Category: European Union

Azerbaijan and Turkey are stepping up efforts to secure a land corridor between their countries through Armenia. Until now, Iran, a key ally of Armenia, has backed Yerevan’s opposition to what is known as the Zangezur corridor. With Iran weakened in the region, Ankara and Baku see an opportunity to secure a key strategic goal. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

Brussels, Belgium — The EU promised Thursday an “action plan” to help the bloc’s beleaguered auto sector, as it held talks with industry leaders who have sounded the alarm over emissions fines and Chinese competition.  The European Union is under pressure to help a sector that employs 13 million people and accounts for about seven percent of the bloc’s GDP, as it seeks to revamp the continent’s lagging competitiveness.  “The European automotive industry is at a pivotal moment, and we acknowledge the challenges it faces. That is why we are acting swiftly to address them,” EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said, promising an “action plan” by early March.   Chaired by the European Commission president, the so-called “strategic dialogue” brought together carmakers, suppliers, civil society groups and trade unions.  Representatives of 22 industry “players” including Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes and Renault, were in attendance, the commission said.  The get-together comes as the commission embarks on a pro-business shift, with firms complaining its focus on climate and business ethics has resulted in excessive regulations.  On Wednesday, it unveiled a blueprint to revamp the bloc’s economic model, amid worries that low productivity, high energy prices, weak investments and other ills are leaving the EU behind the United States and China.  The car industry has been plunged into crisis by high manufacturing costs, a stuttering switch to electric vehicles (EV) and increased competition from China.  Announcements of possible job cuts have multiplied. Volkswagen plans to axe 35,000 positions across its German locations by 2030.  Emissions fines  Carmakers have been calling for “flexibility” on the steep emission fines they could face in 2025 — something the bloc’s new growth blueprint said should be in the cards.  “Penalizing immediately the industry, financially, is not a good idea, because the industry is in trouble and… has to restructure itself, which will cost a lot of money,” Patrick Koller, CEO of French parts producer Forvia, said ahead of the meeting.  “When you look back, we have heavy industries which disappeared from Europe completely, because of lack of competitiveness.”   To combat climate change, the EU introduced a set of emission-reduction targets that should lead to the sale of fossil-fuel-burning cars, being phased out by 2035.  About 16 percent of the planet-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) gas released into the atmosphere in Europe comes from cars’ exhaust pipes, the EU says.  As of this year, carmakers have to lower the … “EU vows ‘action plan’ for beleaguered auto sector” →

GENEVA — The U.N. human rights chief appealed on Thursday for $500 million in funding for 2025 to support its work, such as investigating human rights abuses around the world from Syria to Sudan, warning that lives hang in the balance. The U.N. human rights office has been grappling with chronic funding shortages that some worry could be exacerbated by cuts to U.S. foreign aid by President Donald Trump. The annual appeal is for funds beyond the allocated U.N. funds from member states’ fees, which make up just a fraction of the office’s needs. “In 2025, we expect no let-up in major challenges to human rights,” High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk told member states in a speech at the U.N. in Geneva. “I am very concerned that if we do not reach our funding targets in 2025, we will leave people … to struggle and possibly fail, without adequate support,” he said. He said any shortfall would mean more people remain in illegal detention; that governments are allowed to continue with discriminatory policies; violations may go undocumented; and human rights defenders could lose protection. “In short, lives are at stake,” Turk said. The human rights office gets about 5% of the regular U.N. budget, but the majority of its funding comes voluntarily in response to its annual appeal announced on Thursday. Western states give the most, with the United States donating $35 million last year or about 15% of the total received in 2024, followed by the European Commission, U.N. data showed. Still, the office received only about half of the $500 million it sought last year.   …

As authorities investigate the fourth Baltic Sea cable-cutting incident in recent months, European leaders have expressed concern about the frequency of attacks involving civilian vessels and critical civilian infrastructure. The Vezhen, a Bulgarian-owned vessel, was detained this week in the Baltic Sea, suspected of dragging its anchor across the seafloor, severing a data cable between Sweden and Latvia. Aleksander Kalchev, the CEO of the company that owns the Vezhen, denied that the damage was intentional. Nevertheless, Swedish security services have boarded the vessel for further investigation. Latvian Minister of Defense Andris Spruds, in a written response to VOA on Wednesday, confirmed that Latvia is working closely with Sweden and NATO to address the incident. “Latvia’s Naval Forces’ diving team has conducted an inspection at the damage site and collected evidence in cooperation with Swedish Coast Guard vessels,” Spruds told VOA. He emphasized that Latvia would deploy new technologies and continue working closely with NATO allies to enhance the protection of critical sea infrastructure. “These sabotage actions will not be tolerated, and we will continue to enforce bold actions within the rule of law,” Spruds said. Growing pattern of attacks Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, whose country launched a sabotage investigation into damage to the Estlink 2 undersea power cable connecting Finland and Estonia on Dec. 25, has emphasized the urgency of the situation. “This cannot continue,” he told Finnish Lannen Media this week. He called for stronger coordination within the European Union to prevent further attacks. “We must be on a common front in sanctions against Russia. That applies to every EU country,” he told a Finnish journalist. The government in Poland, another Baltic Sea country with more than 1,000 kilometers of coastline, has called for enhanced security measures. In an interview with VOA, Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said recent attacks on undersea cables — such as those between Latvia and Sweden, as well as Estonia and Finland — align with broader patterns of sabotage seen in the region. While investigations are ongoing, Poland views these incidents as deliberate actions, he said. “Even if there is no direct evidence today, sabotage and provocations are part of Russia’s standard arsenal. … We are at a point where we have to assume that this is a conscious, deliberate action,” he told VOA on Tuesday. Polish officials also emphasize the need for more coordinated maritime security measures. “We want such policing missions … “NATO, EU on high alert as undersea cable attacks escalate in Baltic” →

Ukrainian officials said Thursday a Russian drone attack killed at least four people in the northeastern city of Sumy. The regional state administration in Sumy said a drone hit a high-rise residential building, and that the attack also injured nine people. Ukraine’s military said it shot down 37 of the 81 drones that Russian forces launched overnight. Intercepts took place over the Cherkasy, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Khmelnytskyi, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Poltava, Odesa, Sumy and Zhytomyr regions, the military said. Odesa Governor Oleh Kiper said on Telegram that falling drone debris damaged two residential buildings, a grain warehouse and a hospital. Officials in Zhytomyr said drone fragments damaged six houses. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday it shot down three Ukrainian drones overnight in Belgorod and another two drones in Bryansk. US aid Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday he has received an initial report on “critical programs” previously funded by American support that are now suspended. U.S. President Donald Trump has suspended funding of many foreign programs to conduct a 90-day audit of foreign aid. Zelenskyy said the key areas that have been affected by the frozen funds are the energy sector, veteran projects and border crossings. Ukrainian officials have been instructed to continue their own audit of areas affected by the frozen funds, Zelenskyy said. Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.  …

The Russian lawmaker attributed to Trump a quote from a deepfake video created by Ukrainian bloggers and shared on the Telegram messaging platform. …

Russian disinformation narratives about illicit organ harvesting and biological experiments in Ukraine have no basis in fact. Russia intentionally distorts Ukrainian law intended to support vital medical procedures. …

Nuuk, Greenland — The road south from Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, runs out at the tip of a blizzard-scoured peninsula stretching into the Labrador Sea. Icebergs drift beyond the sea ice toward the open ocean, carved off the glacier some 100 kilometers away at the head of the Nuup Kangerlua fjord. Locals call this spot “the edge of the world.” For local Inuit artist and researcher Vivi Vold, it is a place of spiritual power, somewhere she comes to connect with nature – intrinsic to her Greenlandic identity.  “It reminds me that I am Inuk, that I am Greenlandic… when I am in doubt and want to reconnect with myself and my Greenlandic identity, I find solace in nature,” Vold told VOA. In her work, Vold researches Inuit “ways of knowing” and how they differ from Western concepts. “I sense that there is more pride now than earlier. The pride has always been there, but it seems like now there is more acceptance of it. Everything I do as a researcher is about the land and the nature; hunting, the climate, and the way we think,” she said. Greenlandic pride A resurgence in indigenous pride can be felt across Greenlandic society. The eyes of the world are on this Arctic island, thanks largely to U.S. President Donald Trump.   In Greenlandic politics and media, in the pubs and coffee bars, and on social media, the conversation is about the island’s future. There is excitement – but also trepidation. President Trump has repeatedly said that America needs to take control of Greenland from Denmark for, in his words, “international security.” “I do believe Greenland, we’ll get, because it really has to do with freedom of the world… And you know what, the people don’t like the way they’ve been treated by Denmark. They don’t like the way they’ve been treated by Denmark and they do like us,” Trump told reporters Saturday on Air Force One. Meanwhile, Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, attempted to build European solidarity in the face of the challenge posed by Trump’s comments Tuesday, visiting Berlin, Paris and NATO headquarters in Brussels in the space of a single day. Local media reported that France offered to send troops to Greenland in a show of unity with Copenhagen, but the offer was turned down. A poll released on Wednesday, commissioned by the Danish Berlingske newspaper and the Sermitsiaq newspaper in Greenland, … “Trump’s push for Greenland shakes up Arctic island’s politics” →

BEIJING — Lunar New Year festivals and prayers marked the start of the Year of the Snake around Asia and farther afield on Wednesday — including in Moscow. Hundreds of people lined up in the hours before midnight at the Wong Tai Sin Taoist temple in Hong Kong in a bid to be among the first to put incense sticks in the stands in front of the temple’s main hall. “I wish my family will be blessed. I hope my business will run well. I pray for my country and wish people peace. I hope this coming year is a better year,” said Ming So, who visits the temple annually on the eve of the Lunar New Year. The holiday — known as the Spring Festival in China, Tet in Vietnam and Seollal in Korea — is a major festival celebrated by diaspora communities around the world. The snake, one of 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, follows the just-ended Year of the Dragon. The pop-pop-pop of firecrackers greeted the new year outside Guan Di temple in Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, followed by lion dances to the rhythmic beat of drums and small cymbals. Ethnic Chinese holding incense sticks in front of them bowed several times inside the temple before sticking the incense into elaborate gold-colored pots, the smoke rising from the burning tips. Many Chinese who work in bigger cities return home during the eight-day national holiday in what is described as the world’s biggest annual movement of humanity. Beijing, China’s capital, has turned into a bit of a ghost town, with many shops closed and normally crowded roads and subways empty. Traditionally, Chinese have a family dinner at home on New Year’s Eve and visit “temple fairs” on the Lunar New Year to watch performances and buy snacks, toys and other trinkets from booths. Many Chinese take advantage of the extended holiday to travel in the country and abroad. Ctrip, an online booking agency that operates Trip.com, said the most popular overseas destinations this year are Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, the United States, South Korea, Macao and Vietnam. Russians cheered, waved and took smartphone photos of a colorful procession with drummers, costumed dancers and large dragon and snake figures held aloft that kicked off a 10-day Lunar New Year festival in Moscow on Tuesday night. Visitors shouted “Happy New Year” in Russian and expressed delight at … “Year of the Snake is underway with Lunar New Year festivities” →

BEIJING — Lunar New Year festivals and prayers marked the start of the Year of the Snake around Asia and farther afield on Wednesday — including in Moscow. Hundreds of people lined up in the hours before midnight at the Wong Tai Sin Taoist temple in Hong Kong in a bid to be among the first to put incense sticks in the stands in front of the temple’s main hall. “I wish my family will be blessed. I hope my business will run well. I pray for my country and wish people peace. I hope this coming year is a better year,” said Ming So, who visits the temple annually on the eve of the Lunar New Year. The holiday — known as the Spring Festival in China, Tet in Vietnam and Seollal in Korea — is a major festival celebrated by diaspora communities around the world. The snake, one of 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, follows the just-ended Year of the Dragon. The pop-pop-pop of firecrackers greeted the new year outside Guan Di temple in Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, followed by lion dances to the rhythmic beat of drums and small cymbals. Ethnic Chinese holding incense sticks in front of them bowed several times inside the temple before sticking the incense into elaborate gold-colored pots, the smoke rising from the burning tips. Many Chinese who work in bigger cities return home during the eight-day national holiday in what is described as the world’s biggest annual movement of humanity. Beijing, China’s capital, has turned into a bit of a ghost town, with many shops closed and normally crowded roads and subways emptied out. Traditionally, Chinese have a family dinner at home on New Year’s Eve and visit “temple fairs” on the Lunar New Year to watch performances and buy snacks, toys and other trinkets from booths. Many Chinese take advantage of the extended holiday to travel both in the country and abroad. Ctrip, an online booking agency that operates Trip.com, said the most popular overseas destinations this year are Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, the United States, South Korea, Macao and Vietnam. Russians cheered, waved and took smartphone photos of a colorful procession with drummers, costumed dancers and large dragon and snake figures held aloft that kicked off a 10-day Lunar New Year festival in Moscow on Tuesday night. The Chinese and Russian governments have deepened ties since … “Year of the Snake underway with Lunar New Year festivities” →

MOSCOW — The first Russian official delegation to visit Syria since the toppling of long-term Moscow ally Bashar al-Assad has arrived in Damascus, Russian news agencies reported on Tuesday. The visit comes with Moscow keen to secure the fate of two military bases there and after Russian President Vladimir Putin denied that Moscow had suffered a strategic “defeat” in the Middle East following the fall of Assad. The Russian delegation due to meet the new leadership of the war-ravaged country included deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov, who is also Putin’s special envoy on the Middle East and Africa, as well as Alexander Lavrentyev, the president’s special envoy on Syria, the RIA Novosti agency reported. It said it was “the first visit by Russian officials to Damascus” since Assad fled in December in the face of a lightning rebel advance across the country. Moscow was one of Assad’s key backers, intervening in Syria’s civil war in 2015 in his favor. He and his family fled to Russia after his ouster by Turkish-backed rebels formerly affiliated with Al-Qaida. Russia is now seeking to secure the fate of its naval base in Tartus and its air base at Khmeimim – both on Syria’s Mediterranean coast and Moscow’s only military outposts outside the former Soviet Union – with the new Syrian authorities. A report by RT Arabic, a Russian state-controlled channel, said the delegation is set to meet Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and other officials. Russia’s Bogdanov was a diplomat in Syria in the 1980s and 1990s and speaks Arabic, according to the foreign ministry website. Lavrentyev took part in previous negotiations with Assad. Sharaa leads an Islamist group – Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) – that is banned in Russia as a “terrorist” organization. The organization is rooted in Al-Qaida’s Syria branch but has more recently adopted a more moderate tone. RT Arabic reported that Bogdanov described the visit as aimed at strengthening historic ties based on shared interests, and underlined Russia’s hopes for Syrian unity and independence. ‘Deep strategic interests’ Sharaa in December noted the “deep strategic interests between Russia and Syria” in an interview with the Al-Arabiya TV channel. “All Syria’s arms are of Russian origin, and many power plants are managed by Russian experts… We do not want Russia to leave Syria in the way that some wish,” Sharaa added. Ukrainian diplomats visited Syria’s new rulers in … “Russian diplomats make first Syria visit since Assad’s fall” →

Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has ordered government officials to report on the U.S. support programs whose funds are “currently suspended” under U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. “These are humanitarian programs,” Zelenskyy said in his daily address Tuesday.  Nearly all of them were not channeled through Ukrainian government, he said. Instead, went “directly through our communities, through various organizations.”  “There are many projects. We will determine which ones are critical and need immediate solutions,” he said. “We can provide part of this funding through our state finances.”  Zelenskyy said the priorities will be “those that primarily concern Ukrainian children, our veterans and programs to protect our infrastructure.” On his first day back in office, Trump placed a 90-day freeze on foreign aid while the U.S. reviews whether the aid is aligned with Trump’s America First agenda. Also on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview on state television that Moscow would hold peace talks with Kyiv, but he said he would not speak to Zelenskyy, calling him and illegitimate leader. “Negotiations can be held with anyone,” the Russian president said. “But due to [Zelenskyy’s] illegitimacy, he has no right to sign anything.” In return, the Ukrainian president said, “Putin once again confirmed that he is afraid of negotiations, afraid of strong leaders, and does everything possible to prolong the war,” he wrote on X. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, national and local elections were banned under a martial law act passed by Ukraine. A presidential election would have occurred in March 2024, and Zelenskyy’s term would have ended in May 2024.    Critics are at odds about whether the Ukrainian constitution provides for an extension of the president’s term in office under martial law. Some say it provides for the option, while others believe it does not.  Some information for this report is provided by The Associated Press. …

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that America needs to take control of Greenland from Denmark for, in his words, “international security.” But as Henry Ridgwell reports from the Arctic island, the global attention is driving a desire among many native Greenlanders to determine their own political future. …

U.S. President Donald Trump has promised repeatedly to bring an end to the war in Ukraine. But some Ukrainians are skeptical Trump can do anything to make President Vladimir Putin pull back his troops. The problem, as some analysts see it, is that the demands of Ukraine and Russia cannot be reconciled. Lesia Bakalets report from Kyiv. Camera: Vladyslav Smilianets …

Russian disinformation narratives about illicit organ harvesting and biological experiments in Ukraine have no basis in fact. Russia intentionally distorts Ukrainian law intended to support vital medical procedures.    …

TIRANA, ALBANIA — An Italian navy ship carrying 49 migrants picked up in international waters arrived in Albania on Tuesday, amid a new attempt by Italy to push ahead with a legally contested plan to relocate migrants to the neighboring country. The navy ship Cassiopea with the migrants reached the Albanian port of Shengjin early on Tuesday, according to a Reuters witness. They will be identified at a facility there and then moved to a detention center some 20 kilometer away. The navy did not provide details on the migrants. The Italian government of Giorgia Meloni has built two reception centers in Albania, the first such deal by a European Union nation to divert migrants to a non-EU country in a bid to limit sea arrivals to its territory. But the facilities have been empty since November after judges in Rome questioned the validity of the relocation plan and ordered the first two batches of migrants previously detained in Albania to be moved back to Italy. The controversy surrounding the plan, which Meloni sees as a cornerstone of her government’s aim to curb immigration, revolves around a ruling by the European Court of Justice last year, which was not related to Italy. The Court said no nation of origin could be considered safe if even just a part of it was dangerous, undermining Rome’s idea of deporting migrants to Albania who hailed from a selected list of “safe” countries with a view to swiftly repatriate them. Ilaria Salis, a European Parliament deputy from a left-wing Italian party, on Monday criticized the Italian government for forcibly transferring “innocent people fleeing war and misery” despite violations of international law and human rights. The European court is set to review Italy’s plan in the coming weeks and clarify whether it is in compliance with EU law. …

BELGRADE — Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic on Tuesday announced his resignation, becoming the highest ranking official to leave since anti-corruption protests spread across the country.  Belgrade has seen daily anti-government protests since a roof collapsed in November at a railway station in Novi Sad, Serbia’s second-largest city, killing 15 people.  Protesters including students, teachers and other workers have turned out in their thousands, blaming the disaster on corruption within the government of President Aleksandar Vucic.  “I opted for this step in order to reduce tensions,” Vucevic told a news conference on Tuesday, announcing his intention to resign. He said the mayor of Novi Sad will also resign.  “With this we have met all demands of the most radical protestors.”  Vucevic has been the head of the ruling center-right Serbia Progressive Party since 2023.  …

Russian drone attacks overnight hit multiple Ukrainian regions and injured at least six people, officials said Tuesday. In the Odesa region in southern Ukraine, Governor Oleh Kiper said Russian forces attacked overnight with drones and missiles, injuring at least four people. Debris from drones destroyed by Ukrainian air defenses damaged four apartment buildings and five houses, as well as a grain warehouse, Kiper said on Telegram. Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram that falling drone debris injured at least two people, while destroying several homes and damaging at least five others. Officials in Chernihiv said Russian drone attacks damaged houses and outbuildings, but did not hurt anyone. Mykolaiv Governor Vitaliy Kim said air defenses destroyed two drones over his region, while officials in Sumy reported the military shot down four drones. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday it shot down five Ukrainian drones over the Smolensk region. Smolensk Governor Vasily Anokhin said on Telegram there were no reports of damage or casualties. Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said Russian air defenses shot down one Ukrainian drone over his region, with no damage reported. Some information for this story was provided by Reuters.   …

State Department — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with his British counterpart, Foreign Secretary David Lammy, on Monday to discuss a range of pressing global issues and joint initiatives aimed at promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific that is secure and stable. “They affirmed the depth of the U.S.-UK Special Relationship and the crucial nature of our partnership in addressing issues like the conflict in the Middle East, Russia’s war against Ukraine, and China’s malign influence,” State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement. The U.K. government said that Lammy and Rubio look forward to meeting in person soon. “They both welcomed the opportunity for the UK and the US to work together in alignment to address shared challenges including the situation in the Middle East, Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine, the challenges posed by China and the need for Indo-Pacific security,” the British statement read. The call between Rubio and Lammy came amid a report by The Guardian that China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, is expected to visit Britain next month for the first U.K.-China strategic dialogue since 2018. In Beijing, Chinese officials did not confirm Wang’s plans to visit the U.K. but noted what they described as “sound and steady growth” in relations between the two countries. “China and the U.K. are both permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and major economies in the world,” Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, stated during a briefing on Monday. She added it is in the common interest of the two countries to enhance strategic communication and deepen political mutual trust. Wang is expected to attend the Munich Security Conference between Feb. 14 and 16, making it likely that his visit to the U.K. will take place either before or after the event. In the past, U.S. Secretaries of State have typically attended the high-profile annual gathering at the Munich Security Conference. The State Department has not responded to VOA’s inquiry about whether Rubio plans to hold talks with Wang during the conference. Last week, the State Department outlined U.S. policy toward China under President Donald Trump’s administration.  “Strategic competition is the frame through which the United States views its relationship with the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The United States will address its relationship with the PRC from a position of strength in which we work closely with our allies and partners to defend our … “Rubio and Lammy reaffirm US-UK partnership on Indo-Pacific security, China challenges” →

Around 50 survivors joined world leaders Monday at the site of the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz in Poland, on the 80th anniversary of its liberation in World War II – marked around the world as International Holocaust Memorial Day. Henry Ridgwell reports. …

Belarus’ opposition activists and Western officials have denounced the reelection of Alexander Lukashenko to serve his seventh five-year presidential term.    The 70-year-old leader began his iron-fisted rule in 1994.   He received nearly 87% of the ballots cast in Sunday’s election in the Eastern European country, according to the Belarus Central Election Commission.   His victory was not surprising as he has imprisoned many of his opponents, while others have fled abroad to live in exile.   Opposition leader-in-exile Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya labeled Lukashenko’s successful reelection as “sheer nonsense.” Before Sunday’s vote, she had encouraged voters to cross out every candidate’s name on the ballot.    The four challengers in Sunday’s election had all praised Lukashenko’s leadership, according to The Associated Press.  The European Union, Britain, Australia and New Zealand issued a joint statement condemning “the sham presidential elections in Belarus and the country’s human rights violations under Lukashenko.”   Britain’s Foreign Office said Monday that it has sanctioned six Belarus citizens and three defense sector firms, after the Sunday polls in Belarus. The sanctioned individuals include the head of the Belarusian Central Election Commission and two prison chiefs.  “Following Lukashenko’s brutal crackdown in which critical voices within Belarus have been silenced, yesterday’s sham election failed to meet international standards and has been condemned by international partners,” the Foreign Office said. The Foreign Office also said that the sanctions were being placed in coordination with Canada.  British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in a statement, “The world has become well-accustomed to Lukashenko’s cynical pretense of democracy in Belarus, while in reality he brutally represses civil society and opposition voices to strengthen his grip on power.”    Lukashenko’s successful presidential bid in 2020 set off months of protests in which thousands of people were beaten and more than 65,000 were arrested. He was roundly condemned by the West, which imposed sanctions.     However, he survived the protests with the help of his close ally, Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom Lukashenko depends on for subsidies, as well as political support.    Putin called Lukashenko Monday to congratulate him on his “convincing victory.” Chinese President Xi Jinping also congratulated the Belarusian leader.   The Viasna Human Rights Center, an exiled Belarusian nongovernmental organization, said in a statement that Belarus has over 1,250 political prisoners in custody. Some information in this story was provided by The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. …

BELGRADE, SERBIA — Serbia’s striking university students on Monday launched a 24-hour blockade of a key traffic intersection in the capital, Belgrade, stepping up pressure on the populist authorities over a deadly canopy collapse in November that killed 15 people. Serbian farmers on tractors and thousands of citizens joined the blockade that followed weeks of protests demanding accountability of the deadly accident in the northern city of Novi Sad that critics have blamed on rampant government corruption. A campaign of street demonstrations has posed the biggest challenge in years to the populist government’s firm grip on power in Serbia. Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic, at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Milos Vucevic and Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic, later on Monday urged dialogue with the students, saying, “We need to lower the tensions and start talking to each other.” Students in the past have refused to meet with Vucic, saying the president is not entitled by the constitution to hold talks with them. “Any kind of a crisis poses a serious problem for our economy,” said Vucic. “Such a situation in society is not good for anyone.” Vucic has faced accusations of curbing democratic freedoms despite formally seeking European Union membership for Serbia. He has accused the students of working for unspecified foreign powers to oust the government. Several incidents have marked the street demonstrations in the past weeks, including drivers ramming into the crowds on two occasions, when two young women were injured. Traffic police on Monday secured the student blockade to help avoid any similar incidents. Protesting students set up tents at the protest site, which is a key artery for the city commuters and toward the main north-south motorway. Some students played volleyball, others sat down on blankets on the pavement or walked around on a warm day. The students also held a daily 15-minute commemoration silence at 11:52, the exact time when the canopy at a train station in Novi Sad crashed on Nov. 1. Many in Serbia believe the huge concrete canopy fell because of sloppy reconstruction work that resulted from corruption. Serbia’s prosecutors have filed charges against 13 people, including a government minister and several state officials. But the former construction minister, Goran Vesic, has been released from detention, fueling doubts over the investigation’s independence. The main railway station in Novi Sad was renovated twice in recent years as part of a wider infrastructure deal … “Serbian farmers join striking university students’ 24-hour traffic blockade in Belgrade” →

PARIS — European Union foreign ministers agreed Monday to continue sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, but to ease some sanctions against Syria following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad. Weeks of stalling by Hungary ended Monday, allowing the EU to renew sanctions against Russia for another six months. But in return, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban — considered close to Moscow — is pushing for Ukraine to reopen a gas pipeline to central Europe after letting a transit deal expire. The bloc also earmarked aid for Moldova’s energy needs, which Europe says are threatened by Russia. The 27-member bloc moved in the opposite direction when it came to Syria — agreeing to scale up humanitarian aid and ease some sanctions, now that the country is under new leadership. “This could give a boost to the Syrian economy and help the country get back on its feet,” said Kaja Kallas, EU’s foreign policy chief. Syria’s foreign minister, Asaad al-Shibani, has called the EU’s move a “positive step.” European foreign ministers also discussed a raft of other thorny issues, from the Gaza ceasefire to Iran and the conflict in eastern Congo. Another key topic: relations with the new Trump administration. “As the United States shifts to [a] more transactional approach, Europe needs to close ranks. We are stronger when we are united — that was a view that everybody shared,” Kallas said. She described Washington as Europe’s closest ally, but tensions have surfaced over trade, military spending and Greenland, after President Donald Trump indicated he wanted to acquire the territory. “We are not negotiating on Greenland,” Kallas said. “Of course, we are supporting our member state, Denmark, and its autonomous region, Greenland.” Kallas also noted the many ways the EU and U.S. are interlinked. But she said Europe needs to take into account its own strengths, in discussions with partners as well as with adversaries. …

WASHINGTON — On Jan. 22, Donald Trump — just two days after being inaugurated for his second term as U.S. president — again called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the “ridiculous” war with Ukraine, but this time he added a threat. “If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social. The following day, Trump told reporters that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had told him he’s ready to negotiate an end to the war. In an interview with Fox News aired that same day, Trump said Zelenskyy is “no angel” and “shouldn’t have allowed this war to happen.” Does the new U.S. administration have sufficient economic leverage over Russia to force it to make peace, or at least talk about peace? According to Konstantin Sonin, John Dewey distinguished service professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and former vice rector of Moscow’s Higher School of Economics, the U.S. has economic leverage, but some of its levers are clearly weaker than others. “Russia’s trade with the U.S. is very small — less than $3 billion a year,” he told Danila Galperovich of VOA’s Russian Service. “Accordingly, even if any opportunity for U.S. companies to trade with Russia is completely closed, the damage to Russia will be small. There is an opportunity to strengthen secondary sanctions — that is, additional pressure, first of all, on China, on India, on other countries, so that they more strictly comply with the primary sanctions. “There is also an opportunity to continue what [former U.S. President Joe] Biden did with sanctions against the Russian shadow tanker fleet,” Sonin added, referring to vessels that Russia uses to sell oil and evade Western sanctions. “This requires great international cooperation, but, in principle, it can be done,” said Sonin. Economist Vladislav Inozemtsev, a special adviser to the Russian Media Studies Project at MEMRI, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, and director of the Moscow-based Center for Post-Industrial Studies, also stressed the significance of secondary sanctions on countries that do business with Russia. “Trump can somehow influence other countries so that they do not buy Russian products,” Inozemtsev told VOA. “For example, let’s say he can … “Trump’s sanctions could force Russia’s Putin to negotiating table, some experts say” →

RENNES, FRANCE — Residents in western France used boats to escape their flooded homes Monday as rivers and waterways broke their banks after successive storms battered Normandy and Brittany. The national weather service had issued flood and wind warnings as Storm Herminia hit Spain, France on parts of the U.K. Normandy and Brittany were already waterlogged after the passage of last week’s Storm Éowyn — which left two people dead from fallen trees and more than 1 million people without electricity in Ireland and Britain. Storm Herminia caused road closures in some areas of France. About 400 people were evacuated from homes in and around the city of Rennes, at the heart of the hardest-hit region. The mayor called it the city’s worst flooding in more than 40 years and said in a statement that the waters weren’t expected to start receding until Wednesday. A 73-year-old British sailor was reported missing off the Atlantic coast near Bordeaux over the weekend, according to the regional maritime authority. France’s weather service issued further flood and wind warnings for Tuesday for all regions on the western coast, from Brittany down to the Spanish border. …

Part of a U.S. military aid package to Ukraine in April 2022, the M113 armored personnel carrier has proved vital in conducting assault operations and providing protection for Ukrainian infantry. And many of these vehicles are still up and running nearly three years later. Anna Kosstutschenko has the story. Camera: Pavel Suhodolskiy …