enToday's news, livenews and breaking top stories on France 24https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/Tue, 23 Dec 2025 08:58:07 GMThttps://www.france24.com/en/video/20251223-it-s-mainly-the-western-part-of-ukraine-which-has-been-targeted ‍Russia ​launched ⁠more than 600 drones and dozens of ​missiles ‍to ​strike Ukraine's energy sector in ​overnight attacks on Tuesday. "It's mainly the Western part of Ukraine which has been targeted [including] the regions of Rivne, Ivano-Frankivsk, as well as the central region of Cherkasy," said FRANCE 24's correspondent in Ukraine Emmanuelle Chaze.  62fee2e6-dfc6-11f0-921e-d5153a93788cTue, 23 Dec 2025 08:55:08 GMTFRANCE24The Debatehttps://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/the-debate/20251223-off-the-scales-work-life-balance-in-the-digital-age It's the word of the year in Japan with a literal take on the Rihanna song "Work". Japan's first female prime minister Takaichi Sanae announced she would "abandon the idea of a work-life balance" when she was elected as the head of Liberal Democratic Party back in October. The 64-year old Takaichi may espouse "work, work, work, work and work", but how about those entering the labour market? 03e70cb8-d439-11f0-8ed6-5fe44fc49f2cTue, 23 Dec 2025 08:27:22 GMTFrançois PICARDhttps://www.france24.com/en/video/20251223-trump-summarized-washington-s-multi-pronged-campaign-targeting-venezuela The US Coast Guard on Monday continued for a second day to chase a sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration describes as part of a “dark fleet” Venezuela is using to evade US sanctions. On Monday night, US President Donald Trump summarized Washington's multi-pronged campaign targeting the country, adding that it would keep the oil as well as the ships.  d090efb8-dfce-11f0-a401-07b85546c26cTue, 23 Dec 2025 07:29:45 GMTFRANCE24Environmenthttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-locals-sound-alarm-as-bijagos-islands-slowly-swallowed-by-sea Off the Atlantic coast of tropical Guinea-Bissau, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to colonies of sea turtles, hippos, sharks, manatees, and nearly 850,000 migratory birds. The archipelago hosts several sacred sites as well as artisanal fisheries relied upon by some 25,000 inhabitants. Made up of 88 islands and islets –- of which only about 20 are permanently inhabited –- the archipelago stretches more than 10,000 square kilometres (3,850 square miles). "Every year, we lose up to 2 metres of the beach," said Antonio Honoria Joao, administrative assistant and community organiser at Guinea-Bissau's Institute for Biodiversity and Protected Marine Areas (IBAP). He was in Bubaque, one of the archipelago's most populated islands with nearly 5,000 inhabitants. Joao told AFP the island was "in danger". "Fifty years ago, the beach was very wide," he said, strolling along the sliver of remaining shoreline littered with wrecked canoes and collapsed sections of wall. "Today, everything is overrun by water, and it keeps advancing." - 'Once so far away' - Adriano Carlos Souarez has been running a seaside tourist camp since 2020. To protect the site from the onslaught of crashing waves, he has put together a towering 10-metre barrier made of tyres. But part of the building has already been damaged, and a giant kapok tree serving as a dyke also risks being uprooted. "When I bought this land, it was five or six metres from the sea. But the distance has shrunk," he said, adding he was scared to one day see his house collapse. At a small market in Bubaque, 45-year-old Joia Mendes Cno recalled "it wasn't like this before", describing "a sea that was once so far away". The vegetable seller said she was saddened at the sight of "water advancing every day without being able to do anything". According to a government report titled "Guinea-Bissau's Strategic Plan 2025", the coastline retreats by up to seven metres each year, causing mangrove loss and threatening both humans and animals. - Insufficient support - Climate change and rainwater runoff that triggers landslides are at the heart of the problem, IBAP's Joao said. But he also condemned human factors such as the island's rampant urbanisation and the dumping of waste on beaches, which weakens the coast against the rising sea. While other sites are also affected, Joao said the scale varies island to island. Increased vegetation cover and rockier coasts have meant some islands are better protected than others. In its heritage listing, UNESCO said there was a "strong likelihood that climate change will bring about changes in water circulation patterns, as well as significant changes in sea level and, consequently, potential risks of erosion and sedimentation". The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has long warned about rising ocean levels linked to global warming and the risks posed to residents of coastal areas, as well as the increased risk of biodiversity loss and the extinction of certain species. IBAP is working to identify affected sites, plant trees, and raise awareness among local communities. But the threat looms large, lamented a representative of the NGO on condition of anonymity. "We receive support from some international organisations, but it is not enough," he said, calling on the government to invest more to ensure the islands survive. 89530df0-dfd0-11f0-aae5-d331f6f9ea38Tue, 23 Dec 2025 07:25:18 GMT© PATRICK MEINHARDT / AFPFRANCE24Internationalhttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-cambodia-asks-thailand-to-move-border-talks-to-malaysia-1 Bangkok's defence chief on Tuesday sought to assuage any fears on the Cambodian side about the meeting taking place in Thailand, and the Thai foreign ministry said the venue was still being discussed. The nations' long-standing border conflict reignited this month, shattering an earlier truce, killing more than 40 people and displacing over 900,000 on both sides, officials said. Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow on Monday announced a parley with Cambodia after a meeting in the Malaysian capital with his counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Cambodia is also a member. Sihasak told reporters the discussion would be held Wednesday in Thailand's Chanthaburi within the framework of an existing bilateral border committee. But in a letter dated Monday to his Thai counterpart Nattaphon Narkphanit, Cambodian defence minister Tea Seiha requested the meeting be held in Kuala Lumpur. "For a security reason due to the ongoing fighting along the border, this meeting should be held in a safe and neutral venue," Tea Seiha wrote in the letter, which AFP obtained on Tuesday and confirmed with the ministry. Malaysia, the chair of the ASEAN regional bloc, had agreed to host the talks in its capital, he added. 'It is safe' Thai foreign ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura told reporters in Bangkok that the meeting venue was "being discussed right now". "The talks will last over two days, with technical groups first," he said Tuesday. Thai defence minister Nattaphon Narkphanit suggested the meeting was set to go ahead on Wednesday in Thailand, but also sought to allay any concerns from his Cambodian counterpart. "The meeting will be held in Chanthaburi... where there's barely any fighting. It is safe," Nattaphon told reporters before a cabinet meeting. He said the last meeting of the joint General Border Committee was held in Cambodia's Koh Kong province, so it was Thailand's turn to host, adding that there was nothing to fear as Thais could separate military and diplomatic matters. "I would like to tell Cambodia to trust us on safety," Nattaphon said, adding it would be held near the border with Cambodia. But the defence minister also said Thai forces would keep fighting as long as Cambodia did, and combat that stretches along nearly the entirety of the border has so far only calmed in parts of two provinces. Cambodia said Thailand launched air strikes on its territory on Monday, shortly after Bangkok announced the two nations had agreed to hold the bilateral talks. Cambodian defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata told reporters that combat was ongoing Tuesday morning. The ministry said in a statement that Thai forces shelled the Cambodian border city of Poipet. 'Pretty good shape' Each side has blamed the other for instigating the fresh fighting and traded accusations of attacks on civilians, after five days of clashes in July killed dozens. The United States, China and Malaysia brokered a truce to end that round of fighting, but the ceasefire was short-lived. In October, US President Donald Trump backed a follow-on joint declaration between Thailand and Cambodia, touting new trade deals after they agreed in Kuala Lumpur to prolong their truce. But Thailand suspended the agreement the following month. Trump on Monday referred again to the conflict between Cambodia and Thailand as one of the eight wars he had "solved" around the world. "Thailand is starting to shape up. You know, they started with Cambodia, they started up again," he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. "But I think... we have that in pretty good shape, to have that stopped." dc3ad3ee-dfc7-11f0-8c7f-d5153a93788cTue, 23 Dec 2025 06:23:12 GMT© STR / AFPFRANCE24Sportshttps://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/sports/20251223-afcon-2025-mohamed-salah-scores-late-winner-for-egypt-against-zimbabwe Egypt defeated Zimbabwe 2–1 in their first match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Mohamed Salah secured victory for his team in stoppage time. 30767d8c-dfa5-11f0-a278-85ba20182809Tue, 23 Dec 2025 06:21:00 GMTL'Equipe TVBusinesshttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-in-bulgaria-villagers-fret-about-euro-introduction Still, the shopkeeper, 53, said she worries that in January when the euro is introduced in the Balkan nation it's "going to be chaos". Nikolova said she has even considered closing for a few weeks "until things sort themselves out" as she has already had arguments with customers. "People see the lower price in euros, get confused, and think I'm lying to them," said Nikolova, who has been running the shop for more than 20 years. Chuprene, nestled at the foot of Bulgaria's Stara Planina mountains near the Serbian border, is home to 400 people. But in small villages across Bulgaria concerns are running high that the euro will mean higher prices. The country's political uncertainty is no help. The latest short-lived government resigned earlier this month. Nevertheless, Bulgaria will become the single currency area's 21st member on January 1, nearly 19 years after the country of 6.4 million people joined the European Union. 'Fear of becoming poorer' The fear over adopting the euro comes despite the considerable economic advances the country has made. Over the past 10 years, Bulgaria's GDP has risen from around one-third of the eurozone average to nearly two-thirds today. But Bulgaria remains the EU country with the highest proportion of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion, according to Eurostat. "These are the main concerns we encounter in small municipalities: the fear of becoming poorer, because people have very little in reserve," said Boryana Dimitrova of the Alpha Research polling institute. "In the villages, three factors stack up: an older population, lower levels of education and financial literacy, and payments made mostly in cash," said Dimitrova, who has been studying attitudes toward the euro for a year. Food price inflation has added to concerns among Bulgarians. "We have to acknowledge that the rise in prices has not been negligible," the sociologist told AFP. Food prices in November were up five percent year-on-year, according to the National Statistical Institute, more than double the eurozone average. Uncertainty ahead At another Chuprene grocery shop, the keeper, who only gave her name as Kamelia, said she has struggled to keep the store open that she and her husband took over a year ago. "Some say things will get better, others that they'll get worse" with the euro, the storekeeper, in her 30s, told AFP. The village is located in the country's hardest-hit region for unemployment. Some 18.7 percent are jobless compared with the average of 4.2 percent in 2024, according to the National Statistical Institute. A retired teacher in her 80s who stopped into the shop for a coffee didn't express any uncertainty about the impact of the switch to the euro. "I know we're going to get poorer," said the woman, who only gave her family name Bogdanovska. For the month of January the lev and the euro will circulate simultaneously. But shopkeepers will have to give change in euros. Businesses can buy coin "starter kits", and according to Bulgarian National Bank governor Dimitar Radev, demand is high. "In some places, especially in the post office system and in smaller towns, the feeling of 'not enough' was created, even though there was no real shortage," he said earlier this month. "This episode shows that we need to maintain close coordination and be ready to react quickly," he added. cc66baee-dfc4-11f0-82bf-d5153a93788cTue, 23 Dec 2025 06:01:17 GMT© Nikolay DOYCHINOV / AFPFRANCE24Sporthttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-key-to-probe-england-s-stag-do-drinking-on-ashes-beach-break The England team headed to Queensland tourist playground Noosa after heavily losing the first two Tests in Perth and Brisbane. They spent several days on the sand and around restaurants and bars, followed by TV crews, photographers and reporters before travelling to Adelaide where they lost the third Test and the Ashes. Britain's Daily Telegraph reported that "after drowning their sorrows after the Brisbane Test, it is no exaggeration to say some, certainly not all, players drank for five or six days". It added that players "did nothing outrageous in Noosa" but there was concern over the level of drinking, with England's professionalism already under question after their limited preparations. "If there's things where people are saying that our players went out and drank excessively, then of course we'll be looking into that," Key told English media in Melbourne ahead of the Boxing Day Test. "Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol for an international cricket team is not something that I'd expect to see at any stage. "It would be a fault not to look into what happened there," added Key, who did not travel with the team to Noosa. "From everything that I've heard so far, they actually were pretty well behaved. Very well behaved." He admitted that he did not mind players having the occasional drink, but "if it goes past that, then that's an issue as far as I'm concerned. "I have no issue with the Noosa trip if it was to get away and just throw your phone away, down tools, go on the beach, all of that stuff. "If it goes into where they're drinking lots and it's a stag-do, all of that type of stuff, that's completely unacceptable." Key also revealed he had previously looked into reports that players had been spotted drinking the night before a limited-overs match in New Zealand, just before the Ashes tour. "I didn't feel like that was worthy of formal warnings, but it was probably worthy of informal ones," he said. Key backed head coach Brendon McCullum, despite the Ashes being lost inside 11 playing days, the joint fastest defeat for more than 100 years. The fate of both McCullum and Key rests with the England and Wales Cricket Board. "Clearly, we've mucked up on the big occasions, whether that was the home Ashes series, whether that was last summer against India," he said of a home series that was drawn 2-2 when England threw away a position to win. "The big ones have eluded us ... we have to evolve. We have to make sure that we're doing things better." b73955e4-dfc1-11f0-986a-691aefff8337Tue, 23 Dec 2025 05:39:13 GMT© William WEST / AFPFRANCE24Businesshttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-delayed-us-data-expected-to-show-solid-growth-in-3rd-quarter336a9b3a-dfbf-11f0-9db2-f3b16ffd5d40Tue, 23 Dec 2025 05:21:13 GMT© ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP/FileFRANCE24Sporthttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-thunder-bounce-back-to-down-grizzlies-nuggets-sink-jazz Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Gilgeous-Alexander led the scoring to give the Thunder a morale-boosting victory after their defeat in Minnesota on Friday. "We weren't at our best tonight but we did enough to win -- but we've still got to get better," Gilgeous-Alexander told NBC television. Memphis flirted with an upset after starting brightly, taking an early seven-point lead in the first quarter before Oklahoma City took control in the second quarter. Gilgeous-Alexander was backed by 24 points from Jalen Williams while Ajay Mitchell had 16 off the bench. Gilgeous-Alexander's 31-point contribution extended his incredible scoring streak. The Canadian star has now scored 20 points or more in 100 consecutive games, making him only the second player to achieve that feat after Wilt Chamberlain. "My teammates let me shoot whatever shots I want to out there," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "The coaching staff trust me and I put in the work to get better each and every day." The win improved Oklahoma City's record to 26-3 at the top of the Western Conference standings. The Thunder play second-placed San Antonio on Tuesday. In other games on Monday, the Denver Nuggets kept up their pursuit of Oklahoma City in the West with a 135-112 pummeling of the Utah Jazz in Colorado. The Nuggets (21-7) led from start to finish with Nikola Jokic grabbing 14 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists for his 14th triple double of the season and the 178th of his career. Only Oscar Robertson (181) and Russell Westbrook (207) have scored more triple doubles than the Denver star. Jokic was backed with 27 points from Jamal Murray while Tim Hardaway Jr. had 21 off the bench for Denver. Cameron Johnson and Peyton Watson added 20 points each. In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics extended their winning streak to three games with a 103-95 defeat of the Indiana Pacers. The Celtics looked to be heading to a humbling defeat after Indiana (6-23) sprinted into a 20-point lead early in the third quarter. But Boston outscored Indiana 60-34 in the second half to grab a win which leaves them in third place in the East behind leaders Detroit and the New York Knicks. Jaylen Brown led the Boston fightback, rattling in 14 of his 31 points in the final period as the Celtics squeezed home. 1691aafe-dfbe-11f0-be4d-f3b16ffd5d40Tue, 23 Dec 2025 05:13:15 GMT© Joshua Gateley / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFPFRANCE24Entertainmenthttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-call-of-duty-co-creator-vince-zampella-killed-in-car-crash-1 The developer and executive died on Sunday while driving his Ferrari on a scenic road north of Los Angeles, according to local broadcaster NBC4. "For unknown reasons, the vehicle veered off the roadway, struck a concrete barrier, and became fully engulfed," the California Highway Patrol said in a statement, without identifying the two victims in the crash. The CHP added that both the driver and a passenger who was ejected from the vehicle succumbed to their injuries. Witnesses posted video of the mangled cherry-red Ferarri, engulfed in flames, on the mountain road. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. His studios created some of the world's best-selling video games, and Zampella was considered an innovator in first-person military shooter style games. This year, when his "Battlefield 6" video game set a new sales record for the franchise, Zampella expressed gratitude, saying "we never take moments like this for granted" -- despite a long career of success in gaming. The mass-combat game has won over 100 million players in the past two decades, in its various iterations. And yet, that number isn't a first. To this day, "Call of Duty" boasts more than 100 milion active players, monthly. "You have that dream of the game being popular, but I don't think you're ever ready for that level of success," Zampella told gaming site IGN in a 2016 interview. Profound, far-reaching Zampella was best known for co-creating the "Call of Duty" franchise and founding Respawn Entertainment, the studio behind "Titanfall," "Apex Legends," and the "Star Wars Jedi" games. After starting out in the 1990s as a designer on shooter games, he co-founded Infinity Ward in 2002 and helped launch "Call of Duty" in 2003. Activision later acquired his studio. He left Activision under contentious circumstances and established Respawn in 2010, which Electronic Arts acquired in 2017. At EA, he eventually took charge of revitalizing the "Battlefield" franchise, cementing his reputation as one of the most influential figures in modern first-person shooter games. "This is an unimaginable loss, and our hearts are with Vince's family, his loved ones, and all those touched by his work," Electronic Arts said in a statement. "Vince's influence on the video game industry was profound and far-reaching," the company said, adding that "his work helped shape modern interactive entertainment." A statement by Respawn, posted on the "Battlefield" X account, praised Zampella "for how he showed up every day, trusting his teams, encouraging bold ideas, and believing in Battlefield and the people building it." Zampella "championed what he believed was right for the people behind those studios and our players because it mattered." "It was a bold, transgressive method of storytelling, of a moment in time that was political, that was violent and that was impactful," Washington Post video game reporter Gene Park told NBC4. "He really knew how to create stories and create experiences, that really hit at the heart of human experience -- whether it was terror, dread, heroism. I think he was really able to kindof encapsulate that through the designs of the video games that he made," Park said. 1fa7562c-dfbc-11f0-bde6-497659d598e5Tue, 23 Dec 2025 04:59:11 GMT© Frederick M. Brown / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFPFRANCE24Internationalhttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-amazon-says-blocked-1-800-north-koreans-from-applying-for-jobs In a post on LinkedIn, Amazon's Chief Security Officer Stephen Schmidt said last week that North Korean workers had been "attempting to secure remote IT jobs with companies worldwide, particularly in the US". He said the firm had seen nearly a one-third rise in applications by North Koreans in the past year. The North Koreans typically use "laptop farms" -- a computer in the United States operated remotely from outside the country, he said. He warned the problem wasn't specific to Amazon and "is likely happening at scale across the industry". Tell-tale signs of North Korean workers, Schmidt said, included wrongly formatted phone numbers and dodgy academic credentials. In July, a woman in Arizona was sentenced to more than eight years in prison for running a laptop farm helping North Korean IT workers secure remote jobs at more than 300 US companies. The scheme generated more than $17 million in revenue for her and North Korea, officials said. Last year, Seoul's intelligence agency warned that North Korean operatives had used LinkedIn to pose as recruiters and approach South Koreans working at defence firms to obtain information on their technologies. "North Korea is actively training cyber personnel and infiltrating key locations worldwide," Hong Min, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP. "Given Amazon's business nature, the motive seems largely economic, with a high likelihood that the operation was planned to steal financial assets," he added. North Korea's cyber-warfare programme dates back to at least the mid-1990s. It has since grown into a 6,000-strong cyber unit known as Bureau 121, which operates from several countries, according to a 2020 US military report. In November, Washington announced sanctions on eight individuals accused of being "state-sponsored hackers", whose illicit operations were conducted "to fund the regime's nuclear weapons programme" by stealing and laundering money. The US Department of the Treasury has accused North Korea-affiliated cybercriminals of stealing over $3 billion over the past three years, primarily in cryptocurrency. 9120ee72-dfbb-11f0-8d9e-497659d598e5Tue, 23 Dec 2025 04:55:12 GMT© JONAS ROOSENS / Belga/AFP/FileFRANCE24Sporthttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-purdy-first-49er-since-montana-to-throw-five-tds-as-colts-beaten San Francisco quarterback Purdy finished with 295 passing yards from 25-of-34 attempts in a clinical exhibition at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Purdy's performance made him the first San Francisco quarterback to throw five touchdowns in a game since the legendary Joe Montana achieved the feat in 1990. "It's an honor to be able to play for this organization with guys like Joe Montana and Steve Young and to be out here wearing the same uniform," Purdy told ESPN. "I'm just a kid living a dream." The 49ers went into Monday's game safe in the knowledge that they had already clinched a playoff spot after results combined in their favor on Sunday. But defeat for the Colts leaves them at 8-7 and needing a miraculous sequence of results in the final two weeks of the season if they are to reach the playoffs. The Colts, with the 44-year-old Philip Rivers making his second appearance since his emergency call-up earlier this month, got off to a dream start with a touchdown on their opening drive when Rivers connected with Alec Pierce in the end zone. Purdy then took over for the 49ers, finding Demarcus Robinson and Christian McCaffrey in quick succession to put the 49ers 14-7 ahead. Although Rivers found Pierce again for a second touchdown to make it 14-14, Purdy led another touchdown drive for George Kittle to help San Francisco take a 24-17 lead at half-time. San Francisco continued to keep the scoreboard ticking over in the second half, with Purdy tossing touchdowns to Jauan Jennings and McCaffrey to make it 41-27 midway through the fourth quarter. An unhappy outing for Rivers ended with the Colts quarterback tossing an interception to the 49ers Dee Winters, who galloped into the end zone for San Francisco's sixth touchdown of the night. e2e44e36-dfb9-11f0-8a9b-497659d598e5Tue, 23 Dec 2025 04:43:10 GMT© Dylan Buell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFPFRANCE24Internationalhttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-north-korea-s-kim-tours-hot-tubs-bbq-joints-at-lavish-new-mountain-resort The new facility in Samjiyon in the country's mountainous north is an "attractive mountainous tourist resort and leisure ground for the people", Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. Kim toured "bedrooms of hotels, cosy leisure spaces and commercial and public catering facilities", KCNA said. Images in state media showed Kim accompanied by his daughter, who analysts say is called Ju-ae and is his likely heir, touring the hotels. Among the facilities on show were both indoor and outdoor baths, as well as barbecue restaurants. Kim even tested the firmness of the beds. State media said he hailed the resort as "clear proof of the ever-growing ideal of our people and our state's potential for development". And he declared the area to be an "innovative and highly civilized city representing the tourism culture of the country". State media said the new facilities showed the North Korean people were the "most dignified" and have "nothing to envy in the world". Not reported was what the fees would be for the average North Korean, who analysts say typically earns up to $3 a month in state-run factories. Boosting tourism Analysts agreed the new facilities were likely aimed at tourists from abroad. "The main target demographic is foreigners," Peter Ward, a research fellow at the Sejong Institute in Seoul, told AFP. But, he added, visits could also serve as rewards for "productive units" of workers. Lim Eul-Chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, said "large-scale group tourism could soon be accommodated via border regions with China". "The five newly completed hotels could serve as core accommodation facilities," he said. The North last year permitted Russian tourists to return for the first time since the pandemic and Western tour operators briefly returned in February this year. No Chinese tourists are known to have returned to the country. Samjiyon carries potent symbolism in North Korean propaganda as it is a stone's throw away from Mount Paektu, the peninsula's highest mountain where official accounts say Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, was born. Historians largely agree he was actually born in the Soviet Union. Alongside the resort opening, Kim has in recent weeks toured a number of newly completed factories. His ruling Korean Workers Party is expected hold its first congress in half a decade in early 2026, where policymakers will hash out economic plans for the next five years. 6475823a-dfb0-11f0-9fd8-bb3fabef15b3Tue, 23 Dec 2025 03:35:13 GMT© STR / KCNA VIA KNS/AFPFRANCE24Internationalhttps://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20251223-cambodia-asks-thailand-to-move-border-talks-to-malaysia4e15b044-dfad-11f0-ae71-515ce529f325Tue, 23 Dec 2025 03:13:07 GMTFRANCE24