Month: June 2021

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson each expressed support Wednesday for a strong response against Belarus for its actions in arresting an opposition journalist. Speaking at a joint news conference at the prime minister’s residence, Stoltenberg said forcing the landing of a civilian aircraft and arresting a journalist on the plane, as Belarus did last month, was a violation of international norms and rules. He called for the immediate release of Raman Pratasevich and his girlfriend. Stoltenberg said he welcomes sanctions imposed by Britain, the European Union and other allies. Johnson added that the important thing now …

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On Tuesday, Italy lifted restrictions on indoor dining, Germany downgraded the coronavirus risk level from very high to high, and Israel lifted almost all pandemic restrictions. More from VOA’s Mariama Diallo. …

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Russia’s upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, has approved a bill that would ban supporters and members of organizations designated as “extremist” from being elected to any post — a move making it virtually impossible for anyone connected to jailed opposition politician Alexey Navalny to gain public office.Under the draft bill approved on June 2 by the chamber, leaders and founders of organizations declared extremist or terrorist by Russia’s courts will be banned from running for elected posts for a period of five years.Other members or employees of such organizations will face a three-year ban.The legislation still requires President …

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On Tuesday, Italy lifted restrictions on indoor dining, Germany downgraded the coronavirus risk level from very high to high, and Israel lifted almost all pandemic restrictions. More from VOA’s Mariama Diallo. …

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Greece, Germany and five other European Union nations introduced a vaccination certificate system for travelers on Tuesday, weeks ahead of the July 1 rollout of the program across the 27-nation bloc.The other countries starting early were Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Croatia and Poland, according to the European Commission.Greece, which depends heavily on tourism, has been pressing for the commonly recognized certificate that uses a QR code with advanced security features. The certificates are being issued to people who are fully vaccinated, as well as those who have already contracted the virus and developed antibodies, and others who have had …

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A Belarusian opposition activist stabbed himself in the throat with a pen during a court hearing in Minsk on Tuesday to protest what he claimed were threats from authorities to arrest his family members and friends if he did not plead guilty to organizing protests against the country’s authoritarian ruler, President Alexander Lukashenko.Footage from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty showed Stsiapan Latypau lying limp on a bench in the defendant’s cage after his self-inflicted wounding as guards tended to him.The video showed him being carried unconscious from the courthouse on a stretcher, his neck wrapped in a white cloth, and put …

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European Union government and Parliament negotiators reached a deal Tuesday on rules that will force large multinational companies to disclose how much revenue and tax they pay in the 27-nation bloc and how much they pay in countries considered tax havens by the EU. The new law, proposed by the European Commission in 2016, is part of the EU’s efforts to fight tax avoidance by large international companies at a time when the EU badly needs cash to finance an economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the new law, multinational corporations with a turnover of more than $916 million annually in …

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The World Health Organization has granted emergency approval for the use of a Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine for adults 18 and older.   The U.N. health agency approved a vaccine Tuesday made by Sinovac Biotech, a Chinese biopharmaceutical company. It was the second time the WHO approved a vaccine made by a Chinese company on an emergency basis.     The WHO said data submitted by Sinovac indicated that two doses of the vaccine prevented symptoms from developing in just over half of those who received vaccinations. The agency also said it could not estimate the efficacy of the vaccine in …

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The European Union’s new prosecutor’s office opened its doors in Luxembourg Tuesday, tasked with cracking down on fraud—just before the 27 member states receive a $920 million injection of post-coronavirus recovery funds. But not all have signed onto the initiative—and one, Slovenia, may be putting up roadblocks. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office or EPPO is two decades in the making. Now, it’s a reality—a body aimed to tackle economic and financial crime involving EU funds. It’s headed by Romanian anti-fraud prosecutor Laura Kovesi, who spoke at the opening.     “Make no mistake, this is the most common threat of …

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Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open on Monday and wrote on Twitter that she would be taking a break from competition, a dramatic turn of events for a four-time Grand Slam champion who said she experiences “huge waves of anxiety” before speaking to the media and revealed she has “suffered long bouts of depression.”pic.twitter.com/LN2ANnoAYD— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) May 31, 2021Osaka’s agent, Stuart Duguid, confirmed in an email to The Associated Press that the world’s No. 2-ranked tennis player was pulling out before her second-round match at the clay-court tournament in Paris. The stunning move came a day after Osaka, a …

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Spain is grappling with the dilemma of whether it should allow the courts to consider a request to extradite the leading Venezuelan opposition activist to Caracas. The Venezuelan government filed a request for Spain to return Leopoldo López to complete the remaining eight years of a 14-year prison sentence for instigating violence in antigovernment protests and other crimes. The former Caracas mayor, who has been one of the most prominent leaders of the opposition to the rule of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, fled the country last year and has been living in Spain. Spain has so far refused to give any indication as …

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