tweet by Trump that Kim said took him by surprise, once again displayed the rapport between the two. But they are no closer to narrowing the gap between their positions since they walked away from their summit in February in Vietnam.

Japanese fleet prepares to resume commercial whaling

Japanese whaling ships prepared on Sunday to set to sea, with crews gathering on decks in a northern port a day ahead of Japan's first commercial whaling hunt in more than 30 years. Japan announced last year it was leaving the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and would resume commercial whaling on July 1, sparking global condemnation and fears for the world's whales.

Palestinian businessman, held after Bahrain workshop, freed: family

The Palestinian Authority (PA) released a Palestinian businessman on Sunday it had arrested upon his return from a U.S.-led economic conference in Bahrain this week, his family and an official said. The Palestinian leadership boycotted the conference in protest at a U.S. economic plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace, saying it was Trump who had inflicted further hardship on the Palestinians with cuts to aid.

Fighting rages across Afghanistan as peace talks continue

Taliban suicide bombers killed at least 19 people in an attack on a government office on Saturday night, officials said, in the latest episode of violence in Afghanistan as peace talks continue to end the war. Election workers were registering voters ahead of presidential elections in September at an office in the Maroof district of the southern Kandahar province when fighters of the hardline Islamist group launched an attack using four Humvee vehicles, officials said.

Hong Kong prepares for pro-democracy march amid extradition bill anger

Hong Kong authorities called for calm ahead of Monday's annual pro-democracy march, with widespread anger over an extradition bill expected to lead to large crowds after high-profile protests this month against the proposal. More than a million people have taken to the streets at times over the past three weeks to vent their anger and frustration at Hong Kong's Beijing-backed leader Carrie Lam, posing the greatest popular challenge to Chinese leader Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.

In race for No. 10, UK's Johnson and Hunt vow to splash the cash

Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt vowed to spend billions of pounds on public services, infrastructure and tax cuts on Sunday as the two men battling to become prime minister pitched themselves as the best candidate to take on the opposition Labour Party. The rivals to succeed Theresa May as leader of the ruling Conservative Party set out plans to win broader political backing by investing in education, transport and defense, even if that means higher government borrowing.

The race should be over by July 23. Syrians dig, cook, fill sandbags in war with Assad

Away from the frontlines, volunteers are helping in the war against President Bashar al-Assad by cooking, filling sandbags, collecting old tyres and digging trenches, aiming to help ward off his assault on northwestern Syria. It is part of the civilian effort to help defend the last major rebel stronghold from Assad and his Russian allies who have been pounding it for weeks.

Dutchman Timmermans in pole position for top EU job: sources

Dutch socialist politician Frans Timmermans is on course to be named as the EU's next chief executive, diplomats and officials said on Sunday, hours before European Union leaders meet to decide who wins the bloc's top posts in Europe. Barring unexpectedly tough resistance from eastern European countries, Timmermans is set to be chosen after talks between France and Germany at the G20, two diplomats and one European Parliament adviser said.

China warns of long road ahead for deal with U.S. after ice-breaking talks

China and the United States will face a long road before they can reach a deal to end their bitter trade war, with more fights ahead likely, Chinese state media said after the two countries' presidents held ice-breaking talks in Japan. The world's two largest economies are in the midst of a bitter trade war, which has seen them level increasingly severe tariffs on each other's imports.

Albanians vote in mayoral polls boycotted by opposition

Voting in Albanian mayoral elections that opposition parties are boycotting began calmly on Sunday after Western countries warned against violence, although some abstainers mocked those who were casting a vote with songs from the country's communist past. European bodies and the United States have called on Albanian parties to avoid violence during the elections for mayors of 61 towns and cities, which President Ilir Meta has decreed illegal because they are not sufficiently competitive.