AP-National

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia and Ukraine said they have exchanged about 200 prisoners of war, despite tensions stemming from last week’s crash of a military transport plane that Moscow claimed was carrying Ukrainian POWs and was shot down by Kyiv’s forces. After the Jan. 24 crash of the Il-76 plane in Russia’s Belgorod region

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Prosecutors have demanded life sentences for three suspects in the killing of Dutch investigative journalist Peter R. de Vries at their trial in Amsterdam. Prosecutors also sought sentences ranging from three to 21 years for six other suspects. The life sentences were requested Wednesday for

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has accepted an invitation from the mayor of East Palestine, Ohio, to visit the community after it was devastated by a fiery train derailment nearly one year ago. Mayor Trent Conaway told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he doesn’t support Biden or approve

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders at a summit on Thursday will focus on the one member state blocking a 50-billion-euro ($54 billion) war support package for Ukraine: Hungary, the country in the bloc with the closest ties to Russia. Almost two years after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP Business Writer Universal Music Group, which represents artists including Taylor Swift, Drake, Adele, Bad Bunny and Billie Eilish, says that it will no longer allow its music on TikTok now that a licensing deal between the two parties has expired. UMG said that it had not agreed to terms of a

LONDON (AP) — H&M’s top executive has unexpectedly stepped down and the company’s stock plunged as the fashion giant reported a drop in sales over the holiday shopping season. Helena Helmersson resigned Wednesday after four years as CEO and 26 years at the company. She says she’s proud of the work done over the past

By SARA RATHNER of NerdWallet To catch up with your credit-savvy friends, you may be considering a credit card that earns cash-back or travel rewards. If you have one already, perhaps you want to add a second card to the mix to earn even more. But it can be tough to figure out where to

By JUSTIN SPIKE Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Israel’s men’s soccer team is returning to Hungary for its “home” game in the qualifying playoffs for this year’s men’s European Championship. The March 21 game against Iceland must be played in a neutral country for security reasons during Israel’s war with Hamas. UEFA said the

HELSINKI (AP) — Labour unions in Finland went on strike Wednesday, starting a three-days labor action that will affect up to 300,000 workers and severely disrupt daily life. Trade unions are protesting revisions to labor market legislation and social security cuts proposed by the center-right government of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo. It will shut down

By JUTARAT SKULPICHETRAT Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s Constitutional Court has ruled that the progressive Move Forward party must cease advocating amending the law on royal defamation. The decision Wednesday leaves the party vulnerable to being dissolved. The Move Forward party came in first in the 2023 general election. It campaigned heavily on making

By ROBERT YOON Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first time ever, the race for the Democratic presidential nomination officially kicks off this Saturday in South Carolina, the state that resurrected then-candidate Joe Biden’s foundering presidential campaign in 2020 and put him on a footing to win his party’s nod and, eventually, the White

ROME (AP) — Italy has ramped up its protests over the treatment of an Italian antifascist being held in a Hungarian jail. The protests have become more vocal after images of her appearing chained and shackled at a Budapest court hearing this week sparked outrage in Italy. Ilaria Salis was arrested in Budapest last year

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Norway’s central Atlantic coast is battening down as authorities warned that the country could see its most powerful storm in three decades and urged people to stay indoors. Hurricane-force winds are expected to hit the region, as air traffic companies and ferry lines predicted disruptions. Police warned that gusts of 126

BERLIN (AP) — A Jewish survivor of the Auschwitz death camp has told Germany’s parliament that she is appalled by the rising strength of the far right in the country and increasing antisemitism in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip. Eva Szepesi was born in

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says he expects an EU naval mission in the Red Sea to be launched within three weeks. Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen have waged a campaign of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships since the Israel-Hamas war started in October. It has hampered trade

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — Myanmar was a rising star in Southeast Asia before its military seized power three years ago in a takeover that has brought civil strife and a tightening vise of international sanctions, undoing years of progress and leaving the economy 10% smaller than it was in

MOSCOW (AP) — The lower house of Russia’s parliament has approved a bill that would allow authorities to confiscate money, valuables and other assets from people convicted of spreading “deliberately false information” about the country’s military. After its swift passage in the State Duma on Wednesday, the bill is now expected to sail through the

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona and its surrounding in northeastern Spain’s Catalonia region are preparing for tighter water restrictions amid a historic drought that has shrunk reservoirs to record lows. Catalan authorities are expected to declare a drought emergency Thursday for an area that is home to 6 million people

By MARK LEWIS Associated Press STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — The doors close Wednesday on nominations for the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, with peace activists connected to the wars in Gaza and Ukraine among the known entries. The Norwegian Nobel Committee keeps the nominations secret, but those with nomination rights sometimes make their picks public. The