The White House stenographers have a problem. Donald Trump is talking so much, the people responsible for transcribing his public remarks are struggling to keep up with all the words.

There were more than 22,000 on Inauguration Day, then another 17,000 when Trump visited disaster sites in North Carolina and California. It's enough to strain the ears and fingers of even the most dedicated stenographer, especially after four years of Joe Biden's relative quiet.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. offered on Friday to remove a U.S. missile system from the Philippines if China halts what he called its "aggressive and coercive behavior" in the disputed South China Sea.

The U.S. Army installed the Typhon mid-range missile system in the northern Philippines in April last year to support what the longtime treaty allies described as training for joint combat readiness.

Everyone aboard American Airlines jet that collided with Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington is feared dead, a fire chief said Thursday.

The Wednesday crash prompted a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River. The jet was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members.

Congo's leader called on young people to massively enlist in the army to help fight Rwanda-backed rebels who were attempting to seize more territory in the country's east as a crucial meeting of neighbors asked the Congolese government to talk with the rebels. Rwanda's leader also threatened to "deal" with any confrontation from South Africa regarding the conflict.

In his first public remarks since the M23 rebels advanced into eastern Congo's largest city, Goma, on Monday, President Félix Tshisekedi late Wednesday vowed "a vigorous and coordinated response" to push back the rebels while reaffirming his commitment to a peaceful resolution. "Enlist massively in the army because you are the spearhead of our country," he urged young people.

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday issued rare public criticism of her successor as the country's center-right leader, the front-runner in Germany's election next month, for putting to parliament proposals for tough new migration rules that only passed with the help of a far-right party.

Germany's center-left governing parties have cast doubt on whether conservative leader Friedrich Merz can still be trusted not to bring the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, into government after Wednesday's events.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a facility that produces nuclear material and called for bolstering the country's nuclear fighting capability, state media reported Wednesday, as the North looks to increase pressure on the United States following the inauguration of President Donald Trump.

Kim's visit suggests a continued emphasis on an expansion of North Korea's nuclear arsenal, though Trump has said he's willing to talk to Kim again to revive diplomacy. Many analysts view North Korean weapons moves as part of a strategy to win sanctions relief and political concessions from the United States.

Western officials have warned Ukraine that an escalating rift between the defense minister and procurement chief may jeopardize trust in the country and urged the government to resolve the situation quickly so as not to disrupt weapons supplies.

The conflict began last week when the Defense Procurement Agency's board unanimously voted to extend director Maryna Bezrukova's contract for another year.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz's main challenger in Germany's upcoming election plans to put proposals for a tougher migration policy to parliament on Wednesday, a maneuver aimed at piling pressure on the governing parties that has brought accusations that he's breaking commitments to shun the far right.

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz put migration in the focus of the campaign following a knife attack a week ago in the Bavarian city of Aschaffenburg by a rejected asylum-seeker, which left a man and a 2-year-old boy dead.

Just a little over a week into his second term, President Donald Trump is taking steps to maximize his power, sparking chaos and what critics contend is a constitutional crisis as he challenges the separation of powers that have defined American government for more than 200 years.

The new administration's most provocative move came this week, as it announced it would temporarily halt federal payments to ensure they complied with Trump's orders barring diversity programs. The technical-sounding directive had enormous immediate impact before it was blocked by a federal judge, potentially pulling trillions of dollars from police departments, domestic violence shelters, nutrition services and disaster relief programs that rely on federal grants.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday said she had received support from European leaders as she sought backing to counter U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to take over Greenland.