LONDON — America’s allies in Europe are debating what Donald Trump’s win in Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election could mean for their security and prosperity amid concerns that the next four years may once again be characterized by a turbulent transatlantic alliance. European interests About 50 European leaders met in Budapest on Thursday for a summit of the European Political Community, which was set up in 2022 …
What does Trump’s election victory mean for NATO, Europe?
Allies in Europe are debating what Donald Trump’s win in the U.S. presidential election could mean for their security and economy. Trump’s first term in office was characterized by often turbulent relations with EU and NATO partners. As Henry Ridgwell reports, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has amplified Europe’s concerns over the transatlantic alliance. …
Facing interference accusations, Russia falsely declares Moldovan elections ‘undemocratic’
International observers reported that Moldova’s well-organized presidential runoff provided voters with a real choice, despite legal shortcomings, biased media coverage and the effects of Russian interference. …
19,000 tons of Ukrainian grain arrives in drought-hit Malawi
Malawi, with help from the World Food Program, has received its first shipment of more than 19,000 tons of maize from Ukraine. The food aid will help feed millions of Malawians currently dealing with food shortages exacerbated by El Nino-induced drought. Lameck Masina reports from Blantyre. …
Germany arrests US citizen suspected of offering military intel to China
Berlin — Germany has arrested a U.S. citizen suspected of offering intelligence on the U.S. military to China that he had acquired while working for troops stationed in Germany, the federal prosecutor’s office said in a statement on Thursday. The man, identified only as Martin D. under German privacy law, is accused of having declared himself ready to work as an agent for a foreign intelligence …
Britain hits Russia with new wave of sanctions
The British government said on Thursday it had imposed its biggest sanctions package in 18 months against Russia, targeting people involved in the Ukraine war, African mercenary groups and a nerve agent attack on British soil. The foreign ministry said it had sanctioned 56 entities and individuals, aiming to hurt Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort and Russia’s “malign activity globally.” Among them were 10 …
European climate agency says this will likely be the hottest year on record — again
CHICAGO — For the second year in a row, Earth will almost certainly be the hottest it’s ever been. And for the first time, the globe this year reached more than 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming compared to the pre-industrial average, the European climate agency Copernicus said Thursday. “It’s this relentless nature of the warming that I think is worrying,” said Carlo Buontempo, director of Copernicus. …
South Korean president does not rule out sending weapons to Ukraine
Ukrainian officials reported damage to residential buildings Thursday after overnight Russian drone attacks, while South Korea’s president said he would not rule out sending weapons to Ukrainian forces. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that the Russian attack damaged houses and apartment buildings in five districts in the Ukrainian capital. Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said Ukrainian air defenses shot …
Trump’s victory brings uncertainty, but also hope in Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was among the first world leaders to congratulate newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump. On the streets of Ukraine’s capital, many Ukrainians say they fear that Trump may fulfill a campaign promise to end the war by forcing them into a settlement that will favor Moscow. For VOA, Anna Chernikova reports from Kyiv. …
European leaders congratulate Trump amid fears about future transatlantic ties
London — U.S. allies in Europe have congratulated President-elect Donald Trump following his comprehensive victory in Tuesday’s presidential election, despite deep concerns across the continent over what his second term may mean for transatlantic relations. In Britain, the so-called “special relationship” with America has long been treasured. However, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer got off to a difficult start with the Trump team last month after …
Erdogan welcomes second Trump term
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday was quick to welcome Donald Trump’s U.S. presidential election victory. The Turkish leader is eager to resume the close ties he had with the White House during Trump’s first term in office. Under U.S. President Joe Biden, relations between Ankara and Washington had become frosty. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …
Fear, joy and calls for a strong Europe: France reacts to Trump win
PARIS — A century of straw polls at the iconic Harry’s Bar in Paris have accurately called almost every U.S. election. This November was no different. The tallies displayed on the bar’s window on a chilly Wednesday morning were another reminder of Donald Trump’s decisive victory — with uncertain consequences for France and Europe. Even as some French celebrate the former president’s comeback to the White …
Ukrainian physicians find homes – and jobs – in Latvia
Over 160,000 Ukrainians fled their home country and came to the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia since the Russian invasion. Physicians were among the 50 thousand or so refugees who came to Latvia. Vladislavs Andrejevs spoke with some of them in Riga. Anna Rice narrates his story. (Camera: Vladislavs Andrejevs ; Produced by Yuriy Zakrevskiy) …
Russia paints doomsday portrayal of US elections
The FBI said more than 50 election sites across five battleground states received hoax bomb emails on Election Day in the U.S., and the emails in four of these states came from a Russian domain. None of the threats sent to polling sites in Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Arizona were deemed credible, and while causing a brief disruption, they did not affect the voting, …
Ukraine reports destroying 38 Russian drones
Ukraine’s military said Wednesday it shot down 38 of the 63 aerial drones that Russian forces launched in overnight attacks. The Ukrainian air force said it intercepted the drones over the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Zhytomyr and Zaporizhzhia regions. Vitaliy Kim, the governor of Mykolaiv, said on Telegram that Russia’s attack damaged energy infrastructure, but did not hurt anyone. Russia’s Defense Ministry …
Germany’s awkward coalition faces make-or-break moment
berlin — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition faces a make-or-break moment on Wednesday as leaders of the three parties convene to forge compromises between their differing visions on rescuing the economy from decline. Relations between Scholz’s center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and free-market Free Democrats (FDP) have sunk to new lows over the past week as they aired their respective strategies without consulting one another. …
Listeners protest as Turkey silences radio station
In Turkey, listeners of Acik Radyo are protesting after regulators revoked the Istanbul-based station’s license. For nearly 30 years, Acik sought to bridge the country’s divides. Analysts say the action against it is part of a wider government media crackdown. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …
Police fire tear gas at protests of deadly canopy collapse in Serbia
NOVI SAD, Serbia — Protesters threw flares and red paint Tuesday on the City Hall building in the Serbian city of Novi Sad in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people. Police responded by firing tear gas canisters. The protesters surrounded the building in central Novi Sad, breaking windows and throwing stones and other objects despite …
Swedish court sentences far-right politician for insulting Muslims
MALMO, Sweden — A Swedish court sentenced a far-right politician Tuesday to four months in jail for two counts of “incitement against an ethnic group” after making hateful comments at political rallies two years ago. The Danish-Swedish 42-year-old man, who was not named but has been identified by Swedish media as Rasmus Paludan, founder and head of the Danish nationalist anti-immigration party Stram Kurs, had been …
A week after Spain’s floods, families hopeful missing loved ones are alive
SEDAVI, Spain — Francisco Murgui went out to try to salvage his motorbike when the water started to rise. He never came back. One week after catastrophic flooding devastated eastern Spain, Maria Murgui still holds out hope that her father is alive and among the unknown number of the missing. “He was like many people in town who went out to get their car or motorbike …
Brazilian police official chosen as next head of Interpol
London — Brazilian police official Valdecy Urquiza will be the next chief of Interpol, the global police organization announced Tuesday. Urquiza was elected secretary-general by a vote of Interpol’s general assembly at its meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, and will take up the post when the gathering ends on Thursday. Currently Interpol’s vice president for the Americas, Urquiza is the first chief of the Lyon, France-based organization …
Russia to launch two Iranian satellites Tuesday, Tehran’s Moscow envoy says
Russia will launch two Iranian satellites into orbit using a Soyuz launcher on Tuesday, Iran’s ambassador to Moscow said Monday, as the two U.S.-sanctioned countries deepen their scientific relationship. “In continuation of the development of Iran-Russia scientific and technological cooperation, two Iranian satellites, Kowsar and Hodhod, will be launched to a 500 km orbit of Earth,” Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said in a …
Russia, Indonesia begin unprecedented naval drills
Indonesia and Russia began their first-ever joint naval exercises Monday in the Java Sea. These bilateral drills work to support an Indonesian foreign policy agenda that prioritizes nonalignment in the face of conflict between world powers. The drills have been divided into two phases and will take place over the course of five days near Indonesia’s Surabaya city, east of the capital, Jakarta. In the …
Serbian minister to resign over concrete canopy collapse that killed 14 people
belgrade, serbia — Serbia’s construction minister said Monday he was stepping down days after a concrete canopy collapsed at a railway station, killing 14 people and severely injuring three. Minister Goran Vesic announced his resignation at a hastily called press conference as anger mounted in the Balkan country over the fatal collapse that happened just before noon on Friday in the northern city of Novi Sad. …