Ansa news

(ANSA-AFP) - WARSAW, JUN 9 - Poland scrambled fighter jets on Monday morning to secure its airspace after neighbouring western Ukraine was hit by major Russian strikes. "Due to the intensive air attack by the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine, Polish and allied aircraft began to operate in Polish airspace in the morning," Warsaw's Operational Command said in a statement on social media. Russia struck deep beyond the frontlines overnight, hitting western Ukraine with dozens of drones…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 9 - Tension rose during the night in Kosjeric, one of two Serbian towns where local elections were held on Sunday, with President Aleksandar Vucic announcing his SNS party's victory in both. According to local media, opposition and student protesters have gathered around the town hall where the official ballot counting is taking place, blocking the entrances. Journalists from various pro-government newspapers entered the building after the polls closed to monitor the arrival…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, 08 GIU - There is anticipation in Serbia for the outcome of the local elections being held today in the towns of Zajecar (east) and Kosjeric (west), the first round of voting since the start of the anti-government student protest movement last November, which many are looking at as a first test, albeit a very partial and limited one, of the impact of such social contestation on the hold of the majority Sns party. The poll covers a total of about 56,000 voters (47,000 in Zajecar…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, 08 GIU - About 30 thousand people participated in the Gay Pride yesterday in Bucharest to demand equal rights for the Lgbt+ community and a civil unions law. With music, rainbow flags and colorful balloons, the procession marched through the streets of the center of the Romanian capital in a festive and cheerful atmosphere. In breaking the news, regional media reported that a few hours earlier an anti-gay protest had been held, with the participants - largely supporters of the…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 6 - All trams, buses, and metros in Budapest have been stopped since midday at the request of Green mayor Gergely Karacsony, as a protest and warning against the capital's impending bankruptcy. The Orban government has long attempted to financially suffocate the city, which is led by the democratic opposition and serves as a stronghold against government authoritarian rule. The most recent proposal is an extraordinary tax known as the solidarity contribution, which would provide…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 6 - According to provisional data provided by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), real-term (price adjusted) industrial production fell 1.4% month on month in April 2025 after seasonal and calendar adjustments. The less volatile three-month-on-three-month comparison revealed that production increased by 0.5% between February 2025 and April 2025 compared to the previous three months. Following revision of the preliminary results, production increased by 2.3% in March…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 6 - "June 6, also known as D-Day, was the day the Americans invaded Europe to bring the war to an end in 1944. This could be a similar historical situation, not with military action, but with pressure on Russia to end the war," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told Deutsche Welle after meeting with US President Donald Trump. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - GNJILANE, JUN 6 - By 2027, Denmark will relocate its foreign convicts to a prison in Kosovo under a 200-million-euro agreement that has raised concerns among NGOs and residents but which could serve as a model for the rest of the EU. The agreement, reached in 2022 and ratified by Kosovar MPs in 2024, provides for the reception of up to 300 foreign prisoners sentenced in Denmark. They must not have been convicted of terrorism or war crimes nor suffer from mental illness or a terminal…

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, JUN 5 - German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Thursday that recognising a Palestinian state now would send "the wrong signal", despite moves by other European countries in that direction. Speaking at a Berlin press conference with his Israeli counterpart Gideon Saar, Wadephul stressed German support for a two-state solution but said "negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians must be concluded" first. Spain, Ireland and Norway a year ago recognised a Palestinian…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 5 - Hungarian police have banned the Pride event, which the Hungarian LGBTQ community intends to hold on June 28 in Budapest's centre. The organisers have already stated that they intend to hold the Pride event without police permission. The police ban refers to the Child Protection Act and a recent constitutional amendment that states that the obligation to protect children takes precedence over all other fundamental rights, including the right to demonstrate. According to…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 5 - In Kosovo, the 27th attempt to elect the president of the new parliament was also unsuccessful. The government majority's proposal to vote by secret ballot was again rejected by the chamber. The standoff between the majority and the opposition has lasted since April 15, when the first constituent session of the new Assembly, elected in a vote on February 9, was held in Pristina. Albulena Haxhiu, the majority party's candidate, has been rejected several times in recent…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 5 - According to preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), real (price adjusted) new orders in manufacturing increased by 0.6% month on month in April 2025 after seasonal and calendar adjustments. When large-scale orders are excluded, new orders increased 0.3% over the previous month. The less volatile three-month-on-three-month comparison revealed that new orders from February 2025 to April 2025 were 0.5% higher than the previous three months; when…

(ANSA-AFP) - LUXEMBOURG, JUN 5 - The European Court of Justice's top legal advisor recommended Thursday that Hungary be declared in breach of EU law over anti-LGBTQ legislation adopted in 2021, in a case pitting Budapest against a majority of its EU partners. The European Commission, 16 of 27 member states and the European Parliament took Hungary to the EU's top court over the law, in what has been billed as the largest human rights case in the bloc's history. Originally aimed at toughening punishments…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 4 - A new crisis has emerged between Skopje and Sofia, which has been embroiled in a long-running dispute over historical, identity, and linguistic issues, slowing North Macedonia's progress towards EU membership. The Macedonian leadership is at odds with Bulgarian MEPs, who want to remove the passage on "recognition of the Macedonian language and identity" from a report on Skopje's progress towards EU membership. The Macedonian leadership openly described the position as…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 4 - "We must understand that Russia has the goal of seizing control of Moldova in the autumn and using Transnistria against Ukraine and Romania, which is a NATO member," Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said in a press conference at the end of the EU-Moldova Association Council's ninth meeting in Brussels. "We are witnessing a massive effort by Russia to undermine democracy and weaken the Republic of Moldova," he stated. They are using very powerful tools like propaganda,…

(ANSA-AFP) - BUDAPEST, JUN 4 - Hungary's ruling party on Wednesday said it was delaying next week's vote on a law that would allow the government to sanction "foreign-funded" NGOs and media that has drawn protests. Critics consider the bill "on transparency in public life" as the latest attempt by nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban to muzzle dissenting voices since returning to power in 2010. In the latest protest against the law, thousands marched in silence, many with their mouths taped shut,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 4 - The German Council of Ministers approved new immigration measures today, according to the Ministry of Interior. In particular, there are two measures that should make expulsion easier. The government intends to define by decree the list of safe countries to which expulsions can be carried out; making the procedure faster. The obligation to have a lawyer paid by the State for people detained awaiting expulsion is also abolished. (ANSA).

(ANSA - BELGRADE, JUN 4 - The mining project for lithium and boron extraction in the Jadar Valley, in western Serbia, promoted by the Anglo-Australian giant Rio Tinto and target of environmental protests, is one of thirteen strategic projects in third countries chosen by the European Commission to strengthen the EU's access to critical raw materials. The Jadar River Valley is home to what are believed to be Europe's largest lithium reserves, as well as one of the most significant on a global scale,…

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, JUN 4 - The EU gave the green light on Wednesday for Bulgaria to adopt the euro on January 1, 2026, in a "historic" step for the southeastern European country set to become the 21st member of the single currency area. The European Commission said Bulgaria had fulfilled the strict criteria "intended to ensure that a country is ready to adopt the euro and that its economy is sufficiently prepared to do so". The European Central Bank also gave a positive opinion, hailing Bulgaria's…

(ANSA-AFP) - WASHINGTON, JUN 4 - The United States doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum starting Wednesday, widening President Donald Trump's trade war in a move set to fan tensions with key economic partners. The move, which Trump earlier said was aimed at protecting domestic steel and aluminum industries, takes his levies on both metals from 25 percent to 50 percent. (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has reduced Slovenia's economic forecast for 2025 by one percentage point to 1.6%, according to Slovenian news agency STA. The forecast for next year is better, but still lower than in the OECD's December report; the economy is expected to grow by 2.4%, a 0.2-point reduction. "Risks are skewed to the downside, with rising trade tensions, stronger-than-expected wage growth, reduced competitiveness, and prolonged…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - Petar Petkovic, Serbia's chief negotiator in the dialogue with Pristina, met today in Brussels with the new EU special envoy for Kosovo, Peter Sorensen, in what he described as a preparatory meeting for a new round of negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina facilitated by the EU. Yesterday's meeting with Sorensen was with Kosovo's chief negotiator, Besnik Bislimi. According to Serbian media, Petkovic explained Belgrade's position on the dialogue to the Danish mediator,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - According to the German newspaper Bild, 20,000 Volkswagen employees accepted the company's offer and resigned voluntarily, citing information released at a workers meeting. This is a joint operation with the unions that was signed in December 2024 under the name Zukunft Volkswagen (Future Volkswagen) and aims to cut 35,000 jobs in Germany by 2030. According to Bild, these resignations are the result of an agreement between the worker and the company, which includes seniority-based…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala will convene the State Security Council to discuss the scandal surrounding a man convicted of drug trafficking donating bitcoins worth nearly 1 billion Czech crowns (about 40 million euros) to the Czech Ministry of Justice. Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced this today during a press conference. "I have decided to convene the State Security Council in the coming days to discuss the details of this case. There is a suspicion that the Czech…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - The Eurozone's inflation rate has fallen below 2% and is expected to reach 1.9% in May, down from 2.2% in April, according to Eurostat's first flash estimate. In May, the food, alcohol, and tobacco sector is expected to have the highest rate (3.3%, up from 3% in April), followed by services (3.2%, up from 4%), non-energy industrial goods (stable at 0.6%), and energy (stable at -3.6%). Italy's consumer price index is expected to remain in line with the Eurozone, falling…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 3 - "At the end of April, I visited Serbia with a clear message for the Serbian people regarding the reforms required for EU membership. I emphasise that the EU's proposal is inextricably linked to the demands of public protest. The best way out of the current political crisis is through inclusive reforms, particularly of media and electoral laws," said European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos during a hearing before the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee.…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 2 - "The German government was not informed, but Ukraine is not required to do so because Ukraine has the right to defend itself," said the German government's spokesperson, Stefan Kornelius, in response to a press conference in Berlin, when asked if Kiev had warned the German executive about the attacks on Russian bases. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - BUDAPEST, JUN 2 - Hungary's prime minister on Monday hailed the "fantastic victory" of fellow nationalist Karol Nawrocki in Poland's presidential election. "What a nail-biter!," Viktor Orban wrote on X, referring to the election in which the two candidates were neck-and-neck. "We are looking forward to working with you." (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA-AFP) - WARSAW, JUN 2 - Nationalist historian Karol Nawrocki won Poland's presidential election, official results showed on Monday, in a major blow for the country's pro-EU government. The 42-year-old, an admirer of US President Donald Trump, scored 50.89 percent of votes in Sunday's runoff, the national election commission said. His 53-year-old rival Rafal Trzaskowski, Warsaw's pro-EU mayor and an ally of the country's centrist government, won 49.11 percent in the highly polarised NATO and…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUN 2 - Kosovo's MPs failed to vote for the president of the new parliament today. It is the 25th time that this election has failed, with the opposition rejecting the majority party Vetevendosje's (Self-determination) proposal to vote by secret ballot. The stalemate in parliament prevents the formation of a new government. (ANSA).