World

A news program showing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is broadcast at a train station in Seoul, South Korea this week.

Here's what we know about North Korea's COVID outbreak — and its ability to handle it

5:00am May 19, 2022

North Korea says it's experiencing its first COVID outbreak. Experts are skeptical, but they are also wondering if this means the country will accept outside help or if it can handle it alone.

World News

African students who fled to Poland from Ukraine are waiting in limbo

7:02pm May 18, 2022

More than 6 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded. Not all of them are Ukrainian. Some citizens of African countries have found that the doors of Europe are much less open to them.

Queue Listen Now

A Russian serviceman patrols the destroyed part of the Ilyich Iron and Steel Works in Ukraine's port city of Mariupol on Wednesday.

World News

Mariupol has fallen to Russia. Here's what that means for Ukraine

5:46pm May 18, 2022

After months of fighting and shelling, Ukraine has ended its combat mission in Mariupol, and its remaining soldiers have been evacuated to Russian-held territory.

World News

Russian sergeant pleas guilty in the 1st war crimes case of the invasion in Ukraine

5:45pm May 18, 2022

by Greg Myre

A Russian sergeant pleads guilty for killing a Ukrainian civilian in the war's first war crimes case. Such cases usually occur after a war ends. Ukraine wants to prosecute while the evidence is fresh.

Queue Listen Now

Russian army Sgt. Vadim Shishimarin, 21, is seen behind glass during a court hearing in Kyiv on Wednesday. He went on trial in Ukraine for the killing of an unarmed civilian and pleaded guilty. It is the first time a member of the Russian military has bee

Russia-Ukraine war: What happened today (May 18)

5:08pm May 18, 2022

by NPR Staff

A roundup of key developments and the latest in-depth coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Swedish defense minister on decision to apply to NATO after decades of resistance

4:33pm May 18, 2022

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Sweden's Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist after his meeting with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, about his country's decision on joining NATO.

State Secretary Blinken chairs UN meeting about global food security

4:33pm May 18, 2022

by Michele Kelemen

State Secretary Antony Blinken is focusing on food security in a visit to the UN. He's also seeing Turkey's foreign minister, likely talking about its stance on NATO membership for Finland and Sweden.

Queue Listen Now

Protesters carry images of disappeared people on Mother's Day during an annual march by the mothers of missing people to demand the Mexican government step up efforts to locate the missing and prevent further disappearances, in Mexico City, May 10.

World News

Mexico's official list of missing people passes 100,000, with few cases ever solved

4:07pm May 18, 2022

by Carrie Kahn

Mexico marks a grim milestone: The number of people officially listed as disappeared now exceeds 100,000. Many are victims of drug cartels, journalists, human rights advocates and Indigenous people.

Queue Listen Now

Hundreds of people gather near a U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane at the perimeter of the international airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 16, 2021. SIGAR, released its interim report Wednesday detailing why Afghanistan's government and military co

The U.S. deal with the Taliban destroyed Afghans' military morale, a new report says

3:19pm May 18, 2022

by Bill Chappell

Morale across Afghanistan's military was "destroyed" when then-President Trump made a deal with the Taliban in 2020 and President Biden affirmed the U.S. exit in 2021, a new watchdog report says.

Queue Listen Now

Elephant spent 18 years in military intelligence, then went to work as a farmer growing wheat and sunflowers. The Russian invasion has pulled him back into the field.

World News

A member of Ukraine's parliament now trains a recon and sabotage unit to fight Russia

2:36pm May 18, 2022

by Frank Langfitt

Col. Roman Kostenko, a Ukrainian lawmaker, has built a reconnaissance and sabotage team to target Russian forces. His ultimate goal: free his family village from Russian control.

Queue Listen Now