CRI听力:Review of World's Major Events in 2015

The body of a three-year-old refugee boy lying face-down on a beach near Turkish resort of Bodrum shocked many in the international community in early September, and prompted an outcry for a solution to the worsening refugee crisis in the Middle East.

Human rights organizations in Turkey held a protest in Istanbul in solidarity with the refugees making the dangerous journey from their home countries to Europe.

The crowd accused European nations and their leaders of turning a blind eye to the deaths of hundreds of people who died attempting the Mediterranean crossing.

To cope with the crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced an open-door policy for the refugees.

But she suggested that the massive flow of migrants and refugees into Germany, and Europe as a whole, should be regulated.

"By fighting the reasons for migration, by improving conditions in refugee camps, by sharing the burden (of the refugee influx) in Europe, by ending people smuggling, by protecting our borders, and by agreements between Turkey and the European Union about legal immigration, we save lives and will reduce the numbers of refugees."

Merkel's decision helped win her the "Person of the Year" accolade awarded by Time magazine, but sparked anger across Europe and even put her own political standing at home in jeopardy.

While the refugee crisis was far from over, a series of coordinated terrorist attacks in Paris on the night of November 13, left 130 people dead and hundreds wounded.

French President Francois Hollande called the attacks an "act of war" launched by the Islamic State group, and vowed to strike back without mercy.

"France, because it was attacked cowardly, shamelessly, violently, France will be merciless against the barbarians of Daesh. It will act with all the means, within the Law, with all the means necessary. And on all fronts: interior and exterior, in coordination with our allies who themselves are targeted by this threat."

World leaders strongly condemned the indiscriminate massacre based on hatred and religious extremism.

The attacks came just two weeks before the decisive United Nations climate talks in Paris, with dozens of heads of state or government attending.

In the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties, commonly known as COP21, world negotiators reached a historic deal with the intention to take further measures to cope with global climate change.

Nearly 200 nations vowed to take action collectively for the future of mankind by cutting emissions and sharing funds and technologies.

In Asia, the Upper House of Japan's Parliament approved controversial legislation in September to lift bans on the role of the country's armed forces' engagement overseas.

The enactment of the legislation, pushed by the government under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, marked a complete overhaul in Japan's defence orientated military posture mandated after World War II.

The change provided a green light to the country's sedning troops to fight overseas for the first time in 70 years.

The legislation sparked condemnation and protests among the Japanese public.

Opposition lawmaker Hiroyuki Konishi says the country's pacifist stance should have remained unchanged.

"This is against the spirit of pacifism stated in the preface of the Japanese constitution. This set of security bills is against the constitution and should not be taken as valid. Let's take back our constitution and let's make this as our first step to denounce the security bills."

Meanwhile, China, one of the victims of Japan's invasion during the World War II, has warned Japan's right-wing politicians not to go too far in abandoning the country's post war pacifist constitution, and urged them to do more to contribute to regional peace and stability.