Tag: Region Europe

ROME – Italy’s right-wing government is facing criticism over its celebration of a major World War II battle, after the defence ministry said the defeated fascist soldiers of dictator Benito Mussolini had died for the country’s freedom. In a social media post on Oct 23 commemorating the anniversary of the 1942 battle of El Alamein in Egypt, the ministry described the conflict as “heroic and tragic” and paid homage to Italy’s soldiers “who sacrificed their lives for our freedom”. The…

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Oct. 22 issued a decree to liquidate medical examination commissions for determining the severity of disabilities by Dec. 31. The decree was released after a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC), which on Oct. 22 discussed violations at medical examination commissions and the fraudulent acquisition of disability status by officials through corruption schemes. Obtaining disability status through medical examination commissions allows evading military service and receiving a higher pension, among other social benefits. According to the decree, working…

ROME – Italy’s parliament made it illegal on Wednesday for couples to go abroad to have a baby via surrogacy — a pet project of Prime Minister’s Giorgia Meloni party which activists say is meant to target same-sex partners. Since taking office in 2022 Meloni has pursued a highly conservative social agenda, looking to promote what she sees as traditional family values, making it progressively harder for LGBTQ couples to become legal parents. The upper house Senate voted into law…

The following article is from a Russian news source, Tass, which is controlled by the Russian Government. BERLIN, October 16. /TASS/. Russia is concerned with the rhetoric being thrown around inside the German government saying that the country should prepare for war with Russia, which is not threatening anyone, the Russian embassy in Berlin said. “Russia is deeply concerned by the unconstructive rhetoric of German officials, special agencies and some individual politicians, calling for preparing for war with Russia as…

Evolving client needs and industry challenges The financial advice sector is adapting to profound shifts: an ageing adviser and client population, a massive transfer of wealth, the rise of defined contribution (DC) pensions over defined benefit (DB). In addition to a younger generation that engages with financial advice very differently from their parents, often through apps and social media. We’re also facing geopolitical and climate uncertainties, changing interest rates, and industry consolidation, not to mention the growing impact of artificial…

ROME – Italy’s supreme court on Oct 14 overturned the acquittal of 23 people over allegations they took bribes from late prime minister Silvio Berlusconi to lie in an underage prostitution case that had dogged him for years. The ruling means that even though Mr Berlusconi himself died last year, one of the most famous investigations tied to his extravagant past, lives on. A Milan court in February 2023 had acquitted Mr Berlusconi and all the other defendants – mostly…

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The EU Court of Justice upheld on Wednesday its ban on the provision of legal advice to Russian entities and individuals. The measure was first introduced in 2022 by the European Union as part of sweeping sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. The ruling came after the Dutch bar association of Brussels, the Paris bar and others had asked for the measure to be annulled. “The prohibition thus applies only to legal advice…

Defence Minister Minoru Kihara calls on the Russian government to prevent a recurrence. Japan has protested to the Kremlin after a Russian patrol plane entered its airspace three times, Defence Minister Minoru Kihara says. “We confirmed today that a Russian Il-38 patrol aircraft has violated our airspace over our territorial waters north of Rebun Island, Hokkaido, on three occasions,” Kihara told reporters of Monday’s incidents. Japanese F-15 and F-35 fighter jets warned the Russian military over the radio before firing…

French President Emmanuel Macron has named a new government, hoping to put an end 11 weeks of political uncertainty after an inconclusive parliamentary election delivered a hung parliament. Conservative Prime Minister Michel Barnier on Saturday put together the government whose first major task will be to submit a 2025 budget plan addressing France’s financial situation, which the prime minister this week called “very serious”. The 38-member Cabinet includes ministers from Macron’s centrist alliance and the conservative Republicans (LR) party. The difficult…

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia and China started naval exercises in the Sea of Japan on Saturday, Russian news agencies cited Russia’s Pacific Fleet as saying. “A joint detachment of warships of the Pacific Fleet and Chinese Navy set out from Vladivostok to conduct the joint Russian-Chinese “Beibu/Interaction – 2024″ naval exercise,” the RIA news agency quoted the Pacific Fleet as saying. The exercises will include anti-aircraft and anti-submarine weapons, RIA reported. Russia and China practised missile and artillery firing this…

Dozens of people were killed and thousands more injured after two consecutive days of explosions across Lebanon this week that the Shia militant group Hezbollah has blamed on Israel. Pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously on Tuesday afternoon, leaving at least 12 people dead, including two children. On Wednesday, another wave of coordinated explosions affecting handheld radios killed at least 25 people. Almost 3,000 people were wounded in the attacks, Lebanon’s health ministry said. Israel has not commented on…

MAZAN, France (AP) — The mayor of a French town making headlines for the trial of dozens of men accused of rapes that occurred there over almost a decade has apologized for comments that appeared to downplay the case. “I have been criticized for minimizing the seriousness of the heinous crimes of which the defendants are accused,” Louis Bonnet, the mayor of Mazan in southern France, said in a statement Thursday. “I understand that these remarks are shocking and I…

The following article is from a Russian news source, Tass, which is controlled by the Russian Government. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will announce the provision of a loan of 35 bln euro to Ukraine, the Financial Times reported with reference to sources. According to the report, this initiative is part of the G7 plan to allocate $50 bln to Kiev using profits from frozen Russian assets. The amount of 35 bln euro is a compromise…

The following article is from a Russian news source, Tass, which is controlled by the Russian Government. MOSCOW, September 18. /TASS/. EU pipeline gas imports last month decreased by 2% in August and overall, since the beginning of this year, gas supplies from Russia to Europe have increased by 3 billion cubic meters, according to a report by the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF). In general, total gas consumption in the EU in January-August of this year decreased by 3%…

The following article is from a Russian news source, Tass, which is controlled by the Russian Government. ASTANA, September 18. /TASS/. Command exercises with the participation of the CSTO Collective Peacekeeping Forces ‘Indestructible Brotherhood-2024’ will be held in Kazakhstan from September 26 to October 7, the republic’s Defense Ministry said. According to the agency, the exercise will be held at the Bereg training ground in the Almaty Region. The defense ministry added that military contingents from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia…

The Dutch data protection watchdog on Tuesday issued facial recognition startup Clearview AI with a fine of 30.5 million euros ($45.6 million Cdn) over its creation of what the agency called an “illegal database” of billions of photos of faces. The Netherlands’ Data Protection Agency, or DPA, also warned Dutch companies that using Clearview’s services is also banned. The data agency said that New York-based Clearview “has not objected to this decision and is therefore unable to appeal against the…