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Street scene in Baghdad, Iraq.

OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Austria’s Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, highlighted three key challenges facing the Organization and its participating States as Austria took over as the 2017 OSCE Chairmanship: deplorable and complex crises and conflicts in the OSCE area, a fundamental lack of mutual trust and confidence, and an alarming phenomenon of growing radicalization and violent extremism, especially among young people: “We must vigorously engage and address this situation. The OSCE is the right platform to do so,” said Kurz.

President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Japan on Dec. 15-16, meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe first in Abe’s home prefecture of Yamaguchi, then in Tokyo, has solidified a positive transformation of relations between the two nations taking place over the past year. This process has linked Japan firmly into the development of the Russian Far East, while also demonstrating that Japan is capable of acting independently from the British imperial policies which have dominated Washington over the last 16 years of misrule under George Bush and Barack Obama.

The coming year sees the Danish and Cypriot cities hosting one of the most popular EU projects.

As of 1 January, Aarhus and Pafos will hold the title of European Capital of Culture. The cultural programme will officially begin on 21 January in Aarhus. The opening ceremony for Pafos 2017 will take place on 28 January with Christos Stylianides, Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, and Nicos Anastasiades, President of Cyprus [tbc]. Commissioner Tibor Navracsics said: "The title of European Capital of Culture is a unique opportunity to bring communities together through culture and to foster strong local, European and international partnerships for the future. I wish Aarhus and Pafos every success for the coming year.“ Both cities have come up withprogrammes which showcase centuries of culture while using different art forms to address the socio-economic problems facing Europe on 30 December.

The United Nations Security Council on 31 December unanimously adopted a resolution welcoming and supporting the efforts by Russia and Turkey to end violence in Syria and jumpstart a political process for the war-torn Middle Eastern country.

U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq and Syria on Dec. 30, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported on Dec. 31.

OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Sebastian Kurz and Secretary General Lamberto Zannier on 1 January strongly condemned the horrible attack on the Reina nightclub in Istanbul on New Year’s Eve.

Newly elected members of parliament of the Somali federal government attend their inauguration ceremony in Mogadishu on 27 December 2016.

A family carries humanitarian supplies on a donkey cart away from a distribution point in eastern Mosul, Iraq.