The year 2024 may have only just begun but it looks set to be an action-packed one. With a number of pivotal political, environmental, cultural and athletic events on the horizon, it can be difficult to keep track of what’s to come. FRANCE 24 sets out a a timeline of a few major events that are certain to define 2024.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky honoured his people’s resilience in times of bloodshed in a long and lyrical New Year speech, while Russian leader Vladimir Putin stressed his country’s unity in a short and stern message that made only passing reference to the war.

Fireworks illuminated skies over Paris, Rio and Sydney to celebrate the entry to 2024, while in Israel, Gaza and Ukraine, rockets and strikes marked the year’s earliest hours.

Her son said his four children had been ‘hurt’ by their grandmother’s decision, who has now announced a shock abdication in a TV broadcast.

Denmark’s popular Queen Margrethe II, Europe’s longest-serving monarch, said Sunday that she would abdicate on January 14 and pass the baton to her son Crown Prince Frederik.

French President Emmanuel Macron vowed on Sunday that 2024 will be a year of French pride and hope, marked by the Paris Olympic Games and the re-opening of Notre-Dame Cathedral, in his traditional New Year’s Eve address from the Élysée Palace in the French capital.