Germany wants Britain to maintain a close partnership with the European Union after its divorce from the bloc, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday. “We have of course spoken about Britain’s exit from the European Union and in this regard made clear that we want a withdrawal that will at …
Read More »Bolton says Washington favors a no-deal Brexit.
US National Security Adviser John Bolton has said the United States “enthusiastically” supports a no-deal Brexit. The European Union’s French chief negotiator for Brexit Michel Barnier had warned Britain if it wanted to avoid a no-deal Brexit then London needed to stick to the divorce agreement signed with Brussels. “If …
Read More »In a new migrant standoff, Italy’s Salvini blocks two NGO boats.
Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said on Tuesday he was working to prevent two rescue ships operated by French and Spanish charities from bringing more than 500 migrants to Italy in the latest Mediterranean stand-off. The Ocean Viking, which is run by French non-governmental groups (NGOs) Doctors Without Borders and …
Read More »UK economy shrinks for the first time since 2012 as Brexit bites.
The British economy shrank in the second quarter for the first time since 2012 as Brexit uncertainties weighed on business investment and firms reduced their stockpiling after Britain’s departure from the European Union was postponed, official figures showed Friday. The decline is set to raise an alarm that Brexit uncertainty …
Read More »Brexit ‘no matter what’, Johnson promises as sterling falls.
Britain Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised on Tuesday to lead Britain out of the European Union on Oct. 31 “no matter what” as sterling tumbled and Ireland warned that the bloc would not be renegotiating the thrice defeated divorce deal. The British pound fell on Tuesday as investors bet Johnson’s …
Read More »Boris Johnson becomes Britain’s new prime minister.
Boris Johnson, Britain’s most high-profile Brexiteer, has won the leadership of the Tories to become the country’s next prime minister, replacing outgoing Theresa May. Johnson won 92,153 votes by members of the Conservative Party On Tuesday, Reuters reported. His main rival, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, won 46,656. He is to …
Read More »Dozens injured as 1,000 firefighters battle wildfires in Portugal.
More than 1,000 firefighters battled wildfires in central Portugal on Monday, forcing the evacuation of several villages as the authorities hoped to limit the number of residents at risk. So far 33 people have been injured, including one who is in a serious condition. Portugal’s Civil Protection said some houses …
Read More »Barcelona ‘to ban smoking outdoors’
People will no longer be able to smoke in designated outdoor areas of bars and restaurants in Catalonia, under new proposals. Smoking in public places was banned in Spain in January 2011, although smokers were permitted to use the outside terraces of establishments, according to Catalan News. At the time, …
Read More »UK lawmakers back proposal to hamper a no-deal Brexit
British lawmakers on Thursday backed proposals to make it harder for the next prime minister to force through a no-deal Brexit by suspending parliament, showing again their determination to stop a divorce from the European Union without agreement. Boris Johnson, the clear frontrunner to succeed Prime Minister Theresa May next …
Read More »European leaders join Macron for Bastille Day parade.
European leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday for the traditional Bastille Day military parade in Paris, which this year honored European military cooperation. After riding down the iconic Champs Elysees boulevard in a military vehicle escorted by motorcycles and a cavalry procession, Macron …
Read More »Denmark’s youngest-ever prime minister.
Mette Frederiksen, the leader of Denmark’s center-left Socialist Democratic party, has announced that she will form a left-leaning, one-party minority government, making her the nation’s youngest-ever prime minister. “It is with great pleasure I can announce that after three weeks of negotiations, we have a majority to form a new …
Read More »Johnson defends Brexit plan and ‘row’ silence
Boris Johnson has admitted he would need EU co-operation to avoid a hard Irish border or crippling tariffs on trade in the event of a no-deal Brexit. In an exclusive interview with the BBC, the favorite to be the next PM said: “It’s not just up to us.” But he …
Read More »Ukraine fury as Russia gets human rights vote.
Five years after Russia had it’s voting rights removed because of the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, the Council of Europe’s parliamentary assembly has voted to restore them. The assembly backed the proposal in the face of angry opposition from Ukraine, whose delegation later walked out. Russia had threatened to …
Read More »New deal or no deal: How will Britain’s next PM deliver Brexit?
The toughest job for Britain’s next prime minister will be to leave the European Union. But the new leader will have few options: find a divorce deal that parliament will ratify, leave without a deal or delay. Legally, Britain leaves on Oct. 31, seven months later than planned, unless the …
Read More »Germany’s Angela Merkel ‘fine’ after seen shaking in a heatwave.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she is fine after she was seen trembling as she greeted Ukraine’s president on a boiling day in Berlin. Mrs. Merkel, 64, was visibly struggling as she stood next to Volodymyr Zelensky while a military band played the two countries’ anthems in the midday …
Read More »Anti-graft campaigner sworn in as Slovakia’s first female president.
Anti-corruption campaigner Zuzana Caputova was sworn in as Slovakia’s first female president on Saturday, vowing to fight impunity and champion justice in a country shaken by a journalist’s murder last year. The killing of Jan Kuciak, who investigated high-level graft cases, and his fiancé at their home last February sparked …
Read More »Moldovan court suspends president in a political standoff.
A Moldovan court temporarily relieved President Igor Dodon of his duties on Sunday to allow a stand-in to call a snap election, deepening a standoff between rival political parties over the formation of a new government after months of deadlock. Dodon’s replacement, former prime minister Pavel Filip, immediately announced a …
Read More »Vietnamese Blogger jailed over environmental protest.
A Vietnamese environmental activist and blogger have been sentenced to six years in prison under the country’s new law that cracks down on online dissent. Nguyen Ngoc Anh, a 39-year old shrimp farmer from the southern town of Binh Dai, was arrested and tried for what state media described as …
Read More »Norway to reassess power cable to the UK over Brexit.
The Norwegian government has ordered a re-evaluation of a major project to transfer electricity to the United Kingdom amid growing uncertainties about Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. Norway’s oil and energy ministry said in a statement on Thursday that there was a need for the privately-owned NorthConnect to reassess …
Read More »Majority of UK voters do not want Johnson as prime minister: Polls
A study of recent polls carried out in the United Kingdom shows the majority of voters in the country have not a good opinion of Boris Johnson as their next prime minister. Polling expert Robert Hayward told the Guardian on Wednesday that voters in Britain have a “distinct antipathy” towards …
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