Category: Євросоюз

As Finnish citizens await the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin for their historic summit in Helsinki on Monday, they have reason to contemplate their own nation’s complex relationship with their powerful eastern neighbor. Sandwiched between Sweden and Russia, Finland is often referred to as a nation “between East and West,” both for its geographic situation and the balancing act it performed during the Cold War, when it maintained a careful neutrality. That stance was designed to “resolve the latent conflict between ideological ties and strategic realities,” wrote Max Jakobson, one-time Finnish ambassador to the …

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Filipinos tapped out text messages on their cellphones to mobilize protests against President Joseph Estrada. The effort mushroomed within hours into a “people power” revolution that forced Estrada to step down. That was 2001. Since then, technology has created increasingly powerful smartphones that can link to the internet, provide instant access to news and connect people through social media. In response, authorities in some countries are waging a battle to control what their people see and hear, with the goal of limiting dissent and heading off more “people power” takeovers. “At first, it was journalists who were being threatened, it …

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U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday he would “firmly” ask Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin about his country’s meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election that has triggered a U.S. federal investigation Trump claims is a “rigged witch hunt.” “I think it really hurts our country,” Trump said at a news conference in Britain after meeting with Prime Minister Theresa May. “It really hurts our relationship with Russia. I think that we would have a chance at a very good relationship with Russia and a very good chance, a very good relationship with President Putin. I would hope so.” Trump said …

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Her game face on, Melania Trump dutifully tried her hand at lawn bowls during a solo outing Friday to a historic London veterans’ retirement home on her first visit to Britain as America’s first lady. As President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May met just outside London for talks, Mrs. Trump visited Royal Hospital Chelsea, an imposing building founded over 300 years ago by King Charles II that currently houses hundreds of British veterans. She was hosted by May’s husband, Philip. The pair toured the hospital grounds before joining a small group of elementary schoolchildren and veterans in …

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U.S. President Donald Trump has long said he would like to improve relations with Russia. He’ll get a chance to do that Monday, when he meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in Finland. VOA’s Bill Gallo reports on what’s at stake as the two leaders hold a highly anticipated summit. …

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A U.S. federal judge Thursday refused to block the extradition of a former Lithuanian judge who fears for her life after uncovering what she said was a high-level child sex ring. Neringa Venckiene, 47, fled to Chicago in 2013 and has been working as a florist. She turned herself in to federal agents in February. At one point during Thursday’s hearing, Venckiene appeared to be on the verge of fainting and had to be helped to her chair. The judge recessed the proceedings for about 10 minutes. Judge Virginia Kendall ruled that her authority to stop the extradition was limited …

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President Donald Trump said the U.S. would “probably not” strike a trade deal with Britain if Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit plan went ahead as planned.  “If they do a deal like that, we would be dealing with the European Union instead of dealing with the U.K., so it will probably kill the deal,” Trump told The Sun, a conservative British newspaper. Trump said May had ignored his advice on how to negotiate Britain’s exit from the European Union.  “I would have done it much differently,” Trump said of May’s Brexit plan. “I actually told Theresa May how to do it, …

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President Donald Trump’s criticism of Germany’s involvement in a natural gas pipeline deal with Russia launched a tense two days of NATO meetings in Brussels — but it also may have set the tone for the U.S. leader’s highly anticipated summit with his Russian counterpart Monday in Helsinki. In a taut exchange with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday, Trump said Nord Stream 2 — an offshore pipeline that would deliver gas to Germany directly from Russia via the Baltic Sea — leaves the Western military alliance’s largest and wealthiest European member “totally controlled” by and “captive to” Russia. “We’re …

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Britain’s government is nearing a decision to buy four to six surveillance planes built by U.S. aerospace giant Boeing, sources familiar with the plans said Thursday — a move that could stir a growing debate over U.K. and European defense jobs. The contract to replace its six aging E-3D Sentry airborne early warning (AWACS) planes with a fleet of Boeing E-7 Wedgetail jets would, if confirmed, be worth over $1 billion. But the decision, which could be announced in coming weeks, is likely to anger some U.K. lawmakers who have called for a full competition, and may also spark formal …

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President Donald Trump closed out his chaotic two-day visit to NATO Thursday by declaring victory, claiming that member nations caved to his demands to significantly increase defense spending and reaffirming his commitment to the alliance. But there were no immediate specifics on what Trump said he had achieved, and French President Emmanuel Macron quickly disputed Trump’s claim that NATO allies have agreed to boost defense spending beyond 2 percent of gross domestic product. “The United States’ commitment to NATO remains very strong,” Trump told reporters at a surprise news conference following an emergency session of NATO members held to address …

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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is pressing European nations to get tough on Iran by cutting off all funding the country may use to foment instability in the Middle East and beyond.   Pompeo was meeting on Thursday with European officials in Brussels following a summit of NATO leaders to make the case for clamping down on Iranian “terrorism and proxy wars.” He called on America’s partners and allies to join a U.S.-led economic pressure campaign against Tehran that began in earnest after President Donald Trump withdrew from the landmark Iran nuclear deal in May.   Pompeo said in …

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From mutton soup to caviar to veal tongue, Russian gastronomy is now being enjoyed by football fans from around the world who are in Russia for the World Cup. We get more from VOA’s Mariama Diallo. …

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President Donald Trump says he has secured commitments by NATO members to increase their defense spending commitments, after days of the U.S. leader complaining that Washington wasshouldering too much of the burden of supporting the alliance. “They have substantially upped their commitment and now we’re very happy and have a very, very powerful, very, very strong NATO,” Trump told reporters at the close of an alliance summit in Brussels.He didn’t specify what country committed to what.   “Some are at 2 percent (of GDP), others have agreed definitely to go to 2 percent,” he said. A day earlier, Trump suggested …

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Pangolins are the world’s most illegally trafficked animal. Eight species of the elusive mammals are found in Africa and Southeast Asia, but as many as 300 are poached every day, destined for markets in Vietnam and China, where their meat is considered a delicacy and their scales believed to have medicinal properties. Researchers in the UK are hoping to deter pangolin poaching with fingerprint technology that’s designed to identify poachers and bring them to justice. VOA’s Julie Taboh explains. …

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NATO leaders said Wednesday they have agreed to contribute more money to their defense budget. “We are committed to improving the balance of sharing the costs and responsibilities of alliance membership,” the military alliance said. The announcement was made just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump renewed criticism of NATO for not contributing more to defend the nearly 70-year-old, 29-nation alliance. The allied nations also urged world leaders to maintain “decisive pressure” on North Korea, including the full implementation of United Nations sanctions, to get Pyongyang to scrap its nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.The alliance also reiterated it support for …

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Sharp divisions over who should pay for Europe’s defense have overshadowed the opening of the NATO summit in Brussels, after U.S. President Donald Trump accused European allies of taking advantage of American taxpayers. The U.S. spends about 3.5 percent of GDP on defense, far higher than other member states. It is predicted that eight of the 29 members, including the United States, will meet the NATO target of two percent of GDP this year. The U.S. provides 70 percent of NATO’s budget. But Trump suggested Wednesday that NATO allies commit to spending 4 percent of their GDP on defense by …

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Facebook will be facing its first fine in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which the social media platform allowed the data mining firm to access the private information of millions of users without their consent or knowledge. A British government investigative office, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), fined Facebook 500,000 pounds, or $663,000 – the maximum amount that can be levied for the violation of British data privacy laws. In a report, the ICO found Facebook had broken the law in failing to protect the data of the estimated 87 million users affected by the security breach. …

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A man who was one of 69 Afghans deported from Germany last week has been found dead in a Kabul hotel room after committing suicide, officials said Wednesday. The death of the 23-year-old, who remains unidentified, has triggered calls for German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer to resign. The man and the other Afghans were forced to return to Afghanistan on July 4 after not being granted asylum. They were sent back as Seehofer was pushing for tighter immigration controls within Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling coalition. The Afghan man was found dead at a hotel used by the International Organization for …

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An Iranian diplomat suspected of involvement in a bomb plot against an Iranian opposition rally in France was charged in Germany on Wednesday with activity as a foreign agent and conspiracy to commit murder.   Assadollah Assadi, a Vienna-based diplomat, is suspected of contracting a couple in Belgium to attack an annual meeting of an exiled Iranian opposition group in Villepinte, near Paris, German federal prosecutors said.   He allegedly gave the Antwerp-based couple a device containing 500 grams of the explosive TATP during a meeting in Luxembourg in late June, prosecutors said in a written statement.   Assadi was …

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Grabbing a bicycle from a docking station and riding the streets of Paris used to be one of the city’s many charms, but the once-loved Velib system has fallen into disarray and some new dockless bike-share programs are struggling to survive. After it launched in 2007, Velib quickly became a hit, signing up more than 250,000 users who could take advantage of 20,000 bikes around the city. But advertising company JCDecaux’s concession to run Velib expired last year. A French-Spanish consortium called Smovengo won the tender to run the service for the next 15 years, but it struggled to meet …

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