World this week

Photo: AP/UNB
The US State Department said it is restarting the suspended process for foreigners applying for student visas but all applicants will now be required to unlock their social media accounts for government review. The department said consular officers will be on the lookout for posts and messages that could be deemed hostile to the United States, its government, culture, institutions or founding principles. In a notice made public Wednesday, the department said it had rescinded its May suspension of student visa processing but said new applicants who refuse to set their social media accounts to "public" and allow them to be reviewed may be rejected.
It said a refusal to do so could be a sign they are trying to evade the requirement or hide their online activity. The Trump administration last month temporarily halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the US while preparing to expand the screening of their activity on social media, officials said.
Thailand's Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra apologised for the deepening political turbulence set off by a leaked recording of her negotiations with Cambodia's former leader in the two nations' latest border dispute. Calls for her resignation grew after a major coalition partner pulled out and further destabilized the already rocky government led by her Pheu Thai Party. Paetongtarn has already been criticised for a perceived soft stance toward Cambodia, especially by right-wing nationalists who are longtime foes of her father, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
The latest border dispute involved an armed confrontation May 28 in a relatively small "no man's land" both countries claim in which one Cambodian soldier was killed. Hun Sen, now his country's "Senate President," posted the full, 17-minute phone call on his Facebook page after a shorter version was leaked Wednesday. He said he recorded the conversation "to avoid any misunderstanding or misrepresentation in official matters." Paetongtarn's critics said she was trying to please Hun Sen too much, making Thailand look weak.
The Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda are set to sign a peace agreement on June 27, they said in a joint statement with the US State Department on Wednesday (Jun. 18). The countries' technical teams have already initiated the draft, which is expected to be formally signed in Washington next week. The draft peace deal aims to end fighting in eastern Congo, where Rwandan-backed M23 rebels made significant advances at the beginning of the year, capturing the strategic city of Goma and the town of Bukavu.
"The Agreement includes provisions on respect for territorial integrity and a prohibition of hostilities; disengagement, disarmament, and conditional integration of non-state armed groups," said the statement posted to the State Department's website. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will witness the official signing ceremony next week. The agreement builds on a declaration of principles signed between the two countries in April. It signals a breakthrough for the Trump administration's push to halt the conflict.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government survived a confidence vote in parliament on Wednesday, shoring up its mandate after the nationalist opposition's victory in the presidential election deepened political gridlock and raised doubts about Tusk's ability to deliver on key reforms. Lawmakers voted 243-210 in favor of the government in the 460-seat Sejm, the lower house, with supporters rising to applaud Tusk and chant his name. Tusk had requested the vote, saying Poland is in a new reality and that he was seeking a fresh opening, following the June 1 loss of Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski - his close ally - to nationalist historian Karol Nawrocki.
Backed by President Donald Trump, Nawrocki is set to replace Andrzej Duda, another conservative who repeatedly blocked Tusk's reform efforts. "I am asking for a vote of confidence with full conviction that we have a mandate to govern, to take full responsibility for what is happening in Poland," Tusk said earlier in the day.
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