UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on December 28 named a retired Kuwaiti vice admiral as coordinator for the Black Sea Grain Initiative to manage grain shipments from war-torn Ukraine.
French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu visited Ukraine on December 28 to discuss ramping up French military support for the war effort against Russia, including ground-to-air defense.
Former Iranian soccer player Ali Daei, who has backed protests following Mahsa Amini's death, said on December 26 that an airplane from Tehran to Dubai had been rerouted and his family ordered off.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic dispatched the army chief on the night of December 25 to the border with Kosovo, General Milan Mojsilovic himself announced, as strained relations between the two countries were exacerbated by recent blockades.
Iran's top general. Mohammad Bagheri. has said Western claims that its drones are being used by Russia against Ukraine show the “effectiveness” of Tehran's unmanned aerial vehicles.
Pope Francis has appealed for an end to the "senseless" war in Ukraine in his traditional Christmas message from St Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on December 25.
Fourteen Iranian fishermen seized by the Al-Shabaab militant group in Somalia, some as long as eight years ago, have returned home, Iranian media said on December 25.
Turkey conceded on December 24 that Russia's war on Ukraine "will not end easily," despite Ankara's efforts to arrange peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow.
Russia is examining the flight-worthiness of a Soyuz capsule docked at the International Space Station (ISS) that sprang a leak last week to determine whether to send a different vessel to bring back crew members, officials say.
Iran arrested a prominent actor on December 17 after she voiced support for the 3-month-old protest movement triggered by the death of a woman in custody, Iranian media reported.
Iran said on December 17 that its uranium enrichment capacity has increased to record levels, a day before UN nuclear monitors are set to visit the country.
Hundreds of thousands of Russian men are reported to have fled the country since Moscow announced a "partial" mobilization in September. Many left family and loved ones behind. Their wives and partners have been left with the burden of raising a family alone.
Rights groups warned on December 11 that several protesters in Iran are at imminent risk of execution, following an international backlash against the clerical regime's first hanging linked to ongoing demonstrations.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will "explore" a proposal allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in international events in Asia.
Belgium's constitutional court on December 8 suspended a prisoner exchange treaty with Iran criticized for opening the way for a bomb-plot mastermind to return to Tehran.
British tennis chiefs said on December 7 that they were "disappointed" at being fined $1 million by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for banning Russian and Belarusian players from their events.
Iran has sentenced to death five people over the killing of a member of the Basij paramilitary force during nationwide protests, the judiciary said.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards have arrested 12 alleged members of a European-linked group accused of planning acts of sabotage in the country, Tasnim news agency said.
Georgia's jailed ex-president, Mikheil Saakashvili, was "poisoned" in custody by heavy metals and risks dying without proper treatment, according to a medical report distributed on December 5 by his legal team.
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin on December 2 offered a "brutally honest" assessment of Europe's capabilities in the wake of Russia's war on Ukraine, stating that "we're not strong enough" to stand up to Moscow alone.
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