Ansa news

(ANSA) - GORIZIA, AUG 11 - From August 27 to 30, the Etnos cultural association will present the 54th edition of the World Folklore Festival in Gorizia. Once again this year, the event will bring together audiences and the traditions of distant peoples. The 50th edition of the Folk Traditions Congress and the 59th International Folklore Parade will take place during the same period. The program, presented today in the town hall park, kicks off on Thursday, August 27, in Piazza della Vittoria with…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 11 - "We are closely monitoring the security of electricity supply due to the drought and low water levels in rivers, whether in Hungary, Romania, or the Southeastern European region. The overall situation with water levels is critical, but it is secure and stable," a European Commission spokesperson said during the daily press briefing. "Individual transmission operators manage supply security, and they have the majority of the details. We are therefore coordinating with…

(ANSA-AFP) - BUDAPEST, AUG 11 - Hungarian lawmakers on Tuesday approved former supreme court chief Andras Baka, a critic of Viktor Orban who was fired during the ex-premier's time in power, as the country's next president. Parliament elected Baka as head of state with 140 votes in favour and six votes against as pro-EU conservative Prime Minister Peter Magyar pushes to loosen his predecessor Orban's lingering hold over state institutions. (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 11 - Germany is preparing to transform its intelligence services, transitioning from a system designed primarily for information gathering to a network of real operational agents capable of both defence and offence, as well as offensive cyber missions. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt gave Bild online a detailed preview of the bill, which will be submitted to Friedrich Merz's cabinet in the coming days. He has been on the front lines for days, attempting to contain the…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 11 - Romania may shut down a second reactor at the Cernavodă nuclear power plant due to the Danube river's continued decline. The site may be shut down within the next 48 hours due to the gradual decline in the river's water level, making it increasingly difficult for the cooling pumps to operate safely, international media reported, citing local sources. The plant's first reactor had to be turned off at the end of July. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 11 - According to Eurostat, as of June 30, 4.41 million non-EU citizens who fled Ukraine were granted temporary protection status in the European Union, an increase of 24,380 (+0.6%) from the end of May. Germany continues to host the most people, with 1,286,230, or 29.2% of the EU total, followed by Poland (961,170, 21.8%) and the Czech Republic (390,810, 8.9%). In Italy, 51,105 people have received temporary protection. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - PRISTINA, AUG 11 - NATO's peacekeeping mission in Kosovo said Monday that it was reducing its presence at key security sites -- a Serbian Orthodox monastery and a Mitrovica bridge -- for the first time since the 1990s war. "The NATO-led KFOR mission has begun the integration of Kosovo Police personnel into KFOR's security architecture at the Visoki Decani Monastery," the mission said. "KFOR remains the first responder for the security of Visoki Decani," the statement added. KFOR also…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 10 - Slovenian National Assembly President Zoran Stevanović has exchanged messages with the speaker of the Russian parliament, according to his Truth party. Stevanović plans to visit Moscow once he receives an invitation. This is the first time Russian and Slovenian parliamentary speakers have spoken since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, according to Slovenian news agency STA. Stevanović expressed interest in visiting Russia prior to and after the March general election,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 10 - A police officer chastised an Italian tourist for sunbathing topless, despite the fact that tanning without a bikini is not explicitly prohibited in the country. According to the Trieste newspaper Il Piccolo, it occurred at the end of July in Umag, Croatia, when a police officer approached an Italian woman on vacation and lectured her for no reason, despite the fact that topless sunbathing is not prohibited in Croatia. The woman responded to the officer by asking what…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 10 - The Ceuta crisis appears to have reopened Pandora's box on immigration, which had been dormant in Europe for a few months. The outcomes are now unpredictable. And the situation in Italy is becoming significantly more complicated, with the possibility of a ripple even in the coalition between Giorgia Meloni and Friedrich Merz, which is one of the most solid in Europe. Indeed, the new Migration Pact, which took effect on June 12, addresses more than just external borders…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 10 - Chancellor Christian Stocker, a member of the conservative Austrian People's Party (ÖVP), has been the source of ongoing controversy in Austria. Last week, at a citizens' meeting in Salzburg, he stated that he does not consider childcare to be unpaid work. "I wouldn't consider childcare a job," Stocker said in response to a question about balancing family and work. The Chancellor went on to say that he had never thot of his own children as a "calculation," wondering…

(ANSA-AFP) - PRISTINA, AUG 9 - The Kosovo Parliament was suspended today after an opposition lawmaker threw eggs at interim Prime Minister Albin Kurti, while a prolonged political crisis threatens to trigger new early elections. Europe's youngest democracy has held three elections in less than two years, with successive parliaments resulting from deep political divisions. Kurti, who has been engaged for days in negotiations with opposition parties over the appointment of a new president, attempted…

(ANSA) - ROMA, AUG 9 - Berlin Reopens the Migrant Front: "They Will Be Deported to Italy." This is reported by *La Repubblica* on its website. According to the newspaper, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, under pressure from polls showing the AfD on the rise, has decided to take a hard line on migrants, particularly toward Italy. On August 19, the first asylum seeker will be turned away in Italy. She is a 22-year-old Somali woman named Abdirisaq Warsame, who arrived in Germany in March. Under the…

(ANSA) - VILNIUS, AUG 9 - "Eighteen years ago, Russia launched a war against Georgia that led to the occupation of 20% of its national territory. This served as a warning to all of Europe, which is now being confirmed by Russia's continued aggression against Ukraine." Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna made this statement in a press release. Similar sentiments were expressed by Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys, who urged the allies not to forget Georgia. "Together with our international…

(ANSA-AFP) - BELGRADE, AUG 8 - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday that his war-torn country was left "with virtually no intact thermal power plants" because of Russian strikes as it braced itself for another winter of the invasion. "We also spoke about the challenges Ukraine faces this winter, when we are left with virtually no intact thermal power plants because of Russian strikes, when Russian missiles are aimed precisely at making the lives of Ukrainians unbearable," Zelensky…

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, AUG 8 - A drone that entered Bulgaria from neighbouring Romania on Saturday exploded near the border between the two countries and the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, which links Turkey to Ukraine, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced. "The drone exploded in the immediate vicinity of the Kardam border crossing with Romania," near the Black Sea in the country's northeast, "1,000 metres from the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline's compressor station. There were no casualties," Radev…

(ANSA-AFP) - BELGRADE, AUG 8 - President Volodymyr Zelensky was making his first official visit to Serbia -- a rare European country still closely aligned with Moscow -- on Saturday as Ukraine seeks to bolster international support in the face of intensifying Russian strikes. Zelensky was to hold talks with his counterpart Alexander Vucic at the presidential palace on Saturday, after another intense bombardment of Kyiv and the surrounding region overnight killed at least four people. Diplomacy is…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 7 - Natural gas stocks in Italy continued to rise, reaching 76.55%, or 155.71 TWh, as of August 6. They increase to 58.1%, or 656.62 TWh, in Europe, while Germany has yet to reach 50%, at 47.62%, or 117.37 TWh. According to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE), the association representing European transmission network operators, Europe's average annual demand of 3,519 TWh is currently covered by 18.65%. In Italy, with an average annual demand of 677.35 TWh, reserves…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 7 - Rail traffic at the Brenner Pass continues to be significantly delayed. According to the 2025 annual report from Austria's regulatory authority "Schienen-Control," more than half (58%) of all long-distance trains were delayed entering Austria from Italy last year, according to the Tiroler Tageszeitung. In total, less than 46% of passenger trains crossed the Brenner border on time in 2025. According to Öbb spokesperson Christoph Gasser-Mair, the main causes are found abroad:…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 7 - Despite the Iranian conflict, exports in Germany reached a record high in June, totalling €139.3 billion, up 0.9% from May and 6.6% from the previous year, according to data from the federal statistics office Destatis. This is also a record level thus far, following the €139.1 billion recorded in September 2022. Exports are up for the fifth consecutive month. Imports are even higher, reaching €123.9 billion, up 4.4% from May and 8.4% from the previous year. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - KYIV, AUG 6 - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky will on Saturday make his first visit to Serbia since Russia's invasion, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP, highlighting the symbolic importance of the visit to Moscow's traditional ally. "We need to pull the Serbs away from Russia's side," the source said, calling Zelensky's visit to Belgrade a "slap in the face for the Russians". Zelensky -- who has toured much of the world to whip up support for Ukraine's defence against the…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 6 - Albania has officially withdrawn its support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino's bid for a second term. The Albanian Football Federation confirmed this in a statement, releasing the letter it sent to FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström. The move follows the heated debate over the proposed private sale of World Cup shares. "This decision follows recent developments in international football and European federations' positions on FIFA's governance processes," reads…

(ANSA) - SOFIA, AUG 6 - "Before accusing Bulgaria of anti-Semitism, I urge foreign politicians to familiarise themselves with and stick to the facts," Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev told reporters today, referring to the "verbal clash" between young Bulgarians and young Italian Jews on the night of August 2 in the tourist town of Bansko (southern Bulgaria) and the reactions in Italy. "The Bulgarian people have shown tolerance towards different ethnic groups and religions over the centuries,"…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 6 - According to the German federal statistics office Destatis, industrial orders unexpectedly increased in Germany by 3.1% (seasonally adjusted) in June. Although experts had predicted an increase of only half a percentage point, this is the second consecutive increase since May. Economists worry that the economy will be impacted by the low Rhine water levels. The main inland waterway in Europe recently experienced record low water levels, which occasionally made it impossible…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 6 - The Kosovo Assembly, which was elected on June 7, convened for the first time in its constituent session today. However, due to the lack of a candidate for parliamentary speaker, the meeting was immediately adjourned. The deputies took an oath of allegiance during the meeting, and then Avni Dehari, the acting speaker, announced that the meeting was adjourned because no candidate had been put forward for the position of Assembly Speaker. Albin Kurti, the leader of the Vetëvendosje…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 6 - The intense heat is also affecting Germany, where the Robert Koch Institute has released data on June's deaths, which are significantly higher than previously estimated. The heatwave caused 9,600 deaths between June 22 and June 28. During these days, the temperature in the western Saarland region hit 41.3 degrees Celsius, setting a new record for the Federal Republic. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - BRATISLAVA, AUG 5 - Slovakia on Wednesday recorded an all-time temperature high of 41.4C, the Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute (SHMU) said in a statement sent to AFP, as a heatwave gripped central Europe. The record was measured in the village of Kamenica nad Hronom in southwestern Slovakia, beating a previous high of 41.3 set in the same village on June 30, 2026, the agency said. (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 5 - Montenegro's Prime Minister, Milojko Spajić, has denied reports of a potential EU repatriation centre in the country. "Regarding media reports about an alleged preliminary list of countries where the EU could establish reception and repatriation centres, I'd like to clarify that Montenegro has not begun negotiations to establish such centres on its territory. The government has not received any official initiative in this regard. If such an initiative is presented, we…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 5 - Croatia celebrates Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, Croatian Veterans Day, and the 31st anniversary of Military-Police Operation Storm with a central ceremony in Knin, according to Croatian public television. Croatian veterans and victims of the Homeland War raised the Croatian flag at the Knin Fortress. Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković praised Storm as a legitimate liberation operation, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković announced new rights for veterans, and…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, AUG 5 - "Once again, we wake up to reports of horrific atrocities committed by Russia in its air strikes against Ukraine. Russia must pay for the destruction it has caused. And we are using the proceeds from the seizure of Russian assets to ensure this happens," Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X, emphasising that the EU is making an additional €1.4 billion available to Ukraine. "This will strengthen Ukraine's ongoing resistance to Russia's illegal war," she…