World's 'greatest test' delays climate talks
The coronavirus pandemic that has caused 47,000 deaths worldwide represents what officials call humanity's worst crisis since World War II.
Global Issues
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Uprooted 70 million at risk in virus spread
The coronavirus pandemic threatens to disproportionately harm more than 70 million people who have been forcibly displaced by wars and violent crises.
G-20 pledges $5 trillion to fight virus
G-20 major economies promised to spend more than $5 trillion to prop up the global economy and hasten recovery from the pandemic.
IOC and Japan postpone Tokyo Olympics
In an unprecedented move, the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo will be postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
U.N. urges cease-fire as cases near 400,000
The U.N. chief called for a global cease-fire to help vanquish the pandemic, imploring warring parties to disarm and fight the virus as a "common enemy."
WHO and foundations launch virus fund
WHO and two international foundations launched a first-of-its-kind fund to help vulnerable populations and weak health systems cope with the pandemic.
Global trade services growth weakens as coronavirus spreads
The World Trade Organization's services trade barometer shows a further decline from last September.
WHO: World's first coronavirus pandemic
WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic — the global spread of a new disease — marking the first time a coronavirus has gained that distinction.
WMO warns Earth halfway to Paris limit
Signs of global warming are everywhere, WMO said in a report that found the world officially crossed the halfway point to a major climate crisis benchmark.
U.N. warns of $2 trillion in economic losses from coronavirus
Trade economists who advise the U.N. warned COVID-19 could cost the world economy up to $2 trillion in 2020 and push nations into recession.
U.N. reboots 1995 plan for gender equality
A U.N.-led global commission recommitted the world to achieving gender equality, in a relaunch and update of a quarter-century old landmark agreement.
WHO says coronavirus cases top 100,000
WHO announced the global number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surpassed 100 000, a grim milestone requiring leaders to "step forward" and save lives.
Ex-U.N. chief Pérez de Cuéllar dies at 100
Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, the fifth U.N. chief from 1982 to 1991, who arranged an Iraq-Iran cease-fire and aided democracy in his native Peru, died at age 100.
UNCTAD sees $50 billion exports drop
The global coronavirus outbreak likely caused a $50 billion decline in manufacturing exports from China in February alone.
Democracy on decline in health checkup
Freedom House warned of a continued decline in global democracy in an annual checkup blaming a "leaderless struggle" undercut by autocrats and populists.
G-7 pledges to fight new coronavirus risks
G-7 finance chiefs vowed to safeguard their economies from the coronavirus outbreak, but did not offer specifics about what they might be prepared to do.