WORLD NEWS & HEADLINES

KYIV, Ukraine (AP), U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken urged the west Wednesday to stand united against what he called "relentless Russian aggression" against Ukraine. He also assured Ukraine's leader that they are there for them.

KABUL (AP) -- Several months before President Joe Biden declared the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Washington's watchdog warned the Afghan air force that it would collapse without vital American training, maintenance, and aid. Tuesday's declassification of the report allowed it to be released.

MELBOURNE (Australia) -- Australia recorded a record number of COVID-19-related deaths Tuesday. The country's second-largest state declared an immediate hospital emergency to deal with a surge in patient admissions and a staff shortage caused by the coronavirus.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP), - North Korea claimed Tuesday that it had fired "tactical guided missiles" after South Korea detected two missiles being launched by the North.

HONG KONG (AP), -- Authorities in Hong Kong said Tuesday that about 2,000 small animals will be killed after they tested positive for coronavirus at a pet shop where an employee was also infected.

WASHINGTON (AP), -- As tensions between Russia and the U.S. escalate over a possible Russian invasion, Secretary of State Antony Blinken plans to visit Ukraine and meet with President Volodymyr Zilenskyy, the State Department announced Tuesday.

GENEVA (AP), -- Monday's call by the Chinese President Xi Jinping for more international cooperation against COVID-19 was a veiled attack on the United States. He said that China would send 1 billion additional vaccines to other countries and urged other powers to abandon a Cold-War mentality at a time when geopolitical tensions are rising.

COLLEYVILLE (Texas) -- After a 10-hour standoff, the rabbi of a Texas synagogue claims he threw a chair at a gunman and then escaped along with two other hostages.

GAZA CITY (Gaza Strip) -- Gaza Strip is a poor place with few jobs, very little electricity, and virtually no natural resources. It has lots of rubble after the four brutal wars it fought with Israel in just over 10 years.

PARIS (AP), -- French teachers expressed anger at how the French government handled the pandemic in schools. They denounced confusing rules, and demanded more protection during a nationwide strike that took place on Thursday.

GIGLIO (AP) -- Italy marked Thursday the 10th anniversary the Costa Concordia cruise vessel disaster. A daylong commemoration culminated with a candlelight vigil to mark the moment the ship crashed into a reef, then capsized off the Tuscan Island of Giglio.

FRANKFURT (Germany) -- Europe's natural-gas crisis is not abating. The reserves are low. The prices are high. Customers who are utility customers face high bills. Gazprom, a major Russian supplier of gas, isn't selling as much gas as it used to.

MOSCOW (AP), - Troops from a Russia led security alliance were planning to withdraw from Kazakhstan on Thursday, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. They are withdrawing just one week after being deployed to Kazakhstan on the order of the president. He was trying to end violent mass protests.

TAIPEI (AP) -- Access to most of Taiwan's major cities was suspended on Thursday as China attempted to control an outbreak the highly contagious omicron variant. This is a test for its COVID-19 policy, which China considers "zero tolerance", and the country's ability to host the Winter Olympics.

BEIJING (AP), -- A second round of COVID-19 testing was ordered Wednesday by Tianjin, a northern Chinese city. This is following the discovery of 97 cases during initial screenings which began Sunday.

MOSCOW (AP), -- Kazakh authorities announced Wednesday that they had detained 1678 more people over their alleged involvement in violent unrest in Kazakhstan last week. This was the worst violence since Kazakhstan gained independence in three decades.

SOFIA (Bulgaria) -- Wednesday saw protesters against COVID-19 restrictions in Bulgaria clash with police when they attempted to storm the Parliament in Sofia, the capital.

BRUSSELS, (AP) -- While the United States and NATO rejected key Russian security requests for easing tensions in Ukraine, they left open the possibility that future talks could be held with Moscow to discuss other issues, such as arms control, missile deployments, and ways to prevent any military incidents.