Month: June 2021

EU Introduces ‘Digital Wallet’ to Store Official Documents

The European Union (EU) Thursday unveiled its plans for a digital ID wallet that would hold all official documents residents would need to allow them access to the information at home or anywhere across the 27-nation bloc.   At a news briefing on the proposal in Brussels, European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager said the European Digital Identity Wallet would be a smartphone app that would let users store electronic forms of identification and other official documents, such as driver’s licenses, prescriptions and school diplomas.   Vestager said the plan would enable the bloc’s 450 million residents to do anything …

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Biden Aims to Restore Alliances During Visit to Europe

U.S. President Joe Biden visits Europe later this month on what will be his first trip abroad since taking office, the White House announced Thursday. Biden, who became president on January 20, will meet with world leaders in the United Kingdom, Belgium and Switzerland during his visit June 10-16.  “This trip will highlight America’s commitment to restoring our alliances, revitalizing the transatlantic relationship, and working in close cooperation with our allies and multilateral partners to address global challenges and better secure America’s interests,” White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said in a statement. The U.S. president will meet in the United Kingdom with …

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EU Officials Unnerved by Strength of Italy’s Radical Right

Britain’s Brexit advocates drool at the idea of another European Union member opting to quit the bloc. And they hedge their bets whether it will be France, Italy or one of the so-called “awkward squad” of Central European countries so often at loggerheads with Brussels.At first glance the prospect of another EU member quitting the bloc — of a Frexit or Italexit —strikes seasoned political observers as unlikely. But Brexiters aren’t the only ones who see a likely nasty clash emerging on the horizon between Brussels and Rome.Current opinion surveys have firebrand populist Matteo Salvini’s Lega party and the national-conservative …

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Суди в Криму винесли 6 нових вироків за ухилення від призову в армію Росії – правозахисники

На даний момент правозахисники збирають докази щодо цих порушень спільно з іншими організаціями та прокуратурою Автономної Республіки Крим для передачі їх у Міжнародний кримінальний суд …

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US Blacklists 3 Bulgarians, 64 Companies Over Corruption

The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on three Bulgarians and 64 companies linked to them over alleged corruption, including an oligarch accused of planning to create a conduit for Russian political leaders to influence the Bulgarian government.The Treasury Department in a statement called the move its single biggest action targeting graft to date.Bulgaria ranks as the European Union’s most corrupt member state, according to the Transparency International advocacy group. The Balkan country has repeatedly been criticized by the European Commission for failing to root out corruption and place a single high-ranking senior official behind bars for graft.Bulgarian interim Prime …

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Hundreds of Lakes in US, Europe Losing Oxygen, Study Finds

Oxygen levels have dropped in hundreds of lakes in the United States and Europe over the last four decades, a new study found.   And the authors said declining oxygen could lead to increased fish kills, algal blooms and methane emissions.   Researchers examined the temperature and dissolved oxygen — the amount of oxygen in the water — in nearly 400 lakes and found that declines were widespread. Their study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, found dissolved oxygen fell 5.5 % in surface waters of these lakes and 18.6% in deep waters.   The authors said their findings suggest …

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White House: Biden to Discuss Cyberattack on Meat Producer With Russia’s Putin

U.S. President Joe Biden will discuss with Russian President Vladimir Putin later this month the harboring of cyber attackers like those believed to have targeted meatpacking giant JBS, the White House said Wednesday.   Press secretary Jen Psaki also told reporters at the White House that Biden “has launched a rapid strategic review” of the attack that affected JBS operations in Australia and North America.   Biden will meet with his Russian counterpart in Geneva on June 16 as tensions between the two world powers have escalated over election meddling, human rights and Russian aggression toward Ukraine.Meat Producer JBS Back …

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France Releases New Translation of Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’

A massive and long-awaited new translation of Mein Kampf — peppered with scholarly commentary to explain Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s disjointed, hate-filled manifesto — has been released in France. The project has been controversial, but supporters say it could serve as a warning against rising acts of hate and antisemitism today.The book is a recast translation of Mein Kampf,  or My Struggle, Hitler’s 1925 manifesto detailing how he became antisemitic, his ideology and his plans for Germany. The recast is 1,000 pages and costs more than $120. Adolf Hitler’s name and face do not appear on its plain white cover. The …

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