World News Roundup: Schoolteacher stabbed to death by pupil in southwest France; Putin says Xi to visit Russia, ties reaching 'new frontiers' and more

Within Ukraine, schools took their classes online for the rest of the week for fear of an upsurge of Russian missile attacks a year on from Moscow's Feb. 24 all-out assault, which failed to topple the government and has long been bogged down. Russia says it won't return to nuclear treaty until West is ready to talk Russia said on Wednesday it would need to see a change in NATO's stance and a willingness for dialogue before it would consider returning to its last remaining nuclear treaty with the United States.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Schoolteacher stabbed to death by pupil in southwest France

A teacher was stabbed to death by a 16-year-old pupil on Wednesday at a Roman Catholic high school in the town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz in southwestern France, government officials and the local prosecutor's office said. The Spanish-language teacher, a woman, was 50 years old, local newspaper Sud Ouest said.

Putin says Xi to visit Russia, ties reaching 'new frontiers'

President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that China's Xi Jinping would visit Russia, saying relations had reached "new frontiers" amid U.S. concerns that Beijing could provide material support to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Chinese weapons supplies to Russia would threaten a potential escalation of the Ukraine war into a confrontation between Russia and China on the one side and Ukraine and the U.S.-led NATO military alliance on the other.

Jill Biden arrives in Namibia on Africa tour

U.S. first lady Jill Biden has arrived in Namibia on the first stop on a five-day Africa tour, part of a push by the United States to strengthen its ties on the continent. Biden landed at the airport in Namibia's capital Windhoek on Wednesday afternoon before heading to Heroes' Acre, a war memorial, with the first lady of Namibia.

Russia will not fire hypersonic missile at S.Africa naval exercise

Russia will not fire its new generation "Zircon" hypersonic missile during a joint naval exercise it is participating in alongside South Africa and China, a senior Russian naval officer said on Wednesday. The 10-day exercise, which is taking place off South Africa's eastern coast and coincides with the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, has raised alarm among Western governments.

Biden to meet NATO's eastern members over Ukraine, China and Russia confer

U.S. President Joe Biden will meet leaders of NATO's eastern flank on Wednesday while China's top diplomat holds talks in Moscow - contrasting shows of support ahead of the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Within Ukraine, schools took their classes online for the rest of the week for fear of an upsurge of Russian missile attacks a year on from Moscow's Feb. 24 all-out assault, which failed to topple the government and has long been bogged down.

Russia says it won't return to nuclear treaty until West is ready to talk

Russia said on Wednesday it would need to see a change in NATO's stance and a willingness for dialogue before it would consider returning to its last remaining nuclear treaty with the United States. The lower house of the Russian parliament voted quickly in favour of suspending Moscow's participation in the New START treaty, rubber-stamping a decision that President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday when he accused the West of trying to inflict a "strategic defeat" on Russia in Ukraine.

France eyes 'unprecedented' water curbs after driest winter since 1959

France is preparing to introduce restrictions on water use in parts of the country from March, in an unprecedented move for the time of year following the driest winter in 64 years, environment minister Christophe Bechu said on Wednesday. France has recorded 32 days without rain, weather forecaster Meteo-France said.

U.S. Supreme Court weighs suit against Twitter over Istanbul massacre

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday is set to hear for a second straight day a bid to hold internet companies accountable for contentious content posted by users, this time involving a lawsuit against Twitter Inc by the American relatives of a Jordanian man killed in a Istanbul nightclub massacre. The justices on Tuesday heard arguments in an appeal arising from a separate lawsuit against Google LLC-owned YouTube, part of Alphabet Inc, by the family of an American woman killed in a Paris attack by Islamist militants. Both lawsuits were brought under a U.S. law that enables Americans to recover damages related to "an act of international terrorism."

Analysis-Putin's nuclear treaty move raises stakes over China's growing arsenal

Russia's suspension of its last remaining nuclear weapons treaty with the United States may have dashed any hopes of dragging China to the table to start talking about its own rapidly accelerating nuclear arms programmes. Regional diplomats and security analysts had held out the prospect of China somehow being convinced to join Russian-U.S. arms talks over extending the New START treaty ahead of its expiry in 2026 as way of easing growing fears over its rapid military modernisation.

Turkey offers economic support in earthquake zone

Turkey has launched a temporary wage support scheme and banned layoffs in 10 cities on Wednesday to protect workers and businesses from the financial impact of the massive earthquakes that hit the south of the country earlier this month. A 7.8 magnitude earthquake on Feb. 6 killed more than 47,000 people, damaged or destroyed hundreds of thousands of buildings in Turkey and Syria and left millions homeless.