By Francesco Guarascio BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union is pushing for a global deal aimed at preventing new pandemics that could include a ban on wildlife markets and incentives for countries to report new viruses or variants, an EU official told Reuters. International negotiators will meet for the first time on Wednesday to prepare talks …
By Natalia Zinets and Pavel Polityuk KYIV (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron did not try to deny Ukraine’s pro-Western aspirations and visited Kyiv this week offering opinions and not proposals, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told a briefing on Wednesday. Kuleba said Ukraine would not accept any ultimatums to defuse tensions with Russia. Macron …
By Johan Ahlander STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden scrapped almost all of its few pandemic restrictions on Wednesday and stopped most testing for COVID-19, even as the pressure on the healthcare systems remained high and some scientists begged for more patience in fighting the disease. Sweden’s government, which throughout the pandemic has opted against lockdowns in …
Sweden declare pandemic over, despite warnings from scientists Read More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The United Kingdom reported 68,214 new COVID-19 cases and 276 deaths in its daily official data on Wednesday, with the seven-day figure for both falling compared with the week before. In the last seven days, infection numbers were down 23% and deaths were down 16% on the week before. (Reporting by Kate …
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germans could learn a lesson from Denmark’s high COVID-19 vaccination rate, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday, calling on more Germans – particularly older people – to get vaccinated so the country can ease restrictions. “I’m impressed with the vaccination rate there. We can still learn a lesson,” Scholz told a joint …
On COVID vaccine: Scholz tells Germans ‘Be like the Danish’ Read More »
By Nandita Bose WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Kamala Harris will hold a series of in-person meetings with U.S. allies and partners at the Munich Security Conference next week seeking to deter Russian aggression in Ukraine, a trip that serves as a major diplomatic test of her vice presidency. A senior administration official said Harris will deliver …
By Kirstin Ridley LONDON (Reuters) -A former senior judge will lead a “forensic and robust” review into failings at the UK Serious Fraud Office during a high-profile bribery case, Britain’s Attorney General said on Wednesday, piling pressure on SFO director Lisa Osofsky. Attorney General Suella Braverman has appointed former Director of Public Prosecutions and High …
UK launches ‘forensic’ probe of fraud agency after Unaoil failings Read More »
By Roshan Abraham and Kavya B (Reuters) – Global COVID-19 cases surpassed 400 million on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally, as the highly contagious Omicron variant dominates the outbreak, pushing health systems in several countries to the brink of capacity. The Omicron variant, which is dominating the surge around the world, accounts for almost …
COVID cases surpass 400 million as Omicron grips world Read More »
MADRID (Reuters) – Spain will increase the national minimum wage by 3.6% to 1,167 euros ($1,334) per month, Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz said on Wednesday, marking the fourth such hike since the left-wing coalition government came to power in 2019. The wage hike will be applied retroactively from Jan. 1, Diaz told reporters after agreeing …
Spain’s leftist government ups minimum monthly wage to 1,167 euros Read More »
BONN (Reuters) – A former banker was handed a 3-1/2 year jail sentence on Wednesday for his part in Germany’s biggest post-war fraud, a scam that involved scores of banks and investors engineering multi-billion-euro trades to make bogus tax claims. The banker, identified as Detlef M., in line with court reporting practices in Germany, is …
Former Warburg banker gets jail term in German fraud trial Read More »
