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Syria's defense ministry announced a four-day ceasefire with Kurdish forces on Tuesday, after an understanding was reached between the two sides on the future of the Kurdish-majority Hasakeh region.
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A senior official in Syria's Kurdish administration said Tuesday that the Kurds were in contact with Israel and were open to support from "any source", amid tensions with Damascus despite a recent deal.
"There are certain figures from the side of the Israeli state engaged in communications with our side... and if this conversation leads to support, we would be open to support... from any source," Elham Ahmad told reporters in an online event, according to the English translation of her remarks in Kurdish.
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EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday vowed Europe's response to U.S. President Donald Trump's repeated threats on Greenland and tariffs will be "unflinching".
"Plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape. So our response will be unflinching, united and proportional," von der Leyen said in a keynote speech at a gathering of the global elites in Davos.
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U.S. President Donald Trump's latest tariff threat against Europe over Greenland has hit its top economy Germany just as hopes are growing for a modest recovery after years of stagnation.
Germany's government and its export-reliant businesses were blindsided when Trump again wielded the tariffs axe at the weekend -- this time sparked by his anger over a geopolitical rather than an economic dispute.
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French President Emmanuel Macron has sent his U.S. counterpart a message offering to host a G7 summit and invite Russia on the sidelines, the French leader's entourage confirmed on Tuesday.
Macron also proposes inviting Ukraine to the meeting in Paris on Thursday, as well as Denmark to discuss European-U.S. disagreements over Greenland.
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European leaders take the stage on Tuesday ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump at the gathering of global elites in Davos.
Trump said he had agreed to a meeting of "various parties" about his attempt to take over Greenland at the Davos gathering of global elites this week.
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Negotiations between Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, the head of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, have collapsed, a Kurdish official told AFP on Tuesday.
"The negotiations held yesterday in Damascus between General Mazloum and Mr Al‑Sharaa have collapsed entirely," the official said, blaming the central government for the breakdown.
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U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to impose 200 percent tariffs on French wine and champagne are "unacceptable" and "ineffective," a source close to French President Emmanuel Macron told AFP on Tuesday.
"Tariff threats to influence our foreign policy are unacceptable and ineffective," the source said after Trump made the threat over France's intentions to decline his invitation to join his "Board of Peace."
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Violent scuffles erupted on Tuesday between Turkish police and pro-Kurdish protesters at the border with Syria, where Damascus has launched an offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an AFP reporter said.
Police fired tear gas and water cannon at the protesters and stopped them from crossing the border. The demonstrators hurled stones at the police.
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Syria's army said three soldiers were killed on Monday in attacks by Kurdish fighters, while the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces accused the government of launching attacks despite a ceasefire announced a day earlier.
In a statement to state news agency SANA, the army said three soldiers were killed and others wounded in two attacks, without saying where, adding that "some terrorist groups... are attempting to disrupt the implementation" of the ceasefire deal.
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