“Solve N Korea issue via talks” Xi tells Trump

China was focused on solving the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue through talks and peaceful means, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his US counterpart Donald Trump in a phone call, stated White House.

The US and South Korea have asked the United Nations to consider tough new sanctions on North Korea after its hydrogen bomb test on Sunday . China “unswervingly“works to realize denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and to safeguard the international nuclear non-proliferation system, Xi told Trump.

“At the same time, we always persist in safeguarding peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and resolving the issue through dialogue and consultation, “Xi said. However, Trump asserted that a military strike was not his first option for dealing with North Korea, even though he did not rule it out completely.

France to end fossil fuel production by 2040

The French government has unveiled plans to put an end to oil and gas production on its territory.Under a draft law approved by cabinet, no new permits will be granted to extract gas or oil and no existing licences will be renewed beyond 2040.The country, however, imports about 99% of its oil and gas needs.

Dutch imprisoned for stealing plastic duck

A Dutch judge has called fowl play on a man who abducted and damaged a giant rubber duck. Prosecutors said the 45-year-old was sentenced to eight weeks in prison for stealing the 3ft-high bright yellow plastic duck from the Gouda Duck cafe in the central Dutch city of Gouda on June 23. The duck toy was later found badly damaged elsewhere in the city. The judge also ordered him to pay $880 compensation to the owner of the cafe.

Ex-presidents charged with graft

Brazil’s top prosecutor charged former presidents Luis Inacio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff along with fellow Workers Party members with forming a criminal organization- the latest accusations in Brazil’s sprwaling corruption scandal.

The prosecutor, Rodrigo Janot, alleged that eight members of the Workers Party , including Lula and Rousseff, committed a series of crimes involving state-owned oil firm Petrobras such as cartel formation, corruption and laundering. They were the first criminal charges to be levelled against Rousseff, who was impeached in 2016 for breaking budgetary laws. The 230-page document filed with the Supreme Court accused Lula of heading the organisation.

Lula’s lawyer said the law was being misused. The Workers Party said the charges were baseless and being used to divert attention from other investigations.  A representative for Rousseff is reported to have said that  the prosecutor’s office had offered no evidence of the crimes.