World News at a Glance

Trump Presses NATO on Military Spending, but Signs Its Criticism of Russia

President Donald Trump escalated his campaign of criticism against European allies Wednesday, accusing Germany of being “captive to Russia” and demanding all NATO members double their military spending targets. Trump stopped short of any substantive breaks with the alliance, reaching agreement on a plan to improve military readiness and signing a joint statement that emphasized burden-sharing and harshly criticized Russia. But coming just days before he is to meet President Vladimir Putin of Russia, Trump’s critical stance toward the allies focused additional attention on long-standing concerns by the United States about the willingness of Europe to shoulder its share of the financial burden for NATO.

On Paper, Cambodia Has 20 Parties. In Practice, It Has One.

Twenty parties, some just a few months old, will be on the ballot when Cambodia’s national elections are held this month. But most voters will have heard of only one: the Cambodian People’s Party, led by Hun Sen, the authoritarian prime minister. Hun Sen has had no viable opposition since November when the Cambodia National Rescue Party was dissolved by a court packed with his loyalists. The U.N. special rapporteur on Cambodia, Rhona Smith, and numerous rights groups have said the July 29 vote will not be legitimate.

How Germany Won Freedom for the Widow of China’s Most Famous Dissident

For the past year, China’s security apparatus had controlled the movements of Liu Xia, 57, widow of China’s most famous dissident, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo. Then a security official telephoned her last week to say she could leave the country, European diplomats said. The decision by the Chinese government to release Liu days before the anniversary of her husband’s death sprung from the passionate interest in her fate by Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, who requested Liu’s release during a meeting with President Xi Jinping. That request coincided with China’s realization that Liu had become a liability just as China’s image was taking a battering over its increasingly authoritarian rule.

Soccer Players and Their Coach Are on the Mend, Thailand Says

Twelve young soccer players and their coach were recovering well Wednesday, a day after the last of them left the remote cave in Thailand where they had been trapped since late June, a Thai public health official said. Dr. Thongchai Lertwilairatanapong said the boys and their 25-year-old coach were recovering swiftly under quarantine in a hospital in the city of Chiang Rai. Medical specialists worry that the boys could experience anxiety, panic attacks, recurrent nightmares, phobias or other symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. But as of Wednesday, Thongchai said, the boys were all sleeping normally and had not received any anti-anxiety medication.

Suicide Bombing on Afghan Education Department Kills 12

Suicide bombers targeted an Education Department building in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad on Wednesday, striking the commercial hub for the second time in 24 hours and killing at least 12 people. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest in a series of strikes on educational sites in the province. But suspicions quickly fell on the Islamic State, which has a foothold in the region and has announced its plans to attack schools in retaliation for airstrikes and other military operations that have killed its fighters.

BBC Closes Gender Pay Gap, but Men Are Still Its 12 Highest-Paid Stars

A year after a public relations debacle over wide pay disparities between its male and female stars, the BBC on Wednesday released a new list detailing how much it pays its top talent. And while the list suggested there had been some progress, the reality remains somewhat gloomy for women. Despite a narrowing of the BBC’s gender pay gap, the list showed that the publicly financed broadcaster’s 12 highest-paid stars were men. The revelation prompted accusations that the British broadcaster was actually moving backward considering that last year only the seven highest paid were men. This year, only two women ranked among the 20 highest paid.

After 20 Years of Silence, Strangers in Ethiopia and Eritrea Call to Say Hello

Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in the early 1990s, but then a border war broke out between them. Cross-border travel was banned, flights were canceled and phone calls on landlines and cellphone networks were not permitted between the two countries. Then this week, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia and President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea announced a formal declaration of peace between the two nations. Economic, cultural and diplomatic ties can be forged again. And now with phone services restored, some people have begun calling strangers, just to say hello.