As Covid-19 cases surge across large parts of Europe and the U.S., officials are reluctant to force another round of nationwide lockdowns of the sort imposed in March. But this time—unlike in the spring—public-health experts broadly and increasingly agree, with some worried that the general public won’t cooperate with another monthslong, generalized lockdown against a … Read more
U.S. academics Paul R. Milgrom and Robert B. Wilson shared the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for new insights into how auctions work, and how different auction designs can help buyers and sellers meet their goals. The announcement Monday gave the U.S. a clean sweep of this year’s Nobel Prizes, with at least one American … Read more
MOSCOW—Armenia and Azerbaijan accused each other of intense shelling on Sunday, denting hopes that a Russia-brokered cease-fire announced the previous day will hold following two weeks of fierce clashes over the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan said that overnight shelling by Armenian forces on the city of Ganja had left several people dead and dozens … Read more
MOSCOW—Armenia and Azerbaijan announced a cease-fire after nearly two weeks of intense fighting that has claimed hundreds of lives following Russia-brokered talks over the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. The foreign ministers of the two warring countries said in a statement early Saturday that the truce, which began at noon local time, is intended to provide … Read more
Political opposition forces in Kyrgyzstan said they were seeking to seize power and form a new government after taking control of state buildings in the capital following elections that international monitors said were marred by allegations of voter fraud. President Sooronbai Jeenbekov fled the presidential palace early Tuesday after demonstrations rocked the capital of this … Read more
China’s international image has plummeted amid widespread disapproval over how it has handled the coronavirus pandemic, a new survey of 14 industrialized countries found. Only the U.S. received worse marks on its pandemic response, according to a survey published Tuesday. Pew Research Center, which polled 14,276 residents on four continents, found that 73% on average … Read more
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the foreign ministers of Japan, India and Australia pledged to uphold territorial sovereignty and freedom of navigation as rising tension between the countries and China draws them closer to counter Beijing’s expansionist ambitions. On a visit to Tokyo limited to less than 24 hours because of President Trump’s … Read more
U.S. and Russian negotiators made progress Monday on a new framework accord that would freeze each side’s nuclear arsenal and outline the parameters for a detailed treaty that would be negotiated next year, a senior Trump administration official said. The accord, if it comes together in the coming month, would give each side something it … Read more
Europe’s second coronavirus wave is spreading, and rising hospitalizations and deaths are prompting governments to impose more restrictions, from travel bans in Madrid to the closure of bars in Paris. Confirmed cases in France, Spain, and the U.K. are now higher on an average day than at the peak of this spring’s emergency, although the … Read more
Belgian police have arrested three men suspected of involvement in the Rwandan genocide, the latest in a series of high-profile arrests amid a heightened manhunt for perpetuators of the 1994 genocide that killed almost 1 million people in the central African nation. Federal prosecutors confirmed on Sunday that three Rwandan nationals were arrested in Belgium last … Read more