Special Interest Glance
Russia has retaliated against new US sanctions by ordering 755 American diplomats to leave - a move than will create a fresh crisis in the relationship between the two countries.
Days after the both houses of the US Congress voted almost anonymously to impose fresh sanctions on Moscow, Vladimir Putin said he was responding to “unlawful” behaviour by Washington.
“The American side has made a move which, it is important to note, hasn’t been provoked by anything, to worsen Russian-US relations. [It includes] unlawful restrictions, attempts to influence other states of the world, including our allies, who are interested in developing and keeping relations with Russia,” Mr Putin told the Rossiya 1 TV channel.
Derek Harvey, the president’s top Middle East adviser, was dismissed on Thursday by national security adviser H.R. McMaster—further shrinking the ranks of White House aides hired by McMaster’s ousted predecessor, Michael Flynn.
A strong earthquake in the Aegean Sea has killed at least two people on the Greek island of Kos, officials say. The 6.7-magnitude quake hit 12km (seven miles) north-east of Kos, near the Turkish coast, with a depth of 10km, the US Geological Survey said.
At least 21 people died and at least 20 are missing in flooding and landslides on Japan's Kyushu island after last week's rains, local governments reported.
