The US State Department said the balloon that had flown over the US for days was part of a bigger surveillance program targeting 40 countries.

The former commanding US general in Europe, Ben Hodges, has told DW that the West should provide Kyiv with fighter jets. He said that providing Ukraine with the planes could lead to a victory for Kyiv within the year.

The object was downed over Lake Huron following two other such incidents in Alaska and Canada in recent days. Earlier, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said investigators were hunting for wreckage in north-west Canada.

The US military shot down the high-altitude object over Alaska. It is the second foreign incursion into US airspace in two weeks.

The White House justified shooting down unidentified flying objects, saying they posed a risk to civilian air travel. The Biden administration also said there is "no indication" that alien activity is behind the objects.

Madrid won the FIFA Club World Cup for a record-extending fifth time after beating Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal 5-3 in the final on Saturday (February 11), with braces scored by Federico Valverde and Vinicius Jr as well as a goal from Karim Benzema who returned from injury.

Israel's government said it would would legalize nine settlements in the occupied West Bank after recent attacks by Palestinians in Jerusalem. Several Western countries said they are "deeply troubled" by such a move.

The United States is taking a step towards protecting cryptocurrency investors, as the Securities and Exchange Commission moves towards new regulations. Tim Byun, Global Government Relations Officer at OKX, speaks to FRANCE 24 about the potential implications for the industry, and how the collapse of FTX affected public perception of the crypto sector.

Is the EU’s clean tech plan enough to keep up with America's green subsidies, outlined in the US Inflation Reduction Act? Kate Moody speaks to Gwenaëlle Avice-Huet, chief strategy and sustainability officer at Schneider Electric - a French multinational firm that specialises in digital automation and energy management.

It has been 20 years since the United States and its allies invaded Iraq in their “war on terror” amid claims that the country’s dictator, Saddam Hussein, possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction.

The relationship between the U.S. and China has always been characterized by mistrust. The world's two largest economies view each other as rivals, and their latest dispute was ignited by a white balloon that China flew over U.S. territory. The US government says that its Air Force shot down a spy balloon that American media describes as part of a global Chinese surveillance system.

US Secretary of State Blinken has promised Turkey extra aid following a recent devastating earthquake. But his visit also comes amid the thorny issue of NATO's expansion to Finland and Sweden, which Turkey is blocking.