Category: Євросоюз

NATO leaders arrived in Brussels amid tight security for a summit Thursday dominated by the terrorist attack in Manchester, England. It is the first encounter of many of the leaders with U.S. President Donald Trump, who during his campaign called the alliance “obsolete” for not effectively countering terrorism. Recent terror attacks in Europe mean the U.S. leader may get the support he needs to strengthen the alliance’s anti-terrorist efforts. Thousands of leftist demonstrators marched in central Brussels Wednesday, protesting against both NATO and Trump. Some carried picket signs and banners with obscenities insulting the U.S. leader. Disappointed in engagement Some …

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President Donald Trump’s U.N. envoy set foot Wednesday in the no-man’s-land between Syria and Turkey, witnessing the precarious transfer of aid supplies into a seemingly interminable conflict. That reality is far removed from America’s years-old hope for President Bashar Assad to leave power and speedily end the civil war. From the Syrian side of the border zone, Ambassador Nikki Haley gazed up at a Turkish flag plastered onto signs marking the entrance into that nation’s territory. Syrian refugees once flooded through the run-down Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing until officials cracked down. These days it’s only aid convoys that pass back …

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Ariana Grande suspended her Dangerous Woman world tour and canceled several European shows Wednesday due to the deadly bombing at her concert in Manchester, England. Shows Thursday and Friday in London were canceled, along with concerts through June 5 in Belgium, Poland, Germany and Switzerland. Refunds will be granted, the pop star’s managers said in a statement. The tour was suspended to “further assess the situation and pay our proper respects” to the 22 dead and dozens injured in Monday’s suicide attack in the northern England town. Grande’s tour is to pick up June 7 in Paris, followed by several …

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The British-born jihadist behind the worst terror attack in Britain in more than a decade in effect killed and maimed people he’d grown up with — making the atrocity even more horrifying for Manchester residents still struggling to come to terms with a bombing that killed 22 people and injured 59 others at a concert of American pop star Ariana Grande. As the British government raised the terrorist threat level to “critical” — only the second time authorities have done so — details began to emerge of the 22-year-old suicide bomber Salman Abedi, his Libyan paternity, and his alleged ties …

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British police say they have arrested three more people in connection with the investigation into Monday’s deadly bombing after a concert in Manchester. A statement Wednesday from Greater Manchester Police said only that the arrests came after officers executed warrants in South Manchester.  There was no information about how the three men, or a fourth man arrested Tuesday who was only identified only as a 23-year-old, might be involved in the attack. British interior minister Amber Rudd said Wednesday the suicide bomber, who has been identified as 22-year-old Salman Abedi, was “known” by British intelligence services before the bombing. She …

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NATO leaders are going to Brussels for a summit meeting on Thursday expecting to agree on key principles.  With Monday’s attack in Britain overshadowing the meeting, there will be quick consensus on the need to keep fighting terrorism both at home and abroad, in places like Afghanistan. How to do it is a different question.  The war in Afghanistan is one of the key topics European leaders hope to learn more about when they meet with U.S. President Donald Trump.  The U.S. leader wants a boost in NATO contributions for the effort, but Germany’s Angela Merkel has indicated she is …

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President Trump’s reported demands to top leadership of U.S. intelligence agencies to deny there was any collusion between his campaign and Russia dominated an intense day of Congressional testimony. Congressional probes into Russian election interference showed no signs of letting up, even as Special Counsel Robert Mueller launches a wide-ranging Justice Department investigation. VOA’s Katherine Gypson has more from Capitol Hill. …

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NATO leaders are going to Brussels for the May 25th summit expecting to agree on key principles. With Monday’s attack in Britain overshadowing the meeting, there will be quick consensus on the need to keep fighting terrorism both at home, and abroad in places like Afghanistan. How to do it, is a different question. VOA Europe correspondent Luis Ramirez reports from Brussels. …

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VOA reporter Henry Ridgwell updates us on new developments in the investigation into the Islamic State suicide bombing that targeted an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, May 22, 2017. …

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British police are urgently trying to determine whether the suicide bomber who struck a music concert Monday in the northern city of Manchester acted alone or was part of a larger terror network. The man who blew himself up following an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena has been identified as Salman Abedi, police said. Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Ian Hopkins identified the 22 year-old Abedi as the alleged attacker, but provided no other details. The Islamic State terrorist group has claimed responsibility for Monday’s blast that killed at least 22 people and injured 59 others. The group …

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During his election campaign, France’s new president Emmanuel Macron promised he would visit French troops in Mali. Just days into his term, he made Mali his second foreign visit, and his first to Africa. In choosing Mali as his second foreign trip, just a week into his presidency, Emmanuel Macron was sending a clear message that he is determined to continue the fight against terrorism. France sent troops into Mali in 2013, in a military intervention that pushed the extremists from their strongholds, but hasn’t stopped the wave of killings, kidnappings and attacks there by Islamic militants. Macron went to …

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British actor Roger Moore, best known for his movie role as James Bond, has died at the age of 89. “It is with a heavy heart that we must announce our loving father, Sir Roger Moore, has passed away today in Switzerland after a short but brave battle with cancer,” his children said in a statement Tuesday. “The love with which he was surrounded in his final days was so great it cannot be quantified in words alone.” A private funeral will be held in Monaco according to his wishes, they added. Moore gained international fame for playing famous secret …

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The U.S. State Department is repeating its call for Hungary to “engage directly” with a university founded by billionaire George Soros which may have to leave Budapest because of recent amendments to the law on higher education.   State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Tuesday that the U.S. government wants Hungary to suspend the implementation of the new “discriminatory, onerous requirements,” which she says threaten academic freedom and independence.   Nauert said in a statement that the U.S. government “has no authority or intention” to negotiate about Central European University, as sought by Hungarian officials.   Zoltan Balog, who oversees …

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British police say at least 19 people have been killed and 50 wounded in a massive explosion Monday night at a concert arena in Manchester, England. The explosion occurred just moments after a concert by American pop star Ariana Grande. Authorities say they are treating the blast as a terrorist incident until they know otherwise. Video from the concert showed thousands of concertgoers scrambling and screaming, trying to escape the building. The incident caused transport chaos, with traffic jams outside the venue and rail services being cancelled. A number of audience members were seen walking around the building covered in …

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British police are confirming a number of fatalities after a massive explosion at a concert by American pop star Ariana Grande in Manchester, England Monday night. At least 19 have been killed. Incident is treated as a terrorist attack until police know otherwise. Ambulances were seen rushing to the Manchester Arena venue, and police added in a statement that people should avoid the area. Earlier, several media outlets reported that there were two explosions from within the 21,000-seat venue, but that was not confirmed by authorities. Police have released few details and have not said how many people have been …

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Russian cybercriminals used malware planted on Android mobile devices to steal from domestic bank customers and were planning to target European lenders before their arrest, investigators and sources with knowledge of the case told Reuters. Their campaign raised a relatively small sum by cybercrime standards — more than 50 million roubles ($892,000) — but they had also obtained more sophisticated malicious software for a modest monthly fee to go after the clients of banks in France and possibly a range of other western nations. Russia’s relationship to cybercrime is under intense scrutiny after U.S. intelligence officials alleged that Russian hackers …

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The Belarus government has returned to a policy of large-scale repression, causing a dramatic deterioration in human rights, according to a report published on Monday for submission to next month’s session of the U.N. Human Rights Council. Last month the United States extended sanctions relief for Belarus for a further six months, part of an effort to engage with its veteran leader President Alexander Lukashenko. The European Union last year ended five years of sanctions against Belarus. The report by the Council’s Special Rapporteur on Belarus, Miklos Haraszti, called on the international community to remain vigilant on human rights in …

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Margaret Chan, the outgoing Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), has opened this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) by staunchly defending the organization against critics who say it has lost its relevance.   Chan’s tenure as head of WHO will soon end and after 10 years of service, she appears intent on handing her successor, who will be elected Tuesday, an organization that is viable and remains the essential leader in global health.   In addressing the WHA for the last time, Chan presented 3,500 delegates from WHO’s 194 member states with, what could be seen, as a …

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A watchdog organization says 31.1 million people were displaced in 2016 within their home countries due to conflict, violence and disasters.  The Internal Displacement Monitoring Center (IDMC) of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) released a report Monday about the startling statistics. “In 2016, one person every second was forced to flee their home inside their own country,” said Jan Egeland, NRC secretary-general.  “Internally displaced people now outnumber refugees by two to one.  It is urgent to put internal displacement back on the global agenda.” Refugees seek asylum in other countries, giving them legal refugee status, which entitles them to certain …

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“No End in Sight” is the title of the British-based Amnesty International report into the ongoing crackdown in Turkey, after last July’s failed coup. The 21-page report focuses on what it describes as the arbitrary dismissals of more than 100,000 public service workers, since the introduction of emergency rule after a botched military takeover. “People are losing not only their jobs, but also their professional careers are destroyed; their family lives are destroyed; this is a disastrous situation facing a vast number of people,” warns Andrew Gardner, Amnesty’s Turkey researcher, “and there appears no end in sight.”   The Amnesty …

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