Moscow — Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Moscow will conduct nuclear tests if any other nuclear power does so.
Russia is ready to discuss US concerns over what Washington calls “suspicious underground activities“, Lavrov said.
Lavrov said Moscow was concerned by US statements suggesting nuclear tests could be used for geopolitical purposes. Reuters
Suicide bomber kills 12 outside court in Islamabad
Islamabad — A suicide bomber killed at least 12 people and wounded 27 outside a court building in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad on Tuesday, interior minister Mohsin Naqvi said.
The attack took place hours after a suicide bomber killed three people and militants stormed a military school in the country’s northwest. There was no word yet on who was responsible for either attack.
Naqvi said the bomber had tried to enter the court building on foot but detonated the device outside, close to a police vehicle. Reuters
Turkish prosecutor seeks 2,000 years for Imamoglu
A Turkish prosecutor demanded on Tuesday a prison sentence of more than 2,000 years for Ekrem Imamoglu, the jailed opposition mayor of Istanbul, for allegedly leading a vast corruption network that cost the state billions of lira.
Imamoglu, who is President Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival, has previously denied all the accusations against him, saying they are politically motivated, and his party on Tuesday rejected the new indictment as “nonsense”.
In a separate move that also deepened an unprecedented year-long legal crackdown on Erdogan’s critics, Istanbul chief prosecutor Akin Gurlek asked a higher court to consider shutting down Imamoglu’s main opposition Republican People’s Party. Reuters
Nigeria to launch new round of oil licensing auctions
Lagos — Nigeria will begin a fresh round of oil licence auctions from next month, the oil regulator said on Tuesday in London, as part of plans to revive idle assets and grow production.
“We are announcing that we are ready, following the approval of the minister of petroleum resources in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, to commence the 2025 licensing round beginning from December 1 2025,” said Gbenga Komolafe, head of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
Komolafe said last year that the regulator will hold these auctions yearly and focus on discovered, but undeveloped, fields and fallow assets in the Niger Delta, with a strong emphasis on natural gas development.
The commission did not offer details on how many blocks were on offer. Reuters
Iran says US is sending mixed signals on nuclear talks
Abu Dhabi — Iran’s deputy foreign minister said on Tuesday the US was sending Tehran contradictory messages about nuclear talks through third countries.
Iran wants to reach “a peaceful nuclear agreement” but will not compromise on national security, Saeed Khatibzadeh told the 12th Abu Dhabi Strategic Debate. He reiterated Tehran’s position that it does not seek nuclear bombs. Reuters
Newly built Sichuan highway bridge collapses after landslide warning
Beijing — Part of a recently opened bridge collapsed in China’s southwestern province of Sichuan along a national highway linking the country’s heartland with Tibet on Tuesday, local authorities said, but there were no reports of casualties.
Police in the city of Maerkang had closed the 758m-long Hongqi bridge to all traffic on Monday afternoon, after cracks appeared on nearby slopes and roads, and shifts were seen in the terrain of a mountain, the local government said.
The approach bridge and roadbed collapsed on Tuesday afternoon, triggering landslides, it added.
Construction of the bridge finished earlier this year, according to a video posted by contractor Sichuan Road & Bridge Group on social media. Reuters
UK grocery inflation eases as Christmas promotions ramp up
London — British grocery inflation slowed to 4.7% in the four weeks to November 2 as grocers ramped up Christmas promotions, industry data showed on Tuesday, providing a little relief to consumers bracing for further tax rises in this month’s government budget.
The figure from Worldpanel by Numerator (formerly Kantar), which provides an early indication of pricing pressures ahead of official inflation data on November 19, compared with 5.2% in last month’s report.
Official data published last month showed overall British inflation held steady at 3.8% in September, with food inflation slowing. Reuters
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