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 ...
Six months after the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, Norway is still feeling Beijing’s fury, though a series of retaliatory moves has largely spared flourishing bilateral trade. In December, China blocked Liu from attending the prize ceremony in the Norwegian capital Oslo, where an empty chair on the podium marked his absence. Liu, a former professor who was at the forefront of the 1989 Tiananmen Square... [more]
The European Central Bank raised its main interest rate on Thursday for the first time since July 2008 just as Portugal became the latest victim of the eurozone’s deficit and debt crisis. The increase in the ECB’s benchmark refinancing or “refi” rate to 1.25 percent also marked the first change in either direction since it was cut to a record low of 1.0 percent in May 2009. With higher inflation and core eurozone... [more]
Japanese police raced Thursday to find thousands of missing bodies before they completely decompose along a stretch of tsunami-pummeled coast that has been largely off-limits because of a radiation-leaking nuclear plant. Nearly a month after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake generated the tsunami along Japan’s northeastern coast, more than 15,000 people are still missing. Many of those may have been washed out to sea and will never be found. In... [more]
Mariah Carey has admitted to feeling “vulnerable” as she bared her baby bump for a magazine cover. Following in the footsteps of Demi Moore, Britney Spears and Miranda Kerr, the heavily pregnant superstar diva, who is expecting twins with husband Nick Cannon, posed nude for Life And Style. “I was feeling very vulnerable about taking pictures at all right now, but then I didn’t want to miss this opportunity to document... [more]
Angelina Jolie’s father, actor Jon Voight has admitted he worries about his daughter’s safety when she travels to far away places. “She’s a very courageous person,” the veteran actor said, speaking about Angelina’s trip to meet Libyan refugees on the Tunisian border this week. “Sometimes she goes to places that I prefer she’d stay away from because of the dangers, you know?” he added. “She’s... [more]
The Church of England has produced a new prayer for Prince William and Kate Middleton ahead of their wedding on April 29. The prayer asks for help in keeping the couple faithful to each other. And it asks God to “deepen their love and strengthen their wills to keep the promises they will make, that they may continue in life-long faithfulness to each other”. The Church suggests the verse be used in private prayer, in groups or... [more]
Despite promising economic growth figures of 1.5% this year, the Netherlands still has a long way to go to close the gap caused by the economic crisis, prime minister Mark Rutte has warned. Speaking at a symposium in The Hague, the prime minister said the figures from the government’s macro-economic forecasting agency CPB sounded good but still have to be realised. In addition, the government wants the economy to grow more strongly... [more]
The five Nordic countries have agreed on a Nordic declaration of solidarity to meet challenges particularly in the foreign and security policy area. - This is yet another building block in our Nordic cooperation. says Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. - This political declaration must now be translated into concrete measures, for example by building up a Nordic resource network against cyber attacks, said Mr Støre. This is particularly... [more]
Most Germans fear gravely for the future of their cherished welfare state, believing they will pay more taxes yet receive fewer benefits in the coming decade, a major survey has found. Four out of five people believed the state would demand more of their money in 10 years’ time than it does today. Yet 63 percent believed welfare for the elderly would shrink and nearly as many were prepared for cuts to public health, though only about... [more]
North Korea has intensified submarine drills near the tense Yellow Sea border with South Korea, putting Seoul defence officials on alert, a report said Thursday. JoongAng Ilbo newspaper, citing a Seoul military source, said the North had been staging exercises involving five or six submarines at the Bipagot submarine base on its west coast since last month. They feature the signature 325-tonne submarines as well as the new and bigger Shark-class... [more]
