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North Korea has informed the United Nations that its status as a nuclear-armed state is irreversible and rejected outside pressure to abandon its weapons programme. The declaration, delivered through UN channels, signals Pyongyang's continued defiance of Security Council resolutions and international disarmament efforts, underscoring stalled diplomacy over the Korean peninsula's denuclearisation.

New satellite imagery indicates North Korea is expanding its uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon, its main nuclear complex north of Pyongyang. Analysts say the construction could increase the country's capacity to produce weapons-grade uranium. The finding adds to concerns over Pyongyang's advancing nuclear program amid stalled diplomatic talks and continued United Nations sanctions.

Sudan has two rival power structures but no recognised government. The army-backed administration controls much of the formal state apparatus, while the Rapid Support Forces exercise authority over territory they hold. Washington says neither side represents legitimate constitutional governance, leaving the country's international representation and sovereignty questions unresolved.

Ukraine says it sent grenade-launcher-equipped ground robots to attack Russian shelters while its infantry stayed out of direct contact, with operators controlling the machines from positions tens of kilometers away. Ukraine's Third Army Corps says no one has used similar tactics in this war before, and the claim is being circulated via United24. Observers are weighing what the tactic means for manned assault operations.

Kazakhstan has put forward an offer to host talks on nuclear arms, according to Aju Press. The proposal comes from the Central Asian country that gave up the Soviet nuclear arsenal left on its territory after independence. Details on which parties would take part and when the talks might happen have not been reported.

Counter-terrorism arrests have been made near a UK air base, drawing attention to security around military sites in Britain. Details of those arrested and the suspected motive have not been confirmed. The story is prompting discussion about threats to armed forces personnel and installations.

The UN arms embargo covering Sudan's Darfur region expires on Saturday and must be renewed by the UN Security Council. Discussion is focused on whether the embargo will be extended amid the war between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, with attention to arms flows and regional actors including the United Arab Emirates.

Vladimir Putin has signed a decree immediately increasing the size of the Russian armed forces to 2,441,630 personnel, including 1,550,500 military personnel. The decree replaces all previous ones on army strength and marks the seventh such expansion of Russian force levels since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Russian forces carried out large-scale strikes on Kyiv, with claims that attacks targeted military hubs and what Moscow describes as NATO specialists in the Ukrainian capital. The strikes reportedly burned Ukraine's military infrastructure. The claim of foreign specialists being killed has not been independently verified, and the fighting continues to draw intense international attention as the war grinds on.

Taiwan's government says US arms sales to the island continue as normal, but a large weapons package worth about $14 billion has not moved forward and remains on hold. Officials are playing down any suggestion of a policy shift, though the delay is drawing attention given rising tensions with China and questions about how quickly Washington will deliver promised defensive equipment to Taipei.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has called for renewed negotiations among nuclear-armed states as Kazakhstan marks 35 years since the closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. Speaking on the anniversary, he warned that global arms-control safeguards are weakening, urging world powers to return to the negotiating table to prevent a renewed nuclear arms race.

CNBC's Daily Open newsletter highlights a growing split in the artificial intelligence world: prominent AI creators are publicly warning about the technology's risks, even as companies press ahead with massive spending on data centers and computing infrastructure. The piece frames the tension between caution from the technology's own architects and the commercial momentum driving investment forward.

OpenAI is paying a network of influencers across Instagram and other platforms to promote ChatGPT and cast the company as 'good for the world', according to a Business Insider report. The strategy includes sponsorships and ad partnerships as the company works to shape public perception of its AI tools.

A suspected bomb plot near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire is under investigation. A farmer driving home in the early hours found three white vans abandoned blocking a village road, grew suspicious and turned around, before reportedly seeing a group of men nearby. Details remain limited, and the account is circulating widely online as people await official confirmation from police about arrests and the nature of the alleged plot.

British Olympic champion cyclist Katy Marchant has announced her retirement from the sport. Marchant won team sprint gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics alongside Becky James and Philip Hindes, and later added European and Commonwealth medals before a serious arm injury ended her track career. Tributes are being paid to one of Britain's most successful sprint cyclists.

Germany is shifting its economic strategy toward large-scale military rearmament, with defence spending increasingly framed as an engine for industrial growth. Observers are debating whether the country can revive its stagnant economy through arms production and defence investment, and what the move means for European security and Germany's fiscal priorities. The debate has drawn wide attention among economics and policy audiences.

The Canadarm2, the large robotic arm aboard the International Space Station, has stopped working, according to an Ars Technica report. The arm is critical for capturing cargo spacecraft, moving equipment and supporting spacewalks, so a failure would complicate station operations. Details on the cause of the failure and whether engineers can restore it have not been made clear.

Analysts are explaining the consequences of global warming surpassing the 1.5°C threshold set by the Paris Agreement. Crossing this limit is tied to more severe heatwaves, droughts, and sea-level rise, and would signal that governments have fallen short of their climate pledges. Commentators stress the milestone carries both symbolic and practical weight for global climate policy.

The United Nations has added a wind farm developer to a blacklist over alleged links to human rights violations, according to trade outlet Recharge. The designation places the company alongside entities accused of complicity in abuses, raising questions about its access to international financing and renewable energy supply chains.

U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue said on Fox News that Donald Trump asked Xi Jinping whether China would be interested in purchasing American weapons. The State Department moved quickly to clarify that Washington has no plans to sell arms to Beijing, seeking to walk back the remark.

A farmer's tip-off is credited with helping to stop a suspected terrorist plot at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, England. The alert reportedly prompted police action at the airbase, a key site for US military operations in the UK. Few further details about the suspected plot or any arrests have been confirmed, and people are discussing what happened at the base and how the tip-off unfolded.

Scientists report that as the Pacific Ocean warms, its water 'ages' are behaving counterintuitively: younger water is getting older while older water is getting younger. The finding points to shifting circulation and mixing patterns in the world's largest ocean, with implications for how heat and carbon are stored and moved. Researchers say the trend adds to concerns about how warming is altering ocean systems.

An analyst told French broadcaster RFI that Washington has alienated the Sudanese army in what he described as a complex war. The comment highlights growing friction between the United States and Sudan's military leadership as the conflict, which began in April 2023 between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, drags on. Other outlets, including Modern Ghana, have picked up the remarks, underscoring debate over whether US diplomacy in Sudan has undermined a key actor in any future settlement.

Thales, Bull and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) are joining forces to develop software for quantum computers intended for the French military. The partnership, reported by French tech media, links major defence and research players around quantum technology, drawing attention among French-speaking tech and defence observers.