Ansa news

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 27 - "Brussels wants to shove the failed migrant pact down our throat before the upcoming European elections," the Hungarian PM Viktor Orban wrote on X today. "While illegal migrants are attacking our policemen, Brussels wants to force us to let them in. Another insane idea from the bubble in Brussels. We will not let it happen," Orban said. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 27 - Warsaw has accused Berlin of attempting to meddle in Polish elections scheduled for October 15, putting the government of Mateusz Morawiecki in jeopardy. In an interview with Polish broadcaster Tvp3, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau called a possible increase in border controls with Poland, which Germany evoked after the recent visa scandal, "illegal conduct." (ANSA).

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 27 - Two events organized by the Italian embassy in Zagreb will celebrate the Italian Design Day 2023 in Croatia. At the Forum Gallery, Ambassador Pierfrancesco Sacco opened the conference 'The Role of the Wood Industry and Design in the Circular Economy,' dedicated to exploring how design in the wood industry could foster and support the circular economy and sustainable development. The event was also attended by the President of the Association of Entrepreneurs, Mihael Furjan,…

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 27 - Albania is a strategic partner for Italy, and Rome "considers the Western Balkans a priority of our foreign policy, and we are absolutely in favour of these countries joining the EU, beginning with Albania," said Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani during a meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in Rome today. "We hope that this will happen before 2030," Tajani noted. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 27 - According to a presidential decree published on September 26, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has appointed Andriy Shevchenko, an ex-professional footballer and manager, as an external advisor, media in Kyiv reported. Shevchenko played for Dynamo Kyiv, A.C. Milan, and Chelsea during his football career. He won the UEFA Champions League with A.C. Milan in 2003 and was named the Ballon d'Or, football's most prestigious individual award, in 2004. He is regarded as…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 27 - The Serbian government met in extraordinary session on Tuesday to declare September 27 a day of mourning for "tragic events" in Kosovo, according to Belgrade media. "The government of Serbia is requesting that all media outlets and organisers of public events adapt their programming to the Day of Mourning on September 27 in order to pay tribute to the victims of Kosovo and Metohija," according to a press release. The day of mourning was declared after several Kosovo Serbs…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 27 - "Populists and extreme right-wingers are not part of the solution" but "they benefit from problems and fear and will no longer be able to do so if the problem is solved," EPP leader Manfred Weber said in a press conference from Croatia, where the EPP's Study Days will be held. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, SEP 27 - German investigators carried out raids across the country on Wednesday as Berlin banned a far-right group it described as a "cult-like, deeply racist and anti-Semitic association" that sought to indoctrinate children with Nazi ideology. Police stormed 26 apartments belonging to 39 members of the Artgemeinschaft network in 12 states including Bavaria, Baden-Wuerttemberg and Brandenburg. The association counts about 150 members and has links to several far-right groups,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 26 - Four days before the Slovakian parliamentary elections on Saturday, the liberal party Progressive Slovakia (PS) is the most popular formation for the first time, with votes exceeding those of ex-premier Robert Fico's Smer social democrats, revealed a survey conducted for the "Sme" newspaper by the Nms Market Research agency. The Progressive Slovakia party would also be the only one capable of forming a government coalition, which could include up to five parties in order…

(ANSA) - UDINE, 26 SET - The North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley (NAHV) kicked off with the first transnational initiative launched in Portorož, Slovenia, as part of the Horizon Europe program, supported by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. More than 100 delegates representing 37 project partners from three countries, Croatia, Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy), and Slovenia, gathered for the project's kick-off meeting. NAHV started on September 1 and will run for 72 months. It includes 17 pilot projects to…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 26 - "EU member states are assessing the situation" in northern Kosovo, and "the ambassadors of the 27 will meet this afternoon and discuss" what happened in last Sunday's firefight, which resulted in the deaths of a Kosovo police officer and five attackers, as well as the "line of action" to be taken. During the daily press briefing, Peter Stano, spokesperson for EU High Representative Josep Borrell, stated. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - ROME, SEP 26 - The presidents of France and Germany attended the funeral Tuesday of former Italian head of state Giorgio Napolitano, at a time of tensions between both countries and Rome over migration. Emmanuel Macron and Frank-Walter Steinmeier joined Italian and other European dignitaries in paying their respects to the former president, who died on Friday aged 98. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also attended the funeral, and according to diplomatic sources, could have a private…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 26 - "We hope that the EU Commission will take note of Ukraine's achievements as a candidate for the European Union: we anticipate a positive response by the end of October," said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, President of Ukraine's Parliamentary Commission for EU Integration, speaking at the conference "Ukraine in the European Union: the Time to Act," organised by the Polish and Ukrainian embassies in Rome. "However, it will be up to EU members' initiative to open new negotiations…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 26 - "Our work on the Green Deal is not yet complete. European companies continue to face a number of challenges that stifle innovation," said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the Green Deal Summit in Prague. "Let me briefly focus on three of them: First, there are high energy prices. Gas prices were ten times higher in the summer of 2022, at the height of the crisis. Today, European energy prices have returned to pre-war levels. This is an achievement due to…

(ANSA-AFP) - PARIS, SEP 26 - Record growth in solar power and electric vehicles is keeping the world's climate goals in reach, the International Energy Agency said Tuesday, stressing the energy transition requires no new long-term fossil fuel development. "The pathway to 1.5C has narrowed in the past two years, but clean energy technologies are keeping it open," said the energy watchdog's boss Fatih Birol, calling for nations to work harder to align policies with the more ambitious and safer global…

(ANSA) - TRIESTE, 25 SET - The 55th edition of Barcolana presented by Generali is about to begin: the world's largest regatta, kicking off on September 29, was launched today by the president of the Barcola and Grignano sailing society, Mitja Gialuz, together with Generali's president, Andrea Sironi. The event, the organizers explained, will focus on people, and this edition "will be the most inclusive in the history of the regatta." Ready to go then are the Women in sailing programs and the Para…

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, SEP 25 - EU member countries on Monday adopted a watered-down deal on curbing car emissions, after auto manufacturers complained stricter measures could undermine electric vehicle investments. Led by France and Italy, the 27 nations voted for a less ambitious plan than the one put forward by the European Commission in November 2022, eyeing preservation of competitivity in an EU sector on which 14 million workers rely. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA),…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - The Hungarian PM Viktor Orban stated today at the Hungarian Parliament that the "Brussels' Migration Pact has failed." "At the southern border of Hungary, violence is on the rise as illegal migrants are firing automatic weapons at night. Hungary has thus far prevented 128,000 illegal border crossings, resulting in 168 serious attacks on border patrols," Orban said. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - The crew of the Klizia, the boat accompanying Giulio Marongiu, an Italian exile, on his voyage 'Return to the Land of the Fathers,' was received today by Giovanni Coviello, the Italian Consul in Koper. The boat set sail from Alghero on July 30 to retrace the route taken by 53 families of Italian exiles from Istria, Fiume, and Dalmatia aboard 13 fishing boats in 1948 to reach the village of Fertilia in Sardinia. After 800 miles of navigation, the 'Return to the Land of…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - "I had conversations with President Vucic and Prime Minister Kurti. I asked them both to facilitate dialogue between the parties. We are working" with Defence Minister "Guido Crosetto to strengthen KFOR's presence on the border between Serbia and Kosovo in order to prevent further clashes," the Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - "I was astounded to learn that, in an uncoordinated manner with the Italian government, your government would have decided to support with significant funds non-governmental organisations involved in the reception of irregular migrants on Italian territory and in rescues in the Mediterranean Sea," Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. "Both possibilities raise questions," Meloni added. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - MOSCOW, SEP 25 - The Kremlin on Monday described fresh tensions in Kosovo as "challenging" following a standoff between gunmen and Kosovo authorities at a monastery near the border with Serbia. The incident marked one of the gravest escalations in Kosovo for years, following months of mounting tensions and stalling talks between the government in Pristina and Serbia. "The situation there is very, very tense and potentially dangerous," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - In September, the ifo Business Climate Index fell to 85.7 points, down from 85.8 points (seasonally adjusted) in August. Companies were once again dissatisfied with their current business situation, according to ifo, though pessimism about the coming months has subsided slightly. The German economy appears to have reached rock bottom. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, SEP 25 - The situation in northern Kosovo is calm but tense today, following clashes and shootings between local police and groups of heavily armed Serbian extremists yesterday. A Kosovar police officer and three Serbian gunmen were killed, and several people were injured on both sides. The news that some Pristina media outlets spread about a higher Serbian death toll, with eight extremists killed, was not confirmed. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - GORIZIA, 25 SET - According to first estimates, the attendance is likely "to break the record of 600,000 visitors" at Gusti di Frontiera, the festival dedicated to the world's food and beverage products in Gorizia. The mayor of the Isonzo capital city, Rodolfo Ziberna, made this announcement. "Despite the alarmist weather forecasts of the first days," added the mayor, "the visitors' attendance envisages a big success, as the festival confirmed and improved last year's figures, breaking…

(ANSA-AFP) - ATHENS, SEP 25 - A little-known former shipping exec and ex-Goldman Sachs trader on Sunday pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Greek political history after winning the leadership of Syriza, the leftist main opposition party. Stefanos Kasselakis, 35, is a self-styled self-made entrepreneur who says he wants to promote transparency, boost labour and social rights, speed up justice and eliminate perks for bankers and politicians. Picking up over 56 percent of the vote based on preliminary…

(ANSA) - BERLIN, 24 SET - "Saving people drowning and in distress at sea is a legal, humanitarian and moral duty. As national coast guards, in particular the Italian coast guard, civilian rescuers in the central Mediterranean also carry out a rescue task with their boats while rescuing people in distress at sea." A German foreign ministry spokesman told ANSA, commenting on statements by Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto. The minister said it was 'very serious' that Germany was funding NGOs.…

(ANSA) - ROME, 24 SET - "The talks between Kosovo and Serbia, promoted by the EU, have become so one-sided that they have reached a dead end". Kosovo's prime minister Albin Kurti said in an interview with the Guardian given before the violence that broke out in the region. According to Guardian, Kurti said continuing instability had made the region "a playground for the geopolitical games of the Russian Federation and People's Republic of China". Kurti described the meeting on 14 September with…

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, 24 SET - Ethiopia's Tigist Assefa smashed the women's marathon world record in Berlin on Sunday, winning in 2hr 11min 53sec, more than two minutes ahead of the previous mark. The 29-year-old Assefa bettered the record of 2:14:04 set by Kenyan Brigid Kosgei in Chicago in 2019. Assefa crossed the line just after Kenyan men's world record holder Eliud Kipchoge won a record fifth Berlin marathon, crossing the line in 2hr 02min 42sec. She finished almost six minutes ahead of Kenyan…

(ANSA-AFP) - BANJSKA, 24 SET - Gunmen holed up in a northern Kosovo monastery clashed with authorities Sunday, according to Prime Minister Albin Kurti, hours after a police officer was killed when a patrol was hit by an ambush involving firearms and explosives. Kurti said that the group of at least 30 heavily armed gunmen were now surrounded by authorities near the village of Banjska, where the patrol had been ambushed earlier Sunday, and called for their surrender. The attack and ongoing firefight…