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France wants Brussels to help vulnerable countries stand up to Putin

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

The European Union should help countries stand up to Vladimir Putin by sending a clear message about their prospects for joining the EU, French Europe Minister Laurence Boone told POLITICO.The EU is preparing for a potential wave of expansion that could bring as many as eight new members, including Ukraine and six Balkan countries, into the fold in the years to come.Several of these countries are prime targets for Russian influence campaigns that aim to weaken support for the EU and keep them out of the bloc — which is why the EU needs to be “clear and balanced” about what’s required for them to join, Boone said. “There is a lot of disinformation and interference in these [candidate] countries. It’s an issue,” she told POLITICO on the phone from Paris. “Vladimir Putin, in addition to his territorial ambitions, also aims to weaken the European Union. That’s a factor we need to take into account and fight against.”She added th...

Shintaro Fujinami, Orioles’ seventh reliever, secures 5-4, 10-inning win over Angels: ‘He’s got electric stuff’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

Shintaro Fujinami hadn’t been trusted to pitch in high-leverage situations in more than two weeks.Orioles manager Brandon Hyde had no choice Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Angels.After using six arms out of his bullpen who blew two late leads, Hyde was forced to bring in the volatile reliever with a one-run advantage in the 10th inning, as All-Stars Félix Bautista and Yennier Cano were unavailable — the former due to injury, the latter because of workload.Fujinami delivered.The Japanese right-hander stranded the automatic runner, striking out Nolan Schanuel to end the game and hand Baltimore a 5-4 win.“Our man, Fuji. That’s the stuff we’re looking for right there,” Hyde said. “Hopefully that can get him going a little bit, because that was unbelievable pitching there in the 10th inning.”Fujinami, acquired from the Oakland Athletics in July, had the chance to record his second save of the season thanks to Jordan Westburg, wh...

The AP Interview: Harris says Trump can’t be spared accountability for Jan. 6

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that those responsible for the effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and the ensuing violence at the U.S Capitol must be held accountable — even if that means Donald Trump. “Let the evidence, the facts, take it where it may,” Harris said in an interview with The Associated Press in Jakarta, Indonesia, where she was attending a regional summit. Federal prosecutors have indicted Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, for his efforts to cling to power in 2020, The former president also has been charged in Georgia in a scheme to subvert the will of voters who elected Democrat Joe Biden instead of giving Trump a second term. “I spent the majority of my career as a prosecutor,” Harris, who served as California’s attorney general before moving to Washington as a U.S. senator. “I believe that people should be held accountable under the law. And when t...

Security tight in Nigeria as appeals court is to rule on president’s disputed election victory

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — An appeals court in Nigeria was to rule Wednesday on whether President Bola Tinubu’s election victory in February was legitimate — a highly anticipated decision that has put Africa’s most populous country on edge. The election results were challenged by the opposition, which claimed that Tinubu, who has now been in office for 100 days, was not qualified to run because he, among other things, allegedly did not have a required high school certificate or a college or university diploma.Security was tight in the Nigerian capital of Abuja, where five judges at the Court of Appeal were to hand down their ruling. Under the law, the tribunal is empowered to either uphold Tinubu’s election win, declare someone else the winner, annul the vote or order a new election. Its decision can be appealed before Nigeria’s Supreme Court.The opposition has hinted at possible protests if the court rules in favor of Tinubu. Analysts say Wednesday’s ruling...

Floods from Tropical Storm Haikui kill 2 and displace thousands in China’s Fujian province

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — At least two people have been killed and thousands forced to evacuate by floods brought by Tropical Storm Haikui in China’s southeastern coastal Fujian province, local authorities reported Wednesday. Schools were closed and flights suspended, while more than 30,000 people were moved to safety. Two firefighters died and one police officer is missing after floodwaters carried away a fire engine on a rescue mission, the Fuzhou fire department wrote on social media accounts.Haikui swept across Taiwan as a typhoon earlier in the week, injuring dozens and leaving thousands of people without power. It weakened to a tropical storm when it made landfall in Fujian, but continued to bring record-breaking levels of rainfall. The worst-affected area lies between the coast and inland mountains and is particularly prone to flooding, leading many over the decades to to migrate to other parts of China or move overseas. Authorities closed schools, suspended flights, stopped trains and ...

Peer review report on Malta now online

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

Eurostat is pleased to announce that another peer review report within the third round of European Statistical System (ESS) peer reviews — the peer review report on Malta — is now publicly available on Eurostat’s dedicated web page and on the web page of Malta’s National Statistics Office.The report was produced following the peer review visit to Malta by a dedicated team of four experts, including one from Eurostat. The visit took place from 10 to 14 October 2022 in a face-to-face format.The peer reviews of national statistical systems were conducted by external experts (from both inside and outside the ESS) and followed the same methodology. This included the completion of self-assessment questionnaires by several statistical authorities followed by a peer review visit. The results are a peer review report containing expert recommendations for improvement, and an action plan to address these recommendations that is developed by the national statistical institute of the reviewed co...

Bangladesh is not a banana republic.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

To the signatories to the recent Open Letter on Professor YunusThe Open Letter on Professor Yunus was an act that militated against ethics and against the norms of political behaviour - writes Syed Badrul Ahsan. When the 170-plus global personalities decided to send what they called an open letter to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and at the same time have it carried as an ad in newspapers, they did not quite seem to realise that such an act was a deliberate move aimed at humiliating not only Bangladesh’s leader but also the nation she happened to govern. The language employed in the letter is not the language in which a head of government is addressed.Professor YunusWe speak of the Nobel Laureates as well as others who recently thought it fit to speak up in defence of Professor Muhammad Yunus, who has of late been mired in legal complexities in Bangladesh. His travails apart, there is little question that Professor Yunus, who won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2006, is a wid...

New York takes on Los Angeles, looks for 5th straight home win

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

Los Angeles Sparks (16-22, 8-11 Western Conference) at New York Liberty (30-7, 16-3 Eastern Conference)New York; Thursday, 7 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: New York will try to keep its four-game home win streak intact when the Liberty face Los Angeles.The Liberty are 14-4 in home games. New York has a 3-0 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.The Sparks have gone 6-12 away from home. Los Angeles has a 7-9 record in games decided by at least 10 points.The two teams match up for the third time this season. The Liberty defeated the Sparks 76-69 in their last matchup on Aug. 2. Courtney Vandersloot led the Liberty with 23 points, and Nneka Ogwumike led the Sparks with 20 points.TOP PERFORMERS: Vandersloot is averaging 10.5 points and 8.1 assists for the Liberty. Breanna Stewart is averaging 23.3 points over the last 10 games for New York.Jordin Canada is averaging 13.4 points, six assists and 2.2 steals for the Sparks. Ogwumike is averaging 13.2 points and 6.6 rebounds while shooting 49.5...

UK to label Wagner a terrorist organization

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

The U.K. government will categorize Wagner Group as a terrorist organization, under a draft order due before parliament on Wednesday.The proscription order from the U.K. Home Office will make it a criminal offense to be a member of or to support the state-backed Russian mercenary group, according to a statement from the government department. It will also be an offense to use the group’s logo.The move will allow the U.K. to seize Wagner assets as “terrorist property.” Breaching the order could lead to 14 years in prison or a fine of up to £5,000, the Home Office said.Home Secretary Suella Braverman said Wagner is a “violent and destructive organization which has acted as a military tool of Vladimir Putin’s Russia overseas.”“They are terrorists, plain and simple — and this proscription order makes that clear in U.K. law,” she said, adding that Wagner’s operations are a “threat to global security.”The Russian mercenary group was founded in 2014 by Yevgeny Prigo...

Blinken visits Kyiv in show of support for Ukraine’s efforts to push out Russia’s forces

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:01:31 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Kyiv on an unannounced visit Wednesday, hours after Russia launched its first missile attack in a week against the Ukrainian capital.Blinken’s trip aimed to assess Ukraine’s 3-month-old counteroffensive and signal continued U.S. support for Kyiv’s efforts to drive out the Kremlin’s forces after 19 months of war amid concerns among some Western allies over the pace of progress, according to U.S. officials.After arriving in Kyiv, Blinken laid a wreath at the Berkovetske cemetery to commemorate members of the Ukrainian armed forces who lost their lives defending the country.He is expected to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to discuss the ongoing counteroffensive and reconstruction efforts.Those Washington officials said possible alternative export routes for Ukrainian grain will also be discussed following Russia’s exit from the Black Sea Gra...