Eurozone finance ministers were to confer by telephone on Saturday after 12 hours of talks in Athens failed to produce a breakthrough on a deal to bail out Greece, the Greek finance minister said. Evangelos Venizelos added that a planned meeting by eurozone ministers on Greece originally scheduled for Monday would now be held on Wednesday. "I will participate in a Eurogroup telephone conference at 1230 GMT" to discuss details of a rescue deal for Greece worth 130 billion euros ($171 billion) which officials have been trying to seal since October, the minister said in a statement. "Critical issues pertaining to the country's ...
Australia's flood crisis deepened Saturday as authorities braced for waters to peak in Queensland where one woman is missing after being swept away while elsewhere thousands remain stranded by the surge. Prime Minister Julia Gillard said eight military helicopters would help in search, evacuation and resupply missions in the eastern state, where days of heavy rainfall have prompted hundreds of evacuations and dozens of rescues. "The helicopters will be available to assist in rescue operations as required until the immediate crisis has passed," Gillard said in a statement. In the inland Queensland town of Charleville authorities are on alert amid fears a temporary ...
Tens of thousands people are braving the bitter cold at two major rallies in downtown Moscow on Saturday as a power play between champions of political liberalization and supporters of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin continues to unfold. The first demonstration demands fair elections at the March 4 presidential polls, at which Putin is expected to secure a third term in the Kremlin. It also calls on Russians “not to give a single vote” to Putin. The opposition rally is widely seen by analysts as a litmus test of protesters’ ability to maintain momentum after two earlier protests against alleged vote fraud in favor of ...
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday wrapped up a visit to China where she tried to reassure her hosts on the strength of the euro and Europe's ability to overcome its debt crisis. During her three-day trip to the world's second largest economy, Merkel praised the advantages of the single currency and urged China to put pressure on Iran and to condemn Syria at the United Nations. Merkel, who was prevented from meeting journalists and a human rights lawyers, ended her official visit in the southern city of Guangzhou, Xinhua news agency reported. Merkel, who held talks with Premier Wen Jiabao and President ...
Norway’s government has said it wants non-European immigrants to carry residency cards equipped with data chips bearing their fingerprints. In a proposal presented on Friday, the justice ministry said the new identity cards would help tackle illegal immigration. “The residency card system will increase security surrounding residency permit documentation, thereby contributing to the prevention of illegal immigration and illegal residency,” said Justice Minister Grete Faremo (Labour Party) in a statement. The move follows pressure from the European Union to ensure that immigrants from outside the European Economic Area, of which Norway is a member, are provided with residency cards that include fingerprint details. Faremo ...
Greece expects its 2011 budget deficit will be smaller than expected at between 9.1 and 9.4 percent of GDP, thanks to an emergency property tax, a finance ministry official said on Friday, a development that could help Athens in its bailout talks with the EU and IMF. Greece, which is racing to complete talks with the EU and the IMF on a second bailout worth 130 billion euros, had previously estimated that the deficit would be above 9.5 percent of GDP. "The numbers aren't final yet but we believe the deficit will come in at between 9.1 and 9.4 percent (of GDP)," ...
China has rejected Japanese protests over alleged improper exploration of gas deposits in the East China Sea. The Foreign Ministry said Friday the recent activity had taken place within Chinese-controlled waters and was completely normal. A ministry statement said China was strongly dissatisfied with recent comments from Japanese officials. Japan's chief Cabinet secretary on Wednesday said Japan protested to China after a flare was seen a day earlier at a Chinese structure at an undersea gas deposit. The deposit, known as Kashi in Japan and Tianwaitian in China, sits near a median line in the countries' overlapping exclusive economic zones. Japan and China agreed ...
The leader of Russia's Islamist rebels ordered a halt to attacks on civilians, saying mass opposition protests showed the public no longer supported Vladimir Putin, according to a video posted Friday. Doku Umarov, whose Caucasus Emirate group claimed atrocities including a deadly Moscow airport bombing in 2011 and a metro attack in 2010, said from now only security objects and officials would be targeted. "I order all special groups that are carrying out or plan to carry out special operations in Russia to put a halt to these operations that could hurt the peaceful population," Doku Umarov said in a video address ...
China's Premier Wen Jiabao said Friday the Asian giant had neither the ability nor the intention to "buy Europe", amid concerns over growing Chinese investment in debt-stricken eurozone economies. China is "willing to cooperate with Europe to fight the current crisis. Some people say this means China wants to buy Europe", Wen told a German-China business forum in the southern city of Guangzhou. "This a concern and doesn't fit reality. China doesn't have this intention and doesn't have this ability." German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in China for a three-day visit to boost her host's confidence in Europe, also attended the forum along with ...
Energy Secretary Chris Huhne is to resign from the Government after it emerged he is to face prosecution over allegations that he asked his ex-wife to take a speeding penalty for him. The Liberal Democrat MP has been charged with perverting the course of justice after an investigation into the 2003 incident by Essex Police. His former wife, the economist Vicky Pryce is also facing charges of perverting the course of justice. They are due to appear before Westminster Magistrates' Court on February 16. The maximum sentence for perverting the course of justice is life in prison, the CPS and the Sentencing ...
Liverpool FC’s former co-owner, Texan Tom Hicks, has been told he is still blocked from pursuing massive damages claims in the US over the sale of the club. Mr Hicks believes he was the victim of an “epic swindle” when Liverpool was sold against his wishes to New England Sports Ventures (NESV) for £300m. He and his former partner George Gillett have been seeking to make a claim against their creditor RBS following the... [more]
Luxury sports carmaker and Formula One constructor Ferrari have no plans to list the company for at least several years, Chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo said on Monday. “There are no current plans (to list the company). Perhaps in three, four or five years. There is no project now. Maybe there never will be,” he said on the sidelines of a meeting with the foreign media. Analysts late last year speculated that Fiat, which... [more]
Brazilian striker Ronaldo, the all-time leading scorer at World Cup tournaments and three-time Fifa World Player of the Year, is to retire at the age of 34. Ronaldo said he can no longer keep up with the demands of the game ending a brilliant 18-year career in which he scored more than 400 goals including a record 15 at World Cups. “I want to stay but I can’t. I think of a move, but I can’t perform it as I want to. It’s... [more]
Fabio Capello hopes to see a glimpse of a brighter future for England when his side face Denmark in Wednesday’s friendly in Copenhagen. After England’s dispiriting 2010 campaign came to an appropriately downbeat conclusion with a 2-1 defeat against France at Wembley, Capello desperately needs a positive performance ahead of the Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales in March. Capello’s stock remains low after his team’s... [more]
Dutch cyclist and Olympic Champion Marianne Vos has won the World Cyclo-Cross Championship in St Wendel Germany with surprising ease. It is the third time she has won the title in a row and the fourth time in her career. Things were not looking good for the title defender at the beginning of the race when she fell on the first climb, but she soon managed to get back into the leading group. She fell a few times in the same spot. But the hard... [more]
Andy Murray’s grand slam final misery continued as he was comprehensively beaten by Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open. Murray looked out of sorts from the off and was second best throughout a one-sided encounter as Djokovic followed up his 2008 success in Melbourne with a 6-4 6-2 6-3 triumph in two hours and 39 minutes. Murray has now appeared in three grand slam finals and is yet to win a set – a record in the open era –... [more]
Real Madrid confirmed on their website on Tuesday they had signed Manchester City’s Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor on loan till the end of the season. The 26-year-old has been brought in to add urgently needed firepower after Argentinian striker Gonzalo Higuain underwent surgery to fix a slipped disc earlier this month and is expected to be out of action for another four months. French international Karim Benzema has filled in but... [more]
Karren Brady has said that comments made by two Sky Sports presenters about female Premier League official Sian Massey made her “blood boil”. The star of The Apprentice – who is vice chairman of West Ham football club – hit back after Andy Gray and Richard Keys agreed female officials “don’t know the offside rule”. The pair – who have been dropped from tonight’s line-up – were... [more]
Aussie sprint legend Robbie McEwen believes new teammate Lance Armstrong is unlikely to waste any winning opportunities on what will be his cycling swansong this week. Armstrong, who won a record seven Tour de France crowns after beating cancer in 1998, will bring the curtain down on his stunning, and at times controversial career, at the Tour Down Under from January 16-23. And while the profusion of sprint specialists among the field has... [more]
Argentina forward Lionel Messi was named World Player of the Year on Monday, beating Barcelona team mates Andres Iniesta and Xavi to win the award for the second time in a row. more to follow…. Share this: {lang: 'en-US'} function open_win(url,id) { var win = window.open(url, 'popup','width=600,height=300,status=0,toolbar=0'); var tpopup = setInterval(function() { if(win.closed) { reload_to(); } },... [more]
