Extreme heat is threatening the world's food systems, with farmers unable to work outside, livestock experiencing stress and crop yields falling, putting the livelihoods of more than a billion people in peril, the UN has warned. Experts said food supply in some areas was being "pushed to the brink" by increasingly common and severe heatwaves, on land and at sea, in a major report written jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

Farmers could find it impossible to work safely for as many as 250 days of the year - more than two-thirds of the time - in already hot regions including much of India and south Asia, tropical sub-Saharan Africa and swathes of Central and South America. Yields begin to decline at temperatures above 30C for most agricultural crops, with damage including weakened cell walls and the production of toxins. The yields of maize in some areas have declined by about 10%.

Europe turned its attention to the Palestinians on Monday as the election defeat of Israel ally Victor Orban in Hungary gave new momentum to efforts addressing Gaza and the occupied West Bank. More than 60 nations sent representatives to Brussels for talks with Palestinian representatives on stability, security and long-term peace. The European Union has largely been on the sidelines in the Middle East despite being the biggest provider of aid to the Palestinians and backing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

A majority of EU member countries now recognise an independent Palestinian state after many expressed outrage over Israeli actions in Gaza. The 27-nation bloc is also Israel's top trading partner and a major buyer of Israeli weapons. But the EU had no role in negotiating the October ceasefire in Gaza that took effect after two years of war. And European moves to condemn or sanction some Israeli actions frequently had been vetoed by Orbán.

Ukraine is pushing for face-to-face talks between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kyiv's top diplomat said, presenting a potential summit as a way of injecting new momentum into US-led efforts to end Russia's more than four-year invasion of its neighbour. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone attack deep inside Russia struck a residential building, killing a woman and a child, Russian officials said Wednesday.

Kyiv has asked Turkey to help facilitate top-level talks and has reached out to other capitals as potential hosts, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said, adding that Ukraine would consider any venue outside Russia and Belarus. "We are ... advocating for a (summit) meeting now to bring new momentum to diplomacy," Sybiha told reporters. US-mediated talks over the past year between delegations from Moscow and Kyiv have made little or no headway on key issues, such as the future of four Ukrainian regions Moscow is trying to capture but doesn't fully control.

Japan scrapped a ban on lethal weapons exports, a major change in its postwar pacifist policy as the country seeks to build up its arms industry amid worries over Chinese and North Korean aggression. The approval by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Cabinet of the new guideline clears a final set of hurdles for many arms sales, including of Japanese-developed warships, combat drones and other weapons. It has been largely welcomed by Japanese defence partners like Australia and attracted interest from Southeast Asia and Europe.

US Ambassador to Japan George Glass on X called the move a "historic step" that will help enhance the defence capabilities between the allies. China criticised the change in policy. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the global community including China will "resolutely resist Japan's reckless moves toward a new type of militarism." Opponents at home also say the change violates Japan's pacifist constitution and will increase global tensions and threaten the safety of the Japanese people.