Briefly

RUSSIA

Putin drops year-end news conference

Russian President Vladimir Putin will not hold his annual end-of-year news conference this year, the Kremlin said on Monday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked in a call with reporters whether a date had been set for this year's "big news conference". "No, there won't be one before the new year," Peskov replied. He said Putin would find other ways to communicate with journalists, noting that he had held other news conferences, including on his trips abroad. Last Friday, Putin answered questions from reporters during a visit to the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek. Peskov said the Kremlin would advise later on a date for another annual event, Putin's annual speech to both houses of Russia's parliament.

UNITED KINGDOM

Days lost to strikes hit decade high

The United Kingdom lost 417,000 working days to labor disputes in October, the highest since November 2011, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. Workers across a range of sectors have gone on strike in recent months, from rail workers to teachers, postal staff and lawyers, as pay rises fail to keep pace with double-digit inflation. Strikes are due to take place nearly every day in December, with widespread disruption on the railways on Tuesday as rail workers begin their latest 48-hour walkout. Nurses are due to strike on Thursday for the first time in their union's history. The government has warned hiking pay to match inflation will only worsen the problem.

UNITED STATES

Twitter Blue relaunched after fake account fiasco

Elon Musk relaunched a Twitter subscription service on Monday after a first attempt saw an embarrassing spate of fake accounts that scared advertisers and cast doubt on the site's future. The first try last month came just 10 days after Musk's $44 billion takeover of the platform and a mass round of layoffs that saw company staff levels halved, including teams of workers moderating content. The relaunch of Twitter Blue in a handful of countries, including the United States, comes as the Tesla and SpaceX owner has stepped up his tweets endorsing right-wing causes, including opposition to the use of gender-neutral pronouns and the US government's COVID-19 response.

NEPAL

12 die after vehicle veers off highway

A vehicle carrying passengers coming from a wedding veered off a mountain highway in Nepal leaving 12 people dead, police said on Tuesday. There were no survivors. The small passenger truck was over capacity when it rolled off the mountain road near Chedagad village, about 400 kilometers northwest of the capital Kathmandu. Police said the accident happened late on Monday evening and eight had already died by the time rescuers arrived at the scene. Three more died on the way to hospital and one died later in hospital. After driving off the road, the vehicle rolled about 200 meters down the mountain slope.

Agencies - Xinhua