Admins

Finland will become the 31st member of the world’s biggest military alliance on Tuesday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says, prompting a warning from Russia that it would bolster its defences in response. “This is a historic week,” Stoltenberg told reporters on Monday on the eve of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels. … Read moreFinland to join NATO on Tuesday, military alliance’s chief says

On April 10, Northern Ireland marks the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, which largely ended three decades of conflict in the British-ruled province. Following are some key developments in the history of the province and the peace process: 1921 – Ireland is partitioned, with the southern 26 counties becoming the … Read moreTimeline: Long road to Northern Ireland’s Good Friday Agreement

Last year, a severe drought hit much of Europe, with some scientists claiming it was the worst in 500 years. In France, a state of emergency was declared in five northern provinces; in Spain, water reservoirs dropped to 36 percent of capacity; in Italy, the level of the country’s largest river Po was six times lower than normal. … Read moreEastern Europe must not lag behind on the green transition

President Joe Biden has toured the wreckage of a major storm that hit the state of Mississippi last week as large swathes of the United States braced for more extreme weather, including tornadoes and severe thunderstorms. Speaking from the hard-hit Mississippi community of Rolling Fork, Biden said on Friday that the federal government would cover … Read moreBiden tours Mississippi tornado wreckage as more storms threaten US

Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, heads to the polls on Sunday to elect a new government as it prepares to join NATO. On Thursday, Turkey ratified the Nordic nation’s membership – the last of the alliance’s 30 members to do so. Will Prime Minister Sanna Marin’s Social Democratic Party, which started the … Read moreFinland, having cleared last NATO hurdle, heads to elections

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a landmark resolution asking the world’s top court to define the obligations of countries to combat climate change. Advisory opinions of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) “have tremendous importance and can have a long-standing impact on the international legal order,” UN chief Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday … Read moreUN votes to ask world court to rule on countries’ climate duties

King Charles III has spoken of the “enduring value” of the relationship between the United Kingdom and Germany during his first state visit abroad since ascending the throne last year. Charles and Camilla, the Queen consort, received a 21-gun salute after landing at Berlin’s government airport in the early afternoon on Wednesday, as two military … Read moreKing Charles visits Germany in first foreign visit as UK monarch

Pope Francis has been admitted to hospital with a respiratory infection after experiencing difficulty breathing in recent days, and will remain in the Rome hospital for several days of treatment, the Vatican said. “In the past days, Pope Francis had lamented some respiratory difficulties and this afternoon was brought to the Gemelli Hospital for a … Read morePope Francis admitted to hospital with respiratory infection

When Humza Yousaf became Scotland’s new leader this week, the world of British politics entered a new era of diversity. With Pakistani-origin Yousaf in charge at Holyrood and Rishi Sunak, whose ancestors hail from India, leading at Westminster, it could be said that the United Kingdom is blazing a new trail in post-colonial history. “The … Read more‘Empire strikes back’: Diversity at height of UK politics praised

Earlier this month, the European Union was expected to vote on a law banning the sale of combustion-engine cars by 2035. But the legislation, which had been months in the making, was blocked by the German government which had initially supported it. The about-face was yet another major disappointment for environmentalists coming from a government, … Read moreThe German Greens and the ills of green party politics