Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

U.S. general says will ensure necessary resources to counter Iran

U.S. Central Command chief General Kenneth McKenzie said on Saturday the United States would deploy the necessary resources to counter any dangerous actions by Iran, Sky News Arabia reported. "We're gonna continue to reach out to our partners and friends in the region to ensure that we make common cause against the threat of Iran," McKenzie, on an official visit to the Gulf region, was quoted as saying by Sky News Arabia.

China puts gentler face on Belt and Road, hits back at critics

China sought to put a gentler face on its massive plan to recreate the old Silk Road at a summit that ended on Saturday, saying it must do more to explain the program and boost sustainability even as state media hit back at critics. President Xi Jinping has made the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as it is formally called, one of the cornerstones of his administration. But it has run into opposition in some countries over fears that opaque financing arrangements lead to unsustainable debt and that it is more about promoting Chinese influence than bringing development.

Ambassadors designated by Venezuela's Guaido meet in Colombia on winning over China and Russia

Ambassadors designated by Juan Guaido, the Venezuelan opposition leader recognized by most Western nations as the country's president, are meeting on Saturday in Colombia to discuss how to win the support of China and Russia, staunch allies of President Nicolas Maduro. More than a dozen ambassadors from Latin America and the United States, gathered at a hotel in Bogota, will analyze the next stage they hope will lead Maduro and his military supporters to stand down.

Putin calls U.S. treatment of admitted agent Butina an outrage

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday made his first comments on a U.S. court sentencing admitted Russian foreign agent Maria Butina to 18 months in prison, calling her treatment a travesty of justice. Butina was sentenced on Friday after the Siberia native, her voice breaking with emotion, begged a judge for mercy and expressed remorse for conspiring with a Russian official to infiltrate a gun rights group and influence U.S. conservative activists and Republicans.

All to play for as polarized Spain votes after tense campaign

Spain heads to the polls on Sunday for its most divisive and open-ended election in decades, set to result in a fragmented parliament in which the far-right will get a sizeable presence for the first time since the country's return to democracy. After a tense campaign dominated by emotive issues, notably national identity and gender equality, the likelihood that any coalition deal will take weeks or months to be brokered will feed into a broader mood of political uncertainty across Europe.

"Jilted bride": As South Korea marks peace summit, North stays aloof

Along forest trails below a bare mountain peak that until last year was a vantage point for a North Korean guard post, a group of around 20 ordinary South Koreans took a rare hike on Saturday near the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas. The hikers were chosen by lottery to explore a "peace trail" near the heavily fortified frontier, launched to mark the first anniversary of a landmark summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Sri Lanka bans groups suspected to be behind attacks; ringleader's relatives wounded

Sri Lanka's president on Saturday outlawed two Islamist groups suspected to be behind the suicide bombings on churches and hotels while the wife and child of the suspected ringleader were wounded during a military raid in safe house, his family and police said. The National Thawheedh Jamaath (NTJ) and Jamathei Millathu Ibrahim were banned under his emergency powers, President Maithripala Sirisena said in a statement, nearly a week after the Easter Sunday attacks that killed more than 250 people.

French police, yellow vests protesters clash in Strasbourg

French police fired tear gas to push back protesters who tried to march towards the European Parliament building in Strasbourg on Saturday, the 24th consecutive weekend of protests against President Emmanuel Macron's policies. The "yellow vest" protesters were back on the streets across France two days after the president outlined policy proposals including tax cuts worth around 5 billion euros ($5.58 billion) in response to the protests.

Sudan's military and opposition agree in principle to joint council: sources

Sudan's military rulers and opposition agreed in principle on Saturday to the formation of a joint body to lead a transition from 30 years of autocratic rule by Omar al-Bashir, but not on the new council's make-up, two sources said. The two sides were holding their first formal discussions as opposition groups and protesters push for a rapid handover to civilian rule following Bashir's fall earlier this month.

Air strike hits Tripoli as eastern Libyan forces send warship to oil port

Air strikes hit the Libyan capital late on Saturday as eastern forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar pursued a three-week campaign to take Tripoli and also confirmed for the first time they had dispatched a warship to an oil port. The Libyan National Army (LNA) force of Haftar, which is allied to a parallel government, has repeatedly flown air strikes since starting an offensive three weeks ago to take the capital held by the internationally recognized government.