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EURACTIV with Reuters
Euro zone inflation dips below 2%, strengthening rate cut case
Est. 3minEuro zone inflation dipped below 2% for the first time since mid-2021 in September, reinforcing an already solid case for a European Central Bank rate cut this month as a three-year battle to tame runaway price growth nears its end.
German police kill suspect in exchange of fire near Israeli consulate in Munich
Est. 2minGerman police shot dead a man in an exchange of fire near the Israeli consulate and a Nazi history museum in Munich on Thursday (5 September), state Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said.
Joyful ceremony kickstarts Paris 2024 Paralympics
Est. 3minFrench president Emmanuel Macron declared the Paralympic Games open on Wednesday (28 August) after a glorious ceremony in which competitors were celebrated by joyful volunteers and spectators on a sweet summer night.
West hits pause on fresh measures against Venezuela’s Maduro
Est. 5minMore than two weeks after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro claimed reelection victory, the US and other Western countries are showing little sign of swift tough action over what many of them have condemned as voting fraud.
Iran dismisses European calls for restraint amid fears of escalation with Israel
Est. 1minIran's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that calls for restraint regarding Israel from France, Germany and Britain "lack political logic and contradict principles of international law".
EU-Mercosur to meet in September signaling movement in trade talks
Est. 2minEuropean Union and South American negotiators will meet on 4-6 September in Brasilia in the first in-person talks since April, raising hopes an EU-Mercosur trade deal can be concluded this year, diplomats said.
EU governments green light €4.2 billion payout to Ukraine
Est. 2minEuropean Union governments approved on Tuesday (6 August) the first regular payment to Ukraine of €4.2 billion ($4.58 billion) of the €50 billion the EU has set aside as financial support for Kyiv.
Turkey blocks NATO-Israel cooperation over Gaza war, sources say
Est. 2minTurkey will continue to block NATO-Israeli cooperation, insisting Israel is violating NATO's core principles, said Turkish President Erdogan.
Suspect to face preliminary questioning after assault on Danish PM Frederiksen
Est. 2minDanish police said on Saturday (8 June) a 39-year-old man would appear in front of a judge for preliminary questioning in relation to an assault on the country's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in central Copenhagen late on Friday.
Germany likely to miss 2030 climate goal, government advisors say
Est. 4minGermany is likely to miss its 2030 greenhouse gas targets, government climate advisors said on Monday, contradicting the climate minister's prediction in March and calling for new policy measures.
Lithuanian president announces re-election
Est. 3min(Recasts with Nauseda calling victory)
By Andrius Sytas
VILNIUS, May 26 (Reuters) - Lithuanian Gitanas Nauseda announced his re-election in a presidential ballot on Sunday, following a campaign dominated by security concerns in the European Union and NATO member next door to Russia.
The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia's 2022 invasion. Like other countries in the region, it worries it could be Moscow's next target.
Ballots from nearly 90% of polling stations showed Nauseda, 60, winning roughly three quarters of the vote, followed by Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, 49, from the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party.
If confirmed by final results, Nauseda's backing in his bid for a second term will be highest in the country since it split from the Soviet Union in 1991.
A former senior economist with Swedish banking group SEB who is not affiliated with any party, Nauseda won the first round of the election on May 12 with 44% of the votes, short of the 50% he needed for an outright victory.
Just over half of Lithuanians believe a Russian attack is possible or even very likely, according to a ELTA/Baltijos Tyrimai poll conducted between February and March. Russia has regularly dismissed concerns that it might attack a NATO member.
Nauseda told jubilant supporters in the capital Vilnius that he will continue working on the country's defence capabilities.
"Lithuanian independence and freedom is like a fragile vessel which we need to cherish and keep from cracking," he said.
Both Nauseda and Simonyte support increasing defence spending to at least 3% of Lithuania's gross domestic product, from the 2.75% planned for this year.
But Nauseda, who is a social conservative, has clashed with Simonyte on other issues, including whether to give a legal recognition to same-sex civil partnerships, which Nauseda opposes.
He has said it would make such unions too similar to marriage, which Lithuania's constitution only allows between a man and a woman.
Simonyte, a former finance minister and a fiscal hawk, said on Thursday that if she won, "the direction for the country - pro-European, pro-Western - would not change".
"But I would like quicker progress, more openness and understanding, larger tolerance to people who are different from us", she said.
Lithuania's president has a semi-executive role, which includes heading the armed forces, chairing the supreme defence and national security policy body and representing the country at EU and NATO summits.
The president sets foreign and security policy in tandem with the government, can veto laws and has a say in the appointment of key officials such as judges, the chief prosecutor, the chief of defence and the head of the central bank. (Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Tomasz Janowski)
UK’s infected blood scandal could and should have been avoided, inquiry finds
Est. 4minAn infected blood scandal in Britain was no accident but the fault of doctors and a succession of governments that led to 3,000 deaths and thousands more contracting hepatitis or HIV, a public inquiry reported on Monday (20 May).
Polish farmers march against ‘green poison’ EU climate change rules
Est. 2minThousands of protesters marched through the streets of the Polish capital Warsaw on Friday to show their opposition to European Union environmental regulations that farmers say are driving them out of business.
Kremlin, in change of language, says Russia is ‘at war’ due to West’s role in Ukraine
Est. 5minRussia regards itself to be at war due to the West's intervention on Ukraine's side, the Kremlin said on Friday (22 March), shifting the language it uses to describe the conflict in an apparent move to prepare Russians for a longer and harder struggle.
Ireland’s Varadkar unexpectedly quits as PM
Est. 2minLeo Varadkar said on Wednesday he would step down as Ireland's prime minister and the leader of the governing Fine Gael party, in a surprise move which he said was for both personal and political reasons.
EU agrees on sanctions on Hamas, violent West Bank settlers
Est. 3minAfter weeks of disagreements, EU foreign ministers on Monday (18 March) agreed in principle to impose sanctions against Israeli settlers for attacking Palestinians in the West Bank and to add further sanctions on members of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas. The …
White House rejects Trump comments encouraging Russia to attack NATO states ‘not paying bills’
Est. 3minThe White House on Saturday (10 February) rejected comments made by former US President Donald Trump about not protecting NATO allies from a potential Russian invasion as "appalling and unhinged."
France drops plan to decrease farmers’ diesel discount but protests to continue
Est. 4minThe French government dropped plans to gradually reduce state subsidies on agricultural diesel but that seems not enough for angry farmers surrounding Paris and still threatening to converge on the capital in their tractors.
Russia admits developing ties with North Korea in ‘sensitive’ areas
Est. 2minRussia is developing its relations with North Korea in all areas, including "sensitive" ones, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday (17 January).
Spain proposes amendments to EU power market overhaul
Est. 2minSpain, which holds the presidency of the European Union until December, has proposed several amendments to help pass a key piece of legislation that would overhaul the bloc's electricity market, a document shows.
Swedish court blocks extradition of two Turks in ruling likely to complicate NATO bid
Est. 4minSweden's top court on Thursday (13 July) blocked the extradition of two Turks that Ankara says are part of a terrorist group, potentially complicating Stockholm's bid to join NATO just days after Turkey dropped objections to Sweden's membership.
EU Commission tables new measures to make freight transport greener
Est. 5minThe European Commission unveiled a package of laws on Tuesday (11 July) aimed at slashing the carbon footprint of the freight sector, cutting red tape in the transport of goods across borders, and cracking down on greenwashing.
NATO soldiers deploy around town halls in standoff with Serb protesters
Est. 3minNATO peacekeeping soldiers formed security cordons around three town halls in Kosovo on Monday to keep back Serbs protesting at ethnic Albanian mayors taking office in a Serb majority area after elections they boycotted.
Serbian president orders army closer to Kosovo border as protests start in north
Est. 4minSerbian President Aleksandar Vučić placed the country's army on full combat alert and ordered its units to move closer to the border with Kosovo on Friday (26 May), as tensions over newly sworn-in mayors continue to simmer.