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Officials from Thailand and Cambodia will meet next week to discuss the possibility of reviving a ceasefire, Thailand's foreign minister said, as deadly border clashes entered a third week, BBC reported. 

Both countries had signed a ceasefire earlier in July, brokered by US President Donald Trump. But fighting broke out again earlier this month - which both countries have blamed each other for. 

On Monday, top officials from both countries met at a summit in Malaysia, their first first face-to-face meeting since fighting resumed, according to BBC. 

Donald Trump has sparked a fresh row with Denmark after appointing a special envoy to Greenland, the vast Arctic island he has said he would like to annex, BBC reported. 

In response to a question from the BBC about the new role of Jeff Landry, the Republican governor of Louisiana, Trump said the US needed Greenland for "national protection" and that "we have to have it".

Landry, he said, would "lead the charge" as special envoy to Greenland, a semi-autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark, according to BBC. 

Russia has intensified its strikes on the southern Ukrainian region of Odesa, causing widespread power cuts and threatening the region's maritime infrastructure, BBC reported. 

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said Moscow was carrying out "systematic" attacks on the region. Last week, he warned that the focus of the war "may have shifted towards Odesa".

President Volodymyr Zelensky said the repeated attacks were an attempt by Moscow to block Ukraine's access to maritime logistics, according to BBC. 

As Nepal prepares for its March 5 parliamentary elections, both the United States and China have recalled their ambassadors from Kathmandu. 

Chinese Ambassador Chen Song is returning to Beijing this week, marking the end of his tenure as China’s 22nd ambassador to Nepal. Chen assumed office on January 8, 2023, during a period of active engagement between Kathmandu and Beijing, particularly in areas of infrastructure development, connectivity, and political cooperation.

Before his departure, Ambassador Chen paid courtesy calls on Prime Minister Sushila Karkiand other senior government officials. The Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu hosted a farewell reception on Sunday, December 21, in his honor.

In his farewell remarks, Ambassador Chen said he had developed a deep emotional connection with Nepal and its people during his posting. “Before I came to Nepal, I was a supporter of China–Nepal relations. Three years later, I can proudly say that I have become a lifelong friend of the Nepalese and Chinese people,” he said.

Meanwhile, the United States has also recalled its ambassador to Nepal, as part of a broader reshuffling of U.S. diplomatic personnel under President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy framework. According to the Associated Press, nearly 30 career diplomats have been recalled from ambassadorial and senior embassy posts worldwide as Washington seeks to realign its diplomatic corps with the administration’s priorities.

Africa has been the most affected region, with ambassadors recalled from 13 countries, including Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia, and Uganda, according to Politico. The Asia-Pacific region follows, with diplomatic changes affecting six countries: Fiji, Laos, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Additional recalls have taken place in Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, and the Western Hemisphere.

In South Asia, both Nepal and Sri Lanka are among the countries affected by the U.S. diplomatic changes. The U.S. Ambassador to Nepal, Ambassador Thompson, arrived in Kathmandu in 2022. Prior to his posting, he served as Acting Assistant Secretary and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, where he oversaw U.S. policy toward the region. A member of the Senior Foreign Service, he has more than 25 years of experience in U.S. diplomacy.

Counting of snow leopards has begun for the first time in Mustang in a bid to ascertain the snow leopard population. 

The Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), Mustang has launched a survey of snow leopard through camera trapping at four local levels since Saturday. 

Though ACAP and other concerned organizations had conducted camera trappings by finding possible habitats of snow leopards, it was not sufficient to know the actual population.  

Chief of ACAP Lomanthang, Umesh Poudel, said the process of 161 camera trapping grids was determined in every five km distance in both Lower and Upper Mustang. 

Recently, snow leopards are coming down hills in search of food during the winter season. So, Biocos Nepal and ACAP installed 111 cameras at six more places in the Baragaon Mukti area and Gharapjhong rural municipality a few days back for counting the number of leopards. 

ACAP Lomanthnag has divided human resources in three blocks for camera trapping and more than one dozen persons have been deputed in the field for this purpose. 

ACAP technicians and local human resources would provide support, Poudel mentioned. 

The cameras would remain fixed in the fields for a maximum six months for this purpose.

CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba held a meeting at the latter’s residence in Maharajgunj on Monday.

During the meeting, they discussed contemporary political issues, current situation of the country, and mutual cooperation, it has been learnt.

UML General Secretary Shankar Pokharel was also present in the meeting. 

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 13. 88 points to close at 2, 581. 21 points on Monday.

Similarly, the sensitive index dropped by 2. 25 points to close at 446. 01 points.

A total of 9,167,359-unit shares of 345 companies were traded for Rs 1. 46 billion.

Meanwhile, SY Panel Nepal Limited (SYPNL) was the top gainer today with its price surging by 9. 99 percent.

Likewise, Manushi Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (MLBS) was the top loser as its price fell by 6. 84 percent.

At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 33 trillion.

The Trump administration is recalling nearly 30 career diplomats from ambassadorial and other senior embassy posts as it moves to reshape the U.S. diplomatic posture abroad with personnel deemed fully supportive of President Donald Trump’s “America First” priorities, according to Associate Press. 

Africa is the continent most affected by the removals, with ambassadors from 13 countries being removed: Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia and Uganda, according to Politico. 

Second is the Asia-Pacific region, with ambassadorial changes coming to six countries: Fiji, Laos, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Vietnam affected.

Four countries in Europe (Armenia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Slovakia) are affected; as are two each in the Middle East (Algeria and Egypt); South Asia (Nepal and Sri Lanka); and the western hemisphere (Guatemala and Suriname), according to Politico.