Month: September 2021

Євросоюз

Russia Fines Social Media Giants for Not Deleting Banned Content

A Russian court has fined Facebook, Twitter and Telegram, saying the companies failed to delete content that Russian internet regulator Roskomnadzor said violates Russian law.    Facebook was fined about $288,000, while Twitter was fined about $69,000 and Telegram was hit with $124,00 in fines, according to the magistrate court in Moscow’s Taganskiy district.    None of the companies has commented on the issue.    The most recent fines come as Russia has levied similar fines on Google, WhatsApp and TikTok in recent months.     In March, the Kremlin slowed down Twitter in the country for failing to remove …

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Євросоюз

What Did Merkel Achieve? 

When Germany’s long-standing chancellor, Angela Merkel, steps down following federal elections later this month, it will mark the end of an era, not only for Germany but also for the European Union.In power since 2005, the 67-year-old Merkel has been the third longest-serving chancellor in German history, beaten in the longevity stakes only by Otto von Bismarck in the nineteenth century and in the twentieth by Helmut Kohl. And she has been the country’s only woman chancellor.For 16 years German politics has revolved around Merkel — and so too to a large extent has the politics of the European Union.She …

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Євросоюз

Norway’s Center-left Heads to Victory in General Elections

The center-left bloc headed to a victory in Norway’s elections Monday as official projections pointed to the governing Conservatives losing power after a campaign dominated by climate change and the future of the country’s oil and gas exploration industry. With a projection based on a preliminary count of nearly 93% of the votes, the Labor Party and its two allies — the Socialist Left and the euroskeptic Center Party — would hold 100 seats in the 169-seat Stortinget assembly while the current government would get 68. One seat was still unsure. As Norway’s largest party, Labor will try to form a coalition …

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Євросоюз

Britain to Offer COVID-19 Vaccines to 12-to-15-year-Olds 

Britain’s chief medical officer (CMO), Professor Chris Whitty, recommended Monday that children between the ages of 12 and 15 be offered the COVID-19 vaccine, saying they would benefit from reduced disruption to their education. More than a week ago, Britain’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization, the panel that advises British health departments on immunization policies, issued a statement saying the “margin of benefit” to inoculating children of those ages was too small for them to recommend the government do so. Britain’s Chief Medical Officer for England Chris Whitty attends a remote press conference to update the nation on the COVID-19 pandemic, …

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Євросоюз

Spain Hopes to Lure Digital Nomads to Save Dying Villages

Spain’s countryside is suffering a slow demise after the long exodus of its rural population but Sárnago hopes to avoid this fate — for now.Nestled in the mountainous region of Soria north of Madrid, it reached its peak in 1950 when there were 462 permanent residents, mostly living off farming.But the lure of city life and better paid jobs finally took its toll when the last resident left by 1979.Campaigners have now saved the hamlet by attracting five permanent residents, many working remotely or coming for short stays.Spain hopes to help save struggling communities like Sárnago by offering visas and tax …

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