The war in Ukraine has entered its second year with no end in sight while millions of Ukrainians have fled their country and tens of thousands of civilians have been killed. Eurovision News Events is offering live positions on Maidan Square with distribution via satellite, ENG cameramen and customized solutions.

Pope Francis is undergoing surgery today at the A. Gemelli University Hospital, "where in the early afternoon he will undergo a surgical operation of laparotomy and plastic surgery of the abdominal wall with prostheses under general anesthesia." The Holy See released a statement saying that the Pope's stay at the hospital "will last several days to allow for the normal post-operative course and full functional recovery."

The 26th St Petersburg International Economic Forum will take place from 14 to 17 June. According to the organizers, in 2022, the event had 14 000 participants from 130 countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to deliver remarks. 

The Trooping the Colour ceremony, performed by the regiments of the British Army, will take place this year on 17 June in London. This will be the first time that Charles participates in the event as King. 

The Word Economic Forum is resuming its "Summer WEF" this year in Tianjian. The theme of the 14th Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2023 is 'Entrepreneurship: The Driving Force of the Global Economy.'

The European Inventor Awards take place this year in Valencia, Spain. Last year's finalists included a professional musician, clinicians combatting cancer, robotics experts, young inventors helping us achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and a Lifetime Achievement laureate whose work may have saved millions of lives. Nominations for this year have now closed.

The next NATO summit will be held for the first time in Lithuania on 11-12 July 2023.  The meetings will be chaired by the NATO Secretary General, and will take place at LITEXPO - Lithuanian Exhibition and Congress Centre. The Vilnius summit will focus on strengthening the Alliance’s collective defence and deterrence and on increasing support for Ukraine.    

World Youth Day 2023 will take place from 1 to 6 August 2023, with Pope Francis expected to oversee and participate in the Catholic event. Originally scheduled for 2022, the Holy See announced in 2020 that it was postponing the event until 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Between 1 and 2 million pilgrims are expected attend. 

South Africa will host the 15th BRICS Summit in Durban, sometime in late August.  President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to welcome his counterparts from Brazil, India, China and Russia, although there has no official confirmation of attendance yet.  Exact dates are still to be announced, but please let us know how we can support you in your coverage of this major event. 

Pope Francis will travel to Mongolia at the end of summer. The country has around 1300 baptized Catholics - a number smaller than many parish's, will be the most remote country the Pope has visited. Mongolia is 53% Tantric Buddhist, 39% atheist, 3% Muslim, 3% Shaman and 2% Christian.

The 43rd ASEAN summit, planned to be held in Jakarta in September 2023, will be attended not only by ASEAN leaders but also leaders of ASEAN partner countries.

The 18th G20 Heads of State and Government Summit will take place on 9th-10th September 2023 in New Delhi. The Summit will be a culmination of all the G20 processes and meetings held throughout the year among ministers, senior officials, and civil societies. 

The 78th session of the UN General Assembly will open on Tuesday, 5 September 2023. The first day of the high-level General Debate will be Tuesday, 19 September 2023.

The APEC CEO Summit 2023 will take place in San Francisco, California, the week of November 12th. The Summit will bring CEOs, thought leaders and other stakeholders together with political leaders from the Asia-Pacific for two days of robust dialogue and engagement on global challenges including, climate change, equitable growth, global health, and supply chain resilience that are shaping economic, environmental, and societal trends in the region. 

COP28 UAE will take place at Expo City Dubai from November 30- December 12, 2023. The Conference is expected to convene over 70,000 participants, including heads of state, government officials, international industry leaders, private sector, representatives, academics, experts, youth and non-state actors.