Category: Євросоюз

Emboldened by the United States’ firm opposition to the Iraqi Kurdish  independence referendum in September, Turkey is pushing to persuade Washington to abandon its support for Syrian Kurdish militia, YPG, as it fights  the Islamic State militant group. Washington’s robust opposition to its long time ally, the Iraqi Kurds, came as a welcome surprise in Ankara. Turkey fears the establishment of any Kurdish independent state would fuel the secessionist demands of the Kurdish minority in southeastern Turkey. International relations expert Soli Ozel of Istanbul’s Kadir Has University, said the U.S. stance challenged widespread Turkish suspicions of Washington’s motives in the …

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Ousted Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, who wants to lead a pro-independence coalition of political forces in an upcoming regional election, criticized Tuesday the passivity of European politicians in denouncing the prosecution of dismissed secessionist officials. In an interview Tuesday in Brussels with Catalan public radio, the separatist leader says there is an “absolute disconnect between the interests of the people and the European elites” and that Catalonia’s problem is an “issue of human rights that requires maximum attention.C Puigdemont is fighting extradition to Spain, where other members of the ousted Cabinet have been sent to jail while awaiting the results …

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Ten people suspected of using encrypted social networks to prepare a possible attack were arrested Tuesday in counterterrorism operations in France and Switzerland, according to French officials.   Among those arrested were a 23-year-old Colombian woman and 27-year-old Swiss man, both targets of a Swiss investigation into banned Islamic extremist groups.   Searches are still underway in the Paris suburbs and in southeastern France.   Counterterrorism investigators detained nine people in France and one in Switzerland in operations aimed at clarifying details of the suspected plot, according to a French judicial official. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity …

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Nordic countries agreed on Monday to step up defense cooperation and exchange more air surveillance information because they are worried about Russia’s increasing military activity. The countries have increased defense spending and cooperation with each other and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. “The … situation is a common concern for the Nordic countries … We aim at strengthening our national defense and finding cooperation to better address security concerns,” Finnish Defense Minister Jussi Niinisto told a news conference. It followed a meeting with his Swedish, Danish and Norwegian counterparts and a representative from Iceland. …

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A walking tour to learn about Budapest’s Muslim community and its mosques has become popular with Hungarians as a way of overcoming fears and reservations amid a strident anti-immigrant campaign by the government. Budapest-based tour operator Setamuhely (Budapest Walkshop) runs 30 different walks, taking visitors around the city’s architectural and cultural sites and the Jewish and Muslim communities. “I can say that this walk, ‘Muslims who live among us,’ is the most popular tour,” said Anna Lenard who runs the business. When the Muslim tour was set up three years ago, very few people were interested. “Most people have never …

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President Tayyip Erdogan announced on Monday plans to demolish a culture center in Istanbul named after the founder of modern secular Turkey, in a move critics see as another attempt by the Islamist-rooted ruling party to roll back secularism. It marks Erdogan’s second attempt to tear down the Ataturk Culture Center (AKM), named after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, after a previous plan to develop the site near Taksim Square in 2013 erupted into mass protests against Turkey’s ruling AK Party. The project envisages building an opera house, theatre hall, a conference center and cinema on the site, near Gezi Park, the …

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Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi looked poised on Monday for a stunning political comeback, as his rightist bloc claimed victory in an election in Sicily that puts it in pole position for a national vote due by next May. The regional Sicilian ballot, held on Sunday, was seen as a dry run for the nationwide election, with many of the island’s problems reflecting those of the country as a whole – high unemployment, a debt mountain and sluggish economic growth. An influx of migrants, many of whom arrive in Sicily after being rescued in the Mediterranean, was also a …

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British Prime Minister Theresa May and other party leaders agreed on Monday to introduce new safeguards for those working in parliament to try to contain a growing sexual harassment scandal. Britain’s parliament is the latest institution to become embroiled in a sex scandal after abuse allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein prompted thousands of women and men to share stories about improper behavior. Allegations have been made against lawmakers in several parties, but the growing scandal is particularly damaging for May who, weakened after losing her Conservatives’ majority in June, cannot afford to lose any more parliamentary seats, especially when …

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Ousted Catalan president Carles Puigdemont and four close separatist allies regained their freedom at the end of a tumultuous Sunday that started when they surrendered in Brussels to face possible extradition to Spain for allegedly plotting a rebellion.   But a Brussels investigative judge quickly ruled there was no reason to put the five politicians behind bars and released them on condition they stay in Belgium and attend their court sessions within two weeks.   Hours after the former Catalan regional president and four ex-ministers turned themselves in to Belgian authorities, Puigdemont’s party put him forward as its leader for …

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With hurricanes, floods and other impacts of climate change becoming increasingly destructive, countries urgently need to step up their ambitions to cut emissions if they are to keep global warming within safe limits, experts said ahead of U.N. climate talks starting on Monday. About 163 countries have submitted plans on how they will contribute to meeting the Paris climate agreement goal to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. But put together, the plans are likely to lead to a 3 degree temperature rise this century, according to the United Nations. Nicholas Nuttall, spokesman for …

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U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross shares significant business interests through a shipping venture in Russia with President Vladimir Putin’s son-in-law and an oligarch subject to American sanctions, newly leaked documents showed Sunday. Ross, a 79-year-old billionaire industrialist, has an investment in partnerships valued at between $2 million and $10 million in the shipper, Navigator Holdings, according to his government ethics disclosures. The shipping company earns millions of dollars a year transporting natural gas for Sibur, a Russian energy company that is partly owned by Kirill Shamalov, the husband of Putin’s daughter, Katerina Tikhonova, and Gennady Timchenko, the oligarch who is …

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Hundreds of protesters were arrested in Moscow Sunday during a demonstration against Russian president Vladimir Putin coinciding with celebrations of Russia’s National Unity Day holiday. According to OVD-Info, which monitors crackdowns on demonstrations, 360 people had been arrested in demonstrations across the country by 5pm on Sunday. Moscow police had put the figure in the capital at 260. Tass news agency said that many protesters in Moscow had knives and brass knuckles. Protesters at the unsanctioned demonstration are believed to be linked to nationalist politician and Kremlin critic Vyacheslav Maltsev and his Artillery Preparation movement — a group declared extremist and …

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The indictment last week of former Donald Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos, who admitted lying about contacts with Russia during the 2016 U.S. presidential election campaign, is turning the spotlight on London as an important hub of suspected Kremlin meddling in Western politics, say analysts and Western officials. Papadopoulos, who White House spokespeople say was a low-level and unimportant foreign policy adviser in last year’s campaign, was initially introduced to shadowy Russian contacts by a London-based globe-trotting Maltese academic, according to the indictment of Papadopoulos unsealed last week by special counsel Robert Mueller. But the British capital is now featuring …

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Pro-Catalonia independence parties will combine for the most votes in regional election in December though may fall just short of a majority needed to revive the secession campaign, two polls showed on Sunday. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called the Dec. 21 election after firing the previous government and imposing direct rule over the autonomous region following a unilateral declaration of independence by Catalan lawmakers on Oct. 27. Catalonia’s statehood push has tipped Spain into its worst political crisis since its return to democracy four decades ago as surging pro-secession sentiment in the region has in turn kindled nationalism across …

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The former leader of Spain’s Catalonia region said Saturday that he would cooperate with Belgian officials following Spanish authorities’ issuance of a European warrant for his arrest. Carles Puigdemont said in a tweet: “We are prepared to fully cooperate with Belgian justice following the European arrest warrant issued by Spain.” A Spanish judge issued the warrant for Puigdemont a day after she jailed nine members of the region’s separatist government pending possible charges over last week’s declaration of independence. One person was later granted bail. Puigdemont, who was thought to be in Belgium, didn’t specify his current location, though he …

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Russia is not currently cooperating with the United States on discussions about North Korea, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reportedly told the Russian RIA news agency. “There is no cooperation so far. Only periodic exchanges of views,” Peskov said, saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump are likely to meet during an Asian economic forum next week. If the two leaders do meet, Peskov said there is a “great probability” they would discuss the situation in North Korea. Trump and Putin will be in the Philippines to attend the East Asia Summit, in addition to the Association …

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A Spanish judge on Friday issued an international arrest warrant for Catalonia’s ousted president, a day after she jailed members of the region’s separatist government pending possible charges over last week’s declaration of independence. The national court judge issued the warrant for Carles Puigdemont in response to a request from state prosecutors. Puigdemont flew to Brussels earlier this week with a handful of his deposed ministers after Spanish authorities removed him and his cabinet from office for pushing ahead with the declaration, despite repeated warnings that it was illegal. Puigdemont’s Belgian attorney said he would fight extradition without seeking political …

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Rescuers pulled 700 boat migrants to safety in the Mediterranean and found 23 bodies during one operation on Friday, an Italian coastguard spokesman said, the second loss of multiple lives recorded in the area so far this week. After around three years of mass arrivals, the number of migrants reaching Italy has fallen sharply since July, when Rome struck a deal with Libya to block what had become a busy route for people smugglers. A Spanish ship deployed in the European Union’s Operation Sophia naval mission recovered the dead, along with 64 survivors, from a sinking rubber boat, the mission …

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In the days of communist Albania’s near-total isolation, Saimir Maloku used his technical know-how to gain illicit glimpses of the outside world. Unluckily for him, as he and his father watched forbidden Italian television, the regime was watching him. Maloku was jailed for nine years in 1976 after the secret police bugged his home. Four decades on, he can visit a unique Tirana museum and see for himself the kind of listening devices that betrayed him. At the Museum of Surveillance, created in the former headquarters of the feared Sigurimi security service, Albanians can now inspect some of the spying …

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The European Union vowed to ensure that Malta finds the “barbarous” assassins of a journalist being buried there on Friday and to resolve “potential structural problems” with the rule of law on the island. Reflecting concern in Europe over possible systemic failings in Maltese democracy, European Commission First Vice President Frans Timmermans called on the EU’s smallest state to leave “no stone unturned” in hunting the killers of investigative blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia, who died in a car bombing last month. “The eyes of Europe are on the Maltese authorities,” wrote Timmermans, a former Dutch foreign minister who as Jean-Claude …

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