Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

EU to propose easing checks on British trade to N. Ireland

The European Commission will put to Britain on Wednesday a package of measures to ease the transit of goods to Northern Ireland, while stopping short of the overhaul London is demanding of post-Brexit trading rules for the province. The EU executive’s measures are designed to ease customs controls, such as the clearance of meat, dairy and other food products and the flow of medicines to the British province from the UK mainland.

Tiananmen statue creator accuses HK university of ‘mafia’ tactics

The Danish sculptor of a statue that commemorates pro-democracy protesters killed during China’s Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989 has accused a leading Hong Kong university of “mafia” style tactics over its order to have it removed. Jens Galschiot loaned the eight-metre high, two-tonne copper sculpture called “Pillar of Shame” to a local civil society group, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, in perpetuity.

Austrian opposition seeks graft inquiry in next headache for Kurz

Austrian opposition parties agreed on Wednesday to set up a parliamentary commission of inquiry into alleged corruption by officials from the ruling conservative party after its leader Sebastian Kurz stepped down as chancellor at the weekend. Kurz denies wrongdoing but has been placed under investigation along with nine others including senior aides on suspicion of corruption offences to do with using public funds to manipulate public opinion in favour of Kurz when he was seeking to take over as party leader and later chancellor.

Afghan refugee children in South Korea welcome new life away from war, restrictions

For one young Afghan refugee girl, her new home in South Korea has already brought simple freedoms she would otherwise be denied. “In Afghanistan, you can’t do activities as freely as men do, and it’s satisfying to do Taekwondo without a hijab in Korea right now,” the girl told reporters after a Taekwondo class on Wednesday.

Government in Turkish Cypriot enclave offers resignation

The coalition government in the breakaway state of northern Cyprus has offered its resignation to the enclave’s leader after it lost its majority in parliament, its prime minister said on Wednesday as he called for an early election. Cyprus’s internationally recognised government is run by Greek Cypriots, while the breakaway administration in the north of the Mediterranean island is only recognised by Turkey.

Tension over Beirut blast probe nudges Lebanon into new crisis

Growing tension over a judicial probe into last year’s Beirut port blast threatens to push Lebanon into yet another political crisis, testing Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s new government as it struggles to dig the country out of economic collapse. More than a year since the explosion ripped through Beirut, killing more than 200 people, Judge Tarek Bitar’s efforts to hold senior officials to account for suspected negligence are facing mounting political pushback.

In Libyan city, mass graves evoke stakes of faltering peace push

Workers in the Libyan city of Tarhouna have spent more than a year exhuming bodies from mass graves that show the cost of a decade of conflict and the high stakes of a fragile peace plan that has left victims on the sidelines. Tarhouna was held by the local Kaniyat militia from 2012 until its capture last year by pro-Tripoli government forces, leaving a grisly legacy that symbolises the North African country’s lost decade of anarchy and violence.

Countries call for urgent action on biodiversity with ‘Kunming Declaration’

More than 100 countries pledged on Wednesday to put the protection of habitats at the heart of their government decision-making but they stopped short of committing to specific targets to curb mass extinctions. Chinese Environment Minister Huang Runqiu told delegates to a U.N. Biodiversity Conference in the city of Kunming that the declaration they adopted was a document of political will not a binding international agreement.

Taiwan says don’t get too close as China defends military drills

Taiwan’s defence ministry warned China of strong countermeasures on Wednesday if its forces got too close to the island, as Beijing defended its incursions into Taiwan’s air defence zone as “just” moves to protect peace and stability. Military tensions with China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, are at their worst in more than 40 years, Taiwan’s defence minister said last week, adding China will be capable of mounting a “full scale” invasion by 2025.

Analysis-With an eye on China, Japan’s ruling party makes unprecedented defence spending pledge

An unprecedented election pledge by Japan’s ruling party to double defence spending underscores the nation’s haste to acquire missiles, stealth fighters, drones and other weapons to deter China’s military in the disputed East China Sea. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) included a goal of spending 2% of GDP – about $100 billion – or more on the military for the first time in its policy platform ahead of a national election this month.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)