Category: Євросоюз

British lawmakers on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected Prime Minister Theresa May’s latest effort to set the terms of Britain’s Brexit deal to split from the European Union on March 29. The House of Commons voted 391-242 against May’s plan, setting up a Wednesday vote on whether Britain should quit the 28-nation EU bloc without agreeing on any of the details of its departure. And if that fails, a Thursday vote on whether to ask the EU for more time to negotiate an agreement. May implored lawmakers to adopt the deal she negotiated Monday with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker for “legally …

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Russian and Turkish military cooperation is deepening as Ankara’s relationship with Washington deteriorates. Recent joint naval exercises between Russia and Turkey, and increasing military cooperation in Syria, come as NATO allies question Turkey’s allegiance to the Western defense alliance. A joint naval drill last Friday was part of a broader Turkish national military exercise. While the drills involved only a few ships, analysts have described its political implications as far more significant. “The realization of the Russian-Turkish common military exercises is a message both for the West and for the region of the Middle East that two sides cooperate,” said …

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The BBC, Britain’s public broadcaster, is to be investigated over suspected discrimination following complaints that women have been paid less than men, the country’s equality watchdog announced on Tuesday. The issue made headlines last year when senior broadcaster Carrie Gracie quit her job as BBC China editor in a highly public protest at being paid less than her male counterparts. This followed an outcry in 2017, when the BBC published a list of its best-paid on-air staff, revealing two-thirds were men, some of whom were paid far more than their female peers. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which …

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The influential speaker of Chechnya’s parliament has declared a blood feud against a popular exiled blogger in what appears to be another example of intimidation of critics in Chechnya. Magomed Daudov, a close ally of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, on Saturday called blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov “an enemy to me and my brothers” after Abdurakhmanov criticized Kadyrov’s late father, the former Chechen leader, on his YouTube channel. In a video published last week, Abdurakhmanov called Akhmat Kadyrov, who switched sides in Russia’s separatist wars in Chechnya in the 1990s, “a traitor” of the Chechen people. Daudov’s response, in Chechen, was translated …

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The United States on Monday warned Germany about future “information sharing” if it uses “untrusted vendors” in its 5G telecom infrastructure amid debate over whether Chinese IT giant Huawei is an espionage risk. The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell sent a letter to German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier on Friday warning that in such a case the US could scale down intelligence and other information exchanges. A U.S. Embassy spokesperson told AFP on Monday it would not comment on diplomatic communications, but added that its position on 5G network security was well known. “To the extent …

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Britain’s parliament is holding the first of what could be three days of votes Tuesday in order to decide how to proceed with its divorce from the European Union. Members are voting Tuesday on Prime Minister Theresa May’s latest version of her plan, based on an agreement her government reached with the EU last year. It initially got little support when first put to a vote, but May made a last-ditch trip to Strasbourg on Monday to secure altered terms in talks with EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker that she hopes will win over her opponents. May said Juncker announced …

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French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday sought to reassert the importance of France in its former colony Djibouti with Paris increasingly fearing China’s muscular role in Africa as it expands economic and military influence across the continent. Djibouti, strategically located at the southern entrance to the Red Sea on the route to the Suez Canal, hosts France’s largest naval base on the continent and is home to some 1,400 personnel used to train African troops as well as to monitor the Horn of Africa and Yemen. While it was seen as a vital outpost in the past, French administrations have …

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Eurozone ministers on Monday held back granting Greece debt relief because the government failed to implement reforms promised during the massive bailout that ended last year, officials said. Greece exited its third and final international bailout in August, a turning point in its progress out of the catastrophe that engulfed the country during the financial crisis. The Greek government has still failed to complete housing insolvency rules that have raised fears in Greece for families threatened with foreclosure on their homes. European officials, however, played down the delay, not wanting to rekindle memories of the eurozone debt crisis that nearly …

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Democrats and Republicans are inviting NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to address a joint meeting of Congress next month around the 70th anniversary of the trans-Atlantic alliance. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, with agreement from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other members of Congress, is expected to extend the invitation, the leaders’ offices said. The address is expected to be one of several events in the U.S. capital celebrating the treaty’s signing in 1949, congressional officials said. The bipartisan show of support for NATO comes after President Donald Trump has criticized the alliance’s 29-member nations for, in his view, not paying …

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The Russian military has commissioned more than 1,000 new aircraft and thousands of tanks in the past few years in a massive modernization effort amid tensions with the West, the nation’s defense minister said Monday. Sergei Shoigu boasted of the military’s achievements in his six years on the job, saying in a speech to lawmakers that the armed forces have turned into a highly mobile force capable of projecting power to distant areas. Shoigu noted that the military received more than 1,000 warplanes and combat helicopters and over 3,700 tanks in 2012-2018. He added that the armed forces have received …

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For Britain, leaving the EU with a transition deal will be wrenching enough, a seismic realignment that will tear apart business, economic, security, legal, cultural and political ties that have deepened over half-a-century, enmeshing Britain in Europe and Europe in Britain. But crashing out without a withdrawal agreement will be even more painful — a real leap into the dark. With less than three weeks to go before the country’s March 29 Brexit deadline it still remains unclear whether the country will leave the bloc with a withdrawal deal or crash out without one, exiting even more chaotically and harmfully. …

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French President Emmanuel Macron heads to East Africa late Monday, on a three-nation trip aimed at expanding French military, business, cultural and environmental ties on the continent and countering newer players in the region, starting with China. Beyond a stop in former French colony Djibouti, Macron’s four-day visit includes two rising Anglophone powerhouses, Ethiopia and Kenya — where his visit to Nairobi will be a first by a French president since Kenya’s 1963 independence. It will also give a nod to other important players, with meetings expected in Ethiopia between Macron and African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat, and …

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After months of Brexit deadlock, this is it: decision time. At least for now. With Britain scheduled to leave the European Union in less than three weeks, U.K. lawmakers are poised to choose the country’s immediate direction from among three starkly different choices: deal, no deal or delay. A look at what might happen: Deal deja vu The House of Commons has a second vote scheduled Tuesday on a deal laying out the terms of Britain’s orderly departure from the EU. Prime Minister Theresa May and EU officials agreed to the agreement in December, but U.K. lawmakers voted 432-202 in …

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The prime ministers of the four NATO nations of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia met Sunday for a ceremony in Warsaw. They watched soldiers practice military drills ahead of deployment to Afghanistan. The high-level meeting marked the anniversaries of the four Central European nations, known as the Visegrad Four (V4), joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Arash Arabasadi reports. …

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday accused International Women’s Day protesters of being led by political rivals and of “disrespect” during the Islamic call to prayer, after Friday’s march was broken up by police firing tear gas.          Thousands of people took to the streets of Istanbul on Friday in defiance of a ban by authorities, crowding the famous Istiklal avenue, before a police crackdown brought the demonstration to a chaotic end. In his comments on Sunday, Erdogan referenced an unverified viral video showing women and men continuing to chant during the call to prayer. “A group which came …

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Europe’s largest Mormon temple will be dedicated over three days starting Sunday. Russell Nelson, president of the world’s 16 million Mormons, will be in Rome for the dedication ceremonies. No expense has been spared on Italy’s first temple, a magnificence, Mormons say, that is justified by faith. The entire leadership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon Church, has for the first time gathered outside of the United States for a very special occasion, the dedication of its temple in the eternal city. For the more than 25,000 Italian Mormons and the many …

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Activists in Russia have kicked off demonstrations against a new bill, which its critics say is part of an effort by President Vladimir Putin’s government to increase state control over the Internet and facilitate censorship. Several dozen people rallied in the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk on March 10 to protest against the proposed legislation. Backers of the bill say it is designed to ensure the operation of the Internet in the country if access to servers abroad is cut off. Activists later gathered on Moscow’s Sakharov Avenue for a sanctioned rally. Protest actions were also scheduled in the western …

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Germany’s foreign minister criticized Turkey for refusing to issue credentials to foreign reporters, saying in an interview published Sunday that such actions were “not compatible with our understanding of press freedom.” The comment by Foreign Minister Heiko Maas followed several foreign correspondents recently having applications to renew their accreditation to work in Turkey rejected.   They include Joerg Brase, a correspondent for German public broadcaster ZDF, and Thomas Seibert, a reporter for Berlin-based daily Tagesspiegel.   “If journalists are prevented from doing their work, then that’s not compatible with our understanding of press freedom,” Tagesspiegel quoted Maas as saying.   …

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After months of Brexit deadlock, this is it: decision time. At least for now.   With Britain scheduled to leave the European Union in less than three weeks, U.K. lawmakers are poised to choose the country’s immediate direction from among three starkly different choices: deal, no deal or delay. A look at what might happen:   Deal deja vu   The House of Commons has a second vote scheduled Tuesday on a deal laying out the terms of Britain’s orderly departure from the EU. Prime Minister Theresa May and EU officials agreed to the agreement in December, but U.K. lawmakers …

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Germany changed its travel advice for visitors to Turkey on Saturday, warning its citizens that they risked arrest for expressing opinions that would be tolerated at home but might not be by Turkish authorities.  “It cannot be ruled out … that the Turkish government will take further action against representatives of German media and civil society organizations,” an updated Foreign Ministry travel advisory read.  “Statements which are covered by the German legal understanding of the freedom of expression can lead in Turkey to occupational restrictions and criminal proceedings.”  The advice, which a ministry spokeswoman confirmed was updated on Saturday, noted that several European journalists, including Germans, had been denied accreditation in Turkey without …

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