AFP UK

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – US President Joe Biden promises increased arms deliveries for Ukraine during a surprise visit to Kyiv in which he also vowed Washington’s “unflagging commitment” in defending Ukraine’s territorial integrity. “Together we’ve committed nearly 700 tanks and thousands of armoured vehicles, 1,000 artillery systems… and that doesn’t count the other half a billion dollars we’re announcing with you today and tomorrow that’s going to be coming your way,” Biden tells his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – US President Joe Biden says he is in Kyiv on a surprise visit to show the US’ ‘unwavering support for the nation’s independence, their sovereignty, and territorial integrity’.

Warsaw (AFP) – Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is greeted by her Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki as she arrives in Warsaw. Meloni is stopping in the Polish capital as she heads to Kyiv ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Images show Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President of the United States Joe Biden as the latter pays a surprise visit to Kyiv ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion. The two leaders, with air raid sirens sounding in the background, visit the St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery in the Ukrainian capital, where they honour the memory of fallen Ukrainian defenders.

Brussels (AFP) – Thousands of protesters in Brussels demonstrate in support of the Iranian resistance movement, calling for action against Tehran’s leaders as European Union foreign ministers meet.

Various (Japan) (Japan) (AFP) – Atsushi Monbetsu belongs to the Ainu Indigenous group that traditionally lived in what is now northern Japan, as well as territory now in Russia. But now, like a growing number of younger people from Indigenous communities in Japan, he has reclaimed his identity and some of the traditional practices he considers his birthright.

Airspace in the Sea of Japan (Japan) (AFP) – Japan and South Korea each held joint air drills with the United States in airspace over the Sea of Japan on February 19. The exercises were in response to North Korea firing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that landed in Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone a day earlier, on February 18.

Antakya (Turkey) (AFP) – Every day since the deadly February 6 earthquake, rescue workers from HAYTAP, the Turkish Animal Rights Federation, are scouring the rubble in Antakya. They have been pulling cats, dogs, rabbits, cows and pigeons from the ruins.

Bonfim (Brazil) (AFP) – Dressed in hand-embroidered velvet costumes and mounted on horses, people ride through the town in a tradition that dates back to the 18th century, turning the war between the Moors and Christians into a festival.

Pyongyang (AFP) – Images released from the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on February 19th show the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile Saturday, which it said demonstrated North Korea’s capacity to carry out a “fatal nuclear counterattack”. Pyongyang warned last week of an “unprecedentedly” strong response to Seoul and Washington’s upcoming joint drills, which it describes as preparations for war and blames for the deteriorating security situation on the Korean peninsula.

Naha (Japan) (AFP) – Moeko Heshiki is no ordinary tattoo artist: she is one of the few people keeping the once-banned tradition of hajichi body art alive for the Indigenous Ryukyu people of Japan’s Okinawa region. The traditionally hand-poked markings were once common on women of the Ryukyu, marking important moments in their lives.

Antakya (Turkey) (AFP) – Murat Guzel scatters bird feed on the roof as the sun sets over the devastated southern Turkish city of Antakya. Guzel is caring for the birds, mostly pigeons, he keeps above the restaurant at which he used to work before the deadly earthquake on February 6. “The way we would take care of our children, we take care of our birds” says Guzel, “we can’t just leave them and go, because this is our homeland”.