N. Ireland broadens Brexit horizons

Northern Ireland, once an industrial powerhouse, wants closer ties with China to safeguard against economic uncertainty as the United Kingdom prepares to exit from the European Union.

May in Brussels for moment of truth with EU

UK Prime Minister Theresa May was scheduled to meet European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday for crunchtime talks that could determine whether Brexit negotiations can continue into a second phase.

Yemen rattled by raids as clashes spread

SANAA, Yemen - A wave of air raids rattled the country's crisis-hit capital on Monday, witnesses said, as clashes between rebels and supporters of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh spread beyond Sanaa.

Police: Potsdam explosive package not 'terrorism'

BERLIN - German authorities investigating the delivery of a package containing powerful firecrackers, wires and nails to a pharmacy near a Christmas market in the city of Potsdam said on Sunday that it was criminal activity rather than "terrorism".

Democrats stand united against GOP tax bill

WASHINGTON - Rarely unified, Senate Democrats stood together in opposing the GOP revamp of the tax code despite the traditional popularity of tax cuts and warnings from President Donald Trump and Republicans about the political cost in next year's midterm elections.

US quits talks on global migration pact

UNITED NATIONS - The United States has quit negotiations on a voluntary pact to deal with migration because the global approach to the issue was "simply not compatible with US sovereignty," said US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Italy called on to arrest alarming birthrate drop

ROME - Italy's birthrate - already among the lowest in the world - continues to drop, sparking calls for the government to do more to reverse the trend.

101 cremations: the rise of Bangkok's Buddhist pet funerals

BANGKOK - Buddhist monks chant next to a pink coffin where Dollar's small body is nestled among flowers - a $600 final farewell for the Shih Tzu at a Bangkok temple that administers elaborate pet funerals.

Shipping route sets course for trade boon

TUNIS - The launch of a new shipping route will help Tunisia recover its regional positioning and enhance China's presence in the African continent, experts and investors have said.

Final whistle for elephant polo in Nepal after 35 years

KATHMANDU - The curtain has come down on an elephant polo tournament in Nepal, which had been played every winter in Meghauli, Chitwan, for 35 years.

Flynn admits lying to FBI, offers to cooperate

WASHINGTON - Former US national security adviser Michael Flynn on Friday pleaded guilty to lying regarding improper contacts with foreign officials, as the government said the charges implicated no one else in the White House.