United States Energy Secretary Chris Wright arrived Wednesday in Venezuela for a firsthand assessment of the country's oil industry, a visit that further asserts the U.S. government's self-appointed role in turning around Venezuela's dilapidated energy sector.

Wright met Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez at the Miraflores presidential palace in the capital, Caracas. He is expected to meet with government officials, oil executives and others during a three-day visit to the South American country.

Portugal's interior minister has stepped down in response to growing criticism of her government's response to successive winter storms this season, in which at least seven people have died.

Maria Lúcia Amaral resigned after concluding that she "no longer possessed the personal and political conditions necessary to hold the position," President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa's office said late Tuesday.

Nearly all of the 230 people up for Oscars across 24 categories gathered Tuesday for the Academy Award nominees luncheon, an event that functions as a celebration, group portrait session and orientation for next month's big ceremony.

Nominees including Jessie Buckley, Timothée Chalamet, Leonardo DiCaprio and Emma Stone sat for lunch and stood for a class photo alongside nominees for awards including best animated short and the newly created casting Oscar.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Tuesday called on the nation's highest court to lift a suspension on an economic emergency decree that would grant his government the authority to raise taxes without congressional approval.

In a televised Cabinet meeting, Petro said that the government must raise tens of millions of dollars to fund recovery efforts in two northern Colombian provinces that have been affected by floods that have killed at least 14 people and displaced an estimated 69,000.

Moscow will observe the limits of the last nuclear arms pact with the United States that expired last week as long as it sees that Washington is doing the same, Russia's top diplomat said Wednesday.

The New START treaty expired Feb. 5, leaving no restrictions on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century and fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race.

Thomas Frank was fired by Tottenham on Wednesday after only eight months in charge and with his team just five points above the relegation zone in the Premier League.

Despite leading Spurs to the round of 16 in the Champions League, Frank has overseen a desperate domestic campaign. A 2-1 loss to Newcastle on Tuesday was greeted by boos from the home fans and left Spurs still without a league win in 2026.

Young forward Samu Aghehowa was in disbelief after missing out on a chance to play in his first World Cup with Spain because of a serious knee injury sustained while playing with Porto.

The 21-year-old Samu got hurt in Porto's 1-1 draw with Sporting Lisbon in the Portuguese league on Monday in what he called "the unluckiest day" of his career. Porto said he sustained a torn ACL on his right leg.

Opposition to a deal that would allow U.S. companies access to critical minerals in Congo is growing after Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi returned from the U.S. minerals summit last week — with praises from U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. lawmakers.

Tshisekedi has offered U.S. companies access to eastern Congo's rich minerals — mostly untapped and estimated to be worth $24 trillion – as a bargaining chip for U.S. support to help fight off rebels and build critical infrastructure in the region where Rwanda-backed rebels seized major cities last year.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance's team posted and then deleted a message on social media about the Republican's visit to a memorial paying tribute to early 20th century Armenians killed by the Ottoman Empire.

The issue was the post using the term "Armenian genocide," a designation the U.S. government historically has not used for what happened, with a notable exception by the Biden administration. The White House blamed a staff mistake.

Eileen Gu isn't trying to sound zen about all this. It just sort of comes out that way.

There is something inherently dangerous about flinging yourself down the side of a mountain or soaring over snow and ice, yet don't describe what Gu and hundreds of other Winter Olympians who are exposing themselves to the unpredictable whims of the elements across northern Italy as a battle.