Category: Євросоюз

The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned Lebanese Jammal Trust Bank for “brazenly enabling” the financial activities of Hezbollah, Iran’s proxy in Lebanon. Washington on Thursday accused the bank of “support and services to Hezbollah’s Executive Council and the Martyrs Foundation, which funnel money to the families of suicide bombers.”  Treasury also targeted individuals in Oman who allegedly act as middlemen to funnel cash from Iran’s elite Quds Force to Hamas in Gaza. The Oman-based financiers “funneled tens of millions of dollars … to Hamas for terrorist attacks originating from the Gaza Strip,” Sigal Mandelker, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, …

READ MORE

 Top US military officer said Wednesday it was too early to talk about the future of US counterterrorism forces in Afghanistan, where insurgent violence continues   …

READ MORE

An oppressive political climate marked by a lack of rights and freedoms is now a key factor driving emigration from Russia, with more than 1.5 million Russians leaving the country since Vladimir Putin became president, according to the Atlantic Council.  …

READ MORE

New York City garbage man Nelson Molina has been seeing value in other people’s garbage for the past three decades. For years he has been saving unique items that their owners threw away. Vladimir Lenski met with the unusual collector.   …

READ MORE

Where does your food come from? Many city dwellers look no further than the local grocery store. But each summer American state fairs give farmers the opportunity to show off their skills and give the rest of us a better idea of the work that happens on the farms where food comes from. Saqib Ul Islam has more from the Maryland State Fair in Timonium.   …

READ MORE

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week suggested that the Islamic State or IS is regrouping in Iraq and Syria. His statement comes following a major terrorist attack in Afghanistan, for which IS claimed responsibility. Nadeem Yaqoob reports on the threat posed by IS as it expands its influence into South Asia. For Nadeem Yaqub, Aman Azhar, VOA News. …

READ MORE

Chinese authorities have warned Australia not to interfere in the case of a Chinese-Australian writer who has been formally arrested in China on suspicion of spying.  Yang Hengjun, who was born in China but is an Australian citizen, has been held in Beijing since January.  Australia has become increasingly critical of China’s treatment of him in recent months.  Yang Hengjun has been under investigation for allegedly harming China’s national security, but Australian officials have been told he is now suspected of espionage.  The former Chinese diplomat has been detained in Beijing without access to family or lawyers since January. In …

READ MORE

A new koala-tracking app and a marsupial hospital are the latest moves to protect one of Australia’s most famous native animals.  The furry, tree-dwelling marsupials are in decline in eastern Australia, and authorities hope a multi-million dollar rescue plan will help to save them.  The app will help authorities map and track koala populations in New South Wales state, where the furry marsupials are in decline.  Members of the public as well as researchers are encouraged to report koala sightings using the technology. The koala faces  various threats, including loss of habitat, disease, road traffic accidents and attacks by dogs.  There …

READ MORE

President Donald Trump’s path to re-election next year seems to be getting more complicated. Trump continues to boast about a strong economy despite warnings from a number of economists that the U.S. may be headed for a recession in 2020. And the president must now fend off a primary challenge from within his own party from conservative radio talk show host and former congressman, Joe Walsh.  VOA National correspondent Jim Malone has more on the president’s re-election prospects from Washington. …

READ MORE

President Donald Trump’s path to re-election next year seems to have been getting more complicated in recent weeks. He continues to boast about a strong economy, despite warnings from a number of economists that the U.S. may be headed for a recession in 2020. Now, he must fend off primary challenges from within his own party.  The president is now home from the G-7 summit in France, where he charted a solitary path on trade, Russia and combating climate change. At a news conference before he left, Trump defended what some see as a chaotic approach to dealing with China …

READ MORE

Nigeria’s government for years has been seeking a lasting solution to the conflict between farmers and herders over grazing lands, a conflict that has claimed thousands of lives. The country’s middle belt region is most affected by the dispute, but recently the government introduced a settlement plan for herders aimed at ending the clashes. But the settlements, known as RUGA in Hausa, are meeting some resistance. For Haruna Isah, it’s a daily struggle to keep his father’s herd well-fed. He gets up early to find a few good grazing spots around the city center of Nigeria’s capital. When he ventures …

READ MORE

Almost two dozen Polish former ambassadors are telling U.S. President Donald Trump that Poland’s democracy is at risk, and urging him to use an upcoming visit to pressure the country’s populist government to respect human rights and stop flouting the constitution. “Mr. President, you are coming to a country where the rule of law is no longer respected,” the Conference of Ambassadors of the Republic of Poland wrote in an open letter posted on its website late Monday. Trump is to arrive Saturday in Warsaw to attend ceremonies Sunday marking the 80th anniversary of the start of World War II, …

READ MORE

Consumer confidence dipped slightly in August after a big rebound in July. The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index edged down to 135.1 in August, slightly below a July reading of 135.8, which had been the highest since November. Economists had been looking for a bigger drop in August. The reading on consumers’ assessment of current conditions improved and now stands at its highest level in nearly 19 years. Conference Board economists say that while other parts of the economy have shown some weakness, consumers have remained confident and willing to spend. The …

READ MORE

More than 800 Namibian refugees in Botswana have vowed to stay put despite a court ruling saying they must return to their country, 20 years after fleeing following a secessionist uprising. Felix Kalula and hundreds of other Namibian refugees fled to Botswana in 1999, after violent clashes with Namibian government forces broke out over the disputed Caprivi strip, which wanted to secede from the rest of the country. The Namibian and Botswana governments say it is safe for the refugees to return home, and the migrants have until Aug. 31 to leave. But Kalula says the issues that made them …

READ MORE

U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton says there is no need for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to “rush” into any course of action regarding Russia’s involvement with separatist forces in eastern Ukraine. “I think, from the perspective of a new government in Ukraine, President Zelenskiy would be well-advised to look at how to unfold a strategy of dealing with the Russians very carefully,” Bolton told RFE/RL in a wide-ranging interview on August 27 in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv. “I don’t think there is any reason to rush it into one course of action or another…. I think working this through over …

READ MORE

President Donald Trump is fuming over mainstream U.S. news coverage of his attendance at the G-7 in France and defending his preference to host the leaders’ summit next year at one of his private resorts in the state of Florida. Much of the news and editorial coverage of the U.S. president at the summit in Biarritz, which ended Monday, has not cast Trump in a good light, spotlighting misstatements, perceived gaffes and lack of cooperation with the other world leaders on critical issues such as the environment. “The pity of the entire Group of 7 show was that it was …

READ MORE

A collection of 27 outfits worn by Hollywood legend Olivia de Havilland is going up for auction next month, some of which she  wore on screen during her acting career more than 50 years ago. The Sept. 17 online auction at Chicago-based Hindman also includes haute couture designs by Christian Dior that de Havilland, who turned 103 in July, wore at movie premieres and galas between 1954-1989. De Havilland, a double Oscar winner who is best known for playing Melanie Wilkes in “Gone with the Wind,” sold the bulk of her Dior collection at a London auction in 1993. FILE …

READ MORE

The U.S. government plans to launch a program in roughly one month that narrowly focuses on protecting voter registration databases and systems ahead of the 2020 presidential election. These systems, which are widely used to validate the eligibility of voters before they cast ballots, were compromised in 2016 by Russian hackers seeking to collect information. Intelligence officials are concerned that foreign hackers in 2020 not only will target the databases but attempt to manipulate, disrupt or destroy the data, according to current and former U.S. officials. “We assess these systems as high risk,” said a senior U.S. official, because they …

READ MORE

A Brazilian Supreme Court justice believes jailed ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva deserves a retrial after leaked social media conversations appeared to show the judge hearing Brazil’s largest-ever corruption case collaborated with prosecutors. Justice Gilmar Mendes said in an interview with Reuters that the so-called Car Wash investigation was a success in battling the “metastasis of corruption” in Brazil but it became politicized and prosecutors went too far. Lula is serving a 12-year prison sentence for taking bribes, and the judge who convicted him, Sergio Moro, is now Brazil’s justice minister in right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro’s cabinet. Mendes’ views …

READ MORE

Putting on a pair of jeans or drinking a beer has a cost beyond the price tag, with billions of tonnes of water used globally each year to manufacture them and other consumer goods, companies said at an international water conference on Monday. But with population growth and climate change making water a scarcer and more precious resource, using water wisely is now a key to remaining profitable, they said. From growing cotton for textiles to manufacturing drinks and ensuring consumers have enough water as well, efficient water use is high on the agenda, representatives of popular brands said during …

READ MORE