Europe

Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned the US, British and Canadian ambassadors to protest against what it said was their “interference in Russia’s internal affairs,” the Interfax news agency reported, citing a ministry statement. The three countries on Monday condemned Russia for jailing opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza for 25 years …

Russian President Vladimir Putin has met his commanders in two regions of Ukraine that Moscow claims to have annexed, while Russian forces stepped up heavy artillery bombardments and air strikes on the devastated eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. The Kremlin said Putin had attended a military command meeting in Ukraine’s …

Almost 2 tonnes of cocaine with a market value of more than 400 million euros ($440 million) were found floating at sea off eastern Sicily, Italy’s tax and customs police said on Monday. The Guardia di Finanza called it a “record” seizure. The drugs were stored in about 70 waterproof …

India and Russia are discussing a free trade agreement, ministers said on Monday, a move that would further deepen bilateral commercial ties that have flourished since war broke out in Ukraine. India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told an event in New Delhi his government was in “advance agreement” on a …

By destroying ties with Russia, Brussels is playing into the hands of London and Washington, Russia’s deputy foreign minister says A senior Russian diplomat has accused the EU of falling victim to a US-UK ploy in Ukraine, and losing the chance to become an independent player in a multipolar world. …

A French court has convicted 11 members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on charges of terror financing, with the sentences ranging from suspended three-year prison terms to five years behind bars with one year suspended. The militants, which are all Kurds and speak little or no French, were charged …

Protest rallies across France and in the capital Paris have continued despite a high court ruling, clearing the way for French President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial pension reform to be enforced. Eye-witness images of the protests in Paris and the southern city of Lyon on Friday showed objects burning on the …

French President Emmanuel Macron has signed into law a controversial bill to raise the country’s retirement age by two years, defying three months of protests and calls for him to halt the disputed legislation. Macron signed the bill on Saturday, hours after the approval by France’s highest constitutional council of the essence …

The leak of a trove of highly sensitive documents online could be a move by the United States to “deceive”, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying Wednesday. Ryabkov told Russian news agencies that, for now, the leak threw up many questions. “It’s probably interesting for someone to …

French President Emmanuel Macron has reaffirmed his country’s stance on Taiwan, saying that France is not a follower of the US policies and that being a US ally does not mean being a “vassal”. Macron said France still backed the “status quo” on Taiwan and stressed that his country will …

Dutch police on Thursday said an explosives team was investigating a “suspect situation” in the building that houses the national parliament in The Hague. Police said it had cleared the surroundings of the building, which people had been asked to leave.

NATO should play a bigger role in security in the Black Sea, and integrate Ukrainian air and missile defenses with those of its allies, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitro Kuleba said on Thursday. “The Black Sea is instrumental for making the whole of Europe peaceful and future-oriented,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmitro …

Norway’s foreign ministry on Thursday said it had declared 15 Russian embassy officials in Oslo as “unwanted”, adding that they were intelligence officers operating under the cover of diplomatic positions. “The government’s decision is in response to the changed security situation in Europe, which has led to an increased intelligence …

NATO maintains 97 special forces personnel in Ukraine, including 50 British, 14 Americans, and 15 French forces, amid the war in the country, secret US military documents leaked online have revealed. The documents appear to offer a partial snapshot of US military assessments of the state of the Ukraine conflict …

A missile fired from Ukraine has reportedly been shot down over the Black Sea town of Feodosia in the Russia-controlled Crimea, local officials have unveiled. “A missile fired from the direction of Ukraine has been shot down over Feodosia,” said the head of the Republic of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov in …

Finland has announced its plan to procure the joint US-Israeli-made David’s Sling long-range missile defense system, after joint the US-led military alliance NATO. “This acquisition will create a new capability for the Finnish Defense Forces to intercept targets at high altitude,” Finland’s Defense Minister, Antti Kaikkonen, said on Wednesday, adding, …

Veteran customs officer Pol Meuleneire was surprised to find the Easter treats were crafted not from the country’s famed chocolate, but enough MDMA to make 60,000 ecstasy pills. Belgium has become a hub for international cocaine trafficking, but is also becoming a key centre for mail-order synthetic narcotics. “It goes …

Germany’s ambassador to Chad will be expelled within 48 hours for his “impolite attitude” and “non-respect of diplomatic practices,” the government in N’Djamena said in a statement Friday. The ambassador, Jan Christian Gordon Kricke, has been in the role since July 2021, and the government gave no official explanation for …

The EU nation is facing a birth-rate “crisis” despite the introduction of a financial incentive scheme Fewer than 400,000 babies were born in Italy in 2022, deepening what has been referred to as a “national emergency” as the country’s population declines to historically low levels, according to figures released by …

A missile fired from Ukraine has reportedly been shot down over the Black Sea town of Feodosia in the Russia-controlled Crimea, local officials have unveiled. “A missile fired from the direction of Ukraine has been shot down over Feodosia,” said the head of the Republic of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov in …