Following is a summary of current world news briefs. U.S. diplomats head to China despite row over Houston consulate

A flight bound for Shanghai carrying U.S. diplomats has left the United States as Washington presses ahead with its plan to restaff its mission in China a day after an American order to close the Chinese consulate in Houston sharply escalated tensions. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters the flight, carrying an unspecified number of U.S. diplomats, left Washington on Wednesday evening. The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. WHO chief denounces ‘unacceptable’ comments questioning his independence

The head of the World Health Organization said on Thursday that reported comments by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo questioning his independence were untrue and would not distract the organisation from its work in fighting the coronavirus. Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has come under criticism, especially from U.S. President Donald Trump and Pompeo, who have accused him of being pro-China. UK trade deal unlikely for now: Britain, EU clash over post-Brexit ties

Britain and the European Union clashed on Thursday over the chances of securing a free trade agreement, with Brussels deeming it “unlikely” but London holding out hope one could be reached in September. Since Britain left the bloc in January, talks on the trade agreement and other future ties have all but stalled, with each side accusing the other of failing to compromise before a transition period runs out at the end of this year. U.S. and Baltic states oppose Russian ‘rewriting of history’

The United States joined Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia on Thursday in opposing any Russian attempts to rewrite history after President Vladimir Putin said the Baltic states had consented to their 1940 annexation by the Soviet Union. “We stand firmly against any attempts by Russia to rewrite history in order to justify the 1940 occupation and annexation of the Baltic states by the Soviet Union,” U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote in a joint statement with the foreign ministers of the three Baltic countries. China warns it ‘must’ retaliate after closure of Houston consulate

China said the U.S. move to close its Houston consulate this week had “severely harmed” relations and warned it “must” retaliate, without detailing what it would do. Washington on Tuesday gave China 72 hours to close the consulate, which it said was “to protect American intellectual property and Americans’ private information,” a dramatic escalation of tension between the world’s two biggest economies. Putin and Trump discussed arms control, Iran in phone call: Kremlin

Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed arms control and Iran’s nuclear program in a telephone call, the Kremlin said in a statement on Thursday. The two leaders also expressed a mutual desire to develop trade and economic interaction between Russia and the United States, the Kremlin added. UK pledges more funds for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for virus response planning

Britain said on Friday it was guaranteeing 3.7 billion pounds ($4.72 billion) of additional funding this year to be split between Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to allow the devolved governments there to plan their coronavirus response. Britain’s semi-autonomous nations receive some of their funding based on how much is spent by the central government in England. But final amounts can normally not be guaranteed in advance, creating uncertainty over spending limits. Trump, Saudi crown prince discuss economic recovery from coronavirus: White House

U.S. President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and “re-energizing global economies” during a telephone call on Thursday, the White House said. The two leaders also discussed regional and bilateral issues and the prince “reaffirmed the strong United States-Saudi defense partnership,” a White House spokesman said. Iranian passenger plane approached by U.S. fighter jets lands back in Tehran: Fars news

An Iranian passenger plane that was approached by U.S. fighter jets in Syrian airspace has landed back in Tehran, the Fars news agency reported on Friday. The approach of the fighter jets caused the pilot of the passenger plane to change altitude quickly which injured several passengers, the official IRIB news agency reported. Turkish parliament gives Erdogan authority to extend layoff ban for a year

Turkey’s parliament on Thursday approved a law allowing President Tayyip Erdogan to extend a layoff ban imposed to combat the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic until July 2021. The layoff ban was first imposed in April for three months. With the new law, Erdogan will be allowed to extend the ban by three months each time until June 30, 2021.