CUBA

UN overwhelmingly votes to condemn US trade embargo

The 193-member UN General Assembly called for the 31st time on the United States to end its decadeslong trade embargo against Cuba as the island nation suffers its worst economic crisis in decades, with shortages of food, fuel and medicine. The nonbinding resolution was approved by 187 countries and opposed only by the United States and Israel, with Ukraine abstaining. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez urged the assembly before the vote to support "reason and justice", the UN Charter and international law, and declared: "Let Cuba live without the blockade!"

RUSSIA

Moscow revokes ratification of nuclear test ban treaty

President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a bill revoking Russia's ratification of a global nuclear test ban, a move that Moscow said was needed to establish parity with the United States. Putin said rescinding the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty would "mirror" the stand taken by the US, which has signed but not ratified the nuclear test ban. Both houses of the Russian parliament voted last month to revoke Moscow's ratification of the bill. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said last month that Moscow would continue to respect the ban and will only resume nuclear tests if Washington does first.

UNITED STATES

Trump's two eldest sons grilled at NYC fraud trial

Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump testified on Thursday in the New York case against the family real estate business and blamed accountants for company financial statements that the authorities say were fraudulent. The former president's two eldest sons were the first members of the Trump family to testify in the trial in which the Trump Organization is accused of inflating the value of its assets by billions of dollars to obtain more favorable bank loans and insurance terms. Former president Donald Trump is expected to testify on Monday, a day shy of the one-year mark before the Nov 5, 2024, presidential election.