
A landmark defence pact between North Korea and Russia, signed by its leaders in June, has gone into effect after the two sides exchanged ratification documents, North Korea's official KCNA news agency said Thursday. The formalization of the treaty comes as the United States and South Korea have accused the nuclear-armed North of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine. Experts say North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is keen to acquire advanced technology from Moscow and battle experience for his troops in return. Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the strategic partnership deal during the Kremlin chief's visit to Pyongyang. It obligates both states to provide military assistance "without delay" in the case of an attack on the other, and to jointly oppose Western sanctions. It came into effect from Wednesday, when the ratification documents were exchanged in Moscow by the countries' vice foreign ministers Kim Jong Gyu and Andrei Rudenko, KCNA reported. Lawmakers in Moscow last month voted unanimously for the deal and it was later signed by Putin. Pyongyang said it was ratified by a decree from Kim. The treaty will serve "as a strong driving force accelerating the establishment of an independent and just multi-polarized world order without domination, subjugation and hegemony," KCNA said. Analysts have suggested Pyongyang could be using Ukraine as a means of realigning its foreign policy. By sending soldiers, North Korea is positioning itself within the Russian war economy as a supplier of weapons, military support and labour — potentially even bypassing traditional ally, neighbour and main trading partner China, they say. North Korea and Russia have strengthened their military ties since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both countries are under rafts of UN sanctions -- the former for its nuclear weapons programme and the latter for the Ukraine conflict. Kim said last week during a visit to Pyongyang by Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov that his government, army and people would "invariably support the policy of the Russian Federation to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity". Putin hailed the deal in June as a "breakthrough document". bur-sst/bjt Get any of our free email newsletters — news headlines, sports, arts & entertainment, state legislature, CFD news, and more.Daily Dose of Social Media: Alcaraz and Shelton courtside for Knicks’ win, Naomi Osaka shine as film producer
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The ‘Errors Tour’: Fans Point Out Mistakes in Taylor Swift’s Official Tour BookThe cost of Storm Bert will run to millions of euro as a massive clean-up operation is underway nationwide. On Sunday, forecasters issued low-level wind warnings for 13 counties across the island. A status yellow wind warning is in place for Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo until 2am on Monday while a yellow wind alert is in place for Donegal until 8am on Monday. A status yellow wind warning is also in place for Clare, Kerry and Galway until 7pm on Sunday. Forecasters at Met Éireann said gusty winds will create a risk of fallen trees and difficult travelling conditions in these counties. In Northern Ireland, a yellow alert warning has been issued by the Met Office for all counties from 11am until 6pm on Sunday, with possible disruption to travel and utilities. While the Atlantic storm wasn't as damaging as initially feared with Status Red warnings in place for both Galway and Cork on Saturday, torrential rainfall caused havoc across many rural communities with homes flooded, infrastructure damaged, roads left impassable, festive attractions closed and Christmas shopping interrupted. At its peak, over 60,000 homes and businesses were left without power as Storm Bert battered Ireland with torrential rainfall and high winds. The River Blackwater bursts its banks and floods Mallow Racecourse in Mallow, County Cork Storm Bert: Footage shows heavy flooding as rivers burst their banks More than 100 roads, mostly rural, were left impassable on Saturday due to the combination of flooding, fallen trees and storm debris. The ESB said almost 50,000 people were successfully reconnected on Saturday evening as repair crews began operations once it was safe to do so. All businesses and householders are expected to be reconnected by Sunday evening. At one point, repair crews were battling to deal with storm related issues in 14 counties. Donegal, Limerick, Cork, Kerry and Galway witnessed the worst of the damage. However, while major flooding fears had focused on Bantry and Midleton in Cork, both were spared the worst of the damage on Saturday. Rising water levels as the rainfall from Storm Bert feeds down from mountains and hills - combined with melt from the snow and ice of last week's Arctic snap - will ensure all flood-prone towns will remain on high alert for days to come. Met Éireann warned that the winds in the aftermath of Storm Bert will vary from strong gusts to gale force with the risk of fallen trees, flying debris and difficulty travelling conditions. Flood barriers were erected in Mallow and Fermoy - with Fermoy's Kent Bridge over the River Blackwater having to be closed to both vehicle and pedestrian traffic on Sunday because of rising water levels. It reopened on Sunday morning. Significant flooding hit a number of communities nationwide with Killybegs in Donegal, Abbeyfeale in Limerick and Listowel in Kerry hardest hit. All three suffered what has been described as the worst flooding in living memory. Assessments are now underway in all three towns to determine the scale of the flood-repair costs. However, the combination of damage to property and infrastructure, allied to the disruption of critical Christmas trade, is expected to see losses run to millions of Euro. At its peak, a river was running through the centre of Killybegs - while Abbeyfeale's soccer pitch was left resembling a waterpark as flood water turned a local road into a river. Listowel's town centre flooded as locals admitted it was the worst flooding seen for over half a century. Some traders fear they have suffered flood-related damage to much of their critical Christmas stock. Maam Cross in Galway su ffered a major landslide as hillsides were unable to cope with the sheer volume of rainfall dumped by Storm Bert. Maam Road in Leenane had to be closed due to the massive landslide with Galway Co Council experts now conducting a safety and repair assessment. At its peak, some parts of Ireland received 60mm-plus of rainfall in a matter of hours. Fears had focused on both Midleton and Bantry in Cork but they escaped any major flood damage. Midleton was hit by severe flooding in October 2023 after Storm Babet. Bantry suffered damaging flooding just last month with a culvert under the town's main street unable to cope with the huge volume of rainfall washing down from the mountains which ring the coastal town. The west Cork town has been waiting for almost two decades for a flood protection scheme. Storm Bert also played havoc with public transport across Ireland with dozens of Iarnród Éireann and Bus Éireann services either delayed or cancelled because of the conditions. A number of flights were also either delayed or diverted at the height of the storm. Fears were that Storm Bert rainfall could reach from 50mm to possibly even 80mm across Galway and Cork in a matter of hours. The average rainfall for the entire month of December is 123mm. Storm conditions forced a number of festive events to be postponed - with the Christmas lights ceremony being hit in Fermoy firstly by Storm Bert on Saturday and then on Sunday by the town effectively being cut in two by the flood-related bridge closure. However, a number of cities and towns proceeded on Sunday with Christmas festivals and events which had to be cancelled on Saturday due to Storm Bert. Both the Gardaí and Road Safety Authority (RSA) repeated their plea to people to be careful when travelling near flooded roads over the coming days. A large number of roads are expected to be flooded for days to come and motorists were warned never to attempt to drive into flood waters because of uncertainty over the depth and possible current. Drivers were also urged to drive with care, to slow down, allow extra braking distance to the vehicle in front and to be conscious of vulnerable road users. Gardaí repeated their plea to motorists to check that their vehicles were winter-ready with tyres, windscreen wipers and headlights all in good condition. Water Safety Ireland urged people to avoid waterways given that many streams and rivers have been transformed into raging torrents. The public have also been urged to stay away from exposed coastal areas due to hazardous gusts.
AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — Malek Abdelgowad scored 26 points as UMass beat UMass-Boston 86-52 on Saturday. Abdelgowad also contributed 14 rebounds for the Minutemen (4-7). Daniel Rivera added 11 points while going 4 of 6 and 3 of 7 from the free-throw line while they also had 10 rebounds. Jaylen Curry had 10 points and finished 4 of 7 from the field. The Beacons were led in scoring by Cameron Perkins, who finished with 13 points, six rebounds and two steals. Xavier McKenzie added 13 points, two steals and two blocks for UMass-Boston. Raphel Laurent also recorded eight points. UMass took the lead with 15:49 remaining in the first half and did not relinquish it. The score was 47-24 at halftime, with Abdelgowad racking up 18 points. UMass extended its lead to 66-36 during the second half, fueled by a 14-2 scoring run. Abdelgowad scored a team-high eight points in the second half as their team closed out the win. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .Trump seeks to have Georgia election case dismissed, citing presidential immunity
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Quion Burns scored 17 points as Maine beat Canisius 84-79 on Saturday. Burns had seven rebounds for the Black Bears (8-5). Kellen Tynes scored 15 points while shooting 5 of 5 from the field and 4 for 4 from the line and added nine assists. Christopher Mantis had 15 points and went 5 of 8 from the field (3 for 5 from 3-point range). Jasman Sangha led the way for the Golden Griffins (0-11) with 26 points and three steals. Paul McMillan IV added 22 points and six assists for Canisius. Tana Kopa also had 16 points and two steals. The Golden Griffins prolonged their losing streak to 11 in a row. Maine plays Saturday against Stony Brook on the road, and Canisius visits Loyola Chicago on Wednesday. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .