North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and other top officials have gathered to discuss preparations for the ruling party's first full congress in five years, state media reported Wednesday. The top-level meeting will set new priorities as the U.S. and South Korea seek a resumption of talks with North Korea.

The Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim presided over a plenary meeting of the Workers Party's Central Committee on Tuesday. It said participants began discussing unspecified key issues related to the party congress and reviewing this year's state policies.

The close relationship between U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has brought the countries closer to resolving issues that led to Turkey being kicked off the F-35 fighter jet program, the United States ambassador to Ankara said Wednesday.

"The positive relationship between President Trump and President Erdogan has created a new atmosphere of cooperation, which has led to the most fruitful conversations we have had on this topic in nearly a decade," Ambassador Tom Barrack wrote in a social media post.

Lithuania's government on Tuesday declared a national emergency over security risks posed by meteorological balloons from Russia-allied Belarus that have violated its airspace in recent weeks.

Tensions between Lithuania and Belarus have escalated after the balloons forced Lithuania to repeatedly shut down its main airport, leaving thousands of people stranded.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Tuesday that the Trump administration's new national security strategy underscores the need for Europe to become "much more independent" from the United States in terms of security policy.

Merz also pushed back against the notion that European democracy needs saving.

Cambodia's powerful Senate President Hun Sen on Tuesday vowed that his country would carry out a fierce fight against Thailand as a second day of widespread renewed combat between the Southeast Asian neighbors drove tens of thousands of people to flee border areas.

Fighting broke out following a skirmish on Sunday during which two Thai soldiers were injured, derailing a ceasefire that ended fighting over competing territorial claims in July. The five days of fighting then left dozens dead on both sides, and forced the evacuation of over 100,000 civilians.

A fire tore through an office building in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, on Tuesday, killing at least 17 people, police said.

Flames engulfed the seven-story building, sending thick black smoke billowing into the sky and causing panic among nearby residents and workers in a neighborhood in Central Jakarta.

Judges at the International Criminal Court sentenced a leader of the feared Sudanese Janjaweed militia to 20 years imprisonment Tuesday for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the catastrophic conflict in Darfur more than 20 years ago.

At a hearing last month, prosecutors sought a life sentence for Ali Muhammad Ali Abd–Al-Rahman who was was convicted in October of 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity that included ordering mass executions and bludgeoning two prisoners to death with an ax in 2003-2004.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Pope Leo XIV in Italy on Tuesday as he prepared to send the United States revised proposals to end Russia's invasion.

Zelensky on Monday held talks with European leaders in London and Brussels as U.S. President Donald Trump keeps up pressure on Kyiv for a settlement.

Japan was assessing damage Tuesday and cautioning people of potential aftershocks after a late-night 7.5 magnitude earthquake caused injuries, light damage and a tsunami in Pacific coastal communities.

At least 33 people were injured, one seriously, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said. Most of them were hit by falling objects, public broadcaster NHK reported.

President Volodymyr Zelensky met British, French and German leaders in London on Monday in a show of European support for Ukraine at what they called a "critical moment" in the U.S.-led effort to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer held talks with Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the British leader's 10 Downing St. residence to try to strengthen Ukraine's hand amid mounting impatience from U.S. President Donald Trump.