Germany votes on Sunday in country’s parliamentary elections with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) emerging as leader by narrow margin to the centre-right bloc of retiring Chancellor Angela Merkel. She has been leading Germany for the last 16 years. Therefore the vote is seen as a corner stone to set the future course of Europe's largest economy, Reuters reported.
There is no intention for change: most people obviously want things to remain the way they have been, the way people have been used to for the last 16 years. It seems to me that Germany is strangely unprepared for the future, says Martin Kothé, Friedrich Naumann Foundation's Regional Director for East and Southeast Europe, in an exclusive interview to BGNES News Agency.
The EC will design a "toolbox" of measures, that Member States can implement to respond to latest energy price spikes without breaching the Union's market rules, as consumers face a sharp rise in bills with winter approaching. The power prices in EU have accelerated this year, more than trebling in Spain and elsewhere, mainly fuelled by the rising price of natural gas used for power generation and heating, Reuters reported.
Germany votes on Sunday in country’s parliamentary elections with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) emerging as leader by narrow margin to the centre-right bloc of retiring Chancellor Angela Merkel. She has been leading Germany for the last 16 years. Therefore the vote is seen as a corner stone to set the future course of Europe's largest economy, Reuters reported.
Hundreds protesters marched on Saturday in the streets of major cities in the Netherlands in a protest against the introduced "corona pass" which is equivalent to proof of Covid-19 vaccination and became compulsory to get into bars, restaurants, theatres and other public venues, Reuters reported. Only few hours after the new requirements took effect, the government of caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte fired a deputy minister who had publicly questioned the measures.
The European Commission urged Poland to allow officers from Frontex to guard the Border with Belarus and thus save the lives of migrants. At least three migrants died on the Polish side of the border and one more just inside Belarus earlier this week while they were making attempts to cross into Poland, Reuters elaborated. The causes of death have not been officially revealed. A fifth death of an Iraqi man just inside Poland, probably from a heart attack was reported earlier on Friday.
The volcano eruption on Spanish island La Palma is far from over as renewed rivers of hot lava spilled again provoking new evacuation of thousands of people. The new eruption of Cumbre Vieja volcano endangers the banana crop on the island in addition to several buildings in the near villages, Reuters reported.
Israel dismissed calls to ease its approach to Covid-19 vaccination. Instead, the government decided to proceed with very aggressive campaign of offering coronavirus boosters to almost anyone over 12, AP reported. “The decision reinforced our results that the third dose is safe,” said Nadav Davidovitch, head of the school of public health at Israel’s Ben-Gurion University and chairman of the country’s association of public health physicians. “The main question now is of prioritization.”
Yannick Jadot, Greens MEP is seen as the only potential nomination of the fractured French Left able to unite the opposition ahead of the country’s presidential elections. Seven months before the polls, Yannick Jadot, a 54-year-old member of the European Parliament, faces 49-year-old economist Sandrine Rousseau in the second round of the primary of Europe Ecologie Les Verts, AFP reported.
Iceland votes on Saturday in an election that could have an unpredictable outcome with a record of nine parties likely to enter the local parliament, making it very difficult to find common ground on topics like climate change and healthcare, Reuters reported. The northern island has some 371,000 citizens and has enjoyed a period of stability since 2017 under the ruling left-right coalition, after years of political scandals and distrust of politicians following the financial crisis in 2008.
There are approximately 436 submarine cables that are over 1.3 million kilometers, in service around the world. Some cables are quite short, like the 131 kilometer CeltixConnect cable between Ireland the United Kingdom. In contrast, others are incredibly long, such as the 20,000 kilometer Asia America Gateway cable.
The number of people who are first-time asylum seekers to the European Union has more than doubled over the spring months, Reuters reported, quoting official information from Eurostat. Almost 103,900 first-time asylum seekers applied for international protection in EU countries between in the second quarter of 2021, according to Eurostat, up 115% compared to the same period of 2020. Over the three months, Syrians represented around a fifth of first-time applicants which is the largest group. They were followed by Afghans at 13% and Pakistanis at 4%.
There is no intention for change: most people obviously want things to remain the way they have been, the way people have been used to for the last 16 years. It seems to me that Germany is strangely unprepared for the future, says Martin Kothé, Friedrich Naumann Foundation's Regional Director for East and Southeast Europe, in an exclusive interview to BGNES News Agency.
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