Category: Євросоюз

Britain’s Prince Harry, his wife Meghan and her mother were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” involving paparazzi photographers, a spokesperson for the prince said on Wednesday. It occurred after the couple had attended an awards ceremony held in New York by the Ms. Foundation for Women, where Meghan was honored for her work.   Pictures that have appeared on social media have shown Harry, Meghan and her mother, Doria Ragland, in a taxi.   “Last night, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a …

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The U.S. military has confirmed another Russian military aircraft was tracked while operating near the U.S. state of Alaska on Monday, the second such incident in less than a week. North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said that it had “detected and tracked” one Russian military aircraft while it was operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter U.S. or Canadian sovereign airspace, according to a NORAD press release. Speaking to VOA on Wednesday, a NORAD official declined to identify the type of Russian military aircraft, adding that …

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A French appeals court on Wednesday upheld a one-year prison sentence for former President Nicolas Sarkozy on a conviction for corruption and influence peddling. His lawyer said he will take the case to France’s highest court and insisted that Sarkozy is innocent. The 68-year-old ex-president would not have to serve time until a final ruling, and if definitively convicted, he could ask to serve his sentence at home. Sarkozy, 68, was convicted in 2021 of trying to bribe a magistrate in exchange for information about a legal case in which he was implicated. It was the first time in modern …

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The symbolism will be palpable when leaders of the world’s rich democracies sit down in Hiroshima, a city whose name evokes the tragedy of war, to tackle a host of challenges including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rising tensions in Asia. The attention on the war in Europe comes just days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy completed a whirlwind trip to meet many of the Group of Seven leaders now heading to Japan for the summit starting Friday. That tour was aimed at adding to his country’s weapons stockpile and building political support ahead of a widely anticipated counteroffensive to …

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Britain is accelerating plans to protect London from flooding caused by a warming climate and rising sea levels, bringing forward its scheme to protect the city center by 15 years. London, which sits on a tidal stretch of the River Thames about 80 kilometers from the sea, is protected from storm surges by a 520-meter-wide movable flood barrier east of the city that is raised a handful of times each year. The government said in a statement it was speeding up an existing climate adaptation program, bringing forward a target to raise defenses in the city to 2050, rather than …

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European leaders on Tuesday pledged to hold Russia to account for its war against Ukraine and unveiled a mechanism to track the losses and damage inflicted by Moscow’s forces. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak were among those who underlined their support for Ukraine in a rare meeting of the Council of Europe rights body as it convenes in Iceland for a two-day summit. They were joined via video link by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the heels of his tour of European capitals to secure more weapons and aid before an …

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U.S. lawmakers are set to advance legislation Tuesday urging President Joe Biden to create a special tribunal that would prosecute Russia for crimes of aggression against Ukraine. The House Foreign Affairs Committee vote would clear the way for the legislation to come up for a full vote on the House floor and is part of a broader bipartisan congressional effort to see Russia held accountable by the international community. Earlier this year, a group of senators led by Democrat Dick Durbin and Republican Lindsey Graham urged Biden to support the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s investigation into Russian war crimes in …

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Russian authorities have suspended the release of an award-winning film about a serial killer who targets sex workers in Iran, a distributor said on Tuesday. “Holy Spider,” directed by Danish Iranian Ali Abbasi, was inspired by a true story about a veteran of the Iran-Iraq war who killed 16 sex workers in the early 2000s in Mashhad, Iran’s second-largest city and a main shrine city of Shiite Islam. The move comes as Russia and Iran are seeking closer ties amid Moscow’s growing isolation in the West over its war on Ukraine. Russia has become increasingly conservative since President Vladimir Putin …

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Writer Salman Rushdie has made a public speech, nine months after being stabbed and seriously injured onstage, warning that freedom of expression in the West is under its most severe threat in his lifetime. Rushdie delivered a video message to the British Book Awards, where he was awarded the Freedom to Publish award on Monday evening. Organizers said the honor “acknowledges the determination of authors, publishers and booksellers who take a stand against intolerance, despite the ongoing threats they face.”   Rushdie, 75, looked thinner than before the attack and wore glasses with one tinted lens. He was blinded in …

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South Africa’s main opposition party is demanding to know why there is a high-level defense delegation in Moscow discussing increased cooperation and combat readiness. The news comes just days after the U.S. ambassador accused South Africa of selling weapons to Russia in violation of its claims of non-alignment in Moscow’s war on Ukraine.  The Democratic Alliance’s spokesperson on defense and lawmaker Kobus Marais, says the visit led by the chief of the South African army, Lieutenant General Lawrence Mbatha was unannounced. “This once again demonstrates the ANC government’s insensitivity to our diplomatic and trade dilemma,” said Marais. “The visit is …

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A girl who was gravely wounded in a mass shooting in a school in Belgrade earlier this month has died, bringing the death toll to 10, authorities said Monday. The girl died Monday morning at a children’s clinic in Belgrade, Serbia’s health ministry said, according to official media. The girl had been in critical condition with head injuries following the May 3 attack, said a statement. The shooting happened in the Vladislav Ribnikar elementary school in central Belgrade when a 13-year-old boy took his father’s gun and opened fire, initially killing eight children and a school guard, and wounding six …

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An annual U.S. government report finds religious freedom under assault throughout the world, notably in what the State Department calls Countries of Particular Concern —China, Iran, Russia, Myanmar — among others. VOA State Department Bureau Chief Nike Ching has more. …

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Turkey appears set for a presidential runoff after an inconclusive Sunday vote. But the political momentum seems to be with incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who narrowly failed to secure an absolute majority but is set to win a majority in parliament. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

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Belarus strongman Alexander Lukashenko on Monday said forces had been put on high alert, adding that four aircraft had reportedly been shot out of the sky in southern Russia. Lukashenko, 68, visited the ex-Soviet country’s air force central command, reappearing in public after nearly a weeklong absence following reports alleging ill-health. He wore a military uniform, looked grim and had a bandage on his hand. Lukashenko said Belarus put forces on alert for three days following the incident in a southern Russian region on the border with Ukraine.  “Three days have passed after the events near us, I mean in …

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Opposition voters expressed dismay and disbelief on Monday after Tayyip Erdogan took a solid lead in the first round of Turkey’s election, while the president’s overjoyed supporters expressed confidence that he would prevail in the May 28 runoff. “Until now I have witnessed many elections. My 14-year-old daughter who waited up all night for the election results went to bed disappointed. They have left me devastated this time,” said 55-year-old Menser Ozakdag, a taxi driver. “All I want is freedom, democracy, justice… I wish I had been born in another country,” he said. By contrast, Erdogan voters were upbeat about …

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The packets of cocaine were marked with the Superman shield, but this was no accident. In an effort to make the illicit merchandise look like it had been gift wrapped before being sent from Colombia, the gang wanted to hide the fact it was produced closer to home. The drug with apparent superpowers was made in a factory hidden in an isolated cottage in Galicia, northwestern Spain. A gang of eight “cooks” worked around the clock, seven days per week, in almost total isolation to produce 150 kilograms of the drug. But police officers who busted the gang said the …

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Many voters in southeast Turkey lost their homes, valuables and loved ones in February’s earthquakes. Still, they came out to vote Sunday in what analysts say could be the country’s most pivotal elections in decades. VOA’s Heather Murdock reports on the scene with videographer Yan Boechat. …

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French topflight football club Rennes on Sunday held an emotional homage to Arman Soldin, their former youth player and the AFP video reporter killed Tuesday in Ukraine. Soldin’s mother and brother live in the western city and Rennes held the tribute to his memory at the Breton club’s home match with Troyes. Rennes invited around 30 of Soldin’s friends and family — including a sister living in the Bosnian city of Mostar — to pay tribute to his sacrifice. Fans joined them in warmly applauding as images of the slain reporter were shown on giant screens at the stadium while …

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that his country is preparing a counteroffensive designed to liberate areas occupied by Russia, not to attack Russian territory.  Speaking during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s goal is to free the territories within its internationally recognized borders.  The Washington Post cited previously undisclosed documents from a trove of U.S. intelligence leaks suggesting that Zelenskyy has considered trying to capture areas in Russia proper for possible use as bargaining chips in peace negotiations to end the war launched by Moscow in February 2022. This would put him …

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Dozens of supporters of two French nationals detained last year in Iran demanded their release in Paris Sunday after Tehran freed two fellow citizens who had been on hunger strike. “Freedom for Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris,” they chanted at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, a little over a year after their arrest on May 7, 2022. Kohler, a teacher, and her partner Paris, remain in prison in the Iranian capital’s Evin prison accused of espionage charges their family deny.  Their relatives and friends gathered in Paris after Iran on Friday released French nationals Benjamin Briere and Bernard Phelan, …

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