Reuters: World

China sanctions Lockheed Martin, Raytheon over Taiwan arms sales China's commerce ministry on Thursday put Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) and Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N) onto an "unreliable entities list" over arms sales to Taiwan, its latest sanctions against the two U.S. defense contractors. The measures come amid heightened tensions after the U.S. military shot down what it says was a Chinese spy balloon, and a day after Beijing warned of "countermeasures against relevant U.S. entities that undermine China's sovereignty and security". Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Missile and Defense Corporation, a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies, are prohibited from "engaging in import and export activities related to China", the commerce ministry said in a statement. read more

Starbucks CEO declines to appear at U.S. Senate labor law hearing Starbucks Corp (SBUX.O) Chief Executive Howard Schultz declined an invitation from 11 senators to testify on March 9 on the coffee company's compliance with federal labor law, according to a letter seen by Reuters late on Tuesday. Last week, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who chairs a committee on labor issues, and 10 other members of the committee asked Schultz to answer by Feb. 14 whether he would take part. Schultz, who rejoined Starbucks as interim CEO in April 2022, will "fully transition" out of the role next month, Starbucks acting executive vice president and general counsel, Zabrina Jenkins, said in the letter. read more

China says U.S. balloons flew over Xinjiang, Tibet, warns of countermeasures Diplomatic friction festered between the United States and China on Wednesday as Beijing charged that U.S. high altitude balloons flew over its Xinjiang and Tibet regions and said it would take measures against U.S. entities that undermine Chinese sovereignty. Washington and Beijing are locked in a tussle over flying objects after the U.S. military this month shot down what it called a Chinese spy balloon over the coast of South Carolina. Beijing says its balloon was a civilian research vessel mistakenly blown off course, and that Washington overreacted. This week, China countered that U.S. balloons had flown over its airspace without permission more than 10 times on round-the-world flights since May 2022. read more

Rebels in Indonesia's Papua say images show abducted NZ pilot in good health Separatists in Indonesia's restive Papua region have released images that they say show a New Zealand pilot taken hostage last week is in good health, but pledged he would not be freed until authorities acknowledge the independence of the area. The pilot, Philip Mehrtens, who flew a plane operated by airline Susi Air, was abducted by fighters from the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) last week after landing in the remote region of Nduga. Reuters could not independently verify the authenticity of the images, but a friend of Mehrtens, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue, confirmed it was the pilot. "The Papuan military that has taken me captive to fight for Papuan independence, they ask for the Indonesian military to go home to Indonesia and if not, I will remain captive for my life," Mehrtens said at one point in the video. read more

Russian bombers intercepted by NORAD near Alaska Several Russian strategic bombers and fighter jets have been intercepted by North American air defence forces as they flew over international airspace near Alaska, the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) said. The aircraft, which were identified on Monday, did not enter U.S. or Canadian airspace and did not pose a threat, the joint U.S.-Canadian centre said in a statement dated Feb. 14. It added that the Russian flights were in no way related to the mysterious spate of airborne objects shot down by the U.S. military over North America in the past few weeks, the details of which remain unknown. read more

Zelenskiy urges speedy help from allies as Russia pounds Ukraine's east Ukraine urged allies to speed up the pace of military help as NATO defence ministers prepared to meet for a second day on Wednesday and Russia bombarded the eastern front line in what appeared to be the early salvoes of a new offensive. Much of Russia's artillery fire was focused on Bakhmut, a bombed-out city in Donetsk province and a principal target for President Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian troops there have fortified positions in anticipation of street fighting. Bakhmut's capture would provide a stepping stone for Russia to advance on two bigger Donetsk cities, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, and give Moscow momentum after months of battlefield setbacks following its invasion last February. read more

Equatorial Guinea confirms country's first Marburg virus disease outbreak -WHO Equatorial Guinea has confirmed its first outbreak of the Marburg virus, a highly infectious and deadly disease similar to Ebola, following the deaths of at least nine people, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. The small Central African country quarantined more than 200 people and restricted movement last week in its Kie-Ntem province after detecting an unknown hemorrhagic fever. Neighboring Cameroon also restricted movement along its border over concerns about contagion. In addition to the nine deaths, Equatorial Guinea has reported 16 suspected cases of Marburg virus with symptoms including fever, fatigue and blood-stained vomit and diarrhea, the WHO said. Marburg virus disease can have a fatality rate of up to 88%, according to the WHO. There are no vaccines or antiviral treatments approved to treat it. read more

Dutch F-35s intercept three Russian military aircraft near Poland - Netherlands' defence ministry Two Dutch F-35 fighters intercepted a formation of three Russian military aircraft near Poland and escorted them out, the Netherlands' defence ministry said in a statement late on Monday. "The then unknown aircraft approached the Polish NATO area of responsibility from Kaliningrad," according to Reuters' translation of the ministry's statement. Kaliningrad is a Russian Baltic coast enclave located between NATO and European Union members Poland and Lithuania. "After identification, it turned out to be three aircraft: a Russian IL-20M Coot-A that was escorted by two Su-27 Flankers. The Dutch F-35s escorted the formation from a distance and handed over the escort to NATO partners." read more

Ruling out aliens? Senior U.S. general says not ruling out anything yet The U.S. Air Force general overseeing North American airspace said on Sunday after a series of shoot-downs of unidentified objects that he would not rule out aliens or any other explanation yet, deferring to U.S. intelligence experts. Asked whether he had ruled out an extraterrestrial origin for three airborne objects shot down by U.S. warplanes in as many days, General Glen VanHerck said: "I'll let the intel community and the counterintelligence community figure that out. I haven't ruled out anything." "At this point we continue to assess every threat or potential threat, unknown, that approaches North America with an attempt to identify it," said VanHerck, head of U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command and Northern Command. read more

U.S. shoots down unidentified cylindrical object over Canada A U.S. F-22 fighter jet shot down an unidentified cylindrical object over Canada on Saturday, the second such instance in as many days, as North America appeared on edge following a week-long Chinese spying balloon saga that drew the global spotlight. Separately, the U.S. military also scrambled fighter jets in Montana to investigate a radar anomaly that triggered a brief federal closure of airspace. "Those aircraft did not identify any object to correlate the radar hits," the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said in a statement. read more

Earthquake rescues slow in Turkey, hopes of finding people alive fade Rescuers in Turkey pulled more people from the rubble early on Saturday, five days after the country's most devastating earthquake since 1939, but hopes were fading in Turkey and Syria that many more survivors would be found. In Kahramanmaras, close to the quake's epicentre in southeastern Turkey, there were fewer visible rescue operations amid the smashed concrete mounds of fallen houses and apartment blocks, while ever more trucks rumbled through the streets shipping out debris. The growing death toll, exceeding 24,150 across southern Turkey and northwest Syria, raised questions over Turkey's earthquake planning and response time, and President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that authorities should have reacted faster. read more

U.S. shoots down car-sized unidentified object flying above Alaska A U.S. F-22 fighter jet on Friday shot down an unidentified object flying high over Alaska, U.S. officials said, less than a week after the military brought down a Chinese balloon that had flown across the United States. A Sidewinder missile downed the latest craft, which was about the size of a small car, said U.S. Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the Pentagon's chief spokesperson. "We don't know who owns this object," said White House spokesperson John Kirby, adding that it was unclear where it began its flight. President Joe Biden ordered the shootdown, which was announced from the White House. read more