Month: December 2023

Chain-Reaction Motorway Crash Kills at Least 10, Injures 57 in Turkey

ANKARA, Turkey — A chain-reaction crash Thursday involving seven vehicles on a motorway in northwest Turkey killed at least 10 people and injured 57 others, officials said. The pileup occurred in dense fog and low visibility on the Northern Marmara Highway in Sakarya province, some 150 kilometers from Istanbul. An investigation has been launched into the accident but Gov. Yasar Karadeniz of Sakarya said it likely occurred when a vehicle hit a truck in poor visibility, triggering other crashes at the rear. At least three intercity buses were involved in the crash. Authorities believe some passengers died when they left their …

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India, Russia Reaffirm Friendship, Discuss Growing Trade, Strategic Ties

NEW DELHI — India and Russia Wednesday reaffirmed their strong friendship and discussed deepening trade and strategic ties during a visit to Moscow by Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Jaishankar said at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that the two countries have “made progress” in trade, which now exceeds $50 billion. “We believe that this is something whose potential is now only beginning to be visible,” he said. India has emerged as one of Russia’s major economic partners as it has exponentially increased its imports of Russian crude oil, ignoring Western sanctions that were imposed in …

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Poland Close to Being Able to End Ukraine Border Blockade, Says Prime Minister

WARSAW — Poland’s government is getting close to ending a blockade by truckers of several border crossings with Ukraine, the prime minister said on Wednesday.  Polish drivers have been blocking several crossings with Ukraine since November 6, demanding the European Union reinstate a system whereby Ukrainian companies need permits to operate in the bloc and the same for European truckers to enter Ukraine.  Farmers suspended a protest at one border crossing on Sunday, but truckers have continued to block three others.  “We are close to the belief that our actions can bring results, both the talks in Kyiv and Brussels,” Polish …

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Report: Ukraine May Have to Delay Salaries, Pensions Without Foreign Aid

kyiv, ukraine — Ukraine’s government faces the prospect of delaying pensions and salaries for public servants if crucial Western financial aid is not approved soon, Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko told the Financial Times on Wednesday. Kyiv has poured all its revenue into defense since Russia’s February 2022 invasion, relying on foreign support to cover everything from pensions to social payments. But key funding packages, including $55.54 billion from the European Union, have been blocked in Brussels and Washington. “The support of partners is extremely critical,” Svyrydenko told the newspaper. “We need it urgently.” She said 500,000 civil servants, 1.4 million …

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Strike Closes Eiffel Tower on 100th Anniversary of Creator Death

PARIS — The Eiffel Tower was closed on Wednesday, the 100th anniversary of its creator’s death, due to a strike, the company that oversees the tower, Societe d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), said on the website of Paris’ most famous landmark.  “A symbolic action on a symbolic date,” said the CGT union in a statement, adding that staff members wanted to call out the current financial management of SETE.   They said they feared poor decisions could lead to a cash shortage, due in part to a lack of visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to expensive repairs needed on …

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Камери з російським софтом: у МВС повідомили про результати внутрішньої перевірки – «Схеми»

У розслідуванні «Схеми» розповіли, що відео з тисяч камер відеоспостереження, встановлених по всій Україні, за допомогою російського програмного забезпечення TRASSIR, може потрапляти на сервери в Москві …

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VOA News Executive Elez Biberaj Retires After 43 Years

WASHINGTON — For a generation of Albanians, there is no more precious memory than that of a rally attended by some 300,000 people on June 22, 1991, to hear the visiting U.S. secretary of state, James Baker, congratulate them on emerging from decades of communist rule. But what came over the loudspeakers was not the voice of Baker but that of his translator, Elez Biberaj, who retires this week after a 43-year career at the Voice of America during which he served as an Albanian-language broadcaster, service chief, Eurasia Division director and for six months as the agency’s acting director. “Of …

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