MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has notified its partners under the Open Skies arms control treaty that it will leave the group on Dec 18, the Russian foreign ministry said on Friday. The Kremlin said this month that the U.S. decision to withdraw from the treaty - which allows unarmed surveillance flights over member countries - had “significantly upset the balance of interests” among the pact’s members and had compelled Russia to exit. Moscow had hoped that U.S. President Joe Biden would reverse his predecessor’s decision. But the Biden administration did not change tack, accusing Russia of violating the pact, something Moscow denied.

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NEW YORK (Dispatches) - United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was appointed for a second-five year-term on Friday by the 193-member U.N. General Assembly. “I will give it my all to ensure the blossoming of trust between and among nations large and small, to build bridges, and to engage relentlessly in confidence building,” Guterres told the General Assembly after taking the oath of office. The 15-member Security Council earlier this month recommended the General Assembly re-appoint Guterres. His second term starts on beginning on Jan. 1, 2022.

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LANZAROTE, Spain (Dispatches) -More than 40 African refugees were rescued after their boat ran aground on the rocky coast of Lanzarote in Spain’s Canary Islands late on Thursday, emergency services said, while over 100 people on two more boats made it safely to other islands. Rescue workers pulled the body of a young boy out of the ocean on Friday afternoon, bringing the total death toll to four, while police divers were preparing to begin searching for one person who remains missing.

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NEW YORK (Dispatches) - African governments must act quickly to curb a third wave of coronavirus infections that is sweeping across the continent, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. COVID-19 cases rose by over 20 percent week-on-week in nearly two dozen African countries and progress on vaccinating Africans is proceeding slowly, with just 0.79 percent of people on the continent fully vaccinated, senior health officials said on Thursday.

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NEW YORK (Dispatches) - The number of people who have been forced to flee their homes around the world has risen to a record 82 million despite the impact of the pandemic, the UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) says. The total has doubled in a decade and means more than 1% of the world’s population is displaced. The pandemic had led to a significant reduction in asylum applications and overall migration, the UNHCR said.

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STOCKHOLM (Dispatches) - Sweden’s fragile ruling coalition looks increasingly shaky after a leftist party won support from key corners of the conservative opposition to push through a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Stefan Lofven. The Left Party, which isn’t part of the government, appears to have the backing of the Moderates, the Christian Democrats and the Sweden Democrats to oust Lofven’s minority coalition, according to social media posts and local media. The challenge is turning into the most serious threat yet to Sweden’s government, which was formed after an inconclusive election result in 2018.