The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

President Joe Biden hit the road Wednesday with trips to the election battlegrounds of Wisconsin and Florida, after a barnstorming State of the Union speech reinforcing expectations that the 80-year-old will seek a second term.

Google on Wednesday announced a slew of features powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) as it ramped up a battle with Microsoft to maintain its dominance of the web search industry.

Denmark's beloved Queen Margrethe II, who at 82 is Europe's longest serving head of state, is to undergo a major back operation, the palace said on Wednesday.

The US and Brazil will seek to reset ties this week when President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva travels to Washington to meet Joe Biden, both keen to turn the page on the Jair Bolsonaro years.

Europe's stock markets rose but Wall Street opened lower on Wednesday as investors digested President Joe Biden's calls for tax hikes and the latest interest rate signals from US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell.

Paris Olympic organisers unveiled the 'visual identity' for the 2024 Games on Wednesday including a purple athletics track and a fresh set of pictograms for Olympic sports.

Uganda's wildlife population has boomed over the past four decades, the wildlife minister said Wednesday, but warned more must be done to save declining species including lions and endangered chimpanzees.

The French government and the 2024 Olympic organisers both sidestepped on Wednesday, the day after Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo called for a ban on Russian participation "as long as there is war" in Ukraine.

After losing out to Milan to host the 2026 Winter Olympics, Sweden is now considering a bid for the 2030 Games, the Swedish Olympic Committee (SOC) announced on Wednesday.

US star Mikaela Shiffrin wrote another chapter in her storied alpine skiing career in Meribel on Wednesday by winning world super-G silver to tie the modern record for individual world medals.

There are "strong indications" that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally approved the supply of the missile that shot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014, international investigators said Wednesday.

Microsoft's planned $69-billion takeover of video game giant Activision Blizzard could significantly harm competition and consumer choice, UK regulators concluded in provisional findings Wednesday.

President Volodymyr Zelensky used a visit to London on Wednesday to urge allies to send combat aircraft to his war-torn country as Britain promised to train Ukrainian fighter pilots.

Restorers launched a ground-breaking project in Florence's historic Baptistery Wednesday, allowing visitors a unique view of magnificent mosaics, including a three-headed devil which inspired Italian poet Dante.

Green metal coffins were lined up 10 at a time under a shelter at Gaziantep's main cemetery on Wednesday for an imam to bless victims of Turkey's devastating earthquake before their hurried burial.

Huw Jones says Scotland cannot be considered Six Nations contenders until they prove they can string together big victories as they prepare to face Wales at Murrayfield on Saturday.

The world's top oil and gas companies amassed record profits last year after Russia's invasion of Ukraine drove prices higher -- and they can expect the good times to roll on despite calls to tax them more.

Belarus on Wednesday sentenced a Polish-Belarusian journalist to eight years in prison over his critical reporting on the Moscow-aligned regime of President Alexander Lukashenko.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday defended his record after criticism of his close association with tycoon Gautam Adani, whose business empire has been rocked by corporate fraud allegations.

Time was running out for survivors buried in the rubble of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, as search efforts near the crucial 72-hour mark, a rescue response expert said Wednesday.

Justin Rose said he does not believe the Ryder Cup will be "devalued" if LIV Golf players are prevented from competing at this year's event in Rome.

With the death toll rising by the hour, the massive earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 5 is already among the ten deadliest of the 21st century.

Croatia's famed football coach Miroslav Blazevic -- who led the country to a third-place finish at the 1998 World Cup -- died on Wednesday, the national football federation said. He was 87.

Britain vowed Wednesday to support Ukraine to ensure military victory this year, as President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in London on a rare foreign visit just weeks before the first anniversary of Russia's invasion.

Europe's stock markets rose Wednesday on "soothing" remarks from US Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell and rocketing energy-sector profits, with London striking a record peak, dealers said.

Ridwan Gurre had the instincts to hide from roaring warplanes when he lived in Syria during its civil war.

The Swiss on Wednesday handed a large stone-carved head back to Peru, where it was sculpted around 2,500 years ago by one of the country's earliest civilisations, the culture office said.

France fly-half Romain Ntamack says Ireland are "comfortable favourites" for Saturday's predicted Six Nations title decider with Ireland in Dublin.

Searchers were still pulling survivors Wednesday from the rubble of the earthquake that killed over 11,200 people in Turkey and Syria, even as the window for rescues narrowed.

Leveraging years of experience gleaned during Syria's war, the White Helmets are spearheading rescue efforts in the country's rebel-held north following the powerful earthquake that rocked Syria and Turkey.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Britain on Wednesday for only his second overseas trip since Russia's invasion began nearly a year ago.

The Antarctic Ocean area covered by ice was the lowest on record for January, exposing Earth to even more planet-warming heat, scientists reported Wednesday.