Ansa news

(ANSA-AFP) - FRANKFURT AM MAIN, MAR 31 - German inflation slowed to 7.4 percent year-on-year in March, preliminary data showed on Thursday, thanks to sharply lower energy prices. While food prices continued to show "above-average growth", the increase in energy prices had "slowed considerably" compared with March 2022, when Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent energy costs surging, official statistics agency Destatis said. In January and February, Germany's inflation rate had held steady at 8.7 percent.…

(ANSA-AFP) - VIENNA, MAR 30 - Austrian banking group Raiffeisen, one of the last major Western lenders in Russia, said Thursday it was considering a "sale or spin-off" of its subsidiary in the country. The RBI Group, which owns the bank, has been under scrutiny over its links to Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February last year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has singled out Raiffeisenbank for criticism while the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control requested…

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, MAR 30 - The European Union reached a deal Thursday to almost double the share of renewables in the 27-nation bloc's energy consumption by 2030 amid efforts to become carbon neutral and ditch Russian fossil fuels. The provisional political agreement, which was reached after nightlong negotiations between the EU parliament and states, seeks to raise the share of renewable energy to 42.5 percent, from 22 percent today. The EU has set an ambitious target to become a "climate…

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, MAR 30 - Europe's top rights body on Thursday blasted the "inhuman" treatment of migrants who were brutally turned away at its borders, especially the EU's external frontier. Migrants had been beaten and suffered "punches, slaps, blows with truncheons, other hard objects... by police or border guards," the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) said in its annual report. "Other forms of inhuman and degrading treatment were also deployed, such as…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 30 - Montenegro signed a contract with the Chinese construction behemoth Shandong International Economic & Technical Cooperation Group to build a new highway connecting Budva and Tivat. According to the portal Balkan Insight, the 16-kilometer-long highway will cost 53 million euros and will be completed in two years. Outgoing Montenegrin Prime Minister Dritan Abazovic stated that the project was funded through the budget as well as a 14 million euro credit from the European…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 30 - The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that a Ministers' Meeting on the Western Balkans will be held in Rome on Monday, April 3, from 11 a.m. to 14:30 p.m., chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani. The event will be attended by the European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, the Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström, as rotating president of the Council…

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAR 30 - Britain's Charles III will address the German parliament on Thursday, becoming the first monarch to do so, on the occasion of his inaugural state visit as king. Germany marks the first trip abroad for Charles since ascending the throne, and is being interpreted as a "strong gesture" to build post-Brexit ties with the continent. Arriving for his three-day trip on Wednesday, he and Queen Consort Camilla were greeted with military honours at the Brandenburg Gate, the first…

(ANSA-AFP) - ENERGODAR, MAR 29 - The UN's atomic agency chief warned Wednesday of "increasing" military activity around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and hoped Russia and Ukraine would agree on safety principles. "It is obvious that the military activity is increasing in this whole region," Rafael Grossi told AFP, adding that during his visit "the idea is to agree on certain principles, certain commitments, including not to attack the plant. (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAR 29 - Britain's Charles III arrived in Germany on Wednesday for his first state visit as king, with the trip billed as "an important European gesture" to maintain strong ties after Brexit. The royals' plane, with "United Kingdom" marked on the sides, landed at Berlin-Brandenburg airport shortly before 2:00 pm (1200 GMT). "Ahead of our first State Visit to Germany, we are very much looking forward to meeting all of those who make this country so special. It is a great joy…

(ANSA) - SAN VITO AL TAGLIAMENTO, 29 MAR - In the cross-border mobility industry, the weakest actors are micro and SMEs, which face the challenges of the digital transition. Industry 4.0 technologies are also a key development factor for these companies as they enable the development of new products and services. Thanks to the TechMOlogy Project of the Interreg V-A Italy-Slovenia Cooperation Program, many companies at risk of technological marginalization in the mobility sector (including automotive,…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 29 - Slovenian and Croatian Prime Ministers Robert Golob and Andrej Plenkovic agreed to sign a gas supply solidarity agreement during Plenkovic's visit to Slovenia on Tuesday, according to Slovenian news agency Sta. Slovenia is also interested in assisting with the expansion of the Krk gas terminal and pipelines. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 29 - Elenko Bozhkov, the Bulgarian interim deputy energy minister, said that the government will sign front-end engineering design (FEED) contracts with Westinghouse Electric Company and Electricité de France (EDF) for the possible construction of four new nuclear reactors, the portal SeeNews reported. Bulgaria is close to signing a FEED contract with Westinghouse Electric for two potential AP1000 reactors at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant (NPP), and a similar contract…

(ANSA-AFP) - FRANKFURT AM MAIN, MAR 29 - German consumer morale rose again heading into April, a key survey showed Wednesday, but the pace of improvement slowed as concerns about high inflation weighed on Europe's top economy. Pollster GfK said its forward-looking survey of around 2,000 people climbed 1.1 points to reach minus 29.5 points, the sixth consecutive monthly increase. Relief that energy prices are falling, after surging sharply last year following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, was helping…

(ANSA-AFP) - PARIS, 29 MAR - Russia's cyberwar on Ukraine largely failed and Moscow is increasingly targeting Kyiv's European allies, according to US and French analysts. French defence firm Thales said in a report on Wednesday that Russia was hitting Poland, the Nordic and Baltic countries with an arsenal of cyber weapons aiming to sow divisions and promote anti-war messages. Microsoft said in a threat assessment earlier this month that Russian actors had launched attacks in at least 17 European…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, 29 MAR - Greece's position against recognizing Kosovo's independence has not changed. President Katerina Sakellaropoulou visited Belgrade today and confirmed this stance. Speaking at a joint press conference with Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic, the president admitted the existence of diplomatic pressure from the West on Athens, which, however, has not changed its position on the issue. She underlined that Greece supports the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina aimed at…

(ANSA) - BRUSSELS, 28 MAR - "A meeting will take place next week in Brussels between the chief negotiators" of Serbia and Kosovo "invited by the European mediator to move forward on what was agreed in Ohrid and to start taking the first steps in the implementation" of the deal on normalization of relations between the two countries. The meeting was announced by Peter Stano, spokesman for the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell. The head of the European diplomacy reported on…

(ANSA) - BRUSSELS, 28 MAR - European energy ministers ratified by a majority the regulation on the ban of gasoline and diesel-powered engines from 2035. Based on the final vote report in the Energy Council, Italy abstained. Along with Rome, Sofia and Bucharest abstained from the agreement. Only Poland voted against it. On the other hand, Germany was in favor, following the agreement on the future use of e-fuels reached over the weekend with the European Commission. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - MOSCOW, 28 MAR - Germany plays an active role in "pumping weapons into Ukraine," which "increases its direct and indirect involvement in the conflict." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said while commenting on the supply of Leopard tanks. (ANSA).

(ANSA) - SKOPJE, 28 MAR - Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski emphasized Monday the great benefits North Macedonia has derived from NATO membership, during a ceremony in Skopje on the third anniversary of the former Yugoslav country's entry into the Atlantic Alliance. "Joining NATO means leaving uncertainty and entering security," Kovacevski said. "It is essential to continue with NATO's open-door policy for European countries that have such an aspiration." In 1993, Skopje's parliament adopted a resolution…

(ANSA-AFP) - ATHENS, 28 MAR - Legislative elections will be held in Greece on May 21, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Tuesday. "The country and its citizens need clear horizons," Mitsotakis told the cabinet. Mitsotakis is facing a surge of anger over last month's train collision that left 57 dead in the country's worst rail tragedy. The tragedy sparked a wave of protests against his conservative government, some of them violent. Polls have shown the PM's New Democracy party holding onto…

(ANSA) - BRUSSELS, 27 MAR - "I do believe that the EU will be safer with Romania and Bulgaria in Schengen, and I believe that Romania meets all the requirements. So I hope the EU will decide as soon as possible and at any rate in 2023." EU Council President Charles Michel said this at a press conference in Bucharest with Romania's President Klaus Iohannis. "Schengen entry is a national fact; we are all committed to it. The negotiation is complex because we do not have to prove anything to show that…

(ANSA) - BRUSSELS, 27 MAR - Following the recommendation voted by the Eurochamber's justice committee, the presidency of the European Parliament has decided to join the EU Commission in formally supporting infringement procedure against Hungary. The Bureau of the Euro Chamber announced this decision. The infringement procedure opened by the EU Commission against Budapest targets the so-called "Child Protection Act," voted by the Hungarian parliament in 2021 and which, according to the EU, discriminates…

(ANSA) - UDINE, 27 MAR - "We signed with Albanian Minister of Agriculture Frida Krifca, the Italy-Albania Memorandum of Understanding to create a 360-degree partnership and strengthen agricultural collaboration between our nations." Italian Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry Francesco Lollobrigida announced on Twitter. "Our common goal is to create deep and lasting relations between Italy and Albania: a synergy for new growth opportunities in the agribusiness sector," the minister…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 27 - In March, the ifo Business Climate Index increased to 93.3 points from 91.1 points in February. Despite volatility at some international banks, the German economy is stabilizing, the index suggests. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - MOSCOW, MAR 27 - The Kremlin on Monday said Western criticism would not a prompt a change in the plans announced by President Vladimir Putin to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus. "Such a reaction of course cannot influence Russian plans," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAR 27 - Transport staff across Germany staged a major strike on Monday to push for wage hikes in the face of brisk inflation, bringing commuter lines to a halt in many cities. Workers at airports, ports, railways, buses and metro lines throughout much of Europe's top economy heeded a call by the Verdi and EVG unions for the 24-hour walkout. "A labour struggle that has no impact is toothless," Verdi boss Frank Werneke told public broadcaster Phoenix. He acknowledged the stoppage…

(ANSA) - UDINE, 25 MAR - "Our government has brought to the center of the European political debate the migration issue, which affects the Mediterranean corridor, but also the Balkan corridor, and all our action and strong presence in the Balkans aims to give stability to that region and those close to Italy, reducing migratory pressure." Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said this on the sidelines of an election meeting. "In recent days," he continued, "I was in Serbia and appreciated President Vucic's…

(ANSA) - BELGRADE, MAR 25 - "The situation on Moldova's borders remains tense, taking into account the neighboring country's war and its consequences, but there is no risk of an imminent attack against Moldova," Moldova's Defense Minister said Anatolie Nosatii in an interview with the Agerpres agency, quoted by Moldpres. (ANSA).

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, MAR 25 - The EU and Germany on Saturday said they had struck a deal after a dispute over the planned phaseout by 2035 of the sale of cars using fossil fuels to fight climate change. "We have found an agreement with Germany on the future use of efuels in cars," EU environment commissioner Frans Timmermans said on Twitter. "We will work now on getting the CO2-standards for cars regulation adopted as soon as possible." (ANSA-AFP).

(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, MAR 24 - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday said there was no reason to worry about the health of Deutsche Bank after shares in the lender dropped sharply. "Deutsche Bank has modernised and organised the way it works. It's a very profitable bank. There is no reason to be concerned," Scholz said after a summit of EU leaders. (ANSA-AFP).