EU members call for revision of anti-deforestation law
Brussels, Belgium Reuters A group of EU countries led by Austria is calling for urgent revisions to the bloc’s anti-deforestation law set to go into effect at the end of the year, saying it could hurt European farmers, according to a document reviewed by Reuters on Monday. The EU law aims to root deforestation out […]
EU countries split over nature law in latest blow to green agenda
Brussels, Belgium Reuters The European Union’s flagship policy to restore damaged nature is hanging in the balance, with a vote to pass the law on Monday cancelled after Hungary unexpectedly withdrew its support for the bill. The vote, scheduled to take place at a meeting of EU countries’ environment ministers in Brussels, was called off […]
Policing the oceans: Somali pirates’ return adds to crisis for global shipping companies
GIULIA PARAVICINI, JONATHAN SAUL and ABDIQANI HASSAN, of Reuters, report on a resurgence of piracy off the coast of Somalia…
Moldovan Parliament backs bid to join EU, but divisions remain
Chisinau, Moldova Reuters Moldova’s Parliament this week endorsed an appeal to press on with a drive to join the European Union, but the opposition walked out of the vote and separatists in the Transdniestria region urged authorities to drop their claim to the enclave. President Maia Sandu, who says Russia is the biggest threat to […]
West decries Putin’s election win, China, India vow closer ties
London, UK Reuters Western governments lined up on Monday to condemn Vladimir Putin’s landslide election victory as unfair and undemocratic, but China, India and North Korea congratulated the veteran Russian leader on extending his rule by a further six years. The contrasting reactions underscored the geopolitical fault lines that have gaped wider since Russia launched […]
EU sees maritime aid corridor to Gaza opening this weekend amid famine fears
Cairo, Egypt/Larnaca, Cyprus Reuters The head of the European Commission said on Friday a maritime aid corridor could start operating between Cyprus and Gaza this weekend, part of accelerating Western efforts to relieve the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged Palestinian enclave. Ursula von der Leyen’s comments came a day after President Joe Biden announced plans […]
Ocean temperature hit record high in February 2024, EU scientists say
London, UK Reuters Ocean temperatures hit a record high in February, with the average global sea surface temperature at 21.06 degrees Celsius, the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said on Thursday. February’s average sea surface temperature surpassed the previous record of 20.98 degrees Celsius set in August, 2023, in a dataset that goes back […]
EU leads call for probe into Navalny’s death at UN human rights body
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters A group of more than 40 countries on Monday reiterated calls for Russia to allow an independent international investigation into the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison. The call was made by European Union Ambassador Lotte Knudsen at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on behalf of all […]
Ukraine says it identified 511 war crime suspects, convicted 81
Kyiv, Ukraine Reuters Ukraine has identified 511 people suspected of war crimes since Russia’s February, 2022, invasion and has already handed down 81 convictions, its prosecutor general said in Kyiv on Thursday. Andriy Kostin was speaking at a war crimes conference alongside the chief prosecutors of Poland, Lithuania, Romania and the President of the EU […]
Ukraine needs $US3 billion in financial aid per month in 2024, Kyiv says
Kyiv, Ukraine Reuters Ukraine needs about $US3 billion in foreign financial aid on a monthly basis to get through 2024, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said on Wednesday, highlighting the challenges Kyiv faces as US support begins to falter. Marchenko said Ukraine’s macroeconomic stability during the war with Russia had been possible due to a steady […]