Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Late Russian mercenary Prigozhin spoke about his security in newly surfaced video
A newly released video of Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin purports to show him in Africa only days before his death, addressing speculation about his wellbeing and possible threats to his security. "For those who are discussing whether I'm alive or not, how I'm doing - right now it's the weekend, second half of August 2023, I'm in Africa," Prigozhin says in the short video published by the Grey Zone Telegram channel which is linked to his Wagner Group.
Exclusive-China's Xi likely to skip G20 summit in India - sources
Chinese President Xi Jinping is likely to skip a summit of G20 leaders in India next week, sources familiar with the matter in India and China told Reuters. Two Indian officials, one diplomat based in China and one official working for the government of another G20 country said Premier Li Qiang is expected to represent Beijing at the Sept. 9-10 meeting in New Delhi.
Shapps becomes UK defense minister with vow to keep up support for Ukraine
Former energy minister Grant Shapps replaced Ben Wallace on Thursday as Britain's defense minister, a surprise move that reaffirmed London's support for Ukraine while raising questions over his lack of experience of the military. Shoring up his team before a national election expected next year and after Wallace resigned, Sunak will likely deploy Shapps' talent for media communication in his efforts to overturn opposition Labour's lead in the opinion polls.
Jailed Russian nationalist Girkin says he'd be better president than Putin
Igor Girkin, a prominent Russian ultranationalist in custody awaiting trial on charges of inciting extremism, said on Thursday he would make a better president than Vladimir Putin, describing him as gullible and "too kind." Girkin issued a Telegram post entitled "On running as a candidate for president of the Russian Federation," suggesting he planned to stand in the March 2024 election, when Putin is expected to seek six more years in power.
More Ukrainian drones attack Russia after planes hit on airfield
Ukrainian drones attacked more targets in Russia late on Wednesday, a night after drones struck at least six regions deep within Russia in one of the broadest volleys yet of Kyiv's campaign to turn the tables on Moscow. One of the drone strikes, targeting an airfield far from Ukraine's borders, destroyed military transport planes on the ground.
Scores killed as fire guts run-down Johannesburg apartment block
More than 70 people were killed overnight when fire raged through a five-story Johannesburg apartment block, one of the worst such disasters in a city where poverty, household fires and homelessness are widespread. Gutted, blackened by soot and still smoldering on Thursday as emergency services gathered around it and bodies lay covered in blankets on a nearby street, the building stood in a rundown area.
China says countries should see its national map in 'objective' way
China hopes relevant parties can see its 2023 edition of a standard national map in an "objective and rational" way, the foreign ministry said on Thursday. Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the remarks at a press briefing when asked to comment on reports of some countries, including the Philippines, India and Malaysia, protesting the new map.
Prigozhin's right-hand man in Wagner buried quietly near Moscow
The co-founder and military commander of the Russian mercenary group Wagner was buried near Moscow on Thursday, after dying in an unexplained plane crash that also killed his boss Yevgeny Prigozhin. Dmitry Utkin, 53, whose call-sign "Wagner" gave the private army its name, was buried in Mytishchi, on the outskirts of the capital, in a ceremony cordoned off by Russian military police, according to the popular online news channel Shot.
Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia reject China's latest South China Sea map
The Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam have rejected as baseless a map released by China that denotes its claims to sovereignty including in the South China Sea and which Beijing said on Thursday should be viewed rationally and objectively. China released the map on Monday of its famous U-shaped line covering about 90% of the South China Sea, a source of many of the disputes in one of the world's most contested waterways, where more than $3 trillion of trade passes each year.
African leaders work on response to Gabon military coup
African leaders were working on a response on Thursday to officers in Gabon who ousted President Ali Bongo and installed a general as head of state, the latest in a wave of coups in West and Central Africa that regional powers have failed to reverse. The takeover ends the Bongo family dynasty's almost six decades in power and creates a new conundrum for a region that has struggled to deal with eight coups since 2020. Nigeria's recently elected president called it a "contagion of autocracy."
