World briefs

PHILIPPINES President Rodrigo Duterte, whose controversial war on drugs has cost thousands of lives, says he used marijuana to keep awake at a recent regional meeting, but later disavowed his assertion as a joke.

PAKISTAN U.S. President Donald Trump has reached out to Pakistan’s prime minister, seeking Islamabad’s cooperation in bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table to end the 17-year war in neighboring Afghanistan.

QATAR The tiny, energy-rich Arab nation of Qatar announced yesterday it will withdraw from OPEC in January, mixing its aspirations to increase production outside of the cartel’s constraints with the politics of slighting the Saudi-dominated group amid the kingdom’s boycott of Doha.

EGYPT opened its first international weapons fair yesterday, an event that organizers hope will project a message to the world that the country is secure and stable.

UKRAINE’s president yesterday announced a partial call-up of reservists for training amid tensions with Russia, saying the country needs to beef up its defenses to counter the threat of a Russian invasion.

FRANCE Paramedics joined ongoing anti-government protests as the prime minister met with political rivals yesterday in a bid to ease anger following violent riots that rocked Paris.

SPAIN A regional election in Spain saw a surge of support for a far-right party and dealt a major setback to the ruling Socialists, prompting the prime minister yesterday to vow to defend democracy from fear.

BRITAIN’s opposition Labour Party ramped up the pressure on Prime Minister Theresa May, saying it will call a no-confidence vote if Parliament rejects her Brexit deal on Dec. 11.

US The supply chain of food and other goods delivered to the Port of Anchorage from the Lower 48 has not been disrupted by the powerful earthquake that caused widespread damage to roads in the Anchorage area, the mayor said.

URUGUAY has rejected an asylum request by former Peruvian President Alan Garcia, who sought protection in the country’s consulate in Peru after a judge retained his passport as part of a corruption probe.

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