Category: Євросоюз

The truck driver had the radio on, his daughter’s stuffed toy keeping him company, and was bouncing his lumbering vehicle down one of the innumerable dirt tracks in Ukraine that are vital thoroughfares in the country’s vast agricultural heartlands.  Then the right rear wheel hit a Soviet-era TM-62 anti-tank mine. The explosion blew Vadym Schvydchenko and his daughter’s toy clean out of the cabin. The truck, and his livelihood, went up in flames.  Astoundingly, the 40-year-old escaped with just minor leg and head wounds. Others haven’t been so lucky. Russia’s war in Ukraine is spreading a deadly litter of mines, …

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Two U.S. veterans from Alabama who were in Ukraine assisting in the war against Russia haven’t been heard from in days and are missing, members of the state’s congressional delegation said Wednesday. Relatives of Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, 27, of Trinity and Alexander Drueke, 39, of Tuscaloosa have been in contact with both Senate and House offices seeking information about the men’s whereabouts, press aides said. Rep. Robert Aderholt said Huynh had volunteered to fight with the Ukrainian army against Russia, but relatives haven’t heard from him since June 8, when he was in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine, …

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Egypt, Israel and the European Union signed a gas deal Wednesday in which Egypt will export Israeli liquified natural gas to Europe via two Egyptian LNG plants. The memorandum of understanding was inked at the East Mediterranean Gas Forum in Cairo, expanding upon gas cooperation among the three partners. Representatives of participants at the gas forum applauded announcement of the deal. Egypt is the only country in the gas forum to have plants that can produce liquified natural gas.  Egyptian political sociologist Said Sadek told VOA that the announcement of the deal formalized cooperation among the EU, Egypt and Israel that …

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Phil and Kristie Graves are a U.S.couple from Maryland and parents of three biological children and an adopted girl with special needs from Armenia. Recently, they decided to adopt a six-year-old girl with special needs from Ukraine. But that was before the Russian invasion. Anush Avetisyan has the story. Videographer: Dmytri Shakhov   …

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The United States imposed sanctions Wednesday on two backers of an “ethnically motivated violent extremist group” called the Russian Imperial Movement, or RIM, one of whom visited the United States to make connections with far-right and white nationalist groups. The U.S. Treasury Department named the two as Stanislav Shevchuk, a Europe-based representative of RIM, who traveled to the United States in 2017 seeking connections with “extremist” groups, and Alexander Zhuchkovsky, a Russia-based supporter of RIM, who has used his Russia-based social media platform to fundraise and recruit for the group. Since 2014, Zhuchkovsky has raised more than $3.4 million to …

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Britain has canceled its first deportation flight to Rwanda after a last-minute intervention by the European Court of Human Rights, which decided there was “a real risk of irreversible harm” to the asylum-seekers involved.  The flight had been scheduled to leave Tuesday evening, but lawyers for the asylum-seekers launched a flurry of case-by-case appeals seeking to block the deportation of everyone on the government’s list.  Foreign Secretary Liz Truss had said earlier in the day that the plane would take off no matter how many people were on board. But after the appeals, no one remained.  The decision to scrap …

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U.S. Defense Minister Lloyd Austin is leading a meeting of dozens of his counterparts from NATO member states and other parts of the world Wednesday to discuss their latest efforts to boost military aid to Ukraine in the face of the nearly four-month Russian invasion. The talks are taking place on the sidelines of a NATO defense ministers meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels. A virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group last month drew representatives from nearly 50 nations and pledges of new aid packages. Ukrainian officials continue to urge international partners to send more weapons, especially heavy …

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Citing “concern about holding individual athletes accountable for the actions and decisions of their governments,” the U.S. Tennis Association will let Russian and Belarusian tennis players participate in the U.S. Open later this summer. Wimbledon will still maintain the ban on those athletes, which will include the world’s No. 1 player, Daniil Medvedev. Medvedev is the defending U.S. Open champion. Wimbledon starts June 27 in England. The U.S. Open starts August 29 in New York. Players from Russia and Belarus will participate under a neutral flag. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Russian athletes have been banned from competing …

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London has marked the fifth anniversary of the deadly Grenfell Tower inferno that killed 72 in Britain’s deadliest residential fire since World War II. In a subsequent investigation, the 23-story residential building was found to have widespread flaws in building regulations. Among the events marking the anniversary was a memorial service held Tuesday at Westminster Abbey, including 72 seconds of silence and a wreath laying. “The bereaved survivors and residents that I have spoken to are clear if nothing changes, those who lost their lives will have died in vain, and they are not prepared to accept that,” solicitor Imran …

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About 5 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to other parts of Europe since Russia’s assault on their homeland began in February. Among them: nearly three dozen dancers from the Kyiv City Ballet. They’ve found refuge in Paris and continue to perform and plan foreign tours, but the conflict is never far away. For VOA, Lisa Bryant has more from Paris. …

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The European Union’s executive arm is expected to decide soon whether to recommend that Ukraine be granted candidate status for EU membership. The EU Commission — which must unanimously approve the recommendation — is set to debate the issue at a summit on June 23 and 24. While some EU leaders have signaled support for the move, some member states are more reluctant. VOA’s Myroslava Gongadze reports from Warsaw. …

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European Union governments are intensifying pressure on Pfizer PFE.N and other COVID-19 vaccine makers to renegotiate contracts, warning millions of shots that are no longer needed could go to waste, according to EU officials and a document. During the most acute phase of the pandemic, the European Commission and EU governments agreed to buy huge volumes of vaccines, mostly from Pfizer and its partner BioNTech 22UAy.DE, amid fears of insufficient supplies. But with the pandemic abating in Europe and amid a marked slowdown in vaccinations, many countries are now urging tweaks to contracts to reduce supplies and consequently cut their …

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A startup professional golf tour backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has roiled the usually staid world of professional golf — the PGA Tour — in the United States. The PGA suspended 17 professional players last week for participating in the inaugural Saudi tournament, which began June 9. The new tour, the LIV Golf Invitational Series, has caused controversy for months, in large part because critics of the Saudi regime’s policies claimed it was a way to launder the reputation of the country’s monarchy, particularly that of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The crown prince has been held in …

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Italy’s furniture and design industry embraced the Milan Furniture Fair after a two-year pandemic delay with unapologetic, over-the-top statement pieces, multi-purpose furnishings adapted to small spaces, and sustainable creations by young designers pushing the industry toward a greener path.  After a surprising pandemic redecorating boom, the industry is looking to an uncertain future. There are raw materials shortages, higher transport costs and general economic uncertainty generated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sales of Italian furnishings surged to 16 billion euros (about $16.7 billion) in 2021, a 16% increase over 2019 and 25% more than 2020.  Despite the murky outlook, the …

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After many Western companies left Russia in response to its aggression against Ukraine, Moscow opened the first of the restaurants that are meant to replace those of the American fast food giant McDonald’s. The rebranded Russian version — some call it a knockoff — aims not only to serve hamburgers but to affirm Russia’s self-sufficiency and defiance. Marcus Harton narrates this report from Moscow. …

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U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet says she will step down as high commissioner when her term ends in late August. She disclosed this information, without a detailed explanation, at the opening of the U.N. Human Rights Council’s 50th session. Following her review of global human rights developments to the council, Bachelet told journalists in Geneva that she was retiring for personal reasons. She said her decision has nothing to do with criticisms over a recent trip to China. Human rights activists have criticized her for failing to condemn Beijing’s forced incarceration of nearly two million Uyghurs in Xinjiang during …

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British health officials have detected another 104 cases of monkeypox in England in what has become the biggest outbreak beyond Africa of the normally rare disease. The U.K.’s Health Security Agency said Monday there were now 470 cases of monkeypox across the country, with the vast majority in gay or bisexual men. Scientists warn that anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, is susceptible to catching monkeypox if they are in close, physical contact with an infected person or their clothing or bed sheets. According to U.K. data, 99% of the cases so far have been in men and most are in …

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his forces and those from Russia are fighting for “literally every meter” in the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk, while pleading to international partners that Ukraine “needs modern missile defense systems.”   In his latest nightly video message, Zelenskyy said Russia’s “key tactical goal” has not changed, with Russian forces also pushing toward Lysychansk, Bakhmut, Slovyansk, to the west and southwest of Sievierodonetsk. Zelenskyy’s adviser Mykahilo Podolyak tweeted Monday that “to end the war we need heavy weapons parity.”  He listed several categories of weapons, including 1,000 howitzers, 300 multiple launch rocket systems, 500 tanks, 2,000 armored …

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Italian voters snubbed a weekend referendum on changes to the justice system, dealing a blow to Matteo Salvini, the leader of the rightist League party, who had championed the plebiscite. Results released early Monday showed just 20.9% of people cast a ballot, the lowest ever for a referendum in Italy and well below the 50% threshold needed for the result to be valid. The five questions related to a reform of Italy’s notoriously inefficient judiciary, but critics said the issues were too technical for many voters. “We have lost. It is pointless trying to deny it,” said Roberto Calderoli, a …

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A pro-Russian separatist leader in eastern Ukraine said Sunday he would not alter the death sentences handed to two Britons and a Moroccan for fighting with the Ukrainian army.  “They came to Ukraine to kill civilians for money. That’s why I don’t see any conditions for any mitigation or modification of the sentence,” Denis Pushilin, the leader of the separatist Donetsk region, which tried them, told reporters.  Pushilin said the court had “issued a perfectly fair punishment” to the three fighters.  He also accused British Prime Minister Boris Johnson of ignoring their fate and failing to contact the separatist authorities.  …

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