BLOGONITY

ATHENS, GREECE — Earthquakes rattled Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini every few minutes through the night and into Wednesday as authorities bolstered their emergency plans in case the hundreds of temblors over the past few days are a harbinger of a larger quake to come.   A coast guard vessel and a military landing craft were in the wider area as a contingency should an evacuation be required, Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias said Wednesday during an emergency meeting with security officials, scientists and the prime minister in Athens.   “We are obliged to draw up scenarios for better and for worse regarding the prolonged seismic activity,” Kikilias said during the meeting, which was televised live.   Predicting earthquakes is not scientifically possible, and experts cannot yet determine definitively whether the seismic activity between the islands of Santorini and Amorgos could be a precursor to a significantly larger earthquake, or is part of an earthquake swarm that could continue shaking the area with small or moderate intensity quakes for weeks or months.   “I understand the fear of what it means at the moment to be on a Santorini that is constantly moving,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, as he called on residents to remain calm and follow authorities’ instructions.   Rescue crews with a sniffer dog and drones have been deployed on Santorini as a precaution since Sunday, while authorities have banned access to several coastal areas and ordered schools on several islands to shut for the week. Public events on Santorini have been banned, and local authorities were restricting access to clifftop areas that are among the biggest tourist draws to the island.   Thousands of residents and visitors have already left Santorini, frightened by the hundreds of earthquakes measuring between magnitude 3 and magnitude 5 that have struck the area since the weekend.   Ferry lines and commercial airlines have added ships and flights to their schedules this week to accommodate the increased demand. However, ferry services were disrupted on Wednesday due to rough weather.   The quakes, which all have epicenters beneath the seabed between Santorini and the Amorgos, have so far caused no injuries or major damage, although limited rockslides and cracks in some older buildings have been reported on Santorini. Greece lies in a highly seismically active part of the world and earthquakes are frequent. But it is extremely rare for any part of the country to experience such an intense barrage of … “Earthquakes keep rattling Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini every few minutes” →

BEIJING — China is willing to work with the European Union on boosting cooperation and responding to “global challenges,” its foreign ministry said on Wednesday, as the bloc faces potential U.S. tariffs on its shipments to the world’s largest economy. China attaches great importance to EU ties and hopes the bloc will become a reliable cooperation partner, said Lin Jian, spokesperson at the Chinese ministry. The EU’s trade chief said on Tuesday that the bloc wanted to engage swiftly with the United States over President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen forecast negotiations with Washington would be tough. As transatlantic ties come under strain with Trump’s tariff threats, China hawks within the EU such as von der Leyen are showing signs of willingness to rethink the relationship between Beijing and Brussels, a bond that had been tested by trade tensions and China’s ties with Russia. Speaking in Brussels on Tuesday, von der Leyen said the EU would keep “de-risking” its relationship with China but added that there was room to “find solutions” in their mutual interest and “find agreements” that could even expand trade and investment ties. She did not give details on what those agreements could be. In Davos, Switzerland, last month, von der Leyen also said both sides should find solutions of mutual interest. In October, the EU imposed double-digit tariffs on China-made electric vehicles after an anti-subsidy investigation, in addition to its standard car import duty of 10%. The move drew loud protests from Beijing, which in return, raised market entry barriers for certain EU products such as brandy. …

OREBRO, Sweden — Swedish police said on Wednesday there was no evidence of “ideological motives” behind a mass shooting at an adult education center on Tuesday, and warned of misinformation spread on social media about the Nordic country’s deadliest gun attack. At least 11 people died and many others were wounded in the shooting at the Risbergska school in Orebro, a town of over 100,000 people, where large numbers of police continued to cordon off the center and several schools located on its campus complex. A vigil with candles and flowers had been set up nearby. “We want to be clear that based on investigative and intelligence information at present, there is no information pointing to the culprit acting on ideological motives,” police said in a brief statement on its website. Police have said the motive for the crime was not immediately known, and that they believed the suspected perpetrator, who was among the dead and was not known previously to the police, acted alone. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday said the attack was the worst mass shooting in Swedish history, calling it a “painful day,” while King Carl XVI Gustav conveyed his condolences. Flags at official buildings in Orebro, some 200 km west of Stockholm, as well as at the Swedish parliament and the royal palace in the capital, were flying at half-mast as a sign of respect and mourning. “Our task is to take care of those attending the affected school, those who work there as well as inhabitants of Orebro, who are worried and sad,” Orebro Municipal Director Peter Larsson said in a statement. Many students in Sweden’s adult school system are immigrants seeking to improve their basic education and gain degrees to help them find jobs in the Nordic country while also learning Swedish. Police said in a statement it did not see any general threat against schools or pre-schools in the country, nor against adult education schools, including Swedish classes for immigrants. “We also at present don’t see any danger to the public, even if we understand that the incident raises concerns and many questions,” it said. Sweden has been struggling with a wave of shootings and bombings caused by an endemic gang crime problem that has seen the country of 10 million people record by far the highest per capita rate of gun violence in the EU in recent years. However, fatal attacks at … “Swedish police warn of online misinformation after mass school shooting” →

KYIV, UKRAINE — Russia launched a barrage of drones on Ukraine in an overnight attack on Friday, injuring four people and damaging a hospital and a grain warehouse in the southern Odesa region, officials said. Ukraine’s air defenses shot down 59 of 102 Russian drones, the air force said. It said that 37 drones were “lost,” referring to the use of electronic warfare to redirect them. Russian drones caused damage in the northeastern Sumy region, the Odesa region in the south and the central Cherkasy Region. Oleh Kiper, the Odesa regional governor, said that four civilians, including a doctor, were injured in drone attacks targeting the city of Chornomorsk. The strikes also partially disrupted electricity supplies in the city and damaged the city’s hospital, an administrative building, a grain warehouse, a residential house, and several trucks, he said on the Telegram app. Regional officials in the central Cherkasy region said that drone debris damaged an apartment building in the region. Meanwhile, an oil refinery in Russia’s southern Volgograd region caught fire after an overnight Ukrainian drone attack, but the blaze has now been put out, the regional governor said on Friday. Andrei Bocharov, the governor, said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app that Russian air defenses had repelled an attack on his region by eight drones. “As a result of falling debris from one of the drones, a fire broke out on the territory of an oil refinery, which was promptly extinguished. One injured refinery worker was hospitalized,” he said. Andriy Kovalenko, the head of Ukraine’s Centre for Countering Disinformation, said on Telegram that the Volgograd oil refinery, which he described as one of Russia’s largest, had been struck. SHOT, a Russian news outlet with contacts in the security services, said four Ukrainian drones had been destroyed over a second refinery in Yaroslavl, northeast of Moscow. Ukraine has carried out frequent air attacks on Russian refineries, oil depots and industrial sites to cripple key infrastructure underpinning Russia’s war effort. This week it claimed to have struck and set on fire a Lukoil refinery, Russia’s fourth largest, in the Nizhny Novgorod region, east of Moscow. Sources at Lukoil denied that the NORSI refinery was hit, and said production was not affected. Petrochemical company Sibur said there had been a drone strike and fire at its nearby plant. Russia is currently feeding more crude oil through its refineries in the hope … “Russian drones injure 4 in Ukraine’s south, Ukrainian officials say” →

white house — Arms control advocates are hoping U.S. President Donald Trump’s fresh words of support for denuclearization will lead to talks with Russia and China on arms reduction. U.S. negotiations with the Russians and Chinese on denuclearization and eventual agreements are “very possible,” according to Trump, who addressed the World Economic Forum a week ago in Davos, Switzerland. “Tremendous amounts of money are being spent on nuclear [weapons], and the destructive capability is something that we don’t even want to talk about because you don’t want to hear,” he said. “It’s too depressing.” Trump noted that in his first term, he discussed the topic with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We were talking about denuclearization of our two countries, and China would have come along,” according to Trump. “President Putin really liked the idea of cutting back on nuclear [armaments], and I think the rest of the world — we would have gotten them to follow.” Just months before leaving office, former U.S. President Joe Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the APEC summit in Peru where both agreed that decisions regarding the use of nuclear weapons should remain under human control. That consensus was seen as a positive step after the Chinese, four months previously, suspended nuclear arms control talks with Washington to protest American arms sales to Taiwan. The horror of nuclear attacks first became evident to many in the world through magazines in the West, which printed photographs of the radiation-burned survivors of the U.S. atomic attack on two Japanese cities in 1945 to end World War II. In subsequent years during the Cold War, U.S. government films captured the destructive force of test detonations in the Nevada desert, eventually prompting public demonstrations to “ban the bomb” and diplomacy to reduce or eliminate all nuclear weapons. A major breakthrough occurred in 1987 with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) between the United States and the Soviet Union. It entered into full force the following year. By 1991, nearly 2,700 missiles had been dismantled. That was the first time the two nuclear superpowers achieved a reduction of such weapons rather than just limiting their growth. Over the years, the Americans and the Russians lost their monopoly on nuclear weapons. Nine countries presently have nuclear arsenals, although Israel has never acknowledged possession of such weaponry. The United States and Russia each have more than 5,000 nuclear warheads — … “Trump support for denuclearization talks with Russia, China raises hopes ” →

Arms control advocates are hoping U.S. President Donald Trump’s fresh words of support for denuclearization will lead to talks with Russia and China about nuclear arms reduction. VOA’s chief national correspondent, Steve Herman, reports from the White House in Washington. …

Visiting Spain this week, NATO’s secretary-general called for members to boost military spending in the face of the threat from Russia. Spain spends the least on defense relative to the size of its economy. And as Henry Ridgwell reports, US President Donald Trump has singled out Madrid for failing to meet the NATO target. Camera: Alfonso Beato …

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned an early Thursday morning Russian drone strike that killed at least nine people as a “terrible tragedy.” The drone, which struck an apartment building in the city of Sumy in northeastern Ukraine, also injured 13 people, according to regional authorities. “This is a terrible tragedy, a terrible Russian crime. It is very important that the world does not stop putting pressure on Russia for this terror,” Zelenskyy said on Telegram. Police said the search-and-rescue operation had concluded after 19 hours. Three elderly couples were among those killed, and an 8-year-old child was among those wounded. The child’s mother was killed in the attack. “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin claims to be ready for negotiations, but this is what he actually does,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on social media. Russia launched 81 drones at Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian military said Thursday. The attacks damaged businesses and homes around the country, according to the military. In the southern region of Odesa, the attack damaged a grain warehouse and a hospital, according to the governor. Meanwhile, James Anderson, a British man who was captured while fighting on the Ukrainian side in Russia’s Kursk region, will face terrorism and mercenary charges, Russian state investigators said Thursday. Russia announced in November that it had captured Anderson. Also, the review and 90-day freeze on U.S. foreign aid means Ukrainian aid groups that rely on U.S. funding are being forced to cut services. Zelenskyy said U.S. military assistance to Ukraine was not affected by U.S. President Donald Trump’s freeze on foreign aid, but the Ukrainian president still expressed concern about the funding pause. Some information for this report came from Reuters and Agence France-Presse. …

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.  …