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METUCHEN, N.J. -- American Girl just unveiled their 2023 "Girl of the Year," and she's from New Jersey. Kavika Sharma, or Kavi for short, is a spunky Broadway-loving dancer and singer from Metuchen.

American Girl just unveiled their 2023 "Girl of the Year," and she's from New Jersey. Kavika Sharma, or Kavi for short, is a spunky Broadway-loving dancer and singer from Metuchen. She's the line's ...

Move follows House of Representatives ban, which TikTok called a ‘political measure that will do nothing’ for national security
TikTok has been banned on all federal government devices in the US, with limited exceptions, after Joe Biden signed a $1.7tn (£1.4tn) spending bill on Thursday containing a provision that outlaws the China-based app over growing security concerns.
The ban – which was approved by Congress in a vote last week – is a major step targeting the fastest-growing social media platform in the world as opponents express worry user data stored in China could be accessed by the government.

US aircraft forced to take evasive maneuvers during latest incident over contested shipping, fishing and gas field-rich region
A Chinese military plane came within 10ft (three meters) of a US air force aircraft over the contested South China Sea last week and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace, the US military said.
The close encounter followed what the US called a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft.

Many city workers heading home for holiday in late January are likely to take disease with them
China is preparing for another wave of Covid to hit its more vulnerable countryside in early 2023, as the current wave of infections and intensive care units in many cities.
The lunar new year, China’s most important holiday, falls in late January. It offers a chance of reunion after years of separation under the harsh internal travel restrictions and lockdowns of the previous zero-Covid policy.

Our approach to the pandemic has always been science-led, and that’s still the case with our new, more lenient guidelines
Over the past weeks, Beijing has become the first city to go through the infection peak, and life and work are returning to normal in the capital. The Covid-19 situation in China is generally stable and controllable, and people are making plans to work, study and travel.
That’s why the Chinese government has announced that, starting from 8 January, Covid-19 will be managed with measures against Class B instead of the more serious Class A infectious diseases in accordance with the law. There will also be new cross-border travel rules. For visitors to China, no Covid test will be mandatory upon arrival and no centralised quarantine will be required if someone tests positive while in the country. This is another adjustment China has made to its approach based on a comprehensive assessment of the pandemic situation, representing a shift of focus from stemming infections to preventing severe cases and further minimising the impact of Covid-19 on economic and social activities.
Zheng Zeguang is the Chinese ambassador to the UK
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France joins Spain and Italy in requiring arrivals to show a negative result with the UK to follow suit
European countries are preparing to scale up the monitoring of potential new coronavirus variants from China, as Spain and France brought back mandatory testing at airports in response to Beijing’s rapid rollback of anti-infection measures.
The two countries on Friday followed Italy’s lead by requiring arrivals from China to show a negative test result, though unlike Rome, Spain makes exceptions for those who can prove they are fully vaccinated.

Analysts say Chinese leader has leverage as Russian counterpart ‘has no one else to turn to’ amid Ukraine war
Vladimir Putin invited his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, on Friday to make a state visit to Russia next spring, as Moscow seeks to deepen its ties with China amid growing international isolation over the war in Ukraine.
Speaking to Xi via a videoconference, Putin said Russia’s ties with China are the “best in history”, expressing his wish to extend military collaboration and inviting Xi to visit Moscow.

It’s the potential of individuals to change the world which is at the heart of democratic liberalism – but their actions must be matched by global support
As we farewell 2022, many of the world’s citizens will be hoping for a better new year. It is hard to look back on the past year – indeed couple of years – without a high degree of angst about the direction of our global community.
We have been battered by a pandemic that, while past the peak for most nations, is still disrupting societies and economies. After two years of its hermit-like isolation, 1.4 billion Chinese citizens are now experiencing a nationwide Covid onslaught for the first time with ripples that will not only affect the lives of those in China but the rest of the world linked to the second largest economy.

The Russian president has said he expects his Chinese counterpart to make a state visit to Russia next spring, in what would be a public show of solidarity from Beijing amid Russia's flailing military campaign in Ukraine.
In introductory remarks from a video conference between the two leaders, broadcast on state television on 30 December, Putin said: 'We are expecting you, dear Mr Chairman, dear friend, we are expecting you next spring on a state visit to Moscow.'
Putin said the visit would 'demonstrate to the world the closeness of Russian-Chinese relations'