Key events
When will the clocks strike midnight in different countries around the world?
I am writing today’s blog from London. Using UK time, here is a quick rundown of when (some very select) countries will ring in the new year:
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New Zealand – 11:00 GMT
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Most of Australia’s east coast – 13:00 GMT
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North Korea, South Korea and Japan– 15:00 GMT
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Taiwan, Hong Kong and China – 16:00 GMT
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Thailand – 17:00 GMT
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India and Sri Lanka – 18:30 GMT
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Russia (Moscow) – 21:00 GMT
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Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland and Italy – 23:00 GMT
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The UK and Portugal– 00:00 GMT
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Brazil and Argentina – 03:00 GMT
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The east coast of the US – 05:00 GMT
Welcome to our New Year’s Eve live coverage
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live coverage of New Year’s Eve celebrations from around the world as 2026 begins.
Among the first places to bring in the new year will be Kiritimati on Kiribati Island in the central Pacific Ocean at 10:00 GMT.
It takes a full 26 hours for the entire globe to enter the new year and our team will be bringing you the best photos, videos and all the latest scenes of celebration throughout the whole stretch.
We will also bring you the traditional messages of goodwill from world leaders, and hopefully a bit of fun, too, so stick with us as we say goodbye to 2025.