Category: Євросоюз

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is heading to Europe this weekend to meet with leaders in Georgia, Ukraine and Romania and to participate in a NATO defense ministers meeting in Belgium.    “The Department of Defense steadfastly supports its European Allies and partners in the face of Russia’s destabilizing actions in the critical Black Sea region, and the Secretary looks forward to meeting with his counterparts and other senior officials to reinforce the United States’ commitment to a safe, stable, and prosperous Europe,” the Pentagon said in a statement.    In Georgia, Austin will meet with Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili …

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Eighteen journalists, nearly all of whom work for Kurdish media outlets, stood trial at hearings across Turkey this week.  Lawyers and media rights groups say the trials show how Turkey’s laws on terrorism and protests can be used to detain or harass journalists.  Nearly all those in court this week face accusations of belonging to or creating propaganda for a terrorist organization—often a reference to the militant group, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Others face charges of defying Law 2911, which regulates public meetings and demonstrations, according to the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), a Turkey-based group that offers …

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A British member of parliament died Friday after being stabbed several times at a church, while he was visiting constituents in his home district in southeastern Britain, officials said. David Amess, 69, was a member of the Conservative Party and represented Southend West in Essex, England.  “All our hearts are full of shock and sadness today at the loss of Sir David Amess,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who called Amess one of the “kindest, nicest and gentle people in politics” and noted his efforts to end cruelty to animals.  Police said a 25-year-old suspect is in custody.  “We …

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It wasn’t the deal they were hoping to be offered. Instead of agreeing on a timetable for aspiring Balkan countries to join the European Union, the bloc’s 27 member states offered warm words at a summit in Slovenia last week, some pandemic recovery cash and a commitment to cut mobile-phone roaming charges for Balkan nationals when traveling in any part of the EU bloc. The refusal of the EU member states earlier this month to outline a membership schedule is reverberating across the Balkans and stands in contrast to the intense courtship of countries in the region by the United …

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Russia is attempting to expand its influence in Southeast Asia through meetings and plans with Association of Southeast Asian Nations members, say analysts, but appears not to have the military or financial power to become a larger player in the region.  The effort includes Russian adoption of a five-year roadmap focused on trade and investment cooperation, the digital economy and sustainable development with the 10 ASEAN members.  Meanwhile, at the Sixth Eastern Economic Forum held last month in Vladivostok, Vietnam offered itself as a bridge to connect ASEAN to Russia and the Eurasian Economic Union – an economic grouping including …

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The United States and Greece upgraded an existing Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement on Thursday, a move seen as elevating bilateral ties in defense and overall relations. The amendment to the MDCA was signed by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and visiting Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias in Washington as part of the third round of the U.S.-Greece Strategic Dialogue. The talks were launched in 2018 by then-U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Greek counterpart. Blinken described the dialogue as “a signal of our shared commitment to deepen our partnership” through which the two countries will become “an …

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Turkey hosted leaders of Afghanistan’s Taliban government for the first time Thursday, repeating its advice to the Islamist group on the need to form an inclusive government in the war-torn South Asian nation and to ensure Afghan female participation in education as well as public life.    After Thursday’s meeting with the visitors, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told a televised news conference in Ankara that the Taliban asked for humanitarian aid and the continuation of Turkish investment in Afghanistan.   Taliban acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and his delegation arrived in Turkey for the talks following meetings in Qatar …

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U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin heads to Europe next week for talks with allies concerned about Russia and what the NATO military alliance will focus on now that the withdrawal from Afghanistan is complete. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb reports. …

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The consortium of journalists behind the Pegasus Project investigation into malware from Israel-based NSO Group won the top European Union journalism prize Thursday. The group provided further evidence that the malware was used to spy on journalists, human rights activists and political dissidents. The European Parliament said in a statement that the “unprecedented leak of more than 50,000 phone numbers selected for surveillance by the customers of the Israeli company NSO Group shows how this technology has been systematically abused for years.”  The list was obtained by the Paris-based journalism nonprofit Forbidden Stories and the human rights group Amnesty International and shared with …

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U.S. President Joe Biden plans to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican later this month, the White House said Thursday.  “They will discuss working together on efforts grounded in respect for fundamental human dignity, including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling the climate crisis, and caring for the poor,” the White House said in a statement. The statement said first lady Jill Biden will also take part in the audience with the pope.  The meeting on Oct. 29 comes on the eve of a two-day summit of G20 leaders in Rome. Biden hopes to reach agreement at the meeting on …

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Russian health officials Thursday reported a record number of COVID-19 deaths – 986 – for the third consecutive day, while also reporting a record 31,299 new confirmed infections. The number of new cases breaks a record set last December, and marks the first time Russia has officially reported more than 30,000 cases in a single day. The nation has repeatedly set records for deaths while new infections have surged for much of the past month. Russian officials have blamed the rise in infections on the nation’s sluggish vaccination program. The Health Ministry reports this week that barely one-third of Russia’s …

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France has threatened to retaliate against Britain in yet another post-Brexit dispute, this time over fishing rights in what the British call the English Channel and the French refer to as La Manche, the narrow arm of the Atlantic Ocean separating England’s southern coast from the northern shores of France. French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said Wednesday retaliation could begin by the end of next week. France is fuming at the British government’s refusal to allow more French boats to fish in its territorial waters near Britain’s Channel Isles. Britain has issued 325 fishing licenses but declined 125 applications from …

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A man armed with a bow and arrows killed several people and wounded others Wednesday in southeastern Norway, police said, adding they had arrested the suspect.  “We can unfortunately confirm that there are several injured and also unfortunately several killed in this episode,” local police official Oyvind Aas told a news conference. The suspect “has been arrested by the police and, according to our information, there is only one person involved.”  The motive for the attack, which took place in several locations in Kongsberg, a city of about 26,000, around 6:30 p.m. local time (1600 GMT), was not yet known.  …

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The chief of the World Health Organization on Wednesday honored the late Henrietta Lacks, an American woman whose cancer cells were taken without her knowledge during the 1950s and ended up providing the foundation for vast scientific breakthroughs, including research about the coronavirus.    The recognition from WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus came more than a decade after the publication of “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” Rebecca Skloot’s book about the discrimination in health care faced by Black Americans, the life-saving innovations made possible by Lacks’ cells and her family’s legal fight over their unauthorized use.    “What happened to Henrietta …

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Human rights activist Julienne Lusenge of the Democratic Republic of Congo was recently proclaimed the winner of the 2021 Aurora Humanitarian Prize for her work with wartime victims of sexual violence. She was one of five humanitarian finalists who were up for the award, often referred to as the Nobel prize for humanitarian work. The sixth Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity was announced Saturday (October 9) in Italy at a ceremony on the Venetian island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni. Lusenge was awarded the one-million-dollar prize for her tireless work with women and girls abused during wartime and for her …

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Syrian government forces backed by Russia have recently ramped up attacks against Idlib, the last rebel enclave. A Turkish military force stands in the way of Syrian troops that are poised to seize Idlib, a move Ankara fears could result in millions of refugees fleeing to Turkey. For VOA, Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul …

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Danish shipping giant AP Moller-Maersk said Tuesday it had started to divert vessels away from Britain’s biggest container port because of congestion, the latest fallout from multiple crises hitting the United Kingdom.  The country is suffering runaway energy prices, shortages of goods, fuel delivery issues and a worsening long-term shortage of lorry drivers, with post-Brexit immigration controls and the pandemic among the causes cited by experts.    Felixstowe in eastern England has been particularly hard hit, prompting Maersk to divert one ship each week out of the usual two or three that call there.  A company spokeswoman said the ships, each carrying thousands …

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Members of the G-20 group of industrialized nations have pledged billions of dollars in aid to prevent a catastrophe in Afghanistan, following an emergency meeting Tuesday. Henry Ridgwell reports. …

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Friends and colleagues of Jonathan Mirsky, an American journalist known as one of the sharpest observers of China, are reflecting fondly on his legacy ahead of his funeral in London Wednesday, one month short of his 89th birthday. Mirsky, who died in September, was a prolific writer, with hundreds of bylines inked in major publications in both Britain and the United States. In the end, the story of his life, how he changed from a self-professed “Mao [Zedong] fan” to one of the “sternest and most knowledgeable” critics of Beijing, as one obituary writer put it, was as much a …

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European Union leaders met Tuesday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, pledging to strengthen ties and support the eastern European nation, particularly on the issue of Russia and energy security. Zelenskiy hosted EU Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for the 23rd EU-Ukraine summit, a meeting held annually to enhance political and economic relations.  The energy issue was high on the agenda. The Ukrainian leader has expressed strong opposition to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which will link Russia to Germany, bypassing his country and, Zelenskiy says, increasing Europe’s energy …

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