Category: Євросоюз

President Vladimir Putin launched one of his most stinging critiques of U.S. foreign policy on Thursday, listing what he called some of the biggest betrayals in U.S.-Russia relations. He declined to say if he would run for a fourth presidential term in an election set for March though he is expected to stand after dominating Russian politics for 18 years. Instead, he used a high-profile televised discussion with foreign academics in southern Russia to reach back to what he regards as the darkest days of U.S.-Russia relations. Opinion polls suggest that harsh rhetoric towards the West plays well with many …

READ MORE

The Turkish Parliament passed legislation Wednesday allowing imams to perform marriages. Women’s rights groups, who have strongly condemned the reform, warn it would exacerbate the problem of underage marriages. The new law comes amid wider concerns over the erosion of women’s rights under emergency rule. “We wont be silenced,” chanted women protesting the new legislation in the heart of Istanbul. Since Turkey is a secular state, only state officials were allowed to carry out marriages. The new law met stiff opposition in parliament. Senal Sarihan, parliamentary deputy for the main opposition CHP Party, said the new law undermines secularism, which …

READ MORE

Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is offering a “substantial” reward for information on Monday’s shocking murder of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Galizia. “We will make sure our investigators have all the resources they need and all the foreign expertise necessary to get to the bottom of this,” Muscat told Reuters Wednesday. He said no expense will be spared to find the killers. The FBI and Dutch forensic experts are on Malta to help with the investigation. A bomb tore apart Galizia’s car just moments after she left her home. Her son saw the car explode, but there was nothing he …

READ MORE

A high-level U.S. delegation led by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Jonathan Cohen met Wednesday with senior Turkish diplomats to resolve bilateral tensions. A diplomatic crisis erupted earlier this month with the arrest of local U.S. consulate employee Metin Topuz on terrorism charges, triggering tit for tat sanctions on the issuance of visas. “I believe this problem will be resolved soon,” Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Wednesday in a television interview. In an apparent gesture to ease talks before the U.S. delegation’s visit to Istanbul, Turkish authorities released Topuz’s wife and son from custody, although they still face charges. …

READ MORE

A Hungarian who printed thousands of passports allowing Jews to flee the country during World War II has been honored with a memorial plaque. Emil Wiesmeyer’s printing company initially made 4,000 of the basic passports, part of efforts by Swedish special envoy Raoul Wallenberg to save Jews from Nazi death camps.   He then produced about 20,000 more on his own to help Jews make it out of Hungary.   The plaque honoring Emil Wiesmeyer was unveiled Wednesday in Budapest by Szabolcs Szita, director of the Holocaust Memorial Center, and Swedish Ambassador Niclas Trouve Some 550,000 Hungarian Jews were killed …

READ MORE

Malta, a tiny archipelago nation in the southern Mediterranean, is so attractive to those looking to shelter funds or operate under the radar of authorities that it’s got a nickname to prove it: “treasure island.” Malta’s reputation as a tax haven, its cozy links with nearby lawless Libya and its legal passports-for-sale program were just some of the topics that investigative reporter Daphne Caruana Galizia had dug into before she was blown up by a car bomb while driving. That means investigators have many tangled paths to follow to discover who wanted the anti-corruption crusader dead as she drove down …

READ MORE

Greek riot police used batons to stop an attempted theater invasion by monks, priests and other Orthodox Christians protesting what they claim is a blasphemous play. Wielding poles with Greek flags on them, some of the 100-strong crowd tried to break a police cordon Wednesday outside the Aristoteleion Theatre in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki. Protesters oppose the staging of “The Hour of the Devil,” an adaptation of a story by Portuguese author Fernando Pessoa about a discussion between a young woman and a personable devil. Chanting “Freemasons out of Greece!” they brandished religious banners and icons. Cast member …

READ MORE

Portugal’s Interior Minister Constanca Urbano de Sousa resigned Wednesday after wildfires killed more than 100 people this year. The latest fires erupted last weekend and have killed at least 41 people. They followed a fire in June that left 64 people dead. Urbano de Sousa said in her resignation letter that “though the tragedy was caused by multiple factors, I came to the conclusion that I could not continue for political and personal reason.” Prime Minister Antonio Costa accepted the resignation. The government has faced criticism for its response to the fires, but is pledging to make reforms. …

READ MORE

Tens of thousands of people protested Tuesday night in Barcelona against the Spanish government’s detention of two Catalan separatist leaders. The demonstrators carried candles and banners demanding the release of Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, who are being held on possible sedition charges. Prosecutors accuse Cuixart of the Omnium Cultural movement and Sanchez of the Catalan National Assembly of provoking violence against police during a pro-independence march last month. Catalan leaders have called the two political prisoners, which the government denies. Earlier Tuesday, Spain’s top court ruled Catalonia’s independence referendum was illegal, saying that regional law backing the vote violated …

READ MORE

The United States is condemning, in the strongest terms, the assassination of Maltese journalist Daphne Galizia who was investigating alleged government corruption. “It was a cowardly attack that took the life of a talented and brave … reporter who dedicated her career to fighting the rule of law and shining a light on corruption,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Tuesday. She said the FBI has responded quickly to the prime minister’s call for U.S. help in the investigation. A Dutch forensic team is also in Malta to help. Monday’s blast blew up Galizia’s car just moments after she left …

READ MORE

In a rare public speech Tuesday, the head of Britain’s domestic intelligence agency said the terror threat in the country is worse now that it has ever been during his 34-year career. “It’s clear that we’re contending with an intense UK terrorist threat from Islamist extremists,” MI5 chief Andrew Parker said. “That threat is multi-dimensional, evolving rapidly and operating at a scale and pace we’ve not seen before. But so too is our response.” Parker said the MI5, also known as he Security Service, has noted a “dramatic upshift” in the threat this year, with a total of 36 people …

READ MORE

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge say their third child will be due in April. The royal couple had already revealed that they were having a child, but didn’t previously say which month the child is due. The brief statement released Tuesday by their Kensington Palace office offered no further details. The former Kate Middleton had announced she was pregnant after missing a royal engagement in September. As with her other two pregnancies, she is suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, or acute morning sickness. She has since appeared in other events, including one Monday in which she danced with a person …

READ MORE

Spain’s top court ruled Catalonia’s independence referendum illegal Tuesday, saying that the regional law backing it violated Spain’s constitution. The Catalan government had passed the “self-determination referendum law” on September 6. Spain’s high court said the law must be suspended temporarily as it assessed the Spanish government’s opposition to it, but Catalonia went ahead with the referendum on October 1. According to court regulations, the suspension was to last five months while judges come up with a ruling, but the pro-independence coalition ruling Catalonia claimed that the universal right to self-determination outweighs Spain’s laws. But Catalonia’s government spokesperson, Jordi Turull, …

READ MORE

U.S. President Donald Trump meets Tuesday at the White House with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras for talks that are expected to focus on military cooperation, energy security and economic investment. A White House statement issued earlier this month said the two leaders will seek to “enhance our partnership and demonstrate our shared commitment to enduring democratic values that are so important to securing peace and prosperity around the world.” Trump’s talks with the key ally come as U.S. relations with Turkey have become increasingly strained, contributing to more instability in the region. The two leaders are expected to take …

READ MORE

The European Union’s foreign policy chief describes U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision not to re-certify Iran’s compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal as an “internal U.S. process.” European countries, along with the other signatories, Russia and China, said Tehran is keeping its end of the deal. But President Trump claims Iran has repeatedly violated the letter and spirit of the agreement, which suspends sanctions in return for limits on the country’s atomic program. WATCH: Europe Mulls Policy Response as Trump Repeats Threat to End Iran Deal   The EU commissioner for foreign affairs, Federica Mogherini, said Monday that the Iran …

READ MORE

Two Serbian students have appeared before a court over the street protests last April against the election triumph of President Aleksandar Vucic. Pavle Terzic and Gavrilo Vucetic gave statements Tuesday at the misdemeanor court after police accused them of organizing a protest without notifying authorities. They have denied the charges. Dozens of people, including opposition politicians, have gathered outside the court in support of the students while alleging government intimidation. Vucic swept the vote in April winning the presidency in the first round of balloting. A former nationalist, Vucic has been accused of stifling democratic freedoms despite his pledge to …

READ MORE

At least three people have been killed as Tropical Storm Ophelia battered Ireland on Monday. One of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the northeastern Atlantic hit every corner of Ireland with wind speeds of 190 kilometers per hour recorded at the southernmost tip of the country. Ophelia knocked down trees and power lines, leaving more than 330,000 homes without power. About 200 flights from Ireland’s two main airports in Dublin and Shannon were canceled. The airports are expected to reopen Tuesday as cleanup begins. “There are still dangers out there, but the cleanup has started in some areas …

READ MORE

Turkey has offered assistance to the Iraqi government in its effort to take control of the city of Kirkuk from Kurdish peshmerga forces. The offer was made in a statement by the Turkish foreign ministry: “We once again emphasize the importance we attach to the protection of Iraq’s political unity and territorial integrity.” Ankara strongly backs Baghdad in its opposition to an independence referendum passed last month by Iraqi Kurds. Turkey fears similar secessionist demands from its own large restive Kurdish minority. “Ankara’s thinking is that if Kirkuk is taken back from Iraqi Kurds, then their dreams of independence are …

READ MORE

The European Union has imposed new sanctions on North Korea aimed at punishing the country for its nuclear and ballistic weapons program. EU foreign ministers agreed Monday to a total ban on EU investment in the communist country, a measure that goes beyond the latest U.N. sanctions. They also banned the sale of oil and refined petroleum products to North Korea, in a largely symbolic move aimed at encouraging countries that have more significant levels of trade with North Korea to follow suit. The ministers also cut the amount of money that people can send to North Korea from $17,700 …

READ MORE

Turkey is expanding its latest military intervention in Syria rapidly, sending more special forces and commandos into Idlib as part of a high-risk effort agreed to with Moscow and Tehran to establish a de-escalation zone in the northwest Syrian province that is mainly controlled by an al-Qaida offshoot. The intervention is the biggest incursion by the Turks in Syria since last year, when Turkish forces partnered with Free Syrian Army (FSA) militias, once aided by the U.S. but now dependent on Ankara, to clear Islamic State militants, as well as Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), from a stretch along the …

READ MORE