ABC radio news and current affairs afternoon program reporting on Australia and the world.

The Federal Government is being criticised by opponents and climate activists for giving up Australia's bid to host next year's COP summit in favour of Turkiye.

After the US Congress voted in favour of releasing the Epstein files, all eyes are now on the President Donald Trump who has the power to sign the bill into law.

Australia's national science agency, the CSIRO, has announced it is slashing up to 350 jobs from research teams.

As Coalition MPs work to sell their new energy policy to voters, more experts are questioning whether it can lower electricity bills.

The Federal Liberal Party is continuing to face accusations from opponents that it has capitulated to junior coalition partner the Nationals in announcing the dropping of its policy of net zero emissions by 2050.

The Liberal Party has formally dumped its commitment to net zero emissions by 2050.

Australia and Indonesia have announced the signing of an unexpected security treaty between the two nations.

The President of Nauru has made a secretive visit to Parliament House in Canberra, amid concerns about his country's deal to accept Australian immigration detainees.

Two female politicians have been threatened with death and rape after they condemned a neo-Nazi rally held outside the NSW Parliament on the weekend.

Sussan Ley stares down leadership speculation after a Liberal colleague says she's losing her party's support.

The new advice on how to boost housing supply and bring down home prices.

New York overwhelmingly elects Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani the city Mayor, putting him on a collision course with his arch-critic Donald Trump.

Inflation is up and interest rates are on hold, so what does the RBA Governor say hard-pressed households can expect from the economy in the year ahead?

A senate inquiry hears Australia telco Optus held eleven crisis meetings before going public and revealing the Triple-O outage deaths.

The King strips his younger brother of his royal title over his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Donald Trump says he'll resume testing of nuclear weapons as he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping and secures new trade deals.

Australia has recorded its biggest jump in inflation rate in years, setting back the hopes of those counting on further interest rate cuts.

There are calls for a childcare overhaul following revelations paedophiles are using the dark web to help get jobs working with children.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has met with the Chinese Premier on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Malaysia.

A class action has been launched against the Australian Defence Force, with accusations that women serving in its ranks were subjected to sexual violence and harassment. Â

The US has announced new sanctions targeting Russia's two largest oil companies, in a bid to pressure Moscow to negotiate a peace deal in Ukraine.

After all the handshakes, back-slaps and gift exchanges in Washington DC, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is on his way back to Australia.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's first face-to-face meeting with US President Donald Trump has resulted in agreements on critical minerals and AUKUS.

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley has used a speech in Sydney to highlight the direction she hopes to take the embattled Liberal Party.

US President Donald Trump has chatted at length with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the phone, as he weighs whether to send long-range tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.

Australia's unemployment rate has jumped to 4.5 per cent, its highest level in four years.Â

As Hamas re-exerts its authority over Gaza, US President Donald Trump vows America will take steps to disarm the organisation if it doesn't give up its weapons.

US President Donald Trump has declared that the peace deal between Hamas and Israel signals the dawn of a new Middle East...

Just over two years since they were kidnapped by Hamas in the October 7 terrorist attacks, the first members of the final group of Israeli hostages are being released.

The first phase of the Gaza peace deal appears to be on track after the IsraelI Cabinet approved its terms.

The US President Donald Trump has announced that after mediated negotiations in Egypt, Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first stage of his peace plan.

Australian taxpayers will fund a $600 million rescue package so mining giant Glencore can keep its Mt Isa copper smelter running for the next three years.

Vigils have been held to mark the second anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel which killed more than 1200 people.

The ABC has discovered more Optus customers have been unable to contact triple zero on their mobiles outside last month's two well-publicised outages.

The deadline for Hamas to accept US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan is fast approaching and there are reports members of the militant group are not prepared to agree to its terms.

Australia's landmark defence treaty with Papua New Guinea has been approved by PNG's cabinet after a two week delay.

The Federal Government is denying its Home Guarantee Scheme will greatly increase property prices.

The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has welcomed US President Donald Trump's proposed plan to end the war in Gaza and is urging both sides to agree to its terms.

The Federal Treasurer is talking up the government's economic management after the budget deficit for the last financial year came in about $18 billion lower than forecast.

In the United States, the former director of the FBI, James Comey, has been indicted by a grand jury on two charges of lying to Congress in 2020 about the investigation into Donald Trump's Russia links.

In his first speech the the UN General Assembly, the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has made a pitch for Australia to once again win a temporary seat on Security Council.

The telecommunications company Optus has announced an independent review of last week's outage that is linked to the deaths of three people.