Month: September 2021

Belarus and Myanmar registered a significant decline in global internet freedom ratings following political turmoil in which authorities in the two countries arrested journalists and blocked access to the internet.     In its annual Freedom on the Net report, the global nonprofit Freedom House found digital rights had declined globally for the 11th consecutive …

Read more “Unrest in Myanmar, Belarus Triggers Dramatic Drop in Internet Rights”

After 16 years, Germany is preparing to bid farewell to Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is stepping down after elections scheduled for Sunday. As Henry Ridgwell reports from Berlin, Merkel was Germany’s first female chancellor and its first leader to have been raised in the former East Germany. Camera: Henry Ridgwell Produced by: Jon Spier    …

Read more “Goodbye Merkel: Germany’s ‘Crisis Chancellor’ To Step Down After 16 Years”

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday that it would take “time” and “actions” to repair ties with the U.S. in the wake of a submarine deal that undercut a French agreement to supply Australia with diesel subs.  Last week, the United States, United Kingdom and Australia …

Read more “French Foreign Minister to US: Repairing Ties Will Take ‘Time’ “

Jets of red hot lava shot into the sky on Spain’s La Palma on Thursday as a huge cloud of toxic ash drifted from the Cumbre Vieja volcano toward the mainland and jeopardized the island’s economically crucial banana crops.   Walls of lava, which turn black when exposed to the air, have advanced slowly westward …

Read more “Lava, Smoke, Ash Cover La Palma as Volcano Threatens Banana Crop”

Europe is being buffeted by unprecedented recovery-related energy price spikes, prompting rising alarm about whether families will be able to remain warm as the northern hemisphere’s winter approaches. Politicians are also anxious about the electoral repercussions and how spiking prices will fuel further inflation. The price jumps in natural gas are due largely to a …

Read more “Europe’s Governments Set to Spend Billions as Energy Crisis Deepens”

U.S. President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron have agreed to meet in person next month in Europe after a Wednesday phone call in which they sought to ease tensions over a high-profile submarine deal.  A White House statement after the phone call suggested regret over the handling of the deal, in which the …

Read more “Biden, Macron to Meet to Ease Rift Over Submarine Sales to Australia”

The top U.S. military officers from the United States and Russia held six hours of talks in Helsinki, Finland, on Wednesday, the first face-to-face meeting between them since 2019, as both nations adjust to the U.S. pullout and Taliban takeover in Afghanistan.  General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Valery …

Read more “US, Russian Military Chiefs Meet in Helsinki for Six Hours”

Lava continued to bear down Wednesday on La Palma, one of the Spanish Canary Islands, as residents fled following Sunday’s volcanic eruption.  More than 6,800 people have been evacuated from the island, one of the archipelago’s smaller and least populated, since Sunday.  The Associated Press reported that lava has engulfed and destroyed 320 buildings so …

Read more “Lava Continues to Bear Down on Spain’s Canary Island”

The United States and its European allies are navigating the diplomatic disturbance following an enhanced trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS (Australia, the UK, and the U.S.) that triggered what French officials described as a “crisis of trust” between Paris and Washington. Under the new security pact, Australia will receive at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, …

Read more “US, European Allies Navigate Australian Submarine Deal’s Wake”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met with U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol as part of his brief stop in Washington. Johnson met earlier in the day with U.S. senators.    Johson met Tuesday with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House as part of a brief stop in …

Read more “British PM Johnson Meets With US House Speaker Pelosi”

Gunmen opened fire Wednesday on a car carrying a senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, according to national police.  Zelenskiy, who is in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, said in a video statement there would be a “strong response” to what a senior official described as an assassination attempt on presidential advisor …

Read more “Gunmen Open Fire on Car of Ukrainian President’s Assistant”

U.N. agencies are calling for an investigation into the deaths of four people whose bodies were found over the weekend near the border between Poland and Belarus. Three of the dead found on the Polish side of the border have been identified by Polish authorities as Iraqi men. The fourth person was identified by Belarusian …

Read more “4 Migrants Found Dead Along Route Between Poland-Belarus Border”

Angela Merkel, Germany’s first female chancellor, has been praised by many for her pragmatic leadership in a turbulent world and celebrated by some as a feminist icon. But a look at her track record over her 16 years at Germany’s helm reveals missed opportunities for fighting gender inequality at home.   Named “The World’s Most …

Read more “As Merkel Bids Farewell, German Women Wish for More Equality”

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Malawi President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera are among the world leaders scheduled to take their turn to address the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday.  Johnson has highlighted in the days before his speech the need to take action to address climate change, saying a global economic recovery “must be rooted in green growth.”  …

Read more “World Leaders Address UN General Assembly”

Berlin is basking in late summer sunshine. Along the banks of the River Spree, residents enjoy the last warm days before the change of season. Germany – and the rest of Europe – are about to witness the end of an era: after 16 years, the sun is setting on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s time in …

Read more “After Merkel: Who Will Win the German Election?”

Germans are preparing to choose a new leader in elections scheduled September 26 to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is stepping down. As Henry Ridgwell reports from Berlin, Merkel has been seen as a pillar of stability in Europe for almost two decades — and the coming changes in Germany will be felt around the …

Read more “German Election: Who Will Take Over From Angela Merkel at the Heart of Europe?”

A vast river of molten lava from a Canary Islands volcano was edging toward the sea on Tuesday, destroying everything in its path and provoking fears it will generate clouds of toxic gases when it hits the water.  A new fissure emerged on the slopes of the Cumbre Vieja volcano overnight, belching out more lava …

Read more “Canary Islands Volcano Lava Nears Sea, Sparking Fears of Toxic Gas”

Seven survivors of a shooting at a university in central Russia that left six people dead and 28 more wounded are to be airlifted to Moscow for medical treatment on Tuesday, according to a top education official. Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov said Tuesday that the shooting at the Perm State University …

Read more “7 Survivors of Russian University Shooting Airlifted to Moscow”

Turkey’s leaders are closely watching Germany’s elections on September 26th that will mark the end of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s long tenure. For VOA from Istanbul, Dorian Jones reports. …

Results from Russia’s parliamentary and local elections Sunday have given a boost to the allies of President Vladimir Putin, who will now retain their majority. After denouncing alleged fraud, the Communist Party – the second largest in parliament – called for demonstrations in the Russian capital Monday but few people appeared. Jon Spier narrates this …

Read more “Anti-Putin Protests Fail to Materialize After Sunday Vote”

Turkey’s leaders are closely watching Germany’s elections on September 26th that will mark the end of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s long tenure. For VOA from Istanbul, Dorian Jones reports …

Police in Britain said Tuesday they have enough evidence to charge a third Russian in the 2018 nerve agent attack against a former Russian spy in the city of Salisbury, England. Authorities identified the third suspect as Sergey Fedotov, also known as Denis Sergeev, and said he was a member of Russia’s GRU military intelligence …

Read more “3rd Russian in Skripal Poisoning Could Be Charged”

The Australian decision to cancel a $66 billion deal to buy 12 French diesel-electric submarines and to purchase instead at least eight more sophisticated nuclear-powered attack boats from Britain and America continues to reverberate with French officials smarting at what they see as a betrayal by London and Washington.   And there are few signs …

Read more “EU Rallies Behind Macron as Dispute Between France, US, Britain Worsens”

The United States, United Kingdom and Australia on Thursday announced what the Royal Australian Navy describes on its website as an “enhanced trilateral security partnership” known as AUKUS (Australia, U.K. and U.S.). It says Australia will get at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, to be built domestically using American technology. The use of nuclear-powered Australian submarines …

Read more “How a Western Military Pact for Nuclear Subs Affects China”