World News Roundup: Spain's Socialists await July vote; Italy seeks fresh migrant clampdown and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Spain's Socialists won't seek to form government if lose July votes

Spain's Socialist party (PSOE) spokeswoman said on Tuesday that the party will not make a fresh attempt to name acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez as the new premier if he fails to win two investiture votes in July, pointing to a new national election.

Italy seeks fresh migrant clampdown as more boats arrive

Italy's government plans to throw more resources into its fight against boat migrants, an official said on Tuesday, as the number of new arrivals gathers speed, putting pressure on Interior Minister Matteo Salvini. Some 47 migrants were brought to shore before dawn by an Italian police patrol vessel, while a charity ship rebuffed by Italy picked up 44 people in the central Mediterranean and said they would be transferred to Malta later in the day.

Iran's Zarif says Trump has been lured by allies into killing 2015 nuclear deal

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Wednesday Donald Trump's allies had tricked the U.S. president into killing off a 2015 nuclear agreement between Tehran and world powers. Zarif said on Twitter that Trump's national security adviser John Bolton and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had killed an earlier agreement in 2005 by insisting that Iran stop all uranium enrichment.

Hong Kong leader says extradition bill is dead, but critics unconvinced

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Tuesday the extradition bill that sparked the Chinese-ruled city's biggest crisis in decades is dead and that government work on the legislation had been a "total failure", but critics accused her of playing with words. The bill, which would allow people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China to face trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party, sparked huge and at times violent street protests and plunged the former British colony into turmoil.

Bail hearing set for ex-U.S. Marine accused of storming North Korean mission in Madrid

A bail review hearing is set to resume on Tuesday in Los Angeles federal court for a former U.S. Marine accused of being part of a group that stormed the North Korean embassy in Madrid and stole computers and computer drives. A federal judge ruled on July 2 that Christopher Ahn, a U.S. citizen and former Marine, could be released but sent to Spain to face local charges. Prosecutors have claimed he is a flight risk.

Japan, South Korea raise the stakes in dispute over forced labor

Japan and South Korea raised the stakes on Tuesday in a diplomatic dispute that threatens to disrupt global supplies of smartphones and chips, with South Korea denouncing Japanese reports that it had transferred a key chemical to North Korea. At the root of the dispute between the U.S. allies is compensation for South Koreans forced to work for Japanese firms during World War Two.

Exclusive: China's PLA signals it will keep Hong Kong-based troops in barracks

The Chinese military commander responsible for Hong Kong has assured a Pentagon official that Chinese troops will not interfere in the city's affairs – an apparent signal that they will stay in their barracks amid renewed political upheaval. Trucks full of white-gloved People's Liberation Army soldiers rolled into Hong Kong within hours of Britain handing its colony back to Chinese rule in 1997, sparking anxiety and raising lingering questions about their role.

Trump blasts 'foolish' UK PM May and her 'wacky' envoy over leaked memos

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday lashed out at "foolish" British Prime Minister Theresa May and her "wacky" Washington ambassador, stepping up a tirade against a close ally whose envoy had branded his administration inept. May has given her full support to Washington envoy Kim Darroch after a series of memos in which he described Trump's administration as "dysfunctional" and "diplomatically clumsy and inept" were leaked to a British newspaper on Sunday.

U.S. State Department approves possible $2.2 billion arms sale to Taiwan

The U.S. State Department has approved the possible sale to Taiwan of M1A2T Abrams tanks, Stinger missiles and related equipment at an estimated value of $2.2 billion, the Pentagon said on Monday, despite Chinese criticism of the deal. China's foreign ministry expressed anger about the sale and urged the United States to revoke it. The timing is especially sensitive as the Washington and Beijing are seeking to resolve a bitter trade war.

Would-be PM Johnson's Brexit promise trumps gaffes for UK Conservatives

With a string of sausages around his neck and holding packs of "Boris bangers", Boris Johnson extolled the virtues of new business in northern England as part of his pitch to become Britain's next prime minister. A day later, the man whose stint as foreign minister was marked by gaffes which have prompted some of his critics to question his suitability for high office couldn't quite remember where the factory making the sausages were.

(With inputs from agencies.)