The US and Kenya signed a defense agreement,Iran launched a military satellite into space,and Taiwan unveiled its first domestically produced military submarine.Meanwhile, North Korea enshrined its nuclear ambitions into its constitution,South Korea held its first military parade in 10 years,and a US soldier who illegally crossed into North Korea was returned home.In other news, thousands of ethnic Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakhas the self-declared republic announced its dissolution,Burkina Faso's military government claimed to have thwarted an attempted coup,Bahrain said that two of its soldiers were killed in a Houthi drone attack,and more than 50 people were killed in multiple mosque attacks in Pakistan.

On Monday, Ukraine claimed to have killed dozens of officers, including the commander of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, in its missile strike on Moscow's Navy headquarters in Crimea last week.Moscow alleged that Kiyv's account was exaggerated, with footage appearing to show the commander attending a meeting remotely, though the date of the video wasn't independently confirmed.On Tuesday, Canadian House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota resigned after honoring a Ukrainian soldier who fought for a Nazi unit in World War II.Meanwhile, several world leaders visited Ukraine on Thursday to discuss aid,as Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin was pictured meeting with a former senior commander of the Wagner mercenary group to discuss ways to employ "volunteer units" in the war.

US Pres. Joe Biden announced new diplomatic ties with two Pacific island nations,US Sec. of State Antony Blinken met his Indian counterpart,Israeli Tourism Minister Haim Katz visited Saudi Arabia,and the Palestinian Authority hosted its first Saudi ambassador.Meanwhile, several Western nations criticized Myanmar's military junta's plan to hold elections,Mali's junta postponed its presidential election,the US offered a $5M reward for insight into the assassination of Ecuadorian presidential hopeful Fernando Villavicencio,and Egypt's opposition presidential candidate Ahmed Altantawy was reportedly targeted by spyware.In other news, the US accused China of conducting a global disinformation campaign,the UN reported that over 2.5K migrants have gone missing while attempting to cross the Mediterranean so far this year,and protests broke out in India's state of Manipur over the death of two students.

Biden signed a stopgap funding bill to avert a government shutdown,Republican presidential hopefuls sparred in the party's second debate,a new poll showed former Pres. Donald Trump leads Biden,and Biden joined striking autoworkers in Michigan.Meanwhile, Republicans held their first hearing on the Biden impeachment inquiry,as they claimed to have evidence linking Chinese funds to Biden's address,Hunter Biden sued former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani,a New York judge found Trump liable for fraud,Trump co-defendant Scott Hall pleaded guilty in the Georgia election interference case,and US Sen. Bob Menendez said he won't resign amid his ongoing legal woes.In other news, Sen. Dianne Feinstein passed away,Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson switched to the Republican party,SCOTUS rejected Alabama's congressional map,and the Senate passed a formal dress code.

A Texas judge ruled against restrictions on drag performances,three UN experts called for the overhaul of the US criminal system,SCOTUS agreed to review "anti-censorship" social media laws in Texas and Florida,and a European Commission study accused X of spreading disinformation.

Over 20 people were arrested for ransacking several stores in Philadelphia,Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson tasked the military with addressing a recent surge in gang violence,a university student in the Dutch city of Rotterdam shot and killed three,and a suspect was charged in the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur.

Amazon cemented a $4B deal with the AI startup Anthropic,the US sued Amazon,Hollywood writers ended their months-long strike,and the US Federal Communications Commission announced plans to reinstate net neutrality rules.

The US Dept. of Education announced plans to withhold funding from for-profit colleges,and the chair of China's property developer Evergrande Group was reportedly placed under police surveillance.

Six young activists sued 32 European countries over their alleged lack of action to address climate change,Human Rights Watch accused several European shipping firms of polluting Bangladesh beaches,and the development of the UK's largest untapped oil field was approved.Meanwhile, the US National Snow and Ice Data Center confirmed reports that Antarctica's sea ice levels have hit a record low,heavy rains killed at least six in Guatemala,and a group of Japanese scientists found microplastics in clouds.

The US Food and Drug Administration opened an investigation into several weight loss drugsand announced plans to increase its oversight of laboratory-developed tests,and a UK study found that radiotherapy doses for prostate cancer could be cut by 75%.

OpenAI announced that its ChatGPT can now access up-to-date informationas it rolled out voice and image features to the chatbotand entered into talks to create the "iPhone of artificial intelligence,"and Meta introduced several new AI products.

Over 100 people died in a fire at an Iraqi wedding,and dozens were killed in a fuel depot explosion in Nagorno-Karabakh..