Category: European Union

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius visited Ukraine on Tuesday in a show of support for the country in its fight against the Russian invasion that began nearly three years ago. German officials said the visit was aimed at reassuring Ukraine it will continue to receive support, with Pistorius to meet with top Ukrainian officials. The visit comes less than a week before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration and the questions about how U.S. policy toward Ukraine might change under the new administration. Officials in multiple Russian regions said Tuesday their areas came under major Ukrainian drone attacks, including in Saratov, where Governor Roman Busargin said there was damage at two industrial enterprises in the neighboring cities of Saratov and Engels. That area is home to a base for Russian bomber planes. Last week, a Ukrainian attack hit an oil depot that serves the base. Oryol Governor Andrei Klychkov said on Telegram that Russian air defenses shot down 17 Ukrainian drones in his region. He reported no damage or casualties from the attacks. Rostov Governor Yury Slyusar said on Telegram 14 drones were destroyed overnight, while officials in Voronezh said several Ukrainian drones were shot down without causing damage. Ukraine’s military said Tuesday it destroyed 58 of 80 drones that Russian forces used to target 11 different regions. The Ukrainian air force reported damage to apartment buildings, commercial buildings and cars in the Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Sumy and Zhytomyr regions as a result of falling debris from downed drones. Ukrainian air defenses also destroyed Russian drones over the Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Odesa and Poltava regions, the Ukrainian air force said. Some information for this story was provided by Agence France-Presse and Reuters   …

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA — Malaysia said on Tuesday it will encourage sustainability while maintaining the competitiveness of its palm oil industry ahead of the implementation of the European Union’s anti-deforestation law at the end of this year. The EU last month approved a one-year delay to the landmark deforestation law, which bans the importation of palm oil, soy and other goods linked to the destruction of forests. The bill now takes effect from Dec. 30 this year. The law requires companies and traders selling soy, beef, coffee, palm oil and other products in the EU to provide proof their supply chains do not contribute to deforestation. Malaysia and Indonesia, the world’s largest exporters of palm oil, have previously complained that the law and implementation rules are discriminatory. Malaysia’s Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister Chan Foong Hin said it was crucial for the country’s palm oil industry to understand the impact of the EU law so that domestic practices could be adapted and market access maintained. “By aligning our operations with these standards, we bolster our market position and enhance competitiveness,” Chan told an industry conference on Tuesday. Chan said the success of Malaysia’s palm oil industry depended on the adoption of green initiatives, including advanced agriculture technologies, sustainable farming, and new production methods, to help protect the environment while creating new growth opportunities. Speaking at the same conference, Malaysian Palm Oil Board director-general Ahmad Parveez Ghulam Kadir said authorities would work with the local industry. “We are looking forward to a better outlook in 2025,” Ahmad Parveez said. “The ministry and agencies will continuously collaborate closely to address environmental concerns while also promoting economic stability and social responsibility within the industry to foster a more sustainable and balanced future.” He said Malaysian palm oil stocks are expected to fall to around 1.6 million metric tons this year, compared with 1.71 million tons in 2024. Production in the world’s second-largest producer in 2025 should come in at 19.5 million tons, marginally higher than the 19.34 million tons in 2024. Palm oil exports are expected to be 17.3 million tons in 2025, up from 16.9 million tons in 2024, Ahmad Parveez added. …

CHISINAU, MOLDOVA — The prime minister of Moldova’s separatist Transniestria region said Monday that the abrupt curtailment of Russian gas supplies that plunged the region into an energy crisis has also shattered both its exports and imports. The cutoff, prompted by Ukraine’s refusal to renew an agreement allowing Russian gas to transit through Ukraine, has led to daily blackouts in the pro-Russian region of some 350,000 people and disruptions in heating and water supplies. Prime Minister Alexander Rozenberg told local media that the New Year cutoff had triggered a 43% decline in imports and a 60% plunge in exports in the region, which split from Moldova in the final days of Soviet rule. “The steepest drop in the volume of export operations … has been registered in the metals sector, in manufacture of machines and in the chemical industry,” he said. “Exports of cement have been completely stopped.” Transniestria depends heavily on assistance from Moscow and its leaders acknowledge that the Russian gas it has long received was provided free of charge as “humanitarian assistance.” The gas cutoff affects operations at a thermal plant that provides electricity both for Transniestria and much of the area controlled by the central Moldovan government. Its operations have been switched to coal, and Ukraine, Moldova’s eastern neighbor, has offered to provide supplies. Moldovan President Maia Sandu, who has spearheaded the country’s drive to join the EU, called a meeting of Moldova’s Supreme Security Council on Tuesday to discuss energy. Both Moldova and Transniestria have proclaimed states of emergency. Much of Transniestria’s industry has been forced to close or obliged to operate at night, when there is less strain on the power grid. Among the factories closed are a cement plant and a steel mill in the town of Rybnita, with the latter accounting for 35% of the region’s budget revenue. The region’s separatist authorities last week said energy savings had enabled them to reduce rolling blackouts from eight hours a day to three by the weekend. But a blackout of five hours had been announced for Monday. Moldova, which denounces Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, says Moscow fomented the crisis and has suggested shipping gas on a route through Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania. Russian gas giant Gazprom said it will provide no supplies until Moldova settles arrears it estimates at $709 million, a figure disputed by Moldovan authorities. Transniestria’s leaders say Moldova has done nothing to … “Premier of separatist Moldova region says gas cutoff shattered foreign trade” →

KYIV, UKRAINE — Russian forces are bypassing a key stronghold in eastern Ukraine that they have fought for months to capture and are focusing instead on cutting supply lines to it, a Ukrainian official said Monday. Russian troops are going around the vital logistics hub of Pokrovsk, where a steadfast Ukrainian defense has kept them at bay, and are taking aim at a highway that leads from there to the central Ukraine city of Dnipro, Major Viktor Trehubov, a local Ukrainian army spokesperson, told The Associated Press. That route is crucial for supplies feeding Ukrainian forces in the entire region. Cutting the highway traffic would also severely weaken Pokrovsk. “So far, they have not achieved their goal and [Ukrainian forces] are working to ensure that they do not achieve it in the future — just as they have not been successful in other attempts to bypass the city,” Trehubov said in a WhatsApp message. Ukraine’s army is under severe strain along parts of the approximately 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, especially in the eastern Donetsk region where Pokrovsk is located. After almost three years of war, Ukrainian units are depleted and are outnumbered by Russian forces. Though its battlefield progress has been slow and costly, momentum in the war is in Russia’s favor and its onslaught has gradually swallowed up towns and villages, especially in Donetsk. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed Monday its forces had seized the village of Pishchane. In his daily video address to the nation late Sunday, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said fighting around Pokrovsk was “the most intense” in recent days. In separate comments to local media, Trehubov, the army spokesperson, speculated that Russia’s heavy losses of troops and armor in the Donetsk operation had prompted it to alter its strategy. “Now they are acting more cautiously,” he said. Russian President Vladimir Putin is pressing his advantage ahead of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s arrival in the White House next week. Trump says he wants to bring a swift end to the war, though he hasn’t publicized details of his plans. In 2022, Moscow illegally annexed the Donetsk and neighboring Luhansk regions, which make up the economically important Donbas industrial area, together with the southeastern provinces of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. But Russian forces don’t fully control any of them. …

Pro-Kremlin Russian media lost millions of readers and viewers in 2024, with some state propaganda outlets having their audiences slashed by up to a third. The main propaganda TV channel, Channel One, has lost a quarter of its viewers since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Experts who spoke to VOA Russian note this has become a steady trend that the Kremlin has so far been unable to reverse, even with larger injections of cash into state-owned media outlets.  Click here for the full story in Russian.  …

NEW YORK — Ryanair is calling on European authorities to limit the sale of alcoholic beverages at airports across the continent, as the Irish airline continues legal action against a passenger who it says caused a costly flight diversion last year. The budget airline is seeking more than 15,000 euros ($15,324) in damages over the April 2024 incident. Ryanair alleges that this passenger’s “inexcusable behavior” on a flight from Dublin to Lanzarote in Spain’s Canary Islands was so disruptive that it forced the aircraft to divert to Porto, Portugal, for safety — where crew members and over 160 other passengers were later delayed overnight. After announcing its civil suit against the passenger last week, Ryanair on Monday shared further information detailing the costs it incurred for excess fuel, lodging, legal fees and more as a result of this diversion. And the airline also suggested a drink limit for airports across the European Union. “It is time that EU authorities take action to limit the sale of alcohol at airports,” Ryanair wrote in a statement. “We fail to understand why passengers at airports are not limited to two alcoholic drinks [using their boarding pass in exactly the same way they limit duty-free sales], as this would result in safer and better passenger behavior on board aircraft, and a safer travel experience for passengers and crews all over Europe.” Ryanair noted that it and other airlines already limit alcohol sales in-flight — but said that passengers can still consume excess alcohol at airports before boarding, particularly during flight delays, without similar restrictions. Aviation agencies have long expressed concern with disruptive, in-flight incidents — particularly those that result in violence against others on board, verbal abuse, harassment or other health hazards like smoking. Although still rare, reports of unruly passengers seen on planes have recently been on the rise. When reached for comment Monday, a spokesperson for European Union Aviation Safety Agency noted that, while the agency could not provide specifics, “both the number and severity of incidents” have increased in Europe since 2020. Worldwide, the International Air Transport Association found that there was one disruptive incident for every 480 flights in 2023 — the latest figures from the trade organization, which used data from more 24,500 reports and 50 operators worldwide. That’s up from one every 568 in 2022. How many of those incidents involved alcohol was not immediately known. But, among efforts … “Ryanair calls for alcoholic drink limit at EU airports amid legal action against unruly passenger” →

Washington — Outgoing President Joe Biden sought to burnish his foreign policy record Monday and said U.S. adversaries are weaker than when he took office four years ago despite global crises that remain unresolved.  A week before handing over to President-elect Donald Trump, Biden in a rare State Department speech touted his administration’s backing for Ukraine against Russia’s 2022 invasion and for Israel’s wars in the Middle East.  Biden said the United States was “winning the worldwide competition” and would not be surpassed economically by China as had been predicted, while Russia and Iran have been weakened by wars without direct U.S. involvement.  “Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are weaker,” Biden said. “We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”  While wars continue to rage in Ukraine and the Middle East, officials hope a deal between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas can be reached before Biden departs the White House on Jan. 20.  Biden said negotiators were close to reaching a deal that would free hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and halt the fighting in the Palestinian enclave to allow a surge of humanitarian aid.  “So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.  Biden has faced criticism for providing Israel with weapons and diplomatic support during its assault on Gaza after Hamas attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.  Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the enclave laid to waste and most of its population displaced.  Protesters shouting “war criminal” greeted Biden outside the State Department on Monday, some with signs and some throwing red liquid intended to look like blood.  Biden said he had helped Israel defeat adversaries like Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, both backed by Iran. The U.S. president also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.  “All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” he added, noting the collapse of the Syrian Assad government. “There’s no question that our actions contributed significantly.”  …

BERLIN — Germany, Poland, Britain, France and Italy will implement as swiftly as possible new NATO targets for weapons and troop numbers which the alliance is about to agree upon, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius pledged on Monday. The chief of NATO’s Military Committee, Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, told Reuters earlier that the alliance aims to bring forward the decision on new targets for weapons and troop numbers to this summer. The Western military and political alliance has been under pressure not only in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine but also internally, with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump calling on its members to spend much more on defense. A NATO summit in The Hague at the end of June will also discuss hiking NATO’s existing military spending target of 2% of national GDP, with 3% being floated by some experts as one potential new target. Trump, who returns to the White House on Jan. 20, recently urged a 5% goal. Speaking after a meeting with his four counterparts in the Polish village of Nowa Wies, Pistorius welcomed NATO’s decision to fix the alliance’s new capability targets in June instead of October as originally planned, a move he said was triggered by a German request. “This buys us a lot of time and we can much earlier kick off the implementation,” Pistorius told reporters. At the same time, he rejected Trump’s push to have members raise defense spending to 5% of GDP, arguing this would equal more than 40% of Germany’s total budget. “The crucial question for me is: How fast do we … every single ally, manage to meet NATO’s new capability targets? … How quickly are we fully capable of defending ourselves when we need to be?” Pistorius said. France’s defense minister, Sebastien Lecornu, said military budgets would continue to increase but did not specify a figure for a new NATO target. “The situation is worse than it was during the Cold War. … We can be defeated without being invaded,” he said, referring to cyberattacks. Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said the next meeting of the Group of Five in Paris would discuss how to finance the organization and the development of the arms industry in Europe. “We will coordinate all defense-related activities between our countries. This is a priority. Europe must show its strength. Europe can again be a beacon for the whole world, it just … “Biggest European allies to swiftly implement new NATO targets, Berlin says” →

Moscow — Russian President Vladimir Putin will host his Iranian counterpart this week for the signing of a broad partnership pact between Moscow and Tehran, the Kremlin said Monday. The agreement on “comprehensive strategic partnership” between the countries will be signed during Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s visit to Moscow on Friday, the Kremlin said. It added that the leaders will discuss plans for expanding trade and cooperation in transport, logistics and humanitarian spheres along with “acute issues on the regional and international agenda.” Ukraine and the West have accused Tehran of providing Moscow with hundreds of exploding drones for use on the battlefield in Ukraine and helping launch their production in Russia. The Iranian drone deliveries, which Moscow and Tehran have denied, have allowed for a barrage of long-range drone strikes on Ukraine’s infrastructure. Iran, in turn, wants sophisticated Russian weapons like long-range air defense systems and fighter jets to help fend off possible attacks by Israel. Pezeshkian will visit Moscow three days before the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to broker a peace deal on Ukraine. …

PARIS — A Frenchman held in Iran since October 2022 on Monday revealed his identity in an audio message broadcast on a French radio station, saying he was becoming increasingly exhausted over his ordeal. Olivier Grondeau, 34, had previously only been identified by his first name and French authorities had not released details of his case.  In an audio message aired on France Inter on Monday, Grondeau fully identified himself and warned that he and the other two French detainees held in Iran were “exhausted.” The other two French nationals currently held in Iran are teacher Cecile Kohler and her partner, Jacques Paris, who were detained in May 2022. They are accused of seeking to stir up labor protests, accusations their families have vehemently denied. “You, who have the power to influence this matter, hear this truth,” he said in the audio message, apparently addressing the French authorities. “Cecile’s strength, Jacques’ strength, Olivier’s strength — it is all running out,” he said. “Your responsibility is called upon to ensure the survival of three human beings,” he said. Grondeau was arrested in Shiraz, in southern Iran, in October 2022, and sentenced to five years in prison for “conspiracy against the Islamic republic,” his mother Therese Grondeau told France Inter. His family rejects the charges, describing Grondeau as a passionate fan of Persian poetry who was traveling to Iran on a tourist visa as part of a world tour. On Friday, France summoned the Iranian ambassador to protest Tehran’s holding of the trio, describing them as “state hostages.” Their “situation is intolerable, with undignified detention conditions that, for some, constitute torture under international law,” the French foreign ministry said. The tensions have come after an Italian journalist, Cecilia Sala, arrested and jailed in Iran since December, was freed and returned to Rome earlier this month. Her swift release — in contrast to the prolonged detention of the French nationals —  was the result of “intense work through diplomatic and intelligence channels” by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government, her office said.  Foreign ministries whose nationals have been held by Iran are known to sometimes advise families to keep a low profile and not announce the arrest of their loved ones publicly, in the hope the situation can be resolved behind the scenes.                …

Around 300 North Korean soldiers have been killed and 2,700 others injured in Russia’s war in Ukraine, South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers in a closed briefing Monday. The National Intelligence Service said it had participated in the interrogation of several North Korean troops who were captured by Ukrainian forces. The briefing came days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the capture of two North Korean soldiers during fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces launched a surprise offensive in August. Zelenskyy said late Sunday he would send captured North Koreans back to their country if North Korean leader Kim Jong Un organizes a swap for Ukrainian soldiers being held in Russia. The Ukrainian leader said it is “only a matter of time” before Ukraine captures more North Korean soldiers, and that Russia’s military “is dependent on military assistance from North Korea.” Drone attacks Ukraine’s military said Monday it destroyed 78 of the 110 drones that Russian forces launched in overnight attacks targeting regions across the country. The intercepts took place over the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Poltava, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia and Zhytomyr regions, the Ukrainian air force said. Mykolaiv Governor Vitaliy Kim said on Telegram that falling drone fragments damaged several houses, but did not hurt anyone. Russian shelling in his region injured one person, Kim said Monday. In Sumy, officials said Russian attacks caused a fire at a residential building and injured one person. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Monday it destroyed six Ukrainian drones over the Voronezh region, as well as one drone over Belgorod and another drone over Bryansk. The ministry also said Monday that a Ukrainian drone attack Saturday targeted the TurkStream gas pipeline that is used to send Russian gas to Turkey and Europe. Russian air defenses shot down all of the drones involved in the attack, and there were no casualties, the ministry said. Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters …

Kyiv, Ukraine — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday Kyiv is ready to hand over North Korean soldiers to their leader Kim Jong Un if he can facilitate their exchange for Ukrainians held captive in Russia. “In addition to the first captured soldiers from North Korea, there will undoubtedly be more. It’s only a matter of time before our troops manage to capture others,” Zelenskyy said on the social media platform X. Zelenskyy said Saturday that Ukraine had captured two North Koreans in Russia’s Kursk region, the first time Ukraine has announced the capture of North Korean soldiers alive since their entry into the nearly three-year-old war last fall. Ukrainian and Western assessments say that some 11,000 troops from Russia’s ally North Korea have been deployed in the Kursk region to support Moscow’s forces. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied their presence. Zelenskyy has said Russian and North Korean forces had suffered heavy losses. “Ukraine is ready to hand over Kim Jong Un’s soldiers to him if he can organize their exchange for our warriors who are being held captive in Russia,” Zelenskyy said. He posted a short video showing the interrogation of two men who are presented as North Korean soldiers. One of them is lying on a bed with bandaged hands, the other is sitting with a bandage on his jaw. One of the men said through an interpreter that he did not know he was fighting against Ukraine and had been told he was on a training exercise. He said he hid in a shelter during the offensive and was found a couple of days later. He said that if he was ordered to return to North Korea, he would, but that he was ready to stay in Ukraine if given the chance. Reuters could not verify the video. “One of them (soldiers) expressed a desire to stay in Ukraine, the other to return to Korea,” Zelenskyy said in a televised statement. Zelenskyy said that for North Korean soldiers who did not wish to return home, there may be other options available and “those who express a desire to bring peace closer by spreading the truth about this war in the Korean (language) will be given that opportunity.” Zelenskyy provided no specific details.  …

Niamey, Niger — An Austrian woman has been kidnapped by gunmen in Niger’s Agadez city, residents and the Austrian Foreign Ministry said Sunday. It is the first time a European citizen is known to have been kidnapped in the conflict-hit West African nation since a military junta took power in 2023. The ministry said the Austrian Embassy in Algeria, which is also responsible for Niger, had been informed of the kidnapping of an Austrian woman in Agadez and was in contact with regional authorities on the ground. Residents and local media identified the victim as Eva Gretzmacher and reported she is an aid worker who has lived in Agadez — hundreds of kilometers away from the capital city of Niamey — for more than 20 years. “(She) is well known for her social commitment (and) created a skills center in 2010 that initiated various projects, notably in the fields of education, women’s empowerment, ecology, culture and art,” the online newspaper Air Info Agadez reported. Gretzmacher also supported education programs through her development work and provided assistance to local nongovernment organizations in various sectors, local media said. No group claimed responsibility for her abduction and authorities in Niger did not immediately comment on the incident. Niger has for many years battled a jihadi insurgency linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, a security crisis that analysts say has worsened since the military toppled the country’s government in July 2023. Despite their promise to restore peace in hot spots, the junta’s capacity to improve Niger’s security has increasingly been questioned amid increasing attacks. Niger was seen as one of the last democratic countries in Africa’s Sahel region that Western nations could partner with to beat back the jihadi insurgency in the vast expanse below the Sahara Desert. The country has severed decadeslong military ties with the West and turned to Russia as a new security partner. …

London — Hundreds of Londoners headed down to the Underground on Sunday afternoon, stripped down to their underwear and travelled around a bit, trying to look as though nothing unusual was going on. As if. This was the Official No Trousers Tube Ride, an annual event with no point other than injecting a little levity into the bleak midwinter. No deep meaning, no bigger motive. The only goal was to be silly, if but for one afternoon. “There’s so much bad, so much not fun going on,” said ringleader Dave Selkirk, a 40-year-old personal trainer. “It’s nice to do something just for the sake of it.” After gathering at the entrance to Chinatown, dozens of clothing anarchists trooped through the icy streets to the Piccadilly Circus Underground station in central London where they boarded their first train. The only hiccup was that the cars were so crowded some people couldn’t shed their trousers. Selfies were taken. Grins were exchanged. The tourists looked puzzled. The first stunt in this vein was held in New York in 2002, the brainchild of local comedian Charlie Todd. His idea was this: Wouldn’t it be funny if someone walked onto a subway train in the middle of winter wearing a hat, gloves, scarf — everything but pants? Or trousers as they’re known in London, pants being synonymous with underpants in Britain. “It would be unusual in New York, although you can see anything on our subway system, but what would really be funny is if at the next stop, a couple of minutes later, when the doors open and additional persons got on, not wearing trousers as well,” Todd told the BBC. “And they act like they don’t know each other, and they act like … it’s no big deal and they just forgot their trousers.” The idea took off, and no pants days have been held all over: in Berlin, Prague, Jerusalem, Warsaw and Washington, D.C., among other cities. London hosted its first big reveal in 2009. “You know, it’s meant to be a bit of harmless fun,” Todd said. “Certainly, we are living in a climate where, you know, people like to have culture war fights. My rule in New York was always the goal of this event is to amuse other people, to give people a laugh. It’s not to be provocative, it’s not to irritate someone. So hopefully the spirit of that … “London subway riders bare their legs in ‘No Trousers Tube Ride’” →

Belgrade, Serbia — Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters in Belgrade on Sunday switched on the lights on their mobile phones and stood in silence for 15 minutes to commemorate victims of a railway station roof collapse for which they blame authorities.  The protest was organized and led by students from Belgrade state university who are demanding that those responsible for the roof collapse are brought to justice.  They blame the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) of President Aleksandar Vucic for corruption and nepotism, which he and the party deny.  Students at state universities in Belgrade, Kragujevac and Nis have been blockading classes for weeks to demand the release of all documents relevant to the renovation of the station, as well as criminal prosecution of officials responsible for the disaster.  Every day they block traffic in front of their faculties for 15 minutes to commemorate the 15 victims.  The concrete awning of the recently renovated roof of Novi Sad station caved in on Nov. 1, killing 14 and injuring three. One of the injured died later.  Opposition leaders and the public have taken to the streets repeatedly, blaming the accident on shoddy construction resulting from government corruption and nepotism.  The ruling coalition denies those charges, and Vucic has said those responsible must be held to account.  “We have been unhappy for years. We came here to express our revolt (with authorities), and to support students,” said Tamara Kovacevic, one of the protesters. …

BUCHAREST — Tens of thousands protested in Romania’s capital on Sunday against a top court’s decision last month to annul the presidential election after an outsider candidate unexpectedly emerged as the frontrunner. Many of the demonstrators in Bucharest honked horns and waved Romania’s blue, yellow, and red flags, while others brandished placards bearing slogans such as “Democracy is not optional” and “We want free elections.” Many also demanded the resumption of the presidential race from the second round. The protest comes a month after the Constitutional Court made the unprecedented move to annul the election just two days before a Dec. 8 runoff. The far-right populist Calin Georgescu shocked many when he won the first round on Nov. 24, after which allegations of electoral violations and Russian interference emerged. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, said at the protest on Sunday, “We are protesting against the coup d’état that took place on Dec. 6. “We are sorry to discover so late that we were living in a lie and that we were led by people who claimed to be democrats, but are not at all,” Simion, whose party organized the protest on Sunday, told reporters. “We demand a return to democracy through the resumption of elections, starting with the second round.” The canceled presidential race last month plunged the European Union and NATO member country into turmoil and followed other controversies including a recount of first-round votes. New dates have been set to rerun the vote with the first round scheduled for May 4. If no candidate obtains more than 50% of the ballot, a runoff would be held two weeks later on May 18. It is not yet clear whether Georgescu will be able to participate in the new election. Georgescu has since challenged the court’s decision at a local appeals court and lodged a complaint at the European Court of Human Rights. The Constitutional Court’s published decision to annul the elections cited the illegal use of digital technologies including artificial intelligence, as well as the use of “undeclared sources” of funding. Georgescu had declared zero campaign spending. Many observers attributed Georgescu’s success to his TikTok account, which now has 7.2 million likes and 646,000 followers. Some experts suspected Georgescu’s online following was artificially inflated while Romania’s top security body alleged he was given preferential treatment by TikTok over other candidates. On Friday, … “Tens of thousands protest in Romania’s capital against annulled presidential race “ →

Rome — Italy’s justice minister has asked an appeals court to revoke the arrest of an Iranian citizen wanted by the U.S. over a drone attack in Jordan that killed three Americans a year ago.  Mohammad Abedini is scheduled to appear at a Milan court on Wednesday in connection with his bid for house arrest pending the extradition process to the U.S.  He was arrested on a U.S. warrant on Dec. 16, three days before Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was detained while on a reporting trip to Iran. Sala, who was believed held as a bargaining chip for Abedini’s release, returned home last week, giving rise to speculation about Abedini’s fate.  An official note released by the Justice Ministry on Sunday said that under Italy-U.S. extradition treaties, “only crimes that are punishable according to the laws of both sides can lead to extradition, a condition which, based on the state of documents, can’t be considered as existing.”  The ministry said that the potential charge against Abedini — criminal association for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a U.S. federal law — “did not correspond to any conduct recognized by Italian law as a crime.”  The U.S. Justice Department has accused Abedini of supplying the drone technology to Iran that was used in a January 2024 attack on a U.S. outpost in Jordan that killed three American troops.  Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni described a “diplomatic triangulation” with Iran and the United States as being key to securing Sala’s release, confirming for the first time that Washington’s interests in the case entered into the negotiations.  Sala’s release came after Meloni made a surprise trip to Florida to meet U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate. …

STOCKHOLM — Sweden will contribute up to three warships to a NATO effort to increase the alliance’s presence in the Baltic Sea as it tries to guard against sabotage of underwater infrastructure, the government said Sunday.  The Swedish military also will contribute an ASC 890 surveillance aircraft, the government said in a statement. And the country’s coast guard will contribute four ships to help monitor the Baltic, with a further seven vessels on standby.  Sweden became the Western military alliance’s 32nd member in March. It followed neighboring Finland into NATO after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The government said this will be the first time that Sweden as a NATO ally contributes armed forces to the alliance’s defense and deterrence.  The decision comes as a string of incidents in the Baltic has heightened concerns about possible Russian activities in the region.  The undersea cables and pipelines that crisscross the sea link Nordic, Baltic and central European countries, promote trade, energy security and, in some cases, reduce dependence on Russian energy resources.  Ten Baltic Sea cables have been damaged since 2023, affecting Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Germany and Lithuania. At least two incidents involved ships later accused of dragging their anchors.  Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said at an annual security conference Sunday that Sweden is not at war, but there is also no peace, Swedish news agency TT reported. …

KYIV — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on allies on Sunday to honor all promises to supply Ukraine with weapons, including those to counter Russian air attacks. Zelenskyy said that over the past week Russian forces had launched hundreds of strikes on Ukraine and nearly 700 aerial bombs and over 600 attack drones were used. Ukrainian air defenses downed 60 out of 94 drones launched by Russia overnight, the air force said on Sunday. It said that 34 drones were “lost,” in reference to Ukraine’s use of electronic warfare to redirect Russian drones. “Every week, the Russian war continues only because the Russian army retains its ability to terrorize Ukraine and exploit its superiority in the sky,” Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app. He called on Ukraine’s allies to fulfill agreements already made. “The decisions made at the NATO summit in Washington, as well as those adopted during the Ramstein meetings regarding air defenses for Ukraine, have still not been fully implemented,” Zelenskyy said. Ukraine’s leader this week said he had discussed with partners and the United States the possibility of granting Ukraine licenses to produce air defense systems and missiles.   …

ZAGREB, CROATIA — Croatia’s incumbent President Zoran Milanovic was the overwhelming favorite to win reelection as he faced a candidate from the ruling conservative party in a runoff presidential vote on Sunday. The left-leaning Milanovic comfortably won the first round of voting on December 29, leaving his main challenger, Dragan Primorac, a forensic scientist who had unsuccessfully run for presidency previously, and six other candidates far behind. The runoff between the top two contenders was necessary because Milanovic fell short of securing 50% of the vote by just 5,000 votes, while Primorac trailed far behind with 19%. The election comes as the European Union and NATO member country of 3.8 million people struggles with biting inflation, corruption scandals and a labor shortage. Milanovic, 58, is an outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He is the most popular politician in Croatia and is sometimes compared to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for his combative style of communication with political opponents. Milanovic served as prime minister in the past with a mixed record. He has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and the pair have long sparred with each other. Milanovic regularly accuses Plenkovic and his conservative Croatian Democratic Union party of systemic corruption, calling the premier a “serious threat to Croatia’s democracy.” Plenkovic has sought to portray Sunday’s vote as one about Croatia’s future in the EU and NATO. He has labelled Milanovic “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia’s international standing. Primorac echoed this position as he cast his ballot on Sunday. He said the presidential vote was “very important” and “about the future of Croatia, … about the future of our homeland, our citizens, and, really, the direction that it would go from here.” Political analyst Viseslav Raos said the increasingly outspoken Milanovic has no motive to “try to please someone or try to control himself.” “If there was no cooperation with the prime minister for the first five years (of his presidency), why would it be now?” he added. Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme military commander. Despite limited powers, many believe the presidential position is key for the political balance of power in a country mainly governed by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. During a TV debate ahead of … “Croatia’s President Milanovic overwhelming favorite to win reelection in runoff vote” →

KYIV, UKRAINE — For weeks, Ukrainian troops braced for an unfamiliar enemy: North Korean soldiers sent to bolster Moscow’s forces after Ukraine launched a lightning-fast incursion and seized territory in Russia’s Kursk region over the summer. Their arrival marked a new and alarming phase in the war. And while initially inexperienced on the battlefield, North Korean troops have adapted quickly — a development that could have far-reaching consequences as they gain combat knowledge in the war against Ukraine. Unlike the Russian troops Ukraine has been battling for nearly three years, Kyiv’s forces were uncertain about what to expect from this new adversary, drawn into the war after Moscow and Pyongyang signed an agreement pledging military assistance using “all means” if either were attacked. One Ukrainian soldier who has witnessed North Koreans in battle described them as disciplined and highly methodical, saying they were more professional than their Russian counterparts. The soldier spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the sensitive military issue. However, other soldiers, including Ukrainian special forces, have shared battlefield drone footage on the Telegram messaging app mocking their tactics as outdated. Nevertheless, there is consensus among Ukrainian soldiers, military intelligence and others monitoring developments on the ground: While Pyongyang’s troops lacked battlefield experience when they arrived, that has been changing quickly. With 1.2 million troops, North Korea’s military ranks among the largest standing armies globally. But its post-Korean War foreign engagements have been limited, leaving them inexperienced with modern warfare technologies like drones. “For the first time in decades, the North Korean army is gaining real military experience,” said Andrii Yusov, spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence agency. “This is a global challenge — not just for Ukraine and Europe, but for the entire world.” Identifying the presence of North Korean troops Despite Ukrainian, U.S. and South Korean assertions that Pyongyang has sent 10,000-12,000 troops to fight alongside Russia in the Kursk border region, Moscow has never publicly acknowledged the North Korean forces. While reports of their presence first emerged in October, Ukrainian troops only confirmed engagement on the ground in December. Analysts say that without the influx of North Korean troops, Russia would have struggled to pursue its strategy of overwhelming Ukraine by throwing large numbers of soldiers into the battle for Kursk. While Moscow’s counterattack in Kursk has inflicted thousands of Ukrainian casualties, Kyiv’s overstretched forces have managed … “North Korean troops in Ukraine gain battlefield experience, cementing alliance with Russia” →

MAMOUDZOU, FRANCE — Residents of the French territory of Mayotte braced Saturday for a storm expected to bring strong winds and heavy rain less than a month after the Indian Ocean archipelago was devastated by a deadly cyclone.  Mayotte was placed on a red weather alert from 1900 GMT on Saturday in anticipation of the passage of Cyclone Dikeledi to the south of the territory.  Authorities called for “extreme vigilance” following the devastation wrought by Cyclone Chido in mid-December.   Meteo-France predicted “significant rain and windy conditions,” saying that very heavy rain could cause flooding.  Residents were advised to seek shelter and stock up on food and water.  The storm hit the northeastern coast of Madagascar on Saturday evening around 1630 GMT and was heading straight for the tourist island of Nosy Be.   It is expected to pass to the south of Mayotte on Sunday morning, according to forecasts.  “Nothing is being left to chance,” Manuel Valls, France’s new overseas territories minister, told AFP, referring to forecasts of “heavy and continuous rain” and winds of up to 110 kilometers per hour (kph).  As it hit Madagascar, average winds were estimated at 130 kilometers per hour, with gusts up to 180 kph.  The most devastating cyclone to hit France’s poorest department in 90 years caused colossal damage, killing at least 39 people and injuring more than 5,600 in December.  “We need to be seriously prepared for the possibility of a close passage of the cyclone,” the Mayotte prefecture said on social media platform X.  Prefect Francois-Xavier Bieuville, the top Paris-appointed official on the territory, said Mayotte would be placed on a red weather alert from 1900 GMT on Saturday.   “I have decided to bring forward this red alert to 10 p.m. to allow everyone to take shelter, to confine themselves, to take care of the people close to you, your children, your families,” Bieuville said on television.  Messages in French and two regional languages were broadcast on radio and television to alert the population.  Bieuville told reporters Saturday that the cyclone was forecast to pass within 110 kilometers (70 miles) of the archipelago’s southern coast.   “We even have systems telling us 75 kilometers. So, we have something that is going to hit Mayotte very closely”, he said.  The storm intensified from a tropical storm to a tropical cyclone Saturday morning, but forecasters are not expecting it to further intensify.  … “Cyclone-ravaged Mayotte on red alert as it braces for new storm” →

RIESA, GERMANY — The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party set out a radical program Saturday at a party congress ahead of next month’s snap general election as thousands of protesters took to the streets to voice their opposition to the party.  Demonstrators shouting “No to Nazis” outside the venue in the eastern town of Riesa succeeded in delaying the start of the congress by around two hours.  Once it got underway just after 12 p.m. local time (1100 GMT) the party’s 600-odd delegates approved co-leader Alice Weidel as candidate for chancellor by acclamation ahead of the general election on February 23.  In a fiery speech to the hall afterward, Weidel condemned the protestors outside as “a left-wing mob” and “red-painted Nazis” before going on to present her “plan for the future” for Germany.  She said the first 100 days of a government containing the AfD would see the “total closing of Germany’s borders and the turning back anyone traveling without documents” as well as “large-scale repatriations.”  “I say to you quite honestly, if this must be called remigration, then let it be called remigration,” she said.  Turning to energy policy, Weidel advocated a return to nuclear energy and more coal power stations, as well as relaunching the Nord Stream pipelines for Russian gas.  In keeping with the AfD’s denial of climate science, Weidel also attacked efforts to promote renewable energy.  She branded wind turbines “windmills of shame” and promised to tear them all down.  The AfD is currently in second place in opinion polls, averaging 20%, although one survey Saturday eagerly seized on by the party gave them 22%.  The conservative CDU/CSU is leading at 31% while Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats are fighting it out for third place with their Green coalition partners on 15% and 14% respectively.  Weidel in her speech bashed the CDU/CSU, branding them a “party of cheats” and saying her goal was to overtake them.  The congress caps an eventful week for Weidel, who on Thursday was hosted by Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a key Donald Trump ally, for a wide-ranging livestream on his X social media platform.  Musk also boosted the livestream of Saturday’s congress by sharing it on his own X account, helping it gain a worldwide audience of more than 4 million as of the early evening.  The AfD has also been buoyed by events in Austria in recent … “German far-right outlines radical program as protesters rally” →

ISTANBUL — A delegation from one of Turkey’s biggest pro-Kurdish political parties met a leading figure of the Kurdish movement in prison Saturday, the latest step in a tentative process to end the country’s 40-year conflict, the party said.  Three senior figures from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) met the party’s former co-chairperson, Selahattin Demirtas, at Edirne prison near the Greek border.  The meeting with Demirtas — jailed in 2016 on terrorism charges that most observers, including the European Court of Human Rights, have labelled politically motivated — took place two weeks after DEM members met Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned head of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).  While the PKK has led an armed insurgency against the Turkish state since the 1980s, the DEM is the latest party representing left-leaning Kurdish nationalism. Both DEM and its predecessors have faced state measures largely condemned as repression, including the jailing of elected officials and the banning of parties.  In a statement released on social media after the meeting, Demirtas called on all sides to “focus on a common future where everyone, all of us, will win.”  Demirtas credited Ocalan with raising the chance that the PKK could lay down its arms. Ocalan has been jailed on Imrali island in the Sea of Marmara since 1999 for treason over his leadership of the PKK, considered a terrorist organization by Turkey and most Western states.  Demirtas led the DEM between 2014 and 2018, when it was known as the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and he is still widely admired. He said that despite “good intentions,” it was necessary for “concrete steps that inspire confidence … to be taken quickly.”  One of the DEM delegation, Ahmet Turk, said: “I believe that Turks need Kurds and Kurds need Turks. Our wish is for Turkey to come to a point where it can build democracy in the Middle East.”  The armed conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state, which started in August 1984 and has claimed tens of thousands of lives, has seen several failed attempts at peace.  Despite being imprisoned for a quarter of a century, Ocalan remains central to any chance of success due to his ongoing popularity among many of Turkey’s Kurds. In a statement released on December 29, he signaled his willingness to “contribute positively” to renewed efforts.  Meanwhile, in an address Saturday to ruling party supporters in Diyarbakir, the largest … “Turkey’s Kurdish leaders meet jailed politician; 2 sides inch toward peace” →

PARIS — France starts 2025 with a further drawdown of its military presence in its former African colonies, and fresh tensions ignited this week with controversial remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron. Chad, Senegal and now Ivory Coast have followed Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso in asking France to withdraw its troops from their soil. The reasons vary — from growing anti-French sentiment to calls for greater sovereignty and strengthening ties with other foreign powers. But the impact is the same. “There is a clear collapse of French policy in Africa,” said Thierry Vircoulon, a researcher at the French Institute for International Relations’ Africa Center. “The withdrawal of the French troops and basically the end of the French military presence in Africa is a symbol of that collapse.” French-African relations haven’t improved in recent days. On Monday, Macron suggested some Sahel countries had forgotten to thank French troops for spearheading a decadelong fight against Islamist insurgencies. That drew sharp criticism from leaders in Chad and Senegal. French authorities say Macron’s remarks were taken out of context. Jean-Pierre Maulny, deputy director of the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs think tank, said he believes France needs to be less focused on the immediate fallout and instead concentrate on longer-term ties with francophone African countries. France should think more about development and sharing the future of Africa’s security, he said, and less about adopting a big brother attitude. Macron’s government announced plans last year to reduce its military presence on the continent — where it also has troops in Gabon and Djibouti — and make it more responsive to countries’ demands. France has also expanded ties beyond francophone Africa. Its two biggest trading partners, for example, are Nigeria and South Africa. But analyst Vircoulon predicts France’s long-term influence in Africa will remain limited, at best. “There’s very little that the French government can do, and it’s playing in favor of Russia and other countries that are not Western,” he said. He said he believes France’s strategic priorities will shift to potential conflicts in Europe. …

MOSCOW — Ukraine launched drone attacks across several regions of Russia, striking two residential houses in the Tambov region and injuring at least three people, Russia said on Saturday. The regional head, Evgeny Pervyshov, said on the Telegram messaging app people were treated for injuries resulting from shattered windows as drones hit two houses in the town of Kotovsk, about 480 kilometers southeast of Moscow. He said the buildings were only slightly damaged, the inhabitants were offered temporary housing, and an evacuation was not required. “Three (people) had cuts from fragments of broken windows, another four complained of high blood pressure,” he said. Separately, Russia’s defense ministry said it intercepted and destroyed 85 Ukrainian drones overnight in several regions of the country, including 31 drones over the Black Sea, 16 each in the Voronezh and Krasnodar regions and 14 over the Azov Sea. Russia’s aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said airports in the cities of Kazan, Nizhnekamsk and Ulyanovsk in the Volga River regions temporarily suspended flights. A flight suspension in the city of Saratov was also later declared to ensure safety. Kyiv’s air force said in a statement early on Saturday that Russia launched 74 drones at Ukraine overnight, adding it had downed 47 of them, while 27 others disappeared from radars without reaching their targets. Both sides in the Ukraine conflict have turned cheap commercial drones into deadly weapons and also increased their production. Russian and Ukrainian soldiers alike have reported a visceral fear of drones, and both sides have used video footage of fatal drone strikes in their propaganda. On Friday, Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out a missile strike on a supermarket in the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.  …