German Chancellor Angela Merkel uncovered on Monday her intension to employ diplomatic channels in search for a peaceful solution to the ongoing war in Yemen, adding that she already received the support of Riyadh in this regard. [...] Merkel held talks with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed on the conflicts in Yemen, Libya and Syria, as well as strengthening economic ties.

For those in the West who have lived the second half of the 20th century, being under the United States’ tutelage was a mere fact of life. As the great victors of World War II and uncontested rulers of nearly every international institution in the world – UN, IMF, World Bank, GATT, NATO etc. – North Americans have transformed Central and South America into their own backyard. Now change is said to be underway. 

Zimbabwe is crafting a national diaspora website, aimed at facilitating the engagement and participation of citizens living out of the country in national development, the Ministry of Macro Economic Planning and Investment Promotion has said. In a statement, the ministry said the website was part of operationalising the diaspora policy.

The many ways in which countries can cooperate in promoting cultural heritage and intercultural dialogue were the main topics discussed by the foreign ministers of Greece, Italy, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Peru, Bolivia and Mexico in the “Ancient Civilizations”  conference held in Athens on Monday. [...] Well-known Greek and foreign archaeologists, professors and museum directors from these ten countries spoke about the proposed actions and successful examples of culture management.

While China’s presence and influence in Africa is well documented – especially regarding resource extraction – another element is increasingly becoming an important economic and political tool: traditional Chinese medicine. Chinese involvement in Africa has long included a prominent medical presence, with Beijing supporting medical efforts on the continent for decades. As China’s export capacity increased in the late 1990s and early 2000s

Morocco and Cuba have ushered a new era by restoring their diplomatic ties and turning the page of 37 years of severance on the backdrop of Havana’s alignment on the Polisario separatist thesis. [...] “Both governments proceeded to re-establish these relations guided by the mutual will to develop friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries in the political, economic, cultural and other fields,” 

Many who speak Q’eqchi never learned to read or write it. And even if they did, it’s Spanish that’s the lingua franca at colleges, employers, and any other opportunity for economic growth. In turn, the nonprofit Choice Humanitarian–backed by Microsoft’s Edge team and the agency Pixel Lab–has launched a pilot program called Accent to teach 18 women from Chulac, Guatemala, how to read and speak Spanish.

Gulf nations are seeking to help their firms venture into Kenya in a renewed bid to grab a piece of the local economy and rebuild relations following moments of suspicion. Last week, President Uhuru Kenyatta hosted high-level delegations from Qatar and, later, Saudi Arabia, two of the oil-rich Middle East nations that have had mostly bad press in Kenya for suspected mistreatment of Kenyan domestic workers there.