S&P says Ukraine is no longer in default on debt
S&P says Ukraine is no longer in default on debtWASHINGTON, United States, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Ukraine is no longer considered in default after completing an exchange of securities following a missed 2025 payment, S&P Global Ratings said Thursday. Ukraine had missed a $0.67 billion payment in June 2025 on the warrants, said S&P, which lifted its assessment from "selective default" to CCC+/C. A "small" portion of Ukraine's commercial debt remains in default, but S&P said Ukraine is engaged in restructuring talks with creditors and that the funds in question represent less than 2.5 percent of Ukraine's total outstanding commercial debt. "Despite ongoing diplomatic efforts, the terms and timing of a potential ceasefire remain unclear, as Russia and Ukraine strongly disagree on ceasefire preconditions, including border disputes and security guarantees for Ukraine," S&P said. At the end of 2025, Ukraine reached a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund for more than $8 billion over five years.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:47 UTC
Japan core December inflation slows to 2.4%: govt
TOKYO, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Japan's core inflation slowed to 2.4 percent in December, government data showed Friday as Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi prepares to dissolve parliament ahead of a snap election. The year-on-year rise in consumer prices, which excludes volatile fresh food, compared to three percent in November and was in line with market expectations. There was also an increase in prices for cereals and confectionery among others but government subsidies for electricity, gas and high school fees contributed to the slower pace of inflation, according to data. Takaichi, who was appointed leader in October, has promised to fight inflation as a major priority, and her cabinet has approved a record 122.3-trillion-yen budget for the fiscal year from April 2026. Public discontent over rising prices largely contributed to the downfall of Takaichi's predecessor Shigeru Ishiba.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:43 UTC
Japan PM Takaichi set to dissolve parliament for snap election
TOKYO, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will dissolve parliament on Friday ahead of a snap election on February 8, counting on her cabinet's high poll numbers to steer her otherwise unpopular ruling party to victory. The ruling coalition of Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) has only a slim majority in the powerful lower chamber. "It's not clear if high public support for the Takaichi cabinet will actually lead to support of the LDP," Hidehiro Yamamoto, politics professor at the University of Tsukuba, told AFP. Public discontent over rising prices largely contributed to the downfall of Shigeru Ishiba, whom Takaichi succeeded in October. - Centrist alliance -The LDP has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades, albeit with frequent leader changes.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:41 UTC
EU has 'serious doubts' about Trump's 'Board of Peace'
EU has 'serious doubts' about Trump's 'Board of Peace'BRUSSELS, Belgium, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - European leaders have serious doubts about the scope of President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace" but are ready to work with the United States and the newly founded body in Gaza, EU chief Antonio Costa said Friday. "We have serious doubts about a number of elements in the charter of the Board of Peace related to its scope, its governance and its compatibility with the UN Charter," the European Council president said after an EU leaders' summit in Brussels. "We are ready to work together with the US on the implementation of the comprehensive Peace Plan for Gaza, with a Board of Peace carrying out its mission as a transitional administration". The founding charter of Trump's body for resolving international conflicts has a $1 billion price tag for permanent membership. Trump unveiled the new Board of Peace at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos Thursday, joined on stage by leaders and officials from 19 countries to sign its founding charter.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:39 UTC
Trump withdraws invite for Canada's Carney to join 'Board of Peace'
WASHINGTON, United States, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - US President Donald Trump on Thursday withdrew an invite for Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney to join his newly constituted "Board of Peace." "Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada's joining," Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. Carney drew international attention this week with comments about a "rupture" in the US-led global order. His government has also said it would not pay to join Trump's self-styled body to end global conflicts.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:39 UTC
Europe relieved but 'vigilant' after Trump Greenland climbdown
Trump's threats over the vast Arctic island -- an autonomous territory of NATO member Denmark -- plunged relations between Europe and its key ally Washington to a historic low. Macron insisted that a push in the European Union to unleash its trade arsenal against the United States had helped persuade Trump to back down. Details remain scant on any agreement, but a source familiar with the talks told AFP the United States and Denmark would renegotiate a 1951 defence pact on Greenland. Trump said the accord would give Washington "everything we wanted" -- however, there was no sign he had succeeded in his repeated vow to make Greenland part of the United States. Greenland is only part of the picture, as the United States wages a broader attack on the EU's laws, politics and values -- points pressed home by Trump on the stage in Davos.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:39 UTC
US, Ukrainian and Russian officials to meet in UAE, says Kremlin
US, Ukrainian and Russian officials to meet in UAE, says KremlinMOSCOW, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Ukrainian, US and Russian officials will meet in the United Arab Emirates on Friday, the Kremlin said, following "useful" talks between President Vladimir Putin and US envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow. US negotiators, led by envoy Steve Witkoff, talked with the Russian leader in Moscow until the early hours of Friday, according to a Kremlin statement. Kremlin diplomatic adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters their discussions had been "useful in every respect". Further details of the talks in the United Arab Emirates have not been released, and it is not clear whether Russian and Ukrainian officials will meet face-to-face. "We are genuinely interested in resolving (the conflict) through political and diplomatic means," Ushakov told reporters.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:39 UTC
Workers dig for the missing in New Zealand landslide
Workers dig for the missing in New Zealand landslideMOUNT MAUNGANUI, New Zealand, Jan 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Emergency workers dug through deep mud in search of victims Friday after a landslide from an extinct volcano crashed into a popular campsite in northern New Zealand. Authorities say a young girl is among the missing after a chunk of Mount Maunganui ploughed into holidaymakers Thursday, smashing a shower block, camper vans and caravans. The Mount Maunganui region is a big tourist draw in summer for hikers and beach lovers. Emergency workers retrieved two bodies on Thursday from a separate landslide that ploughed into a home in the nearby harbourside city of Tauranga. At the campsite, visiting Canadian tourist Dion Siluch, 34, said he was having a massage at the now-evacuated Mount Hot Pools complex when the landslide hit.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:31 UTC
Dr Shafiqur launches election campaign: pledges to build youth as dignified citizens
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr. Shafiqur Rahman addressed a public rally in Mirpur-10 this afternoon, officially launching the party’s election campaign. Photo: BSSDHAKA, Jan 22, 2026 (BSS)- Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman today said his party wants an education system to produce skill youths instead of just certificate holders. “Youths should be developed as dignified citizens, not beggars,” he said adding “We want an education that builds skills, not certificates. We want to build up them as dignified citizens.”Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer was addressing a public rally at Adarsha School ground in Mirpur-10 this afternoon as Shafiqur Rahman, Jamaat-nominated candidate for the constituency, formally launched the party’s election campaign. Speaking about voting rights, Shafiqur Rahman said people of the country were deprived of voting rights in the last three elections.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 03:01 UTC
Trump unveils Board of Peace, 'New Gaza' plans at Davos
Trump officials also unveiled ambitious plans for a "New Gaza" during the ceremony at the World Economic Forum, with the US leader describing the devastated Palestinian territory as "great real estate". Trump's Board of Peace was created after Trump expressed frustration at failing to win the Nobel Peace Prize and ramped up accusations the United Nations had failed to resolve a host of international conflicts. The Board of Peace, of which Trump is the chairman, was initially designed to oversee the Gaza truce and the reconstruction of the strip after the war between Hamas and Israel. Trump told Hamas to disarm under the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire accord or it would be the "end of them". Zelensky said his meeting with Trump was "positive" but conceded that dialogue with the US president was "not simple".
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 02:56 UTC
We want to eradicate corruption from country: Tarique Rahman
BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman addressed a rally as the chief guest at the upazila ground in Shayestaganj Upazila of Habiganj. Photo: BSSHABIGANJ, Jan 22, 2026 (BSS) - BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman today said that if his party comes to power, they aim to eradicate all forms of organized corruption from the country. "We want to eradicate corruption from the country. The country is not the property of any individual; the people are the sole owners of the country," he said. Tarique Rahman said that over the past nearly 16 years, all institutions of the country have been destroyed, and public money has been looted through corruption and smuggled abroad.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 02:41 UTC
55pc growth of remittance inflow till Jan 21
DHAKA, Jan 22, 2026 (BSS) - Inflow of remittances witnessed a year-on-year growth of 55 percent reaching US$2,331 million in the first 21 days of January, according to the latest data of Bangladesh Bank (BB) issued today. Last year, during the same period, the country's remittance inflow was $1,504 million. During the July to January 21, 2026 of the current fiscal year, expatriates sent remittances of $18,596 million, which was $15,280 million during the same period of the previous fiscal year.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 23, 2026 02:31 UTC
How A Cornell Psychology Professor Studies Early Childhood to Combat Climate Change
During his time at the Sciencenter, Trautmann developed an interest in education and early childhood development. “I got very interested in [climate change] from an educational standpoint, and that led me towards psychology,” Trautmann said. By understanding the activities in childhood that can encourage positive environmental behavior in adults, Trautmann hopes to combat climate change and protect the environment. At the same time, the method assesses each adult participant’s carbon footprint, or individual impact on the environment. In a survey of nearly 600 participants, he has found no significant relationship between environmental attitude and carbon footprint.
Source:Daily Sun
January 23, 2026 01:47 UTC
ROUND UP: Chariho stays hot and other results
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Source:Daily Sun
January 23, 2026 01:33 UTC
DB arrests alleged arms dealer with 2 foreign pistols in Dhaka
DHAKA, Jan 22, 2026 (BSS) - The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP)'s Detective Branch (DB), Lalbagh Division, has arrested an alleged arms dealer along with two illegal foreign pistols, four magazines, and 21 rounds of bullets from the Shyampur area of the capital. He was apprehended during a raid conducted in the West Dholaipar area under Shyampur Police Station at around 1:40 pm today. Deputy Commissioner of Lalbagh Division Md Mostaq Sarker made the disclosure today at a news briefing at DMP Media Centre on Mintoo Road. During the operation, they recovered two illegal foreign pistols, four magazines, and 21 rounds of bullets from the possession of Md. Police said a case has been filed against the accused under the Arms Act with Khilgaon Police Station of the DMP.
Source:Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha
January 22, 2026 23:51 UTC