From The Alpha and the Omega - Chapter Eight
by Jim A. Cornwell, Copyright © 1995, all rights reserved
"KING OF THE NORTH 2020 OCTOBER-DECEMBER"

    This file is attached to http://www.mazzaroth.com/ChapterEight/BeastThatCameOutOfTheSea.htm from “Beast That Came Out Of The Sea” - Chapter Eight by Jim A. Cornwell, Copyright © 1995, all rights reserved.
Or return to the Astronomical Events To Appear Between 2014 Through 2017 A.D. or return to King Of The North in 2020 July-September
WTO REGION 6 IN 1995 CENTRAL ASIA - RUSSIA, ARMENIA, GEORGIA, AZERBIJIAN, CUBA
WTO REGION 5 IN 1995 WESTERN ASIA/EASTERN EUROPE – BALKAN STATES, POLAND, ROMANIA, HUNGARY, BULGARIA, CZECHO-SLOVAKIA, YUGOSLAVIA, ALBANIA, ESTONIA, LATVIA, LITHUANIA.
    So as 2019 has passed do we know who the "King of the North" is?
    "Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.    The king will do as he pleases.    He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods.    He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place." (Daniel 11:35,36).
    The king of the north mentioned in verses Daniel 11:36-45 is the same King from the North (also known as the stern-faced king or the horn power) that was introduced in Daniel 8.    Notice how this point is demonstrated.
    Verse 35 points to the appointed time of the end, and verse 36 describes a king who will be successful until the time of wrath is completed.
Rev. 17:11 The Eighth Head: The Seventh Head (revived Roman Empire) will grow an Eighth Head in verse 11 (Some claim this to be "The scarlet animal that is to be destroyed).
    Rev. 17:11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth (‘Ogdoos’ eighth is connected to ‘Okta’ eight; here the vision shows that the seventh head will briefly sprout another as an eighth head or an outgrowth which will be destroyed; “the eighth” king, his “wound being healed,” Rev. 13:3, Antichrist manifested in the fullest and most intense opposition to God.    He is “the little horn” with eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things, before whom three of the ten horns were plucked up by the roots, and to whom the whole ten “give their power and strength,” in Rev. 12:13, 17.), and is of the seven (originally came from the seven heads; The eighth is not one of the seven restored, but a new power or person proceeding out of the seven, and at the same time embodying all the God opposed features of the previous seven.    For this reason there are not eight heads, but only seven, for the eighth is the embodiment of all the seven.),
and goeth into perdition (‘Apoleia’ indicating loss of well-being, not of being, is used of the Beast, the final head of the revived Roman Empire; In the birth-pangs which prepare the “regeneration” there are wars, earthquakes, and disturbances, at which Antichrist takes his rise, from the sea, Rev. 13:1; Mark 13:8; Luke 21:9-11.).
(Paraphrased: “The scarlet animal that died is the eighth king, having reigned before as one of the seven; after his second reign, he too, will go to his doom.”).
    [No one can really narrow down who or what this new entity came from, but the following is food for thought.    I ran across a news article dated 6/9/2018 on my “KingOfTheWest2018.htm" file and I discovered the following statement, was made in it and was titled "Russia joined the G-7 in the late 1990s almost a decade after the fall of the Soviet Union, making the group the G-8."    And as it is seen above in prophecy the seventh head will briefly sprout another as an eighth head, which was Russia, the eighth as one of the seven.    So as it says above "in his second reign," which was in 2018, "he too, will go to his doom.]
    Most likely this king is the Russian president Vladimir Putin because of his continued push to be in the scene and his interfacing into other areas.
    He is still in search of new nuclear missile with unlimited range, immune to enemy intercept, capable of penetrating any missile defense and can reach virtually any target around the world, “No defense systems will be able to withstand it nicknamed RS-28 Sarmat rocket — “Satan 2,” to wipe out an area the size of Texas or France.
    Putin has deployed a new hypersonic nuclear missile is highly maneuverable, allowing it to easily evade missile defense systems an Avangard missile developed by Almaz-Antey Air and Space Defence Corporation, and the new Space Force was the new system for deterence forcing China to get in on this.
    Russia deployed the S-350 Vityaz a new generation short-to-mid range surface-to-air defence missile complex and Pantsir-S and S-400 complexes to Crimea, and Arctic region, the Baltic Sea, and easternmost Khabarovsk region, and their a new Russian missile, the Novator 9M729 (called SSC-8 by NATO), and the Vityaz (Knight) is a short-to-mid range surface-to-air defence missile system.
    Kiselyov, close to the Kremlin, said the “Tsirkon” (‘Zircon’) hypersonic missile that Russia is developing could hit the targets in less than five minutes if launched from Russian submarines.    Hypersonic flight is generally taken to mean traveling through the atmosphere at more than five times the speed of sound.    “For now, we’re not threatening anyone, but if such a deployment takes place, our response will be instant,” he said.    Kiselyov is one of the main conduits of state television’s strongly anti-American tone, once saying Moscow could turn the United States into radioactive ash.    Speed of sound 767 mph; 667 kilometre in 2.9 sec or a mile in 4.7 sec, therefore the missile 5 times can do it in 0.94 seconds and 1000 miles in 17 minutes.
    During 2019 I could see that several Eastern Europe countries wanted to join the other EU countries to change the policies of the Progressive Socialist parties who have pushed their valaues on all of the European Union's 28 nations for economic growth, security, family values, christian roots and forced Islamic Shria Law issues.
    Do you think that the nations newspapers in Russia put out fake news on Putin, which I assume they do not since they would be shut down that day.    The reason I said this is for the U.S. NY Times and Washington Post that if you keep pushing the Progressive Socialists Liberal Democrat views as you are doing you might find yourself being shut down for what you say in your paper like many of the countries in the world if that future occurs.    What concerns me the most is that is what you want.
    Russia also intends to propose holding a three-way summit on Syria in Russia with Iran and Turkey.    Keep in mind that Syria is a northern country bordered on Israel, and here we have Russia, Turkey and Iran making decisions of what will occur in Syria, and I see that the King of the North, King of the South, and possibly King of the East are setting up a future of biblical proportions, and the King of the West may be out of this picture as God wanted it to be to snare them when the time comes.
    Russia knows what is going on as the OPEC/USA is keeping oil prices down which is putting pressure on Iran, especially now that sanctions are in full effect.    Putin also began pumping alot of oil since he remembered when Reagan lowered the price of a barrel as low as $20, and they could not buy enough wheat to feed them and that forced Russia to tear down the Berlin wall.    Oil was at $55 a barrel in 2019, so more oil pumped is $25 a barrel profit which he knew what Trump was doing to Iran.
    The U.S. was under the Progressive Socialist Liberal Democrats from 2009 to 2018 as Obama and his Czars slowly behind closed doors implemented their changes to the U.S.A. and controlled the press in such away that we did not know what they were doing until the public caught on in 2014 and elected the Republicans to control the House and the Senate, and in 2016 the Deplorables elected a Republican president Donald J. Trump who is turning it around and being attacked constantly.
    Ukranians have been in the corruption of Oligarchs for so long they cannot tell who is who to believe and do not forget that Hillary, Obama and Joe Biden were part of that mess also and several presidents even used Paul Manafort for that issue to interfere in Ukraines politics.    A new Ukraine president Zelensky who was a comedian is taking over and trying to stop the corruption and the war with Russia over the Crimea, and is helping Trump against the corruption in his area.
    It was good to see that Hungary's Orban, and Poland's leaders have won some respect as those who stands by their beliefs and does not sell their souls to the liberal Geroge Soros prodigees and the EU leftist trying to control everyone.
    The Space Race is on again who can afford it and who will achieve it?
    The end of the year was filled with all the connection of Russia with Turkey, China, North Korea, Ukraine and Syria.     When Trump pulled our troops out of Syria and whether the prophecy below represents the beginning of the events happening in late October 2019 is still to be determined if Daniel 11:40-45 claims it represents the Northern King’s Conquests     Ezekiel 38:1 and 18 or Ezekiel 39:1-8 which states about the entwining of Russia the King of the North and the Mideast Nations and the King of the South into the prophecy above in the very near future as the King of the West has pulled out of this mess which I think Trump made the right call probably due to God's influence.
    The following image below is seen at http://www.mazzaroth.com/ChapterSix/Psalm83.htm so you can tell by the verses above who are the countries today.
    Well, lets see what happens in 2020.

2020 OCTOBER-DECEMBER

10/1/2020 France Accuses Turkey Of Sending Syrian Mercenaries To Nagorno-Karabakh by Michel Rose and John Irish
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Presidium of the State Council, via a video
conference call in Sochi, Russia September 28, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
    PARIS/MOSCOW (Reuters) – France accused Turkey on Thursday of sending Syrian mercenaries to fight in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and said it was working with Russia to reach a ceasefire between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces.
    Turkey has denied sending mercenaries to take part in the conflict.
    France, Russia and the United States are co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation’s (OSCE) Minsk Group, set up in 1992 to mediate a peaceful resolution over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave in the South Caucasus.
    The group has yet to meet or send a joint statement since new clashes began on Sunday over the mountainous enclave which is inside Azerbaijan but is administered by ethnic Armenians and broke away in a 1991-94 war.
    “President (Emmanuel) Macron and (Vladimir) Putin agreed on the need for a joint effort to reach a ceasefire in the framework of Minsk,” Macron’s office said in a statement after the two leaders spoke by telephone.
    “They also shared their concern regarding the sending of Syrian mercenaries by Turkey to Nagorno-Karabakh.”
    The French presidency provided no evidence to support the accusation about the mercenaries and the Kremlin statement made no mention of the accusation.
    Macron, who has been in a war of words with Turkish President Tayyep Erdogan for months, said on Wednesday Ankara was acting in a “warlike” manner.
    Russia’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday Syrian and Libyan fighters from illegal armed groups were being sent to the Nagorno-Karabakh regions.
    Russia has a military base in Armenia and considers it to be a strategic partner.    France’s population includes about 600,000 people of Armenian origin.
    Armenia’s ambassador to Moscow said on Monday that Turkey had sent around 4,000 fighters from northern Syria to Azerbaijan and that they were fighting there, an assertion denied by an aide to Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, and Turkey’s government.
(Additional reporting by Darya Korsunskaya and Katya Golubkova and Maxim Rodionov in Moscow and Elisabeth Pineau in Paris, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

10/1/2020 Kremlin Critic Navalny To Magazine: Putin Was Behind Crime Against Me
Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny goes downstairs at Charite hospital in Berlin, Germany, in this undated
image obtained from social media September 19, 2020. Courtesy of Instagram @NAVALNY/Social Media via REUTERS
    BERLIN (Reuters) – Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny told a German magazine that Russian President Vladimir Putin was behind his suspected poisoning and stressed that he was not afraid.
    Navalny was flown from Russia to Berlin in August after falling ill on a domestic flight.    He received treatment in the Charite hospital for what Germany said was poisoning by a potentially deadly nerve agent before being discharged in September.
    “I claim that Putin is behind the crime and I don’t have any other versions of what happened,” Navalny told Der Spiegel, according to an extract of an interview due to be published later on Thursday.
    The West has demanded an explanation from the Kremlin, which has denied any involvement in the incident and said it has yet to see evidence of a crime.
    “You don’t feel any pain but you know you’re dying,” Navalny said of the moment that the nerve agent began to take effect on him.
    Navalny told Der Spiegel he would return to Russia, adding: “My task is now to remain fearless.    And I have no fear!”
    A political activist who helped bring Navalny to Germany has said on Sept. 24 it would take the Russian opposition leader at least another month to regain fitness, adding it was clear he planned to return to Russia and resume political activity.
(Reporting by Michelle Adair; Editing by Maria Sheahan)

10/1/2020 Four Killed, 10 Hospitalized In Forest Fires In Eastern Ukraine
Firefighters are seen in a settlement hit by a forest fire in Luhansk region, Ukraine in this
handout picture released October 1, 2020. The National Police of Ukraine/Handout via REUTERS
    KYIV (Reuters) – Four people died and ten were hospitalized as a series of forest fires swept through part of the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk, Ukraine’s emergency service said on Thursday.
    The fires threatened 22 settlements and engulfed an area of about 18,000 hectares (70 sq miles), the service said in a statement, adding that 120 people were evacuated.
    Local authorities said there were a total of 146 fires, 82 of them were extinguished.
    Most of the fires are located near the area controlled by pro-Russian separatists and local Ukrainian authorities have stated that the fires may have been caused by shelling from the separatists.
    The Ukrainian presidential office called on law enforcement bodies to find the cause of the fires.
    “The reasons for such a large-scale spread of fire must be clearly established,” the office said in a statement.
    “We also take into account the information about provocative shelling that could have been carried out from the temporarily occupied territory… and could have caused at least some of these fires in such weather conditions,” it added.
    Last month the Ukrainian military accused pro-Russian separatists of violating a ceasefire with government forces.
    The simmering conflict between Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed rebels has killed more than 13,000 people since 2014.    Major combat ended with a truce agreed in the Belarus capital Minsk in 2015, but sporadic clashes still regularly kill civilians, Ukrainian soldiers and separatists.
    Earlier this year, one person died and nine were hospitalized in a similar forest fire that swept through the Luhansk region, destroying 80 dacha holiday cottages and 30 houses in two villages.
    This spring, forest fires around the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant in the north of the country and elsewhere pushed pollution levels in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv to the worst in the world.
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan; Editing by Toby Chopra)

10/1/2020 EU Leaders To Urge Cyprus To Lift Veto On Belarus Sanctions by Francesco Guarascio and John Chalmers
FILE PHOTO: European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium August 21, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders will try to break a stalemate over Belarus on Thursday by untangling a separate standoff with Turkey that has exposed the shortcomings of the bloc’s decision-making.
    Meeting in Brussels for a two-day summit, leaders are set to confront Cyprus, one the EU’s smallest members, which is accused of holding up approval of economic sanctions on Belarus.    The sanctions plan follows an election in August that the West and the opposition say was rigged.
    While Britain and Canada have gone ahead with punitive measures on Minsk to show support for pro-democracy protests, the impasse in the 27 state-EU, where decisions are taken by unanimity, has cost the bloc credibility, diplomats said.
    “We expect that it (the summit) will be the tipping point for the decision on sanctions against Belarus authorities,” Gitanas Nauseda, the president of Lithuania, where Belarus’ main opposition leader has fled to exile, said ahead of the meeting.
    Draft conclusions prepared for the summit said EU leaders condemned unacceptable violence in against peaceful protesters in Belarus and did not recognise the election results.    It added that “restrictive measures” should be imposed without delay.
    Cyprus says the EU must first agree to impose sanctions on Turkey to send a message that Ankara’s oil and gas exploration along the coast of the Mediterranean island is unacceptable.
    Cypriot officials cite an August agreement among EU foreign ministers to approve Turkish sanctions and Belarus sanctions together, arguing that both are of equal importance.
    The draft summit conclusions had no agreed line on Turkey.
    “There’s a great deal of political activity at the highest levels…to try and unblock the situation on sanctions against Belarus,” a senior EU diplomat said.
    The economically powerful EU sees itself as a beacon of democracy and human rights, eager to influence international events through its soft power that transformed former communist neighbours into thriving market economies.
    But its unanimity rule in foreign policy and its strained relationship with Turkey have raised questions about the EU’s ability to exert influence internationally.
    Weakened in foreign policy by Britain’s departure from the EU – a subject that will feature on the second day of the summit – the EU is being pulled in different directions by France’s tough stance on Turkey and Germany’s push for dialogue.
    EU diplomats say a solution could involve a promise to Cyprus for tough sanctions on Turkey in the future.
    “The idea is to threaten Turkey with retaliatory measures if it continues with drilling and other provocations in Cypriot and Greek waters,” a second senior EU diplomat said.
    “This is meant to offer guarantees to Cyprus and convince Nicosia to lift its veto on Belarus sanctions.”
(Additional reporting by Philip Blenkinsop, Jan Strupczewski in Brussels and Sabine Siebold in Berlin, writing by Robin Emmott; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Philippa Fletcher)

10/1/2020 U.S. Holding Back On Belarus Sanctions, Hopes For Joint Move With EU: Sources by Arshad Mohammed, Jonathan Landay and Matt Spetalnick
FILE PHOTO: An opposition supporter waves a historical white-red-white flag of Belarus in front of law
enforcement officers during a rally to demand the resignation of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko more than
a month after the disputed presidential election, in Minsk, Belarus September 20, 2020. Tut.By via REUTERS
    WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States has held off on joining Britain and Canada in imposing sanctions on Belarus in hopes the European Union can overcome an internal dispute, paving the way to coordinated U.S. and EU sanctions, four sources said on Wednesday.
    The EU vowed in August to impose sanctions on Belarus for alleged fraud in its Aug. 9 election and for human rights abuses since, but Cyprus, one of its smallest members, has prevented that.
    Cyprus has maintained it will not agree to the Belarusian sanctions unless the EU also puts sanctions on Turkey because of a separate dispute over Turkish drilling for oil and gas in the Eastern Mediterranean.
    Six sources told Reuters last week that Britain, Canada and the United States planned to impose sanctions on individual Belarusians in a coordinated move.    Only London and Ottawa followed suit on Tuesday.
    Speaking on condition of anonymity, three sources said on Wednesday that Washington refrained because it believed the EU might achieve consensus at this week’s European Council meeting.
    One source familiar with the matter told Reuters that a U.S. package, including human rights sanctions, was essentially ready, but the timing of any announcement was uncertain.
    The sanctions aim to impose consequences for the disputed election, which the opposition says was stolen, and for the treatment of protesters in Belarus, where President Alexander Lukashenko has ruled for 26 years.
    More than 12,000 people have been arrested since Lukashenko, who denies electoral fraud, was named the election’s landslide winner.    Major opposition figures are either in jail or in exile.
    A Cyprus source said there was a “political agreement” on Turkish sanctions at an informal EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Berlin in August and Cyprus remained ready to implement it, although it was not clear precisely what the source meant.
    “It’s not a question of softening or hardening of (Cyprus’) position, the source said.
    After the meeting, Germany’s Foreign Ministry said ministers agreed on their “solidarity with Greece and Cyprus” but stressed that constructive dialogue with Turkey was vital to resolve “contentious issues in the eastern Mediterranean.”
    The U.S. State Department did not directly address why it had not joined Britain and Canada in imposing sanctions, but said it welcomed their having done so and noted U.S. sanctions already applied to 16 Belarusians, including Lukashenko.
    “We are coordinating closely with our European partners to promote accountability for those involved in human rights abuses and repression in Belarus,” said a State Department spokesman on condition he not be identified.
    He said Washington backed an independent look at “Belarus’ fraudulent election, the human rights abuses surrounding the election and the ongoing violence by Belarusian authorities” and repeated U.S. calls for the authorities to cease violence against peaceful protesters and to engage with the opposition.
    The embassy of Cyprus in Washington and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
(Reporting by Arshad Mohammed, Jonathan Landay and Matt Spetalnick in Washington; Additional reporting by Michele Kambas in Nicosia; Editing by David Gregorio and Peter Cooney)

10/1/2020 Finally, A Government After 652 Days: New Belgian PM Debuts At EU Summit by Marine Strauss
FILE PHOTO: New Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (R) bumps elbows with European Council President Charles Michel at the start of the second face-to-face
European Union summit since the coronavirus disease outbreak began, in Brussels, Belgium, October 1, 2020. Olivier Hoslet/Pool via REUTERS
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgium’s new premier arrived for a European Union summit on Thursday fresh from his swearing-in ceremony, exultantly bumping elbows with fellow leaders as he told them his country finally had a proper government after 652 days.
    Summits of the 27-nation EU had become used to a “caretaker” Belgian prime minister since December 2018 when the ruling coalition collapsed, leading to Belgium’s longest ever stretch without a government.
    But Alexander De Croo, a Flemish liberal who had served as acting finance minister in the caretaker government since an inconclusive election 16 months ago, was sworn in on Monday just five hours before sitting down with EU leaders.
    “I’m very happy to be here and to meet my colleagues for the first time, I’m happy to announce in Belgium we finally have a new government,” he told them.
    Belgium’s deep decentralisation and linguistic divide between Flanders and the French-speaking Wallonia have often delayed forming a government.    After a 2010 election, the country took a world record 541 days to assemble one.
    During the latest hiatus, interim premier Sophie Wilmes was criticised for her handling of the coronavirus pandemic in the country that is home to EU institutions and NATO.
    Beyond containing the pandemic, which has killed more than 10,000 people in the country of 11 million, De Croo’s seven-party coalition will face the challenge of reviving an economy that contracted by 14.5 percent in the second quarter of 2020.
    “Our country, our economy, our companies cannot afford new generalised lockdowns,” de Croo told Belgian lawmakers on Thursday, promising environmental reforms, a rise in minimum pension payments, and an extension of paternity leave.
    As he seeks a vote of confidence in the Belgium parliament on Saturday, his government has attracted attention for being the country’s first gender-balanced one.    Wilmes became Belgium’s first female foreign minister while women were appointed as interior and defence ministers for the first time too.
    Green EU lawmaker Petra de Sutter became the first transgender federal minister, landing a deputy premier job in charge of state-owned companies and public administration.
(Reporting by Marine Strauss; Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

10/1/2020 Kremlin Says Navalny Works With CIA After He Accuses Putin Of Poisoning
Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny goes downstairs at Charite hospital in Berlin, Germany, in this undated
image obtained from social media September 19, 2020. Courtesy of Instagram @NAVALNY/Social Media via REUTERS
    BERLIN/MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Thursday accused opposition politician Alexei Navalny of working with the CIA after Navalny said he believed President Vladimir Putin was behind the suspected poisoning that put him in a coma in Germany.
    The accusation from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appears to be the first time the Russian authorities have directly accused Putin’s highest-profile critic of working with a foreign intelligence agency.
    It raises the stakes should Navalny fulfil a pledge to return to Russia, and may add to pressure on Western leaders, especially German Chancellor Angela Merkel, to take action over his case.
    Navalny responded by saying he would sue Peskov over the accusation, challenging him to present evidence to back it up.    His aide Lyubov Sobol called the allegation “complete gibberish.”
    Navalny, 44, emerged in recent weeks from a coma after suddenly falling ill in during a flight in Siberia and being air-lifted to Berlin for treatment.    German doctors say he was poisoned with novichok, a rare Russian nerve agent.
    “I believe that Putin is behind the crime and I don’t have any other versions of what happened,” Navalny told Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine in an interview published on Thursday.
    Peskov said Navalny’s allegations against Putin were unacceptable, groundless and insulting.
    “It’s not the patient working with Western intelligence, it’s Western intelligence working with him.    That would be more accurate.    There is such information.    I can even say definitely – specialists of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency are working with him currently,” the Kremlin spokesman said.
    In response, Navalny wrote on his website: “Firstly, I am suing Peskov.”
    “And secondly, I demand the publication of proof and facts, demonstrating my ‘work with CIA specialists.’    Show it on television at prime time.    You have my permission.”
YOU KNOW YOU ARE DYING
    Germany and other Western countries have demanded an explanation from the Kremlin for Navalny’s illness.    Russia says it has seen no firm evidence he was poisoned and denies involvement in any attack on him.
    In a separate development, Russian news agency RIA said Moscow had invited experts from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to come to Russia to cooperate on the Navalny case.
    Germany requested the OPCW’s assistance last month.    Russia has criticised both Berlin and the agency for what it says is their refusal to share information.
    Navalny has posted on social media about his recovery, but the interview with Der Spiegel was the first he has given to a major news organisation since regaining consciousness.
    He told Der Spiegel he would return to Russia.
    “My task is now to remain fearless.    And I have no fear!    If my hands are shaking, it’s because of the poison, not out of fear.    I will not give Putin the gift of not returning,” he said.
    Describing the moment that the poison began to take effect, Navalny said: “You don’t feel any pain but you know you’re dying.”    He said he was making a steady recovery and was now relearning how to balance on one leg.
    Navalny has tormented the Kremlin for years with online videos in which he details the lavish lifestyles and undeclared wealth of senior officials he castigates as “swindlers and thieves.”
    In a country where opposition figures have little access to traditional politics, his anti-corruption campaign has become one of the few successful outlets for popular discontent.
    He and his wife are now living in a rented flat in Berlin, but he said he would only resume posting videos once he was back in Russia.    “I do not want to be the opposition leader in exile.”
    The politician, who was visited at his hospital bedside by Merkel, said he felt a personal bond to Germany and was impressed by Merkel’s knowledge of Russia.
    “My impression is that Merkel needs no advice from me,” he said.    “But any Russia strategy must account for the depth of madness that Putin has now reached.”
(Reporting by Thomas Escritt, Michelle Adair in Berlin and Maria Tsvetkova, Tom Balmforth, Anton Zverev and Alexander Marrow in Moscow; Editing by Maria Sheahan and Angus MacSwan)

10/2/2020 Belarus Announces Sanctions List In Retaliation Against EU
FILE PHOTO: Alexander Lukashenko takes the oath of office as Belarusian President during a swearing-in
ceremony in Minsk, Belarus September 23, 2020. Andrei Stasevich/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MINSK (Reuters) – The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had compiled a list of people barred from entering Belarus in retaliation against sanctions imposed by the European Union.
    The ministry said the list would not be made public.
    EU leaders broke a diplomatic deadlock earlier on Friday and imposed sanctions on Belarus after hours of summit talks.
(Reporting by Andrei Makhovsky; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams)

10/2/2020 Russian Ally Kyrgyzstan Holds Election On Sunday Amid Wave Of Discontent
FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbay Jeenbekov
during a meeting in Sochi, Russia September 28, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan, Russia’s closest ally in Central Asia, will vote in a parliamentary election on Sunday amid signs of widespread disaffection with the ruling elite.
    Potential unrest in the impoverished mountainous nation could add to the woes of the Kremlin, which faces sanctions over the suspected poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, a political crisis in Belarus and conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.
    Hundreds of people staged an “independence march” protest in the capital Bishkek on Sunday after a video surfaced online in which a pro-presidential party leader spoke of a need to integrate more closely with Russia.
    President Sooronbai Jeenbekov, who met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi on Monday, suggested the protesters were working against the 6.5 million population of the former Soviet republic, which hosts a Russian military air base.
    “Forces opposed to the stability and development of our country have stepped up their activity on the eve of the election,” he said.
    The country has a history of instability: in the past 15 years, two presidents have been toppled by revolts and a third is in prison after falling out with his successor.
    A vote against all parties was the most popular choice of respondents to a rare nationwide opinion poll conducted on behalf of the U.S.-backed International Republican Institute in August.    The poll also showed 53% of respondents believed the country was headed in the wrong direction.
    Respondents chose unemployment and the COVID-19 pandemic as their top concerns.    The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development expects Kyrgyzstan’s gross domestic product to plunge 9.5% this year, its worst performance in 20 years.
    Many of the 16 parties contesting 120 seats in the unicameral legislature are new and two of the three parties which led the IRI poll are now defunct.
    One of them is the Social Democratic party which won most seats in the previous vote and backed Jeenbekov but split after a rift between him and ex-president Almazbek Atambayev.
    Kyrgyz political analyst Mars Sariyev said government opponents were trying to promote voting against all.    If they succeed, “there will be protests and repeat elections,” he said.
    If more people vote against everyone than for any one party, Kyrgyz law stipulates the vote must be repeated.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; writing by Olzhas Auyezov; editing by Philippa Fletcher)

10/2/2020 Washington Hits Belarus With Sanctions As Minsk Retaliates Against EU Measures
FILE PHOTO: Alexander Lukashenko takes the oath of office as Belarusian President during a swearing-in
ceremony in Minsk, Belarus September 23, 2020. Andrei Stasevich/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    (Reuters) – The United States imposed sanctions on eight Belarusian officials on Friday, accusing them of involvement in rigging President Alexander Lukashenko’s re-election victory in August or the violent crackdown on protests that followed.
    The move came after the European Union announced sanctions on 40 people, including the interior minister and the head of the election commission, achieving a breakthrough on the issue at summit talks in the early hours of Friday morning.
    Lukashenko was spared, in line with the EU’s policy of punishing powerbrokers as a last resort.    He denies electoral fraud and says the protests are backed from abroad.
    Lukashenko’s government announced retaliatory sanctions against unidentified officials, recalled its ambassadors to Poland and Lithuania for consultations and nudged both countries to reduce the size of their embassy staff in Minsk.
    Lukashenko is grappling to contain nearly two months of street protests that pose the biggest challenge to his 26-year rule. More than 13,000 people have been arrested, and major opposition figures jailed or exiled.
    “The United States and our international partners stand united in imposing costs on those who have undermined Belarusian democracy for years,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
    The U.S. sanctions also targeted Belarusian Interior Minister Yuri Karaev and his deputy.    Those under sanctions are subject to asset freezes and a ban against Americans doing business with them.
    Washington had originally been expected to impose sanctions in concert with Britain and Canada, which went ahead on Tuesday with travel bans and asset freezes on Lukashenko, his son Viktor and other senior officials.
    Washington has had sanctions on Lukashenko since 2006 but the president was spared in the latest round of measures.
LUKASHENKO SPEAKS TO PUTIN
    The crisis has pushed Belarus back towards traditional ally Russia, which has propped up Lukashenko’s government with loans and the offer of military support.    Moscow sees its ex-Soviet neighbour as a strategic buffer against the EU and NATO.
    Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Friday, expressing confidence that “the problems that have arisen will soon be resolved,” the Kremlin said.
    Lukashenko’s government announced it had drawn up a list of people who were banned from travelling to Belarus in retaliation for the EU sanctions.    It did not name the officials or the countries they were from.
    “…we are imposing visa sanctions against the most biased representatives of European institutions, including the European Parliament and the states – EU members,” foreign ministry spokesman Anatoly Glaz was quoted by the official Belta news agency as saying.
    “The list is symmetrical in many ways.    We have decided not to make it public for now.”
    Russia’s foreign ministry said the Belarusian sanctions would apply in Russia as well.
    Lukashenko’s government also asked the Polish and Lithuanian embassies to reduce their staff.    Both countries refused.
    “We are not going to summon our ambassadors for consultations, and we will definitely not do anything to reduce personnel,” Lithuanian Foreign Affairs Minister Linas Linkevicius told reporters.
    “We are not interested in reducing our communications channel,” he said.    “If the advice becomes a request, then we will take appropriate measures.”
    The Belarusian authorities have detained journalists or stripped them of their accreditation as part of the crackdown on the unrest that followed the Aug. 9 election.
    On Friday, the foreign ministry announced it was stripping journalists working for foreign media organisations of their accreditation, and asked them to reapply for their permits.
    “I would like to make it clear that it is in no way some attempt to cleanse the news reporting field,” Glaz was quoted by Belta as saying.
    The EU sanctions had been held up by Cyprus due to an unrelated dispute with Turkey.    The delay dented the credibility of the EU’s foreign policy, diplomats said.
    “That we could now agree to those sanctions is an important signal because it strengthens the hand of those who are protesting for freedom of opinion in Belarus,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel told journalists.
    Merkel will meet on Tuesday with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenko’s main electoral opponent who fled into exile after the vote in the ex-Soviet republic, fearing for her family’s safety.
    French President Emmanuel Macron met Tsikhanouskaya on Tuesday, pledging European support for the Belarusian people.
(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick, Daphne Psaledakis and Arshad Mohammed in Washington, Robin Emmott in Brussels, Andrius Sytas in Vilnius, Vladimir Soldatkin, Alexander Marrow and Polina Ivanova in Moscow, Joanna Plucinska in Warsaw, Thomas Escritt in Berlin; writing by Matthias Williams; editing by Mark Potter)

10/2/2020 Hungarians Launch Crowd-Funded News Site As Orban Allies Gain Sway In Media by by Krisztina Than
Telex Editor in Chief Veronika Munk greets CEO Marton Karpati, amongst other journalists in the editorial room,
as the independent news website Telex launches, in Budapest, Hungary, October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Political journalist Attila Rovo began work on Friday at Hungary’s latest experiment in independent journalism – a crowd-funded online news service called Telex.
    Operating from a small apartment near the Danube and financed solely by donations from more than 34,000 readers, Telex is an attempt to break free from what Rovo and other critics describe as growing government influence over Hungary’s media via owners supportive of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
    Rovo, 40, has worked for the state radio and three privately-owned websites over the past decade.    He was fired from the radio in 2011, shortly after Orban’s government took control of state media.    He quit all three websites due to what he said was state meddling that threatened his journalistic integrity.
    The last website was Index, then the largest independent news site in Hungary.    Rovo’s career there ended on July 24 when the staff of Index resigned en masse over what they called an “open attempt to exert pressure” on the site after its owner sacked their editor-in-chief.
    “We started to feel like the frog in a pan of cold water that’s slowly being cooked… The frog says it’s OK, it is still OK, but then the water suddenly starts boiling,” said Rovo.
    Telex is being set up by 60-70 former Index journalists, with Rovo as its new deputy editor-in-chief.
    The European Union and pro-democracy groups have long accused Orban’s nationalist government of curbing media and other freedoms, a charge it denies.
    In a report this week, the European Commission said state advertising was being channeled to pro-government outlets, leading to “indirect political influence over the media.”
    “Independent media outlets face systematic obstruction and intimidation, while a trend of economic takeover of such outlets raises additional concern,” the EU executive said.
    Government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said in an emailed comment to Reuters that the EU report was “absurd and untrue.”
“THE AIR IS GETTING THINNER”
    Rovo said he had not experienced direct political interference over content at Index.
    But after pro-government businessman Miklos Vaszily acquired significant control over Index’s funding this year, Rovo said financial pressure had increased, for example in threats to cut editorial jobs despite strong sales.
    When the editor-in-chief was dismissed, it was time to leave, the soft-spoken Rovo added.
    In emailed comments to Reuters, Vaszily said that after he acquired a 50% stake in Indamedia – the company that controls Index’s funding – he took no part personally in its operational decisions or in any negotiations between Indamedia and Index.
    He said Indamedia had demanded greater cost efficiency from Index due to the worse than initially expected impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the outlook for advertising revenues.
    As journalists set up their computers in the new Telex office, editor-in-chief Veronika Munk said they had enough funds for several months – including a promised donation of 200,000 euros from Czech media group Economia – and that the eventual aim was for Telex to become subscription-based.
    Despite the challenges, Rovo said, journalists in Hungary are free to write what they want without fear of being jailed but that they need to escape the pressures exerted by the owners of media outlets and funding channels.
    “They (the government) are gradually tightening (control), the air is getting thinner.    And you don’t even know who is doing it, as it is not a politician, or the prime minister, or a party… but people who act on their behalf.”
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Gareth Jones)

10/2/2020 Czech PM Babis’ Party Wins Wide Support In Regional Elections
FILE PHOTO: Czech Republic's Prime Minister Andrej Babis arrives for the second face-to-face European Union summit
since the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Brussels, Belgium October 1, 2020. Francisco Seco/Pool via REUTERS
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis’ party won in 10 of 13 regional elections on Saturday in a vote seen as an indicator of support for his party’s handling of the country’s second wave of the fast-increasing coronavirus outbreak.
    The election for regional governments saw 38% of eligible voters turn out, as novel coronavirus case numbers around the country soar.    The turn-out was even higher than the 34% recorded in the previous regional elections four years ago.
    One third of seats in the Czech parliament’s upper chamber, the Senate, were also contested, with 37% of voters arriving for the first round.    The final round is scheduled in one week.
    “I would like to thank all my fellow citizens.    It is amazing that they were not afraid and they voted,” Babis said.
    Support for his party in opinion polls had ticked lower amid criticism over his perceived reluctance to bring back tough measures to fight the pandemic and over other policy inconsistencies hurting public trust.
    Earlier this week, the government called a state of emergency from Oct. 5 and imposed measures including limiting gatherings and banning musicals and operas to curb the coronavirus before it overwhelms the health system.
    The Czech Republic’s spike in virus cases was the second-largest in Europe in September when adjusted for population, with more than 40,000 cases logged during the month.
    Thousands of Czechs used the possibility to cast their votes at drive-in polling stations earlier in the week as they were either infected by the coronavirus or in quarantine.
(Reporting by Michael Kahn, Editing by Robert Muller and Hugh Lawson)

10/3/2020 Hungary PM Agrees On Big Wage Hike For Doctors As COVID-19 Cases Rise
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban holds a news conference in Budapest, Hungary, June 12, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government agreed with the Hungarian Medical Chamber on a substantial wage hike for doctors on Saturday, as the country braces for a further rise in coronavirus cases that could strain its healthcare system.
    Hungary reported 1,086 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, bringing the total number of infections so far to 29,717 with 812 deaths.
    Like many other east European countries, Hungary is grappling with a shortage of doctors and medical workers as local salaries pale in comparison to western European levels.
    Gyula Kincses, chairman of the Hungarian Medical Chamber, said the government has accepted a proposed pay scale for doctors that would see base salaries for medical practitioners and doctors roughly double from current levels.
    “We have finally managed to achieve what we have been fighting for, that we will be able to work in a healthcare system without gratuity payments, with appropriate salaries,” Kincses told an online news briefing.
    Depending on age and level of experience, medical practitioners will earn 700,000 to 800,000 forints, while older doctors will receive up to 2.4 million forints, Kincses said.
    The wage rises, which Kincses said would be front-loaded from January, would be implemented over two years, rising to the newly agreed levels by 2023.
    Orban said in a Facebook video that his government would submit legislation on the wage hikes to parliament on Monday.
    “Our hospitals will come under enormous strain over the next seven to eight months,” he said, adding that a COVID-19 vaccine was not expected before the second half of next year.
    “Now is the time for a massive wage improvement for our doctors,” he said.
    Kincses said the sides had also agreed to clamp down on the practice of gratuity payments, with possible penalties for both patients making and doctors accepting such out-of-pocket payments in return for medical services.
    Orban, who faces an election in the first half of 2022, also confirmed this week that his government would resume the payment of an extra month’s worth of pensions from 2021, as the economy is headed for a slower-than-expected recovery from the pandemic.
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

10/4/2020 Party Splits And ‘Against All’ Idea Cast Shadow Over Kyrgyzstan’s Election
A medic and members of a local electoral commission visit voters during parliamentary election
in the village of Arashan, Kyrgyzstan, October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan votes in a parliamentary election on Sunday that will test President Sooronbai Jeenbekov’s political capital and his ability to forge new alliances amid the worst economic crisis in two decades.
    Jeenbekov’s supporters look likely to win a significant number of seats in the legislature in the Central Asian country, but the current pro-presidential ruling coalition is certain to be upset due to internal splits in the two major political groups and widespread voter discontent.
    The campaign has been marred by allegations of vote-buying, and an August opinion poll ordered by the U.S.-backed International Republican Institute showed that 15% of respondents favoured the idea of voting against all parties.
    A total of 16 parties are contesting 120 seats in the single-chamber parliament.    If none of them wins more votes than the “Against all” option, a new election would have to be called.
    The country of 6.5 million people has a history of political turmoil: in the past 15 years, two presidents have been toppled by revolts and a third is in prison after falling out with his successor.
    Further instability would be a concern to close ally Russia.    Moscow operates a military airbase in the former Soviet republic and is already dealing with major crises involving its allies Belarus and Armenia, as well as its own issues around the suspected poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
    Some observers say the campaign promoting voting against all parties is in fact a ploy by the wealthiest parties, who would be able to outspend smaller competitors in a rerun.
    The Social Democratic party (SDPK), which dominated the previous election in 2015 and served as the core of the pro-presidential coalition, has split after a rift between Jeenbekov and his predecessor Almazbek Atambayev.
    Another major coalition member, “Respublika – Ata Zhurt,” which together with SDPK won more than a half of the seats in the previous election has also split.    Some of its MPs will seek reelection on a different party’s ticket.
    Some of Jeenbekov’s closest allies including his brother are now running for parliament under the flag of the Birimdik (Unity) party.    But that party’s leader, Marat Amankulov, faced a barrage of criticism last month over comments in which he called for closer integration with Russia. Amankulov said the remarks were taken out of context.
    Less than a week ahead of the vote, Jeenbekov travelled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin who assured him of Moscow’s support.
    Results of the election are likely to be known on Sunday night or on Monday, but given the fractured nature of the parties, it could be days or weeks before a government is formed.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Frances Kerry)

10/4/2020 Tens Of Thousands Rally In Minsk, Police Use Water Cannon by Andrey Ostroukh
People attend an opposition rally to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 4, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of people marched through the centre of the Belarusian capital Minsk on Sunday to demand that authorities free political prisoners, prompting police to turn water cannon on them.
    The march is the latest in a series of rallies in Belarus since an Aug. 9 election in which President Alexander Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory.    His opponents say it was rigged to hand him a sixth term in power.
    More than 100,000 people rallied in Minsk, the opposition news channel Nexta said on the messaging app Telegram.    Official estimates are usually lower.
    The crowd, waving white flags with a red stripe, which have become the symbol of the Belarusian opposition, marched to the beat of drums towards detention centres, pictures and videos posted on social media showed.
    “Let them out,” the crowd chanted by the walls of Okrestina detention centre, where some protesters and Lukashenko’s opponents are believed to be held.
    Lukashenko is struggling to contain nearly two months of street protests that pose the biggest challenge to his 26-year rule. More than 13,000 people have been arrested and some later freed, while major opposition figures have been jailed or exiled.
    Belarusian police on Sunday used water cannon mounted on armoured police vehicles to disperse protesters and detained scores of protesters, Interfax news agency reported and videos on social media showed.
    Armed policemen in black helmets holding batons cordoned off streets in central Minsk, while some metro stations temporarily closed their doors for commuters.
    The authorities temporarily ordered slower internet speed, which was restored late on Sunday. Telegram channels, the main means of communication and distribution of photos and videos from the protests, asked residents of Minsk to unlock their Wifi networks if protesters march nearby.
    Other cities in Belarus also saw rallies against Lukashenko on Sunday.
    The political crisis in Belarus has caused broad repercussions for Minsk and its ally Moscow.    The European Union and the United States has imposed sanctions on senior Belarusian officials, but spared Lukashenko.
    The crisis has also raised the possibility of more sanctions against Moscow if it helps Lukashenko.    The rouble has already dropped steeply at the prospect.
    Lukashenko denies electoral fraud and was inaugurated in late September in a ceremony held without any prior announcement, bringing more protests and condemnation from the European Union, the United States and Britain.
(Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Katya Golubkova and Barbara Lewis)

10/5/2020 Chemical Weapons Watchdog Ready To Assist Russia In Navalny Case
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny speaks with journalists after he was released
from a detention centre in Moscow, Russia August 23, 2019. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina
    AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – The global chemical weapons watchdog, which has been asked by Germany to test samples of what Berlin says was a banned nerve agent used to poison a Russian opposition figure, said on Monday its experts would be prepared to assist Russia in the case.
    The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said it had received a request from Moscow on Oct. 1 for help in the case of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, and was seeking clarification on what type of assistance Russia wanted.
    Navalny fell ill on a flight in Siberia on Aug. 20 and was flown to Germany for treatment. German doctors say blood tests show he was poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok.    The OPCW has collected its own samples to test at Germany’s request.
    Russia has said it has seen no evidence Navalny was poisoned, and denies any role in any attack.
    The OPCW said in a statement on Monday its “Technical Secretariat is ready to provide the requested expertise and that a team of experts could be deployed on short notice.”
    The Navalny case is expected to be discussed on the sidelines of a conference of member states at the OPCW starting on Tuesday.
    Russia has in the past threatened to quit the agency, which was established to enforce the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.    Moscow has accused it of pro-Western bias over its work in Syria, where Russia provides military backing to the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Peter Graff)

10/5/2020 EU Sanctions ‘A Small Victory’: Belarusian Opposition Leader Tsikhanouskaya by Paul Carrel
    BERLIN (Reuters) – European Union sanctions against 40 officials in Belarus are “a small victory” but should be widened, opposition leader     Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said on Monday, adding she would press Germany’s Angela Merkel to do more at a meeting on Tuesday.
    Tsikhanouskaya fled her homeland for Lithuania amid a police crackdown in Belarus following an Aug. 9 presidential election, which official results said incumbent Alexander Lukashenko won, but which Tsikhanouskaya’s supporters say was rigged.
    Lukashenko denies doctoring the election result.    EU leaders agreed last Friday to impose sanctions on 40 individuals including Belarus’ interior minister and the head of its electoral commission.
    “It’s a victory but it’s a small victory, and I’m sure – and I insist – that this list should be widened,” Tsikhanouskaya said of the sanctions in an interview with Reuters ahead of a meeting with Merkel in Berlin on Tuesday.
    She expected the encounter to be “a warm conversation between two women – one of which needs help for my country, and one of which I’m sure is eager to help us,” she said, speaking English.
    “I have some proposals of help from her side and I think we will discuss them,” she added, without giving details.    “Germany does a lot, but I’m sure it can do more.”
    Merkel, who said after the Aug. 9 election that it was neither free nor fair and Germany could not accept its result, has ruled herself out as a mediator, as she said Lukashenko had refused her requests for a phone call.
    Tsikhanouskaya, who met French President Emmanuel Macron last week, was confident Lukashenko “will step away” and that new elections, “fair and transparent,” would follow.
    The two-month-old crisis has pushed Lukashenko back towards traditional ally Russia, which has propped up Belarus with loans and an offer of military support.    Both have accused the West of meddling in Belarus.
    The West has had to balance its sympathy for the pro-democracy movement with its reluctance to provoke Moscow.
    Police in Belarus detained 317 people during protests in Minsk and across the country on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said on Monday.
    Tsikhanouskaya said of the protesters: “It’s not safe, but they do this because they know what they are fighting for, what they are demonstrating for, and this matters.”
(Additional reporting by Thomas Escritt)

10/5/2020 Kyrgyz Police Use Teargas, Water Cannon To Disperse Protesters
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyz police used teargas and water cannon to disperse thousands of people demonstrating on Monday against the result of a parliamentary election, after some protesters tried to break into the government headquarters.
    Gunshots and stun grenades could be heard as riot police with dogs, backed by several vehicles, moved into the central square in the capital Bishkek and the protesters retreated.
    Two establishment parties supporting closer links between the former Soviet republic and Russia look set to dominate the new parliament after Sunday’s election, which Western observers said had been marred by vote buying.
    Supporters of several parties that failed to win any seats, according to preliminary results, had rallied in the central square to denounce the vote as fraudulent.    They said more people were heading to Bishkek to join the protests.
    Some of them then tried to break the gates leading to a building housing both the president and parliament, which overlooks the square, at which point the police started dispersing the rally.
    Some protesters hurled rocks at the police and the health ministry said two policemen were hospitalised with concussion.
    The Central Asian country of 6.5 million people has a history of political turmoil.    In the past 15 years, two presidents have been toppled by revolts and a third is in prison after falling out with his successor, the current president Sooronbai Jeenbekov.
    The confrontation, should it develop into a prolonged stand-off, could add Kyrgyzstan to the growing list of Russian allies – along with Belarus and Armenia – facing political or security crises.
(Reporting by Vladimir Pirogov; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Alex Richardson and Gareth Jones)

10/5/2020 ‘Square Of Change’: A Belarus Courtyard Becomes An Unlikely Protest Battleground by Maria Vasilyeva and Tom Balmforth
People gather next to a wall with an opposition mural in Minsk, Belarus September 9, 2020. Tut.By via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – When state workers accompanied by police painted over opposition graffiti on a wall in a Minsk courtyard in August, local residents swiftly painted it back.
    The mural of two DJs who took part in protests against President Alexander Lukashenko has been erased and repainted more than a dozen times since then, a potent symbol of resistance that persists two months after a disputed Aug. 9 election.
    It has become the centrepiece of what some local residents call the “Square of Change” and a microcosm of what they see as a grassroots struggle to force Lukashenko from power.
    “It’s become a symbol not only of our courtyard but of our entire country,” said Nadezhda, 32, a programmer on maternity leave who lives nearby.    She did not give her surname out of fear of reprisals as police continue to clash with protesters and arrest hundreds.
    “If we abandoned it now it would be an admission we were in the wrong, that we should stop our protests…”
    Lukashenko has said he won the election fairly and that anyone being jailed has broken the law.    He has accused the West of organising the protests.
    The standoff has changed the social fabric of the neighbourhood around the square and created a community of opposition-minded people, even as the leader of 26 years clings to power.
    Largely strangers to each other until the protests broke out over the election, residents started to drape red and white opposition flags from their windows, chant “Long Live Belarus!” and play upbeat music from their parked cars.
    The once-drab courtyard is now decorated with ribbons and balloons and has become a nightly venue for guitar-led, floodlit opposition concerts, tea parties and “bachata” dancing.    People join in from neighbouring districts.
    The two DJs featured in the mural gained cult status among Lukashenko’s critics when they played “I want changes!” – a rock anthem of the Soviet “perestroika” period in the 1980s – at a pro-government rally.    They were jailed for 10 days.
    “We know they can come knocking at the door any moment,” said Nadezhda.    “And it’s impossible to live like that. Which means we have no choice but to go to the very end.”
    One resident, Stepan Latypov, was arrested on Sept. 15 as he stood in front of the mural with several others to stop it being painted over.
    He is being held on suspicion of involvement in mass protests and was accused on state television of planning to poison the police.    His lawyer, Ilya Perkhalsky, said he was unable to comment on case details for legal reasons.
    The Interior Ministry referred Reuters questions about Latypov and the courtyard protests to Minsk police.    They could not immediately be reached for comment.
    The political crisis is at an impasse, with protesters regularly coming out in large numbers even after Lukashenko was sworn in for a new term in a secretive ceremony.    Many of his most prominent opponents have been jailed or fled.
    “By now, no one is carrying placards with (exiled opposition leader Sviatlana) Tsikhanouskaya’s name,” said Yulia, 39.    “That is behind us.    We are standing up for freedom. We want us and our children to live peacefully and there is no peace.”
(Editing by Andrew Osborn and Mike Collett-White)

10/5/2020 Austria’s Kurz Cancels Meetings As Colleague Tests Positive For COVID-19
FILE PHOTO: Austria's Chancellor Sebastian Kurz arrives on the second day of a European Union
leaders summit in Brussels, Belgium October 2, 2020. Olivier Matthys/Pool via REUTERS
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has cancelled all his appointments for the day and is being tested for the new coronavirus after an unidentified close colleague tested positive, a spokesman for Kurz said on Monday.
    Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler of the Greens has taken the same precautions, and Kurz’s staff are also being tested, the spokesman said, adding that Kurz was not in quarantine.
    Kurz and Kogler were last in contact with the colleague on Wednesday, Austrian news agency APA said.
(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

10/5/2020 EU Sanctions ‘A Small Victory’: Belarusian Opposition Leader Tsikhanouskaya by Paul Carrel
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya speaks during a news conference with European Parliament
President David Sassoli (not pictured), in Brussels Belgium September 21, 2020. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/Pool
    BERLIN (Reuters) – European Union sanctions against 40 officials in Belarus are “a small victory” but should be widened, opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said on Monday, adding she would press Germany’s Angela Merkel to do more at a meeting on Tuesday.
    Tsikhanouskaya fled her homeland for Lithuania amid a police crackdown in Belarus following an Aug. 9 presidential election, which official results said incumbent Alexander Lukashenko won, but which Tsikhanouskaya’s supporters say was rigged.
    Lukashenko denies doctoring the election result.    EU leaders agreed last Friday to impose sanctions on 40 individuals including Belarus’ interior minister and the head of its electoral commission.
    “It’s a victory but it’s a small victory, and I’m sure – and I insist – that this list should be widened,” Tsikhanouskaya said of the sanctions in an interview with Reuters ahead of a meeting with Merkel in Berlin on Tuesday.
    She expected the encounter to be “a warm conversation between two women – one of which needs help for my country, and one of which I’m sure is eager to help us,” she said, speaking English.
    “I have some proposals of help from her side and I think we will discuss them,” she added, without giving details.
    “Germany does a lot, but I’m sure it can do more.”
    Merkel, who said after the Aug. 9 election that it was neither free nor fair and Germany could not accept its result, has ruled herself out as a mediator, as she said Lukashenko had refused her requests for a phone call.
    Tsikhanouskaya, who met French President Emmanuel Macron last week, was confident Lukashenko “will step away” and that new elections, “fair and transparent,” would follow.
    The two-month-old crisis has pushed Lukashenko back towards traditional ally Russia, which has propped up Belarus with loans and an offer of military support.    Both have accused the West of meddling in Belarus.
    The West has had to balance its sympathy for the pro-democracy movement with its reluctance to provoke Moscow.
    Police in Belarus detained 317 people during protests in Minsk and across the country on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said on Monday.
    Tsikhanouskaya said of the protesters: “It’s not safe, but they do this because they know what they are fighting for, what they are demonstrating for, and this matters.”
(Additional reporting by Thomas Escritt)

10/5/2020 Split EU Lawmakers Rap Bulgaria On Rule-Of-Law Failings
FILE PHOTO: European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium August 21, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Parliament turned up the heat on Bulgaria on Monday as lawmakers debated a resolution that highlights flaws by the EU’s poorest member in respecting the rule of law, combating endemic corruption and supporting media freedom.
    A vote is expected later this week on the resolution that challenges Prime Minister Boyko Borissov’s governance after almost three months of anti-graft protests in Bulgaria that seek his resignation.
    Thousands of Bulgarians have been rallying daily since July, accusing three-times premier Borissov of eroding democratic rules and allowing corrupt practices that support oligarchs and businesses close to his centre-right GERB party.
    In a heated debate, lawmakers from the socialist party family, as well as the Greens and liberals slammed Bulgaria’s government for backsliding on democratic values and abuse of EU funds.
    MEPs from the centre-right group EPP, to which Borissov’s own party belongs, defended Borissov as a pro-European leader.
    Bulgaria ranks as the bloc’s most corrupt member state according to Transparency International’s index.    The country has dropped to 111th position in terms of media freedom from 51st in 2007, when it joined the EU, according to Reporters Without Borders.
    “Bulgarian citizens will deal with their government, but we need to stop feeding the vampires that are sucking the life blood out these wonderful people,” said Clare Daly from the group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left.
    EPP chair Manfred Weber said the protests showed that democracy works in Bulgaria.    Borissov has refused to step down and on Monday Weber said protesters could have their say at an election scheduled for next March.
    A European Parliament resolution rapping Bulgaria for shortcomings in respecting the rule of law would have no practical consequences except political embarrassment for Borissov. But it would also be a signal that Brussels is not turning a blind eye.
    Unlike Hungary and Poland, Bulgaria has managed to avoid a formal EU process checking if rule-of-law is observed, by promising changes and setting up bodies to combat graft and overhaul the judiciary, while dragging its feet on delivering results.
    Last week the European Commission, in a milder tone, criticised Bulgaria’s shortcomings on courts’ independence and the lack of senior officials jailed on corruption charges in its first report on rule of law in the EU.
    Speaking on Monday, the EU’s top democracy official, Commissioner Vera Jourova said the EU Commission would press ahead in monitoring Bulgaria until it sees tangible results in fighting corruption and overhauling of the judiciary.
    “There is still unfinished business.    And we want to see the job done,” she said.
(Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova in Sofia and Jan Strupczewski in Brussels; editing by Richard Pullin)

10/6/2020 Navalny Says Russian Authorities Poisoned Him As Threat Ahead Of Parliament Elections
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally to mark the 5th anniversary
of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov's murder and to protest against proposed amendments to the country's
constitution, in Moscow, Russia February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov//File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny said he believed Russia’s intelligence services had poisoned him with a Novichok nerve agent because authorities saw him as a threat ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections.
    “They understood that there were big, big problems threatening them ahead of elections for the State Duma,” Navalny said in a YouTube interview with a Russian blogger, his first video appearance since being discharged from a Berlin hospital.
    The outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin emerged from a coma in early September after collapsing on a domestic flight in Siberia on Aug. 20.
    German doctors say he was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.    Germany, France and other Western countries have demanded an explanation from the Kremlin for Navalny’s illness.
    The Kremlin has rejected any suggestion that Putin or the Russian authorities were responsible for Navalny’s condition.
    Navalny said he did not know how a Novichok nerve agent had got into his system, but that he could have touched something.
    He said his recovery could take another two months.    At one point in the interview he held out his hand to show it shaking.
    Navalny said he was undergoing physical therapy, but that his health had improved significantly and that doctors were surprised at the speed of his recovery.
    Russia’s parliamentary elections are due to take place in September, although some media reports have suggested they could be brought forward to next spring.
(Reporting by Anton Zverev and Maria Tsvetkova; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams and Catherine Evans)

10/6/2020 Opposition In Kyrgyzstan Claim Power After Storming Government Buildings by Vladimir Pirogov
Protesters try to break into the government headquarters during a rally against the result
of a parliamentary election in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 5, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Opposition groups in Kyrgyzstan said they had seized power in the strategically-important Central Asian country on Tuesday after taking control of government buildings in the capital during protests over a parliamentary election.
    President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said the country, which hosts a Russian air base and a large Canadian-controlled gold mine, was facing an attempted coup d’etat.    He ordered security forces not to open fire protesters however.
    One person was killed and 590 wounded in unrest overnight, the government said. The opposition said it had freed Almazbek Atambayev, a former president jailed on corruption charges, and was already discussing the line-up of a provisional government.
    It was not clear what role, if any, Atambayev would receive, and Jeenbekov, the sitting president, showed no immediate signs of relinquishing power, although the central election commission was reported to have annuled the results of the Oct. 4 election.
    Local news website 24.kg said the commission took the decision at a meeting held after the storming of the government headquarters.
    Several opposition politicians urged the outgoing parliament to install a provisional cabinet in order to legitimise a transfer of power.
    Kyrgyzstan borders China and is a close ally of Russia and has long been a platform for geopolitical competition between Moscow, Washington and Beijing.    It has a history of political volatility — two of its presidents have been toppled by revolts in the past 15 years.
    The Russian embassy to Kyrgyzstan said in a statement it supported resolving the matter through legal means while ensuring people’s safety and domestic stability.
    Burnt out cars littered Bishkek, the capital, on Tuesday morning after protesters took control of the main government building, known as the White House, which briefly caught fire before emergency services put out the blaze.
    Debris from inside, including government papers, and office furniture, was strewn outside after protesters ransacked parts of it.
    Interior Minister Kashkar Junushaliyev did not show up for work on Tuesday, a ministry spokesman said, saying that Kursan Asanov, an opposition politician and a former senior security official, had taken over as acting interior minister.
    Police had been ordered to ensure citizens’ safety and prevent clashes and looting, the same spokesman said.    Meanwhile, the second-largest gold deposit in Kyrgyzstan, Jeruy, was shut down by unidentified people on Tuesday, its Russian-owned operator said.
CONTESTED VOTE
    Trouble erupted on Monday after police used teargas and water cannon to disperse thousands of people demonstrating against the results of a parliamentary election on Sunday which they demanded be annulled.     Western observers said the election, which appeared to have handed most seats to two establishment parties supporting closer links between the former Soviet republic and Russia, had been marred by vote buying.     One of the parties was close to Jeenbekov, the president.
    Police had broken up one protest late on Monday, but protesters later returned to Bishkek’s central square and broke into the White House, which houses both the president and parliament, local news websites Akipress and 24.kg reported.
    Protesters then broke into the headquarters of the State Committee on National Security and freed former president Almazbek Atambayev, who was sentenced to a lengthy prison term this year on corruption charges after falling out with Jeenbekov, his successor.
    Opposition groups took over several more buildings, including the mayor’s office, and appointed their own acting head of national security, acting prosecutor general and a commandant of Bishkek though it was unclear how much actual power they wielded.
    Protesters also freed several former senior officials jailed under Jeenbekov, including ex-prime minister Sapar Isakov and Atambayev’s former chief of staff Farid Niyazov.
    Several provincial governors have resigned, according to local media reports which said public rallies had begun on Tuesday in several provincial centres, most of them anti-government.
    Jeenbekov’s supporters were gathering in the southern city of Osh, the same reports said, where his brother Asylbek Jeenbekov called for unity and order.
(Additional reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Philippa Fletcher)

10/6/2020 Hungary’s University Reform Is Unlawful, EU Top Court Says
FILE PHOTO: A view inside the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, November 14, 2018. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union’s top court said on Tuesday that Hungary’s reform of higher education rules, which forced a university founded by George Soros to move most of its activities out of the country, was in breach of EU law.
    The ruling follows a complaint from the European Commission and is one of many issues in which the EU has clashed with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s hardline stance on migration and minorities, as well as moves to increase state control of the courts, media and NGOs.
    Under the reform, passed in 2017, foreign-registered universities can no longer operate in Hungary unless they also provide courses in their home countries, a provision that the European Court of Justice said on Tuesday was against EU law.
    “The conditions introduced by Hungary to enable foreign higher education institutions to carry out their activities in its territory are incompatible with EU law,” the court said.
    Central European University transferred the bulk of its courses out of Hungary after a long legal battle between Hungarian-born Soros, who promotes liberal causes through his charities, and the government of Orban.
    The EU court also said the requirement introduced by the reform that non-EU universities could operate in Hungary only if their home country had a bilateral treaty with Hungary was in breach of the EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights which protects academic freedom and the freedom to conduct a business.
    It was also against commitments made by Hungary as a member of the World Trade Organisation, the EU Court said.
(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio; Editing by Alison Williams and Tomasz Janowski)
[HERE IS AN EXAMPLE TO PROVE TO YOU THAT THE EUROPEAN UNION IS CONTROLLED BY THE GLOBALISTS AND GEORGE SOROS IS INVOLVED IN THAT AND I HOPE ORBAN CAN FIGHT BACK WITH THE PEOPLE’S HELP.].

10/6/2020 Navalny Demands EU Crackdown On Oligarchs Close To Kremlin
    BERLIN (Reuters) – Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny called on the European Union on Wednesday to take tough action against oligarchs close to the Kremlin as he continues his recovery in Germany after being poisoned by a nerve agent in the banned Novichok family.
    Germany said on Tuesday it was discussing with its partners what action to take after the global chemicals watchdog confirmed Navalny had been poisoned with a new and undeclared variant in the Novichok family.
    Several Western governments have said Russia, which has denied accusations by Navalny that it was involved in the poisoning, must help in investigations or face consequences.
    “Sanctions against the whole country don’t work.    The most important thing is to impose entry bans on profiteers of the regime and freeze their assets,” Navalny told top-selling German daily Bild.
    “They embezzle money, steal billions and at the weekend they fly to Berlin or London, buy expensive apartments and sit in cafes,” he said.
    He singled out Valery Gergiev, chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic as a target for sanctions, saying he was a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
    Options for action include targeted asset freezes or travel bans on Russians deemed to be involved in the Navalny case, economic sanctions and halting the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that is being built to carry gas directly from Russia to Germany.
    Navalny was airlifted to Berlin for treatment after taking ill on a flight in Siberia on Aug. 20 and has since been discharged.    He has said he wants to return to Russia.
    He was scathing about what he said was Russia’s failure to help in the investigation.
    “There is not even an attempt to make it look like they are investigating,” Navalny told Bild, reiterating his view that his poisoning was a direct order from Putin.
    Navalny also criticised former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, a friend of Putin and lobbyist for Russian energy firms, calling him “an errand boy for Putin who protects murderers.”
(Reporting by Madeline Chambers; editing by Richard Pullin)

10/6/2020 Russia Warns That Nagorno-Karabakh Could Become Islamist Militant Stronghold by Nvard Hovhannisyan and Nailia Bagirova
A man walks past a building damaged by recent shelling during a military conflict over the breakaway
region of Nagorno-Karabakh, in the city of Ganja, Azerbaijan October 6, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Karimov
    YEREVAN/BAKU (Reuters) – The Kremlin issued a new appeal for an end to hostilities in and around Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday after Moscow’s foreign intelligence chief said the mountain enclave could become a launch pad for Islamist militants to enter Russia.
    Moscow expressed alarm after the deadliest fighting in more than 25 years between ethnic Armenian and Azeri forces entered a 10th day, though the French news agency AFP later said Armenia had offered concessions only if Azerbaijan was ready to do so.
    AFP gave no details of the offer it said had been made by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.    Azerbaijan has said it will stop fighting only if Armenia sets a timetable to withdraw from Nagorno-Karabakh, which under international law belongs to Azerbaijan but is populated and governed by ethnic Armenians.
    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called for fighting to stop and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov voiced “serious concern about the unprecedented escalation” in a phone call with Iran’s foreign minister, Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, said the conflict was attracting people he described as mercenaries and terrorists from the Middle East.
    “We are talking about hundreds and already even thousands of radicals hoping to earn money in a new Karabakh war,” Naryshkin said in a statement.
    He warned that the South Caucasus region could become “a new launch pad for international terrorist organisations” from where militants could enter states including Russia.
    His comments were released after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, whose country is a close ally of Azerbaijan, urged Moscow to be more active in peacemaking.
NEW FIGHTING
    Mediation efforts led by Russia, France and the United States have failed to prevent intermittent flare-ups of fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh despite a ceasefire which ended a 1991-94 war that killed about 30,000.
    Renewed fighting since Sept. 27 has increased concern that Turkey and Russia, which has a defence pact with Armenia, could be sucked into the South Caucasus conflict.
    Iran, which borders Azerbaijan and Armenia, is also worried about the conflict and President Hassan Rouhani underlined the importance of peace in the region in a phone call with Azeri leader Ilham Aliyev on Tuesday.
    In the latest fighting, Armenia said Azerbaijan launched an attack with tanks and artillery on a southern part of the contact line that divides ethnic Armenian and Azeri forces.
    Nagorno-Karabakh said four cluster bombs had exploded in the centre of Stepanakert, its main administrative centre.
    Azerbaijan says Azeri cities outside the conflict zone have been struck, taking the fighting closer to territory from which pipelines carry Azeri gas and oil to Europe.
    Both sides say the other has hit civilian areas. Each denies targeting civilians.
    Nagorno-Karabakh said 244 of its servicemen and 19 civilians had been killed since Sept. 27 and many more wounded.
    The Azeri prosecutor’s office said 27 Azeri civilians had been killed in the renewed fighting.    Azerbaijan has not disclosed information about its military casualties.
    In an interview with Russian news agency RIA, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad said Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan was “the main instigator and the initiator of the recent conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh between Azerbaijan and Armenia.”
    Reiterating accusations first levelled by French President Emmanuel Macron that Turkey has sent Syrian jihadists to fight in the conflict, Assad said: “Damascus can confirm this.”
    Assad offered no evidence for his allegation against Turkey, which backs rebels trying to oust him in Syria’s civil war.
    Ankara did not immediately respond but has described similar accusations as part of attempts by Armenia to create “dark propaganda” about Turkey.
(Additional reporting by Margarita Antidze in Tbilisi, Tuvan Gumrukcu and Jonathan Spicer in Ankara, and Alexander Marrow, and Andrew Osborn and Maxim Rodionov in Moscow; Writing by Timothy Heritage; Editing by Giles Elgood and Gareth Jones/Mark Heinrich)

10/7/2020 Russia Touts Test Launch Of Hypersonic Missile On Putin’s Birthday
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting via video conference call in
Sochi, Russia, September 28, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has test launched its Tsirkon hypersonic cruise missile and successfully hit a target in the Barents Sea, a senior commander told Vladimir Putin on the Russian leader’s 68th birthday on Wednesday.
    Speaking to Putin by video link, Valery Gerasimov, chief of the army’s general staff, said the test strike on Tuesday was carried out from the Admiral Gorshkov vessel which was located in the White Sea in northern Russia.
    Putin, who has pledged to beef up Russia’s military presence in the Arctic, talked up hypersonic missiles and a new generation of Russian weapons in a March 2018 speech. He praised the test launch on Wednesday.
    “This is a big event not only for the life of the armed forces, but also for all of Russia, for the whole country,” Putin told Gerasimov.
    The Tsirkon test comes amid tensions over arms control between Russia and the United States.    New START, the last major nuclear arms pact in place between the two countries, is due to expire in February.
    Gerasimov said the missile hit its target at a distance of 450 kilometres (280 miles) in four and a half minutes after reaching hypersonic speeds of more than Mach 8.
    He added that tests would continue and that Russian surface vessels and submarines would be armed with the missile when those tests are completed.
    Russia reportedly test-launched the missile successfully from a military vessel for the first time in January.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy, Maria Kiselyova; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Toby Chopra)

10/7/2020 Kyrgyz Opposition Groups Make Rival Power Grabs After Toppling Government by Olga Dzyubenko
Demonstrators stand atop a vehicle during a protest against the results of a parliamentary election in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 6, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – The Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan slid deeper into chaos as rival opposition factions made grabs for power on Wednesday, a day after they stormed government buildings, forcing the prime minister to quit and a parliamentary election to be annulled.
    Left isolated by the resignation of Prime Minister Kubatbek Boronov’s government late on Tuesday, President Sooronbai Jeenbekov called for all party talks in a statement on Wednesday, reiterating his willingness to mediate.
    Two presidents have been overthrown in Kyrgyzstan in the past 15 years, and longtime ally Russia expressed concern as protests spread across the country in the wake of Sunday’s vote.
    Kyrgyzstan borders China and hosts both a Russian military airbase and a large Canadian-owned gold mining operation.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Moscow was in touch with all the sides in the conflict and hoped that democratic process would be restored soon.    China’s foreign ministry said it was highly concerned about the situation.
    A total of 16 parties took part in Sunday’s election and 11 refused to accept the results, which had handed victory two establishment groups.     As protests grew, the election commission annulled the vote.
    At least three distinct groups have now attempted to claim leadership.    The first was the Coordination Council set up on Tuesday and largely made up of established political parties opposing Jeenbekov.
    Another group which called itself People’s Coordination Council emerged on Wednesday and united five lesser-known opposition parties whose leaders have not held any senior government positions.
    Finally, the Ata Zhurt political party has attempted to outmanoeuvre competitors by getting parliament to nominate its candidate Sadyr Zhaparov – freed from prison by protesters just hours earlier – for prime minister on Tuesday night.
    However, an angry mob then broke into the hotel where parliament convened, forcing Zhaparov to flee through a back door, according to Kyrgyz media.    It was not clear when parliament might convene again to confirm him as premier.
    Making a late night appearance on television, Zhaparov said he would propose a constitutional reform before holding presidential and parliamentary elections in two to three months.
    While opposition parties have made rival claims to power, the establishment parties that claimed initial victory in the election have largely kept quiet, accepting the decision to annul the vote.    Jeenbekov has told his supporters not to confront the protesters to avoid escalation.
    But the split among opposition parties and power grabs by competing factions have plunged the nation of 6.5 million people into uncertainty.    Kyrgyz security forces appeared to avoid siding with any of the factions although their support could eventually help decide the winner.
    Residents in the capital, Bishkek, quickly formed vigilante neighbourhood watch units to reinforce police, having suffered during violent revolts followed by looting in 2005 and 2010.
    There were scuffles overnight between vigilantes and protesters who tried to force their way into government buildings or attacked businesses such as shops and restaurants, according to a report by local news website 24.kg.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Peter Graff)

10/7/2020 Russia Opens Criminal Case Over Pollution Off Russia’s Far East: Investigative Committee
FILE PHOTO: Dead sea life is seen washed up on the shore due to unexplained water pollution
in Kamchatka region, Russia October 5, 2020. WWF Russia/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia on Wednesday opened a criminal case to establish why water was contaminated off Russia’s far eastern coast and sea creatures killed, the Investigative Committee said on its website.
    Conservation group WWF described the pollution as toxic.    Greenpeace last week said it looked like an ecological disaster off the coast of Kamchatka region, where dead sea creatures washed up on the shore.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova and Anastasia Lyrchikova; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Jon Boyle)

10/7/2020 Putin Says He Has Noted Joe Biden’s Harsh Anti-Russian Rhetoric
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Chief of the Russian Armed Forces' General Staff Valery Gerasimov,
via a video conference call at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence, outside Moscow, Russia October 7, 2020.
Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday he had noted what he called harsh anti-Russian rhetoric from U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, but that he had been encouraged by Biden’s comments on arms control.
    Putin, who said Russia would work with any U.S. president, made the comments during an appearance on state television.
    Biden is campaigning against Republican incumbent Donald Trump for the presidential election on Nov. 3.
    “As far as the candidate from the Democratic Party is concerned … we also see quite sharp anti-Russian rhetoric.    Unfortunately, we are used to to this,” Putin said.
    But he added that Biden had made what he regarded as encouraging statements on New START, the last major nuclear arms pact between Russia and the United States, which is due to expire in February.
    Moscow and Washington have so far been unable to agree a new treaty or an extension, though Trump’s envoy for arms control said on Tuesday that “important progress” had been made at bilateral talks.
    “Candidate Biden publicly said he was ready for an extension of New START or to reach a new treaty to limit strategic … weapons, and this is a very serious element of our cooperation in the future,” Putin said.
(Reporting by Moscow newsroom; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Kevin Liffey)

10/7/2020 Navalny Demands EU Crackdown On Oligarchs Close To Kremlin
Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny speaks during an interview with prominent Russian YouTube blogger Yury Dud, in
Berlin, Germany, in this still image taken from a handout video released October 6, 2020. YouTube - vDud/Handout/Reuters TV via REUTERS
    BERLIN (Reuters) – Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny called on the European Union on Wednesday to take tough action against oligarchs close to the Kremlin as he continues his recovery in Germany after being poisoned by a nerve agent of the banned Novichok family.
    Germany said on Tuesday it was discussing with its partners what action to take after the global chemicals watchdog confirmed Navalny was poisoned with a new and undeclared variant in the Novichok group of toxins.
    Several Western governments have said Russia, which has denied accusations by Navalny that it was involved in the poisoning, must help in investigations or face consequences.
    “Sanctions against the whole country don’t work.    The most important thing is to impose entry bans on profiteers of the regime and freeze their assets,” Navalny told top-selling German daily Bild.
    “They embezzle money, steal billions and at the weekend they fly to Berlin or London, buy expensive apartments and sit in cafes,” he said.
    He singled out Valery Gergiev, chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic as a target for sanctions, saying he was a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
    Gergiev was not immediately available to comment.
    Options for action include targeted asset freezes or travel bans on Russians deemed to be involved in the Navalny case, economic sanctions and halting the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that is being built to carry gas directly from Russia to Germany.
    Navalny was airlifted to Berlin for treatment after taking ill on a flight in Siberia on Aug. 20 and has since been discharged.    He has said he wants to return to Russia.
    He was scathing about what he said was Russia’s failure to help in the investigation.
    “There is not even an attempt to make it look like they are investigating,” Navalny told Bild.
    Navalny criticised former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, a friend of Putin and lobbyist for Russian energy firms, calling him “an errand boy for Putin who protects murderers.”    No one at Schroeder’s office was immediately available to comment.
(Reporting by Madeline Chambers; editing by Richard Pullin, William Maclean)

10/7/2020 In Hardening Stance, France, Germany Push For EU Sanctions On Russians Over Navalny Poisoning by John Irish and Robin Emmott
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov's murder
and to protest against proposed amendments to the country's constitution, in Moscow, Russia February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov
    PARIS/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – France and Germany said on Wednesday they would propose European Union sanctions against Russian individuals after receiving no credible answers from Moscow over the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny with a nerve agent.
    Several Western governments have said Russia, which has denied accusations by Navalny that it was involved in poisoning him in August, must help in investigations or face consequences.
    The decision and speed with which Europe’s two main powers agreed to push ahead with sanctions suggested a hardening of the bloc’s diplomacy towards Moscow, which in turn said that it no longer considered “business as usual” to be possible with Berlin and Paris.
    The move is in stark contrast to 2018 when it took almost a year for members to agree on sanctions against Russian individuals following a nerve agent attack on a Russian spy in Britain.
    “No credible explanation has been provided by Russia so far.    In this context, we consider that there is no other plausible explanation for Mr Navalny’s poisoning than a Russian involvement and responsibility,” Foreign Ministers Jean-Yves Le Drian and Heiko Maas said in a joint statement.
    Diplomats had earlier told Reuters the two countries would propose sanctions on Russian GRU military intelligence officials when the EU’s 27 foreign ministers meet on Oct. 12.
    “Drawing the necessary conclusions from these facts, France and Germany will share with European partners proposals for additional sanctions,” the two ministers said.
    “Proposals will target individuals deemed responsible for this crime and breach of international norms, based on their official function, as well as an entity involved in the Novichok programme.”
    Blood samples taken from Navalny confirmed the presence of a nerve agent from the banned Novichok family, the global chemical weapons watchdog said on Tuesday.
    “Instead of appropriate cooperation with the Russian Federation in the interest of clarifying circumstances of what has happened to the blogger, the governments of Germany and France have now switched to threats and attempts to blackmail us,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
    Paris and Berlin are unwilling to take into account facts that Russia has voiced many times, Zakharova said, without naming the facts.
    “We don’t consider ‘business as usual’ to be possible with Berlin or Paris,” she said in comments published on the foreign ministry’s website.
    EU foreign ministers are expected to give their political support on Monday, but the sanctions are not expected to be approved immediately as legal texts must be prepared and cleared by experts from the 27 EU states.
    Le Drian told a parliamentary committee in Paris on Wednesday: “We say with Germany that clarification by Russia is indispensable and if it doesn’t clarify then we will need to draw conclusions among Europeans.    We are in sync with Germany.”
    He said Paris was not closing the door to dialogue with Moscow.
(Additional reporting Michel Rose in Paris, Andrey Ostroukh in Moscow and Andreas Rinke and Thomas Escritt in Berlin; Editing by Hugh Lawson/Janet Lawrence and Grant McCool)

10/7/2020 Russia Evacuates Villages As Huge Blaze Breaks Out At Arms Depot
Smoke rises from the site of a fire at an ammunition depot in Ryazan Region, Russia October 7, 2020, in this
picture obtained from social media. Courtesy of Instagram @KORABLINO/Social Media via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian authorities evacuated more than 2,300 people from villages in the region of Ryazan on Wednesday and five people were taken to hospital after a blaze broke out at an ammunition depot, sending thick smoke belching into the air.
    Munitions could be heard detonating at the depot in footage circulated on social media.    A witness in one of the videos said shrapnel and ash was falling from the sky.    Reuters could not immediately verify the videos.
    The depot housed 110 storage facilities containing missiles and artillery munitions, and rounds could be heard exploding once every 5-10 seconds, the RIA news agency cited the emergency services as saying.
    Six people were hurt and five of them taken to hospital, TASS news agency cited a source as saying.
    A state of emergency was declared in the region, its governor said in comments carried by the RIA news agency.
    The Emergencies Ministry said a motorway was being closed down and that at least 14 villages were evacuated within a five-kilometre radius of the depot 260 kilometres (162 miles) southeast of Moscow, the Interfax news agency reported.
    Fires and explosions at ammunition depots have plagued the Russian army for years and drawn criticism of lax safety standards.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Gareth Jones)

10/7/2020 UK’s Johnson, Ukraine’s Zelenskiy To Sign Partnership Agreement
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street, in London, Britain October 7, 2020. REUTERS/John Sibley
    LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Thursday to sign a partnership agreement that includes a free trade deal covering goods, services, and tariffs and quotas.
    Since leaving the European Union earlier this year, Britain is seeking bilateral agreements with other countries, underlining Johnson’s resolve to go it alone once a transition arrangement with the bloc concludes at the end of this year.
    Britain threw its support behind Ukraine after Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014 and backed separatists in a war that has killed thousands of people, in action that brought Western sanctions against Moscow.
    “The UK is Ukraine’s most fervent supporter … we are utterly committed to upholding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” Johnson said in a statement.
    “The Strategic Partnership Agreement we are signing today signals the next chapter in our relationship.    It’s a chapter that will bring increased security and prosperity for both the people of the UK and Ukraine.”
    The agreement includes a comprehensive preferential free trade agreement covering goods, services, and tariffs and quotas, the government said, adding that it rolled over and built upon the EU-Ukraine Agreement.
    On Wednesday, Ukraine said it would sign a memorandum with Britain to secure 1.25 billion pounds to build new military vessels for the Ukrainian Navy.
    Zelenskiy is on a two-day visit to Britain, where he was given a tour of the Prince of Wales aircraft carrier in Portsmouth.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; editing by Stephen Addison)

10/7/2020 Lithuania Blocks Millions Of Euros Of EU Funding To Belarus: Official by Andrius Sytas
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speaks at an event in Minsk, Belarus, September 17, 2020. Tut.By via REUTERS/File Photo
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania has blocked 5.8 million euros ($6.83 million) in payments to Belarus for an EU-funded cross-border development programme, fearing the money could be misused, the Lithuanian government said on Wednesday.
    The European Union has condemned police crackdowns on protesters in Belarus since a disputed Aug. 9 election, and last week imposed travel bans and asset freezes on dozens of Belarusian officials.
    Neighbouring Lithuania has been one of the strongest backers of a strong EU stance against President Alexander Lukashenko’s attempts to stifle opposition and is hosting his main opponent, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who fled there after the vote.
    Lithuanian Interior Ministry spokeswoman Bozena Zaborovska told Reuters that payments for the cross-border assistance programme that Vilnius oversees were halted immediately after the post-election crackdowns began, out of fear that the money would be misused by Lukashenko’s government.
    “All payments were ceased until we receive clarification from the European Commission on the apparent risks,” she said.
    The funds have not been redirected for other purposes and remain shelved pending the clarification, she added.
    The EU Observer newspaper reported on Tuesday that Belarus had purchased 15 surveillance drones using EU money, prompting alarm they could be used against pro-democracy demonstrators.
    Lithuanian police chief Renatas Pozela told reporters funds for the drones were sent to Belarus in the first half of 2020.
    The funding programme aims to develop regions on both sides of the border between Belarus and EU members Lithuania and Latvia.    The EU is due to contribute 74 million euros, with the funds for Belarus channelled through neighbouring EU countries.
    Under initial plans, the EU was due to spend a total of 18.4 million euros on the programme in 2020, 10.7 million euros in 2021, and 3.5 million in 2022-2024.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Johan Ahlander and Mark Heinrich)

    10/8/2020 No Progress In Kyrgyz Impasse As Businesses Warn Of Economic Damage
People attend a rally following post-election protests during which opposition groups took control of
most of the government's apparatus, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 7, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan’s parliament has failed to gather a quorum in an overnight session, deputies said on Thursday, leaving the Central Asian nation in a power vacuum as rival groups tried to claim power after ousting the cabinet.
    The former Soviet republic, which borders China and hosts a Russian military airbase, has been gripped by unrest since thousands of people protesting against the results of a parliamentary election seized government buildings on Tuesday.
    Three opposition groups have each proposed their candidates for interim prime minister who would need to oversee a repeat vote in the coming months, Kyrgyz news website Akipress quoted deputy Ryskeldi Mombekov as saying.
    In addition to Sadyr Zhaparov and Tilek Toktogaziyev who have already made their ambitions clear this week, Mombekov said Omurbek Babanov, who has already served as the cabinet head, has also emerged as a contender.
    But the outgoing parliament has itself split into two groups which were meeting separately outside the headquarters ransacked by protesters, Mombekov said, and the group that met overnight in a hotel only included 40 MPs, whereas major decisions such as naming a cabinet require a 61-vote majority.
    Another MP, Elvira Surabaldieva, posted a video from the meeting online, saying it had failed to pass a motion to impeach President Sooronbai Jeenbekov.
    Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan’s central bank allowed local financial institutions, closed since Tuesday, to reopen on Thursday as Kyrgyz business associations warned the nation of 6.5 million could face food shortages if banks and tax offices remained shut and public safety could not be guaranteed.
    Sunday’s election handed the victory to two establishment parties, one of them closely linked to President Jeenbekov.
    Eleven other parties refused to accept the results and the central election commission annulled them on Tuesday as it became clear Jeenbekov was losing his grip on power.
    The embattled president has since not appeared in public, although his office said he remained in the capital, Bishkek, and Jeenbekov issued several statements calling for talks between rival political factions.
    One person has been killed and over a thousand people have sought medical help since the unrest began, as vigilante units formed by Bishkek residents scuffled with protesters and looters.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

10/8/2020 UK PM Johnson Promises Ukraine To Counter Russia’s ‘Malign Influence’
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy (not pictured)
in Downing Street in London, Britain October 8, 2020. Aaron Chown/Pool via REUTERS
    LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday promised to work with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to counter Russia’s “malign influence” and offered British support for Ukraine’s defence and security.
    Britain and Ukraine have clinched a partnership agreement that includes a free trade deal covering goods, services, and tariffs and quotas.
    “The two leaders discussed the importance of working together to counter Russia’s malign influence, both in Ukraine and in the wider region,” a Downing Street spokesman said.
    “They also expressed their shared concern about the situation in Belarus.    The prime minister outlined the steps the UK has taken in response to human rights abuses in the country, including the imposition of sanctions.”
    Johnson welcomed NATO’s recent decision to grant Ukraine Enhanced Opportunities Partner status.
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by William James)

10/8/2020 Czechs Shut Culture, Sports Venues, Limit Restaurants As COVID-19 Cases Surge
FILE PHOTO: A woman wearing a face protection walks on a street as the spread of the coronavirus disease
(COVID-19) continues in Prague, Czech Republic, October 1, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny/File Photo
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech government will tighten anti-coronavirus measures from next week with new curbs on sports and cultural venues and restaurants as the country struggles with a surge of new cases, Health Minister Roman Prymula said on Thursday.
    Prymula said an unwillingness to respect existing rules was undermining their efficiency.
    Sports facilities, including pools and fitness clubs, and all cultural venues will shut for two weeks in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 infections, which have soared to Europe’s fastest rate per capita.
    The government also ordered restaurants to close at 8 p.m. and limit their capacity to four people per table.    Pupils in the upper level of elementary schools will alternate in-class and distance learning.
    All sports competitions will be suspended, with possible exceptions for international games without spectators. The measures will be phased in on Friday and Monday.
    Data showed new COVID-19 cases had risen by 5,335 on Wednesday, a record number for a second consecutive day.
    “The data is not favourable, we can see clear expansion here, and we have to take these measures,” Prymula said after an extraordinary session of the government.
    He told reporters the government was concerned that the number of infected people needing hospital care could rise substantially in the coming weeks.
    Prymula also complained that many people, mainly the young, seemed to have lost respect for the illness, decreasing the efficiency of measures to combat the pandemic.
    “There is almost a war between the younger and older generation, where the younger don’t consider the illness too risky for themselves, while the older have a realistic concern that something can happen to them,” he said.
    A poll by PAQ Research showed the share of people with active social lives, who adopt less protective behaviour – face masks or social distancing – has grown to 26% from around 5% in spring when the pandemic hit the country.
    Prymula said the government’s target was to cut the daily count of new cases to below 1,000.    He acknowledged that the official number of identified cases did not catch a large portion of people infected.
    In an effort to ease the pressure on hospitals’ bed capacity, infected people who cannot isolate at home or those who carry the virus but don’t require special treatment could go to hotels, Prymula said.
    He urged companies to allow employees to work from home wherever possible.
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka and Robert Muller; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

10/8/2020 Russia Says Poland’s Nord Stream 2 Fine Is A Move To Please U.S.: Ifx
FILE PHOTO: The landfall facility of the Baltic Sea pipeline Nord Stream 2 is pictured in Lubmin, Germany, September 10, 2020. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Thursday that the decision by Poland to impose a hefty fine against Gazprom for its part in the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project was taken to please Washington, Interfax news agency reported.
    The spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, also said that the $7.6 billion fine undermines European energy security, according to the media outlet.
    On Wednesday, Poland fined Russian gas giant Gazprom more than 29 billion zlotys ($7.6 billion) for building the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline without Warsaw’s approval.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Polina Ivanova; Editing by Toby Chopra)

10/8/2020 Russia Finds Contaminants In Rivers Near Site Of Far East Sea Pollution
FILE PHOTO: A member of Russian Investigative Committee works on the shore of Avacha Bay following the recent discovery of high pollution levels off the
coast of Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, in this handout picture released October 7, 2020. Investigative Committee of Russia/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s environment watchdog, which is investigating unexplained toxic pollution off the country’s far eastern coast, said on Thursday it had found significantly higher levels of pollutants in nearby rivers than in the affected waters themselves.
    Greenpeace warned last week of an ecological disaster in waters off the Russian region of Kamchatka, a volcanic peninsula on the Pacific, where large numbers of sea creatures died, their carcasses washing up ashore.
    Russia opened a criminal investigation on Wednesday to establish the cause of the pollution.    Conservation group WWF has said it was very likely caused by a highly toxic soluble substance.
    Watchdog Rosprirodnadzor said in a report on Thursday it found high levels of phosphates, iron and phenol in rivers that enter the Avacha Bay in the Far East, several times more than in the waters off the coast.
    Greenpeace said that the tests did not include enough data, that the cause of the pollution remained unknown and that the official inquiry was taking a worrying amount of time.
    “The results that have been received are not enough to show the full picture of what has happened,” Vladimir Chuprov, Greenpeace Russia project director, said in a statement, adding that an analysis of the water’s heavy metal content was still being conducted.
    Laboratory analyses of samples taken from the animals that died were also lacking, Chuprov said.
    The Investigative Committee, a Russian equivalent of the U.S. FBI, has said that dead marine life had washed up on the shore from Sept. 1 to Oct. 3, and that the sea water had been found to contain oil components including phenol and had changed colour.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; Writing by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Toby Chopra and Frances Kerry)

10/8/2020 Hungarian Government Calls New Children’s Book ‘Homosexual Propaganda,’ Causing Stir by Krisztina Than
A woman holds a book "Wonderland is for everyone", that has galvanized public debate and has drawn attacks from politicians
of the ruling Fidesz party, is pictured at a bookstore in Budapest, Hungary October 8, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s nationalist government on Thursday condemned a book of modern fairy tales for children published by a lesbian group as “homosexual propaganda” and said it should be banned.
    The book “Wonderland Is For Everyone,” was published last month by the Labrisz Lesbian Association, and has sparked a public debate in Hungary, where signs of official intolerance of LGBT+ people are increasingly emerging.
    A politician from the far-right fringe Our Homeland party tore the book apart and shredded it at a press conference and called it homosexual propaganda.    Asked about the book at a press briefing, Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s cabinet chief also called it “homosexual propaganda.”
    “Sexual identity is a private matter but there is a threshold … namely that homosexual propaganda should not be directed at children,” Gergely Gulyas said, adding this amounted to endangering minors.
    Dorottya Redai, a project leader with the publisher responded: “We reject the unfounded accusations that we would be causing harm to children.”    The politician’s remarks amounted to “hate propaganda” she added.
    In power since 2010, Orban has promised to “build a new era” with major cultural changes in Hungary.    His government has so far refrained from strong attacks on the LGBT+ community, unlike Poland, where homophobia has been part of the ruling PiS party’s ideology and election strategy.
    However parliament, with the ruling party’s majority, voted in May to ban transgender people from changing their gender on identity documents.
    Bulcsu Hunyadi, an analyst at think tank Political Capital said the government seized on the book to prevent the far-right dominating the agenda, but was unlikely to step up its anti-LGBT stance to the extent seen in Poland ahead of the 2022 parliamentary elections.
    “Hungarian society is a lot more secular and more accepting towards LGBT people (than Polish society),” he said.    “This today … could be followed with some policy moves but I don’t think Fidesz will build a big campaign around the issue.”
    The first 1,500 copies of the book, which contains 17 stories with characters from various social backgrounds, sold out quickly.
    The Hungarian Publishers’ and Booksellers Association said several bookshops had been threatened and become the target of hate mongering.     “Leave the bookshops alone,” it said, rejecting condemnation of the book.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

10/8/2020 Montenegro’s President Asks Pro-Serb Opposition Leader To Form New Government
FILE PHOTO: Zdravko Krivokapic, University professor and the leader of the pro-Serb alliance "For the Future
of Montenegro", leads a church protest in Podgorica, Montenegro, August 23, 2020. REUTERS/Stevo Vasiljevic
    PODGORICA (Reuters) – Montenegro’s president nominated Zdravko Krivokapic, the leader of a pro-Serb opposition alliance backed by the powerful Serbian Orthodox Church, to form a government on Thursday, ending three decades of socialist rule.
    For the Future of Montenegro and its allies from the centre-right alliance Peace is Our Nation, and a group led by the green URA party, jointly secured a slim majority of 41 deputies in the 81-seat parliament in an election on Aug. 30. They subsequently agreed to form a cabinet.
    After meeting the leaders of the proposed coalition, President Milo Djukanovic said he would forward Krivokapic’s name to parliament.
    Djukanovic, who faces reelection in 2023, said the new government would maintain reforms and investments in the tiny Adriatic republic of only 620,000, a NATO member and a candidate to join the European Union.
    “This proves the maturity of our society … Montenegro is recognised as a (key) factor for regional stability,” he said.
    For Future of Montenegro has pledged the country would maintain its EU membership bid and NATO membership.
    Krivokapic said that the talks with Djukanovic “were a sign of improvement of the political culture” and that he and other opposition leaders will send a proposal for the composition of new Cabinet to the parliament by Nov 8.
    “The most important thing for us is the different future for Montenegro,” he told reporters.
    Opposition leaders, democracy and human rights watchdogs, have long accused Djukanovic and his Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) of running Montenegro as their own corrupt fiefdom with links to organised crime.
    The DPS and Djukanovic deny the charges.
    Montenegrins who identify as Serbs account for about a third of its population.    Most Montenegrins and Serbs share language and the Orthodox Christian faith, and many of Serbia’s citizens have roots and families in Montenegro.
    The Serbian Orthodox Church, the largest in the country, held daily protests against a law adopted last December that allows the state to seize religious assets whose historical ownership cannot be proven.
(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

10/8/2020 No Russian Criminal Probe Against Belarus Opposition Leader: Moscow
Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya delivers a statement in Bratislava, Slovakia, October 8, 2020. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has not opened its own criminal investigation into wanted Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the interior ministry in Moscow said on Thursday.
    Tsikhanouskaya was added to Russia’s wanted list through a mechanism outlined under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) regional bloc, the ministry said in a statement on its website.    Belarus, a traditional ally of Russia, is a member of the CIS.
    Tsikhanouskaya fled to neighbouring Lithuania shortly after a disputed Aug. 9 election and has since met with European political leaders and called for President Alexander Lukashenko to leave power.
    The Belarusian interior ministry’s spokeswoman did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Tsikhanouskaya’s status in Belarus when asked on Wednesday.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by)

10/8/2020 Belarus Opposition Leader Says Any Trial For Lukashenko Subject To Negotiation
FILE PHOTO: Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya meets with members of the media
at the Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany, October 7, 2020. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said on Thursday the possibility of immunity for Alexander Lukashenko, rather than facing any international trial, could be subject to negotiation to defuse the crisis in her country.
    The opposition has said it is considering filing a lawsuit against the veteran ruler in the International Criminal Court for what it says is the harsh treatment of protesters who have taken to the streets after they say he rigged his re-election in August.
    When asked on Thursday whether she wanted to see Lukashenko face the ICC, she said she could not forgive his “atrocities” personally but understood it should be a subject of negotiation.
    “If it is the way out, for him to go somewhere to the seaside and spend his time there, I think it could be done,” she told the Globsec Bratislava Forum in the Slovak capital.
    “Just leave us and we will build our country further. And that is it,” said Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania shortly after the disputed vote.
    Lukashenko, who denies electoral fraud, is grappling to contain two months of street protests that pose the biggest challenge to his 26-year rule.    More than 13,000 people have been arrested and some later freed, while major opposition figures have been jailed or exiled.
    The Belarusian government has denied abusing detainees.
    The crisis has pushed Lukashenko back towards traditional ally Russia, which has propped up Belarus with loans and an offer of military support.    Both have accused the West of meddling in Belarus.
(Reporting by Jason Hovet; Editing by Alison Williams)

10/9/2020 U.S. Allies, Navalny Urge Kremlin To Probe Poisoning Amid Evidence Of Nerve Agent Use by OAN Newsroom
FILE – In this Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 file photo, Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny takes part in a march in memory
of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov in Moscow, Russia. The German government says specialist labs in France and Sweden have confirmed
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)
    U.S. allies in Eastern Europe are calling on the Vladimir Putin regime to investigate the recent poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
    On Thursday, the Visegrad Group, a cultural and political alliance of four countries of Central Europe, said the Kremlin cannot be trusted because it keeps denying that Navalny was poisoned.    The allies pointed to evidence of a nerve agent in Navalny’s system, which was found by three European labs.
    Navalny also said the Kremlin must probe the attack on him. He made the following remarks on the matter:
    “If Putin wanted to investigate it, this case would already be solved.    Its’ not difficult.    I’m being watched 24-hours a day.    We need to watch a video from the hotel, where is it?    Look at who approached me, who came to my room, that’s all.    This case is very easy, but it’s not solved because the one who ordered the attempt doesn’t want it to be solved and that’s personally Putin.”
    Navalny has warned against attempts to blame Russia for the actions of the Putin regime by saying the Kremlin does not represent his country.

10/9/2020 Kyrgyzstan President Calls In Military As Protesters Clash In Streets by Olga Dzyubenko
FILE PHOTO: Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbay Jeenbekov attends a meeting with Russia's President
Vladimir Putin in Sochi, Russia September 28, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov declared a state of emergency in the capital Bishkek on Friday and ordered the military to end days of unrest, as supporters of rival political groups fought on the streets.
    A Reuters journalist in the capital heard gunshots and saw demonstrators from rival groups throwing rocks and bottles at each other and scuffling.    One opposition politician was reported to have been wounded.
    “Today we are witnessing a real threat to our statehood,” Jeenbekov said, explaining the move, a day after the Kremlin said it needed to prevent chaos in the former Soviet republic.
    Earlier the president had said he was ready to resign once a new cabinet was appointed – which could happen on Saturday, when parliament plans to convene in his residence, according to a deputy speaker quoted by local news website Akipress.
    The country is facing a power vacuum, with opposition groups quarrelling among themselves since seizing government buildings and forcing the cancellation of results from Sunday’s parliamentary election which they denounced as fraudulent.
    Two leading opposition figures reached an agreement to join forces on Friday, and won the backing of Jeenbekov’s predecessor as president, Almazbek Atambayev.    But their followers and followers of other groups held rival rallies, which politicians said posed a danger of violence.
    Jeenbekov’s office said in a statement the state of emergency, including a curfew and tight security restrictions, would be in effect from 8 p.m, on Friday until 8 a.m. on Oct. 21.
    His order did not say how many troops would be deployed but they were instructed to “take the situation under control” and use military vehicles, set up checkpoints, and prevent armed clashes.
    However, a local NGO said the order required a confirmation from parliament.
“MESS AND CHAOS”
    Russia has described the situation in Kyrgyzstan, which borders China and hosts a Russian military base, as “a mess and chaos.”
    The crisis tests the Kremlin’s power to shape politics in its former Soviet sphere of influence, at a time when fighting has erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and Belarus is also engulfed in protests.
    The opposition is divided between 11 parties which represent clan interests in a country that has already seen two presidents toppled by popular revolts since 2005.
    Rival candidates for the premiership Omurbek Babanov and Tilek Toktogaziyev joined forces on Friday, with Toktogaziyev agreeing to serve as Babanov’s deputy.    They were backed by four parties, local news website 24.kz reported.
    They were joined at a rally in Bishkek by the former president Atambayev.    A few thousand followers chanted “I am not afraid” and “Kyrgyzstan” to the rhythmic beating of large drums.
    Followers of another candidate, Sadyr Zhaparov, also numbering a few thousand, held a demonstration nearby.    Some of Zhaparov’s supporters later rushed into the square, leading to scuffles between the rival groups until the Babanov and Toktogaziyev supporters withdrew.
    News website Akipress said Toktogaziyev was rushed to a hospital with blunt head trauma after the confrontation where he then regained consciousness and was in stable condition.
    Separately, an aide to Atambayev said a shot had been fired at his car which did not wound anyone.
    Jeenbekov’s allies swept Sunday’s parliamentary vote in the official results that have now been discarded.    They have kept a low profile as the opposition parties have taken to the streets.    Western observers said the election was marred by credible allegations of vote-buying.
    So far, veteran officials who supported the revolt have been in control of the security forces.    On Friday, self-appointed provisional heads of the interior ministry and the state security service left their respective buildings and handed over the leadership to their deputies.    The two state bodies said the move was meant to ensure security forces remained apolitical.
(Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Peter Graff, Philippa Fletcher and Alison Williams)

10/9/2020 Lukashenko Says People’s Assembly Elections Are Needed In Belarus: Belta
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speaks at an event in Minsk, Belarus, September 17, 2020. Tut.By via REUTERS/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Friday said it was necessary to hold elections of the all-Belarusian people’s assembly, as part of plans to amend the country’s constitution, the state-run Belta news agency reported.
    Belarus has seen two months of protests since a contested Aug. 9 election, in which Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory.    His opponents say it was rigged to hand him a sixth term in power.
(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Jon Boyle)

10/10/2020 Russia Reports New All-Time Record Of Daily Coronavirus Cases
FILE PHOTO: Medical specialists wearing protective gear transfer a patient at the Aleksandrovskaya hospital, amid the
outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Saint Petersburg, Russia October 9, 2020. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s coronavirus cases rose by 12,846 on Saturday, a new daily record since the start of the outbreak early this year, pushing the overall total number of infections to 1,285,084.
    The previous record of 12,126 new cases was registered on Friday.
    Russia’s coronavirus crisis center said 197 more deaths were confirmed in the last 24 hours, bringing the official death toll to 22,454.
(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov, writing by Maria Tsvetkova, Editing by William Maclean)

10/10/2020 Kyrgyz Parliament Set To Meet, Discuss New Government Amid Unrest
FILE PHOTO: Demonstrators from rival political groups attend a rally in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 9, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan’s parliament was set to meet on Saturday and potentially vote in a new government to end a power vacuum in the strategically important Central Asian nation which has been gripped by unrest since a contested Oct. 4 election.
    The former Soviet republic of 6.5 million hosts a Russian military airbase and serves as a hub for trade with neighbouring China. It is also home to a large Canadian-owned mining operation.
    Military checkpoints were put up overnight around capital Bishkek and armoured personnel carriers were spotted in the city after President Sooronbai Jeenbekov ordered troops to deploy and re-establish order amid flare-ups of violence.
    The parliament planned to gather in the presidential residence on the outskirts of Bishkek, after its own offices were ransacked by protesters who seized key government buildings on Tuesday.
    Russia, which exerts significant influence on Kyrgyzstan, this week described the situation as “chaos.”    More than 1,200 people have been injured and one person has been killed in street clashes since protests erupted on Monday.
    It was unclear which candidates the legislature would consider for premiership, although deputy speaker Aida Kasymaliyeva urged MPs to reconsider the nomination of opposition politician Sadyr Zhaparov, saying that voting him in would only divide the country further.
    Zhaparov’s supporters clashed with followers of a few other parties on Friday which nominated their own candidate, Omurbek Babanov.    Several people were wounded including a politician nominated to serve as Babanov’s deputy.
    The opposition is divided between 11 parties which represent clan interests in a country that has already seen two presidents toppled by popular revolts since 2005.
(Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov and Olga Dzyubenko; editing by Richard Pullin)

10/10/2020 Police Crack Down On Marathon Anti-Kremlin Protest In Russia’s Far East
FILE PHOTO: People take part in an anti-Kremlin rally in support of former regional governor Sergei Furgal arrested
on murder charges in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk, Russia August 22, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenii Pereverzev/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Russia’s Far East broke up a long-running anti-Kremlin protest with force on Saturday, detaining 25 people according to local authorities, in response to what they called an illegal attempt to erect protest tents in a central square.
    The demonstrations, in the city of Khabarovsk, have been going on for the last three months against President Vladimir Putin’s handling of a regional political crisis.
    Video footage on social media showed baton-wielding police wearing body armour hauling protesters away and dismantling tents as a woman screamed “What country do you live in?.”
    Residents of Khabarovsk, about 6,110 km (3,800 miles) east of Moscow, started holding weekly rallies after the July 9 detention of Sergei Furgal, the region’s popular governor, over murder charges he denies.
    The protests have highlighted anger among some in the Far East over what they see as policies emanating from detached Moscow-based authorities who have neglected them for years.
    Supporters of Furgal, who is a member of the nationalist LDPR party, say he is being punished for defeating a candidate from the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party in 2018.    The Kremlin says Furgal has serious charges to answer.
    Opposition politician Alexei Navalny, who is recovering in Germany from what Berlin says was an attack on him using a nerve agent, condemned police.
    “The authorities in Russia are simply scoundrels,” Navalny wrote on Twitter.
    “When half of the people in Khabarovsk took to the streets, they hid like cockroaches.    They waited three months, the number of people grew less, they grew bolder, and they then went out and began to beat people for no reason,” he said.
(Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Mark Potter)

10/11/2020 Bring Your Own Pen: Lithuania Votes Amid Pandemic by Andrius Sytas
FILE PHOTO: Prime Minister and presidential candidate Saulius Skvernelis speaks to media during the
first round of Lithuanian presidential election in Vilnius, Lithuania May 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuanians will be encouraged to bring their own pens to minimize infection risk at Sunday’s parliamentary election seen as a vote of confidence on Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis’ handling of the coronavirus crisis.
    The centrist Farmers and Greens party, an agrarian grouping that leads Skvernelis’ ruling coalition, is neck-and-neck in opinion polls with the centre-right Homeland Union, which has roots in the 1980s anti-Soviet independence movement.
    With support roughly 15% for both, and 15 other parties on the ballot, another coalition is inevitable but its makeup uncertain.
    Many in the Baltic Sea state of less than 3 million are aggrieved at income inequality despite brisk economic growth since Lithuania joined the European Union in 2004.
    A fifth of people were at risk of poverty in 2019, mostly the elderly, which was the same figure as a decade ago, according to the state statistics authority.
    However, Lithuania’s relative resistance to the economic impact of coronavirus curbs has helped compensate a previous slump in support for the government over corruption allegations.
    The economy decreased 4% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2020, the second best result in the EU.    The central bank attributed that to a prompt and short lockdown, generous state support and relatively unaffected trading partners.
DRIVE-THROUGH VOTING
    Lithuania has reported 8,714 infections – including a record 205 new cases on Saturday – and 103 deaths.
    Mindful of contagion, election officials have asked voters to mark ballots with their own pens.
    For early voting this week, they also set up a drive-through centre and booths in public squares.    Teams in protective costumes have been visiting the 32,000 voters self-isolating at home to collect their ballot.
    Many Lithuanians are keenly watching the government and President Gitanas Nauseda’s response to a crackdown on anti-government protests by neighbouring Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko following a disputed election.
    Lithuania, and neighbours Latvia and Estonia, were the first EU members to impose sanctions on Lukashenko.
    Vilnius has also given shelter to opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya who fled her homeland after the Aug. 9 ballot her supporters say was rigged.
    Under Lithuania’s hybrid election system, half of the 141-member parliament will be elected on Sunday in a proportional vote.    The remaining lawmakers are elected in constituencies, with a run-off vote for the top two candidates in each of them scheduled on Oct. 25.
    Results are expected around 2100 GMT on Sunday.
(Reporting By Andrius Sytas; Editing by Justyna Pawlak and Andrew Cawthorne.)

10/11/2020 Veteran Tajik President On Course For Fifth Term by Nazarali Pirnazarov
Tajikistan's President and Presidential candidate Emomali Rakhmon visits a polling station during the presidential election
in Dushanbe, Tajikistan October 11, 2020. Press service of the President of Tajikistan/Handout via REUTERS
    DUSHANBE (Reuters) – Tajikistan’s Russian-allied President Imomali Rakhmon looks sure to secure a fifth term in office in Sunday’s election as his four competitors’ campaigns admit they do not expect many votes.
    However, the presidential poll may attract more attention this time after recent elections in two other ex-Soviet republics – Belarus and Kyrgyzstan – sparked protests, adding to a belt of instability around Russia.
    Rakhmon, 68, has run the Persian-speaking nation of 9.5 million people since 1992, a period including a civil war.    He has gradually strengthened his grip and a 2016 constitutional reform removed a limit on the number of terms he could serve.
    Polling stations opened with the national anthem played through loudspeakers, followed by a selection of patriotic songs.    Staff checked voters’ temperature on entry and wore both face masks and shields.
    At one polling station shown in a state television news report, staff could be seen wearing full hazmat suits.    According to the central election commission, 44.6% of voters had already cast their ballots by noon.
    Many in the predominantly Sunni Muslim nation expect Rakhmon, who has nine children, to push for his son Rustam Emomali to succeed him.     Emomali is both mayor of the capital city, Dushanbe, and speaker of the upper house of parliament.
    All four competitors are members of the docile lower house of parliament and have avoided criticising Rakhmon, whose official title is “Founder of Peace and National Unity – Leader of the Nation.”
    Though they say they are in the race to win, their campaign staff privately admit they have little chance of garnering any significant vote count.
OPPOSITION BOYCOTT
    The biggest remaining opposition force, the Social Democratic party, is boycotting the election in protest at laws which it says tilt the playing field to ensure the dominance of Rakhmon’s People’s Democratic Party.
    Though Tajikistan’s economy has been growing 6% or more for the last decade, the coronavirus pandemic has taken the edge off that, with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development predicting a 1.0% contraction this year, the first in 23 years.
    Tajikistan has reported 10,180 COVID-19 cases with 79 deaths and chose not to introduce a hard lockdown like some neighbours.
    In addition to hosting Russia’s biggest military base abroad, Tajikistan has close economic ties with its former Soviet overlord as hundreds of thousands of Tajiks work in Russia to support families at home.
    China is another major donor, investor and creditor of the mountainous Central Asian nation whose main resource is abundant water supply which can be used to generate cheap power.
    Tajikistan signed a $3.9 billion contract with Italy’s Salini Impregilo in 2016 to build the Rogun hydroelectric power plant featuring a 335-metre-high rockfill dam, the tallest in the world, on the Vakhsh River.
(Reporting by Nazarali Pirnazarov; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne, William Maclean)

10/12/2020 Police In Belarus Crack Down On Protesters, Detain Dozens
Belarusian law enforcement officers detain participants of an opposition rally to reject the
presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 11, 2020. BelaPAN via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Security forces in Belarus detained dozens of protesters on Sunday and used force, including water cannon and batons, to break up crowds demanding a new presidential election, TV footage showed.
    Footage published by local news outlets showed police officers wearing black balaclavas dragging protesters into unmarked black vans and beating protesters with their batons at a rally that drew thousands onto the streets of the capital Minsk.
    One sequence showed a police van unleashing a powerful jet of water from a cannon into crowds, visibly pushing them back.
    Belarus, a former Soviet republic closely allied with Russia, has been rocked by street protests and strikes since authorities announced that veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko had won an Aug. 9 vote by a landslide.
    People have since taken to the streets every week to demand that Lukashenko step down and allow for a new election to be held.
    Lukashenko, a former collective farm manager who has been in power since 1994, denies his win was the result of cheating.
    Security forces have detained more than 13,000 people during a post-election crackdown, some of whom have been later freed.
    Lukashenko’s key political opponents are either in jail or have fled abroad.
    Sunday’s violence followed a meeting Lukashenko held on Saturday in a Minsk jail with detained opposition leaders, an unusual event that prompted some opposition activists to believe he was preparing to make concessions.
    In a rare concession, two people who had taken part in the meeting with Lukashenko — businessman Yuri Voskresensky and Dmitry Rabtsevich, director of the Minsk office of PandaDoc software maker — were released late on Sunday, Belarus state television reported.
    The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada have imposed sanctions against a string of senior officials in Belarus accused of fraud and human rights abuses in the wake of the presidential election.
    Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who is now based in Lithuania, has called for new elections and for all political prisoners to be freed.
    “We will continue to march peacefully and persistently and demand what is ours: new free and transparent elections,” Tsikhanouskaya wrote on her Telegram channel on Sunday.
    Similar rallies were held in other cities across the country on Sunday.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

10/12/2020 Germany Proposes Putting Lukashenko On A New EU Sanctions List
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko speaks at an event in Minsk, Belarus, September 17, 2020. Tut.By via REUTERS/File Photo
    BERLIN (Reuters) – Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko should be part of a new sanctions list by the European Union, Germany’s foreign minister Heiko Maas said on Monday before meeting his European counterparts in Luxembourg.
    “We have to acknowledge that since our last meeting nothing has improved.    The Lukashenko regime continues to exercise violence, we still see arrests of peaceful demonstrators,” Maas said.    “I proposed to pave the way for another sanctions package, and Lukashenko should be one of the people on this sanctions list.”
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Maria Sheahan)

10/12/2020 Tajik Leader Rakhmon Secures Re-Election: Preliminary Results
FILE PHOTO: Tajikistan's President Imomali Rakhmon takes oath during his inauguration ceremony in Dushanbe
in this November 16, 2013 handout photograph provided by the Press Service of presidential administration of Tajikistan.
REUTERS/Press Service of presidential administration of Tajikistan/Handout via Reuters/File Photo
    DUSHANBE (Reuters) – Tajikistan’s President Imomali Rakhmon has been re-elected for a fifth term with 90.92% of vote, preliminary data shows, the Central Asian nation’s central election commission said on Monday.
    Russian-allied Rakhmon, 68, has run the Persian-speaking nation of 9.5 million people since 1992 and was widely expected to secure a seven-year term in office in the absence of strong domestic opposition.
(Reporting by Nazarali Pirnazarov; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

10/12/2020 Belarus Allows Police To Use Combat Weapons As Protests Persist
FILE PHOTO: People attend an opposition rally to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 11, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus police will now be permitted to use combat weapons in the streets if needed, the Interior Ministry said on Monday, as security forces again clashed with protesters who want President Alexander Lukashenko to quit after a contested Aug. 9 election.
    “Fascists,” the protesters chanted in a tense standoff with security forces personnel wearing balaclavas who responded with flare guns and an unidentified spray, according to video clips circulating on social media.
    The sound of a blast could be heard as plumes of grey smoke filled the air at the scene.    There were no immediate reports of injuries or arrests.
    A spokesman for the Interior Ministry later confirmed that police had used flare guns and tear gas to disperse an unauthorised rally.
    “The protests, which have shifted largely to Minsk, have become organised and extremely radical,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
    “In this regard, the Interior Ministry’s employees and internal troops will not leave the streets and, if necessary, will use special equipment and military weapons,” it said.
    Tens of thousands of Belarusians have demonstrated every weekend since the election, in which Lukashenko was declared the winner.    His opponents say the vote was rigged, a charge denied by Lukashenko, who has been in power for 26 years and has now turned to Russia for financial and other support to keep power.
    Monday’s clashes occurred after thousands of people took part in a “march of pensioners” in the capital Minsk.    The protesters chanted “Go away” and waved white flags with a red stripe, a symbol of the Belarusian opposition.
    On Sunday, when 713 people were detained for taking part in mass protests, security forces used water cannon and batons to break up crowds demanding a new presidential election.
    European Union foreign ministers agreed on Monday to sanction Lukashenko and other senior officials over what they said was a rigged election and worsening police violence against protesters.
    Lukashenko was not on an earlier EU sanctions list agreed on Oct. 2 that targeted 40 names, but the bloc now says his refusal to consider new elections as a way out of the crisis leaves it with no choice.
(Reporting by Anastasia Teterevleva and Andrey Ostroukh; writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Gareth Jones)

10/12/2020 EU To Sanction Russians Over Navalny Poisoning, Diplomats Say
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny delivers a speech during a rally to demand the release of jailed
protesters, who were detained during opposition demonstrations for fair elections, in Moscow, Russia September 29, 2019/File Photo
    LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) – European Union foreign ministers backed a Franco-German plan on Monday to impose sanctions on Russians suspected of poisoning Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny with a nerve agent, diplomats said.
    Berlin and Paris made their proposal at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.    They say they have not had a credible explanation from Moscow for what the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said was the presence of the banned Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok in Navalny’s body.
    The speed with which the EU’s two main powers have agreed to push ahead with sanctions suggests a hardening of the bloc’s stance towards Moscow.    It took almost a year for the EU to agree sanctions against Russians after a nerve agent attack in 2018 on a former Russian spy in Britain.
    German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told reporters as he arrived at the meeting earlier on Monday that Navalny’s poisoning could not “remain without consequences.”
    “France and Germany propose imposing sanctions on certain people that caught our eye in this respect,” Maas said, without giving any details.
    EU diplomats told Reuters there was broad support among the 27 foreign ministers for asset freezes and travel bans on several Russian GRU military intelligence officials.
    Moscow denies any involvement in Navalny’s poisoning.
    Senior Russian lawmaker Vladimir Dzhabarov said on Monday that Russia may respond to the EU sanctions symmetrically and repeated Moscow’s line that there was no concrete evidence behind the accusations, Interfax news agency reported.
    The sanctions are not expected to be approved immediately as legal texts must be prepared and cleared by experts from the 27 EU states.
    Navalny fell ill on a flight in Siberia on Aug. 20 and was subsequently airlifted to Berlin for treatment.    Blood samples taken from him confirmed the presence of a nerve agent from the banned Novichok family, the OPCW said last week.
    Western governments and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation have said that Russia must help in investigations or face consequences.
    Austria’s foreign minister, Alexander Schallenberg, whose country has tended to favour closer ties with Russia, said there could not be a “return to business as usual” and that Moscow had failed to help clear up doubts about the poisoning.
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold in Berlin and Robin Emmott in Brussels; Additional reporting by Andrey Ostroukh in Moscow; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Gareth Jones and David Clarke)

10/13/2020 Cuba Urges Calm As Overhaul Of Monetary System Looms by Marc Frank
FILE PHOTO: People wait in line to enter a currency exchange office in Havana, Cuba,
September 9, 2020. Picture taken September 9, 2020. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba’s economy minister on Monday urged calm as the government prepares to unify its dual currency system and multiple exchange rates in hopes of improving economic performance.
    The Caribbean island nation is undergoing a crisis caused by an onslaught of new U.S. sanctions on top of a decades-old embargo, the pandemic and its inefficient Soviet-style command economy.
    Alejandro Gil, speaking during a prime-time broadcast on state-run television, said the country could not overcome the crisis without unification which he said included wage, pension and other measures to protect the population.
    “It is a profound transformation that the economy needs that will impact companies and practically everyone,” Gil said.
    “It is for the good of the economy and good of our people because it creates favorable economic conditions that will reverberate through more production, services and jobs,” he added.
    The monetary reform, expected before the end of the year, will eliminate the convertible peso while leaving a devalued peso, officially exchanged since the 1959 Revolution at one peso to the dollar.
    The soon to be removed convertible peso is also officially set at one to 10 pesos to the dollar for state companies and 24 pesos sell and 25 pesos buy with the population.
    The government has stated numerous times that residents will be given ample time to exchange convertible pesos at the current rate once it is taken out of circulation and banks will automatically do the same with convertible peso accounts.
    President Miguel Diaz-Canel said last week the country would end up with a single currency and exchange rate with the dollar but did not say what that rate might be or the date devaluation would happen.
    Foreign and domestic economists forecast the move will cause triple digit inflation and bankruptcies while at the same time stimulating domestic economic efficiency and exports over imports.
    The state controls the lion’s share of the economy and sets most wages and prices.    Neither domestic currency is tradable outside Cuba.
    “There will be no shock therapy here, the vulnerable will be protected.    At the same time, it will favor motivation to work and the need to work to live,” Gil said.
    Diaz-Canel announced in July that market-oriented reforms approved by the Communist party a decade ago and never implemented, including monetary measures, would be quickly put in place in response to the crisis.    He said last week that monetary reform had now been approved by the all-powerful politburo.
    Cuba, dependent on food, fuel and other imports has been caught short of cash as sanctions hit its foreign exchange revenues and the pandemic demolishes tourism and undermines remittances, creating food, medicine and other shortages.
    Last year, the government began opening better stocked foreign exchange stores for people with access to dollars or a basket of other international currencies from remittances and other sources.    However, all transactions must be electronic, for example through debit cards.
    Foreign and local economists forecast economic activity will decline at least 8% this year, with trade down by around a third.
(Reporting by Marc Frank; Editing by Michael Perry)

10/14/2020 Russian Defence Minister Urges Armenia, Azerbaijan To Respect Nagorno-Karabakh Truce
FILE PHOTO: Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu looks on during a news conference after bilateral talks between
Italy and Russia at Villa Madama in Rome, Italy February 18, 2020. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu urged Armenia and Azerbaijan to observe a ceasefire in the Nagorno-Karabakh region in a telephone call with his counterparts from those countries, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.
    Since coming into force on Saturday, a Russian-brokered truce has frayed, with both sides accusing each other of grave violations and attacks on civilians.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

10/14/2020 Russia, U.S. Remain Divided Over Extending Last Nuclear Arms Pact
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov addresses the Conference on Disarmament at the
United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
    MOSCOW/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Russia and the United States on Wednesday remained at odds over extending the last major arms control pact between the world’s largest nuclear weapons powers, with Moscow denying U.S. assertions of an agreement in principle.
    The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) accord, signed in 2010, limits the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers that Russia and the United States can deploy.    It expires in February.
    A failure to extend the pact would remove all constraints on U.S. and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear weapons and their delivery systems, fueling a post-Cold War arms race and tensions between Moscow and Washington.
    U.S. officials have indicated that an agreement to extend it has been reached in principle.
    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that no deal had yet been reached despite what the Kremlin hoped was a joint understanding that the pact did need to be extended.
    “As for the understanding for the need to extent the START treaty, we hope we are on the same track in this regard,” Peskov said on a conference call with reporters.    “We understand that it needs to be extended, that this is in the interest of our two countries and the strategic security of the whole world.”
    U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declined to comment when asked to elaborate on the agreement in principle that the top U.S. arms control negotiator, Marshall Billingslea, on Tuesday said had been reached “at the highest levels.”
    “We would welcome the opportunity to complete an agreement based on understandings that were achieved over the last couple of weeks about what that range of possibilities look like for an extension of New START,” Pompeo told a State Department news conference.
    He said the United States would continue the talks on the treaty, which can be extended for up to five years with the agreement of both presidents.
    “I am hopeful that the Russians will find a way to agree to an outcome that frankly I think is in their best interest and in our best interest,” he said.
    Pompeo reiterated a call for China to join the United States and Russia in talks on a trilateral nuclear arms control accord.    China, whose nuclear arsenal is much smaller than the U.S. and Russian stockpiles, repeatedly has rejected the proposal.
    Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier on Wednesday Moscow did not see prospects for extending the new START arms control treaty with Washington but planned to continue talks nonetheless.
    New START is a successor to the original agreement signed in 1991 between the then-Soviet Union and the United States.
    Arms deals between President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s, and their successors George H.W. Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s, underscored growing trust between the superpowers and contributed to ending the Cold War.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber Anton Kolodyazhnyy in Moscow and Jonathan Landay and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington.; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Marguerita Choy)

10/14/2020 Russia Approves Second COVID-19 Vaccine After Preliminary Trials
FILE PHOTO: Bottles with Russia's "Sputnik-V" vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are seen
before inoculation at a clinic in Tver, Russia October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has granted regulatory approval to a second COVID-19 vaccine, according to its register of authorised medicines.
    A delighted President Vladimir Putin announced the news at a government meeting on Wednesday.
    The jab was developed by the Vector Institute in Siberia and completed early-stage human trials last month.    However, results have not been published yet and a large-scale trial, known as Phase III, has not yet begun.
    “We need to increase production of the first and second vaccine,” Putin said in comments broadcast on state TV.
    “We are continuing to cooperate with our foreign partners and will promote our vaccine abroad.”
    The peptide-based vaccine, named EpiVacCorona, is the second to be licensed for use in Russia.    There has been a placebo-controlled trial on 100 volunteers between 18 and 60 in Novosibirsk.
    A shot developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Institute, Sputnik V, was licensed for domestic use in August.
    That vaccine, based on an adenovirus vector, was also registered before Phase III trials.    A trial involving 40,000 participants is now under way in Moscow.
    A large-scale human trial of EpiVacCorona is likely to begin in November or December, the TASS news agency cited the consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, which oversees the institute, as saying this month.
    The trial is expected to involve 30,000 volunteers, of whom the first 5,000 will be residents of Siberia, according to the Interfax news agency.
    Hundreds of people in professions that put them at high risk of coronavirus infection have now also received the Gamaleya jab, according to the health ministry, but the vaccine is not yet in general use.
    Since the start of the pandemic, Russia has recorded more than 1,340,000 infections, fourth in the world behind the United States, India and Brazil.
    Another vaccine against COVID-19 is being developed by the Chumakov Institute in St Petersburg.    It plans to start an early-stage clinical trial involving around 300 people on Oct. 19.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Polina Ivanova; writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Polina Ivanova; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

10/14/2020 Moscow Doesn’t See Prospects For Extending New START Nuclear Pact With Washington
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a news conference with his Armenian counterpart
Zohrab Mnatsakanyan in Moscow, Russia October 12, 2020. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Moscow does not see prospects for extending the new START arms control treaty with Washington, but plans to continue talks nonetheless, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday.
    The New START accord, signed in 2010, limits the number of strategic nuclear warheads that Russia and the United States can deploy.    It expires in February next year.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Alex Richardson)

10/15/2020 Power Vacuum In Kyrgyzstan As President Resigns After Unrest by Olga Dzyubenko and Mariya Gordeyeva
FILE PHOTO - Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbai Jeenbekov speaks after a vote at a parliamentary elections in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan October 4, 2020.
Sultan Dosaliev/Kyrgyz Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS/File Picture. ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov resigned on Thursday, leaving a power vacuum after days of unrest following a disputed election.
    Jeenbekov, who said he wanted to prevent clashes between security forces and protesters who have demanded his removal, became the third president of the small Central Asian nation since 2005 to be toppled in a popular uprising.
    It was not immediately clear who would take control of the country, a Russian ally that borders on China.    Constitutional rules say the parliament speaker, Kanatbek Isayev, should assume the presidential powers.    But some opposition groups want Isayev to step aside as well, putting control in the hands of Sadyr Japarov, a nationalist who was named prime minister after his supporters freed him from jail last week.
    Isayev said parliament would accept Jeenbekov’s resignation on Friday, but did not make his own full intentions clear.    He was quoted by local news website 24.kg as saying he had “no moral right” to the presidency because of the lame duck status of the parliament, which faces a rerun of the disputed election.
    Japarov’s spokesman declined to say whether the prime minister would now press for Isayev to step aside.
NO BLOODSHED
    Kyrgyzstan has been in turmoil since the Oct. 4 vote, which the opposition rejected after Jeenbekov’s allies were declared the winners.    In a statement announcing his resignation, Jeenbekov said he feared violence might break out if protesters carried out a threat to march on his compound.
    “The military and security forces will be obliged to use their weapons to protect the state residence.    Blood will be inevitably shed,” he said.    “I do not want to go down in Kyrgyzstan’s history as a president who shed blood and shot at his own citizens.”
    Since the election, opposition supporters have taken to the streets and seized government buildings, prompting the authorities to annul the vote.
    Jeenbekov announced last week that he planned to resign, but did not say when.    Earlier this week, he said he would stay in office until a new election was held.    But Japarov’s supporters rejected the delay and pressed him to resign immediately.
    “The president couldn’t hold out.    He’s very weak.    No spirit,” Dastan Bekeshev, a lawmaker who supports neither Jeenbekov nor Japarov, told Reuters.    “It’s not clear what happens next, nobody can tell what is going to happen.”
    Hundreds of Japarov’s supporters were rallying on Thursday some 700 metres away from the presidential residence.    As news of Jeenbekov’s resignation reached them, they started chanting “Parliament must go!” and “Isayev must go!.”
    Felix Kulov, a former prime minister who met with Jeenbekov before his resignation, said on Facebook the president had said nothing about planning to quit.
    “One thing is clear: some forces – I am sure sooner or later we will find out which ones – decided to seize power by force and made the president choose between resignation or an all-out war,” Kulov said.
    Kyrgyzstan hosts both a Russian military base and a large Canadian-owned gold mine.    Moscow, which considers the former Soviet space its sphere of influence, had said it would be responsible for ensuring stability in Kyrgyzstan and warned of a potential slide into chaos.
    Russia said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had spoken by phone to his Kyrgyz counterpart, Ruslan Kazakbayev, and promised to assist “legitimate authorities” to stabilise the situation.    The call could be seen as recognition of Japarov’s legitimacy, as Kazakbayev, who previously served as foreign minister from 2010-2012, was named to the post this week by Japarov.
    Russia is also dealing with instability in three other ex-Soviet states: Belarus, where a disputed election has triggered protests against President Alexander Lukashenko, and Armenia and Azerbaijan, which are fighting over control of an enclave.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko, Mariya Gordeyeva and Olzhas Auyezov; Writing by Peter Graff and Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Alison Williams, Philippa Fletcher and Peter Graff)

10/16/2020 Belarus Put Tsikhanouskaya On Wanted List For Making ‘Calls To Overthrow Constitutional Order’: RIA
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus has put opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on its wanted list for allegedly making calls to overthrow the constitutional order, the interior ministry of close ally Russia said on Friday.
    Tsikhanouskaya fled to neighbouring Lithuania shortly after a disputed Aug. 9 election and has since met European political leaders and called for her country’s longtime president Alexander Lukashenko, to leave power.
    She later appeared on Russia’s wanted list, something Russia’s Interior Ministry said had happened through a mechanism outlined in a regional bloc that both Russia and Belarus are members of.
    The exiled opposition politician could face up to 5 years in jail in Belarus if detained and found guilty, Russia’s RIA news agency said.    The Belarusian interior ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
    Security forces have detained more than 13,000 people during a post-election crackdown, some of whom have been later freed.    Lukashenko’s key political opponents are either in jail or have fled abroad.
    “This (move to put Tsikhanouskaya on the wanted list) doesn’t surprise anyone.    It’s clear the regime has no legal ways of retaining power,” said Anna Krasulina, a spokeswoman for Tsikhanouskaya.
    On Tuesday, Tsikhanouskaya set an Oct. 25 deadline for Lukashenko to quit or face nationwide strikes that would paralyse the country.     The ultimatum came after the authorities intensified their crackdown on anti-government protests and threatened to use combat weapons in the streets.    More mass protests are expected this weekend.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Anton Kolodyazhnyy; Editing by Alison Williams and Philippa Fletcher)

10/16/2020 Kyrgyzstan Ends State Of Emergency As PM Consolidates Power
Kyrgyzstan's Prime Minister Sadyr Japarov delivers a speech during an extraordinary
session of parliament in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan October 16, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan’s parliament voted on Friday to end a state of emergency in capital Bishkek as Prime Minister Sadyr Japarov consolidated his power by formally assuming the interim presidency in the country closely allied with Russia.
    Ex-president Sooronbai Jeenbekov, who resigned a day earlier, imposed the state of emergency and ordered troops to be deployed in Bishkek last week amid unrest triggered by Oct.4 parliamentary elections.
    Japarov, released from prison by his supporters and quickly elected prime minister by parliament, took over the presidency after parliament’s speaker, Kanatbek Isayev, who is first in line under the constitution, declined to do so at the Friday session.
    Japarov told the session he would address the nation of 6.5 million within hours.
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Robert Birsel)

10/16/2020 Christmas In Danger As Santa’s Lapland Home Feels Pandemic Chill
Santa Claus is pictured in his chamber behind a plexiglas screen at Santa Claus Village
in the Arctic Circle near Rovaniemi, Finland October 16, 2020. REUTERS/Attila Cser
    ROVANIEMI, Finland (Reuters) – Christmas is coming, but in Santa’s home village in northern Finland, the COVID pandemic means that the flocks of tourists who usually start to make merry in Rovaniemi at this time of year are not.
    Finland has adopted some of the strictest travel restrictions in Europe, despite its low level of infections, meaning most foreigners cannot enter the country.
    The northern part of Finland, where many businesses rely on tourists flying in to meet Santa Claus, see the Northern Lights or take a snowmobile safari, has seen visitor numbers plummet.
    In August 2020, foreign tourist numbers were down 78% from a year earlier, according to travel industry data from Business Finland.
    “For local businesses, definitely, Christmas is in danger,” Sanna Karkkainen, managing director of Visit Rovaniemi tourist board, said.     “Christmas itself will come, but how merry it will be, that’s the question mark.”
    Finland escaped the worst effects of the pandemic in spring, opting for a strict lockdown, which included isolating the capital, Helsinki.
    Now, as in much of Europe, infections are on the rise again, hitting a daily record earlier this month, and the government is considering new measures to contain the spread of the virus.
    The country of 5.5 million people has reported nearly 13,000 COVID-19 infections in total so far, including 346 deaths.
    With Santa greeting kids from behind a Plexiglas screen and elves wearing masks, Christmas cheer is already in short supply.
    At tour company Safarctica, which offers snowmobile tours and ice-swimming, sales director Antti Antikainen, reckons bookings are set to fall 50-80% this year, adding: “I think it’s closer to 80%.”
    Tourism-oriented firms, which employ around 8% of people in the region, have already started laying off workers and many have little hope that the festive season can be saved, unless the government eases some of its travel restrictions soon.
    “At this very moment my answer would be that Christmas is cancelled,” said Harri Mallinen, who runs the Apukka Resort in Rovaniemi.
(This story removes reference to quarantines in para 2)
(Reporting by Attila Cser in Rovaniemi, additional reporting by Tarmo Virki in Tallinn; Editing by Simon Johnson and Gareth Jones)

10/16/2020 Dutch King Cuts Short Vacation In Greece After Criticism
    AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – The Netherlands’ King Willem-Alexander and his wife cut short a vacation to Greece on Friday after coming under criticism for travelling during the coronavirus pandemic.
    “We see the reactions by people to reports in the media,” Willem-Alexander and his wife Queen Maxima said in a statement published by the Royal House late on Friday.
    “We wish to leave no doubt that it’s necessary to follow the guidelines in order to get the COVID-19 virus under control.    The discussion over our vacation is not contributing to that.”
    Though the king’s vacation in Greece did not break any of the Netherlands’ lockdown rules, including new restrictions introduced this week amid one of Europe’s biggest coronavirus outbreaks, the government has discouraged unnecessary travel.
    “This is unwise and incomprehensible,” the ANP news agency quoted lawmaker Joost Sneller of the D-66 party, one of the coalition partners in Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s governing coalition, as saying of the King’s vacation.
    Rutte had urged the nation in an televised address on Tuesday “not to test the boundaries of the rules.”
    “You can go on vacation, but then go to the place where you’ve booked your cottage or hotel room and don’t move around,” the prime minister said.    “If you do go abroad — well your options are limited as there are few countries that want to have us anymore.”
    Willem-Alexander, who has a private villa in southern Greece, travelled by government jet, ANP reported.
    The Netherlands reported nearly 8,000 new coronavirus cases on Friday, a record.
    Willem-Alexander and his wife Queen Maxima issued an apology after a previous vacation to Greece, in August, after a photo was published showing them breaking social distancing guidelines on the island of Milos.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Toby Chopra and Chizu Nomiyama)

10/16/2020 Belarus Seeks Presidential Challenger’s Arrest, Threatens To Use Firearms At Protests by Tom Balmforth
FILE PHOTO: Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya meets Greens party members
at Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany, October 6, 2020. REUTERS/Michele Tantussi
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus said on Friday it was seeking the arrest of exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya for jeopardising national security, days after she called for a general strike if the president does not yield to protesters’ demands to quit.
    Ahead of the next big weekly protest on Sunday, a senior police official said on television that officers would use firearms if needed against demonstrators, raising the stakes in the standoff over a country closely allied with Russia.
    “We will of course humanely use weapons against them, including firearms, and we will remove the most dangerous (ones) from the streets,” said Nikolai Karpenkov, head of the police unit tasked with fighting organised crime and corruption.
    Tsikhanouskaya fled to neighbouring Lithuania shortly after disputing the results of an Aug. 9 election which gave victory to longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko.    She had challenged him at the ballot box in place of her husband after he was arrested.
    While her supporters have continued holding mass protests despite crackdowns by police and thousands of arrests, she has been urging European political leaders to mediate.
    On Tuesday, Tsikhanouskaya set an Oct. 25 deadline for Lukashenko to quit or face nationwide strikes that would paralyse the country after the security forces first threatened to use combat weapons in the streets.
    The Belarus Investigative Committee, a law enforcement agency, said it had put Tsikhanouskaya on its wanted list for publicly calling for actions seeking to harm national security.
    Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda condemned the move and called on fellow members of the European Union to stand by her.
    “Do hope that #EU countries will remain united & ignore this illegal warrant.    #Tsikhanouskaya may be wanted in Belarus but #EU should keep all doors open for her,” he wrote on Twitter.
    Security forces have detained more than 13,000 people during a post-election crackdown, some of whom have been later freed.    Lukashenko’s key political opponents are either in jail or have fled abroad.
    “This (move to put Tsikhanouskaya on the wanted list) doesn’t surprise anyone.    It’s clear the regime has no legal ways of retaining power,” said Anna Krasulina, a spokeswoman for the opposition leader.
    Tsikhanouskaya met for talks in Vilnius on Friday with Canadian Foreign Minister François-Philippe Champagne.    She also took to social media to urge Belarusians to vote against any proposals put forward by Lukashenko for constitutional reform.
    Lukashenko has proposed changing the constitution to resolve the political crisis in Belarus, an idea backed by Russia.    But Lukashenko’s critics see the proposals as part of a stalling tactic to take the sting out of their protests.
(Additional reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy in Moscow and Gabriela Baczynska in Brussels; Editing by Alison Williams and Philippa Fletcher)

10/16/2020 Putin Proposes Russia, U.S. Extend New START Arms Control Treaty For One Year
Russia's President Vladimir Putin takes part in a video conference call with members of the
Security Council in Moscow, Russia October 16, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed on Friday that Russia and the United States extend their New START arms control treaty that expires in February for at least a year without imposing any conditions.
    The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) accord, signed in 2010, limits the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers that Russia and the United States can deploy. [nL8N2H5387]
    A failure to extend the pact would remove all constraints on U.S. and Russian deployments of strategic nuclear weapons and their delivery systems, fueling a post-Cold War arms race and tensions between Moscow and Washington.
    Putin, speaking at a meeting by video link with Russia’s Security Council that was broadcast on state television, said the treaty had worked effectively until now and it would be “extremely sad” if it were to stop working.
    “In this regard, I propose… extending the current treaty without any conditions for at least a year so that meaningful negotiations can be conducted on all the parametres of the problems…” he said.
    Russia and the United States, which has called for China to be included in the arms control treaty, have appeared at odds over extending the pact despite several months of talks.
    On Wednesday, Moscow denied U.S. assertions that the two sides had reached an agreement in principle.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Vladimir Soldatkin; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Jon Boyle and Tomasz Janowski)

10/17/2020 Prominent Polish Lawyer And Critic Of Government Charged With Fraud
FILE PHOTO: Then-deputy prime minister and leader of League of Polish Families Roman Giertych waits for a government
session at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Warsaw July 17, 2007. REUTERS/Peter Andrews
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish prosecutors said on Saturday they had brought fraud charges against a prominent lawyer and former deputy prime minister who is a vocal critic of the government, and prohibited him from leaving Poland or practising law.
    Prosecutors also denied mistreating Roman Giertych, who fainted during his detention on Thursday and is currently defending billionaire bank owner Leszek Czarnecki, a thorn in the government’s side who is suspected of cheating clients of his Idea Bank.
    The Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA) said on Thursday that Giertych had taken part in a scheme to take money out of a company and launder funds, to the tune of more than 90 million zlotys ($23 million).
    Giertych’s lawyer said the charges were misplaced and that he would challenge them.
    Civic rights ombudsman Adam Bodnar said on Thursday that the circumstances of Giertych’s arrest raised “serious concerns.”
    Prosecutor Jacek Motawski told a press conference on Saturday that any suggestion that Giertych’s “health condition … resulted from unauthorised interference by the CBA officers” was “completely unfounded.”
    Giertych was also representing Czarnecki two years ago when the billionaire alleged that the head of the state financial regulatory authority, Marek Chrzanowski, appointed by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, had sought a bribe from one of Czarnecki’s banks in return for protection.    Chrzanowski has since been indicted on corruption charges.
    In 2017, Giertych represented Donald Tusk, then European Council chairman, when Tusk testified in an investigation into former heads of military counter-intelligence (SKW) suspected of cooperating with foreign intelligence services without permission while Tusk was prime minister.    In 2007, Giertych was leader of the far-right League of Polish Families while it was briefly in government with the PiS.
(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

10/17/2020 Putin And Saudi Crown Prince Discuss OPEC+ Agreements And Coronavirus
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend
a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 14, 2019. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed energy markets and the implementation of agreements by the oil producers group known as OPEC+, the Kremlin said in a statement on Saturday.
    “Both sides have reiterated their willingness to continue close coordination in this area in order to maintain stability on the global energy market,” it said.
    The two leaders also discussed cooperation in combating the spread of coronavirus infections and the prospect of using the Russian vaccine Sputnik V in Saudi Arabia.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; Editing by David Clarke)

10/18/2020 Tens Of Thousands March In Belarus Despite Firearms Threat
People attend an opposition rally to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 18, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of people marched through the streets of the Belarusian capital Minsk on Sunday to demand the resignation of veteran president Alexander Lukashenko, despite a threat by officials to use firearms against protesters.
    Belarus, a former Soviet republic closely allied with Russia, has been rocked by strikes and weekly street protests since authorities announced that Lukashenko, who has ruled in authoritarian fashion since 1994, had secured re-election on Aug. 9 with 80% of votes.
    The Interfax news agency put the number of protesters at over 30,000.    It said about 50 had been detained by the police, and that the mobile broadband signal had been disrupted in parts of the city.
    It also said loud noises that sounded like stun grenades had been heard close to the march.    A senior police official said last week that officers would reserve the right to use firearms against demonstrators.
    Security forces have detained more than 13,000 people since the election, including all significant opposition leaders who have not left the country, and clamped down on independent media.
    Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who has fled to Lithuania, last week urged Lukashenko to quit by Oct. 25 or face what she said would be nationwide strikes that would paralyse Belarus.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; editing by Olzhas Auyezov and Kevin Liffey)

10/19/2020 Kyrgyzstan Acting President May Seek Constitution Change To Run For Full Term
FILE PHOTO: Kyrgyzstan's Prime Minister Sadyr Japarov delivers a speech during an extraordinary
session of parliament in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan October 16, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    (Reuters) – Kyrgyzstan’s new acting president Sadyr Japarov, who came to power last week in a popular uprising, may run for a full term if the country amends its constitution to allow it, Russia’s TASS news agency quoted him as saying on Monday.
    The Central Asian nation’s constitution bars caretaker presidents from running in the elections they oversee.    Japarov took over as acting president last week after unrest toppled his predecessor Sooronbai Jeenbekov’s government.
    As prime minister and acting head of state, Japarov must now oversee a rerun of an Oct. 4 parliamentary election which was annulled after prompting violent protests, and a presidential election due to be held by mid-January.
    A nationalist opposition figure who had been serving a sentence for attempting to kidnap a political opponent, he was freed from prison by his followers during the protests and named prime minister last week.    The uprising was the third popular revolt to topple a president in Kyrgyzstan since 2005.
    The former Soviet republic, which is closely allied with Russia and borders China, has yet to set the dates of either vote.    Amending the constitution to allow Japarov to run might require holding a referendum before the presidential election.
    Japarov last week named his closest ally Kamchybek Tashiyev head of state security in the country of 6.5 million that hosts a Russian military air base, and published a long-term programme hinting he planned to become more than a temporary leader.
(Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Alison Williams and Peter Graff)

10/19/2020 Poland To Open Temporary Hospital At National Stadium In Warsaw
Drone pictures of the PGE National Stadium where the government builds special filed hospital for people infected with
the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Warsaw, Poland October 19, 2020. Maciek Jazwiecki/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland plans to open a temporary hospital at the national stadium in Warsaw as it faces a spike in coronavirus cases and a health system overload, the government said on Monday.
    Poland has recorded new records in daily cases and deaths in the past weeks, with doctors reporting shortages of personnel, hospital beds and equipment.
    “On Saturday, the prime minister ordered the preparation of the first temporary hospital, which will be located at the national stadium,” Michal Dworczyk, the prime minister’s chief of staff, who is responsible for the project, told radio Zet.
    The hospital, set up in the stadium’s conference rooms, will have beds for 500 COVID-19 patients, with the option to expand to 1,000 beds.     The first beds will likely be available this week.
    Dworczyk said other regions were also working on opening temporary hospitals.
    He said the government had no plans to close cemeteries and stop people from travelling around the country on and around Nov. 1, when millions of Poles visit family graves for All Saints’ Day.
    Earlier this week the government urged citizens to stay at home and ordered gyms and pools to close, restaurants to limit opening hours, and a shift to remote teaching in universities and secondary schools.
    The government says it is trying to avoid a total lockdown, but experts say this may be inevitable if the situation becomes critical.
(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Giles Elgood)

10/19/2020 Polish Woman’s Quest For Abortion Exposes Conflicted Society by Alicja Ptak
Car rides during a protest against imposing further restrictions on abortion law in Poland, a country
with some of the strictest abortion rules in Europe, in front of the Constitutional Court building in
Warsaw, Poland October 19, 2020. The flag reads "Women's strike". Dawid Zuchowicz/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – In April, in the midst of a nationwide coronavirus lockdown in Poland, Katarzyna found out that the baby she was carrying had a severe genetic disorder and would probably die before birth or shortly after.
    She immediately decided to terminate the pregnancy.    When she finally managed to, five weeks later and after meeting some 10 doctors, securing a fallback plan in Germany and researching home methods, she knew she would not try to get pregnant again.
    “I knew how difficult it can be to get a legal abortion in Poland, so I chose to be stubborn,” said 38-year-old Katarzyna, who lives in a small town in central Poland and already has two daughters, one of them disabled.
    “I don’t think I could survive this sense of helplessness and the contempt from the medical community if something went wrong again,” she said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the subject of abortion is largely taboo in Poland.
    Terminations like hers are at the heart of a fierce public debate about abortion rights in predominantly Catholic Poland, expected to culminate with a rare ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal as early as Thursday on whether they are permissible.
    Many doctors in Poland, which has some of the strictest abortion rules in Europe, already exercise their legal right to refuse to terminate pregnancies on religious grounds.    Some say they are pressured into doing so by their superiors.
    Many in Poland’s conservative ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), including its leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, believe abortions requested on the basis of foetal defects should be banned, and that only terminations due to incest, rape or a threat to a woman’s life or health should remain legal.    Abortion on demand is already banned in Poland.
    But PiS, which came to power five years ago promising to entrench more traditional, Catholic values in public life, has so far been reluctant to push new restrictions through parliament because previous debates sparked a big public outcry.
    Its critics say PiS now hopes instead to use the Tribunal to change policy – a charge it denies – after a series of judicial reforms that the European Commission says has undermined the independence of Poland’s courts.
    A group of right-wing lawmakers has asked the Tribunal, which reviews the compatibility of laws with the constitution, to rule on the legality of aborting defective foetuses.
    “(Abortion) has always been a difficult issue for parliament, it awakens massive public emotions,” said Bartlomiej Wroblewski, a PiS lawmaker and one of those seeking a verdict.
“    I thought we needed to find another place where constitutional arguments on the right to life, on human dignity, the ban on discrimination, can be decisive,” Wroblewski said.
“GIGANTIC” STRAIN
    PiS denies trying to influence Tribunal rulings, although its shakeup of Poland’s judiciary has prompted charges at home and abroad that it is subverting democratic norms. PiS says its reforms only aim to make the judiciary more efficient and fair.
    “PiS is afraid to take responsibility for making abortion rules more restrictive.    They know perfectly well that current rules are already very difficult to accept,” Barbara Nowacka, a left-wing lawmaker, told Reuters.
    “They want to ban abortion using the Tribunal, which is politicised and staffed with judges appointed illegally,” she said, referring to changes that give the ruling party a bigger say in appointing judges.     Government data shows roughly 1,000 legal abortions are conducted in Poland each year, mostly due to foetal abnormalities.
    Rights activists say thousands more women terminate pregnancies illegally or travel abroad, mainly to Germany, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, where rules are far less strict.
    A friend helped Katarzyna find a doctor in Germany who performs abortions for Polish women in case her hospital in Warsaw backed out.    She was determined to shield her daughters from the shock of losing a severely ill baby sibling.
    If it were not for the coronavirus pandemic, Katarzyna added, “I wouldn’t have gone begging (for an abortion in Poland)… I would have gone abroad."
    “The psychological strain was gigantic.”
(Additional reporting by Joanna Plucinska and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; editing by Justyna Pawlak and Gareth Jones)

10/19/2020 Wait, What? Dutch Justice Minister Explains Lockdown Rules For Weed
FILE PHOTO: Joints containing different types of cannabis are seen in their jars at a coffee shop
in the southern Dutch city of Bergen op Zoom November 18, 2008. REUTERS/Jerry Lampen/File Photo
    AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – The Dutch government told parliament on Monday it could sit back and relax as there are no extra rules needed to prevent people having or smoking cannabis in public places during the coronavirus pandemic.
    The government ordered a partial lockdown on Oct. 13, closing restaurants except for takeaway services and forbidding the sale of alcohol and marijuana after 8 p.m.
    But parliament, stressed at the prospect that the rules for weed-smokers might still be laxer than those for alcohol-drinkers, passed a motion directing the government to ensure that smoking marijuana and hashish in public would not be tolerated in public places between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m.
    Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus told the lawmakers in a letter that they might be slightly confused by the complexities of the country’s existing laws and practices.
    Under Dutch law, the possession of marijuana remains technically illegal, Grapperhaus explained in a letter to parliament.    While police do not usually enforce the law against people who hold less than five grams, they always have the power to do so.
    Under the country’s tolerance policy, the drug is sold openly at cafes known as “coffee shops.”
    But the Oct. 13 lockdown rules had already specified that cafes and restaurants would be closed except for takeaways and that sales of alcohol, marijuana and hashish would be banned after 8 p.m.
    In addition, Grapperhaus wrote, gatherings of more than four people are temporarily banned.    That ensures that police could break up an unruly marijuana-smoking mob – if one should ever form during the pandemic.
    “Thus, the demands of this motion may be satisfied by making use of existing powers,” the minister explained.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

10/19/2020 Police In Belarus Detained 280 People At Protests On Sunday: Ministry
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian law enforcement officers block a street during an opposition rally to reject
the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 18, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Belarus detained 280 people at mass nationwide protests on Sunday, including 215 in the capital Minsk, the Interior Ministry said.
    Tens of thousands of people marched through the streets of Minsk on Sunday to demand the resignation of veteran president Alexander Lukashenko, despite a threat by officials to use firearms against protesters.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams)

10/19/2020 Mayor Of Copenhagen Steps Down Over Sexual Harassment by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Nikolaj Skydsgaard
FILE PHOTO: Copenhagen Mayor Frank Jensen (centre) attends a climate change protest march during the C40 World Mayors Summit
in Copenhagen, Denmark, October 11, 2019 Ritzau Scanpix/Tariq Mikkel Khan/ via REUTERS Ritzau Scanpix/via REUTERS
    COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Frank Jensen, mayor of Denmark’s capital Copenhagen for over a decade, resigned on Monday after admitting to several episodes of sexual harassment, and he apologised to “the women I have offended.”
    Jensen, 59, who will also step down as deputy of Denmark’s governing Social Democratic Party, has served as Lord Mayor of Copenhagen since 2010.
    His resignation was welcomed by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, calling it “the right decision” in a Facebook post.
    “It is obvious that we in the Social Democratic Party have problems, and that needs to change now,” she told local news agency Ritzau earlier on Monday.
    Jensen’s exit came after two women, one of them employed by the Social Democrats, described being sexually harassed by Jensen in 2012 and 2017, in remarks published on Friday by daily Jyllands-Posten.    They said both incidents were at social events and involved Jensen touching the women against their will.
    Jensen said on Facebook he had been part of a “harmful” and “old” culture in the Social Democratic Party.    “I would like to apologise to the women I have offended,” Jensen told a news conference on Monday.
    A series of sexual harassment cases in Denmark have come to light in recent months as more women within politics, the movie industry and the media have come forward to describe incidents involving male colleagues and superiors.
    Frederiksen praised Jensen for his political career spanning more than 30 years work but said “insurmountable” problems “blocked continued political involvement.”
    Jensen, 59, previously served as minister of justice and minister of research in the 1990s and early 2000s.
    In another high-profile case, the leader of the Danish Social Liberal Party, a key ally of the minority government, stepped down earlier this month after trying to hide having sexually harassed a female party colleague in 2012.
(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Nikolaj Skydsgaard; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

10/19/2020 Russian Court Sentences Arctic City Mayor To Community Service Over Fuel Spill
FILE PHOTO: The TPP-3 power plant, owned by NTEK, a subsidiary of Russian mining company Norilsk Nickel, is seen during work on the demolition of
a fuel tank which collapsed on May 29, resulting in a spill of diesel fuel, in Norilsk, Russia July 30, 2020. REUTERS/Irina Yarinskaya/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Russian court on Monday sentenced the former mayor of the Arctic city of Norilsk to six months of community service after finding him guilty of negligence over a major fuel spill in the region.
    Rinat Akhmetchin, who resigned as mayor in July, was charged with negligence after a fuel tank at a power station in the remote, industrial region lost pressure and collapsed in late May, leaking more than 20,000 tonnes of fuel into rivers and subsoil.
    Greenpeace has compared the incident to the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill off the coast of Alaska.
    The Krasnoyarsk Regional Court said in a statement that in addition to his community service, Akhmetchin would have his salary cut by 15% during that period.    It did not specify the capacity in which he would carry out his community service.
    Russia’s Investigative Committee, the body that probes serious crimes, charged Akhmetchin with criminal negligence in June, saying he had failed to coordinate and organise emergency measures to contain and control fallout from the spill.
    Norilsk, a city of 180,000 people located 300 km (190 miles) inside the Arctic Circle, is built around Norilsk Nickel, the world’s leading nickel and palladium producer.
    The company has disputed the environmental cost of the spill as assessed by Russia’s environment watchdog.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

10/19/2020 Row In Hungary Around Children’s Book Fuels Fears Of Rising Homophobia by Krisztina Than and Krisztina Fenyo
FILE PHOTO: A book "Wonderland is for everyone", that has galvanized public debate and has drawn attacks from politicians
of the ruling Fidesz party, is pictured at a bookstore in Budapest, Hungary October 8, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Boldizsar Nagy hoped that the tales in the children’s book “Wonderland Is For Everyone” would help youngsters to learn to accept minorities and fight social ostracism.
    Instead, it has caused a stir in Hungarian politics, with the far-right and the ruling nationalist government labelling it “homosexual propaganda” that should be banned from schools.
    More than 1,200 psychologists have since signed a petition in defence of the book, which was edited by Nagy.    The tales include stories about Tivadar, a bunny born with three ears, an adopted boy, and Batbajan, a Roma boy, who is hated by his step-mother for his skin colour but finds love when he meets Zeke, a fair-haired boy.
    Only a few of the 17 stories that teach acceptance towards people who are in some way “different,” are about LGBT+ heroes.
    Nagy, 37, who is gay and has Roma roots, says the backlash signals a rise in official intolerance of LGBT+ people and fits into the government’s political agenda.
    “It is unbecoming that a children’s book is used for inciting hatred…or political gains,” he said.    “Looking at what happened in Poland or Russia, it does not bode well for the future.    We are concerned.”
    Russia in 2013 passed a law banning the distribution of “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships” to minors.
    Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government, which faces elections in early 2022 and promotes a strongly Christian-conservative agenda, has so far refrained from strong attacks on the LGBT+ community, unlike Poland, where homophobia has been part of the ruling PiS party’s ideology.
    This appears to be changing now.
    Orban, who faces the biggest challenge of his decade-long rule due to the coronavirus pandemic and a deep recession, told state radio that Hungary was a tolerant country when it comes to homosexuality, but “there is a red line that should not be crossed … leave our children alone.”     In a speech over the weekend, he returned to the issue.     “There is a growing debate around us, a struggle almost at daggers drawn, about the future of our children.    What influences should they be under?…How should they relate to their families, to Hungarian identity, and even to the sex they have been born into?”
    A government spokesman declined to say if the government was planning any legal changes.    In a reply to Reuters questions he said: “We have said all we wanted with relation to this issue.”
LIVING WITH STIGMA
    The book sold out fast after a lawmaker from the far-right Our Homeland party tore a copy apart and shredded it at a news conference.    On Friday, a new edition came out in print.
    Several actors have volunteered to take part in a podcast, and the support they received was encouraging, Nagy said.    But a widening divide in society around the issue could make lives of LGBT+ people harder, he said.
    “It takes years for everyone to accept their indentity which is a stigma in Hungary…especially if you grow up in the countryside or in a religious family,” he said.
    “This book was a little bit also self-therapy for me.”
    Nagy came out when he was 30 and he was able to openly talk about being gay at work.    Living in a stable relationship for six years, he and his partner want to adopt a child.
    This is only possible in Hungary for gay couples if one of them applies as a single person as Hungary does not allow gay marriage.
    Having been on the waiting list for two years, they had high hopes.    These were dampened on Oct. 5 when the government tweaked legislation, saying that for each child, a married couple should first be searched nationwide.    The civil law already says married couples should enjoy priority in adoption.
    “We thought we would have a child by Christmas…theoretically single people and gay people can still adopt a child, but this will be a much longer process,” Nagy said.
(Writing by Krisztina Than; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

10/20/2020 As The Arctic’s Attractions Mount, Greenland Is A Security Black Hole by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen
A plane carrying Denmark's Chief of Defence Peter Bartram, arrives in Greenland in March 2014.
Picture taken March 2014. Peter Dahl/Danish Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS
    COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – On a windy August afternoon in 2017, Akitsinnguaq Ina Olsen was relaxing in the old harbour of Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, when a Chinese icebreaker sailed unannounced into the Arctic island’s territorial waters.
    “I saw it by chance,” Olsen, 50, told Reuters.    “My first thought was: ‘They’re already here!’ They’re pretty cheeky, those Chinese.”
    She pulled out her phone and took a picture of the 167-meter long Chinese icebreaker Xue Long (Snow Dragon), before it turned around and disappeared.
    The Chinese ship was one of a growing number of unexpected arrivals in Arctic waters as shrinking sea ice has fast-tracked a race among global powers for control over resources and waterways.    Both China and Russia have been making increasingly assertive moves in the region, and after the U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last year said now is “America’s moment to stand up as an Arctic nation and for the Arctic’s future,” military activity is stepping up.
    Greenland is a semi-autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark and Copenhagen runs the island’s defence through its Joint Arctic Command.    On several occasions since 2006, foreign vessels have turned up unexpectedly or without the necessary protocols, in waters that NATO-member Denmark aims to defend, Greenland residents and military sources in Denmark and the United States told Reuters.
    Copenhagen and its Arctic neighbours have tried in recent decades to keep the region what they call a “low tension” area.    But each event underscores new challenges for Denmark and its allies.
    The main problem: It’s hard to see what’s going on there.
    Greenland, which U.S. President Donald Trump offered unsuccessfully to buy from Copenhagen last year, is largely an ice sheet with a rocky coastline of 44,000 km (27,000 miles) – longer than the earth’s equator.    It’s hidden by almost complete darkness in the winter months.
    Beneath its rocks and ice are abundant resources of minerals and rare earth metals used in equipment from smartphones to electric vehicles and military jets, as well as uranium and potentially vast resources of oil and natural gas.
    Greenland offers more than resources.    The island, which is nearer to New York than New York is to Los Angeles, is also a strategic window onto space.
    Located at Thule, the United States’ northernmost air base houses the 21st Space Wing’s network of sensors, which provides early missile warning and space surveillance and control.    Thule is one of the few places in the world with access to satellites that orbit the poles, completing coverage of the globe which is essential for weather forecasting, search-and-rescue and climate research.
    “Historically the Arctic, like space, was characterised as a predominantly peaceful domain,” Secretary of the U.S. Air Force Barbara Barrett said in July when presenting America’s Arctic strategy in the transcript of a webinar hosted by the Atlantic Council think tank.
    “This is changing.”
    Several countries are building new icebreakers to increase freight traffic.    China, which in 2018 declared itself a “near-Arctic” nation, has said it wants to build infrastructure and “participate in the governance of the Arctic.”
    China has “really gone from zero to 60 in space, very quickly,” U.S. Space Force chief General John W. Raymond told the July presentation.    He said China’s capabilities “threaten our access to space in the Arctic” both in Alaska and Thule.
    The icebreaker that Olsen photographed in 2017, used by China’s Polar Research Institute for scientific expeditions, had been invited by a researcher in Greenland, the researcher said. But it had not, as would normally be expected, applied in advance for clearance, the head of the Joint Arctic Command Kim Jorgensen told Reuters.
    Also in the area taking advantage of the short Arctic summer, a multinational search-and-rescue exercise spotted the Xue Long. Danish armed forces invited it to seek permission to enter, which was granted, Jorgensen said.
    China’s foreign ministry did not comment on that incident but said in a statement it respects the sovereignty and jurisdiction of “the Arctic countries in the area” and is ready to make positive contributions to the peace, stability and sustainable development.
    By this year, Western allies had increased their presence. U.S. destroyer Thomas Hudner, together with Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command, sailed for the first time into the deep fjord near Nuuk in August.    In August and September, a U.S. Coast Guard cutter carried out joint exercises with Danish and French naval vessels on Greenland’s west coast.    And last month, Denmark for the first time joined the United States, UK and Norway in a large-scale military exercise in the Barents Sea near Russia.
    Danish Defence Minister Trine Bramsen told Reuters in a statement that Denmark wants to keep tension low in the Arctic, “but we must not be naive.”    Russia is trying to limit the right to free navigation in international waters, she said; Denmark is taking steps towards strengthening the Armed Forces’ surveillance and presence there.
    A spokesperson at the U.S. embassy in Copenhagen said Denmark needs to strengthen its defence in the Arctic with additional investment.
    Moscow’s ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, said talk of threats to freedom of navigation is a “made-up pretext” for naval exercises and Russia’s activities in the Arctic are peaceful.    U.S. policy “accompanied by bellicose rhetoric, is creating a new reality and splitting Arctic states and could open (the) sluice gates for overspill of tension from the outside to the Arctic region,” he told Reuters in a statement.
BELOW THE RADAR
    Some Arctic regions are relatively well covered by satellite and radar.    But since the early 1990s, Greenland has slipped off the radar.
    From 1959 to 1991 Greenland was part of the North American Aerospace Defence Command, an integrated chain of 63 radar and communication centres stretching 3,000 miles from Western Alaska across the Canadian Arctic.    It had four radars operating on its ice sheet.    Two were dismantled; the other two were abandoned and are now slowly sinking into the ice.
    Today, to monitor its vast area, Greenland has one aircraft, four helicopters and four ships.    In addition to enforcing sovereignty, they handle fishing inspection and search and rescue operations.    Six sleds powered by 80 dogs patrol the remote northeastern part.
    In August 2006, a local couple said they spotted a submarine while they were hunting reindeer at the remote Qassit fjord in southern Greenland, said Niels Erik Sorensen, who headed Denmark’s Arctic Command at the time.    The couple told the police and made a drawing, which the military identified as a likely Russian model.
    “This was the first sighting since the end of the Cold War,” said Sorensen.
    The sub was mentioned in a 2016 report on Denmark’s Arctic defence, which said candidly that “there is no access to a coherent picture” of the situation in the area of responsibility for its Arctic Command.    Neither the airspace nor activities below sea-level are monitored.
    As there is no surveillance, it said, “it is not possible to assess whether violations of sovereignty are taking place in the air.    Thus, no deliberate violations of the airspace … have been found.”
    In another part of the Arctic that year, a U.S. Coast Guard vessel accidentally discovered a joint Russian-Chinese naval exercise in Arctic waters near Kamchatka, said Paul Zukunft, who retired as Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard in 2018.
    “This is a region where we did not have any satellite coverage,” he said.    “But we did have a ship up there, and they literally stumbled upon this joint naval exercise between Russia and China that otherwise would not have been known.”
    Russia’s ambassador said there are no joint Russian-Chinese military-naval exercises in the Arctic Ocean.    The Chinese foreign ministry did not comment.
    The Danish government promised in 2019 to upgrade military spending in Greenland with a payment of 1.5 billion Danish crowns ($237 million) for surveillance.    Denmark’s Bramsen said that was a “first step” and Copenhagen has yet to decide how to spend the money.
    For now, Denmark has no satellites to monitor traffic around Greenland.    In 2018, it started receiving a few satellite images a day from the European Union’s Maritime Safety Agency, but they aren’t always detailed enough for military purposes.
    “Denmark will never be able to defend itself in the Arctic,” said Steen Kjaergaard, head of the Centre for Arctic Security Studies at the Royal Danish Defence College, which does research for the defence ministry.
    “The government is trying to strike a balance.”
“DARK TARGETS”
    That balance is becoming increasingly delicate.    For years, it’s been fairly easy for foreign researchers to access the waters around Greenland and those between Greenland, Iceland and the UK, researchers and military sources say: All that’s needed is to fill in a form seeking permission.
    Last year, though, Danish authorities failed to approve an application from a Swiss-led group of international researchers, the government said in response to a Freedom of Information request from Reuters.    The researchers were planning to travel on a Russian icebreaker, 50 Let Pobedy (50 Years of Victory) on the first-ever circumnavigation of Greenland.
    Authorities let the application expire without responding.
    Two sources with knowledge of the matter said they had become suspicious that the icebreaker, used for several earlier expeditions in Greenland, could serve non-scientific purposes such as tapping information from subsea fibre cables or mapping the seabed to ease access for Russian submarines.
    In 2016, a Russian vessel, Yantar, which the U.S. Navy has alleged transports submersibles that can sever and tap into cables miles beneath the ocean’s surface, anchored outside Nuuk, where a subsea communications cable lands that connects Iceland and America.
    Ambassador Barbin said Russia considered the icebreaker decision an “unfortunate misunderstanding,” noting that this year Denmark agreed to another Russian icebreaker visiting Greenland and the Faroe Islands.
    Even NATO allies arrive unannounced in these vast, dark waters.
    Foreign ships usually report their arrival using the international Automatic Identification System ship-tracking system.    When analysing satellite images, the Joint Arctic Command often identifies what it calls “dark targets” – objects that look like ships but can’t be identified on the system.
    If the Danish military sends out vessels or helicopters to the target, they often find an iceberg.    When the targets have turned out to be ships, these have most often been U.S. marine vessels that haven’t reported their arrival, military sources say.
    The U.S. embassy didn’t comment.    Denmark’s defence ministry said the allies are working to bolster information sharing.
(Edited by Sara Ledwith)

10/20/2020 Russia To Open Defence Ministry Office In Serbia In Push To Deepen Military Ties
FILE PHOTO: Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets are parked on a runway during the air show at Batajnica
military airfield in Belgrade, Serbia, October 20, 2017. REUTERS/Djordje Kojadinovic/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has authorised its defence ministry to open an office in Serbia, a government document showed, as Moscow pushes to expand military ties with its traditional Balkan ally even as Belgrade seeks to join the European Union.
    Serbia last month suspended military drills with foreign troops for six months, citing pressure from the EU to withdraw from joint exercises with Russia and Belarus.
    The Russian government order, dated Oct. 15 and signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, said the head of the proposed office would assist in resolving military and technical questions over Russian-Serbian cooperation.
    The agreement, once signed by both parties, would give the Russian official in Serbia the right to visit Serbian divisions that use Russian weapons and military equipment, provided prior notice and consent were given.
    In a short statement later on Tuesday, Serbia’s defence ministry said “a legal procedure that precedes the concluding of the agreement” had already been launched.
    Serbia, whose military mainly uses ex-Soviet weapons technology, has procured MiG-29 fighter jets as well as Mi-35 helicopter gunships, T-72 tanks and armoured personnel carriers from Russia in recent years.
    On Oct. 10, in a show of revamped military power, Serbia’s army staged a major training exercise, demonstrating combat use of Russian-made weapons, including the Pantsir anti-aircraft system. It also displayed combat drones recently acquired from China.
    Serbia is performing a delicate balancing act between its ambition to join the EU and traditional ties with Russia and China, which support its refusal to recognise the independence of its former southern province Kosovo.
    Russia, meanwhile, is vying to keep fellow Orthodox Christian, Slavic Serbia within its sphere of geopolitical influence, with the opening of a defence ministry office a signal of Moscow’s intent.
(Reporting by Alexander Marrow in Moscow and Aleksandar Vasovic in Belgrade; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Gareth Jones)

10/22/2020 China And Germany Heading For Superpower Status As U.S. Influence Wanes, Says Putin
Russia's President Vladimir Putin speaks at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club via a video conference call at the
Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia October 22, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The era when the United States and Russia decided the world’s most important questions is in the past, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday, saying China and Germany were now heading for superpower status.
    Addressing a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club, Putin suggested that the role of the United States had waned, along with that of Britain and France, while Beijing and Berlin – in terms of political and economic weight — were heading for superpower status.
    If Washington was not prepared to discuss global problems with Moscow, Russia stood ready to have that discussion with other nations, said Putin, who was speaking via video link.
    He said Washington could no longer lay claim to exceptionalism and questioned why it would want to.
    Ahead of the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 3, Putin said he hoped the new administration would be ready for dialogue on security and nuclear arms control.
    Washington last week rejected a Russian proposal for an unconditional one-year extension of the last treaty limiting U.S. and Russian strategic nuclear weapons deployment, calling the suggestion “a non-starter.”
    The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) accord, signed in 2010 is due to expire in February.    It restricts the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads that Russia and the United States can deploy as well as the missiles and bombers that carry them.
    Despite their differences, Moscow and Washington appear to be moving closer to a deal on New START.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Andrew Osborn; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

10/22/2020 Putin Says He Helped Navalny Leave Russia To Be Treated Abroad
Russia's President Vladimir Putin addresses members of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP)
via a video conference call at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia October 21, 2020.
Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he had personally intervened to ensure that Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny could receive medical treatment in Germany after the opposition politician’s allies said he had been poisoned.
    Navalny, 44, fell ill on a flight in Siberia on Aug. 20 and was airlifted to Berlin for treatment.    Blood samples taken from him confirmed the presence of a Novichok nerve agent, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has said.
    Navalny, convalescing in Germany, has accused Putin of being behind his poisoning, an allegation the Kremlin has rejected as false and insulting.
    Addressing a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club, Putin said he had asked Russia’s General Prosecutor’s office to authorise Navalny to leave the country after an appeal from the opposition politician’s wife.
    “There were travel restrictions against him related to a judicial investigation and a criminal case (against Navalny),” Putin said.
    “But I nonetheless asked the General Prosecutor’s office to allow it and he left.”
    Putin said that if someone in Russia had wanted to poison Navalny Moscow would not have allowed him to be flown to Berlin for treatment.
    Putin and other officials never refer to Navalny by name.    Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, has recently been referring to Navalny as the “Berlin patient.”
    The European Union and Britain last week imposed sanctions on Russian officials close to Putin as punishment for Navalny’s poisoning.
    The Kremlin condemned those sanctions as an unfriendly and groundless step against Moscow and pledged to retaliate.
    Navalny was discharged from hospital last month and is recovering in Germany.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Darya Korsunskaya; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

10/22/2020 Russian Spy Chief Flies Into Belarus In Show Of Support For Embattled Leader
FILE PHOTO: Sergey Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s foreign intelligence agency, attends the
Victory Day Parade in Red Square in Moscow, Russia June 24, 2020. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The head of Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service made a surprise visit to Belarus on Thursday in what looked like a show of support by Moscow for veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally who is under pressure to step down.
    TV footage released by Belarusian state showed Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR, smiling broadly as Lukashenko told him the two countries were facing a difficult situation and had few international allies.
    In the latest uncompromising rhetoric from Lukashenko’s government, the Belarusian interior ministry said the protests were evolving into a terrorist threat.
    Naryshkin’s visit is likely to be seen as a show of support from Moscow for the Belarusian leader ahead of Monday when an opposition ultimatum for Lukashenko to step down, which he shows no sign of heeding, expires.
    Lukashenko, who has faced over two months of protests over an Aug. 9 election victory protesters say was rigged, thanked Naryshkin for regularly sharing Russian intelligence information with Belarus.
    President Vladimir Putin has pledged to send in special Russian riot troops if necessary, and granted Lukashenko a loan, while Russian state TV specialists have flown in to help keep state TV functioning.
    Russia, which has long viewed Belarus as a friendly buffer state between itself and the NATO military alliance, has said it sees the problems facing Lukashenko as the result of unwanted external influence.
    Naryshkin told reporters after the talks that the two men had discussed closer military, economic and espionage ties between the two countries, which are already loosely united in a union state.
    The European Parliament on Thursday awarded its annual human rights prize, named after Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, to the Belarusian opposition in a show of support for those protesting against Lukashenko’s rule.
    The parliament cited 10 opposition figures in its award statement, including the main opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Nobel laureate author Svetlana Alexievich.
(Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Matthias Williams and Peter Graff)

10/22/2020 EU Lawmakers Award Rights Prize To Belarus Opposition by Robin Emmott
Belarusian opposition politician Sviatlana Tikhanovskaya attends a news conference at Christiansborg Palace following
the 2020 EU Sakharov Prize at the European Parliament, in Copenhagen, Denmark October 22, 2020. Liselotte Sabroe/Ritzau
Scanpix via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. DENMARK OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN DENMARK
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Parliament awarded Belarus’ democratic opposition on Thursday its annual human rights prize, in support of the country’s protests against the results of an August presidential election that the West and the opposition say was rigged.
    “My message for you, dear laureates, is to stay strong and not to give up on your fight.    Know that we are by your side,” European Parliament President David Sassoli said after announcing the prize to “brave women … prominent political and civil society figures.”
    The parliament cited 10 opposition figures in its award statement, including the main opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Nobel laureate author Svetlana Alexievich.     Tens of thousands of people have marched through the streets of Belarus’ capital Minsk every weekend since the election, despite police brutality and detentions, to denounce what they say is President Alexander Lukashenko’s attempt to prolong his 26-year rule.
    The EU, Britain, Canada and United States accuse Lukashenko of maintaining power by holding fraudulent elections, jailing opponents and muzzling independent media.
    The 50,000 euro ($59,180) Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, named after Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, is awarded every year.    Past winners include South African President Nelson Mandela, Venezuela’s democratic opposition and Pakistani education activist Malala Yousafzai.
(Reporting by Robin Emmott; editing by Philip Blenkinsop and Alexandra Hudson)

10/22/2020 Russia Grants Whistleblower Edward Snowden Permanent Residency Rights: TASS
FILE PHOTO: Edward Snowden speaks via video link during a news conference in New York City, U.S. September 14, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has granted U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden permanent residency rights, the TASS news agency cited Snowden’s lawyer Anatoly Kucherena as saying on Thursday.
    Snowden fled the United States and was given asylum in Russia after he leaked secret files in 2013 that revealed vast domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the U.S. National Security Agency (i.e. spying on U.S. citizens).
    Snowden’s Russian lawyer, Kucherena, told TASS his client was not yet considering applying for a Russian passport.
    U.S. President Donald Trump said in August he was considering a pardon for Snowden.
(Reporting by Moscow newsroom; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
[I STILL THINK IF TRUMP GETS 4 MORE YEARS THAT HE WILL PARDON SNOWDEN WHEN THEY FINALLY GET TO GO THROUGH ALL THE CORRUPTION THAT OCCURRED DURING THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION FROM ABUSING THE SURVEILLANCE CRIMES COMMITTED TO CONTROL PERSONS AND INFLUENCED THE SWAMP AND DEEP STATE TO ALLOW THE GLOBALISTS TO TAKE CONTROL OF OUR SOVEREIGNTY DURING 2009-2016 AND IT IS STILL OCCURING EVEN TODAY AND IF HE HAD NOT DONE WHAT HE DID WE WOULD HAVE NEVER FOUND OUT WHAT THEY WERE DOING.].

10/23/2020 Polish Court Ruling Amounts To Almost Total Ban On Abortion by Joanna Plucinska and Alicja Ptak
People protest against imposing further restrictions on abortion law in Poland in front of the Constitutional Court
building in Warsaw, Poland October 22, 2020. Jacek Marczewski/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS
- THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. POLAND OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN POLAND.
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Protests gathered across Poland after the Constitutional Tribunal ruled on Thursday that abortion due to foetal defects was unconstitutional, banning the most common of the few legal grounds for ending a pregnancy in the largely Catholic country.
    After the ruling goes into effect, abortion will only be permissible in Poland in the case of rape, incest or a threat to the mother’s health and life, which make up only about 2% of legal terminations conducted in recent years.
    The development pushes Poland further away from the European mainstream, as the only EU country apart from tiny Malta to severely restrict access to abortion.
    “(A provision which) legalises eugenic practices in the field of the right to life of an unborn child and makes the right to life of an unborn child dependent on his or her health … is inconsistent … with the constitution,” said Julia Przylebska, Head of the Constitutional Tribunal.
    Hundreds marched toward the house of governing party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski on Thursday night after the ruling, some carrying candles and signs that read “torture.”    Most wore face masks to comply with coronavirus pandemic restrictions.
    Police in riot gear had cordoned off the house.    The Warsaw Police said on Twitter that it reacted with pepper spray and physical force after protesters threw stones and tried to push through the police line.
    Small protests also took place in the cities of Krakow, Lodz and Szczecin.
    “It’s sick that such controversial things are being decided at a time when the entire society lives in fear (of the pandemic) and is afraid to go into the streets,” said Marianna Dobkowska, 41.
    Protests in Warsaw dispersed very early on Friday, with activists calling for further gatherings that upcoming evening.
    Conservative values have played a growing role in public life in Poland since the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party came into power five years ago on a promise to defend what it sees as the nation’s traditional, Catholic character.
    Curbing access to abortion has been a long-standing ambition of the party, but it has stepped back from previous legislative proposals amid widespread public backlash.
    A group of right-wing lawmakers asked the Tribunal in December 2019 to rule on the legality of aborting when there is serious, irreversible damage to the foetus.
    “Today Poland is an example for Europe, it’s an example for the world,” said Kaja Godek, a member of the “Stop Abortion” public initiative, a separate group.
    Women’s rights and opposition groups reacted with dismay.
    “The worst-case scenario that could have come true has come true.    It is a devastating sentence that will destroy the lives of many women and many families,” said lawyer Kamila Ferenc who works with an NGO helping women denied abortion.
    “It will especially force the poor to give birth to children against their will.    Either they have no chance of surviving, or they have no chance of an independent existence, or they will die shortly after giving birth.”
    Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic called it a “sad day for women’s rights.”
    “Removing the basis for almost all legal abortions in Poland amounts to a ban and violates human rights.    Today’s ruling of the Constitutional Court means underground/abroad abortions for those who can afford and even greater ordeal for all others.”
POLITICIZED COURTS?
    Opponents say the Constitutional Tribunal may have acted on the ruling party’s behalf.    While the Tribunal is nominally independent, most of its judges have been nominated by PiS, some to replace candidates picked by the opposition but whose appointment was refused by President Andrzej Duda, a party ally.
    “To throw in the subject of abortion and produce a ruling by a pseudo-tribunal in the middle of a raging pandemic is more than cynicism. It is political wickedness,” said Donald Tusk, head of the main centre-right group in the European Parliament and a former prime minister of Poland.
    PiS denies trying to influence the court or taking advantage of the pandemic to push through the changes.    Its justice reforms which included the Tribunal have attracted wide international accusations of undermining democratic norms.
    Abortion rights activists say access to the procedure was often declined in recent years in Poland even in cases when it would be legal.
    Many doctors in Poland, which already had some of the strictest abortion rules in Europe, exercise their legal right to refuse to terminate pregnancies on religious grounds.    Some say they are pressured into doing so by their superiors.
    Maria Kurowska, a lawmaker with United Poland, a party in the ruling coalition with Law and Justice said: “We are glad with what the Constitutional Tribunal ruled because one cannot kill a child for being sick.    This is not a foetus, it is a child.”
(Reporting by Gosia Wojtunik, Kuba Stezycki, Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Anna Koper; Writing by Marcin Goclowski, Joanna Plucinska and Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Alexandra Hudson, Sonya Hepinstall and Gerry Doyle)

10/23/2020 Polish Police Detain 15 People After Protests Over Abortion Ruling
Police block a road as people protest against imposing further restrictions on abortion law in Poland near the
Constitutional Court building in Warsaw, Poland October 22, 2020. Jedrzej Nowicki/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish police detained 15 people after protests in Warsaw late on Thursday against a near-total ban on abortion, a police spokesman said on Friday.
    Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal ruled on Thursday that abortion due to foetal defects was unconstitutional, banning the most common of the few legal grounds for ending a pregnancy in the largely Catholic country.
(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko and Marcin Goclowski; Editing by Gareth Jones)

[BELOW IS THE LAME FAKE NEWS REPORTING OF THE ABOVE ARTICLE.].
10/23/2020 Poland’s top court rules out abortions because of fetal defects
    WARSAW, Poland – Poland’s top court ruled Thursday that a law allowing abortion of fetuses with congenital defects is unconstitutional, shutting a major loophole in the predominantly Catholic country’s abortion laws.    Two judges in the 13-member Constitutional Court did not back the majority ruling.    The Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner wrote on Twitter that it was a “sad day for women’s rights.”    The court argued that ending pregnancy due to defects amounted to eugenics – a 19th century genetic selection theory.

10/24/2020 Polish President Duda Infected With Coronavirus; Swiatek Goes Into Quarantine by Marcin Goclowski
FILE PHOTO: Polish President and presidential candidate of the Law and Justice (PiS) party Andrzej Duda talks to
the media after the announcement of the first exit poll results on the second round of the presidential election,
at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Poland, July 12, 2020. REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel/File Photo
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish President Andrzej Duda has tested positive for coronavirus and is subject to quarantine but is feeling good, officials announced on Saturday, as the country imposed fresh restrictions to try to stem a surge in the disease.
    “The president yesterday was tested for the presence of coronavirus. The result turned out to be positive.    The president is fine.    We are in constant contact with the relevant medical services,” presidential minister Blazej Spychalski said on Twitter.
    One of the people Duda met in recent days was tennis star Iga Swiatek – who said soon after the announcement that the president has been infected that she feels good, but will quarantine.
    “Neither I nor members of my team have symptoms of coronavirus.    We carry out tests regularly.    We will quarantine ourselves in accordance with current procedures,” the 19-year-old said in a Twitter post.
    Fresh from winning the French Open earlier this month and gaining national hero status for doing so, Swiatek met with Duda on Friday, when she was awarded the Gold Cross of Merit for her achievements in sports and promotion of the country internationally.
    Duda, 48, holds a mainly ceremonial role, but has the power to veto legislation. He is an ally of the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.
    “The president is a young man, I think that he will pass the infection without problems,” Deputy Health Minister Waldemar Kraska told private radio RMF.
    He added that he expects that all people who had contact with Duda in recent days will be quarantined.    This should include Swiatek, he said.
    Poland is seeing a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, with new infections hitting a daily record of 13,632 on Friday.    The country recorded 13,628 new cases on Saturday.
NEW MEASURES
    More restrictions to curb the spread of the virus came into force on Saturday, including a two-week shutdown of restaurants and bars.    Schools will remain open, but only children up to third grade will attend, with older students moving to distance learning.
    The government sent text messages on Saturday morning to Poles, urging them to stay home and help elderly people.
    The government has also banned public gatherings of more than five people.
    Despite this, thousands poured onto streets on Friday night to protest over a ruling on Thursday by the Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total ban on abortion in the predominantly Roman Catholic country.
    The Health Ministry reported 153 coronavirus deaths on Friday, taking the total toll to 4,172.    Poland has reported a total of 228,318 cases.
    The healthcare system has begun to buckle under the weight of mounting infections, forcing the government to set up field hospitals.
    The ruling nationalists have faced criticism in recent days from the opposition that the country is not prepared enough for the second coronavirus wave.    Recent opinion polls have shown a drop in support for both PiS and Duda.
(Reporting by Marcin Goclowski and Alicja Ptak; Editing by Jason Neely and Frances Kerry)

10/24/2020 U.S. Sanctions Russian Institute Linked To Dangerous Malware by Raphael Satter
FILE PHOTO: National flags of Russia and the U.S. fly at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, Russia April 11, 2017. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
    WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Washington imposed sanctions on Friday on a Russian research institute tied to the development of a dangerous computer program capable of causing catastrophic industrial damage, a move that Russia called illegitimate.
    The U.S. Treasury Department alleged that the Russian government-backed Central Scientific Research Institute of Chemistry and Mechanics – also known by its Russian acronym, TsNIIKhM – was responsible for “building customized tools that enabled the attack” on an unidentified petrochemical facility in the Middle East in 2017.
    The attack electrified the cybersecurity community when it was made public by researchers that year because – unlike typical digital intrusions aimed at stealing data or holding it for ransom – it appeared aimed at causing physical damage to the facility itself by disabling its safety system.
    Nathan Brubaker, an analyst with cybersecurity company FireEye – which discovered the software involved – said the apparent intent made it uniquely dangerous because disabling safety systems at a plant like that one could lead to serious consequences, such as a fire or an explosion.
    “The acute nature of the threat is what makes it scary,” Brubaker said.    “Blowing things up and killing people – that’s terrifying.”
    Treasury also said last year the attackers behind the malware were reported to be scanning and probing at least 20 electric utilities in the United States for vulnerabilities.
    “We emphasize once again the illegitimacy of any one-sided restrictions.    Russia, unlike the United States, does not conduct offensive operations in cyber domain,” Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s ambassador to the United States, said on social media.
    “We call on the United States to abandon the vicious practice of unfounded accusations.”
    U.S. officials have been on a tear in the past month, filing a glut of indictments against hackers in Russia, China and Iran, levying sanctions, and issuing several warnings about state-backed digital intrusions.
    Experts see the activity as the United States warning hostile powers to not interfere in its Nov. 3 elections, less than two weeks away.
(Reporting by Raphael Satter; Additional reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin in Moscow; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Tom Brown and Jonathan Oatis)

10/24/2020 Czech Republic’s Coronavirus Daily Tally Tops 15,000 For First Time
Beds are set up inside of an exhibition center to accommodate people who suffer mild coronavirus disease (COVID-19) symptoms in Prague, Czech Republic, October 22, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech Republic reported 15,252 new cases of coronavirus for Oct. 23, its highest daily tally, as the country faces Europe’s fastest spread of the infection.
    The total number of cases rose to 238,323 in the country of 10.7 million, with 126 new deaths taking that total to 1,971.
(Reporting by Robert Muller; editing by Jason Neely)

10/24/2020 Belarus President Lukashenko Speaks By Phone To Pompeo: Media
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko chairs a meeting with high-ranking
officials in Minsk, Belarus October 21, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko, who is facing an opposition threat of a national strike, spoke by phone with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday, state media reported.
    No details of the call were immediately available, the Belta news agency said.
    Lukashenko, who is holding on to power despite major protests in recent weeks calling for him to resign, is facing the prospect of a national strike that could begin on Monday following an ultimatum set by opposition leaders.
    Lukashenko has shown no sign he will heed the ultimatum and step down.    Protests against his 26-year rule began following an Aug. 9 election victory his opponents say was rigged.
    Washington has imposed sanctions on Belarus officials following violent crackdowns at demonstrations in Minsk and across the country.
    Protesters shouting slogans and waving red-and-white opposition flags marched through the streets of Minsk on Saturday, footage taken by local media showed.
(Writing by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Matthias Williams and Mike Harrison)

10/24/2020 Belarus’s Tsikhanouskaya Self-Isolates After COVID-19 Exposure
FILE PHOTO: Belarus' opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya meets with Denmark's Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod
(not pictured) during her visit in Copenhagen, Denmark October 23, 2020. Ritzau Scanpix/Emil Helms via REUTERS
    LONDON (Reuters) – Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is self-isolating and will take a COVID-19 test after meeting earlier this week with the Slovenian foreign minister, who has since tested positive for the coronavirus.
    “This does not hinder the work of her team,” her spokeswoman Anna Krasulina said in a statement sent to Reuters.
    Lithuania, where Tsikhanouskaya lives after fleeing Belarus following a disputed presidential election in August, requires a 14-day self-isolation period for anyone who has been in contact with someone who has tested positive.
    The Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian foreign ministers are also self-isolating after a meeting with the Slovenian counterpart Anze Logar this week, according to their spokeswomen and Twitter messages.
    Logar tested positive for coronavirus on Friday after the trip to Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, state news agency STA reported.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Frances Kerry)

10/25/2020 Belarus And Russia Will Respond To External Threats, Lukashenko Tells Pompeo: Agencies
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko chairs a meeting with high-ranking officials
in Minsk, Belarus October 21, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a phone call on Saturday that Belarus and Russia were ready to respond jointly to external threats, Russian agencies quoted Belarus state media as saying.
    Lukashenko, who is holding on to power despite major protests in recent weeks calling for him to resign, is facing the prospect of a national strike that could begin on Monday following an ultimatum set by opposition leaders.
    Lukashenko has shown no sign he will heed the ultimatum and step down.    Protests against his 26-year rule began following an Aug. 9 election victory his opponents say was rigged.
    Lukashenko had sought to mend fences with the West in recent years and Pompeo had travelled to Belarus in February in a bid to “normalise” ties.    But the crisis after the disputed election pushed Lukashenko back closer to traditional ally Russia.
    A U.S. State Department spokesperson confirmed Pompeo’s call on Saturday.    “The Secretary called for the full release and immediate departure from Belarus of wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Vitali Shkliarov  and reaffirmed U.S. support for the democratic aspirations of the people of Belarus,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
    Washington has imposed sanctions on Belarus officials following violent crackdowns at demonstrations in Minsk and across the country.
    Protesters shouting slogans and waving red-and-white opposition flags marched through the streets of Minsk on Saturday, footage taken by local media showed.
    “Russia does not interfere in the internal affairs of Belarus.    At the same time, the countries are ready to jointly respond to emerging external threats,” Russia’s Interfax news agency cited Belarus state television as saying, describing the call.
    “By mutual opinion, after Pompeo’s February visit to Minsk, the situation has changed dramatically, new challenges have arisen and are emerging,” Interfax cited Belarusian state television as saying.
(Additional reporting by Jonathan Landay in Washington; Writing by Polina Ivanova and Matthias Williams; Editing by Alison Williams and Daniel Wallis)

10/25/2020 Putin Rejects Donald Trump’s Criticism Of Biden Family Business by Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin speaks at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club via a video conference call at
the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia October 22, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that he saw nothing criminal in Hunter Biden’s past business ties with Ukraine or Russia, marking out his disagreement with one of Donald Trump’s attack lines in the U.S. presidential election.
    Putin was responding to comments made by Trump during televised debates with Democratic challenger Joe Biden ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
    Trump, who is trailing in opinion polls, has used the debates to make accusations that Biden and his son Hunter engaged in unethical practices in Ukraine.    No evidence has been verified to support the allegations, and Joe Biden has called them false and discredited.
    Putin, who has praised Trump in the past for saying he wanted better ties with Moscow, has said Russia will work with any U.S. leader, while noting what he called Joe Biden’s “sharp anti-Russian rhetoric.”
    Putin appeared less friendly towards Trump in remarks broadcast by Russian state TV on Sunday.    In what may be seen by some analysts as an attempt to try to curry favour with the Biden camp, he took the time to knock down what he made clear he regarded as false allegations from Trump about the Bidens.
    “Yes, in Ukraine he (Hunter Biden) had or maybe still has a business, I don’t know.    It doesn’t concern us.    It concerns the Americans and the Ukrainians,” said Putin.
    “But well yes he had at least one company, which he practically headed up, and judging from everything he made good money. I don’t see anything criminal about this, at least we don’t know anything about this (being criminal).”
    Putin also reacted with visible irritation when asked about comments Trump has made concerning Putin’s ties to the former mayor of Moscow, and to an alleged payment made to Hunter Biden by the ex-mayor’s widow.    Putin said he knew nothing about the existence of any commercial relationship between Hunter and the woman.    Joe Biden says the accusation about his son is not true.
    U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Russia tried to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election to tilt the contest in Trump’s favour, an allegation Moscow has denied. Russia has also dismissed accusations by U.S. intelligence agencies of trying to interfere with this year’s election too.
(Reporting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Frances Kerry)
[For years the Democrats have blamed Republicans of using Russia to do crimes and here again Putin is denying any of it, but the difference here is the Democrats could never show any proof of their claims but now the Republicans and Trump campaign actually have proof of Hunter Biden's activity as we have the evidence to show and prosecute him and Joe Biden although the U.S. fake news and big tech will not show the American public as they act just like we would believe that Russia would cover it up also.].

10/25/2020 Belarus Opposition Prepares Nationwide Strike After Police Crackdown On Protests
People attend an opposition rally to reject the Belarusian presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 25, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    KYIV/MOSCOW (Reuters) – Exiled opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Sunday called on Belarusians to begin a nationwide strike after police forces loyal to veteran President Alexander Lukashenko fired stun grenades to disperse mass protests.
    Tsikhanouskaya had previously set a “People’s Ultimatum” for Lukashenko to resign by Sunday night, promising to call the strike if he did not.
    Lukashenko, who has ruled for more than a quarter of a century, has signalled he would ignore the ultimatum.
    “The regime once again showed Belarusians that force is the only thing it is capable of,” Tsikhanouskaya wrote in a statement.    “That’s why tomorrow, Oct. 26, a national strike will begin.”
    It was not immediately clear how many Belarusians would answer her call.    But in a show of opposition strength, tens of thousands marched through Minsk and other cities on the 11th straight weekend of mass protests since a disputed election.
    Police used stun grenades against protesters they headed towards Independence Palace in the capital.
    People carrying the red-and-white flags of the Belarusian opposition movement scattered as loud bangs and flashes lit up the city’s streets after nightfall, videos showed.
    Explosions and white smoke filled residential areas as people hid behind vehicles and ran from police, the videos, shared online by news organisations, showed.
    Law enforcement confirmed that riot control weapons had been used and detentions had taken place, the Russian news agency RIA reported.
    Human rights group Vesna-96 said 216 people had been detained so far on Sunday.
RIOT POLICE
    An interior ministry spokeswoman said it was too early to say how many people had been injured or detained.    “We will only know by the morning if there are any injured people,” Olga Chemodanova was cited by RIA as saying.
    Earlier on Sunday, crowds streamed through the capital shouting “strike,” waving flags and beating drums.
    Twelve metro stations were closed, helmeted riot police patrolled the streets and mobile internet services were disrupted in Minsk. Two journalists were detained ahead of the protest, a local journalists’ association said.
    Tens of people were detained and security forces used tear gas in the western town of Lida, RIA quoted the regional branch of the interior ministry as saying.
    Lukashenko has shown little inclination to quit, buoyed by loans and the offer of military support from traditional ally Russia.
    The president’s main opponents have been jailed or fled into exile following the Aug. 9 election, which Lukashenko’s opponents accuse him of rigging to win a sixth straight term. He denies electoral fraud.
    Tsikhanouskaya, his main electoral challenger, led the calls for the strike if Lukashenko refused to release all political prisoners and resign to make way for a new election.
    The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada have imposed sanctions against a string of senior officials in Belarus accused of fraud and human rights abuses in the wake of the presidential election.
    Lukashenko has accused Western countries of meddling in the internal affairs of Belarus and trying to instigate a violent uprising against him.
    In a call with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday, he said Belarus and Russia were ready to respond jointly to external threats, Belarusian state television reported.
(Reporting by Matthias Williams and Polina Ivanova; Editing by Alison Williams, Nick Macfie and Raissa Kasolowsky)

10/25/2020 Tens Of People Detained, Tear Gas Deployed At Protest In West Belarus: RIA
Belarusian law enforcement officers and service members block a street during an opposition rally to
reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 25, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Tens of people were detained by police in the town of Lida in western Belarus on Sunday during a protest, Russia’s RIA news agency cited the regional branch of the Belarus interior ministry as saying.
    Police fired tear gas at protesters, RIA said.
    Protesters have been gathering ahead of the expiry at midnight on Sunday of an ultimatum for Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko to resign, the latest in 11 weeks of demonstrations following a disputed election result.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Susan Fenton)

10/25/2020 Warsaw Police Detain 278 After Saturday’s Protests Against Coronavirus Restrictions
FILE PHOTO: A policeman sprays demonstrators with tear gas during anti lockdown protest as the government announced additional restrictions
to prevent spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Warsaw, Poland October 24, 2020. Kuba Atys/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Warsaw police detained 278 people on Saturday after thousands protested against new curbs aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus, a police spokesman said.
    Police said demonstrators had attacked policemen, throwing stones, glass bottles and fire crackers during the demonstrations.    Police used tear gas on several occasions during the protests in Warsaw in which people demanded that new restrictions be repealed.
    “We have 278 detainees. … We were dealing with a clear manifestation of aggression, these people came to fight us,” Warsaw police spokesman Sylwester Marczak told reporters on Sunday.
    The demonstrations also broke a ban on gatherings of more than five people, which came into effect on Saturday as part of new measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
    Poland is seeing a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, with new infections on Friday hitting a daily record of 13,632.
    The head of the Polish Football Association, 1980s soccer star Zbigniew Boniek, tweeted on Sunday that he was infected with COVID-19, a day after Polish President Andrzej Duda tested positive for the disease.
    New curbs imposed on Saturday include a two-week shutdown of restaurants and bars.    Schools will remain open for children up to third grade, with older students moving to distance learning.    Older people can leave their homes only in special cases.
    Despite the ban on gatherings, Poland also separately continued to see demonstrations on Saturday against a ruling on Thursday by the Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total ban on abortion in the Catholic country.
    On Sunday activists have said they plan to gather in front of churches across the country, holding banners depicting crucified pregnant women.
    Recent opinion polls have also shown a drop in support for the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.
    It has faced criticism in recent days from the opposition that the country is not sufficiently prepared for a second wave of the virus and over the anti-abortion ruling.
    PiS lawmakers welcomed the Constitutional Tribunal’s decision on Thursday but rejected accusations by the opposition that the PiS had influenced it.
    The Health Ministry reported 87 coronavirus-related deaths on Sunday, taking the total death toll from COVID-19 to 4,438.    The country recorded 11,742 new cases on Sunday, with total infections approaching 253,700.
(Reporting by Alicja Ptak and Marcin Goclowski; Editing by Susan Fenton)

10/26/2020 Polish Protesters Disrupt Church Services Over Near-Total Abortion Ban by Alicja Ptak and Kuba Stezycki
Demonstrators hold a protest against the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total
ban on abortion, in Krakow, Poland October 25, 2020. Jakub Porzycki/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Thousands of activists disrupted church services across Poland on Sunday, chanting during mass and spraying slogans on walls to protest against a court ruling that amounts to a near-total ban on abortion.
    In the first large-scale demonstrations directly targeting churches in the predominately Catholic country, crowds carried posters depicting a crucified pregnant woman and handed out protest cards to priests.
    A Constitutional Court decision outlawing abortions due to foetal defects has now triggered four days of demonstrations.
    The ruling ended the most common of the few legal grounds left for abortion in Poland and set the country further apart from the European mainstream.
    In southern city of Katowice, a 7,000-strong crowd of mostly women gathered in front of the cathedral, chanting “this is war” and “human law, not ecclesiastical law.”    State news agency PAP said police used tear gas after officers were attacked.
    Three dozen protesters interrupted a mass in the western city of Poznan, chanting “we are sick of this” and holding banners with slogans including “Catholic women also need their right to abortion” in front of the altar.
    “Our rage should be directed towards politicians, but also towards senior church figures as they have also added to this women’s hell that the authorities are preparing,” said Mateusz Sulwinski, one of the protest organizers in Poznan.
    The leaders of the protests have accused Poland’s conservative ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), of pressing the court to tighten restrictions to appeal to the party’s base and to please the influential Church.    The party denies that.
    Church leaders have also denied wielding political power.
    “The Church does not constitute the law in our homeland and these are not the bishops who decide on the compliance or non-compliance of laws with the Polish Constitution,” Polish archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki said in a statement.
    “However, the Church cannot stop defending life, nor can it abandon the proclamation that every human being must be protected from conception until natural death.”
    A spokesman for the government could not be reached for comment.
    In Krakow, protesters hung black underwear and clothes on lines between trees – a reference to early protests against tightening of abortion restrictions where people wore black to show their support.
    In Warsaw protesters sprayed “abortion without borders” on one church, according to state news agency PAP.    At another church “you have blood on your hands” was daubed on the wall.
    Some people give priests cards with a bolt symbol symbolising their protest instead of the traditional donation during mass.
    “I’m here today because it annoys me that in a secular country the church decides for me what rights I have, what I can do and what I’m not allowed to do,” said media worker Julia Miotk, 26, protesting in front of a church in Warsaw.
    The protests started on Thursday despite bans on gatherings of more than five people imposed to contain the spread of COVID-19.
    Activists said they were planning more protests on Monday afternoon.
(Reporting by Alicja Ptak, Kuba Stezycki, Gosia Wojtunik and Marcin Goclowski; Editing by Alison Williams and Andrew Heavens)

10/26/2020 Belarus Strike Actions Start After Lukashenko Ignores Deadline To Quit
People attend an opposition rally to reject the Belarusian presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 25, 2020. BelaPAN via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Factory workers chanted slogans, students staged a sit-in and police began detentions on Monday as Belarusians answered an opposition call for a national strike to force President Alexander Lukashenko to quit, local media footage showed.
    Lukashenko had defied an ultimatum to surrender power by midnight on Sunday, challenging his opponents to make good on their threat to paralyse the country with mass strikes and shutdowns.
    His refusal to quit after 26 years in power will test whether the opposition has the mass support it needs to bring enterprises across the country of 9.5 million people to a halt.
    It was not immediately clear how widespread the latest round of protest action was.    Strikes have hit some major state-run factories in recent weeks but they have not been sustained.
    Eleven weeks after a disputed presidential election, the crisis in the former Soviet republic nevertheless entered a new phase with the expiry of the “People’s Ultimatum” set by exiled opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
    Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania after the Aug. 9 election for the safety of her family, has urged Belarusians to block roads, shut down workplaces, stop using government shops and services and withdraw all money from their bank accounts.
    Lukashenko has scoffed at the calls, asking “Who will feed the kids?” if workers at state-owned enterprises go on strike.
    Tsikhanouskaya called on Sunday for the strike to go ahead after police forces loyal to Lukashenko fired stun grenades and detained scores of people in a clampdown on protests by tens of thousands in Minsk and elsewhere.
    “The regime once again showed Belarusians that force is the only thing it is capable of,” she said in a statement.    “That’s why tomorrow, Oct. 26, a national strike will begin.”
    The standoff is being closely watched by neighbouring Russia and by Western governments.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin has no desire to see another leader toppled by protests in a former Soviet state, as happened in Ukraine in 2014 and Kyrgyzstan earlier this month.    He too has faced street demonstrations at various times, including for the past three months in the far eastern city of Khabarovsk.
    Since the crisis began, Moscow has backed Lukashenko with a $1.5 billion loan and increased security cooperation, including a series of joint military exercises and a visit last week by the head of Russia’s foreign intelligence agency.
SECURITY CRACKDOWN
    Lukashenko, 66, claimed victory in the Aug. 9 election with an official vote share of more than 80%, but the opposition accused him of vote-rigging on a massive scale.
    He has responded to mass street protests by arresting around 15,000 people, though most have since been released, and jailing opposition leaders or forcing them to leave the country.
    A U.N. human rights investigator said last month that thousands of people had been “savagely beaten” and there were more than 500 reports of torture, which the authorities deny.
    The United States, European Union, Britain and Canada have imposed travel bans and asset freezes against a string of officials accused of election fraud and human rights abuses.
    Tsikhanouskaya presented her ultimatum on Oct. 13 after the government said police would be authorised to use combat weapons against protesters if needed.
    Three days later, a senior police official repeated the threat.
    “We will of course humanely use weapons against them, including firearms, and we will remove the most dangerous ones from the streets,” said Nikolai Karpenkov, head of the police unit in charge of fighting organised crime.
(Writing by Mark Trevelyan and Matthias Williams; Editing by Catherine Evans)

10/26/2020 Analysis: Tax Hikes May Help Russian Oil Majors Stomach OPEC Output Curbs by Vladimir Soldatkin and Olesya Astakhova
FILE PHOTO: Full moon rises over the Gazprom Neft's oil refinery in Omsk, Russia February 10, 2020. REUTERS/Alexey Malgavko/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Higher taxes imposed on Russia’s energy sector could make prolonged output curbs by OPEC and allied producers easier to stomach for Moscow’s energy majors.
    The new system of taxes, approved by President Vladimir Putin earlier this month to help Russia weather the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, make it more expensive for energy companies to boost production from mature oil fields and produce more heavy crude.
    That could make Russia’s energy sector more willing to accept tighter policies from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, known as OPEC+, rather than engaging in a tussle with other oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia over oil market share, analysts say.
    OPEC+, of which Russia is a member, has been reducing oil output to the tune of 7.7 million barrels per day, or over 8.5% of global consumption, in order to help the sluggish oil market.
    “I think that the tax changes in oil industry were worked out while taking into account the OPEC+ deal and its influence on the output of the Russian companies,” said Karen Kostanyan of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
    The tax reforms are complex and vary from region and the types of oil pumped. Crucially, they scrap some tax breaks given to output from older oil fields and on highly viscous oil, used for production of a wide range of oil products.
    Renaissance Capital estimated that in total, the finance ministry plans to source 6 trillion roubles ($78 billion) in tax revenues from the oil and gas sector in 2021, or 32% of its total 2021 budget revenues under a Urals oil price assumption of $45.3 per barrel.
    Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said last month that the taxation and the way Russia sticks to the OPEC+ deal are in “different areas.”
    But the financial incentive to pump less could make for smoother discussions with Russia’s energy giants over continuing to keep a lid on production to support the market, analysts say.
    OPEC+ was planning to start raising output in January but concerns a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic will hobble demand could see that plan jettisoned.
    Last week, Putin did not rule out extending oil cuts if market conditions warranted.
    While Putin is the ultimate decision maker in the country, including in the oil industry, Novak has had to hold regular meetings with oil majors such as Rosneft and Lukoil to agree joint action before any significant deals can be done with OPEC.
    Igor Sechin, the head of Rosneft, has long opposed output cuts in tandem with OPEC but has been overruled by the president.
    Rosneft and Lukoil did not respond to a request for comment.
    Russia’s finance ministry told Reuters that the tax changes “should not result in oil output cuts long-term, provided that the companies continue investments.”
    Russia has also worked out a plan to build unfinished wells to make them operational and restore production quickly once the OPEC+ deal expires after April 2022.
    Mid-sized oil producer Tatneft said last week that it doesn’t plan to start output at new highly viscous oil fields due to the new tax regime.
    The changes affect companies such as Tatneft, Lukoil and Gazprom Neft the most because they produce such heavy crude oil.
    Rosneft, on the other hand, managed to secure some tax breaks by promising the state more revenues in exchange for less taxes.
    Artem Frolov, vice-president at Moody’s, believes the changes will ultimately mean only a moderate earnings hit for the oil majors.
    “These changes are unlikely to impact the position of energy ministry, which represents Russia at the (OPEC) talks,” he said.
($1 = 77.0100 roubles)

10/26/2020 Russia Proposes New Missile Verification Regime With U.S. After Demise Of Treaty
FILE PHOTO: Kremlin is reflected in the Moskva river as the spread of the coronavirus disease
(COVID-19) continues in Moscow, Russia May 16, 2020. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Monday proposed that Russia and the United States agree not to deploy certain land-based missiles in Europe and introduce mutual verification measures to build trust following the demise of the INF nuclear arms control treaty.
    The United States withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty last year, accusing Moscow of violating it, a charge denied by the Kremlin.
    Global nuclear arms control architecture has come under further strain since then as the former Cold War foes have been unable to agree on a replacement to New START, another major arms control pact that is due to expire in February 2021.
    On Monday, the Kremlin suggested “de-escalation” measures, such as allowing Russia to conduct checks on the U.S. Aegis Ashore system in Europe, and the United States to check Russia’s 9M729 missiles in facilities in the exclave of Kaliningrad.
    “We propose all interested sides to consider concrete options for mutual verification measures to remove existing concerns,” the Kremlin said in a statement on its website.
    The INF pact had prohibited land-based missiles with a range of 310-3,400 miles, reducing the ability of both countries to launch a nuclear strike at short notice.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

10/26/2020 Rwandan Genocide Suspect In Detention In The Hague
FILE PHOTO: French lawyer Laurent Bayon, who defends Rwandan genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga, leaves the courtroom after the
initial extradition hearing at the Paris courthouse, France, May 20, 2020. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/File Photo/File Photo
    AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Rwandan genocide suspect Félicien Kabuga was in custody in the Hague on Monday after his transfer from France following a United Nations court order.
    Kabuga, who was on the run for 22 years until his arrest in France in May, will soon be brought before a judge, the U.N. tribunal said in a statement.
    Last week a U.N. judge ordered the transfer to the Netherlands, rather than to a U.N. detention unit in Tanzania, out of health considerations amid the coronavirus pandemic.
    Kabuga, 84, is likely to spend at least several months in The Hague and could then still be tried in Tanzania.
    U.N. prosecutors accuse the former tea and coffee tycoon of bankrolling and importing machetes for ethnic Hutu militias which killed hundreds of thousands of Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda during a 100-day period in 1994.
    Kabuga faces allegations of genocide, complicity in genocide and crimes against humanity.    He has dismissed accusations against him as “lies” during French extradition hearings.
(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

10/26/2020 On The EU’s Eastern Border, Seeking Refuge Is Harder For Some by Alan Charlish and Marcin Goclowski
Seda Yunusova, a Chechen, is pictured in Brest, Belarus October 15, 2018. Picture taken October 15, 2018. REUTERS/Marta Rybicka
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland has made it easier for Belarusians fleeing political persecution to enter, but for Seda Yunusova, a Chechen who was refused the opportunity to apply for asylum 16 times in 2016 and 2017, this is little comfort.
    “With all this that is going on I am fearful again,” Yunusova told Reuters by telephone from the village of Dymna, near the Belarusian border city of Brest, where she has settled with her eight children.
    Like other places in Belarus, Brest has seen violent anti-government protests, and Yunusova says signs of conflict are present in her village.
    “God forbid we would have to seek refuge again.”
    Yunusova says she and her family fled Chechnya after her husband refused to serve in the Russian army in Ukraine in 2014, having already been deployed there the previous year.    She says his military service meant the family was “blacklisted” by Polish border guards. He now works as a driver in Russia and visits on holidays.
    Poland’s nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government has cited security concerns as a reason for not accepting refugees, although it is keen to attract skilled workers from culturally similar Belarus.
    However, for PiS’s critics, the presence of Yunusova and other Tajik and Chechen refugees on the European Union’s eastern border is a reminder of what they say is Poland’s refusal to meet its obligations under international law at a time when migration policy is straining relations in the bloc.
    According to Kirill Kofanov, a lawyer at the Human Constanta NGO in Brest, there are 30 to 40 asylum seekers in the city.
    Data from Poland’s Foreigners Office shows that the number of asylum applications processed in 2019 was around a third of the 2016 figure.    While Poland has made it easier for Belarusians to get work and study visas, NGOs say it has been denying many other asylum seekers the right to submit applications.
    The U.N. Refugee Agency has urged Poland to help people fleeing war and persecution after Europe’s human rights court ruled Warsaw had broken an international convention by denying asylum procedures to refugees.
MUSLIM COUNTRY
    Gulbarg Sayfova, whose husband is a political prisoner in Tajikistan, spent two months in Brest before she crossed the border in 2016.
    “They said to me why did you come here? You can go to Muslim countries … why did you come to Poland?,” she told Reuters.
    One Chechen asylum seeker who did not wish to give her name said she succeeded in making an asylum application and crossing the border on her 55th attempt.    “Go to China, to Turkey … for all 54 attempts they said the same thing.”
    The Polish Border Guard told Reuters by email that there were no refugee blacklists and officers did not discriminate on religious grounds.    They declined to comment on individual cases.
    “Border Guard officers are bound by rules of professional ethics concerning, among other things, the obligation to respect human dignity and to respect and protect human rights,” they said.
    Poland’s interior ministry referred Reuters to answers given by the Border Guard.
    For Yunusova, her priority is her children’s education as she tries to build a life in Belarus, helped by Polish charities.
    “My oldest daughter would like to study in Poland. Perhaps one day.”
(Reporting by Alan Charlish and Marcin Goclowski in Warsaw, Anna Dabrowska and Anna Rzhevkina in Gdansk; Editing by Giles Elgood)

10/26/2020 Abortion Rights Protests Block City Streets Across Poland by Joanna Plucinska and Anna Koper
People protest against the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total
ban on abortion, in Warsaw, Poland October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Thousands of Poles blocked city streets in cars, on bicycles and on foot on Monday on the fifth day of protests against a Constitutional Court ruling that amounts to a near-total ban on abortion in the predominantly Catholic nation.
    Carrying banners reading “Enough,” “I won’t be your martyr” and “I want choice, not terror,” protesters gathered in several dozens towns and cities in defiance of coronavirus restrictions.
    “Women are strong,” said Malgorzata Rutkowska, 56, standing in one of Warsaw’s main thoroughfares, saying the protests would continue until the ban was reversed.
    The court ruling last Thursday fuelled an unprecedented backlash against the powerful Roman Catholic Church in Poland, which is seen as having close links with the conservative nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government.
    It has also heightened criticism of PiS, which came to power five years ago on a promise to instil more traditional values.
    After the ruling goes into effect, abortion will be banned in the case of foetal abnormalities.    It will be legal only in the case of rape, incest or a threat to the woman’s health.
    Critics say the court has acted on behalf of the party, which has in the past stepped back from efforts to tighten abortion rules amid public outcry. PiS denies that.
    The tribunal has been part of the government’s sweeping overhaul of the justice system which the European Commission says subverts the rule of law by politicising courts.
    The government has called for a halt to the protests because of a rising number of coronavirus cases overwhelming the health care system.
    Except for isolated scuffles with the police, however, the protests have been largely peaceful, and in some cases local media reported police expressing support.
    “What’s happening in recent days is absolutely unacceptable,” Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s chief of staff, Michal Dworczyk, told private radio RMF.    “Pandemic rules are being broken.”
    Poland recorded 10,241 new coronavirus cases on Monday, compared with a record of 13,632 on Friday.
    Parliament is due to discuss the impact of the court ruling on the government’s aid programme for families with disabled children on Tuesday.
    Protests are expected to continue near the house of PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski in an affluent Warsaw neighbourhood.
(Additional reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Writing by Justyna Pawlak; editing by Nick Macfie)

10/26/2020 Workers And Students Pose Strike Challenge To Belarusian Leader by Tom Balmforth
People attend an opposition rally to reject the Belarusian presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus October 25, 2020. BelaPAN via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Factory workers chanted slogans, students and pensioners took to the streets, and police detained at least 235 people on Monday as the Belarusian opposition sought to intensify pressure on veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko with a nationwide strike.
    Lukashenko defied an ultimatum to surrender power by midnight, challenging his opponents to carry out a threat to paralyse the country with strikes, nearly three months after his disputed election victory unleashed mass protests.
    If sustained, the strikes could open a new phase in the crisis, testing whether the opposition has the mass support it needs to bring enterprises across the country of 9.5 million people to a halt.    The opposition has mounted strikes at state-run factories previously, but they were not sustained.
    Belarusian media reported groups of strikers at many major state-controlled enterprises.    However, the prime minister’s spokeswoman said all the major industrial companies were working normally.
    Many shops, cafes and restaurants were closed in central Minsk.    Hundreds of university students took to the streets in the capital, clapping and chanting as passing cars tooted their horns in support.
    A crowd of around 2,000-3,000 marched down a main street waving red and white flags and protest signs.
    Elsewhere in Minsk, black-clad officers in masks poured out of vans, detaining people and dragging them away, footage from news website Tut.by showed.
    By evening, small protests continued in a dozen districts of Minsk as protesters formed roadside human chains and stood in the road to block traffic.    Unidentified men shot at human chains in two places with paintball guns, Tut.by reported.     The Vesna-96 rights group said police had detained 235 people across the country on Monday.
    The KGB security service warned protesters that extremist actions may be treated as terrorism.    The central bank said that a DDoS cyber attack knocked its website offline for two and a half hours.
    Exiled opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has urged Belarusians to block roads, shut down workplaces, stop using government shops and services and withdraw all money from their bank accounts.
    Lukashenko has scoffed, asking: “Who will feed the kids?”
    Official media said Lukashenko was at work as normal on Monday and that he had a busy working week ahead of him.
    Tsikhanouskaya praised workers and others for the strike action a day after police fired stun grenades and detained scores of people at nationwide protests by tens of thousands, the 11th straight weekend of rallies.
    “The protest will only be over once we have achieved our goal.    We stand together, we are many and we are ready to go until victory,” she said in a statement.
    If strikes come close to paralysing the country, it could be a further test of Russian support for its ally Lukashenko.
    Since the crisis began, Moscow has backed him with a $1.5 billion loan and increased security cooperation.
    Official results showed Lukashenko won a landslide election victory on Aug. 9, but the opposition and Western countries say the vote was rigged, which he denies.
    More than 15,000 people have since been arrested during a crackdown on mass demonstrations.    Nearly all opposition leaders fled or were jailed.
(Writing by Mark Trevelyan, Matthias Williams, Tom Balmforth; Editing by Catherine Evans, Giles Elgood, Peter Graff and Barbara Lewis)

10/27/2020 Hungarian Minister Says Ukraine’s Entry Ban Order Is ‘Pathetic And Nonsense’
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto is seen during a meeting with his
Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh in Hanoi, Vietnam October 16, 2020. REUTERS/Kham
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s foreign minister said on Tuesday Ukraine’s decision to bar the entry of two Hungarian government officials over what it called meddling in local elections was “pathetic and nonsense.”
    In a video message on his Facebook page, Peter Szijjarto said Budapest had not received formal notice of the Ukrainian ban.
    In the video, Szijjarto welcomed the victory of Hungarian candidates in Ukrainian local elections, which he said meant Hungarians’ opinion would have to be considered for the future of the region bordering Hungary, which has a large ethnic Hungarian minority.
    He said Ukraine had taken “unfriendly steps” towards Hungary, by summoning the Hungarian ambassador and deciding to ban the entry of the two officials.
    “With this Ukraine sends the message … that it has given up on Hungarian support for its euroatlantic integration efforts,” Szijjarto said.
    It was not the first time that Hungary has hinted at blocking Ukraine’s membership of NATO.
    The two countries have repeatedly clashed in the past years over what Hungary said were curbs on the rights of roughly 150,000 ethnic Hungarians to use their native tongue, especially in education, after Ukraine passed a law in 2017 restricting the use of minority languages in schools.
    Ukraine’s foreign ministry said on Monday it had handed the Hungarian ambassador a note of protest for what it described as political agitation by Hungarian officials in favour of a party that contested Saturday’s elections in Ukraine.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than and Anita Komuves; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Robert Birsel)

10/27/2020 Opposition Urges Belarusians To Defy “Colossal Pressure” And Back Strike
FILE PHOTO: Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya delivers a statement next to Slovak Prime Minister
Igor Matovic (not pictured) in Bratislava, Slovakia, October 8, 2020. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya appealed to Belarusians on Tuesday to throw their support behind a national strike to oust President Alexander Lukashenko, but the government insisted that companies were working as normal.
    On the second day of the strike she has said will paralyse the country, Tsikhanouskaya said employees at a string of major companies were refusing to work their shifts but coming under “colossal pressure” from the authorities.
    Eleven weeks after running against Lukashenko in a presidential election that the opposition and Western governments say was rigged, Tsikhanouskaya – who fled to Lithuania after the vote – is facing a critical test of her ability to mobilise popular support.
    “If we help the factories go on strike, they will help us finish what we started,” she said on social media.    “Remember: every active peaceful step brings us closer to ending the violence, winning freedom for political prisoners and finally holding new, fair elections.”
    Photos and videos posted on Twitter showed protests at high schools and several universities and workers holding placards and opposition red-and-white flags outside a telecoms company in Minsk.
    But the strike calls have so far failed to shut down state enterprises in the former Soviet republic of 9.5 million people.     Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said the situation was “absolutely calm,” and attacked what he called “direct appeals to cause harm to our country.”
    A representative of heavy vehicle manufacturer MZKT, contacted by Reuters, said: “We have no strikes here. Everything is fine, we’re all working.”
    Lukashenko, in power since 1994 and drawing on support from his key ally, Russia, ignored an ultimatum from Tsikhanouskaya to step down by Sunday and since then has stepped up his rhetoric against the opposition.
    The official news agency Belta quoted him as saying that some people had become radicalised and “crossed the red line” in recent days.
    “What has been launched against us is not an information war but a terrorist war on separate fronts.    We must stop it,” he said.
    Students who broke the law should be expelled from their universities and made to join the army or be thrown on to the streets, he said.
    The interior ministry said more than 500 people had been arrested at anti-government protests on Monday, the first day of the strike.    Some 16,000 have been detained during protests since the disputed Aug. 9 election.
    A lawyer for Vitali Shkliarov, a U.S. citizen who had been detained in Belarus for nearly three months, said he had been released and allowed to leave the country to join his wife and child.
    Lawyer Anton Gashinsky said Shkliarov, who is recovering from COVID-19, was still under investigation and would return to the country. He said the release of the political consultant was a direct result of a phone call on Saturday in which U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Lukashenko to free him.
(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Peter Graff and Nick Macfie)

10/282020 Police Warn Of Tougher Action As Thousands Join Abortion Protests In Poland by Alicja Ptak and Joanna Plucinska
Women hold a demonstration outside the Polish embassy in solidarity with protesters in Poland who are demonstrating against a court
ruling that further limits the country's highly restrictive abortion law, in Rome, Italy, October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Thousands took to the streets across Poland on Wednesday for the seventh day of protests against a court ruling that further limits the country’s highly restrictive abortion laws.
    Police warned demonstrators not to target churches again after some services were disrupted and buildings defaced in an earlier protest.
    Poland has been rocked by huge demonstrations, most of them peaceful, since its top court ruled last Thursday that abortion due to foetal abnormalities was not permissible under the constitution.
    The decision means only abortions due to incest, rape or a risk to the mother’s health remain legal, setting predominantly Catholic Poland far apart from the European mainstream.
    Demonstrators have blamed the nationalist government of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and the Roman Catholic Church which has close ties to the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party for the court verdict.
    In a rare display of anger against the Church last Sunday, demonstrators in Warsaw, Poznan and Katowice disrupted church services and defaced church buildings.
    On Wednesday, organisers called for a nationwide walk-out for women at work. Some employers, including schools, announced a day off to allow people to join the protests.
    Chanting “hypocrites, fanatics,” thousands marched through central Warsaw, some carrying posters that read “Revolution is a woman” and “I’d rather stay home but I have a government to overthrow.”
    “In light of plans being announced by organisers for further acts of aggression and profanation, the police will take decisive action.    The goal of the police is to ensure public order and safety for all citizens,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
    It was not clear which group or plans the ministry was referring to. A mass demonstration is planned in Warsaw on Friday.
WAITING FOR PUBLICATION
    The government denies influencing the court but the ruling follows five years of PiS efforts to instil more conservative values in public life in close cooperation with the Catholic Church.    It also comes after sweeping judiciary reforms the European Commission says have politicised courts and undermined democratic norms.
    More than 70% of Poles say they oppose the ruling, according to a survey published by the liberal Gazeta Wyborcza daily.
    Kamila Kobrynska, 35, who runs a professional training school for adults in Warsaw, joined businesses across Poland in closing up shop on Wednesday.br>     “We won’t go bankrupt in one day.    This issue is so important, there is no discussion whether we work or protest.”
    Supporters of the government were eager for the decision to be implemented.    An anti-abortion campaign group, Ordo Iuris, called for its inclusion in the official gazette so that it goes into effect.
    “We believe that every day of delay is a day that we lose another child’s life because of suspected flaws or genetic diseases,” said director Karolina Pawlowska.
(Reporting by Warsaw bureau; Writing by Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

10/28/2020 Lithuanian Election Winner Pledges More Women In Government by Andrius Sytas
FILE PHOTO: Presidential candidate Ingrida Simonyte speaks to media during the first round of
Lithuanian Presidential election in Vilnius, Lithuania May 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania’s new government will have more women than ever, election winner Ingrida Simonyte said on Wednesday, in a bid to change traditional gender attitudes in the Baltic Sea state.
    Simonyte’s Homeland Union party, the centre-right main opposition party with roots in the 1980s anti-Soviet independence movement, is crafting the next government with two liberal parties, both headed by women.
    The coalition won 74 seats in the 141-seat parliament on Sunday.
    The country of fewer than 3 million people has fared relatively well in the coronavirus crisis, though cases have spiked of late as elsewhere around Europe.    But outgoing Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis has faced criticism for failing to create more jobs and stop debt mounting.
    Last year, Skvernelis presided over one of the few European male-only cabinets, something Simonyte hopes to change with having five or more females in the next 15-member lineup.
    “I want to show, by example of myself and my female colleagues, that not only men can be at the top, but also women,” Simonyte told Reuters in an interview.
    “A lot of our society is defined from the traditional upbringing, which tells girls to be nurses or teachers, while boys are set to become leaders and decision makers,” she added.    “These things are slow to change on their own.”
    Simonyte was finance minister in a previous Homeland Union government, which lost power in 2012 after one of Europe’s harshest austerity programmes, which caused a collapse in GDP of about 15% in 2009.
    But she says she won’t resort to austerity if the coronavirus cripples the economy again.
    “In 2009, we had our own currency, risked a devaluation and no one would lend to us, so we needed the cuts.    Now we have the euro and the favourable monetary policy, and thank God for that,” she said.
    Simonyte said her government will continue to work for a tougher EU response to Belarus crisis.
    Lithuania gave refuge to the opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya as she fled crackdowns after the disputed Aug. 9 election which President Alexander Lukashenko said he won.
    “Some European leaders say that we need to talk to the Kremlin, that Belarus is its sphere of influence.    We, and Poland, see things differently,” said Simonyte.
    “I don’t think that European Union sees Belarus as part of its interests.    I think that it should.”
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Nick Macfie)

10/28/2020 Cuba Says U.S. Sanctions To End Remittances, Western Union Says Not So Fast
FILE PHOTO: U.S. and Cuban flags are seen before a ceremony for the arrival of Carnival cruise ship ms Veendam
during its first trip to Cuba in Havana, Cuba, December 28, 2017. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba said late on Tuesday Western Union would have to shut down its operations on the island due to new U.S. sanctions, thereby cutting off key remittances, but the money transfer firm said it was still exploring ways to comply with the new rules.
    President Donald Trump’s administration said last week it was enacting a rule prohibiting persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction from sending remittances to Communist-run Cuba via firms that work with Cuban military-controlled companies.
    Military-owned Fincimex is the main Cuban partner of Western Union, which millions of Cubans in the United States have used for two decades to send money back to their loved ones on the Caribbean island.
    In a statement published on Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the military used its profits from the transfer business “to oppress the Cuban people and to fund Cuba’s interference in Venezuela”
    Some analysts also believe the Trump administration is ratcheting up sanctions on Cuba ahead of next week’s presidential election in a bid to ensure it has secured the anti-Castro vote in the key swing state of Florida.
    The administration said the changes would be effective within 30 days, theoretically giving Western Union and the Cuban government time to figure out a new business arrangement such as transferring the remittances business to non-military entities.
    “We are exploring ways to comply with the new rules and regulations on Cuba,” Western Union said in a statement.
    “We will provide additional information as we formalize those plans. In the meantime, Western Union services between the U.S. and Cuba remain operational.”
    But a Fincimex statement posted on Facebook and shared on social media by the Cuban Foreign Ministry suggests Havana will not negotiate.
    “Fincimex is the entity that, by sovereign decision of the Cuban government, has been charged with guaranteeing remittances to Cuba from the United States, which will now be totally interrupted,” it said.
    “Among the North American counterparts are Western Union, whose 407 paypoints distributed throughout the country will close due to these brutal measures.”
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh; editing by John Stonestreet)

10/28/2020 Lone Protester Climbs Factory Chimney To Tell Belarus Leader To Quit
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting to discuss preparations for the 6th Belarusian
People's Congress, in Minsk, Belarus October 27, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS
- THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.
    (Reuters) – The young man in the black woollen ski hat is nervous. He pauses repeatedly to catch his breath and remember the short speech he has prepared.
    But when he speaks, he addresses Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in a firm, clear voice.    In his left hand, he holds a red and white flag, the symbol of the protest movement against the veteran president.
    “You must announce your departure, you must halt violence and you must release all political prisoners,” says the young factory worker, who gives his name as Viktor Mankevich.
    A video https://twitter.com/HannaLiubakova/status/1321398280933253120 posted on Twitter on Wednesday shows Mankevich making his lonely protest after climbing a ladder to reach a narrow platform near the top of a factory chimney.
    “Don’t destroy our country.    If you have anything human about you, if you really care about Belarus, then go. Go now, before it’s too late,” he tells Lukashenko.
    Shortly afterwards, he was arrested by police, according to the news website Tut.By, quoting colleagues.
    An interior ministry spokeswoman was not immediately available for comment.
    The desperate protest gesture comes at a critical moment for the opposition movement, which accuses Lukashenko of rigging a presidential election on Aug. 9 and had given him until last Sunday night to resign or face a national strike.
    The three-day-old strike has so far failed to paralyse the country as the opposition had threatened.    Its leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has said the strike movement is growing, but that it faces “colossal pressure” from the authorities.
(This story corrects day of week to Wednesday in 4th paragraph.)
(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

10/29/2020 Belarusian Leader Lukashenko Replaces His Interior Minister Amid Protests
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko replaced his interior minister on Thursday, the Belta state news agency reported, as he faces mass protests calling for him to leave power.
    In a related move, Lukashenko named three senior figures with security backgrounds, including outgoing interior minister Yuri Karayev, as presidential aides.,br>     The reshuffle marked the latest move by Lukashenko to tighten his grip on domestic security in the face of demonstrations and strikes that have gripped the country for nearly 12 weeks since a disputed election.
    The new interior minister is Ivan Kurbakov, who has head of police in the capital Minsk has led the crackdown in the epicentre of the protests since the Aug. 9 election.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy; Writing by Tom Balmforth and Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Alison Williams)

10/29/2020 ‘Take Biden And Trump Down!’ In Moscow, Neither U.S. Candidate Appeals by Tom Balmforth and Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin react at the end of the joint news
conference after their meeting in Helsinki, Finland, July 16, 2018. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a staunch ally of President Vladimir Putin, threw a champagne party in Russia’s parliament in 2016 to toast Donald Trump’s presidential election victory.
    But this weekend, the veteran lawmaker says his youth activists will be outside the U.S. embassy in Moscow chanting “Take Biden and Trump Down!” ahead of Tuesday’s election.
    “He (Trump) has done nothing good for us,” Zhirinovsky, head of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, told Reuters.
    “But we’re acting according to the Russian saying that you choose the lesser of two evils.    Biden is too great an evil.”
    Zhirinovsky often indulges in clownish showmanship and firebrand nationalist rhetoric. But the 74-year-old veteran lawmaker’s comments are also seen as sometimes capturing the zeitgeist in the Kremlin – which concerning the U.S. election appears to be a tepid preference for Trump.
    The Russian lower house of parliament greeted Trump’s 2016 win with applause, relishing his praise of Putin and stated desire for better ties.
    Four years on, that euphoria has evaporated.
    To be sure, the polarisation that Trump spurred in U.S. politics was welcomed by some parts of the Russian political elite.
    “While they’ve been fighting among themselves, they (the Americans) have been too busy to fully pay attention to us, and that’s how we like it,” said one Russian official, who declined to be named.    “We don’t like it when others poke their noses into our affairs.”
    But the Kremlin’s hopes of better U.S.-Russia ties never materialised.
    Instead, Washington hit Russia with a slew of sanctions over alleged U.S. election meddling and other actions, tried to stymie its showcase Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Germany, and pulled out of a key nuclear arms treaty.
    “Under Trump, basically all the pillars of the relationship were destroyed,” said Andrei Kortunov, head of the Russian International Affairs Council, a think tank close to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
    “We had a diplomatic war, both embassies became like besieged fortresses.    And diplomacy in a sense was replaced by sanctions,” said Kortunov, referring to a wave of diplomatic expulsions over the poisoning of a Russian double agent in Britain in 2018.
BIDEN’S TOUGH STANCE
    The Kremlin has said Russia will work with any U.S. leader and recent statements from Putin on the issue suggest he is hedging his bets, praising and criticising both Trump and Biden. [nL1N2HG0LV]
    Privately, Russian government officials say they have zero hopes of better ties if Trump wins, as they expect his room for manoeuvre to continue to be severely limited by Congress and U.S. domestic politics.
    They see Biden as tougher on Russia, but less unpredictable than Trump to deal with and perhaps more open to doing deals on nuclear arms control.
    The election has weighed on the rouble for months, with investors associating a Biden victory with greater risk of more sanctions. [nL8N2GY5HG]
    The official rhetoric, from Zhirinovsky and others, suggests however that Trump remains Moscow’s favoured candidate, even if past enthusiasm for him has faded.
    The Kremlin has accused Biden of stoking hatred of Russia by naming it as the biggest threat to U.S. national security. [nL8N2HH2ES]
    While the 2018 summit in Helsinki showed Putin and Trump appeared to get on well at a personal level, there are no such hopes for a Putin-Biden relationship.
    “Clearly these two personalities are not great admirers of one another,” said Kortunov.
(Editing by Frances Kerry)

10/29/2020 Lukashenko Shuts Borders, Shakes Up Security Team To Stamp Out Belarus Protests by Tom Balmforth
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko meets with newly-appointed Interior Minister Ivan Kubrakov in Minsk, Belarus October 29, 2020.
Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko partially closed the country’s land borders and replaced his interior minister and named three security hawks to new roles on Thursday in an attempt to tighten his grip after months of mass protests.
    Minsk announced restrictions at its borders with Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Ukraine, citing the COVID-19 pandemic.    Poland said only Belarusian citizens and trucks were being allowed to travel to Belarus at some of its border.
    Lukashenko has been at loggerheads with his European Union neighbours since the country plunged into turmoil following a disputed election in August.    He has threatened border closures before but not acted on the threat.
    Cars going into Belarus were barred from entry from 1400 GMT, and in few hours the border was closed for outgoing cars, Rustamas Liubajevas, chief of the Lithuanian border guard, told Reuters.    The change came without an advance warning, he added.
    Lukashenko’s government also announced that Ivan Kubrakov, who as head of police in the capital Minsk has led the crackdown on the biggest demonstrations, was appointed interior minister.
    His predecessor, Yuri Karayev, was one of three men named to new roles as presidential aides and inspectors responsible for key regions of the country.
    Lukashenko’s position appears more secure after a national strike call by the opposition failed to bring the economy to a halt this week.
    But Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, his main opponent who fled into exile after the election and called for the strike, said the president’s actions were a sign of weakness.
    “The regime destroys itself.    Both the closure of the borders and the next appointments are signals of a weakening of his power.    He makes inconsistent decisions because he is in a panic,” she said in a statement.
    Security forces have arrested more than 16,000 people since a presidential election on Aug. 9 which the opposition and Western governments say was rigged.
    “Lukashenko is nervous and in a flap because he can’t quell the protests.    He thinks if he shuffles the deck of security personnel, it will have an effect.    Lukashenko is still betting on stifling the protests,” said political analyst Alexander Klaskovsky.
    Lukashenko also ordered the strengthening of armed volunteer militia units, which in theory already exist but in practice have not played a role in the crisis till now.
“NOT YET OVER”
    The two other two new presidential aides are Valery Vakulchik, who spent eight years as head of the KGB security police, and former deputy interior minister Alexander Barsukov.
    Barsukov will be responsible for Minsk, Vakulchik for Brest on the Polish border, and Karayev for Grodno, near the borders with Poland and Lithuania.
    The emphasis on security in regions bordering NATO countries is consistent with repeated allegations by Lukashenko that NATO and the West are whipping up unrest in Belarus.    In September he staged a high-profile series of military exercises with his key ally, Russia.
    Addressing the three new aides, Lukashenko said they were heading to very important areas of the country “in connection with the events that have occurred and are not yet over – we still don’t know what this may result in.”
    “Why you?    You are military people, you’re knowledgeable, you don’t need to be brought up to speed and taught.”
    Karayev, Barsukov, Vakulchik and Kubrakov were all hit with European Union travel bans and asset freezes earlier this month for their role in the repression, intimidation and arbitrary arrest of protesters since the election. The first three were also accused of responsibility for torture.
    The United States has also imposed sanctions on Karayev, Barsukov and Kubrakov. Belarus denies torturing prisoners.
    U.S. Democratic candidate Joe Biden has said he will expand sanctions on what he described as Lukashenko’s henchmen if he wins Tuesday’s presidential election.
(Writing by Mark Trevelyan and Matthias Williams; Additional reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius, Alicja Ptak in Warsaw and Vladimir Soldatkin in Moscow; editing by Nick Macfie and Jon Boyle)

10/29/2020 Polish PM Urges End To Abortion Protests ‘To Protect Elderly From Coronavirus’ by Marcin Goclowski and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk
FILE PHOTO: People protest against the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes
a near-total ban on abortion, in Gdansk, Poland October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Jadwiga Figula
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki appealed to abortion rights activists on Thursday to halt mass protests, saying they would fuel more coronavirus infections and threaten the elderly.
    Tens of thousands of mostly young people have gathered across Poland since a top court ruling last week introduced a near total ban on abortion in the predominantly Catholic nation.
    Demonstrations have turned into an outpouring of anger against Morawiecki’s nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, with protesters blaming it, and the powerful Roman Catholic Church, for the Constitutional Court’s decision.
    Coronavirus infections have been rising sharply in Poland over the past weeks and on Thursday the total number of cases topped 300,000, tripling in under a month.    A daily record of more than 20,000 was recorded.
    “I am appealing to those protesting. Please focus your anger on me,” Morawiecki told a news conference.
    “Issues of worldview are very important but let’s (discuss them) in a way that doesn’t also endanger our mothers and fathers,” Morawiecki said, standing in a field hospital being built in Warsaw’s national stadium.
    The majority of protesters have worn face masks since demonstrations started last Thursday but the gatherings contravene pandemic restrictions that limit the number of people allowed to meet to five.
    Morawiecki sidestepped questions about whether his government would consider legislation that could soften the impact of the court’s ruling.
    The court ruled that abortions due to foetal abnormalities, which make up the vast majority of terminations conducted in Poland legally, were not permissible under the constitution.
    After it goes into effect, women will be able to legally terminate a pregnancy only in the case of rape, incest or a threat to their health.    Abortion on demand has been illegal in Poland since 1997, when such terminations were banned by another ruling of the Constitutional Court.
DEFLECT BLAME
    Opposition critics say Morawiecki is seeking to deflect blame for a struggling healthcare system, which has begun to buckle under the weight of COVID-19 patients.
    “The government is focusing on politics instead of the pandemic.    It is fuelling social discontent,” centrist Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski told a news conference.
    “What I am hoping is that the prime minister take steps for the ruling not to go into effect.”
    The government has said it will publish the verdict in its official legal journal, bringing it into force, by Nov. 2.
    “Undoubtedly, this is a key moment for the ruling camp.    This is the biggest crisis in five years.    It is a test for authorities,” PiS lawmaker Jan Maria Jackowski said.
    Doctors say the pandemic will likely accelerate next week following All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1 when millions of Poles traditionally visit cemeteries, and estimate that the number of reported infections is far below the reality.
    Morawiecki said the government would discuss any measures related to that on Friday but has so far refused to ban or curtail cemetery visits.
    “There are 60 to 80 cars lining up in front of coronavirus drive-through testing centres.    The system is completely blocked,” Pawel Grzesiowski, an immunologist, told private broadcaster TVN24.
    The abortion ruling follows five years of PiS efforts to instil more conservative values in public life.
    The education minister said on Thursday universities that have supported abortion rights protests by giving students time off could see their research funding cut.
    A mass protest in Warsaw is scheduled for Friday.
(Reporting by Marcin Goclowski, Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Agnieszka Barteczko, Anna Koper, and Pawel Florkiewicz; Writing by Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

10/30/2020 Callers Flood Polish Abortion Helpline After Number Sprayed During Protests by Joanna Plucinska
FILE PHOTO: People protest against the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total ban on abortion,
in front of the Parliament in Warsaw, Poland October 27, 2020. Maciek Jazwiecki/Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – A Polish abortion rights support group said it had seen a sharp rise in calls to its helpline since activists started spraying its number on buildings, statues and signs during more than a week of mass protests.
    Demonstrators were converging on Warsaw on Friday for their eighth straight day of rallies against a constitutional court ruling that amounted to a near-total ban on abortion.
    “The number of our helpline has appeared on public television … on sidewalks, walls, even on churches,” Justyna Wydrzynska from the support group Abortions Without Borders told Reuters.
    Some of the calls were from women seeking abortions who said they had been turned away by hospitals, even though the ruling is not yet enforceable, she said.
    Others came from people calling to express support or just to check that the number worked, that they could use it when needed.
    Before the protests, the group got around 400 calls a month, Wydrzynska said. In the days after the protest, it received almost 600 phone calls and more than 1 million zlotys ($258,100) in donations, she added.
    Kinga Jelinska, an Amsterdam-based activist who runs an online service called Women help Women providing information on carrying out safe abortions, said she had seen an almost 40% increase in web traffic since the protests began.
    It is “because of the protest and solidarity of people who say, no, we are going to support each other … spreading and sharing the information including the hotline number and the website,” Jelinska said.
LEGAL CONFUSION
    The Court decision on Thursday last week restricted abortions due to foetal defects – ending the most common of the few legal grounds left for abortion in Poland and setting the country further apart from the European mainstream.
    A post on the government legislation website says the ruling should be published and therefore effectively enforceable by Nov. 2.
    Many of the callers were unsure whether the ruling had come into force or said they had already been turned away by hospitals, said Krystyna Kacpura, the director of Poland’s Federation for Women and Family Planning (Federa).
    “A lot of hospitals are scared.    They are worried the hospital will be held criminally responsible, that the ruling could be enforced the next day and that it will be binding as of midnight,” she added.
    Federa said some woman had been turned back by Warsaw’s Bielanski Hospital. Hospital director Dorota Galczynska-Zych said staff continued to offer the procedure and would do until the publication – but she acknowledged there had been some confusion over how and when the ruling would be enforced.
    “De facto, I’m not a lawyer, but the Constitutional Tribunal has created a new criminal category that could lead to three years of imprisonment,” Galczynska-Zych said in a statement.
    The city of Warsaw released a statement on Monday saying all of its hospitals that had offered abortions earlier would continue to do so until the ruling was published.
    Catholic anti-abortion group Ordo Iuris called on doctors to treat the ruling as immediately enforceable.
    “We have to fully protect the rights of these unborn children, already now,” Karolina Pawlowska from the group said.
(Additional reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Kacper Pempel and Kuba Stezycki; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

10/30/2020 Thousands In Warsaw Join Biggest Protest So Far Against Abortion Ruling by Alicja Ptak and Pawel Florkiewicz
FILE PHOTO: People protest against imposing further restrictions on abortion law in front of the
Catholic Cathedral in Katowice, Poland October 25, 2020. Anna Lewanska/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters from across Poland joined a demonstration in Warsaw on Friday against a top court ruling last week that amounted to a near-total ban on abortion in the predominantly Catholic nation.
    Defying strict rules that restrict gatherings to five people during the coronavirus pandemic, demonstrators walked through central Warsaw streets carrying black umbrellas, a symbol of abortion rights protests in Poland, and banners that read “You won’t have to walk alone” or “God is a woman.”
    Military police lined the streets, some of them in riot gear, as the demonstration began at 1600 GMT.
    It was set to be the biggest protest yet since a court ruling on Oct. 22 outlawed abortions due to foetal defects – ending the most common of the few legal grounds left for abortion in Poland and setting the country further apart from the European mainstream.
    Daily protests have taken place in towns and cities across the country in the past week, and have turned into an outpouring of anger against the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government and the Roman Catholic church closely allied with the ruling party.
    Far-right groups which support the court ruling also turned out in small gatherings in Warsaw on Friday, and TV footage showed police trying to keep one group away from the protesters.
    The leader of the abortion rights movement in Poland, Marta Lempart, told activists to report any attacks and to resist any threats of prosecution or fines for taking part.    “We are doing nothing wrong by protesting and going out on the streets,” she told a news conference.
    After the ruling goes into effect, women will only be able to terminate a pregnancy legally in the case of rape, incest or a threat to their health.
    In an effort to ease tensions, Polish President Andrzej Duda, a government ally, proposed legislation on Friday reintroducing the possibility of terminating a pregnancy due to foetal abnormalities, although only limited to “lethal” defects.
    Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki pledged lawmakers would proceed with the legislation quickly, but demonstrators were unimpressed.
    “This is an attempt to soften the situation for PiS, but no sane person should fall for it,” activist and leftist lawmaker Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus told Reuters on Duda’s proposal.
    The government has accused demonstrators of risking the lives of the elderly by defying strict pandemic rules against large gatherings.    Poland reported a daily record of more than 21,000 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday.
    Five women were charged with organising an illegal protest in the town of Police on Thursday, which drew 850 people, regional police spokeswoman Alicja Sledziona said on Friday.
    The Catholic Church has said that while it opposes abortion, it did not push the government or the court to increase restrictions.    It called for people to talk and refrain from violence this week, but declined to comment further on Friday.
    PiS, however, has sought to instil more traditional and Catholic values in public life since it took over power in 2015, ending state funding for in vitro fertilisation, introducing more patriotic themes into school curricula and funding Church programmes.
    Catholic anti-abortion group Ordo Iuris on Friday reiterated its support for the court ruling and opposition to the protesters, and called for calm.
    “As an institute, we must condemn any violence, no matter in which way it is perpetrated.    Nothing justifies hurting another person even in the face of such social unrest,” spokesman Maciej Grajewski said.
    Some bakeries in Poland have been selling goods decorated with a red lightning bolt, another symbol of the women’s rights movement in Poland, and some have written the phone number of a hotline helping women seeking terminations in chalk on sidewalks.
(Additional reporting by Marcin Goclowski, Joanna Plucinska, Agnieszka Barteczko and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Writing by Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Susan Fenton)

10/31/2020 Austria Orders Curfew And Shuts Restaurants To Fight ‘Exploding’ COVID
Austria's Chancellor Sebastian Kurz gestures as he speaks during a news conference, as the spread of the
coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Vienna, Austria October 31, 2020. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austria on Saturday announced a nighttime curfew and the closure of cafes, bars and restaurants to all but take-away service as a surge in coronavirus infections threatens to overwhelm its hospitals.
    The Alpine country had a swift and effective lockdown during its first wave of infections in March but had held off similar action this month to help the economy, even as daily cases rose to several times the spring peak.
    With daily infections at a record 5,627 on Friday, however – just short of the 6,000 level at which the government says hospitals will no longer cope – the conservative-led government was forced to act.
    “We did not take this decision lightly but it is necessary,” Chancellor Sebastian Kurz told a news conference.    The restrictions include an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and will be in effect from Tuesday until the end of November.
    Factories, shops, kindergartens and primary schools will remain open, however, while secondary schools and universities will switch to distance learning. Exercise or walks will still be allowed after curfew.
    Restaurants, bars and cafes may provide a take-away service only; theatres and museums will shut, as will indoor sports facilities such as gyms; hotels will close to all but a few guests such as business travellers.
    Businesses forced to close will receive aid amounting to 80% of their sales a year earlier.
NUMBERS ‘EXPLODING’
    In the past two weeks, Austria had about as many cases as Britain or Italy, relative to its population, data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows.    And there has been a rapid acceleration over the past week, with a 26% jump from Thursday to Friday.
    “A barely controllable increase has begun,” Health Minister Rudolf Anschober told the news conference, adding that infections were “de facto exploding.”
    Austria’s measures closely resemble those being taken by neighbouring Germany, which has less than half its infection rate, according to the ECDC data.
    Austria has already limited private indoor gatherings to six people and it is now adding a rule that no more than two households can meet.
    “We can’t say how strongly the population will support these measures and how strong their effect will be,” Kurz said, adding that he aimed to start easing the restrictions gradually in December.
(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Ros Russell)

10/31/2020 Ruling Party Leads In Tight Election In Georgia-Exit Polls by Margarita Antidze
People line up outside a polling station during a parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia October 31, 2020. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze
    TBILISI (Reuters) – The ruling Georgian Dream party declared victory in a parliamentary election in ex-Soviet Georgia on Saturday after four exit polls put it in first place in a tight race.
    But it was not clear if the governing party – founded by Georgia’s richest man, Bidzina Ivanishvili – would secure the votes needed to form a single-party government.
    “We won!    Thank you very much to each Georgian citizen who voted today,” Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia wrote on Facebook.
    All polls put the opposition United National Movement (UNM) in second place, but the party did not concede defeat, saying in total the opposition received enough votes to form a coalition.
    “The united opposition won an unequal struggle,” Nika Melia, one of the UNM leaders, told reporters after the exit polls were released.
    Two exit polls commissioned by pro-government television channels put the ruling party on more than 50%, while two other exit polls commissioned by pro-opposition channels put Georgian Dream on slightly over 40% – around the threshold for forming a single-party administration.
    Supporters of both sides gathered in different places on the streets of the capital Tbilisi soon after exit polls were announced, with both sides celebrating.
    More than 30 opposition parties, led by the UNM, the largest and strongest opposition force, announced on Friday that they would not go into coalition with the ruling party after the election.
    The country’s economy has been hit hard by the spread of the coronavirus and is forecast by the government to contract by 4% in 2020.
    The government’s popularity has waned, and opponents accuse it of mishandling the economy, selective justice, weak foreign policy and stamping on dissent with the violent dispersal of protests.
    Experts say that the distribution of 30 seats in the 150-seat parliament to be filled through voting for individual candidates in electoral districts will be crucial to the outcome and may introduce more diverse voices to the new parliament.    The remaining 120 seats will be decided along party lists.
    Critics say Ivanishvili, who does not hold a government post, runs the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million people from behind the scenes, an accusation denied by Georgian Dream, which has governed for two consecutive terms.
    A fifth of Georgian territory is controlled by pro-Russian separatists following a short war with Russia in 2008.
    Both the government and the opposition would like to see Georgia join the European Union and NATO, but such moves would be strongly resisted by Moscow.    Georgian Dream also favours closer ties with Russia.
    Preliminary results are expected to be announced by the CEC early on Sunday.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Ros Russell)

11/1/2020 Moldovans Vote In Presidential Election As Pro-Moscow Incumbent Bids For Second Term by Alexander Tanas
FILE PHOTO: Moldova's President Igor Dodon arrives to address the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly
at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 26, 2019. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Moldovans started to vote in a presidential election on Sunday in which the pro-Russian incumbent Igor Dodon is bidding for a second term against former prime minister Maia Sandu, who wants to pull the country closer to the European Union.
    The election in the nation of 3.5 million, where the West and Russia vie for influence, takes place in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic that has pushed one of Europe’s poorest countries into a sharp economic downturn.
    Dodon took power in 2016 after pro-Western political forces became mired in scandals.    He has led opinion polls against seven other candidates going into Sunday’s vote but may not win outright, which would lead to a run-off.
    Sandu, a Harvard-educated former World Bank economist known for her tough stance on corruption, led a short-lived coalition government last year that was brought down by a no confidence vote within months.
    If elected, she has promised to secure more financial support from Brussels, while Dodon has pledged to roll out a settlement next year for the breakaway Russian-speaking region of Transdniestria.
    The EU in 2014 forged a deal on closer trade and political ties with the ex-Soviet republic, which is squeezed between EU member Romania and Ukraine, but became increasingly critical of Chisinau’s track record on reforms.
    Sandu has received messages of support from German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, and former European Council President Donald Tusk.
    A group of Dodon’s supporters denounced such support as an attempt to destabilise the country.
    Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, last week accused the United States of plotting to instigate mass protests against Dodon as punishment for him fostering good relations with Moscow.
    Naryshkin similarly accused Washington of fomenting revolution in Belarus, where the Moscow-backed President Alexander Lukashenko has battled months of protests following a contested election.
(Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Christina Fincher and Michael Perry)

11/1/2020 Ruling Party In Ex-Soviet Georgia Leads In Parliament Vote, Opposition Protests by Margarita Antidze
People line up outside a polling station during a parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia October 31, 2020. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze
    TBILISI (Reuters) – Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party leads in a parliamentary election in the former Soviet republic on Saturday, preliminary results showed, but the opposition rejected the results and said it planned to protest.
    With almost 44% of the votes in, data from the Central Election Commission’s (CEC) gave the ruling Georgian Dream party 50.58% of the vote and the largest opposition party United National Movement (UNM) 24.92%.
    According to preliminary results, several other opposition parties managed to clear the 1% threshold for membership in parliament.
    The opposition said preliminary results did not correspond with reality.
    “We won’t accept this result and call on people to come to Rustaveli avenue (in the capital Tbilisi) at 4 p.m.” (0200 GMT) on Sunday, Nika Melia, one of the UNM leaders, told reporters after consultations with other opposition leaders.
    International observers planned to hold a news conference on an hour before the planned protest.
    Police units were placed in the area around the election commission’s building.
    The ruling party declared victory soon after polls closed across the South Caucasus country after four exit polls put it in first place in a tight race.
    It was not clear whether the governing party – founded by Georgia’s richest man, Bidzina Ivanishvili – would secure the votes needed to form a single-party government.
    The opposition claimed it received enough votes in total to form a coalition.
    More than 30 opposition parties, led by the UNM, the largest and strongest opposition force, announced on Friday that they would not go into coalition with the ruling party after the election.
    The country’s economy has been hit hard by the spread of the coronavirus and is forecast by the government to contract by 4% in 2020.
    The government’s popularity has waned, and opponents accuse it of mishandling the economy, selective justice, a weak foreign policy and stamping on dissent with the violent dispersal of protests.
    Critics say Ivanishvili, who does not hold a government post, runs the country of 3.7 million people from behind the scenes, an accusation denied by Georgian Dream, which has governed for two consecutive terms.
    A fifth of Georgian territory is controlled by pro-Russian separatists following a short war with Russia in 2008.
    Both the government and the opposition would like to see Georgia join the European Union and NATO, but such moves would be strongly resisted by Moscow. Georgian Dream also favours closer ties with Russia.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and William Mallard)

11/1/2020 Tens Of Thousands Protest In Belarus, Defying Threats, Warning Shots by Tom Balmforth
Belarusian law enforcement officers block opposition supporters during their rally to reject
the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus November 1, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Riot police fired warning shots into the air, used stun grenades and made arrests to deter tens of thousands of Belarusians who marched through Minsk on Sunday to demand veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko leave power.
    Huge demonstrations have flooded the capital for 12 straight weeks since a disputed election, ratcheting up pressure on the embattled leader of 26 years who has clung to power and said he has no intention to quit.
    This week Lukashenko partially closed the border to the west, replaced his interior minister and said that any protester who lays a hand on officers policing the protests should “at least leave without hands.”
    Senior police officials have threatened to use fire arms against protesters if needed.
    Tens of thousands of people swept through Minsk in at least two columns, the Nasha Niva newspaper reported.
    “The situation is really alarming and everyone’s mood is tense,” one protester who requested anonymity said by phone.
    “Police buses and equipment are constantly driving past the column.    It feels like people are ready for any kind of escalation.”
    The Vesna-96 rights group published the names of 45 people who had been detained.
    A witness told Reuters that riot police used force to disperse marchers who had reached Kurapaty, a memorial site on the outskirts of Minsk to victims of execution by Soviet secret police.
    “People got to a field near Kurapaty, (police) buses pulled up and chased after people at top speed, then they started throwing grenades.    What’s more, they were throwing them into the thick of the crowd,” the witness said by phone on condition of anonymity.
    “A lot of people have been detained. It all happened in an open field, so there was nowhere to run,” the witness who requested anonymity said.
    A man in civilian clothing chased a resident through a courtyard near one protest route firing a paintball gun at them in footage published by the RFE/RL media outlet.    The footage could not be independently verified.
    Video posted on opposition social media showed a crowd of people chanting “We believe, we can, we will win!” while marching through the streets.    That footage also not independently be verified.
    Police used a stun grenade in northeast Minsk, the Tut.by media outlet reported.
    Mobile phone internet in the capital was unavailable and several metro stations were briefly closed down.
(Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

11/1/2020 Cuba Has Big Stake In U.S. Election After Trump’s Trashing Of Detente by Nelson Acosta and Sarah Marsh
A vintage car passes by the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, October 30, 2020. Picture taken October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Pensioner Esperanza Chacón, 89, prays every day for Donald Trump to lose the U.S. presidential election.    Like many Cubans, her livelihood has been threatened by Trump’s tightening of the U.S. trade embargo on the Communist-run island.
    Chacon’s son in Miami sends her the equivalent of $60 to $100 a month, to supplement her state pension worth just $12.    But the Trump administration’s latest Cuba sanction, unveiled last month, looks set to cut off remittances.
    “He’s ending my ability to live and feed myself, at this age!” said Chacon.    “So I’m praying every day he doesn’t win the elections.”
    Cuba has more at stake in the upcoming U.S. election than most countries in Latin America as the Trump administration has focused much of its foreign policy in the region on measures aimed, it says, at bringing about democracy in the country and its socialist ally Venezuela.
    Trump unraveled a detente with Cuba started by former President Barack Obama, a Democrat, that had fostered remittances and travel to the Caribbean isle, as well as foreign investment and the private sector.
    The Republican president reverted instead to a decades-old U.S. policy of choking the one-party state’s already inefficient state-run economy to force reform.
    Democratic challenger Joe Biden – the vice president during Obama’s attempts to engage with Cuba – has promised to promptly reverse Trump policies that “have inflicted harm on the Cuban people and done nothing to advance democracy and human rights.”
    “The U.S. election results are enormously important for Cuba because they will make the difference between continuing Trump’s policy of trying to starve Cuba into submission and Biden’s policy of restarting engagement,” said William LeoGrande, a Cuba expert and professor of government at Washington’s American University.
    The Trump administration has dealt blows to tourism, foreign investment and Cuba’s energy supply by tightening restrictions on U.S. travel, sanctioning oil shipments from Venezuela and activating a law allowing litigation against firms “trafficking” in expropriated properties, among other measures.
    “Most the people who stayed at our bed and breakfast were Americans so reservations were down some 40 to 50 percent by the time the pandemic hit,” said Jesus Manuel Rivero.    His Casa Flamboyan B&B ranks No. 1 in Havana on Tripadvisor.
    Washington has also attacked Cuba’s medical missions in a campaign that saw its allies ousting them, hitting the country’s top source of hard currency.    Trump says the Cuban government trafficks in the doctors, keeping them in slave-like conditions. Havana has strongly denied the allegation.
    All this has worsened Cuba’s cash crunch.    The embargo cost it a record $5.6 billion over the last year, the government has said, and exacerbated shortages of even basic goods like food.
    Under Trump, the reduction of the U.S. embassy in Havana to skeletal staffing and closure of the consular office after diplomats complained of a mysterious illness has also made it tough for Cubans to get visas to visit their family in the United States.
    A Biden presidency would likely not only reverse Trump’s policies but also resume dialogue on matters of mutual interest like health and security that had fizzled out of late, said Emily Mendrala, who coordinated congressional discussions on Cuba policy during a stint in Obama’s National Security Council and now runs the Center for Democracy in the Americas.
    Cuban dissidents, meanwhile, are divided over the U.S. election.    Some hope for a Biden win, saying engagement deprives their government of an excuse for its economic woes or repression.
    Others, like Jose Daniel Ferrer, leader of the island’s largest opposition group, the Patriotic Union of Cuba, say that too much leniency toward the Cuban government as – in his view – under Obama emboldens it to crack down as it wishes.
    “Whoever wins the Nov. 3 elections must listen to the calls for freedom of the Cuban people and other oppressed peoples,” he said.
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh and Nelson Acosta; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Tom Brown)

11/2/2020 Moldovan Presidential Election Heading For Runoff As Pro-EU Challenger Leads by Alexander Tanas
FILE PHOTO: Moldova's President Igor Dodon arrives to address the 74th session of the United Nations General
Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 26, 2019. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – A late surge from Moldova’s diaspora voters gave the pro-Western challenger Maia Sandu the lead in the first round of Sunday’s presidential election, setting the stage for a run-off against pro-Moscow incumbent Igor Dodon in the second round.
    Sandu, a Harvard-educated former World Bank economist known for her tough stance on corruption, led with 36.1% while Dodon had 32.66%, according to data from the election commission with 99.81%% of votes counted.
    A candidate needs over 50% of the vote to avoid the Nov. 15 runoff, which would be a repeat of the 2016 election, when Dodon defeated Sandu in the second round.
    The election in the nation of 3.5 million, where the West and Russia vie for influence, took place in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic that has pushed one of Europe’s poorest countries into a sharp economic downturn.
    “This is an extraordinary mobilization. Thank you,” Sandu said about diaspora voters.
    Dodon had taken power four years ago after pro-Western political forces became mired in scandals.
    Sandu led a coalition government last year that was brought down within months by a no-confidence vote.
    If elected, she has promised to secure more financial support from Brussels, while Dodon has pledged to roll out a settlement next year for the breakaway Russian-speaking region of Transdniestria.
    The European Union forged a deal in 2014 on closer trade and political ties with the ex-Soviet republic, which is squeezed between EU member Romania and Ukraine, but became increasingly critical of Chisinau’s track record on reforms.
    Sandu has received messages of support from German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, and former European Council President Donald Tusk.
    A group of Dodon’s supporters denounced such support as an attempt to destabilise the country.
    Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, accused the United States last week of plotting to instigate mass protests against Dodon as punishment for him fostering good relations with Moscow.
    Naryshkin similarly accused Washington of fomenting revolution in Belarus, where Moscow-backed President Alexander Lukashenko has battled months of protests following a contested election.
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas; Additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk in Kyiv; Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Michael Perry, Peter Cooney & Shri Navaratnam)

11/2/2020 Pandemic Protests Test Putin’s Influence In Ex-Soviet Space by Mariya Gordeyeva and Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: A medical specialist wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) treats patients at a day hospital, which is located in
a school gym and provides services free of charge, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan July 16, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov/File Photo
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – When mobs stormed government buildings and hounded the president from office in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan after disputed elections last month, Vladimir Putin seemed unimpressed.
    “Every time they have an election, they practically have a coup,” Putin told the Valdai discussion club, a gathering of Russian experts, by video conference from his residence.    “This is not funny.”
    The observation may be valid: Kyrgyzstan, a parliamentary democracy on paper, has experienced three revolutions in the past two decades.    But this latest revolution, as the stories of Kyrgyz people like Ulan Kudaiberdiyev reveal, was different.
    In March, at the start of a coronavirus lockdown, Kudaiberdiyev lost his job driving taxis in the capital Bishkek.    That left his family of eight with zero income for the seven-week period.
    By the time the taxi-driver’s mother Rakya got sick with COVID-19, state hospitals in the former Soviet republic were full.    In a gold-rich country where the official wage is less than $250 a month, the family had to borrow money to pay for someone to come in to give her drugs via intravenous drips.
    “We just scraped by,” Rakya, 75, told Reuters.
    Lockdown has been harsh for millions worldwide, and protests are mounting as restrictions multiply.    Kyrgyzstan, a state of 6.5 million, is not the only former Soviet republic where they recently caught fire, underlining the fragility of Moscow’s grasp in a region it once controlled.
    The Kyrgyz outbreak also shows how quickly economic shock and political frustration in the pandemic can escalate into chaos – and how swiftly Moscow can act to reassert control.
DIFFICULTIES
    Putin was already facing a COVID-fuelled political crisis some 4,500 km to the west in Belarus, another ex-Soviet state, where truculent ally and veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko had dismissed the disease, telling people to drink vodka to ward it off.
    That attitude angered Belarusian voters, who first mobilised in March to protect themselves from the virus, then challenged his election victory with rolling street protests that have continued.
    Putin’s grip on the ex-Soviet space has also been shaken by a flare-up in the decades-long conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.    The fighting – the most violent since bloody ethnic unrest in the 1990s – does not seem linked to the pandemic, but has seen regional rival Turkey trying to muscle into an area Moscow has long regarded as its own domain.
    In Kyrgyzstan, voters including Kudaiberdiyev voted for the opposition.    When the official count showed no opposition party had won more than 10% of the vote, their frustration boiled over.
    Putin, who visited Bishkek last year to agree the expansion of a Russian airbase, called events in Kyrgyzstan a disaster, referencing Russian-financed projects worth half a billion dollars Moscow had recently implemented, and tens of millions of dollars in annual grants.
    A week of widely televised chaos, riots and street brawls were brought to a close with the appointment of a new prime minister after the Kremlin put its military airbase on high alert and suspended foreign aid.    At least one plane used by Russia’s Federal Security Service made a discreet landing in Bishkek.
    For Russia, Kyrgyzstan – which borders China and is one of the stops on Beijing’s One Belt, One Road trade corridor across Asia to Europe – is of crucial military and geopolitical importance.
    Apart from Russia’s main airbase outside the capital, which hosts drones, helicopters and bombers, Moscow runs a naval testing facility at a deep lake in the Tian-Shian mountains.
    It also has a naval centre to communicate with nuclear submarines and surface ships, and a seismic monitoring station which it uses to track earthquakes and nuclear weapons tests around the world.
    In 2014, under what some analysts saw as pressure from Moscow, Kyrgyzstan shut down a U.S. airbase which had served U.S. operations in Afghanistan since 2001.
    Russia boasts strong ties with China, but it is also in competition with Beijing in Kyrgyzstan.    Like Putin, President Xi Jinping was also in Bishkek last year, and China has positioned itself as a major creditor to the authorities.
    Both Moscow and Beijing have pledged COVID help to the republic.
PAIN
    With no savings, Kudaiberdiyev’s family was forced into debt to survive during the lockdown.    A bank loan of around $630 helped the family buy food and medicine and, along with handouts from charities and neighbours and a modest food package from the state, kept them going until May.
    When the election came around, they backed the Mekenchil (Patriotic) party, which focused on the injustice of pandemic-related economic hardship and promised ordinary people a greater share of income from natural resources – such as gold – extracted by foreign-owned companies.
    Many others felt the squeeze.    About one quarter of the Kyrgyz population lives on less than US$ 1.3 a day, according to the World Food Programme. More than half of the poorer households surveyed by the country’s Economic Policy Research Institute in May and June said their financial situation had deteriorated since lockdown.
    Other voters backed the same party over what they said was appalling official corruption, which they believed had seen foreign aid and money to battle the virus go into the pockets of officials.    A month before the vote, financial police said they would investigate allegations of negligence and corruption that had worsened the COVID situation.
    Kyrgyzstan’s corruption score of 30/100 at watchdog Transparency International last year suggested it was more corrupt than sub-Saharan Africa.     Fanning the flames, lockdown had brought many young men home. In Kyrgyzstan, as much as one-third of the economy comes from remittances from Russia, according to an August report by the United Nations Development Programme and Asian Development Bank.     The lockdown may have forced as many as 100,000 workers, most of them young men, back to farms or to seek work in urban areas, it said.    Even after restrictions eased, the report said some were likely to have stayed behind.
ANGER
    When initial election results showed Mekenchil had failed to make inroads at the ballot box, people were furious.
    On Oct. 5, protests broke out.    Crowds stormed and ransacked government buildings, forced the incumbent government to step down, freed former political leaders from jail and threw the republic’s leadership into limbo.
    Four days into rival rallies to promote different candidates, one standoff proved pivotal.
    Several thousand supporters of Sadyr Japarov, a politician and convicted kidnapper who was among those sprung from jail, held a noisy rally as supporters of two rival candidates for the premiership were demonstrating nearby.
    At one point, some of Japarov’s followers charged at the other groups, throwing stones and bottles, forcing them to withdraw from Bishkek’s central square.    Shots were fired.
    “It is clear that one of the obstacles towards democratic progress is the attempt by organised crime groups to exert influence over politics and elections,” the U.S. embassy in Kyrgyzstan said in a statement, condemning what it called “violence and intimidation” on the square.
    On Oct. 12, Putin’s deputy chief of staff flew into Bishkek to meet the country’s beleaguered president, Sooronbay Jeenbekov, and his challenger Japarov.
    Around this time the head of Russia’s FSB held talks with new Kyrgyz security officials; flight-tracking data seen by Reuters showed the arrival of at least one plane used by the FSB.
    After nearly a week of violent turmoil, parliament chose Japarov as prime minister in a repeat vote on Oct 14.    A day later, the president resigned, and Japarov assumed his powers too.
    Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov assured the new government Moscow was ready to assist “legitimate authorities” stabilise the situation.
    Japarov was quick to pledge loyalty to Russia.
    “Russia has been our strategic partner for a long time,” he said.    “And that is something that will continue to be the case.”
(Reporting by Mariya Gordeyeva in Bishkek and Andrew Osborn in Moscow; Additional reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Andrew Osborn and Olzhas Auyezov; Edited by Sara Ledwith)

11/2/2020 Moldova Presidential Election Goes To Run-Off, Opposition Leads
Igor Dodon, Moldova's President and presidential candidate, votes at a presidential
election in Chisinau, Moldova November 1, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Moldova’s presidential election will go into a run-off after preliminary results on Monday showed that opposition leader Maia Sandu held a small lead over his main opponent, incumbent President Igor Dodon.
    The central election commission’s data showed that former Prime Minister Sandu had 36.10%, while Dodon had 32.66% support after the commission counted 99.81% of ballots.
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas; Writing by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

11/2/2020 Tens Of Thousands Protest In Belarus, Defying Warning Shots by Tom Balmforth
Belarusian law enforcement officers block opposition supporters during their rally to
reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus November 1, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Riot police fired warning shots into the air, used stun grenades and arrested more than 200 people to deter tens of thousands of Belarusians who marched through Minsk on Sunday to demand veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko leave power.
    Mass demonstrations have flooded the capital for 12 straight weeks since a disputed election, ratcheting up pressure on the embattled leader of 26 years who rejects accusations the vote was rigged and says he has no intention of quitting.
    This week Lukashenko partially closed the border to the west, replaced his interior minister and said that any protester who lays a hand on officers policing the protests should “at least leave without hands.”
    Tens of thousands of people swept through Minsk in at least two columns, the Nasha Niva newspaper reported.
    The Vesna-96 rights group published the names of 221 people who had been detained.
    Senior police officials have threatened to use firearms against protesters if needed.
    “The situation is really alarming and everyone’s mood is tense,” one protester who requested anonymity said by phone.
    “Police buses and equipment are constantly driving past the column.    It feels like people are ready for any kind of escalation.”
    A witness told Reuters that riot police used force to disperse marchers who had marched towards Kurapaty, a site on the outskirts of Minsk that is a memorial to victims of execution by Soviet secret police.
    “People got to a field near Kurapaty, (police) buses pulled up and chased after people at top speed, then they started throwing grenades.    What’s more, they were throwing them into the thick of the crowd,” the witness said by phone on condition of anonymity.
    A man in civilian clothing chased a resident through a courtyard near one protest route firing a paintball gun at them in footage published by the RFE/RL media outlet.
    Video posted on opposition social media showed a crowd of people chanting “We believe, we can, we will win!” while marching through the streets.    The video footage could not independently be verified.
    Mobile phone internet in the capital was unavailable and several metro stations were briefly closed down.
(Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Frances Kerry)

11/2/2020 U.S. Whistleblower Edward Snowden To Seek Russian Citizenship
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden will apply for Russian citizenship in addition to his U.S. citizenship, he said on Monday.
    Snowden, 37, fled the United States and was given asylum in Russia after leaking secret files in 2013 that revealed vast domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the U.S. National Security Agency where he was a contractor.
    “After years of separation from our parents, my wife and I have no desire to be separated from our son.    That’s why, in this era of pandemics and closed borders, we’re applying for dual US-Russian citizenship,” he wrote on Twitter.
    His lawyer in Russia said last month that Snowden had been granted permanent residency rights.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Kim Coghill)

11/2/2020 Poles Protest Again As Abortion Ruling Expected To Take Effect
Demonstrators hold placards during an anti-government protest following the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal
that imposes a near-total ban on abortion, in Warsaw, Poland November 2, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poles staged further protests in cities across the country on Monday ahead of the expected entry into force of a ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal that bans most abortions and that has prompted nearly two weeks of demonstrations and rallies.
    The Oct. 22 ruling bans terminations due to foetal defects, ending one of the few legal grounds left for abortion in staunchly Catholic Poland and setting the country further apart from Europe’s mainstream.
    Protesters have flooded into the streets almost every day since the ruling, defying coronavirus restrictions that ban gatherings of more than five people, in an outpouring of anger against the verdict, and more broadly against the nationalist government and its allies in the Roman Catholic Church.
    Footage from private broadcaster TVN24 showed protesters blocking traffic in several streets in central Warsaw.    Traffic was also blocked in the southern city of Katowice and in Poznan in western Poland.
    In Poznan, the protesters stood in a line blocking tram tracks and a road, chanting “I will protect my sisters when the state does not protect them” and holding banners that read “This is war” and "Poland is a woman.”
    In Katowice cars blocked traffic in the city centre, while in the south-western city of Wroclaw protesters marched with banners that read “I think, I feel, I decide.”
    The government is expected to publish the ruling later on Monday in its official gazette, meaning it has entered into legal force.
    The protests are the latest and largest manifestation of a conflict between liberals and religious conservatives that has also centred around LGBT rights.    The protests have seen huge mobilisation among younger Poles.
    Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, from the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS), urged the protesters on Monday to take part in talks and not to try and settle differences on the street because of the risks of spreading COVID-19.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish and Anna Koper; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/2/2020 Belarus Tells U.N. It Has Seen No Cases Of Police Abuse by Stephanie Nebehay
FILE PHOTO: Police use a water cannon during an opposition rally to reject the presidential
election results in Minsk, Belarus October 4, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    GENEVA (Reuters) – Belarus told the United Nations on Monday it was not investigating a single allegation of police abuse, despite coming under Western criticism over three months of violent crackdowns on anti-government demonstrators.
    Belarus has arrested thousands of people during demonstrations that followed a disputed Aug 9 presidential election.    Rights groups say hundreds of detainees reported being subjected to beatings and other abuse.
    But during a review into the country’s record by the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday, a representative of Belarus’s Investigative Committee told the global body: “Currently there have been no identified cases of unlawful acts by the police.”
    Speaking by video link from Minsk, Mikhail Vavulo blamed protest organisers for using people as “cannon fodder,” bringing children and even babies in prams to demonstrations.    The Investigative Committee is the law enforcement body charged with prosecuting major crimes in Belarus.
    Riot police on Sunday fired warning shots into the air, used stun grenades and arrested more than 300 people to deter tens of thousands of Belarusians who marched through Minsk to demand veteran leader Alexander Lukashenko leave power.
    Mass demonstrations have taken place since the Aug. 9 election.    Lukashenko, in power for 26 years, rejects accusations the vote was rigged and says he has no intention of quitting.
    During Monday’s review, the first by the U.N. rights body into Belarus for five years, Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Switzerland and the United States all called for prisoners to be released and for torture accusations to be investigated.
    “We are deeply concerned by the ongoing use of violence, intimidation and repression against the Belarusian people,” said Andrew Bremberg, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva.
    Yury Ambrazevich, the Belarusian ambassador, told the forum his country had “the necessary instruments itself peacefully to restore stability in society.”
    “We are convinced that only through respectful dialogue without external pressure, blackmail or conditions is it possible to make true progress,” he said.
    Russia has supported Lukashenko, a close ally. Gennady Gatilov, Russia’s ambassador, decried “increasing external pressure” on Belarus.
(Additional reporting by John Chalmers in Brussels; Editing by Peter Graff)

11/2/2020 Swiss City Of Geneva Locks Down As COVID Surges
People walk in the city center ahead of the new lockdown measures during the coronavirus disease
(COVID-19) outbreak, in Geneva, Switzerland November 2, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
    GENEVA (Reuters) – Restaurants and shop-keepers in Geneva prepared to close in line with new COVID-19 measures on Monday that go beyond more lenient Swiss rules elsewhere as its main hospital fills up and prepares to begin airlifting out patients to less burdened cantons.
    Mindful of the economic pain caused by stricter measures in the spring, Switzerland’s federal government has charted a different course from neighbours France and Germany in reaction to surging case numbers, seeking to avoid heavy lockdowns.
    However, Geneva plans to go further as new COVID cases exceed 1,000 per day in a canton of 500,000 – one of the highest rates of infection by population density in Europe.    The canton of Neuchatel will adopt similar measures on Wednesday.
    In a sign of the deteriorating situation, the Geneva-based World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Sunday that he had been identified as the contact of a COVID-19 positive person.
    Gatherings have been limited to five people from 1800 GMT although some exceptions apply and, unlike the spring, schools remain open.
    “It’s a catastrophe.    We don’t have a choice so we do it,” Yoan Lomet, owner of the restaurant l’Elephant dans la Canette, told Reuters.
    In the streets of Geneva, many were dining in the sunshine and even swimming in the lake.    Crowds gathered on shopping streets to make last-minute purchases and not all wore masks.
    “I think the (new) measures are not sufficiently drastic,” said Thierry Barnier, a French resident who works in Geneva, observing people in Geneva’s busy Place du Molard.
    Geneva University Hospital’s director Bertrand Levrat described the situation at the hospital as “dramatic” and said it expected to soon begin a helicopter transfer service for COVID patients.
    “Now is the time, and some would even say it’s a bit late, to take measures,” Mauro Poggia, Geneva state councillor, told Swiss television on Sunday night.
    Geneva hosts a United Nations office as well as the World Trade Organization (WTO) which is due to hold a key meeting on its new head next week.    At least 34 COVID cases have been reported among U.N. staff since mid-October.
(Reporting by Cecile Mantovani, Denis Balibouse, Emma Farge and Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Nick Macfie)

11/2/2020 EU To Target Lukashenko In Widening Sanctions Against Belarus
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting to discuss preparations for the
6th Belarusian People's Congress, in Minsk, Belarus October 27, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union is expected to approve sanctions this week against a second list of Belarus officials over an Aug. 9 election the West says was rigged, including President Alexander Lukashenko, three EU diplomats said on Monday.
    Lukashenko, who has been in power for 26 years, was not on the EU’s original list of 40 individuals targeted for travel bans and asset freezes, but the EU says his refusal to consider new elections as a way out of the crisis left it with no choice.
    EU ambassadors will be given a second sanctions list of 15 officials, including Lukashenko, at a meeting on Wednesday and – barring objections by any member states by close of business on Friday – the plan will be adopted.
    The sanctions aim to support mass anti-government protests in Minsk, where thousands of demonstrators have been arrested.     Belarus announced retaliatory measures against the EU last month.
(Reporting by John Chalmers, editing by Ed Osmond)

11/2/2020 Polish Abortion Protest Leader Seeks Inspiration From Belarus by Joanna Plucinska and Alicja Ptak
Marta Lampert, leader of the movement Strajk Kobiet (Women's Strike), wears a face mask during
an interview with Reuters, in Warsaw, Poland, October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
    WARSAW (Reuters) – As Poland’s abortion protests continue into a second week, their top organiser, Marta Lempart, says she is grateful for a clear role model to the East – Belarus’s opposition movement.
    Tens of thousands have gathered across Poland, with the largest protests on Friday in Warsaw, since the Constitutional Tribunal further limited the country’s already restrictive abortion laws, making terminations due to foetal abnormalities illegal.
    Hundreds marched through the streets and rallied outside universities to keep pressure on Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko to resign.
    Lempart, a 41-year-old lawyer by training and one of the heads of Strajk Kobiet (Women’s Strike), thinks the parallels between the Polish and Belarusian movements are clear: they are being run by Eastern Europeans and by women.
    With her thick-framed black glasses and blonde hair speckled with gray, she has led daily marches across Poland, giving speeches to the point of losing her voice and encouraging people to go out on the streets despite the coronavirus pandemic.
    “We see that many things work in a similar way in Poland and in Belarus…we are culturally close still.    We are in the European Union…but we have this common spirit with many countries to the east of Poland,” Lempart told Reuters, wearing a black mask bearing the movement’s signature red lightning bolt.
    “I think it is a backlash against a patriarchal culture, against patriarchal states against the fundamentalist religious states, against the states that treat women really badly,” she added.
    Unlike Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lempart is no activism novice having been involved in Poland’s “black protests” for women’s rights since 2016.
    But she is looking to Tsikhanouskaya for ideas on how to keep protests going despite a surge in coronavirus cases in Poland.
    Strajk Kobiet set up its own “coordination council” on Sunday, modelling it on the Belarusian initiative which brought together activists, economists and former politicians to plan out the burgeoning revolution in Belarus.
    After the first meeting in Warsaw, Lempart said the group wanted better access to abortion, stronger women’s and LGBT rights, the separation of church and state and more support for a struggling healthcare system, small businesses and education.
    Lempart insists the goal of the protests is not to create a political movement, although she is hoping for greater European Union support.
    “They should be protecting us, the Polish citizens…They are turning their backs on us and talking just to the Polish government and they should be talking to us,” Lempart said.
    In the meantime, the goal of the women’s strike is to ensure the protests continue, despite a record daily spike in coronavirus cases in Poland on Saturday of nearly 22,000.
    A blockade is planned on Monday while a solidarity chain into smaller Polish towns is scheduled for Wednesday.     “We won’t get scared,” Lempart said.    “People might get tired.    This is our job in supporting people in not getting tired.”
(Additional reporting by Kacper Pempel, editing by Ed Osmond)

11/2/2020 Back Me Or Put IMF Loans And EU Visa-Free Deal At Risk, Ukraine’s President Warns by Natalia Zinets and Pavel Polityuk
FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a news briefing
in Kyiv, Ukraine October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool/File Photo
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned on Monday that foreign aid loans and a visa-free deal with the European Union were under threat if parliament did not restore anti-corruption reforms, saying the country could slide into “bloody chaos”
    Zelenskiy has asked parliament to vote to dissolve the Constitutional Court and reinstate anti-corruption laws it struck down last week, but the outcome of the vote is uncertain.
    In a possible signal he may dissolve parliament if lawmakers voted down new measures, Zelenskiy tweeted: “I want this parliament to work for the state.    Whether the Verkhovna Rada [parliament] will continue to work will depend on the conclusions made by our deputies.”
    Ukraine’s patchy performance on reforms has impeded a $5 billion deal from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to support the economy, which has been hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
    The government is also under scrutiny after passing a resolution giving it more control over the procurement of medicines and equipment, but denies allegations this could be a vehicle for corruption.
    Zelenskiy told the ICTV news channel the IMF threatened to pull its support after the court verdict.
    Opposition parties say they will vote against Zelenskiy’s legislation, which former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko described as a “coup d’etat” designed to concentrate more power in his hands.
    It was unclear how many lawmakers from Zelenskiy’s Servant of the People party would support the bill.    Lawmaker Halyna Yanchenko said Zelenskiy’s faction would back the legislation “if we do not find other, less painful solutions,” Interfax Ukraine reported.
    Zelenskiy said Ukrainians would not tolerate backsliding on reforms to fight corruption and that Ukraine’s reputation was at stake.
    “Either the country will be thrown into bloody chaos again, or the state will end its existence as a system of transparent rules and agreements,” Zelenskiy said in an audio recording of an appeal to lawmakers obtained by the Liga.net news site.
(Additional reporting by Ilya Zhegulev; Writing by Matthias Williams, Editing by Timothy Heritage and Alex Richardson)

11/3/2020 Austrian Minister Says ‘Islamist Terrorist’ In Vienna Attack, Death Toll Rises To Five by Francois Murphy
Police officers block a street after exchanges of gunfire in Vienna, Austria November 3, 2020. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Hundreds of police fanned out across Vienna on Tuesday, searching for perpetrators of attacks that left five people dead in the city’s centre, after what a government minister said was an “Islamist terrorist” incident.
    In an early morning televised news conference, Austrian Interior Minister Karl Nehammer repeated calls for the public to stay off the streets.
    Nehammer said police had shot to death one attacker, a man wearing an explosives belt that turned out to be fake, whom authorities have identified as an Islamic State sympathiser.
    Police confirmed on Tuesday that three civilians – two men and a woman – were killed in the attacks, with at least 15 others wounded, including a police officer. Broadcaster ORF later said a fourth civilian, a woman, had died.
    Seven of the injured were in a life-threatening condition, the APA news agency said.
    A police spokesman said that reinforcements had been called in from neighbouring states and that at least 1,000 officers were involved in the search.
    “We experienced an attack yesterday evening by at least one Islamist terrorist, a situation that we have not had to live through in Austria for decades,” Nehammer said.
    “Austria for more than 75 years has been a strong democracy, a mature democracy, a country whose identity is marked by values and basic rights, with freedom of expression, rule of law, but also tolerance in human coexistence,” he said.    “Yesterday’s attack is an attack on just these values.”
    The editor of Vienna’s Falter newspaper said in Twitter messages that the assailant who was killed was known to domestic intelligence agencies.
    The 20-year-old had Albanian roots but was born and raised in Vienna, the editor said.    He was one of 20 Austrian Islamists who had wanted to travel to Syria, the editor added.
    The assailant killed by police, and other potential gunmen, attacked six locations in central Vienna on Monday evening, starting outside the main synagogue.    Witnesses described the men firing into crowds in bars with automatic rifles, as many people took advantage of the last evening before a nationwide curfew was introduced because of COVID-19.
    Nehammer said video material had been seized from the home of the known assailant during a search and police were investigating his potential connections.
CITY CENTRE SEALED OFF
    APA reported that multiple homes had been searched and arrests made, citing the Interior Ministry.    An Interior Ministry spokesman was not immediately available for comment on the APA report.
    Vienna’s police chief declined to provide further details on the attacker’s identity, citing potential endangerment of the investigation.
    Police sealed off much of the historic centre of the city overnight, urging the public to shelter in place. Many sought refuge in bars and hotels, while public transport throughout the old town was shut down and police scoured the city.
    Oskar Deutsch, the head of Vienna’s Jewish community, which has offices adjoining the synagogue on a narrow cobbled street dotted with bars, said on Twitter https://twitter.com/DeutschOskar/status/1323409412812398592?s=20 that it was not clear whether the temple or offices were targeted but that they were closed at the time.
    Videos circulated on social media of a gunman running down a cobblestone street shooting and shouting.    One showed a man gunning down a person outside what appeared to be a bar on the street housing the synagogue.
    Austria’s capital had been spared the kind of deadly militant attacks that have struck Paris, London, Berlin and Brussels, among others, in recent years.    Austria is part of the U.S.-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS formed in 2014.
    Condolences poured in from around the world, with top officials from the European Union, France, Norway, Greece and the United States expressing their shock at the attacks.
    U.S. President Donald Trump said in a tweet that “our prayers are with the people of Vienna after yet another vile act of terrorism in Europe.”
    “These evil attacks against innocent people must stop. The U.S. stands with Austria, France, and all of Europe in the fight against terrorists, including radical Islamic terrorists.”
    Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden condemned what he called a “horrific terrorist attack,” adding, “We must all stand united against hate and violence.”
(Reporting by Francois Murphy in Vienna, Michael Shields and Silke Koltrowitz in Zurich, Andrea Shalal in Washington; Writing by Jane Wardell and Raju Gopalakrishnan. Editing by Gerry Doyle)

11/3/2020 Austrian Police Arrest 14 In Manhunt After Gunman’s Deadly Rampage by Francois Murphy
Wreaths and candles are placed near the site of a gun attack in Vienna, Austria, November 3, 2020. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austrian police raided 18 properties and arrested 14 people in a massive manhunt on Tuesday for possible accomplices of a convicted jihadist who shot dead four people and injured 22 others in a late-night rampage in the centre of Vienna.
    The gunman, who was killed by police minutes after opening fire on crowded bars on Monday, had been released from jail less than a year ago.    He was identified as Kujtim Fejzulai, a 20-year-old Austrian who also held North Macedonian nationality.
    It was the first such militant attack in Vienna in a generation, and the government pledged robust action. “    We will defend our fundamental values, our way of life and our democracy with all our strength,” Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said in a national address about what he branded an Islamist terror attack.
    “We will find and hunt down the perpetrators, those behind this and their associates and mete out a just sentence.    And we will pursue all those who have anything to do with this outrage with all available means.”
    Swiss police also arrested two men on Tuesday near Zurich in an investigation of possible links to the gunman.
    Speaking later to broadcaster ORF, Kurz urged European nations to take more decisive action against terrorism.
    “We must give everyone who wants to integrate the chance to integrate, but we must at the same time make clear that our basic values are not negotiable,” he said.
    The attack followed recent deadly assaults by lone Islamist attackers in Nice and Paris.    Many Muslims have been angered by the publication in strictly secular France of satirical caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad.
“WE WILL REMAIN UNITED”
    In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Austrian Embassy to write a message of condolence in German that read: “In joy and in sorrow, we will remain united.”     Both he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke to Kurz to offer their support as expressions of solidarity poured in from around the world.
    Islamic State claimed responsibility on Tuesday for the attack without providing evidence, the group’s Amaq News Agency said in a statement on Telegram.
    An elderly man and woman, a young passer-by and a waitress were among those killed in the attack, Austrian Interior Minister Karl Nehammer said.    A German woman was also killed, Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.
    Vienna’s mayor said three people were still in critical condition.
    The normally bustling centre of Vienna was largely empty on Tuesday as the public heeded government calls to stay inside and a manhunt for a possible second gunman was underway.
    The gunman, armed with an assault rifle, a handgun and a machete, had opened fire at six places including a bar near Vienna’s main synagogue on Monday as people enjoyed a last night out before a COVID-19 curfew took effect.
    Interior Minister Nehammer said Fejzulai had recently served about eight months of a 22-month sentence for seeking to travel to Syria to join Islamic State.
    “He was released early exactly because he gave the impression that he had engaged with deradicalisation programmes and was prepared to integrate himself into society,” Nehammer told a news conference.
    Fejzulai had posted a photo on a social media account before the attack, showing himself with weapons, Nehammer said.
    Whether anyone else was involved in carrying out or preparing the attack remained unclear.
    After saying overnight that another attacker was on the loose, Nehammer said there was no indication of another assailant in large volumes of mobile phone footage of the attacks sent in by the public, but it could not be ruled out.
    North Macedonia’s Interior Ministry said it believed three people – all born in Austria and holding dual Austrian and North Macedonian citizenship – had been involved in the attack.    It identified them only by initials and gave no further information.
    A man identified as Fejzulai’s grandfather told a local television channel in North Macedonia that his grandson would visit his ancestral home, the tiny mountain village of Cellopek, every year.
THE BAND PLAYED ON
    Chancellor Kurz, a conservative who takes a hard line on immigration, said: “This is not a conflict between Christians and Muslims or between Austrians and migrants… No, this is a fight between… civilisation and barbarism.”
    The government announced three days of national mourning.
    A police spokesman said at least 1,000 officers had been involved in the search for accomplices.    The army was guarding sensitive sites in Vienna to free up police for the operation.
    A witness to the attack, Vienna rabbi Schlomo Hofmeister, said he had seen one shooter but could not be certain there were no others.
    Videos posted on social media showed a gunman running down a cobbled street shooting and yelling.    One showed a man gunning down a person outside a bar on the street where the synagogue is located, then returning to shoot the same person again.
    The shooting took place as the Vienna State Opera was holding its final concert before a month-long coronavirus lockdown.    Musicians played on, despite news of the violence outside: “If people weren’t allowed to leave anyway, why should we stop early?” a spokeswoman said.
    After the concert, with the doors still locked, four members of the orchestra came back into the pit to play a Haydn string quartet for those who were still in their seats.
    U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted: “These evil attacks against innocent people must stop.    The U.S. stands with Austria, France, and all of Europe in the fight against terrorists, including radical Islamic terrorists.”
    Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden condemned what he called a “horrific terrorist attack,” adding: “We must all stand united against hate and violence.”
    Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs Adel Al-Jubeir said on Twitter late on Tuesday that the Vienna attack was a “heinous crime… contrary to all religions and human values.”
(Additional reporting by Michael Shields, John Revill and Silke Koltrowitz in Zurich, Andrea Shalal in Washington, and Ahmed Tolba and Nayera Abdallah in Cairo; Writing by Kevin Liffey and Francois Murphy; Editing by Peter Graff and Gareth Jones)

11/3/2020 Poland Needs Calm To Discuss Disputed Abortion Ruling: Government
FILE PHOTO: An elderly woman holds a flag as demonstrators block a street during an anti-government protest following the ruling by
Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes a near-total ban on abortion, in Warsaw, Poland November 2, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland needs a period of calm to discuss a ruling by the highest court that bans most abortions, a government spokesman said after the measure did not take effect on Monday as expected following two weeks of mass protests.
    Widespread outrage among women and others greeted the Oct. 22 ruling which bans terminations due to foetal defects, ending one of the few legal grounds left for abortion in a staunchly Roman Catholic country with a deeply conservative government.
    While focused largely on abortion rights, the protests quickly turned into an outpouring of anger against the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government, its church allies and its traditionalist policies.    On Tuesday two protesters stripped naked in front of the Presidential Palace.
    The government’s publications department had initially said the court’s verdict would be enforced by Nov. 2, but it has not yet been published in its official gazette, meaning it has not entered into legal force.
    “According to the regulations, the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal should be published in a timely manner,” government spokesman Piotr Muller told a news conference when asked about the delay.
    “At the moment, however, we all need peace and discussion around this judgment, a quieting down of the public mood and discussions among experts.”
    President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, has tried to defuse the protests by proposing a bill which would reinstate the right to abortion due to foetal abnormalities, although limited only to “lethal” defects.
    Opposition politicians questioned whether the PiS could muster enough votes to pass the amendment, after parliament delayed a sitting scheduled for Wednesday for two weeks.
    “…They don’t have any ideas how to resolve the situation in Poland, they do not have a majority in parliament (in favour of the bill), they are afraid to answer questions,” opposition Deputy Speaker Malgorzata Kidawa-Blonska told reporters.
    PiS lawmaker and Deputy Parliament Speaker Ryszard Terlecki rejected any suggestion that the government lacked a majority on the issue, saying the postponement was related to the coronavirus pandemic.
    Poland’s Federation for Women and Family Planning said on Tuesday women had intensified efforts to get a legal abortion in recent days ahead of the court verdict coming into force.
    It said it knew of 61 abortions performed in hospitals in less than two weeks since the Constitutional Tribunal’s ruling, a rate of occurrence that would send the annual total well above that of 1,100 recorded in 2019.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish, Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk, Pawel Florkiewicz and Anna Koper; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

11/3/2020 Hungary Closes Bars, Imposes Night-Time Curfew To Curb Coronavirus by Krisztina Than
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban attends the face-to-face EU summit in Brussels, Belgium October 15, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman/Pool
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary will close bars and entertainment venues and impose a night-time curfew to curb a fast spread of coronavirus infections, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a video posted on his official Facebook page on Tuesday.
    Orban said the government would introduce a “special legal order” as of midnight and would ask parliament to extend it by 90 days.
    During the first wave of the pandemic, Orban sought open-ended special powers, facing accusations from human rights groups and opposition parties of making a power-grab which his government denied. In June, parliament revoked the special powers as the pandemic ebbed. nL8N2DT2YB
    Orban said on Tuesday that the new measures were needed to prevent hospitals reaching capacity by mid-December.    The curfew will be in effect from midnight until 5 a.m.
    “The time has come to take further measures to ensure a continued operation of hospitals and …protect the elderly,” Orban said.
    The government will publish details of the measures later.
    Schools remain open, as well as all shops and restaurants, and soccer games will continue to be played in front of thousands of spectators nationwide.
    Trying to minimise further harm to the recession-hit economy, Orban’s nationalist government has so far refrained from imposing strict lockdown measures.
    From Monday, those violating rules on wearing face masks risk stiff fines, with offending restaurants and shops to be closed by authorities if necessary.
    Last week the National Medical Chamber called on the government to limit the opening hours of restaurants and reimpose special shopping hours for the elderly as the number of COVID-19 patients rises.    These measures have not been taken.
    Hungary reported 3,989 new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, its highest single-day tally, while the daily death toll also rose to a record high of 84. The total death toll rose to 1,973 and the number of patients treated in hospitals jumped to 4,767 from 4,417 on Monday.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Marguerita Choy)

11/4/2020 Putin, Belarus Leader Discuss Deepening Ties In Phone Call Amid Crisis: Kremlin
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko attend a ceremony unveiling a
World War Two memorial to the Soviet Soldier near Rzhev in Tver Region, Russia June 30, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko discussed strengthening bilateral ties in a telephone call on Wednesday, the Kremlin said in a statement.
    Lukashenko is facing a weeks-long domestic political crisis in which tens of thousands of Belarusians have regularly taken to the streets of Minsk calling for him to resign. Russia is a traditional ally of Belarus.
(Reporting by Darya Korsunskaya; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Matthias Williams)

11/5/2020 Kremlin Says Lack Of Clarity At U.S. Election Could Have Bad Impact On Global Economy
FILE PHOTO: People display signs encouraging vote counting and referencing Pokemon at a left-wing coalition rally outside
the Wisconsin State Capitol the day after Election Day, in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S. November 4, 2020. REUTERS/Bing Guan
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Thursday that the lack of clarity after the Nov. 3 U.S. presidential election so far could have a negative impact on the global economy and world at large, but declined to comment further.
    Democrat Joe Biden moved closer to victory in the U.S. presidential race on Thursday as election officials tallied votes in the handful of states that will determine the outcome and protesters took to the streets.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Maria Kiselyova)

11/5/2020 Austrian Opposition Lambasts Government Over Vienna Attack Intel Failure by Francois Murphy
Candles are pictured on the site of a gun attack in Vienna, Austria, November 5, 2020. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austria’s opposition parties lambasted the government on Thursday over its admitted mishandling of intelligence that might have prevented a deadly rampage in Vienna this week, accusing it of trying to shift the blame onto others.
    A 20-year-old native of the city, who had previously been jailed for trying to join Islamic State in Syria, was shot dead by police within nine minutes of opening fire on bystanders and bars on Monday.    He killed four people.
    Fifteen arrests have been made since the attack, but Interior Minister Karl Nehammer conceded on Wednesday that “some things went wrong” in processing intelligence from neighbouring Slovakia in July that the attacker had tried to buy ammunition.
    Nehammer and Chancellor Sebastian Kurz have also said, however, that the attacker was released from prison too soon because he fooled a deradicalisation programme as to his rehabilitation.    The organisation running the programme denies that.
    “I am appalled.    I don’t know about surprised, but I am still very upset that it took you less than 24 hours for you, Mr Chancellor and you, Mr Interior Minister, to start blaming others in the justice system,” the head of the liberal Neos party, Beate Meinl-Reisinger, told parliament.
    Nehammer and Kurz are both from the conservative People’s Party (OVP).
EARLY RELEASE
    The attacker was released early in December last year and his sentence would have run until July of this year.     In his speech to parliament Kurz pointed to the early release and said the attacker lived free and undetected “only because he falsely declared to turn his back on terror”.     The organisation that runs the programme, Derad, has said that was not true, because the court ruling on his early release made no mention of deradicalisation and his case officer never said he was deradicalised.     In an interview on ORF TV on Wednesday evening Justice Minister Alma Zadic, from Kurz’s junior coalition partner the Greens, did not go into specifics on the case but said the deradicalisation programme and those who are enrolled in it should be monitored more closely.     Interior Minister Nehammer has also accused his predecessor Herbert Kickl, of the far-right Freedom Party, of weakening the country’s main intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Counterterrorism (BVT).     The leader of the Social Democrats, Pamela Rendi-Wagner, said that while Kurz was calling for the country to unite, he was in fact doing the opposite.
    “When will you understand that it is never the time, especially not now, to shift responsibility?    That now, in this difficult moment, it is not the time to blame each other within the government?” she said.
(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Alex Richardson)

11/5/2020 Kosovo President Thaci Arrested, Moved To The Hague To Face War Crimes Charges by Bardh Krasniqi
FILE PHOTO: Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci leaves after being interviewed by war crimes prosecutors after
being indicted by a special tribunal, in The Hague, Netherlands July 13, 2020. REUTERS/Eva Plevier
    PRISTINA (Reuters) – Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, a wartime hero turned politician, was arrested and transferred to the detention center of the Kosovo Tribunal in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Thursday to face charges of war crimes.
    Thaci had resigned with immediate effect earlier in the day after learning that the tribunal had confirmed a war crimes indictment against him.
    Thaci and three other former leaders of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) are accused of overseeing illegal detention facilities where the movement’s opponents were kept in inhumane conditions, tortured and sometimes killed.
    Thaci has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.    He told a news conference in the Kosovo capital Pristina that he felt his resignation was necessary “to protect the integrity of the state”
    Thaci arrived at Pristina’s military airport in the afternoon and was flown to The Hague, where he was taken into custody by the Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
    The move could bring political instability to Kosovo, a young democracy where the 52-year-old former guerrilla became the first prime minister in 2008 and was elected president in 2016.
    Prosecutors in July said they hold Thaci responsible for nearly 100 murders of civilians during the 1998-99 war when he was a KLA commander who fought the Serbian police and army.
    Thaci, a U.S.-backed national hero, embarked on his political career after leading the KLA’s battle against forces under late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic.
    Ties with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump deepened in September, when Kosovo and Serbia signed an economic relations deal at the White House.
    The European Union on Thursday welcomed Thaci’s cooperation with the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, where he is expected to come before a pre-trial judge in coming days.
    The tribunal was set up in 2015 to handle cases relating to the war that led to Kosovo’s independence from Serbia a decade later in 2008.    The court is governed by Kosovo law but staffed by international judges and prosecutors.
ANGER IN KOSOVO
    Many in Kosovo oppose the war crimes court and see the KLA commanders as heroes.
    “I think a big injustice is being committed here by putting on trial our liberators,” economist Fejzullah Ibrahimi told Reuters at a market in Pristina.
    NATO bombed Belgrade in 1999 with U.S. support to halt the killings and expulsions of ethnic Albanians from Kosovo by Serb forces.
    Human rights watchdog Amnesty International said the indictment against Thaci gave hope to thousands of victims of the war “who have waited for more than two decades to find out the truth about the horrific crimes.”
    In Belgrade, lawmaker Milovan Drecun who is chairman of the Serbian parliamentary committee for Kosovo said the indictment proved that “establishing the truth about war crimes of the KLA and punishing those responsible is an irreversible process.”
    In July, Thaci met the prosecutors in The Hague to discuss the allegations against him.
    Another three Kosovo politicians and former KLA members – Rexhep Selimi, a deputy in the Kosovo parliament, Kadri Veseli, the president of Thaci’s Kosovo Democratic Party, and veteran Kosovo politician Jakup Krasniqi – were transferred to The Hague on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity on Wednesday and Thursday, the tribunal said.
(Reporting by Bardh Krasniqi; writing by Daria Sito-Sucic and Anthony Deutsch; Additional reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic in Belgrade, Bart Meijer and Stephanie van den Berg in The Hague; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Angus MacSwan, Peter Graff, Alexandra Hudson and Cynthia Osterman)

11/5/2020 Putin Orders Russian Government To Try To Meet Paris Climate Goals by Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech for the opening day of the World Climate Change
Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, November 30, 2015. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree ordering the Russian government to try to meet the 2015 Paris Agreement to fight climate change, but stressed that any action must be balanced with the need to ensure strong economic development.
    Russia, the world’s fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has previously signalled its acceptance of the accord even as environmentalists have criticised Moscow for shunning compulsory emissions targets for companies backed with fines.
    In a decree published on Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, Putin formally ordered the government to work towards a cut in greenhouse gas emissions of up to 70% against 1990 levels by 2030.
    That, said Putin, would also mean harnessing the capability of forests and other eco-systems to absorb such gases.
    Putin’s order came with a big caveat however.    He said any action to cut emissions must take account of the need to ensure steady and balanced socio-economic development, and ordered the government to draw up and ratify a socio-economic strategy up to 2050 that factored in lower emissions.
    A previous draft of such a strategy has drawn criticism from green groups for allowing emissions to rise before falling.
    Climate change poses a serious challenge for Russia, whose economy relies heavily on oil and gas production, as well as mining.    Some of that infrastructure is built on permafrost, which is vulnerable to rising temperatures.
    Putin, who has questioned whether human activity is the sole driver of warming climate cycles, has cast himself as a defender of the environment.
    He has praised the Paris pact in the past, while saying it would require countries to modernise industry, something likely to cost big business billions of dollars and incur job losses, an eventuality he said had to be properly planned for.
(Editing by Alex Richardson)

11/5/2020 Russian Police Raid Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation In Moscow
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny delivers a speech during a rally to demand the release of jailed protesters,
who were detained during opposition demonstrations for fair elections, in Moscow, Russia September 29, 2019/File Photo/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian police raided the Moscow offices of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation on Thursday and state bailiffs said a criminal investigation had been opened against the group’s director.
    Navalny, who is convalescing in Germany after his alleged poisoning with a novichok nerve agent in Russia, posted images on social media of law enforcement officers at his group’s offices in a business centre in Moscow.
    The RIA news agency cited bailiffs as saying the raid was linked to a criminal case against Ivan Zhdanov, director of Navalny’s group, for failing to implement a court order, an apparent reference to a lawsuit payout.
    A court in Moscow ordered Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation and Navalny supporter Lyubov Sobol last month each to pay 29 million roubles ($374,483) for libelling the Moscow Schoolchild catering company.     The Kremlin’s critics have cast those lawsuits, as well as a series of mass police raids, as part of a coordinated campaign aimed at crippling their activities.    Russian authorities deny that.
($1 = 77.44 roubles)
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Nick M)

11/5/2020 Those Held Over Vienna Attack Are Part Of Islamist Scene, Austria Says
FILE PHOTO: A woman places flowers at the site of a gun attack in Vienna, Austria, November 5, 2020. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
    VIENNA (Reuters) – All 15 people arrested in connection with a deadly rampage in Vienna on Monday are part of the radical Islamist scene and just under half have criminal convictions, some for terrorism offences, Interior Ministry officials said on Thursday.
    A 20-year-old native of the city, who had previously been jailed for trying to join Islamic State in Syria, was shot dead by police within nine minutes of opening fire on bystanders and bars on Monday. He killed four people.
    “We are dealing with a violent perpetrator who was evidently intensely involved in the network of political Islam, of sympathisers, who took on their ideology,” Interior Minister Karl Nehammer said.
    The 15 are being held on suspicion of belonging to a terrorist organisation.    Seven of them have criminal convictions, Of those, four are for terrorism-related offences, Director General for Public Security Franz Ruf said.
    Of those four, two involved acts of violence like assault and two were for attempted so-called honour killings, Ruf said, adding: “One can see that all are to be linked to the radical Islamist milieu.”
    Switzerland has also arrested two men in connection with the attack, and Austria was in close contact with another unspecified country in its investigation, Nehammer said.
    Separately, German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer told parliament there was a connection between the attack and people in Germany who are “monitored around the clock.”
(Reporting by Francois Murphy, Additional reporting by Andreas Rinke in Berlin; Editing by Gareth Jones and Alex Richardson)

11/5/2020 New Bill Set To Expand Russian Ex-Presidents’ Immunity From Prosecution
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with heads of religious confessions on National Unity Day,
via a video conference call in Moscow, Russia, November 4, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian ex-presidents’ immunity from criminal prosecution could be extended to any offences committed in their lifetimes, not merely while in office, under a bill submitted to parliament on Thursday.
    The bill, published on a government website, is one of several being introduced following constitutional reforms that, among other things, allow President Vladimir Putin to run again when his term ends in 2024.
    The draft legislation is being carefully parsed for clues as to what Putin, who has dominated Russian politics for more than two decades, plans to do in 2024.
    Former presidents already enjoy lifetime immunity for crimes committed in office under legislation adopted after Russia’s first post-Soviet president, Boris Yeltsin, handed the reins of power to Putin at the turn of the century.
    The new bill would also make it harder to revoke ex-presidents’ expanded immunity.
    It would require the upper house of parliament to vote overwhelmingly to revoke it on the strength of accusations by the lower house that the president had committed treason or another serious crime.
    The bill will become law if the lower house votes to approve it in three readings, the upper house backs it, and Putin then signs it.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Maria Kiselyova; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

11/6/2020 Transgender Couple Wed In Hungary, Land Of Growing Homophobia by Bernadett Szabo and Balazs Kaufmann
Hungarian transgender couple, Elvira Angyal and Tamara Csillag, pose for a picture after
their wedding in Polgardi, Hungary, November 6, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
    POLGARDI, Hungary (Reuters) – The wedding of Hungarian transgender couple Tamara Csillag and Elvira Angyal looked just like any other, with the nervous pair dressing up and heading off to the rural Hungarian court room where their marriage would be sealed.
    But in the world of nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, this was special as Orban, increasingly hostile to LGBT+ people, has outlawed legal recognition of transgender identity.
    Ironically, that made the wedding possible, as Csillag was stuck with male documents while Angyal had already completed her transition and had the documents to prove it.
    “Our dream has come true.    We are so happy to have received an official seal on our relationship,” Angyal said after the ceremony, holding hands with her new wife.
    She kissed her and said: “I love you.”
    “I love you back,” Csillag said.
    Theirs was far from a smooth journey. Both had families as men before coming out to live as women.    Of seven children between them, only one, Angyal’s son Patrik, was present.
    “One of the biggest joys in life is to see your parents happy,” Patrik said.
    Rights groups say Orban and his political allies, the small Christian Democratic party KDNP, have targeted the gay community since he won a third term in 2018.
    “For a decade the government has waged a systematic campaign against LMBTQ people,” said Luca Dudits of the Hatter rights group. “This contradicts European norms and general human rights.”
    The wedding came one day after Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjen renewed homophobic attacks with a proposal to enshrine in the country’s constitution a ban on “gender propaganda.”
    “They should not be called family, because that is a sacred notion,” Semjen said. “They should not adopt children, because children’s right to healthy development is stronger than homosexual couples’ need for a child.”
    Csillag said she was confident enough for such legal moves and propaganda not to shake her.
    “What harms children is what the government does,” she said.    “The next generation might indeed grow up haters.    They will hate us even as they won’t know why.”
(Additional reporting and writing by Marton Dunai, Editing by Angus MacSwan)

11/7/2020 Belarusian Police Detain Doctors Ahead Of Anti-Government Rally
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian law enforcement officers hold shields while standing guard during an opposition demonstration to protest
against police violence and to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus August 14, 2020. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian police on Saturday detained more than 30 doctors who had planned to take part in an anti-government protest in the capital Minsk, a prominent rights group said.
    Human rights group Viasna said 35 doctors who had gathered to take part in a rally of medical professionals were detained and taken to police stations.
    Natalia Ganusevich, a spokeswoman for the Minsk police, confirmed that some of the demonstrators had been detained and called on the population not to take part in unauthorized protests, TASS news agency reported.
    Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko is facing a weeks-long political crisis in which tens of thousands of Belarusians have regularly taken to the streets of Minsk calling for him to resign.
    The opposition has accused Lukashenko of rigging a presidential election in August that granted him a sixth term.
    Lukashenko, a former collective farm manager in power since 1994, has rejected that accusation and ignored the opposition’s calls for him to step down.
    The 66-year-old has faced strong criticism from the medical community and general population for having resisted calls for strict lockdown measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic.
    He publicly dismissed fears about COVID-19 as a “psychosis” and recommended remedies such as drinking vodka, taking saunas and playing ice hockey.
    The former Soviet country of 9.5 million has so far reported 105,283 COVID-19 cases.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Clelia Oziel)

11/7/2020 Putin, Macron Discuss Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict, Kremlin Says
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a video conference call with members of the
Security Council in Moscow, Russia November 6, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh in a telephone call with French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, the Kremlin said on Saturday.
    The two leaders expressed serious concern over the large-scale clashes between ethnic Armenian and Azeri forces in the region and the involvement of fighters from Syria and Libya in the conflict.
    Putin informed Macron of the steps Russia had taken towards implementing a ceasefire and ensuring the sides negotiate a solution to the crisis, the Kremlin said.
    The presidents also expressed their desire to continue coordinated mediation efforts, including through the OSCE Minsk Group, set up in 1992 to mediate a peaceful resolution.
    At least 1,000 people and possibly many more have died in nearly six weeks of fighting in and around Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous enclave internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians.
    The conflict has underlined the influence of Turkey, an ally of Azerbaijan, in a former Soviet region long dominated by Moscow, which has a defence pact with Armenia. It also threatens the security of Azeri oil and gas pipelines.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Catherine Evans)

11/7/2020 Putin Orders Russian Government To Work Towards Paris Climate Goals by Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech for the opening day of the World Climate Change
Conference 2015 (COP21) at Le Bourget, near Paris, France, November 30, 2015. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe
(This November 5 story has been corrected to show emissions cut goal is up to 30%, not up to 70%, in paragraph three.)
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree ordering the Russian government to work towards meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement to fight climate change, but stressed any action must be balanced with the need to ensure strong economic development.
    Russia, the world’s fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has previously signalled its acceptance of the accord even as environmentalists have criticised Moscow for shunning compulsory emissions targets for companies backed with fines.
    In a decree published on Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, Putin formally ordered the government to work towards a cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 of up to 30% below emission levels in 1990.
    That, said Putin, would mean harnessing the capability of forests and other eco-systems to absorb such gases.
    Putin’s order came with a big caveat.    He said any action to cut emissions must take account of the need to ensure steady and balanced socio-economic development, and ordered the government to draw up and ratify a socio-economic strategy up to 2050 that factored in lower emissions.
    A previous draft of such a strategy has drawn criticism from green groups for allowing emissions to rise before falling.
    Climate change poses a serious challenge for Russia, whose economy relies heavily on oil and gas production, as well as mining.    Some of that infrastructure is built on permafrost, which is vulnerable to rising temperatures.
    Putin, who has questioned whether human activity is the sole driver of warming climate cycles, has cast himself as a defender of the environment.
    He has praised the Paris pact in the past, while saying it would require countries to modernise industry, something likely to cost big business billions of dollars and incur job losses, an eventuality he said had to be properly planned for.
(Editing by Alex Richardson and David Holmes)

11/7/2020 Cuba Braces For Storm Eta After Deadly Toll In Central America
Submerged cars are pictured at an area affected by floods after the passage of
Storm Eta, in El Progreso, Honduras November 6, 2020. REUTERS/Jorge Cabrera
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba’s meteorology office warned on Saturday of torrential rain and flooding as Tropical Depression Eta churned northwards towards the Caribbean island, and on track to Florida, after killing more than 70 people in Central America last week.
    Eta could strengthen back into a tropical storm over the warm Caribbean waters before making landfall on the southern coast of central Cuba overnight, the office said, warning of coastal flooding and winds of 80-100 km per hour.
    Flooding could be a problem more broadly, it said, given Cuba was already waterlogged in the wake of heavy rains of late and Eta could potentially dump more than 300mm of water on central and mountainous regions.
    “As the ground is already saturated, any additional rain could provoke inundations especially in mountainous areas and along the rivers,” Cuba’s best known meteorologist Jose Rubiera said on the Friday evening news broadcast on state-run TV.
    The northwestern coast, including Havana’s seafront, will probably flood moderately from Sunday to Tuesday, he said.
    The government – well known for preparedness in the face of natural disasters – discussed measures on Friday to evacuate people, especially those living downstream from dams, and protect crops, homes and animals, according to state-run media.
    Given Eta’s stormfront was uneven, there was the risk of torrential rain occurring across the entire country and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero warned against complacency in eastern or western regions.
    The U.S. National Hurricane Centre (NHC) warned that flash and urban flooding would also be a possibility for the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, the Bahamas and southern Florida.
    Tropical storm conditions were possible in the Florida Keys and south and central Florida from late Sunday, it said.
    One of the fiercest storms to hit Central America in years, Eta struck Nicaragua as a Category 4 hurricane on Tuesday with winds of 150 miles per hour (241 kph) before weakening to a tropical depression as it moved inland and into neighboring Honduras and Belize.
    Across swathes of the mostly poor countries wedged between Mexico and Colombia, high winds, torrential rains and catastrophic flooding caused deadly mudslides and damaged hundreds if not thousands of homes.
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

11/7/2020 Belarus’ Lukashenko Inaugurates Nuclear Power Plant Amid Safety Concerns
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko chairs a meeting with high-ranking officials
in Minsk, Belarus October 21, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko inaugurated a nuclear power plant on Saturday that some neighbouring countries have opposed because of safety concerns.
    Built by Russian state-owned firm Rosatom and financed by Moscow with a $10 billion loan, construction of the power plant near the city of Astravets, in the western Hrodno region, was vigorously opposed by Lithuania, whose capital Vilnius is just 50 kilometres (31 miles) away.
    “This is a historical moment.    The country will become a nuclear power,” Lukashenko said in comments broadcast on state television.    “The Astravets nuclear power station is a new step into the future, towards ensuring the energy security of the state.”
    Belarus began operating the plant earlier this week, prompting Lithuania to halt Baltics power trading with its neighbour.
    Latvia said on Thursday said it had restarted imports of power from Russia to the Baltic states, which had been suspended over concern that some of the electricity was produced at the Astravets facility.
    The plant’s construction has also been divisive among Belarusians, who suffered greatly from the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
    Andrei Sannikov, a Belarusian opposition figure who was imprisoned after running against Lukashenko in 2010, wrote on Twitter the plant was a “geopolitical weapon” for Lukashenko and the Kremlin against the European Union and a “radioactive danger for Belarus and Europe.”
    The inauguration comes as Belarus has been rocked by mass protests and strikes since an Aug. 9 presidential election the opposition says was rigged.
    Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994, has rejected the accusations and dismissed opposition calls for him to step down.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Mike Harrison)

11/8/2020 Estonian Far-Right Coalition Partner Says U.S. Election Rigged, Biden Corrupt
FILE PHOTO: Estonia's Finance Minister Martin Helme of far-right EKRE Party reacts after the swearing-in of
the incoming coalition government in Tallinn, Estonia April 29, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Leaders of a far-right party in Estonia’s government coalition on Sunday denounced the U.S. election result as rigged and called president-elect Joe Biden “corrupt,” sparking a political crisis as other coalition partners condemned the comments.
    Estonia, a NATO and European Union member, relies on backing from the United States for its security from Russia.
    “In my opinion, there is no question at all that these (U.S.) elections are rigged,” said Martin Helme, head of the populist far-right Ekre party who is also the finance minister, according to local news portal Delfi.
    “Joe Biden and Hunter Biden are corrupt types,” added his father Mart Helme, who is the interior minister.
    U.S. President Donald Trump, whom Biden beat in the elections this week, has accused Biden and his son Hunter of unethical business practices in China and Ukraine.    No evidence has been verified to support the allegations, and Biden has called them false and discredited.
[THE BIDEN AND HUNTER ALLEGATIONS DOES EXISTS BUT THE FAKE NEWS MAINSTREAM SERVICE WILL NOT COVER IT AND YOU WILL FIND OUT DIFFERENT IF YOU GO TO CHANNELS AND WEBSITES SUCH AS NEWSMAX, ONE AMERICA NEWS WHICH MOST OF THE ARTICLES YOU ARE READING NOW WHICH IF THAT IS TRUE ALL THE ARTICLES WOULD BE FALSE WHICH LEFT WANTS TO STIFLE AND FOX NEWS ALSO BUT THEIR NEW YORK OFFICES ARE BEING PRESSURED TO IGNORE IT BY SOMEONE PROBABLY GEORGE SOROS IF IT IS TRUE HE BOUGHT THEM.].
    The Helmes’ comments were deemed “crazy” by Estonia’s Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, who condemned it along with Prime Minister Juri Ratas and President Kersti Kaljulaid.
    “I am sad and embarrassed,” Kaljulaid said in a statement, adding that the politicians “have damaged our relations with our allies and have sown doubt on the Estonian democratic elections”
    Ratas is dependent on the support of the Ekre party, which holds 19 seats in Estonia’s 101-member parliament and has five ministerial portfolios out of fifteen.
    The outspoken Helmes have caused a lot of political turmoil in the administration’s 1.5 years in power.
    In Dec 2019, Estonia apologised to Finland after Mart Helme mocked Finland’s new prime minister — the world’s youngest-serving government leader — as “a sales girl” and questioned her ability to run the Nordic country.
(Reporting By Andrius Sytas; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
[MAYBE WE ARE GETTING SOMEONE ELSE BESIDES POLAND AND HUNGARY WHO ARE NOT AFRAID TO GO AGAINST THE GLOBALIST AND THE UNITED NATIONS AND EUROPEAN UNION WORLD GOVERNMENT ENTITY AND ITS TEN REGIONS OR HORNS/POWERS OF THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION AND THE SEVEN HEADS OF THE G-7 WORLD ECONOMIC POWERS AND WE ARE ALL AWARE THAT TWO OF THEM THE UNITED STATES AND UNITED KINGDOM HAVE LEFT ITS HOLD ON THEM AND ANOTHER ONE WILL SOON GO AGAINST IT AND THEN THE EIGHTH HEAD WILL SHOW ITS FACE COME ONTO THE BEAST THAT CAME UP OUT OF THE SEA WHO NOW HAS THE SCARLET WOMAN RIDING ON ITS BACK FOR PROTECTION FROM THE SECULAR WORLD.].

11/8/2020 Georgian Police Fire Water Cannon At Protesters Who Say Polls Were Rigged by Margarita Antidze
An opposition supporter holds a flare during a rally against the results of a
parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia November 8, 2020. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze
    TBILISI (Reuters) – Dozens were injured when Georgian police fired water cannon against hundreds of protesters who gathered outside the Central Election Commission (CEC) on Sunday to support an opposition call for a rerun of Oct. 31 parliamentary elections which they say were rigged.
    Some witnesses and TV channels reported that police also used tear gas, but police denied it.
    The demonstrators had marched to the CEC building from the capital’s main Rustaveli avenue, where thousands of people held a peaceful rally.
    Police said protesters tried to storm the CEC building.
    “As the protesters used violent methods and did not obey the instructions of the police, the Interior Ministry used proportional force within its powers,” the ministry said in a statement.     Georgia’s ombudsman and public rights defender, Nino Lomjaria, criticised the use of water cannon.
    “Using water cannon in cold weather and against peaceful protesters was not justified,” she told reporters.
    Opposition leaders called on supporters to leave the scene after many protesters became soaked or injured, but said the next protest would be held on Monday.
    “Our fight will be till the end.    We are not scared of anything,” Nika Melia, an opposition leader, told reporters.
    The opposition is demanding the resignation of the CEC chief, Tamar Zhvania, and the calling of fresh elections.
    According to official results, the ruling Georgian Dream party won 48.23% of the vote, with the largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), taking 27.18%.
    After the result gave the ruling party the right to form a government, eight opposition parties, including the UNM, said they would boycott parliament.
    The opposition accuses the ruling party and its supporters of vote buying, making threats against voters and observers and of violations during the counting process.    Georgian Dream leaders have denied the accusations.
    Protesters moved to the CEC building after the 8 p.m. deadline to dismiss the electoral commission head and to start talks on a fresh vote passed without a response from the government.
    The economy of the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million people has been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak.    The government said on Saturday it would impose an overnight curfew from Monday between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. in the largest cities due to a sharp rise in cases since early September.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Mike Harrison, Nick Macfie and Daniel Wallis)

11/8/2020 Belarus Security Services Detain Hundreds Of Protesters In The Capital
A woman wearing a historical white-red-white flag of Belarus is taken away by a law enforcement officer during a
rally to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus November 8, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Hundreds of people were reportedly detained in Minsk on Sunday in the latest anti-government protests since a disputed August election returned Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to power.
    After an initial gathering in the centre of the capital was dispersed by security services, demonstrators spilled out across the city, with groups of protesters staging small demonstrations and holding the red and white flags of the opposition.
    Videos showed black-clad security service members carrying batons chasing protesters and taking them away in vehicles.    In one shopping centre, law enforcement officials locked the doors and began spot searches of customers, looking for opposition banners and other materials.    Security services also stopped and searched cars.    Reuters was not able to independently verify any of the footage.
    The Viasna Human Rights Centre, which is not registered in Belarus, said around 360 people had been detained.
    Among them was Olympic decathlon silver medallist Andrei Krauchenko and kickboxing champion Ivan Ganin, the Belarusian Sport Solidarity Foundation said.    Both had previously signed an open letter by 1,000 Belarus sports community members calling for new elections.
    Belarus is in a political crisis as tens of thousands of Belarusians have taken to the streets each week since the Aug. 9 election calling for Lukashenko to resign after 26 years in power.    Thousands of people have been arrested and rights groups say hundreds of detainees have reported being subjected to beatings and other abuse.
    On Saturday, 60 doctors and other medical staff who had gathered for a rally were detained, according to Viasna.
    Belarus last week told the United Nations it was not investigating a single allegation of police abuse, despite coming under Western criticism since the election for violent crackdowns on anti-government demonstrators.
(Writing by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Susan Fenton and Mike Harrison)

11/8/2020 Hungary’s Orban Congratulates Biden As His ‘Plan A’ For Trump Win Flops
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban holds a news conference in Budapest, Hungary, June 12, 2020. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban congratulated Joe Biden on his U.S. presidential election victory, an outcome that could complicate ties with Washington after the nationalist leader accused U.S. Democrats of “moral imperialism.”
    Orban, who said in September a Donald Trump win was his “Plan A” and he had not planned for a Biden presidency, has been at loggerheads with the European Union over his anti-immigration campaigns and his moves to impose more state control on the judiciary, non-governmental organisations, media and academics.
    The Hungarian premier, in power since 2010, clashed with President Barack Obama’s administration, in which Biden served as vice president, over what Orban’s critics have described as an erosion of democratic values by his government.
    Orban, who faces what promises to be a tough election in 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic and a weaker economy, congratulated Biden in a letter, the Hungarian leader’s media officer, Bertalan Havasi, said in a statement.
    “Let me congratulate you for a successful presidential campaign.    I wish you good health and continued success in performing your exceedingly responsible duties,” Orban wrote in the letter cited by state news agency MTI.
    Orban, who met Trump in the Oval Office in May 2019, told Reuters in September he was convinced Trump would win and said he had no plans for any other outcome.    He described a Trump victory as his “Plan A.”
    Orban, who said Democrat diplomacy had been built on “moral imperialism,” had also said the level of openness and support was likely to be lower with a Biden presidency than with Trump.
    Biden previously accused Trump of backing authoritarian leaders around the world, including in Hungary.
    “You see what’s happened in everything from Belarus to Poland to Hungary, and the rise of totalitarian regimes in the world … this president embraces all the thugs in the world,” Biden said during his election campaign.
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Edmund Blair)
[Keep up with your rights Orban and Trump is not gone in memory and action just as Obama influenced and Trump still has a new young Republican Party base in place and 300 judges who will fight to maintain their sovereignty of our Constitution and good policies in the U.S. and not let all the Biden socialism Green New Deal party try to change it but does not have power in the Congress and Senate.].

11/9/2020 Russian Energy Minister Made Deputy PM In Cabinet Reshuffle
FILE PHOTO: Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak attends the Energy Week International
Forum in Moscow, Russia October 3, 2019. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin recommended the promotion of Energy Minister Alexander Novak to the post of deputy prime minister on Monday as part of a broader cabinet changes.
    In a shake-up first reported by media outlets Kommersant and RBC, President Vladimir Putin dismissed Transport Minister Yevgeny Dietrich, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Dmitry Kobylkin and Construction Minister Vladimir Yakushev.
    Speaking at a government meeting with Russia’s deputy prime ministers, Mishustin said he was recommending Nikolai Shulginov, CEO of RusHydro, a hydroelectric power generation company, to replace Novak as energy minister.
    Mishustin recommended that Vitaly Saveliev, CEO of Russia’s flagship airline Aeroflot, become Transport Minister.
    He also recommended Alexander Kozlov, the minister for the development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, as natural resources and environment minister, and proposed Irek Fayzullin, deputy construction minister, as head of the construction ministry.
    The State Duma, the lower house of parliament, still has to approve the appointments.    It is expected to do so.
    Novak, 49, had served as energy minister since 2012. He has led Russia’s negotiations with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and played an important role in helping reach a 2016 deal to cut global oil output.
    Yakushev, the former construction minister, was appointed to serve as a presidential plenipotentiary representative to the Urals Federal District, the Kremlin said in a statement.
(Reporting by Anton Kolodyazhnyy, Vladimir Soldatkin, Gleb Stolyarov, Darya Korsunskaya and Anastasia Lyrchikova; Writing Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Timothy Heritage)

11/9/2020 Ukrainian President, Three Top Officials Contract Coronavirus by Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets
FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news briefing with Polish President Andrzej Duda
(not pictured) as they meet in Kyiv, Ukraine October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool/File Photo
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Monday he had tested positive for the coronavirus, and the finance minister, the defence minister and Zelensky’s top aide were also reported to be infected.
    “The head of state is feeling well and will continue to perform his duties remotely in self-isolation,” Zelenskiy’s office said in a statement.
    “Despite all the quarantine measures, I also received a + (positive) result.    I have 37.5, and I wish everyone 36.6!” Zelenskiy said in a Telegram message, referring to his body temperature.
    Minutes after Zelenskiy’s announcement, Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential office, said on Facebook that he had also tested positive for the virus.
    Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko’s office said he had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and would work remotely.    State news agency Ukrinform reported that Defence Minister Andriy Taran had also tested positive.    The ministry was unavailable for comment.
    On Thursday, Marchenko, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal and other ministers took part in a parliamentary session.    Shmygal’s office said he had no signs of the infection but would undergo a test on Tuesday.
    The president’s wife, Olena, contracted COVID-19 in June and spent several weeks in a hospital.
    The daily tally of coronavirus infections in Ukraine spiked in late September and remained consistently high throughout October and early November, prompting the government to extend lockdown measures until the end of this year.
    Shmygal said last week the number of new cases could jump to 15,000 a day by the end of November and to 20,000 daily by the end of the year.
    Ukraine’s health minister said last week the coronavirus situation in Ukraine was close to catastrophic and that the nation must prepare for the worst.
    Zelenskiy said earlier on Monday Ukraine may introduce a lockdown at weekends in an effort to curb the pandemic, and such a move would not have a serious negative impact on the economy.
(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

11/9/2020 Austria Stopped Trailing Vienna Attacker In Summer, Report Says
FILE PHOTO: A woman places flowers at the site of a gun attack in Vienna, Austria, November 5, 2020. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austrian authorities watched a meeting in Vienna this summer between foreign Islamists and the jihadist who killed four people last week, and trailed him for days but then stopped, news agency APA reported on Monday.
    Austria has acknowledged that “intolerable mistakes were made” in the handling of intelligence on the attacker, a convicted jihadist, who killed four people in a shooting rampage in the centre of Vienna last Monday.    He was shot dead by police.
    First Vienna said it had mishandled information from Slovakia that the gunman had tried to buy ammunition there in July.    Then it admitted he had met people from Germany who were under observation there and who travelled to Austria, and that could have led it to see him as a greater threat.
    On Monday it confirmed a report by Swiss newspaper NZZ am Sonntag that he had also met two Islamists arrested in Switzerland in connection with the attack who had travelled to Vienna between July 16 and July 20.
    “A meeting took place in Vienna among the people (you) addressed from Germany and Switzerland but there were also people present at the meeting with the later assailant who were arrested in the context of the investigation,” Director General for Public Security Franz Ruf told a news conference when asked about the reported July meeting.
    “It was a larger circle of people that met. Some spent the night, the rest then left,” he added.
    Austrian domestic intelligence monitored the meeting and the attacker for days, observing how he and acquaintances picked up the four visitors from Germany and Switzerland at Vienna airport and showed them around the city.    But it broke off the tailing operation just as he travelled to Slovakia, APA reported.
    Why that operation was halted is unclear, APA said.    The Interior Ministry was not immediately available for comment.
    “New disturbing failures come in almost by the hour,” Stephanie Krisper, a senior lawmaker from the liberal Neos opposition party said on Twitter, referring to the tail.
    The head of Austria’s main domestic intelligence agency for Vienna has stepped down temporarily pending an investigation into what went wrong.
    Austrian intelligence is “traditionally weak and must be strengthened” as part of a previously planned and continuing overhaul, Ruf said.
(Reporting by Francois Murphy; Additional reporting by Michael Shields and John Miller in Zurich; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/9/2020 Thousands Of Georgians Rally For Second Day To Demand Vote Re-Run by Margarita Antidze
Police officers block a demonstrator during an opposition rally against the results of a
parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia November 9, 2020. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze
    TBILISI (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters rallied in the Georgian capital Tbilisi for the second day on Monday, some defying the start of the country’s coronavirus curfew, to back opposition calls for a re-run of the Oct. 31 parliamentary election they say was rigged.
    There were no immediate reports of disturbances, after more than a dozen protesters were injured on Sunday by volleys of police water cannon outside the Central Election Commission (CEC) headquarters. Protesters were also targeted with tear gas, some witnesses and TV channels reported, but police denied it.
    The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the continent’s biggest security and rights watchdog, urged the protesters to refrain from violence and Georgian authorities to respect freedoms of assembly and expression.
    The CEC said the ruling Georgian Dream party won 48.23% of the vote on Oct. 31 with the largest opposition party United National Movement (UNM) taking 27.18%.
    Eight opposition parties, including the UNM, rejected the official outcome and said they would boycott the parliament.
    They accuse the ruling party and its supporters of vote buying, threatening some voters and local election observers and tampering with the vote count.    Georgian Dream leaders have denied the accusations.
    The opposition is demanding the resignation of CEC chief Tamar Zhvania and the calling of fresh elections.
    Monday’s protest crowds thinned out after the 10 p.m. (1800 GMT) start of the overnight curfew that is in effect to curb the spread of the coronavirus, but a number of demonstrators remained in the streets, with police standing by.
    “We should be very patient as our fight will be difficult,” Nika Melia, a UNM leader, told protesters, most of them wearing protective masks to ward off coronavirus contagion.
    He said that protests would continue in Tbilisi and other cities in the former Soviet republic, with a major rally scheduled for the capital on Saturday.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

11/9/2020 Polish President Ratifies Defence Deal With U.S.
FILE PHOTO: Newly sworn-in President of Poland Andrzej Duda addresses Parliament in
Warsaw, Poland August 6, 2020. Slawomir Kaminski/Agencja Gazeta/File Photo via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish President Andrzej Duda ratified a defence agreement with the United States on Monday that cements a greater U.S. troop presence in the country and he said Warsaw’s relations with Washington should not be affected by the U.S. election.
    The deal was agreed between Duda and U.S. President Donald Trump over a year ago and aims to bolster the Western military presence on NATO’s eastern flank in reaction to an increased assertiveness by Russia.
    Joe Biden’s election as the next U.S. president puts Warsaw in a potentially awkward position after it had set great store in its relationship with Trump while straining links with EU allies over democratic values.
    During the election campaign, Biden had accused Trump of backing authoritarian leaders around the world, mentioning Poland among others.
    He is expected to review Trump’s decision to withdraw thousands of troops from Germany, although U.S. officials have insisted the agreement with Poland was separate from that move.
    Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has said he hoped some of the troops will be moved to Poland.
    Duda said he believed Warsaw’s relations with Washington were “entirely unrelated to current political events” in a reference to the U.S. election.
    “In carrying out our tasks in the field of Polish politics and Polish-American relations, we act calmly, also by ratifying this agreement, waiting for the newly elected president of the United States to take his oath,” Duda said.
    Under the agreement, a 1,000 U.S. troops would be stationed in Poland on top of several thousand already there as part of a NATO deployment.
    Poland’s nationalist government allied with Duda shared a host of views with Trump on issues ranging from abortion, migration to climate change and coal mining.
    The head of the National Security Bureau said in a statement the timing of Monday’s ratification by Duda was not related to the U.S. election.
    “This is a normal ratification process.    The President could only ratify the agreement after the parliament agreed to it and once the new legislation came into force,” Pawel Soloch said.
(Reporting by Anna Koper and Joanna Plucinska; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

11/9/2020 Kosovo Ex-President Thaci Pleads Not Guilty To War Crimes by Stephanie van den Berg
Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, who resigned and was taken into custody of a war crimes tribunal, appears for the
first time before the Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague, Netherlands November 9, 2020. Jerry Lampen/Pool via REUTERS
    THE HAGUE (Reuters) – Kosovo’s former president Hashim Thaci pleaded not guilty on Monday to 10 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the alleged torture and killing of opponents.
    Prosecutors have said Thaci was responsible for nearly 100 murders when he led the guerrilla uprising against Serbian forces in 1998-99 as commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army.
    “Your honour, the indictment is completely without basis and I plead not guilty,” he told the Netherlands-based Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
    Thaci, seen as a war hero by many in his country, resigned as president after the charges were announced in June.    He was arrested and transferred to the tribunal’s detention centre on Thursday.
    He and three other former KLA leaders are accused of overseeing illegal detention facilities where the movement’s opponents were kept in inhumane conditions, tortured and sometimes killed.
    Defence lawyer David Hooper told the judge he would ask for the former president to be released pending trial, saying Thaci had cooperated with the tribunal up to now, and been instrumental in its formation.
    The Kosovo Tribunal was set up in 2015 to handle cases relating to alleged atrocities by KLA fighters during and after the revolt.    It was based abroad to minimize the risk of witness intimidation in a small country where clan loyalties run deep.
    Many in Kosovo have accused the tribunal of unfairly targeting KLA fighters while many Serb alleged perpetrators of war crimes are not being prosecuted in Serbia.
    The former United Nations Yugoslav tribunal did convict a handful of senior Serbian political and military leaders for atrocities committed in Kosovo during the 1998-99 conflict.
(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; Writing by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Andrew Heavens)

11/10/2020 Russia Deploys Troops To Nagorno-Karabakh After Ceasefire Deal Announced by Nvard Hovhannisyan and Nailia Bagirova
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks on the signed deal on a complete stoppage of combat actions over the Nagorno-Karabakh region
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia, November 10, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    YEREVAN/BAKU (Reuters) – Russian peacekeeping troops deployed to the war-ravaged enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in the early hours of Tuesday as part of a ceasefire deal President Vladimir Putin said should pave the way for a lasting political settlement of the conflict there.
    The deal, agreed by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia, ushered in a full ceasefire from midnight Moscow time on Nov. 10, freezing a conflict that has killed thousands, displaced many more and threatened to plunge the wider region into war.
    The territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated and, until recently, fully controlled by ethnic Armenians who have been relentlessly pushed back by the armed forces of Azerbaijan in six weeks of heavy fighting.
    Under the deal, Azerbaijan will get to keep all of its territorial gains, including the enclave’s second city of Shusha/Shushi, and ethnic Armenian forces must hand over control of a slew of other territories between now and Dec. 1.
    Russian peacekeepers will stay in place for at least five years.    Putin said they would be deployed along the frontline in Nagorno-Karabakh and in a corridor between the region and Armenia.
    The Russian defence ministry said it had started deploying 1,960 servicemen, who were en route to an unnamed air base to be airlifted along with their equipment and vehicles.
    The deal is likely to be seen as a sign that Russia is still the main arbiter in a region it regards as its own backyard, though the scale of Turkish involvement remained unclear and Ankara’s interest in the region has sharply increased.
    Turkey staunchly supported Azerbaijan, while Russia has a defence pact with Armenia and a military base there.
    Putin said displaced people would now be able to return to Nagorno-Karabakh, and prisoners of war and the war dead be exchanged, while all economic and transport links in the area would be reopened with the help of Russian border guards.
    “We are operating on the premise that the agreements will create the necessary conditions for a long-term and fully-fledged settlement of the crisis around Nagorno-Karabakh on a fair basis and in the interests of the Armenian and Azeri peoples,” Putin said.
UNREST IN ARMENIA
    Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, said Turkey would also be involved in peacekeeping efforts.    There was no immediate word from Ankara.
    In Armenia, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan tried to put a brave face on the situation.
    “The decision was made based on a deep analysis of the combat situation and in conjunction with the best experts,” he said of the deal on social media.
    “This is not a victory, but there is no defeat until you consider yourself defeated.    We will never consider ourselves defeated and this shall become a new start of an era of our national unity and rebirth.”
    Unrest broke out in Yerevan, the Armenian capital, however, as several hundred protesters gathered in front of government buildings to protest against the deal and demand to see Pashinyan.
    They shouted “We will not give it up,” referring to Nagorno-Karabakh.
    Video posted on social media showed dozens of people breaking into a government building and smashing up furniture inside.    Pashinyan said anyone involved in the unrest would be severely punished.
    The deal followed three failed ceasefires and relentless advances by Azerbaijan’s forces.
    Baku said earlier on Monday it had seized dozens more settlements in Nagorno-Karabakh, a day after proclaiming victory in the battle for the enclave’s strategically positioned second-largest city.
    The capture of the city called Shusha by Azeris but known by Armenians as Shushi appears to have been a turning point.
    It sits on a mountaintop overlooking Stepanakert, the city regarded as the enclave’s capital by its ethnic Armenian administration.
    An Azeri defence ministry video posted online showed Azerbaijan’s national flag flying over deserted streets in what it said was Shusha.
    Some Armenian politicians had disputed on Monday that the city had fallen, even as ethnic Armenian forces said it was no longer under their control.
    Since fighting erupted on Sept. 27, Azerbaijan says it has retaken much of the land in and around Nagorno-Karabakh that it lost in a 1991-94 war in which an estimated 30,000 people were killed.
    Armenia has repeatedly denied the scale of Azerbaijan’s territorial gains.
(Additional reporting by Margarita Antidze in Tbilisi, Writing by Vladimir Soldatkin and Andrew Osborn, Editing by Jon Boyle, Nick Tattersall, Peter Graff and Sonya Hepinstall)

11/10/2020 Lithuania To Support ‘Those Fighting For Freedom’ In Taiwan by Andrius Sytas
FILE PHOTO: Lithuania's Homeland Union leader Ingrida Simonyte speak to reporters after declaring victory
in Lithuania's general election, in Vilnius, Lithuania October 25, 2020. REUTERS/Andrius Sytas
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania’s new ruling coalition agreed on Monday to commit the incoming government to support “those fighting for freedom” in Taiwan, threatening to hurt the small EU member’s relations with China, a potential investor in its main port.
    European Union member states, and the bloc itself, have no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan due to the objections of Beijing, which considers the island part of China.
    The Lithuanian coalition agreement, signed by leaders of the Homeland Union, Liberal Movement and Freedom parties, which together won 74 seats in the 141-seat parliament on Oct. 25, binds the new government to carry out a “values-based foreign policy.”
    “We will actively oppose any violation of human rights and democratic freedoms, and will defend those fighting for freedom around the world, from Belarus to Taiwan,” they said.
    Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry expressed appreciation for the support.
    “Lithuania and Taiwan are like-minded partners, and the foreign ministry sincerely thanks friends in Lithuania for continuing to take concrete actions to defend shared values,” it said in a statement.
    China’s embassy in Vilnius said the Chinese government is ready to work with Lithuanian government “on the basis of mutual respect to sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as non-interference in each other’s domestic affairs.”
    “The normal development of China-Lithuania relations should not be subject to disturbance by other factors because they will not serve the fundamental interests of both countries and peoples,” it said in a statement sent to Reuters.
    Likely next Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte told a news conference the new government would “not only note what happens near our borders, but also globally.”
    The outgoing Lithuanian government did not dispute Beijing’s “one China” policy towards Taiwan.    Still, China protested in May as Lithuania said Taiwan should be allowed observers at the World Health Organization during the pandemic.
(Reporting By Andrius Sytas; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

11/10/2020 Russian Peacekeepers Deploy To Nagorno-Karabakh After Ceasefire Deal by Andrew Osborn, Nvard Hovhannisyan and Nailia Bagirova
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks on the signed deal on a complete stoppage of combat actions over the Nagorno-Karabakh region
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia, November 10, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW/YEREVAN/BAKU (Reuters) – Russian peacekeeping troops deployed to Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday under a deal that halted six weeks of fighting between Azeri and ethnic Armenian forces, locking in place territorial gains by Azerbaijan.
    The agreement was celebrated as a victory in Azerbaijan, while in Armenia it triggered unrest from crowds who stormed government buildings and branded the deal a betrayal.
    It ends military action and restores relative calm to the breakaway territory, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but populated and, until recently, fully controlled by ethnic Armenians.
    Azerbaijan will keep territory it captured, including the mountain enclave’s second biggest city Shusha, which Armenians call Shushi.    Ethnic Armenian forces must give up control of a slew of other areas by Dec. 1.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin said the deal, announced overnight and also signed by Moscow, should pave the way for a lasting political settlement to fighting that killed thousands, displaced many more and threatened to spark a wider war.
    Azerbaijan had been trying to regain land lost during a war in the 1990s.    Azeris celebrated in the capital, Baku, sounding car and bus horns in delight and cheering and waving the Azeri national flag.
    “This (ceasefire) statement has historic significance.    This statement constitutes Armenia’s capitulation.    This statement puts an end to the years-long occupation,” Azeri President Ilham Aliyev said.
    Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan denied Armenia had suffered a defeat but acknowledged a “disaster” for which he took personal responsibility.
    Unrest broke out in Yerevan, Armenia’s capital, where crowds stormed and ransacked government buildings overnight, labelling the deal a betrayal. Some protesters urged Pashinyan to quit, a demand later echoed by 17 political parties, while a petition was started demanding the agreement be annulled.
    Despite the celebrations in Baku, some Azeris regretted Azerbaijan had stopped fighting before capturing all of Nagorno-Karabakh, and were wary about the arrival of peacekeepers from Russia, which dominated the region in Soviet times.
    “We were about to gain the whole of Nagorno-Karabakh back,” said 52-year-old Kiamala Aliyeva.    “The agreement is very vague.    I don’t trust Armenia and I don’t trust Russia even more.”
NO OPTION
    Since the fighting flared on Sept. 27, Azerbaijan says it retook much of the land in and around Nagorno-Karabakh that it had lost in a 1991-94 war in which about 30,000 people were killed.
    The capture of Shusha, or Shushi, appears to have been a turning point. Perched on a mountain top above Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh’s biggest city, it gave Azerbaijan’s forces a commanding position from which to launch an assault.
    Three previous ceasefires had failed and Nagorno-Karabakh leader Arayik Harutyunyan said there had been no option but to conclude a peace deal because of the risk of losing the whole enclave to Azerbaijan.
    Pashinyan said he had concluded the peace deal under pressure from his own army.
    “I personally bear responsibility for this,” he later said on Facebook.    “This is a big failure and disaster and mourning for lost lives.”
    Arms supplies and diplomatic support from Turkey, a close ally, helped give Azerbaijan the upper hand in the conflict, and Ankara used it to show its growing international clout, often putting it at odds with its NATO allies and Moscow.
    For Russia, which has a defence pact with Armenia and a military base there, the deal is a sign it is still the main arbiter in the energy-producing South Caucasus, which it sees as its own backyard.
    Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan hailed the deal in a phone call to Russia’s Vladimir Putin.    The Turkish presidency said Erdogan told Putin Turkey would set up a centre to observe the ceasefire along with Russia, in a location “in the lands liberated from Armenian occupation.”
    The Kremlin said the two leaders had stressed the importance of close cooperation to ensure the agreement was implemented.
    A statement released by France, which with Russia and the United States has long mediated in the conflict, hinted at lingering tensions with Ankara over the bloodshed.
    President Emmanuel Macron’s office said any lasting agreement must take into account Armenia’s interests, and urged Turkey to end “provocations.”
NO AGREEMENT ON TURKISH PEACEKEEPERS
    Under the ceasefire deal, Azerbaijan will gain a road link to an Azeri exclave on the Iranian-Turkish border, giving Turkey a land bridge to Azerbaijan.
    Putin said displaced people would be able to return to Nagorno-Karabakh and prisoners of war and bodies of those killed would be exchanged.    All economic and transport links in the area would be reopened.
    Russian peacekeepers will remain for at least five years, expanding Moscow’s military footprint in the region.    Putin said they would be deployed along the frontline in Nagorno-Karabakh and in a corridor between the region and Armenia.
    Almost 2,000 servicemen, 90 armoured personnel carriers, and 380 vehicles and pieces of other hardware were being deployed, the Russian defence ministry said.
    Russian media said 20 military planes had taken off for the region and had started arriving in Armenia en route to Nagorno-Karabakh.
    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been no agreement on deploying any Turkish peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh, but the Turkish military would help staff a joint monitoring centre with Russian forces.
(Additional reporting by Margarita Antidze in Tbilisi and Vladimir Soldatkin and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber in Moscow, John Irish and Elisabeth Pineau in Paris, Tuvvan Gumruku in Ankara and Ali Kucukgocmen in Istanbul; Writing by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Timothy Heritage, Angus MacSwan and Peter Graff)

11/10/2020 Analysis: Putin Draws Erdogan A Red Line On Russia’s Southern Flank With Karabakh Deal by Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan arrive for a news conference
following their talks in Moscow, Russia March 5, 2020. Pavel Golovkin/Pool via REUTERS//File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has brokered a Nagorno-Karabakh peace deal that locks in territorial gains for Turkey-backed Azerbaijan.    In doing so, he has thwarted a stronger Turkish presence in a region Moscow views as its backyard.
    Six weeks of heavy fighting between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces over the enclave have tested Moscow’s influence in the South Caucasus, a swath of the former Soviet Union it views as vital to defending its own southern flank.
    Three previous ceasefires, at least one of which was brokered by Moscow, fell apart.    Azerbaijan accidentally shot down a Russian military helicopter, killing two.    And Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan backed the Azeri offensive militarily and diplomatically and tried to gatecrash mediation efforts.
    In the end though, Putin has achieved a more than two decades Russian dream of inserting Russian peacekeepers into Nagorno-Karabakh on a renewable five-year basis and, for now, kept Turkish troops, who will instead help run a ceasefire monitoring centre outside the enclave, out. [nL1N2HW0GT]
    That expands Russia’s military footprint, putting an apparent end to geopolitical competition between Moscow and Ankara of the kind that continues to play out in Syria and Libya.
    With the wider deal, Putin has staved off a full Turkish-backed Azeri takeover of Nagorno-Karabakh however, which ethnic Armenians forces said was just days away from falling, and reaffirmed Russian influence in the region by brokering a deal which excluded Turkey as a signatory.
    “Today’s deal…in many ways addresses core Russian interests in the conflict, and is perhaps the best outcome (at least in short term) Moscow could get,” said Alexander Gabuev, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank.
    “Russia has put its 2,000 peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh – something that Moscow wanted to do back in 1994, but was unable to.    There will be no Turkish armed peacekeepers, which is very important for Moscow.”
TURKISH GAMBIT
    Ankara has said the ceasefire deal was a “sacred success” for its ally Azerbaijan [nL8N2HW1IO] while Erdogan, who has yet to comment, has described Ankara’s support for Azerbaijan as part of Turkey’s quest for its “deserved place in the world order.” [nL1N2GV05O]
    Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, director of the German Marshall Fund research group in Ankara, said the Russian presence in the area was a negative for Turkey and Azerbaijan but the Azeri position was now far stronger than six weeks ago.
    “Azerbaijan has obtained a great success in the field and this is consolidated by this ceasefire,” he said.
    Ankara did not need permission to send its forces to observe the ceasefire, Unluhisarcikli said, although it was unclear if Moscow had accepted that.
    Eurasia Group said Erdogan would probably not be too upset by the way things had turned out.
    “Turkey maintains some role, but it is clearly secondary to Russia’s,” it said in a research note.    “Erdogan is likely fine with this.    His military support for Azerbaijan made a big difference at relatively little cost to Turkey, and it granted Ankara a nationalist win and some leverage with Russia.”
    That said, Russia’s peacekeepers, armed and backed with armoured vehicles, freeze the conflict, making it impossible for Azerbaijan or Turkish-backed proxy forces to advance further.
    There’s another potential dividend for Moscow, which has a defence pact with Armenia and maintains a military base there.
    Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan swept to power on the back of 2018 street protests which forced the then government to resign.
    Moscow has had an uneasy relationship with Pashinyan ever since, seeing him as less pro-Russian than his predecessors on key policy issues and as someone who unseated a generation of Kremlin loyalists.
    The Karabakh deal, seen by many Armenians as a sell-out, puts Pashinyan under pressure, with opposition political parties calling for him to resign.
    Angry crowds stormed government buildings overnight, including his official residence which was looted, and Pashinyan was forced to deny allegations he had fled the country.
    Moscow would be unlikely to mourn his downfall if it happened.
    But even as Moscow savoured its diplomatic coup, Mark Galeotti, a senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said the ceasefire deal flattered to deceive.
    “This is managing decline, a Russia that in regional terms is strong in capacities, weak in will, trying to make the best of a situation, and in the process disappointing its allies and doing nothing to deter its challengers,” he wrote in a Moscow Times opinion piece.
(Editing by Jon Boyle)

11/10/2020 Moscow To Close Bars And Restaurants Overnight As Russia’s COVID-19 Cases Climb
FILE PHOTO: Waiters wearing protective face masks work at a cafe as restaurants and cafes reopen summer terraces following the easing
of measures against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Moscow, Russia June 16, 2020. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Bars, clubs and restaurants in Moscow face two months of overnight closures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Tuesday, as Russia’s daily tally of cases exceeded 20,000.
    Authorities have been adamant that severe lockdown restrictions, like those seen in the spring, will not be introduced, even as infections have soared to record daily highs and the official death toll from the virus has crept past 31,000.
    Russia is already testing two vaccines against the virus and is on the cusp of registering a third, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday, adding that all of the country’s vaccines were effective.
    Russia is rolling out its Sputnik V vaccine for domestic use despite the fact that late-stage trials have not yet finished, and on Monday said it was more than 90% effective, following earlier comments by vaccine developers Pfizer Inc and BioNTech, who said the same of their experimental COVID-19 vaccine.
    “Studies have already shown and confirmed that, firstly, these vaccines are safe and have no serious side-effects after use, and secondly, they are all effective,” said Putin via video conference at a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit meeting, the RIA news agency reported.
    Russia’s vaccine efficacy was based upon data collated from vaccinations of the public, rather than from an ongoing trial.
    Putin also said Moscow was ready to cooperate on coronavirus vaccines with other countries.
    Moscow Mayor Sobyanin said entertainment venues, including restaurants, bars and nightclubs would be forbidden from serving customers between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. from Nov. 13 until Jan. 15, with a member of his office warning that raids would be conducted and fines imposed on those that fail to comply.
    Educational institutions, theatres and sports venues would also face heightened restrictions, he said.
    University and college students would switch to online learning, while it was recommended that other school children, already learning from home, keep travel around town to a minimum.
    “Additional restrictions are required in order to, as far as possible, break the chains of virus transmission and lower the level of infection,” Sobyanin said, writing on his personal website.
    Russia on Tuesday reported 20,977 new coronavirus infections and 368 deaths.    At 1,817,109, its overall case tally is the fifth largest in the world, behind the United States, India, Brazil and France.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova, Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber and Alexander Marrow; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by William Maclean and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

11/10/2020 Hungary Government Proposes Constitutional Amendment Mandating Christian Gender Roles
FILE PHOTO: Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga speaks during an interview with
Reuters in Budapest, Hungary, July 23, 2019. REUTERS/Krisztina Than
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s government proposed a constitutional amendment on Tuesday requiring children to be raised with a Christian interpretation of gender roles, as Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s ruling nationalists turn to anti-LGBT rhetoric to shore up support.
    The draft amendment submitted to parliament by Justice Minister Judit Varga declares that children must be guaranteed an “upbringing based on values stemming from Hungary’s … Christian culture.”
    “The basis for family relations is marriage,” it says.    “The mother is a woman, the father is a man.”
    It also says Hungary “protects children’s right to the gender identity they were born with,” using language consistent with a government campaign to outlaw transgender identities.
    Orban’s nationalist Fidesz party and his political allies, the small Christian democratic party KDNP, face elections in early 2022 with their grip on power potentially weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact.
    In past years, Orban’s government has mostly focused on condemnation of immigration in Europe.    But it has increasingly turned to anti-LGBT rhetoric as the pandemic hit the economy, following the example of the ruling nationalist PiS party in nearby Poland which made homophobia the centrepiece of its campaign in an election this year.
    In May, Hungary banned gender changes in personal documents.    It has also taken issue with children’s books that portray diversity positively.
    In part of Tuesday’s bill explaining the justification for the new constitutional amendment, the government said it was needed to protect children “from new, modern ideological trends in the Western world … that pose a threat to children’s right for healthy development.”
    Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjen said last week that Hungary should enshrine in its constitution a ban on “gender propaganda” to protect children. He also said gays should not be allowed to adopt children and start families.
    The Hungarian LGBT community fears now that it could become the target of concerted political attacks ahead of the 2022 election.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Peter Graff)

11/11/2020 Russia Says Its Sputnik V COVID-19 Vaccine Is 92% Effective by Polina Ivanova
FILE PHOTO: A nurse prepares Russia's "Sputnik-V" vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
for inoculation at a clinic in Tver, Russia October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine is 92% effective at protecting people from COVID-19 according to interim trial results, the country’s sovereign wealth fund said on Wednesday, as Moscow rushes to keep pace with Western drugmakers in the race for a shot.
    The initial results are only the second to be published from a late-stage human trial in the global effort to produce vaccines that could halt a pandemic that has killed more than 1.2 million people and ravaged the world economy.
    The results are based on data from the first 16,000 trial participants to receive both shots of the two-dose vaccine, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which has been backing its development and marketing it globally, said.
    “We are showing, based on the data, that we have a very effective vaccine,” said RDIF head Kirill Dmitriev, adding that it was the sort of news that the vaccine’s developers would talk about one day with their grandchildren.
    The analysis was conducted after 20 participants in the trial developed COVID-19 and examined how many had received the vaccine versus a placebo.
    That is significantly lower than the 94 infections in the trial of a vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech .    To confirm the efficacy rate, Pfizer said it would continue its trial until there were 164 COVID-19 cases.
    RDIF said the Russian trial would continue for six more months and data from the study will also be published in a leading international medical journal following a peer review.
    European stocks and U.S. stock futures extended their gains slightly after Russia’s announcement.
ANOTHER BOOST
    Russia’s announcement follows swiftly on from results posted on Monday by Pfizer and BioNTech, which said their shot was also more than 90% effective.
    The Russian results are another boost to other COVID-19 vaccines currently in development and are a proof of concept that the disease can be halted with vaccination.
    Experts said knowledge about the trial’s design and protocol was sparse, making it difficult to interpret the figures released on Wednesday.
    Scientists have raised concerns about the speed at which Moscow has worked, giving regulatory go ahead for the shot and launching a mass vaccination programme before full trials to test its safety and efficacy had been completed.
    Russia registered its COVID-19 vaccine for public use in August, the first country to do so, though the approval came before the start of the large-scale trial in September.
    The so-called Phase III trial of the shot developed by the Gamaleya Institute is taking place in 29 clinics across Moscow and will involve 40,000 volunteers in total, with a quarter receiving a placebo shot.
    The chances of contracting COVID-19 were 92% lower among people vaccinated with Sputnik V than those who received the placebo, the RDIF said.
    That’s well above the 50% effectiveness threshold for COVID-19 vaccines set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
    “I can see no a priori reason to disbelieve these results, but it’s so very hard to comment, because there is so little data there,” said Danny Altmann, a professor of Immunology at Imperial College London.
    He said that while the Russian release was similar in its level of detail to the one from Pfizer and BioNTech, the key difference was that Pfizer’s release came against a backdrop of a wealth of published data on how the trial was designed, its protocol, and what its endpoints were.
    The results of the early-stage trials were peer reviewed and published in September in The Lancet medical journal.
SPUTNIK V
    The Russian drug is named Sputnik V after the Soviet-era satellite that triggered the space race, a nod to the project’s geopolitical importance for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
    The vaccine is designed to trigger a response from two shots administered 21 days apart, each based on different viral vectors that normally cause the common cold: human adenoviruses Ad5 and Ad26.
    The Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine uses messenger RNA (mRNA) technology and is designed to trigger an immune response without using pathogens, such as actual virus particles.
    Russia is also testing a different vaccine, produced by the Vector Institute in Siberia, and is on the cusp of registering a third, Putin said on Tuesday, adding that all of the country’s vaccines were effective.
    RDIF said as of Nov. 11 no serious side effects had been reported during the Sputnik V Phase III trial.
    Some volunteers had short-term minor adverse events such as pain at the injection site, flu-like syndrome including fever, weakness, fatigue, and headache, it said.
MASS VACCINATIONS
    Successful vaccines are seen as a crucial to restoring daily life around the world by helping end the health crisis that shuttered businesses and put millions out of work.
    Russia registered the vaccine for domestic use in August, and has also inoculated 10,000 people considered at high risk of COVID-19 outside of the trial.
    Putin has said that Russia expects to start mass vaccinations by the end of the year.
    “The publication of the interim results of the post-registration clinical trials that convincingly demonstrate Sputnik V vaccine’s efficacy gives way to mass vaccination in Russia against COVID-19 in the coming weeks,” Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya Institute, said.
    Moscow is rolling out a large network of vaccination rooms and residents who want the shot may be able to get it as early as next month if large volumes of doses are supplied by then, Deputy Mayor Anastasia Rakova said on Oct. 30.
    However, production challenges remain.    Earlier estimates that Russia could produce 30 million doses of the vaccine this year have since been scaled down.
    Moscow aims to produce 800,000 doses this month, industry minister Denis Manturov has said, followed by 1.5 million in December.    But significantly higher volumes of output per month are expected from early 2021.
Manturov cited issues with scaling up production from small to large-volume bioreactors, while Putin last month cited issues with the availability of equipment.
    In late October, the vaccination of new volunteers was temporarily paused due to high demand and a shortage of doses.
    Officials have said that domestic production of the vaccine will be used first to meet Russia’s needs.
    RDIF, however, has also struck several international supply deals, amounting to 270 million doses in total.
    It is expected that these will in large part be produced in other countries and RDIF has previously announced a deal to manufacture 300 million doses in India and an undisclosed amount of doses in Brazil, China and South Korea.
    Trials have also begun in Belarus, and are on track to begin soon in the United Arab Emirates, Venezuela and India.
    Russia reported 19,851 new coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours and a record high of 432 deaths.    At 1,836,960, its overall case tally is the fifth largest in the world, behind the United States, India, Brazil and France.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; Additional reporting by Kate Kelland, Ludwig Burger and Josephine Mason and Thyagaraju Adinarayan; Editing by David Clarke)

11/12/2020 U.S., French Diplomats Expected In Moscow For Karabakh Talks: Russia
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during a joint news conference with Greek Foreign Minister
Nikos Dendias at the Foreign Ministry in Athens, Greece, October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Costas Baltas
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday diplomats from France and the United States were expected in Moscow soon to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
    Russia has brokered a ceasefire that secured territorial advances for Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh, where Azeri troops have been battling ethnic Armenian forces over the past six weeks.
    The accord, which also envisages the stationing of Russian peacekeeping troops in Nagorno-Karabakh has triggered protests in Armenia for the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
    Moscow co-chairs an international group overseeing the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute with Washington and Paris, but the latter were not involved in the ceasefire deal, which was signed between Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
    Turkey, which has backed Azerbaijan over the conflict, signed a protocol with Russia on Wednesday to establish a joint centre to coordinate efforts to monitor the peace deal, agreed after three previous ceasefire attempts quickly broke down.
    The details of the monitoring have yet to be worked out and Turkish and Russian officials are due to meet in Ankara on Friday to discuss them.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Alexander Marrow and Philippa Fletcher; Editing by Gareth Jones and Alison Williams)

11/12/2020 Russia’s Lavrov Expects Biden’s Policy On Iran, Climate To Resemble Obama’s
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
at the Maximos Mansion in Athens, Greece, October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday he thought U.S. foreign policy under Joe Biden would be similar to that seen under President Barack Obama, especially on Iran and climate change.
    The Kremlin said on Monday it would wait for the official results of the U.S. presidential election before commenting on its outcome, and that it had noted incumbent Donald Trump’s announcement of legal challenges related to the vote.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/12/2020 More Than 300 Arrested After Far-Right Clashes In Warsaw: Police
FILE PHOTO: Demonstrators burn flares during a march marking the National Independence Day
in Warsaw, Poland November 11, 2020. Jedrzej Nowicki/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Police detained more than 300 people after clashes with far-right supporters marching through Warsaw in defiance of pandemic restrictions, the force said on Thursday.
    Officers in riot gear used pepper spray to break up scuffles during Wednesday’s Independence Day march – a regular point of friction between far-right groups and supporters of the nationalist government on one side, and their liberal opponents on the other.
    People in the crowd threw bricks and flares at officers, police spokesman Sylwester Marczak said.    Violence flared in the city centre and towards the end of the march near the National Stadium, recently converted into a COVID-19 field hospital.
    Organisers had said people would drive through the capital’s main roads this year, to get round a ban from city hall imposed to try and contain the pandemic. But thousands of people marched on foot through central Warsaw in addition to those driving.
    “There were a number of flares, dangerous objects thrown towards the policemen and posing a threat to the policemen.    There were 35 policemen hurt,” Marczak said.
    Most of the detained people had already been released, he added.
(Reporting by Marcin Goclowski and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

11/12/2020 Everyone Wins If New START Treaty Prolonged Without Preconditions: Russia’s Lavrov
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends the Human Rights Council at
the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, February 25, 2020. PREUTERS/Denis Balibouse
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday everyone would win if the New START nuclear arms control treaty was prolonged without preconditions, but added it was worth waiting for the U.S. political situation to settle.
    The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) accord, signed in 2010, limits the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers that Russia and the United States can deploy. It expires in February.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/12/2020 Kyrgyz PM To Step Down As Acting President, Run In Election
FILE PHOTO: Kyrgyzstan's Prime Minister Sadyr Japarov delivers a speech during an extraordinary
session of parliament in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan October 16, 2020. REUTERS/Vladimir Pirogov
    BISHKEK (Reuters) – Kyrgyz Prime Minister Sadyr Japarov said on Thursday he would step down as acting president of the Central Asian nation in the coming days in order to run in the January 10 presidential election.
    Parliamentary speaker Talant Mamytov, a close ally of the prime minister, will take over as acting head of state in line with the constitution, Japarov told a news briefing.
    The former Soviet republic, known for its political volatility, is closely allied with Moscow and hosts a Russian military airbase.    Its constitution bars caretaker leaders from running in the presidential elections that they oversee.
    Japarov, a 51-year-old nationalist politician, came to power after violent protests over a parliamentary election last month toppled the government of President Sooronbai Jeenbekov.
    He had initially planned to delay the presidential election until after a planned constitutional reform, but Thursday’s announcement indicated that was no longer an option.
    Protests have toppled three Kyrgyz leaders over the last 15 years, but Japarov has said that last month’s revolt would change nothing in Bishkek’s “strategic” relations with Moscow.
    On Thursday, he promised not to contest the results of the January vote in the event of his loss and to stop his supporters from taking to the streets.
    “We need a clean vote,” he said.    “(Rigged votes) were the reason why we have had three revolutions.”
(Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Editing by Gareth Jones; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov, Editing by William Maclean)

11/12/2020 Ukraine President Zelenskiy Hospitalised Due To COVID-19
FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news briefing with Polish President Andrzej Duda
(not pictured) as they meet in Kyiv, Ukraine October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool/File Photo
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was hospitalised after he contracted coronavirus earlier this week, a presidential official said on Thursday.
    “He first went home, but decided to move to Feofania (hospital). To accurately isolate and not expose anyone,” a presidential spokeswoman told Reuters.
    “There are better conditions for patients. Nothing serious,” she said referring to the president’s health.
    Zelenskiy said on Monday he tested positive for coronavirus. Three other top officials, including the finance minister, the defence minister and Zelenskiy’s top aide were also reported to be infected.
    Ukraine’s daily tally of new coronavirus infections began spiking in late September and has remained consistently high in October and November, spurring the government to extend some restrictions until the end of the year.
    On Wednesday, Zelenskiy’s cabinet voted to impose a national lockdown at weekends to strengthen steps to curb the rapid spread of the coronavirus.
    Ukraine registered a total of 500,865 coronavirus cases as of Thursday, with 9,145 deaths.
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Michael Perry)

11/12/2020 Far-Right Polish Independence Day March Draws Thousands Despite Ban by Alan Charlish and Alicja Ptak
People take part in a march marking the National Independence Day in Warsaw, Poland November 11, 2020. Slawomir Kaminski/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Far-right sympathisers clashed with police on Wednesday near Poland’s National Stadium, recently converted into a COVID-19 field hospital, at the end of an Independence Day march that took place in defiance of pandemic restrictions.
    Planned as a drive through the capital’s main roads to circumvent a ban from city hall, the annual event took a different form as thousands of people marched on foot through central Warsaw in addition to those driving.
    Police in riot gear used pepper spray to break up sporadic scuffles along the route.
    “Where there is brutal action on the part of people, where there is damage to property … when policemen are hospitalised, they need medical assistance, no there is nothing called a peaceful gathering,” said Warsaw police spokesman Sylwester Marczak.
    Marczak said police had been attacked with rocks and flares, resulting in several injuries to officers.
    The annual event has become a point of friction between far-right groups and supporters of the nationalist government of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on one side, and their liberal opponents on the other.
    Robert Bakiewicz, the head of the association that organises the march, blamed the violence on the police, saying they had provoked marchers near the National Stadium.
    Marczak said police had blocked the protesters in the vicinity to protect a route used to transport ventilators for the handful of COVID-19 patients being treated there.
    The country has seen soaring numbers of coronavirus infections, with the total number of cases more than quadrupling in a month.
MASS PROTESTS
    In recent weeks Poland has seen mass street protests sparked by a ruling by the Constitutional Court that introduced a near-total ban on abortion in the predominantly Catholic nation.
    The Independence Day march organisers sought to paint the decision as part of a fight against attempts to challenge traditional values.
    “What will remain of today’s independence march … is a desire to show that we are a state or a society … which relates to these traditional, conservative, Christian, Catholic values,” Bakiewicz told state-run broadcaster TVP Info.
    “We do not want this neo-Bolshevik revolution on our streets.”
    Marchers carried red-and-white Polish flags amidst clouds of smoke from red flares and held up banners that read “Our civilisation, our rules.”
    Others carried religious symbols or banners showing the Communist hammer and sickle emblem crossed out.
    A truck with a banner “No to Jewish demands” also appeared, in an apparent reference to far-right groups’ opposition to any return of property taken from Jews during the Holocaust.
    Another truck bore the slogan “Normal family – strong Poland,” a phrase used by right-wing parties in Poland to express their resistance to LGBT rights.
    Footage posted on social media showed flames coming from the window of a flat near the demonstrations.    A Warsaw fire brigade spokesman said the blaze was probably caused by a flare or firecracker, and that nobody had been hurt in the incident.
    Authorities in Warsaw, which is governed by a centrist mayor, accused the state-run police force of facilitating the march.
    “The law is being broken here,” said Karolina Galecka, a city hall spokeswoman.    “Police have spent 12 hours preparing to secure the march, we were not informed about this … and at this point you could say the police are co-organising it.”
    Marczak said the police were simply preparing for all eventualities.
    “The Polish police are professional and responsible, so we are not preparing for one variant of an event.”
(Reporting by Alicja Ptak, Alan Charlish and Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Nick Macfie, Peter Graff and Mike Collett-White)

11/12/2020 U.S. And France Play Catch-Up On Karabakh After Russia Deploys Troops by Vladimir Soldatkin and Nvard Hovhannisyan
Military vehicles of the Russian peacekeeping forces are seen on a road near the town of Goris, Armenia November 12, 2020. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
    MOSCOW/YELPIN, Armenia (Reuters) – France and the United States are expected to send diplomats to Moscow soon to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Russia said on Thursday, two days after the Kremlin deployed troops to the ethnic Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan to secure a truce.
    The arrival on Tuesday of the peacekeepers to oversee the ceasefire between Azeri troops and ethnic Armenian forces in the enclave extends     Russia’s military footprint among the former Soviet republics it views as its strategic back yard.
    Moscow co-chairs an international group overseeing the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute with Washington and Paris, but they were not involved in the deal signed by Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan to end six weeks of fighting over the enclave.
    “By no means do we want to distance ourselves from our American and French colleagues,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.    “Moreover, we have invited them to Moscow.    They will arrive within the next few days to discuss how they can contribute to the implementation of the achieved agreements.”
    The accord, which locked in territorial gains by Azeri troops against ethnic Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh, triggered protests in Armenia calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan when it was announced early on Tuesday.
    Hundreds of protesters rallied for a third day in the Armenian capital Yerevan on Thursday chanting “Nikol is a traitor!”    They then marched to the Security Service headquarters to demand the release of some opposition leaders and activists detained on Wednesday.
    Pashinyan, elected in 2018 after street protests against alleged corruption ousted the former elite, said on Thursday he had signed the accord to secure peace and save lives.
    Armenians living nearer to Nagorno-Karabakh, which has reported more than 1,300 losses among its fighters, had mixed feelings but welcomed the small columns of Russian peacekeepers making their way to the enclave on Thursday.
    “We are happy that peacekeepers came but at the same time we are sad that we are giving up that territory,” Armen Manjoyan, a 45-year-old driver, said outside the Armenian village of Yelpin between Yerevan and the Azeri border.
    “We all fought for it, but it turned out in vain,” he said.    “I think it was not the right decision.”
    Turkey, which has backed Azerbaijan over the conflict, signed a protocol with Russia on Wednesday to establish a joint centre to coordinate efforts to monitor the peace deal, agreed after three previous ceasefire attempts quickly broke down.
    The details of the monitoring have yet to be worked out and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that Russian officials were due in Ankara on Friday to discuss them.
    Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, which now joins eight other former Soviet republics where Russia has a military presence.    Moscow has military bases in five neighbouring states as well as troops in regions which have broken away from three others.
(Additional reporting by Maria Tsvetkova in YELPIN, Nailia Bagirova in BAKU and Margarita Antidze in TBILISI and Alexander Marrow in MOSCOW; Writing by Philippa Fletcher; Editing by Alison Williams)

11/13/2020 Special Report: The Woman Fell From The Sky: The Pandemic Crashes Into Russia’s Space City by Polina Ivanova
    STAR CITY, Russia (Reuters) – The Star City Closed Administrative Territorial Unit is barely an hour’s drive northeast of the Kremlin, but for decades the town never appeared on any maps.    Only after the Soviet Union fell apart was its location revealed.
    Even now, it is shrouded by forests, and behind its tall concrete walls lies the somber infrastructure of Russia’s legendary space program, and the Soviet-era apartment blocks that its cosmonauts and scientists call home.
    Star City’s medical clinic stands in a wooded area just past a monument to Yuri Gagarin, who became the first man in space in 1961, and a soaring symbol of Cold War-era glory.    To this day, flowers are often placed at his feet.
    For around a decade, physician Natalya Lebedeva worked out of the Star City clinic as a paramedic.    One autumn, she and another doctor were called out to the 12th-floor apartment of a young musician.
    “We walk in and he’s in nothing but his underwear,” the other paramedic recalled.    “And Natalya screams, ‘Grab him!'”
    The young man was heading for the open window.
    “If she hadn’t screamed, I wouldn’t have noticed.    It didn’t even cross my mind that he might try to jump,” the paramedic said.
    They wrestled the young man away from the ledge.    “It’s good that he was wearing underwear, at least.    Otherwise, I don’t know what I might have grabbed.”
    Bleak tales peppered with black humor were part of everyday life for Lebedeva and her team as they navigated Russia’s often maddeningly bureaucratic and underfunded medical system.
    So was the pressure, working in a close-knit and closed-off town, a place of rumor and recrimination, heroism and national pride.
    “Star City is not just some city.    The residents there are not easy,” said Irina Antropova, who worked with Lebedeva on the town’s ambulance service from 2006 until 2009.    Fewer than 6,000 people live in the town’s dozen or so apartment blocks, many of them working for the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center.    “They are cosmonauts, the families of cosmonauts, military personnel.”
    In the circular building housing the training center’s centrifuge, a 300-ton arm spins cosmonauts around an 18-meter radius until the force of gravity acting on their bodies is multiplied up to eight times, replicating the feeling of re-entering the atmosphere, of falling to Earth.
A NEW DISEASE
    When the first whispers of a new disease in China reached Russia in January, Lebedeva, a doctor trained in neurology, was working as the head of Star City’s ambulance service.
    The team was close, ambulance driver Vladimir Chizhenko said.    “We all lived as one collective.”
    But medical work in Star City wasn’t standard fare. The clinic’s head doctor, Olga Minina, once received a late-night call on her mobile father was cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, and he was calling from space.phone from a worried father asking about the health of his child.
    The town’s status, and the fame of its residents, ramped up the stress. Rumors spread fast in the insular town.    As it is a closed city, and outsiders do not have access to the territory, they all live there, stewing in this world of theirs,” Antropova said.
    Lebedeva, 51, wasn’t married and lived alone.    Private and independent by nature, friends said, she responded to the panoptic?n in which she lived by keeping to herself.
    “Of course, everyone was interested in her personal life,” Antropova said.    “So she kept it all very secret.”
    Lebedeva had moved to the Moscow region from her hometown in southern Russia after her mother died, and she began working as a Star City doctor in the 2000s.
    In 2009, the town stopped being a military base.    But its clinic, though now fully civilian, didn’t join the standard Russian healthcare system. Instead, in 2010 it entered the structure of the Federal Medical and Biological Agency (FMBA), a sparse network of medical facilities servicing Russia’s nuclear facilities and security services, the high-level scientific research sector and aerospace.
    Under the FMBA, with its direct reporting line to the Kremlin, Star City’s clinic was a highly strung place.
    Lebedeva was a buffer, shielding her team of drivers and paramedics, defending them in disputes, four members of the team said, recalling fierce arguments with the head doctor over hours and pay.
    “Then we would spend time ‘resuscitating’ her after those meetings,” said a medical worker who spoke on condition of anonymity.
    Minina, the head doctor, said that she and Lebedeva were close, even in the tense atmosphere of Star City.
    “The residents who are on my watch, each one of them is a celebrity,” Minina said.    “So, of course I can be quite tough, because for me – one misstep and it’s the firing squad.”
    Minina recalled occasions when she too would shield Lebedeva and the ambulance team from complaints.    They’d leave work together, exhausted, she said, but Lebedeva would still suggest they get coffee together, or go visit the church across town.
    “We may have had our differences,” Minina said.    “But she was a person that I could call at 4 a.m. and she’d get the job done.    I trusted her very much.”
    Antropova, the ambulance leader’s former coworker, said Lebedeva would take all the stress in her stride, saying, “Well, yes, well, yes, it’s not easy, but Irina, I’ll survive it.”
    But even before the pandemic hit, she seemed different, ambulance driver Chizhenko said.    She’d stopped joining the team on their lunch breaks, going for a walk instead, he said.
    “I would tell her, why are you putting up with this?    Leave this job.    With your qualifications, you can always find another job.    And recently, she had started to agree with me.”
    On February 28, Chizhenko, tired of battles over pay, worked his last shift before handing in his notice.    Two days later, the first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus in Moscow was discovered.
PREPARING FOR SPACE
    That day, March 1, NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy arrived in Star City to prepare, together with two Russian cosmonauts, for a six-month stint on the International Space Station.
    As they trained, coronavirus cases in Russia crept up, and restrictions grew.    “I hear the streets in Moscow are quiet and empty,” Cassidy told a specialist spaceflight magazine toward the end of the month.    “Here in Star City, it’s kind of like this oasis in the woods.”
    On March 23, the astronauts laid flowers by Gagarin’s statue, and the next day set off for Russia’s space launch facility in Kazakhstan.    It would be Star City’s last public event before lockdowns began.
    Within a week, the number of reported coronavirus cases in Russia had shot up four times to more than 1,500. Moscow and the surrounding region – including Star City – went into lockdown.    Regulations were strict: Residents could leave their homes only to reach the nearest shop or pharmacy, or to walk pets within a 100-meter radius.
    Hospitals and healthcare workers across Moscow began to prepare for a crisis.
“HE WARNED US”
    Raisa Ketseleva, daughter of Star City ambulance driver Victor Ketselev, 59, said her father had planned to be on holiday in Belarus in April.
    “When this whole pandemic started … Dad had a big meeting at work and they said that it would reach their facility, too,” she said.    So he canceled his trip.    “He said: ‘I’m not going to abandon my colleagues. I will stay and work.'”
    Ketseleva said that at first, she didn’t understand how serious the pandemic was.    Many friends simply didn’t believe the coronavirus was real.    “They didn’t show us that sort of thing” on state TV.    Her father, though, “understood that it was an illness that could end in death. He warned us.”
    He also told her that despite his ambulance work, the only protective equipment he had was a basic face mask.
    Lebedeva was keenly aware of the danger facing her team. “She was very anxious about her work, about her department, about us … and members of our families, because all this fell on her shoulders,” her deputy, senior paramedic Marina Izmaylova, recalled.
    Lebedeva began to lobby for staff to have access to protective gear and coronavirus tests, former coworker Antropova said.
    “They were not being tested at the start of April,” Antropova said Lebedeva told her at the time.    “The head doctor was refusing to test them, because if anyone tested positive, they would have had to put everyone” on quarantine.    And if that happened, Star City would be left without medical care.
    Head doctor Minina, however, painted a different picture: She said she personally secured 200 test kits – hard to come by at the time – from a research institute in Moscow.    But there were guidelines and systems in place, and it was too early to test staff when there were no confirmed cases in the town, she said.
    Some protective gear, earmarked for pandemic response, had been provided by the FMBA, and the team had far better kit than in neighboring clinics.    Still, Minina said, she searched hard for additional supplies, amid a “super deficit” of masks on the market.    In a statement, the FMBA said Star City’s clinic was provided with sufficient PPE for visits to patients with suspected COVID-19 and that testing of staff began March 25.
    On April 2, the problem of testing and protective equipment blew up into an argument in the Star City clinic, said a doctor at the clinic who spoke on condition of anonymity.    “Everything started boiling there,” the doctor said.
THE VIRUS REACHES STAR CITY
    On April 11, on the eve of Star City’s annual celebration of Gagarin’s liftoff into space, ambulance driver Ketselev developed a sore throat.
    On April 13, his temperature began to rise, his daughter said.
    On April 15, his colleagues from the Star City clinic showed up to do a coronavirus test.    A top Gagarin Training Center official had just tested positive, and mass testing of clinic staff had begun.
    The next day, Ketselev’s test came back positive, his daughter said.
    By that point, his shift partner had developed a cough. The partner’s wife and child were coughing, too, Ketselev’s daughter said.    The third ambulance driver, a young man who had replaced Chizhenko when he quit, also fell ill, Chizhenko said.
    On April 18, with his temperature soaring, Ketselev called Lebedeva and told her he was in agony.    She said he should go to hospital, and after a long night searching for bed space, Ketselev was taken away in an ambulance.    His daughter spent the next morning frantically ringing hospitals in the area, trying to work out where he might be.
    By April 22, 27 staff members of the Star City clinic had tested positive for coronavirus, a letter sent to the town’s mayor on that date showed.    So had 10 of their family members. Head doctor Minina, too, was in the ICU, with damage to 75% of her lungs, she said.
    In the letter, cardiologist Svetlana Zakharova, who had taken over from Minina, asked the mayor to press the Moscow region health ministry for support.”    The organization of medical support for the population of the Star City Closed Administrative Territorial Unit has become exceptionally difficult, especially the provision of emergency medical care,” according to the letter, seen by Reuters.
    “At that point … we were truly fighting for our lives,” said senior paramedic Izmaylova, who was also hospitalized with severe COVID symptoms.
    On April 20, Lebedeva was hospitalized in Moscow after testing positive.
BEFORE LIFTOFF, A CLOSE ENCOUNTER
    In the days before the virus started to spread in Star City, the three astronauts were preparing for liftoff at the Russian cosmodrome in Baikonur.
    On the morning of April 9, liftoff day, the three men, dressed in their white spacesuits, met with Dmitry Rogozin, head of the Russian space agency.    They also met with Evgeny Mikrin, deputy head of RSC Energia, which had built the Soyuz rocket they were about to take.
    The astronauts spoke with the officials through a wall of glass, a quarantine measure.    They walked out to the launchpad without the traditional crowds of well-wishers lining their way. At 11:05 a.m. Moscow time, they blasted into space.
    Two days after returning from the liftoff, rocket designer Mikrin, 64, started to feel unwell. A coronavirus test came back positive.
    On April 12, Andrey Voloshin, a pilot and Gagarin Training Center official, also tested positive, a test results message seen by Reuters showed, becoming Star City’s first confirmed case.    He had not attended the liftoff, but had met the party returning from Baikonur, Star City Mayor Evgeny Barishevsky said.
    By the end of the month, 10 employees of the Gagarin Training Center had tested positive, local authorities reported. The space agency said 173 employees of Russia’s overall aerospace industry were sick, and six had died.
    Mikrin would die of the disease on May 5. President Vladimir Putin wrote a short statement expressing his condolences online.
    A spokesman for the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, said that the liftoff group had tested negative immediately before and after the trip to Baikonur.    Although tests were known to be unreliable in those early days, he said, there was no concern because strict quarantine measures had been followed throughout the liftoff.
    Still, within weeks of Russia’s first confirmed case, the coronavirus had penetrated the closed walls of Star City and crossed the high-security gates of its cosmonaut training center.    It had radiated across Russia’s revered space program during a moment of international attention and national pride, and had, potentially, come within an inch of glass away from traveling to space in a cosmonaut.
THE SEARCH FOR SOMEONE TO BLAME
    In Star City, with the clinic in the grip of the outbreak, a hunt was launched for someone to blame, the doctor at the clinic said.
    “They wanted to blame us, that it was us that infected them, not the other way around,” the doctor said of officials with the space program.    “They wanted to blame the doctors."
    “And then they started coming down hard on [Lebedeva], claiming she fell ill, infected everyone,” the doctor said.
    Head doctor Minina said she didn’t know of any probe into the outbreak at the time; she herself was already in the hospital.    But she said that reports had spread widely around the town blaming Lebedeva for rocket designer Mikrin’s positive test – despite the fact that he wasn’t a resident, and the two had had no contact at all. But the rumor was there.
    A Roscosmos spokesman said he recalled some talk of accusations of negligence at the time, but it did not come from the space agency.    “We did not initiate [any investigation] … nor add to any rumors,” he said.    That wouldn’t even be within the agency’s purview, he said.
    According to the Gagarin Training Center, responding to a request for comment, the center had no issues with the Star City clinic’s work at all.
    Lebedeva phoned several colleagues and close friends from her hospital bed, four people said.    She had been admitted to the central FMBA hospital #83 in Moscow.
    Her illness wasn’t severe.    “Her temperature was a little over 37 degrees,” or 98.6 Fahrenheit, and “her lungs were affected only to a small degree,” her friend Antropova said.
    During several calls from the ward, Lebedeva repeatedly said that she was being blamed for being the source of the outbreak, a friend said.    “She called me and said … ‘I am going to be jailed.    It’s the end for me.'”
    “I said … ‘How were you supposed to have prevented this, how?    How?    Come on.    What are you, God?'” the friend recalled.
    But Lebedeva was in tears. She said she had been contacted by investigators from the police.
    Ketseleva, the ambulance driver’s daughter, said that some weeks later, Star City police officer Maxim Statsenko visited her at home. He refused to disclose what he was investigating, she said.    “But I asked him questions, of course, and I understood that they were searching for who fell sick first.”
    Reuters called Officer Statsenko to ask him about Lebedeva and his investigation.    “I don’t know anything,” he said, and hung up.
    In a statement, the FMBA said: “The detection of COVID-19 among the employees of [the Star City clinic] led to an internal audit by the management of the FMBA’s interregional directorate #170. No charges were brought against N.V. Lebedeva as a result of the audit.    The management of the FMBA and the [Star City clinic] also had no issues with the work of N.V. Lebedeva.”
    Star City doctors criticized the idea of blaming anyone at all during a pandemic or searching for who infected whom.    “We did everything by the book,” head doctor Minina said.    “I’m a doctor, not a ballerina.    I got sick because I was on the front line.”
    On April 23, ambulance driver Ketselev was hooked up to a ventilator. Chances of recovery for patients on a ventilator were known to be low.
    From her hospital bed, Lebedeva wrote a WhatsApp message to Minina: “I have understood that this is the virus of panic and fear.”
A FALL TO EARTH
    Lebedeva was last active on WhatsApp at 00:21 on Friday, April 24, said a friend and former colleague at the Star City clinic, Natalya Zhernakova.
    That day, several friends couldn’t reach her by phone.    They began calling the FMBA hospital, friend Antropova recalled, but “the hospital told them that all information about Lebedeva was ‘closed.'”
    On Saturday, Lebedeva’s friends contacted the Star City clinic ambulance service, Antropova said.    “And her colleagues already… They had already received the information,” Antropova said, her voice breaking.
    “They had been told that Natalya … had committed suicide.”
    She had fallen from the window of the Moscow hospital’s coronavirus ward and died from her injuries, a television channel reported.
    The FMBA released a statement on April 27: “On April 24, 2020, as the result of an unfortunate accident, Natalya Lebedeva tragically died.”
    The word “accident” angered many of Lebedeva’s friends, who believe she committed suicide out of desperation.
    Responding to a request for comment, the FMBA said her death was a tragic event and that law enforcement officials have opened an investigation.
    With no confirmation of the manner of Lebedeva’s death from the FMBA, the town stewed.
    “They’ll cover it all up, because it’s space.    Serious people are involved,” the doctor at the clinic said.    “That’s why they wanted to blame it all on the ambulance service.”
    A week after Lebedeva’s death, Ketseleva was told that her father, the ambulance driver, had died.    Her mother was left to grieve alone and in quarantine for another month.
    Ketseleva was sent a video, seen by Reuters.    The person recording it walks through the empty corridors of Star City’s clinic. Benches are cordoned off with red-and-white hazard tape.    At reception, the camera turns a corner.
    There, under a bouquet of flowers, stand portraits of Ketselev and Lebedeva, a black ribbon on each.
SWAN SONG
    In early May, a funeral cortege traveled slowly through Star City, followed by two ambulances with sirens on throughout.    The coffin for Lebedeva, whose surname is derived from the Russian word for swan, lebed, was white.
    Star City resident Dmitry Saraev and others wrote on social media of watching from their windows.
    “This mourning escort became Natasha’s swan song, performed not by her but by her staff and vehicles,” Saraev wrote.
    Star City ambulance dispatcher Tatyana Krivushina, 65, fell sick soon after her mother, who died in late May.    Krivushina died on June 6.
    In the last days of August, the head of the FMBA, Veronika Skvortsova, visited Star City. Pulling up in a black Mercedes, she toured the Gagarin Training Center, posing for a photograph in front of ? Soyuz rocket training simulator.
    Skvortsova also toured the Star City clinic.    Among her festive welcome party was Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space.
    Skvortsova talked to doctors and inspected the clinic’s equipment, an official video showed.    In the 2.5-minute clip, the outbreak at the clinic wasn’t mentioned.
    At one point on her tour, Skvortsova visited the clinic’s reception area.    A press photo shows her standing in the corner by a noticeboard.
Behind her is the table on which the memorial bouquet was placed next to the framed photographs of Ketselev and Lebedeva.    By the time of the official visit, the flowers and the portraits were gone.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; editing by Kari Howard)

11/13/2020 Austria Investigating 21 Possible Accomplices Of Vienna Attacker
    VIENNA (Reuters) – Austria is investigating 21 people as possible accomplices of the jihadist who went on a deadly shooting rampage in Vienna last week, but much remains unknown, including how he got to the area of the attack, officials said on Friday.
    The 20-year-old Vienna native armed with an assault rifle, handgun and machete killed four people in a part of the city centre with many bars that also houses Vienna’s main synagogue, which was closed at the time.    He was shot dead by police.
    “No one else was immediately involved in carrying out this crime on Nov. 2.    What we cannot yet say definitively is to what extent accomplices provided support before the act,” the police official leading the investigation, Michael Lohnegger, told a news conference.
    Vienna prosecutors’ office spokeswoman Nina Bussek said the number of people remanded in custody over the attack was unchanged at 10, and 21 people in total were under investigation, aged 16-28.    As yet unknown additional accomplices are still being looked for.
    Austria has admitted to an intelligence failure before the attack since it mishandled information that the attacker tried to buy ammunition in Slovakia in July, and that he met known foreign Islamists that month – two from Germany who were under surveillance and two from Switzerland who have been arrested.
    It remains unclear how the attacker carrying weapons, ammunition and a dummy explosives belt travelled to the city centre more than 10 days ago.
    “What we can currently actually rule out here is that the perpetrator arrived at the crime scene by public transport,” Lohnegger said, adding that other forms of transport including taxis were still being worked on.
    “Whether it is also possible that he walked to the scene of the crime, I cannot say.    That means I also cannot rule it out.”
(Reporting by Francois Murphy, Editing by William Maclean)

11/13/2020 Candles And Condemnation As Thousands Mourn Death Of Belarus Protester
People gather to mourn the death of anti-government protester Roman Bondarenko who they say was beaten by Belarusian security forces in Minsk, Belarus
November 12, 2020. Picture taken November 12, 2020. BelaPAN via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT.
    KYIV (Reuters) – Thousands of people carrying candles and flowers gathered in Minsk on Thursday to mourn the death of a 31-year-old anti-government protester who they say was badly beaten by Belarusian security forces and died in hospital.
    Witnesses say Roman Bondarenko was detained after scuffling with people in plain clothes who had come to a playground to remove red-and-white ribbons that represent the protest movement against veteran President Alexander Lukashenko.
    The interior ministry denied responsibility for Bondarenko’s death, saying he was killed due to a scuffle with civilians.
    The death is the latest flashpoint in months of mass protests against Lukashenko following a disputed presidential election in August.    The opposition says Lukashenko rigged the vote to secure a sixth successive term.
    Lukashenko denies electoral fraud and, buoyed by support from traditional ally Russia, has shown little inclination to step down.    A violent crackdown prompted a new round of Western sanctions on Minsk.
    “Shocked by the death of Raman Bandarenka,” Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said on Twitter.
    “Astonishing cynicism, cruelty of the regime and blunt ignorance of people’s aspirations for changes.”
    “Unfortunately, despite all the efforts of the emergency hospital doctors, the patient died,” a statement by the health ministry said.
    Britain expelled two Belarusian diplomats on Tuesday in response to two of its own diplomats being expelled from Belarus.
    London also summoned the Belarusian ambassador to deliver a message that it believes the only way forward is for fresh elections to be held and for those responsible for violence against demonstrators to be held to account.
(Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

11/13/2020 Hungary’s Orban Likens EU To Former Soviet Union If Rule Of Law Criteria Accepted
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Brussels, Belgium July 17, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary cannot accept a link between access to European Union funds and meeting rule-of-law criteria as this would be akin to the EU operating like the former Soviet Union, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.
    Nationalist Orban, who has been in power for over a decade and has been criticised for an erosion of democracy in Hungary, a former communist state, said “Hungarians’ money cannot be taken away” and ongoing EU debates about the criteria were “technical.”
    Orban said he talked with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday about the regulation.
    “I had to tell her that if this regulation drafted by the European parliament and the German presidency were to be accepted — it requires two-thirds majority so we cannot block this — then we have made Soviet Union out of the EU,” Orban told state radio.
    He said the criteria would amount to “blackmail on an ideological basis without objective criteria”
    “This is not what we wanted … we did not create the EU for having a second Soviet Union,” Orban added, stopping short of threatening to veto the entire EU budget process.
    Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Orban’s main ally, has sent a letter to European Union institutions threatening to veto its 2021-2027 budget if access to EU funds is made conditional on governments respecting the rule of law.
    The conditionality was a key concern for the European Parliament and several north European countries such as the Netherlands, which wanted even stricter conditions.
    Poland and Hungary have the power to veto the long-term budget and prevent any member state getting EU funding.
    But this would also harm both countries, which are big net beneficiaries of the budget where many supporters of the ruling nationalist parties depend heavily on direct EU subsidies.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Toby Chopra)
[Poland and Hungary have some say about conservative values against the EU's push to conform all nations to go against their beliefs.].

11/14/2020 Western Union Says Suspending U.S. Transfers To Cuba
FILE PHOTO: A man talks on the phone outside a Western Union office, in Havana, Cuba, October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Western Union said on Friday it was suspending U.S. money transfers to Cuba in 10 days due to the Trump administration’s latest sanction on the Communist-run island, in a blow to the many Cubans who rely on remittances from family abroad.
    Its customers will now have to find new ways to send transfers against the backdrop of Cuba’s deepest economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
    One route may be in cash via flights from the United States that are resuming next week after Cuba closed its borders early in the pandemic, while other, younger digital platforms also exist.
    Remittances have become one of the top sources of hard currency in an inefficient state-run economy laboring under a crippling U.S. trade embargo.
    “Today we informed our customers they have limited time to send money to their loved ones from the U.S. to Cuba,” Western Union said in a statement.
    The world’s largest money transfer firm said Nov. 22 was the deadline for customers to send money to Cuba while Nov. 23 was the deadline for them to pick it up.
    That way it will wrap up its Cuba operations just before the new rules take effect on Nov. 26.    These ban U.S. firms from sending remittances to the country via military-controlled companies like Fincimex, Western Union’s main Cuban partner.
    Western Union said it had failed to find a solution in the one-month timeframe it was given.
    “Our customers have our commitment that we will continue to explore every possible option to find a solution,” it said.
    It may just be a question of time, however as the team of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has signaled he will reverse Trump’s moves hurting family ties including remittances and travel.
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Kim Coghill)

11/14/2020 Ukraine Says Iran Dragging Its Feet In Plane Crash Investigation by Natalia Zinets
FILE PHOTO: General view of the debris of the Ukraine International Airlines, flight PS752, Boeing 737-800 plane that crashed after take-off from Iran's
Imam Khomeini airport, on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran January 8, 2020 is seen in this screen grab obtained from a social media video via REUTERS
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine has said Iran is dragging its feet on investigating the downing of a Ukrainian airliner near Tehran in January by not sharing information and not responding to requests for cooperation.
    Iran has also rejected Kyiv’s calls for life sentences for those responsible, Deputy Prosecutor General Gyunduz Mamedov told Reuters on Thursday, in written comments ahead of a third round of talks on the crash next month.
    Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say they shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 by accident on Jan. 8, mistaking it for a missile at a time when tensions with the United States were high; Washington had killed Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani five days earlier with a drone strike in Iraq.
    Many of the 176 people killed in the crash were Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
    Iranian officials, who could not be reached on Friday, the weekend in Iran, have in the past blamed delays in the investigation on technical issues as well as the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
    “Our preliminary legal assessment of the tragedy is a particularly grave crime, where the killing of 176 civilians took place using military equipment,” Mamedov said.
    “The maximum punishment is life imprisonment, compensation payments to the victims and to airlines for the destroyed plane.    This position of ours is unacceptable for Iran, but they do nothing to provide us with details and facts for a different classification of the crime.”
    Mamedov said Ukraine would pursue a “parallel path” if its demands were not met, without specifying what that meant.
    He said Iran had not responded to requests for joint investigative actions or for permission to contact Iranian military prosecutors directly.
    A governing panel at the United Nations’ aviation agency urged Iran last week to accelerate its investigation, while an Iranian official said a final report on the crash would be circulated soon.
    Mamedov said he wanted to see results at the next round of talks on Dec. 3.
    “We still do not have an official documented position from Iran,” he said.    “They don’t say ‘no’, but their ‘yes’ does not bring a development.”
(Additional reporting by Dubai newsroom; Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
[IRAN CONTINUES TO CLAIM THEY SHOT DOWN THE PLANE BY ACCIDENT SO WHAT WERE THEY AIMING AT WHEN THEY SHOT IT DOWN SO PLEASE TELLS US WHAT UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT (UFO) THEY INTENDED TO SHOOT DOWN AND NOW YOU MUST FEEL LIKE AN IDIOT SINCE YOU KILLED MORE IRANIANS THAN AMERICANS OR ZERO IN YOUR REVENGE MENTALITY THAN BELIEVING IT WAS AN ACCIDENT.].

11/14/2020 Thousands Of Georgians Rally In Tbilisi To Protest Election Results by Margarita Antidze
Opposition supporters attend a rally against the results of a parliamentary election in Tbilisi, Georgia November 14, 2020. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze
    TBILISI (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters rallied in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Saturday to back opposition calls for a re-run of the Oct. 31 parliamentary election they say was rigged.
    According to official results, the ruling Georgian Dream party won 48.23% of the vote, with the largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), taking 27.18%.
    Yet the opposition accuses Georgian Dream and its supporters of vote buying, making threats against voters and observers, and of violations during the count.    Eight opposition parties including the UNM have said they would boycott parliament.
    Georgian Dream leaders have denied the accusations.
    The opposition is demanding the resignation of Tamar Zhvania, head of the Central Election Commission, and the holding of fresh elections.
    “We will fight till the end and won’t allow our country to be governed by an oligarch,” Gigi Ugulava, an opposition leader, told thousands of protesters, referring to Bidzina Ivanishvili, the ruling party head and the country’s wealthiest man.
    Critics say Ivanishvili, who does not hold a government post, runs the South Caucasus country of 3.7 million people from behind the scenes, an accusation denied by Georgian Dream, which has governed for two consecutive terms.
    The protest, held on the capital’s main Rustaveli avenue, took place days before a planned visit by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.    “We will send this message to the U.S. secretary of state that elections have been rigged,” Ugulava said.
    Pompeo’s visit is set for Nov. 17-18.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by David Holmes)

11/15/2020 Moldova’s Pro-Moscow President Faces Pro-EU Rival In Election Run-Off by Alexander Tanas
Igor Dodon, Moldova's President and presidential candidate, votes at a presidential election in Chisinau, Moldova November 1, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Moldovan voters will decide on Sunday whether to give pro-Moscow President Igor Dodon four more years in office or hand power to Maia Sandu, a former prime minister who favours closer ties with the European Union.
    The central election commission said voting began in more than 2,000 polling stations in the country and abroad.
    Opinion polls put the rivals neck-and-neck before the election run-off.    Sandu finished ahead in the first round two weeks ago with a late surge in support from diaspora voters, but failed to secure enough votes for outright victory.
    The West and Russia vie for influence in the former Soviet republic of 3.5 million, which is one of Europe’s poorest nations and has suffered a sharp economic downturn during the COVID-19 pandemic.
    A former World Bank economist who takes a tough stance on corruption, Sandu led a short-lived government last year that was felled by a no-confidence vote.
    Sandu, 48, has said she would secure more financial support from the EU as president.    Dodon, 45, has been in power since 2016 and has said he will roll out a settlement next year for the breakaway Russian-speaking region of Transdniestria.
    If Sandu wins, she is likely to seek a snap parliamentary election to consolidate power because parliament is controlled by the Socialists, Dodon’s former party.
    Moldova, squeezed between Ukraine and EU-member Romania, has suffered political instability in the past decade.
    “A victory in the second round by Maia Sandu would mean a period of tough political confrontation for Moldova,” said independent analyst Corneliu Ciurea.
    The EU forged a deal on closer trade and political ties with Moldova in 2014, but became increasingly critical of its record on reforms.
    Sandu has received messages of support from German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and former European Council President Donald Tusk.    Some of Dodon’s supporters denounced such support as an attempt to destabilise Moldova.
    Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, accused the United States last month of plotting to instigate mass protests against Dodon as punishment for him fostering good relations with Moscow.
(Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Timothy Heritage and Stephen Coates)

11/15/2020 Fire Kills 10 At Romanian COVID-19 Hospital
Medical staff dressed in biosecurity suits handle the transfer of Denciu Catalin, a doctor wounded in a fire at the intensive care unit at Piatra Neamt
hospital, from a military airplane to an ambulance, in Otopeni, Ilfov, Romania, November 15 2020. Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Ten people died on Saturday in a fire at a Romanian hospital treating coronavirus patients, the country’s agency for emergency situations (ISU) said.
    The blaze broke out in the intensive care unit of the Piatra Neamt county hospital and spread to an adjoining room.    It was unclear what triggered it, officials said.
    Seven other people were injured and in a critical condition, including the doctor on call, they said.
    Prosecutors said they would investigate the cause of the fire.
    Health Minister Nelu Tataru told reporters six surviving patients would be transferred to a COVID-19 hospital in the eastern Romanian city of Iasi.
    The injured doctor, who had severe burns on 40% of his body, would be transferred to a hospital in the capital Bucharest, Tataru said.
    “In future legislation, all public hospitals will be coordinated by the health ministry,” Tataru said without elaborating.    Local hospitals are currently run by county councils, making overall supervision of the health system difficult.
    Tataru said the Piatra Neamt hospital would continue to run an intensive care unit on a separate floor.
    The fire was the country’s deadliest since 2015, when a night club in the capital Bucharest burned down and 65 people died.
    That blaze triggered mass protests across Romania at the country’s culture of graft and lack of accountability.
    Romania, which has one of the European Union’s least developed healthcare infrastructures, has reported 353,185 coronavirus cases and 8,813 deaths.
    Just under 13,000 people with COVID-19 were in hospital across Romania on Saturday, including 1,172 in intensive care units.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; editing by John Stonestreet)

11/15/2020 Hundreds Detained As Belarusians Chant Dead Protester’s Last Words by Vladimir Soldatkin
A man reacts as he is taken away by Belarusian law enforcement officers during a rally to reject
the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus November 15, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian police detained hundreds of people who took to the streets in mass demonstrations on Sunday chanting “I’m going out”, the last known written words of an anti-governmemt protester who died last week.
    A witness in the capital Minsk said police had used tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades to disperse the crowds demonstrating against President Alexander Lukashenko.
    Belarus has been mired in political crisis for months. Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets every week since an election in August that they say was rigged, something Lukasheko denies.    They want the veteran leader, in power for 26 years, to resign.
    The street rallies were re-ignited following the death of Roman Bondarenko, a 31-year old anti-government protester.    He died in hospital in Minsk on Thursday following what demonstrators said was a severe beating by security forces.
    The interior ministry has denied responsibility for Bondarenko’s death, saying he was killed in a scuffle with civilians.
    Security forces in riot gear and shields on Sunday flooded the square where Bondarenko was detained, pulling down opposition flags, kicking over memorial lamps and dragging people from the crowds and frog-marching them to vans, a witness said.
ARRESTS
    Video footage by local media also showed security forces entering apartments in the area in search of protesters.    A video clip posted on social media showed three men in riot gear attending to a man who appeared to be unconscious.
    The Viasna (Spring) human rights group said 504 people had been detained so far by police so far during Sunday’s protests around the country.
    Hundreds of protesters, wearing the red-and-white colours that have come to represent the protest movement, had gathered on Sunday for a vigil near Bondarenko’s house in Minsk.
    Witnesses said Bondarenko was detained after scuffling with people in plain clothes who had come to a playground to remove red-and-white ribbons.
    Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenko’s main opponent, who fled into exile in Lithuania after the election, said on social media she supported Sunday’s rallies in memory of Bondarenko.
    The European Union has called Bondarenko’s death “an outrageous and shameful result of the actions by the Belarusian authorities… (who have) directly and violently carried out repression of their own population.”
    Police have arrested thousands of people during months of protests, and rights groups say hundreds of detainees have reported being subjected to beatings and other rights abuses.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Matthias Williams, Frances Kerry and Gareth Jones)

11/15/2020 Pro-EU Candidate Sandu Leads Moldova Presidential Run-Off, Incumbent Digs In by Alexander Tanas
Maia Sandu, opposition candidate and former Prime Minister, speaks to the media as she visits a polling station during
the second round of a presidential election in Chisinau, Moldova November 15, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Opposition candidate Maia Sandu, who favours closer ties with the European Union, held a narrow lead over pro-Moscow incumbent Igor Dodon in a presidential election run-off in Moldova on Sunday.
    Dodon said he remained optimistic of victory, despite partial results which showed Sandu on 51.3% of votes compared to 48.67 for Dodon, with 91.6% of ballots counted.
    An exit poll had put Sandu on 54.8% of votes compared to 45.2% for
    The West and Russia vie for influence in the former Soviet republic of 3.5 million, which is one of Europe’s poorest nations and has suffered a sharp economic downturn during the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Dodon, who on Friday had called on supporters to take to the streets if he felt the election was stolen from him, said his team’s data suggested he had won by a wide margin within the country but did not show results from voters abroad.
    “I’m pretty optimistic about the results,” Dodon said.
    Opinion polls had put the rivals neck-and-neck before the election run-off.    Sandu finished ahead in the first round two weeks ago with a late surge in support from diaspora voters, but failed to secure enough votes for outright victory.
    A former World Bank economist who takes a tough stance on corruption, Sandu led a short-lived government last year that was felled by a no-confidence vote.
    “Today you have the power to punish those who cheated you, who stole from you, who made you beggars or sent you far from your homes,” Sandu said after casting her vote in the morning.
    Sandu, 48, has said she would secure more financial support from the EU as president.    Dodon, 45, has been in power since 2016 and has said he will roll out a settlement next year for the breakaway Russian-speaking region of Transdniestria.
    “I voted for the development of the economy, for a balanced foreign policy,” Dodon said after casting his ballot.    “I don’t want Moldova to be used in geopolitical games.”
POLITICAL INSTABILITY
    If Sandu wins, she is likely to seek a snap parliamentary election to consolidate power because parliament is controlled by the Socialists, Dodon’s former party.
    Moldova, squeezed between Ukraine and EU-member Romania, has suffered political instability in the past decade.
    “A victory in the second round by Maia Sandu would mean a period of tough political confrontation for Moldova,” said independent analyst Corneliu Ciurea.
    The EU forged a deal on closer trade and political ties with Moldova in 2014, but became increasingly critical of its record on reforms.
    Sandu has received messages of support from German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and former European Council President Donald Tusk.    Some of Dodon’s supporters denounced such support as an attempt to destabilise Moldova.
    Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, accused the United States last month of plotting to instigate mass protests against Dodon as punishment for him fostering good relations with Moscow.
(Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Timothy Heritage)

11/16/2020 Hungary Plans To Veto EU Budget And COVID Recovery Scheme, Poland Could Follow by Marton Dunai and Pawel Florkiewicz
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Brussels, Belgium July 17, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    BUDAPEST/WARSAW (Reuters) – Hungary plans to veto the European Union’s 2021-27 budget and its post-COVID recovery scheme, and Poland could follow suit as both object to a proposal to make funding conditional on member states’ adherence to the rule of law.
    Nationalist governments in Budapest and Warsaw have been at odds with European partners for years over a perceived erosion of democratic standards, and this has sidelined Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his Polish allies in the bloc.
    The permanent representatives of EU member states will convene in Brussels on Monday afternoon to discuss the budget.    According to a     Hungarian news outlet, the German EU presidency will ask governments to express their stance on the proposed funding conditionality.
    Orban previously sent a letter to EU institutions threatening to veto the budget, and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki wrote a similar letter last week.
    Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said Hungary was attending that meeting with a clear mandate from its parliament, which said in July that it should not accept such conditions in the talks.
    Asked whether that meant Hungary would veto the 1.1 trillion euro ($1.3 trillion) budget and the 750 billion euro Own Resources Decision unless the rule of law conditions were reconsidered, Kovacs said:
    “Your deduction is correct.”
    In Warsaw, Zbigniew Ziobro, Poland’s Justice Minister and the head of the junior coalition United Poland party, said this was “the decisive moment for what will happen in Europe… when Poland can declare a veto.”
    He said the move would be useful “to block this political project designed to limit Poland’s sovereignty… I am convinced that, similarly to Prime Minister Orban, Prime Minister Morawiecki will use this right.”
    The EU’s top forum decided over the summer that it would tie any future fund disbursement to respecting the democratic standards incorporated in the EU’s founding treaty, such as the freedom of courts, the media and education, all of which have come under attack by Orban and his Polish ally Jaroslaw Kaczynski in recent years.
    Orban’s Fidesz party has been suspended by the European People’s Party, the bloc’s conservative umbrella group for right-wing politicians, and the European Parliament has started a procedure to suspend Hungary’s voting rights in the bloc in response to its democratic shortcomings.
    The Hungarian leader, who is building a self-styled “illiberal democracy,” has rejected accusations that he is undermining the rule of law, and says Brussels is guilty of double standards.
(Additonal reporting by Anita Komuves; Editing by Toby Chopra and Raissa Kasolowsky)

11/16/2020 Moldova’s Dodon Says Concedes Defeat In Presidential Runoff If Courts Find No Violations
Igor Dodon, Moldova's President and presidential candidate, speaks to the media at a polling station during the
second round of a presidential election in Chisinau, Moldova November 15, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Moldova’s incumbent Igor Dodon said on Monday he would concede defeat in the presidential election if local courts find no violations.
    “If the courts confirm that everything is ok, then we will put a full stop here,” Dodon said.
    Preliminary results from the central election commission showed that opposition candidate Maia Sandu won presidential election run-off with 57.75% of votes versus Dodon’s 42.25% after 100% of ballots had been counted.
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas, writing by Pavel Polityuk; editing by Louise Heavens)

11/16/2020 Opposition Candidate Sandu Wins Presidential Run-Off In Moldova
Maia Sandu, opposition candidate and former Prime Minister, walks to cast her ballot at a polling station during the
second round of a presidential election in Chisinau, Moldova November 15, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Opposition candidate Maia Sandu won presidential election run-off in Moldova, defeating pro-Moscow incumbent Igor Dodon, preliminary results from the central election commission showed on Monday.
    The commission’s data showed Sandu had 57.74% of votes and Dodon had 42.26% after 99.95% of ballots had been counted.
    “Preliminary data is clear, they speak for themselves,” Vladimir Sarban, the commission’s deputy head, told a news conference.
    He said the final results would be announced within five days. According to Moldova’s legislation, the Constitutional Court must approve the results.
    Sandu, 48, has said she would secure more financial support from the EU as president.
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas, writing by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Toby Chopra)

11/16/2020 LGBT Activists Welcome Rainbow Light Show In Poland, Say More Action Needed by by Alicja Ptak
Palace of Culture and Science is illuminated in rainbow colours in a gesture of solidarity with the LGBT
community during International Day of Tolerance in Warsaw, Poland, November 16, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Several cities in Poland illuminated buildings with rainbow colours on Monday in a gesture of solidarity with the LGBT+ community, but activists called for more support in the face of rising hostility.
    LGBT rights have been a flashpoint in Poland over the last two years, with politicians tied to the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party and senior members of the Catholic Church arguing against what they term “LGBT ideology”
    Last week liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, along with several other city mayors, pledged to illuminate buildings with rainbow colours to mark the International Day for Tolerance.
    To many religious conservatives in predominantly Catholic Poland, Trzaskowski represented a threat to traditional values when he signed an “LGBT+ Charter” pledging, for example, to introduce education about LGBT rights in Warsaw schools.
    But LGBT+ activists say Trzaskowski has not fulfilled the promises he made, which included creating a shelter for young LGBT+ people who became homeless after coming out to their families.
    “This is obviously a symbolic gesture and we welcome it when it comes from mayors of smaller cities and smaller towns,” said Hubert Sobecki, an activist with a non-governmental organisation Love does not exclude.
    “We expect more from someone who … pledged to do something tangible for the community,” he said, adding that two years after the “LGBT+ Charter” was signed “there was absolutely no action from the municipality.”
    A Warsaw city hall spokeswoman said the mayor was committed to the charter’s proposals but their implementation was “a complex process” and some efforts had been halted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Buildings were also illuminated in Gdansk, Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw and other smaller towns.
    Activists say hostility is rising against LGBT+ people in Poland, which does not recognise any form of same-sex marriage, and there have even been calls for Pride parades to be banned.
    Bartosz Staszewski, a filmmaker and LGBT activist, said the illumination of a bridge over the Vistula river in Warsaw made him think of a trans activist who died after jumping off a bridge.
    “I have such terribly bad associations when now the same bridges are simply rainbow-lit and nothing more will happen in Warsaw,” he said.
(Reporting by Alicja Ptak; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

11/16/2020 Putin Orders Defence Ministry To Sign Deal On Russian Navy Logistics Hub In Sudan: TASS
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a summit of leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
via a video conference call in Sochi, Russia November 10, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the defence ministry to conclude an agreement with Sudan on setting up a Russian naval facility in the African country, TASS news agency reported on Monday, citing an order.
    Russia plans to create a logistics hub for its navy in Sudan, which will accommodate up to 300 troops and staff.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

11/16/2020 Hungary, Poland Block 2021-2027 EU Budget, Recovery Package by Jan Strupczewski
FILE PHOTO: Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrive ahead of a meeting with
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels, Belgium September 24, 2020 REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/Pool/File Photo
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Hungary and Poland blocked on Monday the adoption of the 2021-2027 budget and recovery fund by European Union governments because the budget law included a clause which makes access to money conditional on respecting the rule of law.
    Ambassadors of EU governments at a meeting in Brussels were to endorse a compromise reached on the 1.8 trillion package with the European Parliament, but could not do that because of the veto from Warsaw and Budapest.
    The German EU presidency said ambassadors did vote through the link between EU money and the respect for the rule of law, because this vote required only a qualified majority and the opposition of Warsaw and Budapest could not stop it.
    But when it came to voting on the 1.1 trillion euro budget itself and the 750 billion euro recovery package, which require unanimous support, “two EU member states expressed reservations” the presidency said.
    The Polish and Hungarian veto will now be discussed at a meeting of EU European affairs ministers on Tuesday and then at a video-conference of EU leaders on Thursday. But finding a solution might take longer than that, officials said.
    Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said it was an absolute necessity to link the distribution of European funds to rule of law standards in member states, especially when the sums to be handed out were so vast.
    The nationalist governments in Budapest and Warsaw are against linking EU money and respect for the rule of law because they are under a formal EU process investigating them for undermining the independence of courts, media and non-governmental organisations.
    If the link, introduced by EU leaders in July and strengthened by the European Parliament, remains, both countries risk losing access to tens of billions of euros in EU funds.
    “Poland is counting on a rational approach of our partners and on working out rules which would allow to reach an agreement,” a Polish government spokesman said.
    “We are open to constructive solutions, as long as they are in line with the European Council conclusions and EU treaties.”
    Since without unanimous consent on the 1.8 trillion euro package no EU country can get its money, Warsaw and Budapest have strong leverage to pressure others to remove the link.
    But a group of countries led by the Netherlands as well as the European Parliament wanted an even stronger link and have said they would not approve the budget without it.
    The blockage means money for economic recovery for all EU countries from the recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to be delayed.    It was originally planned to start flowing from mid-2021.
    “Denying the whole of Europe crisis funding in the worst crisis since decades is irresponsible,” Manfred Weber, who heads the biggest group in the European Parliament said on Twitter.
(Additional reporting by Thomas Escritt in Berlin and Marcin Goclowski in Warsaw; Reporting by Jan Strupczewski)

11/17/2020 Thousands Protest Slovakia’s Coronavirus Restrictions
Demonstrators hold candles as they gather in front of the National Council and the Bratislava castle
during a protest against the government's coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions on the country's
Day of the Struggle for Freedom and Democracy, in Bratislava, Slovakia, November 17, 2020. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa
    BRATISLAVA (Reuters) – Thousands of Slovaks protested against the government and its anti-coronavirus restrictions on Tuesday, gathering in the capital Bratislava and other cities as the country struggles through a second wave of the pandemic.
    A surge in COVID-19 infections worse than the first wave is hitting much of Europe, forcing countries back into lockdowns that have curbed business and daily life and put livelihoods at risk – leading to protests in several countries.
    Slovakia, a country of 5.5 million, has recorded a total of 88,602 coronavirus infections and 557 deaths.    On Monday, it registered 1,326 new infections, off from daily peaks above 3,000 seen a few weeks ago.
    Like others in central Europe, Slovakia has suffered a jump in coronavirus cases since September after it limited the spread better than others during the initial outbreak in March.
    But the recent surge looks to be on the decline, and the Slovak government has started reopening theatres, cinemas, and fitness centres with capacity restrictions.
    Public gatherings are still limited, however, retail shops face some curbs and restaurants and many schools remain closed.
    Zuzana, a 29-year-old protester who declined to give her full name, said the restrictions made no sense for her life.    “We just sit at home,” she told Reuters.
    Protesters, many defying mask-wearing rules and carrying Slovak flags, gathered on Tuesday in various areas of Bratislava, including outside government offices where police had installed security fences.
    The rallies – coming on the day Slovakia marked the anniversary of the 1989 Velvet Revolution that peacefully overthrew then-Czechoslovakia’s Communist regime – started in the afternoon and continued into the evening.
    Protesters carried signs criticising Prime Minister Igor Matovic or saying, “Return our Freedom.”
    TASR news agency said militant soccer supporters’ groups known as ultras joined the protests, throwing objects at the government complex.    Local media said far-right supporters also participated.    Police reported no serious incidents.
(Reporting by Radovan Stoklasa in Bratislava and Jason Hovet in Prague; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

11/17/2020 Bulgaria Blocks EU Accession Talks With North Macedonia by Tsvetelia Tsolova
FILE PHOTO: Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva speaks to the media
in Sofia, Bulgaria, January 24, 2020. REUTERS/Dimitar Kyosemarliev/File Photo
    SOFIA (Reuters) – Bulgaria refused on Tuesday to approve the European Union’s membership negotiation framework for North Macedonia, effectively blocking the official start of accession talks with its smaller Balkan neighbour.
    Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva said Sofia could not back for now the start of long-delayed accession negotiations between the 27-member EU and Skopje due to open disputes over history and language, but remained open for talks.
    “Bulgaria, at this stage, cannot back the draft of the negotiation framework with the Republic of North Macedonia and the holding of the first intergovernmental conference,” she said after EU ministers discussed the subject in an online meeting.
    The official launch of the accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania was expected to take place at an intergovernmental conference in     December. Zaharieva said Bulgaria backed the negotiation framework for Albania.
    Following a video meeting of Europe ministers, Germany’s Michael Roth, whose country holds the EU presidency, said it was up to Bulgaria and North Macedonia to resolve their dispute before EU leaders could allow the accession talks to start.
    “We want to be helpful, we want to clear the path as much as possible, so that we can start on those intergovernmental conferences,” Roth also told an online news conference.
    Bulgaria’s move poses a further challenge to the former Yugoslav republic, which had to agree to add the word “North” to its official name to settle a decades-long stand-off with Greece to clear its path to EU membership.
    North Macedonia and Albania then had to wait until March this year to get a green light for EU membership talks after France had expressed scepticism in 2019 over their track record on democracy and fighting corruption.
GUARANTEES
    North Macedonia, Albania and four other Western Balkan countries – Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia – are trying to join the EU following the ethnic wars of the 1990s that led to the disintegration of Yugoslavia.
    Bringing the Western Balkans into the EU fold will help boost living standards and offset growing Russian and Chinese influence in the region, supporters say.
    Bulgaria, which has long pushed for the EU integration of the Western Balkans, wants guarantees in the negotiation framework that Skopje will deliver on a 2017 friendship treaty with Sofia that deals mainly with historical issues.
    Sofia also seeks guarantees that North Macedonia will not support any claims for a Macedonian minority in Bulgaria.    It also wants official EU documents to avoid mention of the “Macedonian language,” which it says derives from Bulgarian.
(Additional reporting by Robin Emmott in Brussels; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/17/2020 Czechs Mark Anniversary Of Velvet Revolution Amid Pandemic
People light candles at the Velvet Revolution memorial to commemorate the 31st anniversary of the 1989 Velvet Revolution, as the
spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Prague, Czech Republic, November 17, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czechs on Tuesday marked more than three decades since the Velvet Revolution peacefully toppled communist rule with scaled-back gatherings, virtual candle lighting and online concerts as coronavirus lockdown rules limited events this year.
    The Czech Republic has posted infection and death rates among the highest in Europe during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
    “The day is important for people so most are commemorating the Velvet Revolution from their homes,” said Lukas Cerny, an organiser with the “Diky, ze muzem” (Thanks that We Can) group.
    “It’s important we didn’t cancel everything because I think it is even more important to remind people of freedom and democracy,” he said.
    “We can’t enjoy them completely now because of the pandemic but if everyone is responsible it will quicken the process to get back to our lives.”
    People watching online could light a candle via the group’s volunteers at a memorial in central Prague, where police beat up student protesters in 1989, a crackdown that led to wider rallies against communist rule and its demise.
    People could also light candles spaced-out on Prague’s Wenceslas Square.
    Hundreds of demonstrators also gathered on Wenceslas Square to protest coronavirus lockdown measures that have shut shops, restaurants and other public venues, before marching through the city.
    Elsewhere, Czech singer Aneta Langerova performed “A Prayer for Marta” – an unofficial anthem of the Velvet Revolution – on the National Theatre’s balcony, which could be heard on television and radio stations across the country.
    A regular concert on Wenceslas Square was taking place via streaming, without an audience. Other events were moved, cancelled or had limited crowds.
    The Czech Republic, a country of 10.7 million, has seen its coronavirus infections decline in recent days.    It reported 5,406 new coronavirus cases on Monday, the lowest weekday tally in a month. In total, 465,523 infections have been reported since March while deaths have surged this month to 6,416.
(Reporting by Jason Hovet and David W. Cerny; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

11/18/2020 Hungary Vetoed EU Budget Because Of Immigration ‘Blackmail’, Says PM Orban by Marton Dunai
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary vetoed the European Union’s 2021-2027 budget and post-coronavirus recovery fund because they would have forced it to accept immigration, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Wednesday.
    Hungary, together with Poland, vetoed both the budget and the recovery plan on Monday, arguing that the budget law included a clause which makes access to money conditional on respecting the rule of law.
    Orban is a staunch opponent of mass immigration on the grounds that it dilutes national and European identity.    The EU has launched a procedure against Hungary for violating democratic norms.
    “After accepting the current proposal there would be no barrier against tying the disbursement of funds to member states to supporting immigration and blackmailing those countries that oppose immigration with budgetary sanctions,” Orban said in a statement published by state news agency MTI.
    The budget and the recovery package do not have any specific clauses about immigration, and political analysts said Orban’s comments were aimed at shoring up support among his domestic voters by using anti-immigration rhetoric again.
DEFENDING BORDERS
    Orban said Hungary was committed to the rule of law, but added: “Those who defend their borders and defend their countries against immigration can no longer be classified as law-abiding in Brussels.”
    He added that Hungary had accepted the recovery fund and long-term budget package in July “because we are committed to European solidarity and support financial aid to the states that need it as quickly as possible.”
    The wording on conditionality in the political agreement accompanying the package was watered down on the insistence of Hungary and Poland.
    Commenting on Orban’s latest statement, Political Capital analyst Patrik Szicherle said: “This is a political narrative for a domestic audience."
    “Since the migration crisis of 2015 Orban has traced any criticism of Hungary’s government or (its record on) the rule of law back to a rejection of immigration or George Soros.”
    Orban’s government has long demonised the Hungarian-born billionaire philanthropist, accusing him of encouraging mass immigration, something Soros denies.    His support for an open liberal society clashes with Orban’s nationalist ideology.
(Reporting by Marton Dunai; Editing by Gareth Jones)
[Besides the United States, Poland and Hungary are the only countries that are fighting back to the Globalist World Government and these two may be by themselves if the U.S. is overtaken by Socialists.    So wake up America and fight it and someone take out George Soros who is a main member of the Council of Foreign Relations (CFR) which is the Globalist headquarters and is the DEEP STATE controller and all are riding on the Beast the World Trade Organization (WTO) the 10 horns on one of the G-7 heads of the seven heads of the worlds riches nations.]

11/18/2020 As Pompeo Visits Ex-Soviet Georgia, Thousands Protest Over Election Results by Margarita Antidze
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani gives flowers to Susan Pompeo as she and her husband, U.S. Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo, arrive at Tbilisi International Airport in Tbilisi, Georgia, November 17, 2020. Patrick Semansky/Pool via REUTERS
    TBILISI (Reuters) – Thousands of Georgians unhappy over the way a recent parliamentary election was held took to the streets of the capital Tbilisi on Wednesday as U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held talks with politicians and a church leader.
    Georgia, a small South Caucasus country which Washington has traditionally strongly supported, including with military aid, is Pompeo’s latest stopover on a multi-country tour. His next stop is Israel.
    Pompeo on Wednesday held talks with President Salome Zurabishvili, Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia and Georgian Orthodox Church Patriarch, Ilia II, as well as civil society representatives.
    Pompeo told the Georgian prime minister that he recognised “the pain and difficulty connected to the (Russian) occupation of your country,” a reference to the fact that Russian forces garrison two breakaway Georgian regions after a 2008 war.
    Pompeo said the United States wanted to continue supporting Georgia in building its institutions to ensure “free and fair elections and all of the things that come with robust debate and democracy.”
    The opposition praised Pompeo’s visit.
    “Georgia needs continued and active U.S. involvement to support its security and democracy in order to push back on (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s aggression in this frontier state,” Giga Bokeria, an opposition leader, told Reuters.
    Outside, thousands of people formed a live chain in the city centre holding a huge Georgian national flag and posters saying: “USA – Thanks for supporting our liberty!” and “Elections rigged by Russian oligarch,” referring to Bidzina Ivanishvili, the head of the ruling party, who made his fortune in Russia in the 1990s.
    According to official results of an Oct. 31 parliamentary election, the ruling Georgian Dream party won 48.23% of the vote, with the largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), taking 27.18%.
    The opposition accuses Georgian Dream and its supporters of vote buying, of making threats against voters and observers, and of violations during the count.    Eight opposition parties, including the UNM, have said they will boycott parliament and are demanding an election re-run.
    Georgian Dream leaders have denied the opposition’s accusations, and international observers said that the election had been competitive and that fundamental freedoms had generally been respected.
(Reporting by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

11/18/2020 Spain Confident EU Will Find Solution To Hungary, Poland Opposition To Recovery Package
FILE PHOTO: European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium August 21, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman
    MADRID (Reuters) – Spain’s Economy Minister Nadia Calvino said on Wednesday she was confident the European Union would find a solution to overcome opposition from Hungary and Poland to the adoption of the 2021-2027 budget and recovery package.
    The two Central European countries on Monday opposed the budget law because it included a clause which makes access to money conditional on respecting the rule of law.
    Without unanimous consent on the 1.8 trillion euro package, that includes a 1.1 trillion euro budget for the EU and a 750 bilion euro recovery package, no EU country can get the money.
    “I am confident that eventually, we will find a solution,” Calvino said in an interview with radio station Onda Cero.
    The Spanish government has planned to borrow on the markets to cover for any delay in EU funds disbursements, she added.
    “We have planned debt issuance next year to cover all the investment plans in the budget and we will adapt the calendar to the pace of the funds arrivals,” she said.
(Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Angus MacSwan)

11/18/2020 Poland And Hungary Dig In Over EU Budget Stand Off by Marton Dunai and Alan Charlish
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrives for the first face-to-face EU summit since the
coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Brussels, Belgium July 19, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS
    BUDAPEST/WARSAW (Reuters) – The prime ministers of Poland and Hungary accused European Union countries of blackmail on Wednesday, digging their heels in after vetoing the bloc’s budget and post-COVID recovery package.
    The two countries on Monday blocked the EU’s 2021-2027 budget and the recovery plan, worth a combined 1.85 trillion euros ($2.2 trillion), because access to the funds would be conditional upon respecting the rule of law.
    Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that he would ask lawmakers to vote on a resolution supporting the government’s stance regarding the veto, after an address to parliament in which he railed against what he said was unequal treatment of some member states.
    “If our partners do not understand that we do not agree to unequal treatment of states … then we will really use that veto in the end,” he said.
    “The EU must be built on a foundation of law and legal certainty …. Without this principle of legal certainty, the EU is a mechanism of arbitrary decision-making by Eurocrats and de facto by the European oligarchy,” he added.
    He said one reason that some EU states wanted to pressure and “blackmail” Poland was the country’s opposition to tax havens.    “We will not let ourselves be blackmailed,” he said.
    Poland has made reforms of the judiciary a key plank of its bid to reshape Poland and remove what it sees as a residue of Communist influence.    Critics, including the European Commission, say the reforms are designed to increase political control of the courts.
    Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban, whose nationalist government is under investigation for undermining the independence of Hungary’s courts, media and non-governmental organisations, linked his veto to his continued opposition to mass immigration into the EU.
    “Once this proposal gets adopted, there will be no more obstacles to tying member states’ share of common funds to supporting migration and use financial means to blackmail countries which oppose migration,” Orban said in a statement published by state news agency MTI earlier on Wednesday.
    There was no immediate reaction to his comments from the EU’s executive Commission.
    The budget and recovery package do not have any specific clauses about immigration, which Orban has long opposed as a threat to national and European identity and culture.
    Political Capital analyst Patrik Szicherle said Orban’s comments were aimed at shoring up support among his nationalist base and at broadening his options in upcoming talks.
    “He wants to dilute the conditions enough not to limit his room for manoeuvre,” he said.    “At the same time frugal states like the Netherlands want firm conditions (to disbursement of funds)… This is a stalemate we don’t see a clear path out of.”
    The eastern states are big recipients of EU subsidies.
    Germany, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, said on Tuesday it was confident of finding a compromise.
    Czech and Slovak foreign ministers, at a joint news conference on Wednesday, urged swift action to ensure a speedy release of money sorely needed to revive Europe’s pandemic-stricken economy.
    Czech Foreign Minister Tomas Petricek said the German presidency could probably end the deadlock before year-end.
    Slovak Foreign Minister Ivan Korcok said the deadlock “does not please anybody… there is still space to find a solution, to depoliticise the whole issue.”
(Additional reporting by Jason Hovet in PRAGUE, Alan Charlish, Joanna Plucinska, Agnieszka Barteczko, Pawel Florkiewicz and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk in WARSAW; Editing by Gareth Jones, Bernadette Baum and Mark Potter)

11/18/2020 ‘Blood On Your Hands’: Polish Ruling Party Boss Slams Opposition Amid Protests by Alan Charlish
People take part in a protest organized by the Strajk Kobiet (Women's Strike) movement, following a court ruling imposing
a near-total abortion ban, in Warsaw, Poland, November 18, 2020. Slawomir Kaminski/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland’s ruling party leader accused opposition politicians of having “blood on their hands” for supporting protests the government blames for helping to spread COVID-19, as police kept demonstrators against an abortion ruling away from parliament.
    Protesters had planned to blockade parliament as part of demonstrations against a top court ruling that amounted to a near-total ban on abortion.
    Police kept them away from the building and local media reported that scuffles broke out in the city centre.    A left-wing lawmaker said a member of their party was beaten by police.
Television footage showed a line of riot police blocking the route of protesters.
    A police spokesman could not be reached for comment.
    “All the demonstrations you supported have cost the lives of many people — you have blood on your hands,” Law and Justice (PiS) party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski told opposition lawmakers in the parliament.
    PiS have blamed the protests for spreading COVID-19.
    Earlier footage from private broadcaster TVN 24 showed protesters playing drums and dancing in the street, while others carried placards with slogans including “Womens’ Hell.”
    While centred on abortion, the protests have seen a broader outpouring of anger at Poland’s nationalist rulers and their allies in the     Catholic church, the latest manifestation of a battle between liberals and religious conservatives that this time touches on the government’s response to COVID-19.
    Pictures on social media showed large numbers of police vans outside parliament before the protest was due to start.
    “The fact that there are so many police officers … shows that PiS are afraid of women,” left-wing lawmaker Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus told Reuters by telephone.
    A PiS spokeswomen could not immediately be reached for comment.
    The protests took place as Polish lawmakers met in the parliament to discuss issues such as the country’s veto of the European Union’s budget and a post-COVID recovery package.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish, Editing by William Maclean and Tom Brown)

11/19/2020 EU Foreign Ministers To Discuss Further Measures Against Belarus: Germany
FILE PHOTO: Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas speaks at a news conference with his counterpart from Kosovo, Meliza Haradinaj
Stublla, at the Federal Foreign Office, in Berlin, Germany, November 3, 2020. Odd Andersen/Pool via REUTERS
    BERLIN (Reuters) – European Union foreign ministers will discuss further sanctions against the Belarusian authorities at their meeting on Thursday, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.
    “The Belarusian authorities are obviously not prepared to start a dialogue with the opposition,” Maas said.
    “We have not registered any constructive reaction from Minsk so far, so we will discuss how we can raise the pressure,” he said.    “And we can certainly raise pressure by focussing more strongly on the powerful circles around (President Alexander) Lukashenko.”
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Riham Alkousaa)

11/19/2020 George Soros Urges EU To Stand Up To Hungary And Poland On Recovery Fund
FILE PHOTO: Billionaire investor George Soros attends the Schumpeter Award in Vienna, Austria June 21, 2019. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
    LONDON (Reuters) – Billionaire financier George Soros said the European Union must stand up to Hungary and Poland and cannot afford to compromise on the rule-of-law provisions it applies to the funds it allocates to member states.
    Hungary and Poland on Monday blocked the adoption of the 2021-2027 budget and recovery fund by European Union governments because the budget law included a clause which makes access to money conditional on respecting the rule of law.
    This delay the launch of the 1.8 trillion euro package that combines the EU’s long-term budget and the bloc’s economic recovery plan.
    In a Project Syndicate article published on Thursday, Soros said Hungary and Poland’s veto of the EU budget and coronavirus recovery plan could be circumvented.
    If there is no agreement on a new EU budget, the old budget could be extended on a yearly basis.    If this is the case, Poland and Hungary would risk not receiving any payments under new rule of law conditions, the financier and philanthropist argued.
    “The EU can’t afford to compromise on the rule-of-law provisions,” Soros wrote.    He added that in the case of Hungary, EU funds should be directed to local authorities.
(Reporting by Dhara Ranasinghe; editing by Sujata Rao)
[WELL SOROS IS TAKING A BREAK FROM TRYING FORCE THOUSANDS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM 3 SOUTH AMERICAN COUNTRIES WHICH A TRUMP WALL HAS STOPPED THAT NOW, THEN HE PAID FOR THE LEGALITY TO TRY TO IMPEACH TRUMP WITH A PHONY PHONE CALL INPUT WHICH FAILED AND MADE THE DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS LOOK LIKE IDIOTS, AND WHATEVER HE WAS DOING BEFORE ALL THIS POSSIBLE RUSSIAN COLLUSION AND FLYNN DISMISSAL OCCURRED AND NOW THIS HE SEEMS TO HAVE HIS HANDS WITH STACY ABRAMS IN THE GEORGIA U.S.A. ELECTIONS WITH CORRUPTION BY THE DEMOCRATS WHICH HAS BEEN UNCOVERED NOW.    SO UNDERSTAND SOROS IS PURE EVIL HE IS PART OF THE GLOBALIST AND THEY ARE WHAT WE KNOW AS THE COUNCIL OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS WHICH IS A GROUP OF VERY WEALTHY WORLD-WIDE MULTII-BILLIONAIRE PERSONS OR BUSINESSES AND THIS IS WHAT WE REFER TO AS THE DEEP STATE WHO HAS ATTACKED TRUMP FROM DAY ONE AND IS GETTING PRETTY DESPERATE EPECIALLY IF THIS FAKE BIDEN PRESIDENCY FAILS AND TRUMP WINS FOR 4 MORE YEARS WHICH I HOPE WILL WAKE UP THE REST OF AMERICA TO WHAT IS REALLY HAPPENING.].

11/19/2020 Hungary Reiterates It Cannot Back EU Budget In Its Present Form
FILE PHOTO: Gergely Gulyas, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff speaks during
an interview in his office in Budapest, Hungary on September 16, 2019. REUTERS/Gergely Szakacs
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary cannot accept the European Union’s budget and post-COVID recovery package in its present form as it amounts to “blackmail,” Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff reiterated on Thursday.
    “There is zero chance for the EU budget or the rescue package to take effect in its present form,” Gergely Gulyas told a briefing, saying Hungary’s veto was “in past tense.”
    Hungary and Poland on Monday blocked the EU’s 2021-2027 budget and recovery plan, worth a combined 1.85 trillion euros ($2.2 trillion), because access to the funds would be conditional upon respecting the rule of law.
    Orban, whose nationalist government is under investigation for undermining the independence of Hungary’s media and non-governmental organisations, has linked his veto to his continued opposition to mass immigration into the EU.
    Gulyas said that “in theory” the EU budget and the so-called Next Generation recovery fund could be treated separately.
    However, he said in practice it would be difficult because leaders considered them together in July, and there could be several member states which would find it unacceptable that the recovery fund takes effect, while the future of the budget is uncertain.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Giles Elgood)

11/20/2020 Some Russian Hospitals Face Shortages Of COVID-19 Drugs by Anton Zverev and Polina Nikolskaya
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Some Russian hospitals are experiencing serious shortages of drugs used to treat COVID-19 and cannot restock because of panic buying, high demand and problems with a new labelling system, officials, distributors and doctors said.
    Russia, which has reported the world’s fifth-highest number of COVID-19 cases, is — like many other countries — struggling to cope with a second wave of the disease and the healthcare system outside Moscow is close to breaking point.
    Doctors in over a dozen regions face big shortages of antibiotics, antiviral drugs and other medicines used to treat COVID-9, three local officials and three drugs vendors told Reuters.
    “Head doctors call me every few minutes and beg for medicine.    They have nothing to treat patients.    And I have nothing for them to deliver,” the co-owner of a large pharmaceuticals distributor said, on condition of anonymity.
    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week he was aware there were problems.    “We know that there is a shortage in certain regions, this is unacceptable.    The government is making very vigorous efforts to prevent this,” he said.
    The health ministry did not reply to a request for comment.
    A doctor from the Bashkiria region in south-central Russia said a hospital in her town was short of antibiotics because of the large influx of patients. She declined to be identified.
    With the number of COVID-19 cases recorded in Russia now above 2 million, social media feeds are full of requests to buy medicine. [nL1N2I50GJ]
    “We don’t have water for injections, let alone antibiotics and antivirals,” an official from a Siberian town said on condition of anonymity.
    Russian doctors use a specific programme with specific drugs to treat COVID-19 patients.    It includes the antibiotics Levofloxacin or Azithromycinum, and local antiviral drugs such as umifenovir, documents seen by Reuters show.
    Those antibiotics and antiviral drugs are now running short, regional officials say.
    “There is a huge shortage of COVID medicine,” said one senior regional official.
    Only Moscow and some other wealthy regions have the financial and lobbying resources to tackle such shortages.
    “The only cure is to pray,” said an official who works in a regional COVID-19 crisis centre.
SYSTEM FAILURE
    Details of the drugs used in the treatment programme have been shared on social media, causing panic buying which has emptied pharmacies and suppliers’ warehouses.br>     Antibiotics should legally be sold over the counter only with a doctor’s prescription, but many pharmacies sell them without one.
    Drug manufacturers are unable to increase production instantly, said Anatoly Tenser, development director at Katren, a large distributor.
    Drugs producers are also experiencing problems importing substances they need from India and China because of high global demand during the pandemic, the co-owner of a large pharmaceuticals distributor said.
    Alexander Semenov, president of drug producer Acticomp, said the company faced shortages of imported reaction intermediates, which are used for producing drugs.
    “Of course, there are shortages.    In the summer, we made stocks for six months in advance. Unfortunately, they ran out very quickly,” he said.
    Rustem Muratov, CEO of drug maker Binnopharm Group, said one of its factories had increased production of Levofloxacin by a factor of six, and of Azithromycinum by a factor of five in September compared to a year earlier.br>     “The manufacturers are not coping.    There are just not so many of these drugs available,” said a regional official from a COVID-19 crisis centre.
    A new drug-labelling system, introduced in October to counter black market drugs by electronically monitoring the movement of each drug from manufacturer to consumer, has not helped.
    Teething problems mean manufacturers have faced difficulties putting drugs into the system and pharmacies have had problems with sales, several distributors and producers said.
    A Reuters reporter was unable to buy any drugs included in the treatment programme at over a dozen pharmacies in Moscow and witnessed the labelling system malfunctioning when trying to buy other drugs.
    One supplier said he has been unable for several weeks to get a large shipment of dexamethasone, used to treat the new coronavirus, because of problems with the labelling system at the factory.
    “It was crazy to introduce this system, without testing, and during a difficult epidemiological situation,” Nikolai Bespalov, the development director at RNC Pharma, said.
(Reporting by Anton Zverev, Polina Nikolskaya; Additional reporting by Rinat Sagdiev, Editing by Andrew Osborn and Timothy Heritage)

11/20/2020 Ukraine May Appoint Former Finance Minister Markarova As Ambassador To Washington
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Friday that he had proposed appointing former finance minister Oksana Markarova as the country’s new ambassador to the United States.
    “If she is appointed, Ukraine will have for the first time an ambassador to Washington, who is well known in the U.S. Administration, including the State Department and the Treasury, and as well in the IMF,” Kuleba wrote on Facebook.
    Ukraine is struggling to unlock a $5 billion programme the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved in June.    The IMF disbursed the first $2.1 billion but delayed further tranches over concerns on anti-corruption reforms and the central bank’s independence.
(Reporting by Natalia Zinets; editing by Matthias Williams)

11/20/2020 Patriarch Of Serbian Orthodox Church Dies Due To Coronavirus
FILE PHOTO: Serbian Patriarch Irinej conducts the liturgy on Orthodox Christmas in Saborna church in Belgrade January 7, 2016.
Serbian Orthodox believers celebrate Christmas on January 7, according to the Julian calendar. REUTERS/Marko Djurica
    BELGRADE (Reuters) – Patriarch Irinej, the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, has died due to coronavirus, the country’s President Aleksandar Vucic said on his official Instagram account on Friday.
    “I was honored to know you. People like you never depart,” Vucic wrote under a black and white photo of Irinej.
    Irinej, 90, a conservative who also wielded major political influence, was diagnosed with the coronavirus on Nov. 4 and had been in a military hospital in the capital Belgrade since then.
(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

11/20/2020 25 Years After Peace Deal, Bosnia Endures Division And Stagnation by Daria Sito-Sucic
Aerial view of the city Brcko, Bosnia and Herzegovina November 17, 2020. Picture taken November 17, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
    BRCKO, Bosnia (Reuters) – Mirsad Zahirovic is a university-educated journalist and activist who moonlights as a waiter because he is not a member of one of the ruling political parties, which is almost the only way to get a job in his native Bosnia.
    The 28-year-old belongs to “the children of Dayton,” a generation named after the peace agreement signed 25 years ago at a U.S. air force base in Dayton, Ohio.    The accord ended three-and-a-half years of ethnic warfare in Bosnia that killed 100,000 people and forced 2 million from their homes.
    Zahirovic, who has made a documentary film about the Dayton generation, doesn’t see much benefit from those 25 years of peace.
    “The only good thing from Dayton is that it stopped the war,” he said.
    Bosnia is marking the 25th anniversary of Dayton on Saturday without much fanfare, politically polarised as ethnic rivals squabble over whether to leave the settlement as it is or revise the constitution, which is part of the accords.
    The U.S.-brokered peace deal ended hostilities between Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) by splitting the country into two ethnically divided entities, linked via a weak central government.
NEUTRAL DISTRICT
    Several years later, the northern town of Brcko was declared a neutral district outside the jurisdiction of the two regions, and was hailed as Bosnia’s biggest success as refugees from all ethnic groups returned and the economy blossomed.
    But after an initial burst of economic growth following Dayton, Bosnia has stagnated as investors began to avoid a country held back by red tape and corruption.    Bosnia has for years been at the bottom of the Transparency International corruption index, its score steadily dropping since 2012.
    There has also been a massive exodus of young people – Bosnia had the biggest brain drain in the world along with Haiti and Venezuela in the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report released by the World Economic Forum.
    “The people here want hope,” said U.S. Ambassador Eric Nelson.    “There is a (European Union) road map to the future and a strong support for Bosnia-Herzegovina accomplishing that goal.”
    “But actions need to take place here, and that’s going to require leaders to stop thinking only of narrow political interests, … and start thinking about long-term progress of this country,” Nelson said.
    The stagnation is visible in Brcko, where few are optimistic about the future.
    “The situation is difficult, nothing has changed since the war ended, political parties still produce the same propaganda, there is no progress,” said Jasmin Jukan, a Bosniak, having his regular afternoon beer with a Serb neighbour.
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Giles Elgood)

11/20/2020 With Applause And Flowers, Thousands Attend Funeral Of Belarusian Protester by Matthias Williams
People gather outside a church during a memorial service for Roman Bondarenko, an anti-government protester who died in hospital
following what witnesses said was a severe beating by security forces, in Minsk, Belarus November 20, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    KYIV (Reuters) – Thousands of people silently raised their arms in the air, held flowers aloft and broke into chants outside a church in Minsk on Friday at the funeral of a Belarusian protester.
    The death of 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko has become the latest flashpoint in months-long mass protests against President Alexander Lukashenko.    He died in hospital last week after what protesters say was a severe beating by security forces.
    The interior ministry denied responsibility.    The death was condemned by the European Union who on Thursday announced new sanctions on Minsk in response to state repression against protesters following a disputed August election. [nL8N2I54IN]
    His opponents accuse Lukashenko of rigging the election to extend his 26-year grip on power.    He denies electoral fraud and, backed by Russia, has refused to resign.
    The crowd outside the church, the majority wearing masks, chanted “I’m going out,” the last known written words of Bondarenko, and “long live Belarus.”
    Cars blared their horns in the street.    Thousands broke into applause as the coffin was carried out of the church.
    The authorities this week detained a medic who leaked a medical report of Bondarenko’s death to the media.    The medical report showed there was no alcohol in Bondarenko’s bloodstream, casting doubt on the government’s assertion that Bondarenko had been drunk and died in a scuffle with civilians.
    The Prosecutor General’s office opened a criminal investigation into the medic for revealing medical secrets, spreading false information and fueling tensions in society. A journalist who published the report was also detained.
    The EU has already imposed travel bans and asset freezes on almost 50 Belarusian officials.    The new sanctions are expected to target more senior officials and also entities that finance Lukashenko and his government.
    United Nations human rights experts said on Thursday they were gravely concerned by increased reports of mass detentions, intimidation and torture.    They called on the Belarusian authorities to investigate the excessive use of force and unlawful retaliation at peaceful protests.
    Tens of thousands of people have staged regular protests for weeks since the election.    Some workers at major state-run companies went on strike.    This week, potash producer Belaruskali said 49 workers had been fired for taking part in the strike.
(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Mike Collett-White)

11/20/2020 Czechs To Allow More Children In School As COVID Cases Drop
FILE PHOTO: A teacher prepares school supplies inside an empty classroom at a closed school in
Prague, Czech Republic, October 14, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny/File Photo/File Photo
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech Republic will allow more children to go to school and ease some other restrictions as the numbers of new coronavirus cases and hospitalised patients fall, Health Minister Jan Blatny said on Friday.
    The government said that the country which suffered one of Europe’s worst autumn outbreaks of the pandemic would move on Monday from the top risk level 5 to level 4 on its scale of curbs.
    Elementary schools, open since Wednesday for first and second graders, will fully open for lower-grade pupils from Nov. 30, while the rest will return on a rotating basis.
    Some final-year high school students and some university students can return to presence learning on Wednesday.
    Level 4 also moves curfew and store closing hours to 11 p.m. from 9 p.m. and allows the assembly of six people instead of two.
    Blatny, speaking at a news conference, also assured Czechs that stalls selling Christmas trees, decorations and live carp for traditional Christmas Eve dinners will be allowed.
    Industry Minister Karel Havlicek said the risk level may drop to level 3 a week after next, which would allow the reopening of restaurants and retail, which is now mostly closed except for stores selling food, pharmacies and other essential goods.
    The Health Ministry said hospitals may start gradually returning to providing suspended non-urgent care as of next week thanks to fewer patients and fewer infected personnel.    As of Friday, 6,307 COVID-19 patients were in hospital.
    The country had over 5,000 daily cases over the past week, down by more than half from late October peaks, but still a level burdening hospital care.
    The “R” number showing how many people get infected from an average infected person has dropped to about 0.7, suggesting a further drop in cases, but test positivity rates show the epidemic is not under control and community transmission continues, Blatny said.
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka and Robert Muller; Editing by Nick Macfie)

11/20/2020 With Applause And Flowers, Thousands Attend Funeral Of Belarusian Protester by Matthias Williams
People lay flowers during a funeral of Roman Bondarenko, an anti-government protester who died in hospital following
what witnesses said was a severe beating by security forces, in Minsk, Belarus November 20, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    KYIV (Reuters) – Thousands of people silently raised their arms in the air, held flowers aloft and broke into chants outside a church in Minsk on Friday at the funeral of a Belarusian protester.
    The death of 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko has become a flashpoint in months-long mass protests against President Alexander Lukashenko.
    Witnesses said Bondarenko was detained after a scuffle with people in plain clothes who came to a playground to remove red-and-white ribbons representing the protest movement.
    He died in hospital last week after what protesters say was a severe beating by security forces. The interior ministry denied responsibility.
    The death was condemned by the European Union who on Thursday announced new sanctions on Minsk in response to state repression against protesters following a disputed August election.
    Opponents accuse Lukashenko of rigging the election to extend his 26-year grip on power.    He denies electoral fraud and, backed by Russia, has refused to resign.
    The crowd outside the church, the majority wearing masks, chanted “I’m going out,” the last known written words of Bondarenko, and “long live Belarus.”
    Cars blared their horns in the street.    Thousands broke into applause as the coffin was carried out of the church. Mourners, some in tears, gathered at the burial site.
MEDIC DETAINED
    The authorities this week detained a medic who leaked a medical report of Bondarenko’s death to the media.    The medical report showed there was no alcohol in Bondarenko’s bloodstream, casting doubt on the government’s assertion that Bondarenko had been drunk and died in a scuffle with civilians.
    The Prosecutor General’s office has opened a criminal investigation into the medic for revealing medical secrets, spreading false information and fuelling tensions in society.    A journalist who published the report was also detained.
    Lukashenko accused the protesters of gathering at the funeral against the wishes of Bondarenko’s family, and of fanning tensions by spreading fake reports about Bondarenko’s death on social media.
    After the EU’s latest sanctions announcement, non-EU member Norway said it would adopt similar measures.
    United Nations human rights experts said on Thursday they were gravely concerned by increased reports of mass detentions, intimidation and torture.    They urged Belarusian authorities to investigate the excessive use of force and unlawful retaliation at peaceful protests.
    Tens of thousands of people have staged regular protests for weeks since the election.    Some workers at major state-run companies went on strike.    This week, potash producer Belaruskali said 49 workers had been fired for taking part in the strike.
(Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and Terje Solsvik in Oslo; Editing by Mike Collett-White and Timothy Heritage)

11/20/2020 For Hungary’s Same-Sex Couples, A Narrow Window To Adopt Is Closing by Krisztina Than and Krisztina Fenyo
Same sex couple Adam Hanol and Marton Pal play with their four year old adopted
son Andras at a playground in Budapest, Hungary, November 19, 2020. REUTERS/Krisztina Fenyo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – After three years, Marton Pal and his partner Adam Hanol received the phone call they had been waiting for in 2018 and a few months later they adopted Andris, a smart and lively boy who has since turned four.
    As a Hungarian same-sex couple, the only way to adopt was if Pal applied as a single person.    During interviews they told the adoption agency that they were in fact a couple. After 6 months, he got the permission.
    In the same year they decided Andris should have a brother or sister, and this time Hanol applied. They have been waiting since November 2018 for the phone to ring again.
    Now they fear that call will never come, since Hungary’s nationalist government is putting forward legislation that would practically ban adoption by same-sex couples in what rights groups have said is an attack on the LGBTQ community.
    The legislation says single people can only adopt with special permission from the minister in charge of family affairs.    Even though Hanol has a valid permit, they think their chances have now diminished.
    “Andris has been a miracle, that we could have him in our lives, so we are very grateful for that … but I think our chances have deteriorated now,” Pal said, playing with Andris in a leafy playground on the Buda side of the Danube.
    “Anybody dealing with arranging adoption is at least in waiting mode now, or rather afraid to offer children to couples like us or single people,” Hanol added.    They won’t give up though.
    The government, which has stepped up anti-LGBTQ rhetoric as the coronavirus crisis hit the economy, has also proposed a constitutional amendment that declares “the basis for family relations is marriage … The mother is a woman, the father is a man.”
GENDER
    In May, Hungary banned gender changes in personal documents and has taken issue with children’s books that portray diversity positively.     Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s cabinet chief Gergely Gulyas told a briefing that “the physical and mental development of a child is ensured if he has a father and a mother”, adding that there could be exceptions and that’s why the bill allows single people to adopt as well.     Lydia Gall, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch, said the legislation encouraged intolerance.
    “This latest attack on the LGBT community in Hungary really shows the importance and emergency of why EU funds should be linked to the respect for rule of law and our common European values,” Gall said, referring to a debate in the EU after Hungary and its ally Poland vetoed the bloc’s budget.
    Hungary and Poland, where the ruling party made campaigning against gay rights a key part of its ideology, refuse to back the EU’s financial plan because the money is conditional on respecting the rule of law.
    For same-sex couples in Hungary, the government’s domestic campaign and increasing homophobia are a life-changer.
    Balint Meiszterics, who planned to apply for adoption with his partner next year, said he was angry and sad at the same time, as the new bill could stop them having a family.
    “The message here is … that the government has an idea how a family should look like, how a true Hungarian looks like, and those who do not fit this have no place here,” he said.
(Writing by Krisztina Than; Editing by Giles Elgood)
[The above statement 'respect for rule of law and our common European values' should tell you the Godlessness that the European Union is all in except a few nations who know the difference.].

11/21/2020 ‘People Need Mountains’: Swiss Ski Resorts Buck Alpine Lockdowns by Denis Balibouse
People ski, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in the ski resort of Zermatt, Switzerland November 21, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
    ZERMATT, Switzerland (Reuters) – Blue skies over the Matterhorn drew skiers and snowboarders to Zermatt on Saturday, as well as police to break up crowds, as Switzerland’s modest coronavirus restrictions allowed near-normal operations while other Alpine resorts keep their lifts shut.
    France, Italy, Austria and Germany have all ordered even the high-altitude lifts that could be running this early in the winter to remain closed for now in the hope that all resorts can benefit at peak-season, if and when the infection rate slows.
    Switzerland, despite being a second-wave coronavirus hotspot with 5,000 infections a day and mounting deaths, is hoping that a middle way of social distancing, limits on gatherings and mask-wearing on lifts can prop up pillars of the economy such as tourism without fuelling the pandemic.
    “If it’s open, I’ll definitely ski,” said Swede Max Ahlstedt, on the glacier where Zermatt offers year-round skiing.    “You just have to … accept wearing a mask.”
    Over the border in Cervinia, on the Italian side of the glacier, the lifts have been closed indefinitely since Oct. 25.
    Some Swiss resorts, including Davos to the northwest, boast of “cold-fogging” equipment to blast the interiors of gondolas and “kill 99.9% of viruses, bacteria and spores in a minute.”
    The Swiss tourism association has even adopted “Clean & Safe” as its motto in the hope of easing tourists’ nerves.
    And there is no denying the sense of release from confinement that a day on the slopes can bring.
    “It’d be worse if you couldn’t go to the mountains at all,” said Anne Spiegler, a German living in Zurich.
    Swiss skier Jean-Francois Paschoud said that it “makes you forget the mask measures.”
    Swiss resorts know that the number of guests from Britain, the Netherlands, Germany or Scandinavia will inevitably be far below the levels of a normal season as the wait for a vaccine stunts cross-border travel.
    Other countries will be glad to start their winter tourist season at all.
    In Austria, the Kitzsteinhorn glacier near Zell am See and the Hintertux glacier near Mayrhofen both hope to reopen on Dec. 6, the moment that a national lockdown ends – and to banish memories of an outbreak among visitors last February in the Tyrolean resort of Ischgl that spread coronavirus across Europe.
    Zermatt Mayor Romy Biner-Hauser still thinks the future looks bright: “People need vacation,” she says.    “People need mountains.”
(This story corrects pronoun in last paragraph to make clear Zermatt’s mayor is a woman, not a man)
(Writing by John Miller, reporting by Denis Balibouse in Zermatt and Cecile Mantovani in Geneva; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

11/21/2020 Russia Bars Entry To 25 British Citizens In Retaliation For UK Sanctions
FILE PHOTO: A flag flies outside the consular section of Russia's Embassy in London, Britain, March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has banned entry to 25 British citizens in retaliation for similar measures by Britain, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Saturday, without providing their names.
    Britain brought sanctions against 25 Russians and 20 Saudis in July as part of post-Brexit measures foreign minister Dominic Raab said were aimed at stopping the laundering of “blood money.”
    The British list includes Russian nationals Britain has said were involved in the mistreatment and death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.
    Magnitsky was arrested in 2008 after alleging that Russian officials were involved in large-scale tax fraud.    Magnitsky died in a Moscow prison in 2009 after complaining of mistreatment.
    “For all the subjects related to the death of S. Magnitsky, we have repeatedly given exhaustive comments and explanations which, apparently, London prefers to ignore,” Maria Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman, said in a statement.
    The actions of the British side look like an attempt to interfere in another country’s internal affairs and put pressure on the Russian justice system, she added.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; editing by Louise Heavens)

11/21/2020 Thousands Turn Out To Mourn Serbia’s Patriarch, Despite COVID-19 Surge by Aleksandar Vasovic
Mourners pay respects around the casket of Serbia's late Patriarch Irinej, who died after contracting COVID-19, during funeral
rites at Belgrade's Archangel Michael cathedral church, in Belgrade, Serbia, November 21, 2020. REUTERS/Marko Djurica
    BELGRADE (Reuters) – Several thousand worshippers and clergy, some without face masks, filed steadily into a Belgrade church on Saturday to pay their respects to Patriarch Irinej, the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, who died aged 90 after contracting COVID-19.
    Irinej tested positive for the coronavirus on Nov. 4 and died on Friday, prompting the Serbian government to declare three days of national mourning in the predominantly Orthodox Christian country.
    Despite a rise in COVID-19 cases, some of the faithful maintained tradition by kissing the glass-covered casket containing the Patriarch’s body, which was dressed in a gold-embroidered robe and an ornate crown.
    Most, however, solemnly walked past it and wore protective masks as they paid their respects to Irinej, who became the Church’s 45th patriarch a decade ago.
    “God protects those who protect themselves,” said Tomislav Gajic, 65, a pensioner from Belgrade, wearing a white face mask as he lined up outside the city’s St. Sava temple where the Patriarch’s body will lay in state until Sunday’s funeral.
    Like other European countries, Serbia has seen a spike in coronavirus cases in recent weeks, and Predrag Kon, an epidemiologist and a member of the state committee tasked with combating COVID-19, said the Patriarch’s funeral “is a great risk.”
    “That gathering is not acceptable… But that is something no one can ban,” Kon told state television.
    Before the start of two days of funeral rites, Serbian army guardsmen in blue uniforms, escorted by clergy, carried Irinej’s coffin to a catafalque inside the church – one of the largest in the world.
    Serbia’s government imposed tighter coronavirus controls on Saturday, such as requiring face masks to be worn outside “where distance cannot be maintained” from next week.
    Authorities have been reluctant, however, to impose strict sanitary restrictions on the powerful Church, which has about 12 million followers, mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia.
    Serbia, which has a population of about seven million, has reported 110,351 COVID-19 cases and 1,140 deaths.
(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Additional reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic in Sarajevo; Editing by)
[It is only 1% of deaths of those cases which is very low.].

11/22/2020 Putin Says Ready To Work With Any U.S. Leader, Wants Formalities Settled
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a video conference during the G20 Leaders' Summit 2020,
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia November 21, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey
Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY./File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday he was ready to work with any U.S. leader and would congratulate whoever emerges the winner of the U.S. presidential election once all the legal formalities are settled, Russian news agencies reported.
    Putin has withheld comment, while President Donald Trump has been taking legal action to try to overturn his Nov. 3 election defeat to Democratic President-elect Joe Biden.
    “We will work with anyone who has the trust of the American people,” Putin was quoted as saying on state television.
    But the winner must be named either by the opposing party, which should acknowledge the victory of their opponents, or after the final results of the election are confirmed in a legitimate, legal way, Putin said.
    That follows previous Kremlin comment that it would wait for the official results of the U.S. presidential election before commenting on its outcome.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; editing by Barbara Lewis)

11/22/2020 More Than 200 Detained In Belarus Protests: Rights Group
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian law enforcement officers hold shields while standing guard during an opposition demonstration to protest
against police violence and to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus August 14, 2020. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarus police detained more than 200 people in Minsk on Sunday during the latest in months of anti-government protests since a disputed presidential election in August, human rights activists said.
    Thousands took to the streets of the Belarusian capital, and police used stun grenades to disperse the crowd, several Belarus media outlets reported.
    The Vesna-96 rights group said 205 people had been detained so far.
    The Interior Ministry later confirmed that there had been detentions, saying those being held had been “disturbing public order and resisting police officers,” but it did not give any numbers.
    Opponents of President Alexander Lukashenko have staged regular protests since August, accusing him of rigging the election to extend his 26-year grip on power.    He denies electoral fraud and has refused to resign.
    Protest organisers this week asked people to gather in dozens of different spots all across Minsk before forming bigger groups, to make it more difficult for police to control the crowd.
    The street rallies were re-ignited following the death of a 31-year old anti-government protester Roman Bondarenko, who died in hospital earlier this month following what demonstrators said was a severe beating by security forces.
    The interior ministry denied responsibility for Bondarenko’s death, saying he was killed in a scuffle with civilians.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; Editing by Frances Kerry and Hugh Lawson)

11/23/2020 Police In Belarus Detained 345 People At Protests On Sunday – Ministry
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian law enforcement officers watch demonstrators during a rally to reject
the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus November 22, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Belarus detained 345 people at nationwide anti-government protests on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
    Thousands took to the streets of the Belarusian capital Minsk on Sunday, with police using stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
    Opponents of President Alexander Lukashenko have staged regular protests since August, accusing him of rigging the election to extend his 26-year grip on power.    He denies electoral fraud and has refused to resign.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Catherine Evans)

11/23/2020 Ukraine President Tests Negative For Coronavirus – Statement
FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news briefing with Polish
President Andrzej Duda (not pictured) as they meet in Kyiv, Ukraine October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has tested negative for the novel coronavirus after previously contracting it and spending time in a government hospital, he said in a statement on Monday.
    “I finally have a negative coronavirus test result,” Zelenskiy said.    “One way or another, I’m already at work today.    The day will be busy, but I am very happy to dive into the work as usual.”
(Reporting by Natalia Zinets; writing Matthias Williams; Editing by Catherine Evans)

11/23/2020 Swiss To Vote On Banning The Funding Of Weapons Makers by John Revill
FILE PHOTO: A banner reading "Yes to war business initiative" is placed on a railing in Zurich, Switzerland November 16, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann
    ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss voters decide on Sunday whether to ban the funding of arms makers, the latest anti-military referendum in the neutral country that hasn’t fought an external war for 200 years.
    Swiss banks have given loans and hold shares worth nearly $11 billion in companies like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics, according to a study by independent researchers Profundo.
    The Swiss National Bank (SNB), UBS and Credit Suisse have the biggest exposure, the study said.
    “An enormous amount of money comes from Switzerland into an industry which profits from death and destruction,” said Julia Kueng, co-president of the Young Greens Party.
    “How can a country which claims to be neutral profit from war material?”
    Campaigners have gathered 120,000 signatures, triggering the referendum.
    The SNB opposed the initiative, which it said would create legal uncertainty and undermine the central bank’s independence.    UBS also rejected it, saying it did not directly or indirectly finance weapons already banned in Switzerland.
    Credit Suisse referred Reuters to the Swiss Bankers Association.    The association said the initiative would weaken Switzerland as a business location and unnecessarily restrict the SNB, pension funds, banks and insurance companies.
‘NAIVE AND IRRESPONSIBLE’
    The Initiative Against the War Trade wants to ban the SNB and pension funds from holding shares in companies which generate more than 5% of sales from weapons and components.    It would ban banks from lending to defence companies.
    The vote is the latest to question Swiss links to the military.    In 1989 voters rejected abolishing its army, while six years ago they turned down buying Gripen fighter jets.
    The Group for Switzerland without an Army (GSoA) argues a proliferation of weapons fuels wars, and Switzerland could contribute to demilitarization through its outsized wealth management industry.
    “These weapons have to be financed,” GSoA secretary Nadia Kuhn said.    “The banks in Switzerland manage about one quarter of global assets managed across borders.    This gives Switzerland an opportunity to make a difference.”
    As well as investing in foreign companies, Switzerland also produces arms, and some companies will get loans from banks.    Switzerland exported weapons worth 727.9 million Swiss francs to 71 countries in 2019, up from 510 million francs in 2018.
    Switzerland bans the production and sale of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons as well as land mines and cluster munitions.
    Industry group Swissmem estimates around 3,000 companies employing 50,000 people could be affected by the initiative, which it opposes.    The Swiss government is also against it.
    A poll this month showed 50% of respondents in favour and 45% against.
    Maja Riniker, MP for the conservative FDP party, called the referendum “naive and irresponsible."
    “Of course, we would all want to have a totally peaceful world. But this initiative wouldn’t achieve that – no other countries are doing it.    Instead this would lead to companies taking production out of Switzerland.”
    Among the companies affected would be Casram, which gets around 15% of its sales from the defence industry, selling parts to Saab for use in Gripen airframes.
    “You cannot survive in Switzerland making just simple products, you need to make more complex articles,” said Chief Executive Franco Puffi.    “If we lose this market it’s like cutting our legs off.”
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Mike Collett-White)

11/23/2020 Polish Police Scuffle With Protesters Demanding “Free Abortion, Free Education”
Demonstrators scuffle with police during a protest following the ruling by Poland's Constitutional Tribunal that imposes
a near-total ban on abortion, in Warsaw, Poland, November 23, 2020. Maciek Jazwiecki/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Police scuffled with protesters who gathered in front of Poland’s Education Ministry on Monday following a ruling that tightened restrictions on abortion rights in the Catholic country.
    Hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets since the Constitutional Tribunal ruled on Oct. 22 to further limit already restrictive abortion rules, the latest phase of a battle between liberals and religious conservatives in Poland.
    Strajk Kobiet (Women’s Strike) organised a car blockade on a bridge in Warsaw and dozens gathered separately in front of the ministry in the capital Warsaw late on Monday afternoon, footage from private broadcaster TVN showed.
    Protesters unveiled a large poster outside the ministry that read “Free Abortion, Free Education” and chanted “schools free of fascism,” state news agency PAP said.
    Police cordoned off the building with vans, blocking protesters and lifting up those sitting on the ground, TV footage showed.
    Szpila, an “anti-repression” activist group, said four protesters were detained by police.    A spokesman for the Warsaw police did not respond to a request for comment.
    While centred on abortion, the protests have channeled a broader outpouring of anger at Poland’s nationalist rulers and their allies in the Catholic church.
    The ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party has faced criticism for appointing Przemyslaw Czarnek, a vocal critic of the spread of “LGBT ideology,” as minister of education, in what many see as a lurch further to the right on social issues.
    Police said one protester was hurt after trying to pull protective glass from a police vehicle.    Local media had earlier reported a protester was hit by a police van.
    The ruling nationalists have faced criticism for allowing for an increasingly firm police response to the protests.
(Reporting by Joanna Plucinska and Alicja Ptak, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

11/23/2020 Dutch Populist Baudet Steps Down Before Election Over Party Members’ Racist Slurs
FILE PHOTO: Dutch politician Thierry Baudet of the Forum for Democracy party looks on before a televised debate moderated by journalist
Jeroen Pauw, on the eve of European elections in Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 22, 2019. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/File Photo
    AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch politician Thierry Baudet, leader of the anti-immigration Forum for Democracy, said on Monday he will step down ahead of a parliamentary election in March following allegations that young party members made anti-Semitic and homophobic comments.
    Baudet, who has been winning over supporters of anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders and the party of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, said he did not want to be associated with the remarks, allegedly posted in a chat group for members of the party’s youth wing.
    “They are terrible messages – Nazism, anti-Semitism, racism – they are ideas I want nothing to do with,” he said in a video statement on Twitter.    “I want to take political responsibility as head of the party and will give up my spot on the ballot.”
    Baudet said the party would be led by someone else during the election but he would stay on as a member of parliament.    Dutch news agency ANP said Baudet would remain party chairman.
    Baudet opposes immigration, denounces the media, and emphasises “Dutch first” cultural and economic themes.    He opposes the euro and thinks the Netherlands should leave the European Union.
    His FvD party performed well in provincial elections in 2019 and he had planned to contest the election in March, when a new parliament and prime minister will be chosen.
    The party is likely to win some seats and is currently polling ninth out of the 13 main parties taking part in the vote.
(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Alison Williams)
[This article is a definite reason to believe that the European Union is definitely gone totally leftist anti-christian as you see they are condemning a man who is promoting anti-immigration, wants his country to be first before the EU so I like him.].

11/24/2020 Poland Awaiting Developments In U.S. Before Recognising Biden
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President-elect Joe Biden receives a national security briefing in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., November 17, 2020. REUTERS/Tom Brenner
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland will wait to see how the political and legal situation develops in the United States before recognising Joe Biden as the new president, Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said on Tuesday.
    Biden’s victory on Nov. 3 is awkward for Warsaw’s right-wing conservative government, which set great store by its relationship with Trump, securing a pledge of a permanent U.S. military deployment, while straining the tolerance of Brussels and European Union allies over its handling of democratic values.
    After weeks of fruitless legal campaigns, President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday cleared the way for Biden to transition to the White House, giving him access to briefings and funding, while vowing to continue fighting the result.
    Poland’s president has congratulated Biden on a successful campaign, but Warsaw has not officially recognised him as the next U.S. president.
    Asked when he would do so, Rau noted that the Electoral College, which formally elects the president, did not meet until Dec. 14, and that legal challenges could continue until the inauguration on Jan. 20.
    “It depends on the political and legal developments in the United States itself,” he told public radio.
    During the election campaign, Biden accused Trump of backing authoritarian leaders around the world, citing Poland among others.
(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko and Anna Koper; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
[I am glad to know that there are at least three countries in the world that can understand that the Democrats are liars and are trying a coup to take over the U.S. by cheating in the elections and we all as Christians are praying for God to help us from that evil as well as help Trump which he has done for them and if what is happening in the world that tells me that the AntiChrist are winning for now which is predicted in the Bible as they will fall in the trap of the final Anti-Christ and final False Prophet Religion and I still have hope that the God in Heaven will help the Great Eagle with Two Wings as did to help God's people in Israel before if there is a rapture to come for true believers.].

11/24/2020 Conservative Simonyte Wins Lithuanian Parliament’s Approval To Form Government
FILE PHOTO: Presidential candidate Ingrida Simonyte speaks to media during the first round of
Lithuanian Presidential election in Vilnius, Lithuania May 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania’s parliament approved the appointment of conservative Ingrida Simonyte as the Baltic country’s next prime minister on Tuesday and tasked her with forming a government following an election on Oct. 26.
    Simonyte, a former finance minister, is due to take over from the outgoing government in two to three weeks, after she agrees on her ministers with President Gitanas Nauseda and wins parliament’s backing for her government’s programme.
    Simonyte, 46, led the opposition centre-right Homeland Union party to victory in the election and then formed a coalition with two liberal parties in the European Union and NATO member state.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas, Editing by Timothy Heirtage)

11/24/2020 Russia Chases Off U.S. Warship In Row Over Waters In Sea Of Japan
The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain sails in formation during exercise Foal Eagle 2013 in waters west of the Korean peninsula in
this March 21, 2013 handout photo courtesy of the U.S. Navy. REUTERS/U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Declan Barnes/Handout
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia said on Tuesday one of its warships caught and chased off a U.S. destroyer operating illegally in its territorial waters in the Sea of Japan, but the U.S. Navy denied wrongdoing by its vessel and accused Moscow of making excessive maritime claims.
    The Admiral Vinogradov, a Russian destroyer, verbally warned USS John S. McCain, a U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer, and threatened to ram it in order to force it to leave the area, prompting it to return to neutral waters, Moscow said.
    Russia said its Pacific Fleet warship had been tracking the American destroyer in the Peter the Great Gulf, and that the U.S. vessel had violated Russia’s territorial waters at 0317 GMT by going two kilometres beyond the sea border.
    But the U.S. Navy said its warship had been in international waters throughout as it carried out a “freedom of navigation” operation to assert its rights and challenge what it said were Russia’s excessive maritime claims.
    “…the United States will never bow in intimidation or be coerced into accepting illegitimate maritime claims, such as those made by the Russian Federation,” said Lieutenant Joe Keiley, 7th Fleet spokesperson.
    “The Russian Federation’s statement about this mission is false,” he said.    “USS John S. McCain was not ‘expelled’ from any nation’s territory.”
    The U.S. destroyer made no further attempts to enter Russian waters after leaving the area, Moscow said.    The Admiral Vinogradov was continuing to observe its movements and another vessel, a corvette, was dispatched to the area, it added.
    Such incidents at sea are rare, but they underscore the poor diplomatic and military relations between Russia and the United States whose ties are languishing at a post-Cold War low.
    The last remaining major arms control pact between the former Cold War foes is due to expire in February despite months of talks to find a replacement.
    Also, President Vladimir Putin has yet to congratulate U.S. Democratic President-elect Joe Biden with his Nov. 3 election victory over President Donald Trump.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov in Moscow and Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Writing by Alexander Marrow/Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Chizu Nomiyama)
[Why would Putin do that since he knows how corrupt such a adminstration coming in is after 8 years of the Obama administration.].

11/24/2020 Hungary’s Government Spars With George Clooney After Actor’s Criticism Of Orban
FILE PHOTO: George Clooney speaks at a news conference during an event about corruption
in Africa, in London, Britain September 19, 2019. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s government has hit back at actor George Clooney for describing Prime Minister Viktor Orban as an example of anger and hate in the world who could fuel a dystopian future, calling his remarks “foolish.”
    Speaking about the making of his film Midnight Sky, in which he plays a scientist in a post-apocalyptic world, Clooney told GQ magazine: “We weren’t in the middle of a pandemic when it happened, but there were still all these other elements, these elements of how much hate and anger all of us are experiencing in this moment of history, all over the world – go to Bolsonaro in Brazil, or Orban in Hungary.”
    The actor continued: “Look around.    Lots of anger and hate.    (My new film) takes place in 2049.    If you played it out this could very well be what our reality is if that kind of hate is allowed to fester.”
    Orban, who has been in power for more than a decade, has built a self-styled illiberal regime, with a centralised state, a loyal business elite and an ever more nationalistic government ideology.
    Criticised for years by European Union peers for eroding the rule of law and civil liberties in Hungary, Orban and his Polish allies are fighting against new EU rules enforcing democratic standards.
    Asked by state television to comment on Clooney’s remarks, government spokesman Ors Farkas said the actor voiced the pro-immigration message of Hungarian-born U.S. liberal billionaire George Soros, a promoter of open societies and a long-time Orban opponent.
    Clooney’s words were “foolish,” foreign affairs spokesman Tamas Menczer wrote on Facebook.
    “George Clooney is a good actor so deserves respect, but… nobody should treat him like a global political oracle,” Menczer told pro-Orban news channel HirTV late on Monday.    “He has people whispering in his ears.”
    Reuters could not reach Clooney for comment.
    Through an agent, the actor released a statement to Hungarian news website Telex.hu late on Monday saying “the Orban propaganda machine is lying, full stop,” adding he had met George Soros only once.
    “I would be ashamed if I were not on record for speaking out against the kind of authoritarianism (typical of) the Orban regime,” Clooney said in the statement.
    “I was (in Hungary) in the early 2000’s and walked the boardwalk of the Danube.    At that point Hungary was a shining example of democratic success… I look forward to the day that Hungary embraces what it once was.”
(Reporting by Marton Dunai; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
[Well it is obvious that the people of Hollywood have bought into the World Goverment Globalist philosophy and how much do you think that George Soros asked him to do this article and if he changes this country we will end up in a apocalyptic world but it will be the one that God and his selected people of the Old Testament, New Testament and Revelation in the Bible who have prohesied which will occur very soon.].

11/24/2020 Russia’s Lavrov, Iran’s Zarif Discuss Syria, Karabakh, Nuclear Deal In Phone Call
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with U.N. Special Envoy for Syria
Geir Pedersen in Moscow, Russia November 19, 2020. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the situations in Syria and Nagorno-Karabakh in a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
    The two men also discussed Moscow and Tehran’s commitment to ensuring the prompt return of all participants to fully observing obligations laid out in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
    U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has said he will take the United States back into the 2015 deal.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Gareth Jones)

[DONT BE FOOLED BY THE IMAGE BELOW IT OCCURRED 9 YEARS AGO DURING THE EARLY OBAMA ADMINISTRATION.]
11/25/2020 Biden Urged To Extend U.S.-Russia Arms Treaty For Full 5 Years Without Conditions by Jonathan Landay and Arshad Mohammed
FILE PHOTO: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin shakes hands with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden
during their meeting in Moscow March 10, 2011. REUTERS/Alexander Natruskin/File Photo
    WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Arms control advocates are urging Joe Biden to extend the last U.S.-Russian treaty limiting deployed strategic nuclear arms for five years, but some experts argue the U.S. president-elect should go for a shorter period to maintain leverage over Moscow.
    Upon taking office on Jan. 20, Biden faces an immediate decision on whether to extend the 2010 New START pact, which otherwise expires 16 days later, freeing Washington and Moscow to deploy unlimited numbers of strategic nuclear warheads and the missiles, submarines and bombers to deliver them.
    “Just as dramatic action is needed to combat climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, immediate, smart and bold American leadership is required to reduce the threat of nuclear catastrophe,” two dozen arms control, environmental and other groups wrote in a Nov. 19 letter to Biden’s transition team reviewed by Reuters. To see the letter, click here https://bit.ly/3q0pG0y.
    Many experts fear New START’s demise could fuel a nuclear arms race and intensify U.S.-Russia tensions already at their worst since the Cold War ended in 1991, strained by Russia’s annexation of Crimea, its alleged interference – which Moscow denies – in the 2016 U.S. election, and arms control disputes.
    The treaty’s demise also would end on-site inspections that the world’s two biggest nuclear powers conduct of each other’s forces.    That would cut off a critical source of intelligence used to detect cheating and to give insight into each other’s arsenals to guide spending and force size planning.
    The Biden transition team declined to respond to a request for comment on the letter whose signatories include the Arms Control Association, the Sierra Club, the Council for a Livable World, and the United Methodist Church.
    New START, which entered into force in 2011, can be extended by mutual consent for up to five years.
    The arms control advocates called on Biden to quickly agree to an unconditional five-year extension.
    Biden supports an extension as a “foundation for new arms control arrangements,” but has not said by how long.    Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources close to his transition team said no decision has been made on the duration he will seek.
    “There’s been a debate among some of the advisers about whether a five-year extension is the right move, or doing something shorter makes sense,” said Jon Wolfsthal, former President Barack Obama’s top arms control adviser.
    Those favoring extending the treaty to February 2026 argue that would put its expiration beyond Biden’s four-year term, potentially reducing his leverage to secure a follow-on pact, said Wolfsthal, now at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think tank.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin has long sought an unconditional five-year extension.
    “Extending New START by five years provides the time necessary for the complex negotiations on a follow-on deal,” said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, who coordinated the letter.
    Victoria Nuland, the State Department’s former top diplomat for Europe, wrote in Foreign Affairs this summer that Washington should seek a provisional extension of no more than two years and exact a price from Moscow.
    “The one lesson Putin appears to have learned from the Cold War is that U.S. President Ronald Reagan successfully bankrupted the Soviet Union by forcing a nuclear arms race.    Not wanting Russia to suffer the same fate, he is eager to extend … New START,” she wrote.
    Washington, she wrote, should use Putin’s sense of urgency to tie New START to wider talks on all aspects of military power, including conventional, space and cyberspace.
    The arms control advocates argued that Biden’s administration should announce it will seek a follow-on treaty lowering New START’s limit of 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads and restrictions on their delivery systems.
(Reporting by Jonathan Landay and Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

11/26/2020 European Parliament Says Polish Government Influenced Abortion Ruling
FILE PHOTO: People take part in a protest organized by the Strajk Kobiet (Women's Strike) movement, following a court ruling
imposing a near-total abortion ban, in Warsaw, Poland, November 18, 2020. Kuba Atys/Agencja Gazeta/via REUTERS
    WARSAW (Reuters) – The European Parliament accused Poland’s nationalist government on Thursday of improperly influencing a court that imposed a near-total ban on abortion, and said that showed that the rule of law had collapsed in Poland.
    The head of the court hit back, accusing the European Parliament of “unprecedented” interference in Polish affairs – the latest in a series of clashes between institutions in Warsaw and Brussels.
    Hundreds of thousands of Poles have taken to the streets since an Oct. 22 Constitutional Tribunal ruling that sharply limited Poland’s already restrictive abortion laws.
    The protests have seen a broader outpouring of anger at Poland’s nationalist rulers, with many criticising government judiciary reforms they say have allowed ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party to hand pick judges.
    Since coming to power in 2015, PiS has clashed with the European Union over the judiciary reforms, which the bloc says violate democratic standards.    PiS has rejected such accusations.
    Poland and Hungary vetoed the EU budget and a COVID-19 recovery fund this month, after member states sought to tie the funds to adherence to the rule of law.
    The motion from members of European Parliament described the abortion ruling as “yet another example of the political takeover of the judiciary and the systemic collapse of the rule of law in Poland.”
    “The aforementioned ruling was pronounced by judges elected by and totally dependent on politicians from the PiS (Law and Justice)-led coalition,” it added.
    The resolution called for EU institutions to do more to support sexual and reproductive health rights across member states and to support grassroots and civil society groups that foster the rule of law.
    It passed with 455 votes for, 145 against and 71 abstentions.
    Julia Przylebska, the head of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, accused the European Parliament’s lawmakers of interfering in internal issues.
    “MEPs are entering into the area of the independence of the Constitutional Tribunal … which violates the separation of powers, and thus the foundations of democracy,” she added.
    Poland’s government has not yet published the court ruling on abortion, meaning it is not yet enforceable.    PiS says the government is waiting for the court to provide a more detailed justification.
(Reporting by Joanna Plucinska and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Additional reporting by Anna Koper; Editing by Peter Graff and Andrew Heavens)
[Great Britain got out of the EU knowing what was coming and Poland and Hungary are trying to refuse to do the changes and fighting back and I am wondering when they will try to leave it if the parties can keep their power over them which is continuosly attacking them and could wear them down just like the anti-christian forces in the United States are trying to do by Democrat Party with help from the Globalist DEEP STATE and the D.C. Swamp which could end the dream of America, so I have prayed to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to help us just like we have done to his favorite country Israel.].

11/26/2020 Russia’s Sputnik V Developers Call On AstraZeneca To Try Combining Vaccines
FILE PHOTO: A woman holds a small bottle labeled with a "Coronavirus COVID-19 Vaccine" sticker
and a medical syringe in this illustration taken October 30, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Developers of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine said on Thursday that AstraZeneca should try combining its experimental shot with the Russian one to boost efficacy.
    Russia said its Sputnik V vaccine is 92% effective at protecting people from COVID-19, according to interim trial results, while AstraZeneca said its COVID-19 vaccine was 70% effective in pivotal trials and could be up to 90% effective.
    “If they go for a new clinical trial, we suggest trying a regimen of combining the AZ shot with the #SputnikV human adenoviral vector shot to boost efficacy,” the developers of the Russian vaccine said on their Twitter account.
    “Combining vaccines may prove important for revaccinations.”
    AstraZeneca has said it will have as many as 200 million doses of its vaccine by the end of 2020.
    The British developed vaccine is viewed as offering one of the best hopes for many developing countries because of its cheaper price and ability to be transported at normal fridge temperatures.
    With 2,187,990 infections, Russia has the fourth-largest number of COVID-19 cases in the world behind the United States, India and Brazil.
    AstraZeneca is likely to run an additional global trial to assess the efficacy of its vaccine, its chief executive Pascal Soriot was quoted as saying by Bloomberg News, after questions were raised over the results from its late-stage study.
    The British government’s Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said the main point about the AstraZeneca vaccine was that it worked, when asked about these doubts.
    “The headline result is the vaccine works and that’s very exciting,” Vallance said during a news briefing with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
(Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Alexander Smith)

11/26/2020 Russia Tells Belarus Leader To Press Ahead With Constitutional Reform
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with Belarus' President Alexander
Lukashenko in Minsk, Belarus November 26, 2020. Nikolai Petrov/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s foreign minister told Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday to honour agreements with the Kremlin and press ahead with constitutional reforms to defuse a political crisis after months of protests.
    Lukashenko, who faces calls to step down following an Aug. 9 presidential election which protesters say was rigged, promised during talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sept. 14 that he would reform Belarus’s constitution.
    Lukashenko has denied electoral fraud and secured a lifeline $1.5 billion loan from Moscow, whose political support is vital for him to stay in power.    He later said Belarus could hold new elections once the constitutional reforms had been adopted.
    But political opponents have dismissed Lukashenko’s reform proposal as a stalling tactic, and the reforms have not materialised.
    “As President Putin has repeatedly stressed, we are interested in seeing these initiatives happen,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Lukashenko during a trip to the Belarusian capital, Minsk.
    Lavrov did not say publicly what other initiatives Moscow may like to see.    Russia has long sought closer integration with Belarus but Minsk has resisted, fearing it will be swallowed up by its larger neighbour, which dominated it in Soviet times.     “We of course have an interest in the situation being calm, stable and we think that beginning the constitutional reform initiated by the country’s leadership would contribute to this,” Lavrov said.
    Lavrov told Lukashenko that Moscow was not in contact with the Belarusian opposition and accused the West, which has imposed sanctions on Minsk, for meddling in Belarus.
(Writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Timothy Heritage)

11/26/2020 Russia Should Look Again At Terms Of ISS Participation – Space Industry Official
FILE PHOTO: A Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft carrying crew to the International Space Station (ISS) blasts off from
the launchpad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan September 25, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia should consider revising the terms of its participation in the International Space Station, a Russian space industry executive said on Thursday, because it wants to focus on forming its own orbiting outpost after 2024.
    The Russian space agency, Roscosmos, has said it will remain part of the ISS until 2024 and that it is open to extending its participation beyond then.
    “We have to reconsider the terms of further participation in the (ISS) programme and focus on the implementation of orbital station programmes,” Vladimir Solovyov, deputy head of Rocket and Space Corporation Energia, was quoted as saying by the Scientific Russia internet portal.
    The state-run company oversees the Russian segment of the ISS, which was launched in 1989 by the Russian and U.S. state space agencies.
    Solovyov, who was speaking at a meeting of the Russian Academy of Sciences focusing on space, did not say whether Russia should quit the ISS before 2024.
    He said a lot of the equipment on the ISS was starting to age and that it needed to be replaced.    He said there would be an “avalanche” of broken equipment there after 2025.
    The ISS is used for space and Earth exploration by 14 countries, including Japan, Canada and members of the European Space Agency.     International agreements on its use are valid until 2024.
(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov; Additional reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Timothy Heritage)

11/27/2020 Belarus Leader Says He Will Quit When A New Constitution Is Adopted
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko visits a polling station during the presidential
election in Minsk, Belarus August 9, 2020. Sergei Gapon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday that he would step down as president once a new constitution is adopted and proposed curbing presidential powers as part of the reforms, though he gave no timeline for those moves.
    Lukashenko, who has faced mass protests calling for him to step down since a presidential election on Aug. 9, made the comment a day after Russia’s foreign minister told him to press ahead with constitutional reforms to defuse the crisis.
    “I will not work as president with you under the new constitution,” Lukashenko was quoted as saying by the Belta news agency.
    He said the current constitution needed reforming as too much power was concentrated in the hands of the president and that there would be “trouble” if he handed over the reins now.
    He made the comments at a hospital treating coronavirus patients, where he donned a white hazmat suit and spoke to patients wearing a face mask, but no gloves.
    Russia, a key ally, has publicly backed Lukashenko’s stated intention to reform the constitution, but no proposals have materialised as the political standoff between Lukashenko and his opponents has rumbled on.
    Protesters dismiss the reform promises as a stalling tactic.
    Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Lukashenko on Thursday to honour the reform promise as well as other, unspecified agreements made with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit in September.
    Lukashenko’s actions are being closed watched for clues to what Russia, whose political support is vital for him to stay in power, is pushing him to do.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; additional reporting by Alexander Marrow; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

11/27/2020 Polish And Hungarian PMs Stick To Their Guns On EU Budget Veto
FILE PHOTO: Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki arrives for the fourth day of the
European Council meeting in Brussels, Belgium, July 20, 2020. Stephanie Lecocq/Pool via REUTERS
    WARSAW/BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Poland and Hungary reiterated on Friday that they will block a new European Union budget and coronavirus recovery fund if rule-of-law conditions are attached, raising the risk of a prolonged standoff with Brussels.
    The two countries have said the EU cannot tie funds to the maintenance of democratic standards without changing its founding treaty, digging in their heels after vetoing the EU budget and recovery fund earlier this month.
    They are blocking about 1.8 trillion euros ($2.15 trillion) worth of EU funds, including hundreds of billions due to be disbursed soon to help pull the 27-country bloc out of a double-dip recession caused by a second wave of COVID-19.
    “I … reaffirmed our readiness to veto the new budget if we do not find a solution that is good for the EU as a whole, not just for some of its members,” Morawiecki wrote on his Facebook page after a video call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
    Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said earlier that his country’s position on the veto was “rock-solid,” adding that he did not want to seek a compromise on the rule of law issue.
    The European Union is currently investigating both nationalist governments for undermining the independence of their judiciaries and media.    Brussels has sought to attach conditions to the disbursement of EU cash.
    “Today I told the (German) chancellor that Poland expects further work to find a solution as soon as possible that would guarantee the rights of all Member States and respect treaty procedures,” Morawiecki wrote.
    Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller told state-run news agency PAP on Friday Morawiecki had sent European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen a second letter concerning the attempt to link the funds to rule-of-law concerns.
    European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer confirmed von der Leyen, the EU’s chief executive, had received the letter, and he said the position of the Commission has not changed.
    “We believe that the conditionality mechanism that has been adopted corresponds to the agreement that was found by leaders in July during the European Council,” he said.
    An EU diplomat said after a discussion about the budget among EU ambassadors in Brussels that the situation was “difficult” and that nobody had expressed support for the Polish and Hungarian position.
    “There was no appetite among Ambassadors to change the conditionality mechanism,” the diplomat said.
    Some ambassadors voiced concern that if the blockage is not lifted quickly, this would constitute a fundamental break in the way the EU works and other options would need to be explored, the diplomat added.
($1 = 0.8389 euros)
(Reporting by Alan Charlish and Pawel Florkiewicz in Warsaw, Krisztina Than in Budapest, Gabriela Baczynska, Jan Strupczewski and John Chalmers in Brussels; Editing by Gareth Jones and Catherine Evans)

11/27/2020 Uzbekistan To Repatriate More Citizens From Crowded Syrian Camps, Source Says
FILE PHOTO: Women walk through al-Hol displacement camp in Hasaka governorate, Syria April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho
    TASHKENT (Reuters) – Uzbekistan plans to repatriate another group of its citizens, mostly women and children, from Syria where they are staying at crowded camps with other families of Islamic State fighters, an Uzbek government source told Reuters on Friday.
    A government delegation from Tashkent has visited the Al-Hol and Roj camps in the Kurdish-controlled part of Syria and met over 100 Uzbeks staying there to discuss their return home, the source said.
    Most of those people are women and children under three years of age who “live in deplorable conditions and have difficulties with access to drinking water, food and medical care,” according to the source.
    Kurdish fighters have seized much of northern and eastern Syria from Islamic State and have since held thousands of militants in prisons, while their wives and children – numbering tens of thousands – are living in camps.
    Al-Hol camp alone houses nearly 65,000 people, including about 28,000 Syrians, 30,000 Iraqis and some 10,000 other foreigners of many nationalities, according to U.N. estimates.
    UNICEF said in August eight children had died in al-Hol, where it said children from 60 countries were languishing and COVID-19 infections among camp workers had worsened conditions.
    Thousands of people from the predominantly Muslim region of Central Asia, where Uzbekistan is the most populous nation, are believed to have joined Islamic State, with men often bringing their families along.
    Uzbekistan repatriated 220 women and children from Syria last year who then enrolled in a programme aimed at their rehabilitation, the government has said.
(Reporting by Mukhammadsharif Mamatkulov; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov, Editing by William Maclean)

11/28/2020 Cubans Stake Out Culture Ministry In Unusual Display Of Dissent by Sarah Marsh
Cuban students living in Mexico and other demonstrators protest outside the Cuban Embassy in Mexico City, after Cuban authorities broke up a hunger strike
against curbs on civil liberties in Havana by evicting the protesters from a house, in Mexico City, Mexico, November 27, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Romero
    HAVANA (Reuters) – More than 150 people staked out Cuba’s culture ministry on Friday to show solidarity with dissident artists facing a state crackdown, in an unusually large display of public dissent on the Communist-run island.
    The demonstrators demanded a dialogue over limits on freedom of expression and what they call state repression after the authorities cracked down on the San Isidro Movement of dissident artists and activists.
    The Dutch and Czech governments and Amnesty International, as well as other rights groups, voiced concern on Friday about human rights in Cuba.
    The movement has been protesting the imprisonment of a rapper on charges of contempt, casting a spotlight on the one-party state’s treatment of human rights.    Eight members and allies went on hunger strike 10 days ago.
    Authorities broke up the strike on Thursday, evicting everyone from the movement’s headquarters, citing a violation of COVID-19 health protocols.    The dissidents said this was a pretext to end their protest.
    Fourteen dissidents, including five still on hunger strike, were briefly detained.    They said their phones had been seized and reset, deleting images of the move against them.
    “The way they were already treating them left us constantly uneasy, also like our own freedom was being threatened,” said Yunior Garcia, an actor and one of the organizers of the stakeout.    “But what happened yesterday was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
    The San Isidro Movement, named after the rundown neighborhood in Old Havana where the group has its headquarters, was founded in 2018 to oppose a decree they said increased censorship on the cultural sector.
    The artists, who often use irreverent performances to criticize the government, have faced frequent temporary arrests and other forms of pressure.    The government calls dissidents, including the San Isidro crew, mercenaries directed by the United States to destabilize it.
    Some Cubans reported that social media platforms in the country, where the state has a monopoly on telecommunications, were briefly shut down to prevent news of the raid from being shared online.    Access to several news sites with a focus on Cuba, like the Miami Herald, has also been blocked in recent weeks.
    “They entered by force, breaking the door,” said independent journalist Iliana Hernandez in a video livestreamed on Facebook.    “Many military people dressed as if they were doctors, wearing gowns.”
    The stakeout, starting with two dozen people in the morning, grew to more than 100 as the day went on, including internationally renowned     Cuban artists like Tania Bruguera and filmmakers like Fernando Perez.
    Late into the evening, the protesters said they were refusing to leave until they had met with a high-level official.
    Opposition groups have struggled to gain traction in Cuba, where the government has a monopoly on mass media and usually quickly quashes public shows of dissent.
    But growing access to the internet has enabled groups like the San Isidro Movement to reach a wider audience.
(Reporting by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Tom Brown, Rosalba O’Brien and William Mallard)

11/29/2020 Austrians To Face Further ‘Massive Restrictions’ After Lockdown: Kurz
    ZURICH (Reuters) – Austria should expect further heavy restrictions when its current lockdown measures expire in just over a week, Chancellor Sebastian Kurz told Austrian paper Kleine Zeitung.
    Austria’s nationwide lockdown is due to be lifted on Dec. 7, but it is not yet clear what that will mean for the ski industry – cornerstone of a tourism sector which accounts for some 15% of economic output – or overall life in Austria.
    Speaking to Kleine Zeitung, Kurz said Austrians would need to contend with further restrictions for weeks and months, adding new measures to be announced on Wednesday depended on COVID-19 case developments.The higher the infection numbers, the harder it will be to introduce steps for reopening,” Kurz said in the interview published on Sunday.     “We will have to live with further massive restrictions after December 7.”
    The government aims to begin reopening with trade and schools, he said, while establishing cautious steps towards easing.
    Asked about the potential for a ski season, Kurz told the paper sports and leisure facilities would not be part of the first easing measures, but the government intended to enable more outdoor and individual sports in the foreseeable future.
    “Separate from that is the question of tourism,” he said.
    “What’s already clear, apres-ski will happen at the earliest in one year,” he said, referring to the tradition of a post-ski drink in mountain bars and restaurants.
    France, Italy, Austria and Germany have all ordered even the high-altitude lifts that could be running this early in the winter to remain closed for now in the hope that all resorts can benefit at peak season, if and when the infection rate slows.
(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Editing by Jan Harvey)

11/29/2020 Czech Government To Allow Shops, Restaurants To Reopen From Dec. 3
    PRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech government will allow restaurants and non-essential shops to reopen on Thursday, Dec. 3, as a wave of coronavirus infections eases, Health Mister Jan Blatny said on Sunday.
    The country will move down one notch to level 3 on its 5-level coronavirus risk scale, which means all shops and restaurants can open but must limit customer numbers to allow for social distancing.
    A night-time curfew will be lifted but pubs must close by 10 p.m.    Museums and galleries can open with limited capacity and individual indoor sports activities can resume.
    Groups of up to 50 people may gather outside and 10 inside, from a maximum of 6 anywhere at the moment.
    The government was aware that relaxing the restrictions may slow the improvement in case numbers, but plans to counter this with wider antigen testing, he said.
    “The shorter the period stores are open before Christmas, the higher the concentration of people would be in shops,” he told a news conference.
    Deaths in the country of 10.7 million people reached 8,054 as of Saturday, and total cases 518,649.    The daily number of new cases dropped below 5,000 in six out of the past seven days.
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Raissa Kasolowsky)

11/29/2020 Opposition Calls On Hungary’s Orban To Sack Museum Head For Likening Soros To Hitler
FILE PHOTO: Billionaire investor George Soros speaks to the audience at the
Schumpeter Award in Vienna, Austria June 21, 2019. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – A leading Hungarian opposition party joined calls on Sunday for Prime Minister Viktor Orban to sack the head of a state-funded museum for making extreme anti-Semitic comments likening U.S. financier George Soros to Adolf Hitler.     Nationalist Orban has long vilified Soros, a Hungarian Jew who emigrated after World War Two, as part of a general campaign against immigration.    Orban accuses Brussels of trying to force Hungary to accept migrants under the influence of Soros.
    In an op-ed published on Saturday, Szilard Demeter, who heads the Petofi Literary Museum and serves as a government cultural commissioner, called Soros “the liberal Fuhrer” and wrote that Europe was Soros’ “gas chamber” with “poisonous gas” flowing from the capsule of multicultural open society.
[I like this guys opinion because his eyes are open and not asleep like others.].
    Hungarian Jewish groups including the Federation of Hungarian Jewish Communities called the comments “unforgivable” and “an ugly provocation.”
    The main leftist opposition party the Democratic Coalition called for Demeter’s immediate dismissal.
    “The Democratic Coalition expects from the government that Szilard Demeter should be unemployed by the end of today.    A man like him has no place in public life, not just in a European country but anywhere in the world,” it said.
    The government has not replied to emailed Reuters questions on whether they shared Demeter’s views.
    Referring to a budget row between Poland and Hungary and the European Union, Demeter said Poles and Hungarians were the “new Jews” who were targeted by liberals who tried to expel them from the bloc.
    Poland and Hungary have said they would block a new European Union budget and coronavirus recovery fund if rule-of-law conditions are attached.
    Israel’s embassy tweeted that it utterly rejected “the use and abuse of the memory of the Holocaust for any purpose… There is no place for connecting the worst crime in human history, or its perpetrators, to any contemporary debate, no matter how essential.”
    Soros has been at odds with Orban’s government for years for pouring funds into liberal organisations and institutions in Hungary.    In 2019 the Central European University he founded said it was being forced out of the country by the nationalist government and moved most of its operations to Vienna.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
[Poland and Hungary are the only smart countries in the world who stopped the leftist liberals from taking over their universities before they pushed their values on their students like they have done to the United States universites, so they are smart and president Trump is now trying to fight back from that take over during the 8 years of the Obama administration and in his 4 year administration he has been attacked in every way possible while they let it fester in all the universities in Obama's push the agenda of Globalist policies to overthrow the U.S. and all must understand that George Soros who is a member of the Councel of Foreign Affairs associated with the New World Order or a World Government is forming who is what we call the DEEP STATE and has taken over the Washington D.C. Swamp also and has even reached into the corruption of our voting systems to push a takeover of the president position and the man in the picture above is one of those involved in that action.    So we all are praying to God to help Trump defeat them if not that will tell me that we are definitely in the end times that the Bible reveals.].

11/29/2020 Swiss Looks Set To Dismiss Ban On Funding Of Weapons Makers
FILE PHOTO: A banner reading "Yes to war business initiative" is placed on a railing in Zurich,
Switzerland November 16, 2020. Picture taken November 16, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann
    ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss voters on Sunday looked set to reject a proposal seeking to impose a ban on funding arms makers, the latest anti-military referendum in a nation that hasn’t fought an external war for 200 years, first projections released by broadcaster SRF showed.
    A wide majority of 58% of voters looked set to reject the proposal, which would have implications for major Swiss banks and investors, as well as Swiss industry, initial counts showed.
    The Initiative Against the War Trade proposed banning the central bank and pension funds from holding shares in companies which generate more than 5% of sales from weapons and components.    It would ban banks from lending to defence firms.
(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Editing by Edmund Blair)

11/30/2020 Russia To Keep Ex-Journalist Accused Of Treason In Jail Pending Trial: RIA
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Russian court ruled on Monday that former journalist Ivan Safronov be kept in jail until March pending trial on charges of treason, the RIA news agency reported.
    Safronov, who left journalism and began working at Russia’s space agency in May, was detained by security agents outside his flat on July 7 and accused of passing military secrets to the Czech Republic in 2017. He denies the charge.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Toby Chopra)

11/30/2020 Kremlin Rebuffs Moldovan Idea To Replace Its Troops In Breakaway Region     MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Monday rebuffed an idea backed by Moldova’s incoming president to replace Russian troops stationed in the breakaway region of Transdniestria, saying such a move would be seriously destabilising.
    Russia’s TASS news agency reported earlier that Moldovan president-elect Maia Sandu, who favours closer ties with the European Union, said she supported the idea of replacing Russian peacekeepers in Trandniestria with OSCE civilian monitors.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Toby Chopra)

11/30/2020 In Rebuke To Orban, Merkel Says Rule Of Law Was No Backdoor Addition
FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban address the
media at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, February 10, 2020. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
    BERLIN (Reuters) – Suggestions that a requirement of adherence to the rule of law were introduced into proposals for the next European Union budget secretly, over the objections of some leaders, are not true, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday.
    In an implicit rebuke to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who last week accused the European Parliament of adding a stipulation that payment of EU funds can be frozen if recipient countries do not reach minimum rule of law standards, Merkel said this had been the intention from the very beginning.
    “I do want to make quite clear that the idea that linking conditionality with the budget was brought in by the back door – that is not true,” she told a video conference of legislators from across the continent.
(Reporting by Thomas Escritt and Joseph Nasr; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
[Hungarian PM Orban as you can see your nation needs to get out of the EU who has become nothing more than a puppet for the World Government that George Soros is attacking any country that is not complying with their policy and you need to find a way to protect yourself and it is obviously they are attacking Poland also, just like they have done to Donald Trump in the United States and I have managed to avoid their attacks on my website being available to tell all and I attribute it to the God in heaven is allowing it to stay up for that purpose and if it does disappear that will really let you know what is true.].

11/30/2020 Russia Warns Incoming Moldovan President On Troops Withdrawals In Breakaway Region by Tom Balmforth and Alexander Tanas
FILE PHOTO: Maia Sandu, winner of the second round of a presidential election, attends a
news conference in Chisinau, Moldova November 16, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    MOSCOW/CHISINAU (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Monday rebuffed calls by Moldova’s incoming president, Maia Sandu, for Russian troops to withdraw from the breakaway region of Transdniestria, saying it would be seriously destabilising.
    Sandu, a former World Bank economist who favours closer ties with the European Union, defeated the pro-Russian incumbent Igor Dodon in the second round of Moldova’s presidential election on Nov 15.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin was quick to congratulate Sandu, but Dodon’s defeat marked a setback for the Kremlin in Moldova, a small ex-Soviet republic sandwiched between Ukraine and EU member state Romania.
    Sandu struck a conciliatory tone after her victory but on Monday called for Russian troops in Transdniestria to be removed in favour of civilian monitors under the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
    In response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia expected the authorities in Chisinau to remain constructive.
    “Russia performs a very important function … And of course, a change in some status quo, which is based on the spirit and letter of international law, could lead to serious destabilisation,” Peskov told reporters in Moscow.
SEPARATISTS
    The Russian-speakers of Transdniestria nominally seceded from Moldova in 1990, one year before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, fearing the country might shortly merge with Romania, whose language and culture it broadly shares.
    The separatist region fought a brief war with Moldova in 1992 and declared itself an independent state, though it remains unrecognised by any country, including Russia.
    Some pro-Kremlin hawks still fear that Romania may one day try to absorb Moldova, and that Sandu’s win will inevitably see Russian influence weaken.
    Sandu told a press conference she wanted dialogue, adding: “We are an independent country that does not want foreign troops to stay on its territory.”
    The continued Russian troop presence hobbles Moldova’s chances of joining the European Union.
    Chisinau signed a political and trade deal with the EU in 2014, angering Moscow, though Brussels has also become increasingly critical of Moldova’s track record on reforms and tackling corruption.
(Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Gareth Jones)

11/30/2020 Belarus Police Detained 313 People At Mass Protests On Sunday: Ministry
Belarusian law enforcement officers follow participants of an opposition rally, who demand the resignation of Belarusian
President Alexander Lukashenko and protest against police violence in Minsk, Belarus November 30, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Belarus detained 313 people on Sunday during protests in which thousands marched through Minsk calling for President Alexander Lukashenko to step down, the Belarusian Interior Ministry said.
    Belarus has been in a political crisis since a presidential election in August that the opposition says was rigged.    The authorities deny vote fraud.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

12/2/2020 Russia deploys missiles to Pacific islands claimed by Japan
    MOSCOW – The Russian military on Tuesday announced the deployment of defense missiles to the Pacific islands claimed by Japan. Russia’s Eastern Military District said in a statement that the S-300V4 air defense missile systems have entered combat duty on the Kuril Islands, adding punch to the shorter range Tor M2 missile systems deployed there earlier.    The Russian Defense Ministry’s TV station, Zvezda, reported that the air defense missile systems were deployed on Iturup, one of the four southernmost Kuril Islands.

12/2/2020 Japan Protests Against Russian Missile Deployment On Disputed Islands
FILE PHOTO: Japan's Health, Labour and Welfare Minister Katsunobu Kato attends a news conference at
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's official residence in Tokyo, Japan September 11, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato
    TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s government has lodged a protest after Russia’s military deployed a number of its new S-300V4 missile defence systems for combat duty on a disputed chain of islands near Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said on Wednesday.
    A territorial row over the islands, which the Soviets seized at the end of World War Two, has prevented the two countries from signing a formal peace treaty.    Japan calls the islands the Northern Territories and Russia calls them the Kurils.
(Reporting by Chris Gallagher; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

12/2/2020 Putin Orders Russia To Begin Large-Scale COVID-19 Vaccinations Next Week by Alexander Marrow and Andrey Ostroukh
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a ceremony to launch a new large-scale production facility
at the plant of Bratskchemsyntez drugmaker owned by Pharmasyntez Group, via a video link at the Novo-Ogaryovo
state residence outside Moscow, Russia November 26, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin ordered a large-scale voluntary vaccination programme against COVID-19 to begin next week across Russia, saying teachers and doctors should be first in line to get the country’s flagship Sputnik V vaccine.
    Putin gave the order during an online meeting with ministers on Wednesday, a day when Russia, which has the fourth highest number of recorded infections in the world, registered 589 new daily deaths from the coronavirus.
    Putin said Russia will have produced 2 million vaccine doses within the next few days.
    Sputnik V, one of two Russian-made vaccines to have received domestic regulatory approval so far despite clinical trials being incomplete, requires two injections.    A third vaccine is in also in the works.
    Russia said last month that the Sputnik jab was 92% effective at protecting people from COVID-19 according to interim results.
    “Let’s agree on this – you will not report to me next week, but you will start large-scale vaccination… Let’s get to work already,” Putin told Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova.
    “I understand that you’re using very careful language and it’s absolutely right that we are cautious.    But I know that industry and the (health) network are in general ready. Let’s take this first step.”
    Russia has already vaccinated more than 100,000 high-risk people, Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said during a separate presentation to the United Nations about Sputnik V.
    According to the presentation, more than 45,000 people are currently participating in Sputnik V trials worldwide.
    The rise in infections in Russia has slowed since reaching a high on Nov. 27, with 25,345 new daily cases reported on Wednesday.
    Russia has resisted imposing lockdowns during the second wave of the virus, preferring targeted regional curbs.
‘ABSOLUTE PRIORITY’
    The Kremlin earlier gave assurances that Russians were first in line to be vaccinated, with Moscow also discussing supply deals with other countries.
    “The absolute priority is Russians,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.    “Production within Russia, which is already being developed, will meet the needs of Russians.”
    Authorities in St Petersburg, which reported 3,684 new infections on Wednesday, ordered bars and restaurants to close from Dec. 30 until Jan. 3, to combat the rise in cases there, the RIA news agency reported.
    Museums, theatres and concert halls would be closed to the public in the city of more than 5 million people for the duration of Russia’s New Year holidays, from Dec. 30 to Jan. 10.
    In Moscow, a remote learning period for secondary school students was extended beyond Dec. 6 to the end of the year.
    With 2,347,401 infections, Russia only has fewer COVID-19 cases than the United States, India and Brazil.    It has recorded 41,053 deaths related to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
(Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh, Elena Fabrichnaya, Dmitry Antonov, Tom Balmforth and Polina Nikolskaya, additional reporting by Gleb Stolyarov, Anton Zverev and Anton Kolodyazhnyy; Writing by Alexander Marrow/Andrew Osborn; editing by Angus MacSwan and Nick Macfie)

12/2/2020 Putin Says Opposing Forces In Belarus Need To Resolve Crisis Via Talks by Tom Balmforth and Andrew Osborn
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko before the
Victory Day Parade in Moscow, Russia, June 24, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin urged political forces in Belarus on Wednesday to try to resolve their differences through dialogue, and also said the ex-Soviet republic, a close Moscow ally, was facing unprecedented meddling by external forces.
    Belarus has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election which veteran incumbent Alexander Lukashenko said he won – an assertion contested by his opponents, who say the vote was rigged and want him to quit.
    Russia’s backing is seen as vital for Lukashenko’s chances of staying in power and its statements are closely scrutinised for changes in tone or any sign that Moscow could be pushing for some kind of managed power transition.
    “I really hope the Belarusian people have the political maturity to calmly and without any sharp movements build a domestic political dialogue with all political forces and resolve all its internal questions themselves without any kind of external pressure and outside interference,” Putin told an online meeting of a Russia-led security bloc attended by Lukashenko.
    Russia has ostensibly backed Lukashenko throughout the turmoil, but signs have begun to emerge that it wants him to de-escalate the situation, enter talks with his opponents, and embark on long-promised constitutional reforms, a process that could culminate in him stepping down.
    Lukashenko has so far only spoken of possible change, while using force to quell the continuing large street protests.    Most prominent opposition leaders have been jailed or fled abroad.
    Lukashenko has ruled Belarus, a country of 9.5 million that Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, for 26 years.    He has often played Moscow off against the West to extract political and economic dividends from the Kremlin.
    Russia last week sent its foreign minister to Minsk to tell Lukashenko to press ahead with constitutional reform to defuse the crisis, an initiative the president himself had previously promised but which had stalled.
    The following day, Lukashenko said he would quit as president once a new constitution was adopted but gave no timeline.     Protesters dismiss the reform promises as a stalling tactic.
    Speaking at Wednesday’s online meeting of the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), Lukashenko blamed the unrest on outside meddling, singling out neighbouring Poland and the Baltic states in particular.
    Later, without providing evidence, Lukashenko accused NATO powers of creating a military force to seize territory in the west of Belarus, Russia’s Sputnik Belarus media outlet reported.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Vladimir Soldatkin; additional reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Gareth Jones)

12/4/2020 Montenegro Approves New Coalition, Overturning Three Decades Of Socialist Role
Montenegro's Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapic with members of his cabinet adresses the media after the swearing-in
ceremony at the parliament in Podgorica, Montenegro December 4, 2020. REUTERS/Stevo Vasiljevic

12/5/2020 Moscow Starts Mass COVID-19 Vaccination With Its Sputnik V Shot
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Moscow began distributing the Sputnik V COVID-19 shot via 70 clinics on Saturday, marking Russia’s first mass vaccination against the disease, the city’s coronavirus task force said.
    The task force said the Russian-made vaccine would first be made available to doctors and other medical workers, teachers and social workers because they ran the highest risk of exposure to the disease.
    “You are working at an educational institution and have top-priority for the COVID-19 vaccine, free of charge,” read a phone text message received by one Muscovite, an elementary school teacher, early on Saturday and seen by Reuters.
    Moscow, the epicentre of Russia’s coronavirus outbreak, registered 7,993 new cases overnight, up from 6,868 a day before and well above the daily tallies of around 700 seen in early September.
    “Over the first five hours, 5,000 people signed up for the jab – teachers, doctors, social workers, those who are today risking their health and lives the most,” Mayor Sergei Sobyanin wrote on his personal website on Friday.
    The age for those receiving shots is capped at 60. People with certain underlying health conditions, pregnant women and those who have had a respiratory illness for the past two weeks are barred from vaccination.
    Russia has developed two COVID-19 vaccines, Sputnik V which is backed by the Russian Direct Investment Fund and another developed by Siberia’s Vector Institute, with final trials for the both yet to be completed.
    Scientists have raised concerns about the speed at which Russia has worked, giving the regulatory go-ahead for its vaccines and launching mass vaccinations before full trials to test its safety and efficacy had been completed.
    The Sputnik V vaccine is administered in two injections, with the second dose is expected to be given 21 days after the first.
    Moscow closed down all public places including parks and cafes, with exception for delivery, in late March, with police patrolling the streets looking for whose violating the rules.    Restrictions were eased from mid-June, however.
    Russia as a whole reported 28,782 new infections on Saturday, its highest daily tally, pushing the national total to 2,431,731, the fourth-highest in the world.
    In October, certain restrictions such as remote learning for some secondary school children and a 30% limit on the number of workers allowed in offices were introduced again.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Pravin Char)

12/5/2020 Hungary, Poland Risk Exclusion From EU Recovery Fund: French Minister
FILE PHOTO: France's Europe minister, Clement Beaune, wearing a protective face mask, leaves following a weekly
Cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, July 29, 2020. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
    PARIS (Reuters) – The European Union will leave Poland and Hungary out of its economic recovery plan if the two countries continue to resist efforts to link the disbursement of 1.8 trillion euros of funds with rule-of-law provisions, a French cabinet minister said.
    European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said such a move was legally complex, but possible.
    “Our position is clear: we will not sacrifice either the recovery or the rule of law,” Beaune told the Journal du Dimanche.    “There is no question of reviewing the mechanism which links the two.”
    Hungary and Poland have for weeks blocked the release of funds from the EU’s seven-year budget and a post-COVID-19 development fund, cash sorely needed by member states trying to emerge from their coronavirus-induced recession.
    Beaune said the two eastern members of the bloc stood to lose billions of euros in financing if they dug their heels in.
    “It’s not a threat but the direct consequence of the absence of a new budget if they maintain their veto on the package,” he said.
(Reporting by Richard Lough; Editing by Chris Reese)

12/5/2020 Fiscal Reform, Corruption In Focus In Romania Parliamentary Election by Radu-Sorin Marinas
FILE PHOTO: Romanian interim PM Ludovic Orban delivers a speech before a no-confidence vote session in
the Romanian Parliament in Bucharest, Romania February 5, 2020. Inquam Photos/George Calin via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romanians head to the polls on Sunday in a national ballot key to restoring the country’s reputation among investors, with the incumbent, reform-oriented centrists of Prime Minister Ludovic Orban holding a narrow lead over opposition Social Democrats.
    In power for a year in spite of his opponents’ hold over parliament, Orban, 57, has said he would undo a 40% pension hike ordered by the leftist PSD, which economists say could bloat the deficit to 11% of GDP and push Romania’s credit rating to junk.
    He has pledged to halt efforts by leftist-led cabinets to sap court independence amid the judiciary’s scrutiny of alleged corruption and misuse of funds – accusations the PSD denies.
    Orban has campaigned on a promise to bring the Black Sea state closer to the European mainstream following years of fiscal populism and political instability coupled with neglect of rundown infrastructure and public services.
    “There is a decisive choice to make on Dec. 6: We can become a top EU member or remain, again, a laggard,” Orban told party members during the campaign.    “I’m not happy with an average Romania.”
    The Romanian leu has traded near all-time lows against the euro in the last year, following a string of corruption-related scandals that has toppled three governments since the last parliamentary election in 2016.
    All three main rating agencies have Romania only one notch above junk and on a negative outlook.
    Seeking re-election one year after the government it led stepped down in a no-confidence vote, the PSD has clawed back support in recent months, amid anxiety among its core rural electorate over Orban’s fiscal conservatism.
    The coronavirus pandemic has also fuelled anger over social distancing restrictions that have hit thousands of small farmers who sell their produce in nearby cities.
    More than 18 million Romanians are eligible to cast a vote, but analysts expect turnout of about 40% due to voters’ fear of contagion, with polls due to open at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT) and close at 9 p.m.
    Opinion polls give Orban’s PNL about 28-30% of the vote and 24-26% for the PSD.    A September poll put PNL at 35% against PSD’s 20%.
    If it wins on Sunday, the PNL is expected to seek a governing coalition with progressive USR-Plus party, running on 15-17%.
    With a year-on-year contraction of 6.0% in the third quarter, Romania’s economic performance was among the worst in the European Union during the pandemic, although the PNL says it has sought to keep much of the economy open.
    “As all countries have found, it is immensely difficult to strike a balance between keeping people safe and protecting livelihoods,” Siegfried Mure?an, a PNL member of the European Parliament said.
    The PSD blamed the government, however, for going too far, by shutting indoor farmers’ markets during the cold winter time.
    “You need to vote to rescue yourself,” PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu said on his Facebook page.    “Romanians want a government to stop this virus and bring back hope, reopen schools, create safe jobs and decent pensions.”
(Editing by Ros Russell)

12/6/2020 Thousands Of Anti-Lukashenko Protesters March In Belarus, Dozens Detained
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting with Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian
Economic Commission Mikhail Myasnikovich? in Minsk, Belarus November 30, 2020. Maxim Guchek/BelTA/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Thousands of demonstrators marched in the Belarus capital Minsk and elsewhere on Sunday as weekly protests demanding the resignation of veteran President Alexander Lukashenko continued, prompting police to detain more than 100 people.
    Belarus, a country of 9.5 million that Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election which Lukashenko said he won. His opponents claim the vote was rigged and want him to quit.
    Most protesters marched in remote residential areas of the capital, clapping hands, shouting “long live Belarus” and waving white flags with a red stripe in the middle, a symbol of the opposition.
    “This (protest) does work as it is impossible to rule the country when the majority does not accept you.    With protests we are showing that we are the majority,” said one of the protesters Alisa, 21.
    Lukashenko, who has been in power for 26 years, has shrugged off the scale of protests, saying they are sponsored by the West, and shown little signs of willingness to start a dialogue with the opposition.
    Military vehicles and water cannon were seen on Minsk streets on Sunday, while uniformed men, many in helmets, grabbed people in civilian clothes, a witness aid and videos posted on social media showed.
    The Belarusian Viasna-96 (Spring-96) rights group said at least 100 people had been detained across the country as of Sunday afternoon.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged political forces in Belarus to try to resolve differences through dialogue, and also said the ex-Soviet republic, a close Moscow ally, was facing unprecedented meddling by external forces.
    Russia’s backing is seen as vital for Lukashenko’s chances of staying in power and its statements are closely scrutinised for changes in tone or any sign that Moscow could be pushing for some kind of managed power transition.
(Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Nick Macfie)

12/6/2020 Romanian PM Claims Election Win But One Exit Poll Differs by Radu-Sorin Marinas and Luiza Ilie
FILE PHOTO: Romanian interim PM Ludovic Orban delivers a speech before a no-confidence vote session in the
Romanian Parliament in Bucharest, Romania February 5, 2020. Inquam Photos/George Calin via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban claimed victory in Sunday’s national election seen as pivotal for the country’s future in the European mainstream, although one exit poll showed his ruling Liberals (PNL) losing by a narrow margin.
    A reform-minded fiscal conservative, Orban is expected to get the nomination to form the government, most likely with the small centrist USR-Plus grouping, from President Klaus Iohannis, even if final results show him slightly behind his rivals, the leftist PSD.
    He quickly claimed victory, with one exit poll conducted by INSOMAR giving him a narrow lead of 32% versus the PSD’s 28%.    Another exit poll by Curs-Avantgarde put the PSD at 30.5% and the PNL at 29.0%.    Both showed the USR-Plus at roughly 16%.
    Partial official results were expected on Monday morning, and updated exit polls were due later on Sunday, with those released initially including votes cast until 1700 GMT, two hours before polls closed.
    “The PNL thinks it is the winner of this election,” Orban told supporters in a quick speech.
    He has pledged to overturn years of efforts by a succession of leftist governments to suppress the independence of courts – a charge they denied.    Critics had compared them to judiciary overhauls in Poland and Hungary the European Commission says subvert the rule of law.
    In power for a year until now, Orban had been constrained in any reform efforts by a parliament controlled by the PSD, which has seen three prime ministers toppled since the last legislative election in 2016 amid infighting over jobs.
    The party’s last government collapsed in late 2019, following the imprisonment of former leader Liviu Dragnea on corruption charges.
PANDEMIC FEARS
    Campaigning on a promise to bring Romania closer to the European mainstream, Orban has pledged to restore investor sentiment badly shaken by the PSD’s fiscal populism and revive efforts to repair neglected infrastructure and public services.
    The PSD had seen a last-minute rise in polls, after it accused him of botching Romania’s approach to the coronavirus pandemic.
    With a six-percent annual contraction in the third quarter, Romania had one of the worst economic outcomes in the EU.
    The party’s core rural electorate was angry over social distancing restrictions that curbed the ability of small-plot farmers to sell their produce in nearby cities.
    “Romanians sanctioned the mockery that was (Orban’s) handling of the pandemic,” PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu said.
    Turnout was the lowest since Romania shed communism in a bloody revolt in 1989, with decades of voter apathy over failed reforms compounded by fears over coronavirus contagion in voting stations.
    There were few new rules introduced for election day, but Romania has had one of the highest death rates in the EU.    Schools and restaurants remain closed and an evening curfew was imposed in November.
(Writing by Justyna Pawlak; editing by Giles Elgood and Nick Macfie)

12/6/2020 Romania’s PM Orban Says Centrists Win Parliament Election
FILE PHOTO: Romanian interim PM Ludovic Orban delivers a speech before a no-confidence vote session in
the Romanian Parliament in Bucharest, Romania February 5, 2020. Inquam Photos/George Calin via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romania’s ruling centrist National Liberal Party (PNL) is the winner of the Dec. 6 parliamentary election, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Sunday.
    “The PNL thinks it is the winner of this election,” Orban said immediately after the exit polls.
(Reporting by Radu Marinas; Editing by Giles Elgood)

12/6/2020 Incoming Moldovan President Rallies Supporters To Demand Snap Parliamentary Vote by Alexander Tanas
Moldovan President-elect Maia Sandu flashes the victory sign as she addresses supporters during a rally to demand the government to resign
and to hold early parliamentary elections, near the Government House in Chisinau, Moldova December 6, 2020. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza
    CHISINAU (Reuters) – Thousands of supporters of incoming Moldovan president Maia Sandu rallied in Chisinau on Sunday to demand a snap parliamentary election, accusing parliament of trying to sabotage her ability to fight corruption.
    Sandu, a former World Bank economist who favours closer ties with the European Union, defeated the pro-Moscow incumbent Igor Dodon in a run-off vote last month but will share power with a parliament and government run by lawmakers aligned with Dodon.
    The eastern European country of 3.5 million, where the West and Russia vie for influence, has been rocked in recent years by instability and corruption scandals, including the disappearance of $1 billion from the banking system.
    Sandu’s supporters protested after parliament on Thursday hastily pushed through a law to strip her of control of the intelligence service.
    The move was backed by the Socialist party, which Dodon used to lead and is the largest in parliament, and the party of Ilan Shor, a businessman convicted of fraud and money-laundering in connection to the $1 billion bank scandal.
    Shor denies wrongdoing and is fighting an appeal against his conviction.
    “This majority adopts laws that strip the powers of the president so that we cannot fight corruption and thieves.    These laws are intended to preserve the criminal schemes of thieves,” Sandu said at Sunday’s rally.
    “We will go to the end until we cleanse the country of corrupt officials.”
    Waving Moldovan flags and shouting “to prison” and “resign,” the protesters called for parliament to be dissolved and Sandu to set the date for a snap election.
    Parliament also passed legislation at the first reading that would give special status to the Russian language, which is widely spoken alongside Romanian in the country that borders Ukraine and EU member state Romania.    It also lifted restrictions on broadcasting Russian TV channels.
    Separately on Sunday, hundreds of farmers parked tractors and combine harvesters on the outskirts of Chisinau to protest a hike in value added tax (VAT) in the government’s 2021 budget.
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas, Writing by Matthias Williams; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

12/6/2020 Cracks Showing In Polish Ruling Coalition Over EU Budget Veto by Alan Charlish
FILE PHOTO: European Union flags flutter outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, January 18, 2018. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir
    WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland’s ruling coalition appeared to be descending into open conflict on Sunday, the eve of a make-or-break week for the European Union’s 1.8 trillion euro ($2.2 trillion) 2021-2027 budget and coronavirus recovery fund.
    Poland and Hungary, both under investigation by the EU over their push to curb judicial and media freedoms, are blocking the financial package over a clause linking access to the cash to respect for the rule of law.
    Matters are set to come to a head this week, with the deadline for agreeing the 2021 budget due on Monday, and an EU summit taking place three days later.
    Divisions in Warsaw’s ruling coalition over its veto of the package have blown into the open in recent days.
    On Sunday, Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Gowin, leader of Accord, a centrist junior partner in the ruling United Right coalition, said his party supported all efforts to find a good compromise.
    “The veto is the last resort,” he told the Super Express tabloid.
    Gowin had said on Thursday that Poland would be ready to drop its veto if EU leaders endorsed an explanatory declaration on the link between EU funds and the rule of law, but the next day Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the country’s position had not changed.
    His remarks also drew a rebuke from President Andrzej Duda’s top aide, Krzysztof Szczerski, who told state-run news agency PAP in an interview published on Sunday that only Morawiecki should communicate Poland’s position.
RIVAL CAMPS
    Gowin’s position was in stark contrast to the uncompromising stance of the other junior coalition partner, the arch-conservative United Poland, led by Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro.
    Ziobro has warned of the dangers of being soft in negotiations with the EU, saying that anything other than a veto would result in a loss of confidence in Morawiecki, a member of Law and Justice (PiS), the largest party in the ruling coalition.
    Many religious conservatives in Poland say the rule of law mechanism could be a first step in forcing Poland to accept liberal policies like gay marriage.
    On Sunday, Gowin criticised United Poland’s position, saying the veto would undermine Poland’s economic interests.
    United Poland lawmaker and Deputy Minister of State Assets Janusz Kowalski hit back in a text message to Reuters saying: “We don’t get anything for free from anyone. United Poland knows how to count.”
    Meanwhile, private broadcaster TVN24 reported that the mayors of Warsaw and Budapest had written a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemning their countries’ stance.
($1 = 0.8251 euros)
(Reporting by Alan Charlish, additional reporting by Anna Koper; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
[It is obvious that the EU is dangling money to sway the Poland and Hungary to change, I think they should split from it to avoid their future punishment by the God that they believe in.].

12/7/2020 Romanian Leftist Social Democrats Lead In Parliamentary Vote-Parallel Count
FILE PHOTO: Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban walks on the Promenade Marie de Roumanie
in Paris, France, October 27, 2020. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Pool
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romania’s opposition Social Democrats (PSD) won Sunday’s general election, a preliminary parallel count showed on Monday, riding a wave of voter discontent over the coronavirus pandemic and the minority Liberal government’s vows of fiscal restraint.
    A parallel count by independent platform Code for Romania showed that the leftist Social Democrats won 29.7% of votes and the centrist Liberals of Prime Minister Ludovic Orban 25.57% with roughly 96% of ballots counted.    The count does not include roughly 265,000 votes cast in the diaspora.
    The centrist alliance USR-Plus, a likely coalition partner for the Liberals won 15.5% of votes.    The next parliament looks set to only have five parties, including ethnic Hungarian UDMR and the newcomer Alliance for Uniting Romanians, an ultranationalist grouping.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Kim Coghill)

12/7/2020 Romanian Leftist Social Democrats Take Lead In Parliamentary Vote by Luiza Ilie
Leaders of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) react to the publication of the first exit polls of the
legislative election, in Bucharest, Romania December 6, 2020. Inquam Photos/Sabin Cirstoveanu via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romania’s opposition Social Democrats (PSD) have taken the lead in Sunday’s national election, seen as pivotal for the country’s future in the European mainstream, according to a preliminary independent count, but are unlikely to form the next government.
    The PSD, which rode a wave of voter discontent over the coronavirus pandemic and the minority Liberal government’s pledges of fiscal restraint, will struggle to form a functioning majority against incumbent Prime Minister Ludovic Orban.
    President Klaus Iohannis, an ally of the Liberals who gets to nominate the prime minister, has said repeatedly that he will task Orban with forming a centre-right coalition government to rein in a ballooning budget deficit and restore the European Union member state’s credibility among foreign investors.
    Orban himself claimed victory on Sunday evening after exit polls showed the outcome was too close to call.
    A parallel count by independent platform Code for Romania showed early on Monday that the PSD had won 29.7% of votes and the Liberals 25.57% with roughly 96% of ballots counted.
    The count does not include roughly 265,000 votes cast in the Romanian diaspora.
    The centrist alliance USR-Plus, a likely coalition partner for the Liberals, won 15.5% of votes.
FEWER PARTIES IN PARLIAMENT
    The next parliament looks set to only have five parties, including ethnic Hungarian UDMR and the newcomer Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR), an ultranationalist grouping.
    Partial official results will be released later on Monday.
    Parliamentary seat redistributions will change the final percentages and favour the largest parties, but analysts said the Liberals and USR-Plus would probably need to co-opt another grouping in parliament to gain a majority.
    “It is a weak result for the Liberal Party,” said Sergiu Miscoiu, a professor of political science at Babes-Bolyai University.    “The more parties it needs to form a coalition the more complicated the compromises it will have to make.”
    Turnout was the lowest since the 1989 fall of communism, with decades of voter apathy over failed reforms compounded by fears over coronavirus contagion in polling stations.
    The EU would welcome a government led by Orban, after years of efforts by a succession of PSD Romanian cabinets to suppress the independence of the courts – a charge they denied – that mirrored overhauls of the judiciary in Poland and Hungary.
    Orban also campaigned on a promise to bring Romania closer to the EU mainstream following years of fiscal populism, political instability and neglect of rundown infrastructure and public services.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Gareth Jones)

12/7/2020 Hungary And Poland Stick To EU Budget Veto, Hungarian Minister Says
FILE PHOTO: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki deliver joint statements during their
meeting in Budapest, Hungary, November 26, 2020. Zoltan Fischer/Hungarian Prime Minister's Press Office/Handout via REUTERS /File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) -Hungary and Poland are upholding their veto of the next European Union budget and a coronavirus recovery fund, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said after meeting his Polish counterpart in Brussels on Monday.
    “We have affirmed that we stand by each other,” Szijjarto said in a Facebook video.    “We will not give room to any effort aiming to break up this co-operation.”
    Warsaw and Budapest, both under EU scrutiny for undermining judicial and media independence, are blocking the budget and the recovery fund because they object to making the money conditional on respect for the rule of law and democratic norms.
    Poland’s deputy foreign minister, Pawel Jablonski, told private broadcaster Polsat News his country had not changed its stance either.
    “… the prime minister made it very clear that we would not agree to any solutions that would not guarantee respecting our rights, would not give us a guarantee that we are safe, that the rights that are set out in the EU treaty are respected,” he said.
    “If there is an agreement that guarantees these rights, then we will agree.    A veto is a tool,” he added.
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Additional reporting by Anna Koper in Warsaw; Editing by Toby Chopra and Alison Williams)

12/8/2020 Romanian PM Orban Resigns, His Party Hopes To Stay In Govt by Luiza Ilie and Radu-Sorin Marinas
Leaders of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) react to the publication of the first exit polls of the
legislative election, in Bucharest, Romania December 6, 2020. Inquam Photos/Sabin Cirstoveanu via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romanian prime minister Ludovic Orban resigned on Monday after his Liberal party lost Sunday’s parliamentary election, but his centrist camp appeared in pole position to form a coalition government against the victorious opposition leftists.
    In a vote seen as pivotal for the country’s future in the European mainstream, the left-wing opposition PSD failed to win enough support to form a functioning majority against Orban.
    The PSD has battled accusations of fiscal populism and of making efforts to force courts to protect party faithful suspected of corruption.
    With 95% of polling stations counted, the PSD had won just under 30% of votes for both houses of parliament, while Liberals got 25%. The centrist alliance USR-Plus, a likely coalition partner for the Liberals, won 15%.
    That meant the centrists had the best chance to form a functioning government coalition, President Klaus Iohannis, a Liberal ally, told reporters.
    Orban, a reform-oriented fiscal conservative, said he would still work towards building a coalition.
    “I’ve done my best, we’ve done our best,” he said.
    Under Romanian law, the president nominates a prime minister following an election and any necessary coalition talks, and can bypass the winning party if it fails to secure an outright majority.    Iohannis said he would convene party seniors soon.
    The PSD rode a wave of voter discontent over the coronavirus pandemic and the minority Liberal government’s pledges of fiscal restraint, despite growing anger among many voters over neglected infrastructure and public services.
    Economists say its fiscal largesse has brought Romania to the brink of losing its investment grade status and has failed to produce much improvement in its health service, one of the worst in Europe.
    The PSD’s last cabinet collapsed in 2019 following the imprisonment of former party leader Liviu Dragnea on corruption charges, although the party retained its control of the legislature whie Orban was in a government.
COALITION MATH
    Parliamentary seat redistributions may change the final result, boosting groupings proportionally, and analysts said the Liberals and USR-Plus would probably need to co-opt at least one other grouping to gain a majority, raising the prospect of difficult negotiations over key portfolios and policies.
    The USR-Plus has said they plan to propose former European Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos, the Europe Renew group president in the European parliament, as their first choice for premier during consultations with Iohannis.
    The next parliament looks set to have only five parties, including the ethnic Hungarian UDMR and the newcomer Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR), an ultra-nationalist grouping formed a year ago which won 9% of votes.
    Leaders of the Liberals, USR-Plus and UDMR said on Sunday they favoured a centre-right coalition government.    Most clearly ruled out negotiations with the Social Democrats.
    “While PNL and USR-PLUS might have some challenges in aligning their policy positions … the two parties share a vision on general macro-economic policies.    Overall, the outlook for government stability is positive,” said Andrius Tursa of Teneo consultants.
    The EU would welcome a government led by PNL, after years of efforts by a succession of PSD Romanian cabinets failed to persuade Brussels that they were serious about combating endemic graft.    The PSD denies charges of any wrongdoing.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie and Radu-Sorin Marinas; Editing by Hugh Lawson, William Maclean)

12/8/2020 Putin Signs Law Allowing Russian Legislation To Trump International Treaties
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a session of the Artificial Intelligence Journey conference via a video
link at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia December 4, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Tuesday allowing Russia’s national legislation precedence over international treaties and rulings from international bodies in cases when they conflict with the Russian constitution.
    The Kremlin has said that all Russia’s obligations under international treaties remain in force and that Moscow remains fully committed to international law.
    But the legislation has caused concern among some rights advocates in Russia, where hundreds of people appeal to the European Court of Human     Rights every year seeking justice that they say they have been denied at home.
    Putin first proposed the reform during his state-of-the-nation address in January.
    It is one of an array of legal and constitutional amendments adopted this year including one allowing Putin to run again for president two more times when his current term comes to an end in 2024.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Timothy Heritage)

12/8/2020 Uzbekistan Repatriates 98 People From Syrian Camps
People disembark from a plane upon their arrival from Syria at an airport in Tashkent, Uzbekistan December 8, 2020.
Uzbekistan brought home women and children from Syria where they had been staying at camps with other families of Islamic
State fighters, according to Uzbek authorities. Government of Uzbekistan/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS
- THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT. BLURRING FROM SOURCE.
    TASHKENT (Reuters) – Uzbekistan brought home 25 women and 73 children on Tuesday from Syria where they had been staying at camps with other families of Islamic State fighters, the Tashkent government said.
    A government source said last month dozens of ethnic Uzbeks remained in the Al-Hol and Roj camps in the Kurdish-controlled part of Syria “in deplorable conditions.”
    Kurdish fighters have seized much of northern and eastern Syria from Islamic State and have since held thousands of militants in prisons, while their wives and children – numbering tens of thousands – are living in camps.
    UNICEF said in August eight children had died in al-Hol, where it said children from 60 countries were languishing and COVID-19 infections among camp workers had worsened conditions.
    Thousands of people from the predominantly Muslim Central Asia, where Uzbekistan is the most populous nation, are believed to have joined Islamic State, with men often bringing their families along.
    While many Western countries stall over returning their citizens, fearing possible attacks, Uzbekistan repatriated 220 women and children from Syria last year.    There have been no recent reports on their whereabouts.
    It said on Tuesday the new returnees would first enter a medical facility and then get help with jobs and accommodation.
    “The necessary conditions will be created for them to return to a peaceful life and fully adapt to society,” It did not say where they would live.
(Reporting by Mukhammadsharif Mamatkulov; writing by Olzhas Auyezov; editing by Philippa Fletcher)

12/9/2020 Albanians Protest After Police Shot Dead A Man For Violating Coronavirus Curfew
A person runs in Skanderbeg square during a protest in reaction to the death of Klodian Rasha, after he was
shot dead during the country's overnight curfew, in Tirana, Albania, December 9, 2020. REUTERS/Florion Goga
    TIRANA (Reuters) – Police used tear gas late on Wednesday to disperse hundreds of Albanians protesting the killing by police of a young man who authorities said had violated an overnight curfew imposed to halt the spread of the coronavirus.
    A 25-year-old man identified by Albanian media as Klodian Rasha was killed early on Tuesday in what police described as an excessive use of force by an officer during a curfew introduced to prevent the surge of COVID-19 cases.
    The police had first said that Rasha failed to obey a police officer’s order to stop and that he had carried a weapon.    But later the police said the man was holding an object but not a weapon, as initially reported.
    Protesters who were demanding the resignation of the interior minister threw objects at his ministry and set Christmas trees on fire as police used tear gas to disperse the crowd, a Reuters witness said.
    Two police officers and a journalist were reported slightly injured.
    The police officer who allegedly killed the man was arrested and an investigation was launched.
    “The police officer did not act according to the law while using his firearm,” Albanian police said in a statement.
    Albanian government has introduced different measures, including a curfew, to prevent rising number of COVID-19 infections.
(Reporting by Florion Goga, writing by Fatos Bytycy, editing by Daria Sito-Sucic and)

12/9/2020 Russian Citizen Charged With Espionage In Denmark, Moscow Cries Foul
FILE PHOTO: Denmark's national flag flutters in Copenhagen, Denmark, October 22, 2019. REUTERS/Andreas Mortensen/File Photo
    COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – A Russian citizen in Denmark has been charged with espionage for providing information about Danish energy technology to Russia, Danish authorities said on Wednesday, prompting a strongly-worded response from Moscow.
    The Russian, whose name, age and gender was not released, is suspected of providing “information about, among other things, Danish energy technology to a Russian intelligence service” for payment, the Danish prosecution service said in a statement.
    The Russian embassy in Copenhagen said it considered the actions by the Danish prosecutor “a mistake” and called for impartiality in the justice process.
    It said it hoped “our compatriot” would be acquitted in court and freed.
    The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement characterising the arrest and investigation as “anti-Russian hysteria on the part of Copenhagen."
    “Such groundless accusations resemble a witch-hunt,” it said.
    The ministry added that it hoped “justice … will prevail.”
    The case is connected to a larger investigation conducted by the Danish Security and Intelligence Service.
    The district court of Aalborg will handle the case but has yet to set a date for the proceedings, the prosecution service said, adding that the Russian, who has been in custody since early July, faced possible imprisonment and deportation.
(Reporting by Nikolaj Skydsgaard in Copenhagen and Tom Balmforth in Moscow; additional reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Alex Richardson and Timothy Heritage)

12/9/2020 Don’t Mix Sputnik Vaccine With Alcohol, Says Russian Official. Some Recoil by Polina Nikolskaya and Andrew Osborn
A vial with Sputnik V (Gam-COVID-Vac) vaccine is pictured during the vaccination against the coronavirus
disease (COVID-19) at a clinic in Moscow, Russia December 5, 2020. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – A health official’s warning that anyone getting vaccinated against COVID-19 with Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine should give up alcohol for almost two months has caused a backlash among some Russians who call the request unreasonable.
    Anna Popova, head of the consumer health watchdog, told the Komsomolskaya Pravda radio station on Tuesday that people should stop drinking alcohol at least two weeks before getting the first of two injections.    They should continue to abstain for a further 42 days, she advised.
    Sputnik V, licenced under an accelerated process before the end of clinical trials, has been given to doctors, soldiers, teachers and social workers in the first instance with a large-scale nationwide roll out due to begin this week.    There are 21 days between the two Russian vaccine jabs.
    “This really bothers me,” said Elena Kriven, a Moscow resident.    “I’m unlikely to not be able to drink for 80 days and I reckon the stress on the body of giving up alcohol, especially during what is a festive period, would be worse than the (side effects of the) vaccine and its alleged benefits,” she said.
    Kriven was referring to the main New Year public holiday.    Many Russians will spend the first 10 days of 2021 relaxing at home or abroad, a period associated with higher alcohol use.
    Russians are among the heaviest drinkers in the world, though consumption has fallen sharply since 2003.
    Popova warned alcohol would reduce the body’s ability to build up immunity to COVID-19.
    “It’s a strain on the body.    If we want to be healthy and have a strong immune response, don’t drink alcohol,” she said.
    Her advice was contradicted by Alexander Gintsburg, the vaccine’s developer.    The Sputnik V Twitter channel on Wednesday published his very different advice above an image of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio raising a glass of champagne.
    “One glass of champagne won’t hurt anyone, not even your immune system,” said Gintsburg.
    He said it would be prudent to reduce alcohol use by a reasonable amount while the body built up immunity, but said there was no need to give up completely.
    It was crucial however, he said, to refrain from alcohol three days before and after the two injections required.    He said such advice was the same for anyone getting vaccinated around the world and not specific to Russia or Sputnik.
    The topic generated lively discussion on social media.
    “You should have spoken (about alcohol reduction) in the first place,” wrote one Facebook user, Pavel Goriachkin.    “It’s absolutely impossible for most people in our country.”
    Another user, Konstantin Roninyo, wrote:
    “Even I won’t sign up for this despite drinking rarely.    Having a drink at New Year is sacred!”
    Others said the contradictory advice and their own experience showed there was no need to follow Popova’s recommendations.
    “I boozed like there was no tomorrow between the first and second jabs,” said one Moscow resident, who didn’t want to be identified.    “And I’ve got antibodies coming out of my ears.”

12/9/2020 Russian Police Hunt Thieves Who Plundered Top Secret ‘Doomsday Plane’
Ilyushin Il-80, Russian military aircraft modified from the Ilyushin Il-86 airliner, known
as the Doomsday Plane, is seen in Moscow region, Russia February 9, 2012. REUTERS/Artyom Anikeev
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Russia said on Wednesday they were searching for thieves who plundered technical equipment from a top-secret military aircraft known as the Doomsday Plane that is designed for use during a nuclear war.
    The robbery, which raises questions about the security of sensitive military-related installations, took place as maintenance work was being carried out on the Ilyushin Il-80 plane.
    The aircraft was modified from a Soviet jet airliner during the late Cold War to serve as an aerial command post for top officials to control their troops during a crisis.
    The theft came to light earlier this week in reports by Russian media, including the REN TV channel, which said signs of a break-in via the cargo hatch had been spotted last Friday and that 39 electronic units had been removed.
    Police in the southern region of Rostov said in a statement that a search for the culprits was under way.    They have not reported any arrests so far.
    Police said the aircraft had been at an aerodrome in the city of Taganrog, but gave no details about the nature of the stolen equipment except for its estimated worth — more than 1 million roubles ($13,600)
    Russian military experts speculated that the items had been stolen because some of the units had been assembled using precious metals such as gold and platinum.
    The incident comes after President Vladimir Putin ploughed vast funds into overhauling the Russian military amid tensions with the West that are at their highest since the end of the Cold War.
    The Kremlin said measures would be taken to stop such a theft occurring again.
($1 = 73.6250 roubles)
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/9/2020 Majority In Swedish Parliament Backs ‘NATO Option’ After Sweden Democrats Shift
FILE PHOTO: A camouflaged tracked carrier sits by a snowdrift during the Northern Wind exercise conducted by Swedish Army in
cooperation with allied armies, in the north-eastern part of Sweden, March 22, 2019. TT News Agency/Naina Helen Jaama via REUTERS
    STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – A Swedish parliamentary majority in favour of readiness to join NATO as a possible security policy option has emerged for the first time after the far-right Sweden Democrats party shifted position on the military alliance.
    However, the government, which decides foreign and security policies, remained opposed to adopting such a “NATO option.”
    The introduction of a “NATO option” would not mean Sweden would apply for membership of the U.S.-led Western alliance but rather that Sweden would consider it down the road if deemed necessary for security.
    The Sweden Democrats, better known for their anti-immigrant positions, said they still oppose NATO membership as such, but now favour taking on such an option in order to align Swedish defence policy with the “NATO option” stance of neighbouring fellow Nordic state Finland.
    “We have long advocated entering into a defence alliance with Finland and are now taking a decisive step in that direction,” Sweden Democrat party leader Jimmie Akesson said in a commentary published by the Aftonbladet daily.
    “With Sweden announcing a so-called NATO option, like Finland, we strengthen security in our immediate region.”
    Fellow Nordic nations Norway, Denmark and Iceland are NATO members.
    Parliament’s defence and foreign affairs committee decided on Wednesday to call on the government in the legislature next week to add a NATO option to security policy, Sweden Democrats parliamentarian Roger Richthoff said.
    Four parties in parliament expressly back Sweden joining NATO, though not the minority ruling coalition comprised of the Social Democrats and Greens.
    Foreign Minister Ann Linde of the Social Democrats told TT news agency the government had no such plans.    “These kinds of sudden changes based on fairly weak majorities, it’s not good.    It undermines the credibility of Swedish security policy.”
    The government remains convinced that the nation is best served by independence from alliances and that this contributes to security in northern Europe, she added.
    The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, now with 30 members, was founded in 1949 to confront the threat of the communist Soviet Union, which broke up in 1991.
    Post-Soviet Russia has accused NATO of fostering instability in Europe.    Some analysts say that by remaining outside NATO, Sweden feels safer from Moscow.    Sweden was also neutral during World War Two and was not invaded by Nazi Germany.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

12/9/2020 Hungary Declares ‘Victory’ In EU Budget Row On Eve Of Summit by Joanna Plucinska and Gergely Szakacs
FILE PHOTO: Minister for foreign affairs of Hungary Peter Szijjarto arrives to attend a European Foreign
Affairs ministers council in Luxembourg October 12, 2020. Jean-Christophe Verhaegen/Pool via REUTERS
    WARSAW/BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s foreign minister declared victory on Wednesday in a row over linking European Union funds to rule-of-law standards, as Budapest and Warsaw appeared to be edging toward an agreement to unblock an EU financial package.
    Poland and Hungary have been blocking the 1.8 trillion euro ($2.18 trillion) 2021-2027 EU budget and coronavirus recovery fund drawn up for the 27 member states because their nationalist governments oppose a clause linking the release of funds to rule-of-law standards.
    But on Wednesday a compromise appeared to be close.
    “We have just received news that access to EU funds due for Hungary cannot be linked to political or ideological conditions,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said in a Facebook video on Wednesday.    “We can declare victory.    We have been successful because we have fought.”
    Earlier in the day a Polish official said the countries had provisionally accepted an EU budget proposal from the bloc’s German presidency and were awaiting further approval from the Netherlands and other sceptical member states.
    The issue is to be discussed on Thursday at an EU summit.
    A senior EU diplomat said ambassadors of member governments were positive on Wednesday in their first review.
    “An in-depth analysis in EU capitals is now beginning and the final decision will be taken by the European Council,” the diplomat said, referring to the meeting of all EU government leaders on Thursday.
    Under the deal, the rule of law regulation making access to EU money conditional on respecting the rule of law would remain unchanged, the diplomat said.
    But Warsaw and Budapest would receive assurances from EU leaders in an explanatory declaration that the regulation would be applied objectively and could be tested before the EU’s top court before implementation, the diplomat said.
    “Budget negotiations are ongoing, but it seems we will reach an agreement that will satisfy us,” Poland’s deputy parliament speaker, Ryszard Terlecki, told the state-run news agency PAP.
    Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban wrote on his Facebook page that he was leaving for Brussels for “meetings tonight, D-Day tomorrow.”
DIVISIONS
    Poland’s United Right ruling coalition has been split over whether to stick by the EU budget veto, with speculation that one of the junior partners could leave the government.
    Polish Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Gowin, who heads the more moderate junior coalition partner Accord, said that if a compromise on the rule-of-law condition for the sake of Poland’s economy proved beyond reach, early elections would be needed.
    Gowin said that Poland, one of the EU’s biggest budget beneficiaries, stood to lose as a result of a veto.
    However, Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, leader of the other junior coalition partner, the right-wing United Poland, warned of “a significant limitation of Polish sovereignty and a breach of European treaties” from the rule-of-law regulation.
    The EU has long been at odds with the nationalist governments in Warsaw and Budapest, which Brussels accuses of flouting democracy standards by imposing political controls over the judiciary, media and other institutions.
    Poland and Hungary deny such policies threaten the rule of law and cast the issue as meddling in their internal affairs.
    The European Commission website says Hungary’s budget would receive at least a net 4 billion euros under the recovery fund.
    A Commission source said the net benefit to Poland would be around 65 billion euros.
(1 euro = 4.4294 zlotys)
(Reporting by Joanna Plucinska, Pawel Florkiewicz and Alan Charlish in Warsaw, Marton Dunai and Krisztina Than in Budapest, Jan Stupczewski and Phil Blenkinsop in Brussels, Anthony Deutsch and Stephanie van den Berg in Amsterdam; Writing by Alan Charlish; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

12/11/2020 EU Leaders Clinch Deal On Tougher 2030 Climate Goal by Kate Abnett
European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen take part in a face-to-face
EU summit amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2020. Olivier Hoslet/Pool via REUTERS
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union countries agreed a new climate change target for the bloc on Friday after haggling through the night in Brussels, pulling the political trigger on a policy revamp to make every sector greener.
    Leaders of the 27 member states agreed to cut their net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% from 1990 levels by 2030, substantially toughening an existing 40% target.
    The EU wants to reach “net zero” emissions by 2050, a deadline that scientists say the world must meet to avert the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.
    European Council President Charles Michel, who chaired the talks, called the EU the leader in the fight against climate change, and said the target had been hard-fought, but was “credible.”
    European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it would put the bloc “on a clear path towards climate neutrality in 2050.”
    The EU will present its target at a United Nations global virtual summit on Saturday.
    The EU emissions trading market already seeks to put a price on the carbon emissions that drive climate change.
    The price of permits rose to an all-time high above 31 euros a tonne on Friday, on expectations that the supply of permits would be cut, to force deeper emissions cuts.
    The target is a compromise between wealthier, mostly western and Nordic EU countries that want more ambitious action and eastern states with coal-dependent power sectors and energy-intensive industries, which wanted specific conditions attached to emissions cuts.
POORER COUNTRIES’ FEARS
    Poland held out alone until dawn for a guarantee that promised funding from the EU carbon market for poorer countries would not be reduced.
    It also sought assurances that future national emissions-cutting targets, set by Brussels for certain sectors, would be based on gross domestic product – meaning that less prosperous states would be required to cut less.
    A majority of countries had opposed these demands on grounds that they would pre-empt detailed proposals that the EU’s executive Commission will make next year.
    The final deal gives a commitment to address “imbalances” in carbon market funding that could leave poorer countries worse off.    The leaders agreed to meet again next year to tackle the question of GDP-based emissions targets.
    The Commission’s proposals will speed a shift to electric vehicles and aim to mobilise investments in the huge low-carbon infrastructure that will now be needed – including a requirement for extra energy sector investments of 350 billion euros ($420 billion) a year this decade.
    The “at least 55%” target is as good as final, but will need approval from the European Parliament, which supports a more ambitious 60% cut.
    “They are setting us up for a tough negotiation,” said Jytte Guteland, parliament’s lead lawmaker on the issue.
    Some campaigners also said the target was too weak.
    “It won’t transform how we get around and how we produce our food fast enough to beat the climate emergency,” said Greenpeace policy adviser Sebastian Mang. ($1 = 0.8245 euros)
(Additional reporting by Andreas Rinke in Berlin and John Chalmers in Brussels; Editing by John Chalmers and Kenneth Maxwell)

12/11/2020 “Ice Cathedral” In Swiss Alps Offers Visitors Unique Show by Denis Balibouse
People stand in the "Mill", a 20m long natural ice cave created by melted water accumulated during the summer and by a siphon effect leaves in the autumn giving
way to an ice cathedral, at the Glacier 3000 ski resort in Les Diablerets, Switzerland, December 10, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
    LES DIABLERETS, Switzerland (Reuters) – An ice cave which forms naturally on a high-altitude glacier in the Swiss Alps became accessible on Thursday, to the delight of visitors who came to marvel at the huge blue vault of the “ice cathedral.”
    Varying in size and shape from year to year, the cave has a rounded ceiling made of thick ice about 5 metres (yards) high, and is about 20 metres long.
    The site can be reached on foot in 15 minutes from the chairlift at Glacier 3000 above the resort of Les Diablerets, but at your own risk, organisers said.
    “It’s the first time we indicate it and open it officially.
    The last years … we had kind of an ice cave but it was different, it was more steep.    And this year it looks like an ice cathedral, so it’s really beautiful,” Bernhard Tschannen, CEO of Glacier 3000, told Reuters inside the cave.
    This year the cave’s interior is quite flat, making access easier, he said.
    The natural cave, also known as “the Mill,” forms through a siphon effect.    Each spring and summer, the cavity fills with water from the snow melt, forming a lake.    In autumn, the plug disappears and the water drains, leaving the cave.
    “It’s magnificent, but even that isn’t the right word.    I’ve never seen anything like it.    Almost as it’s not of this world in fact.    It’s magnificent, I can only recommend it if you have the chance to go,” Helen Tromp, a Dutch woman living nearby said after visiting.    Brice Rozes, touring the site on his day off, said: “It’s very impressive.    The vault is incredible.    Standing beneath it, you can just imagine the weight above.    It’s beautiful.”
(Reporting by Denis Balibouse; Writing by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

12/11/2020 Lithuania Swears In Most Gender-Balanced Cabinet In Eastern EU by Andrius Sytas
FILE PHOTO: Presidential candidate Ingrida Simonyte speaks to media during the first round of Lithuanian
Presidential election in Vilnius, Lithuania May 12, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins/File Photo
    VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania’s new centre-right government assumed office on Friday, led by Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte who has appointed the most gender-balanced cabinet in the eastern European Union.
    Simonyte, the only woman currently serving as prime minister in the bloc’s eastern states, named seven women and eight men as ministers.
    Bulgaria is the eastern EU state with the next highest proportion of women in its cabinet, with seven women among its 19 ministers.    Poland has the worst gender parity record, with only one woman in its cabinet of 20.
    Both junior partners of Simonyte’s coalition, which won the October general election, are led by young female politicians, and nine ministers in the cabinet are in their 30s.
    “When you know what you need, it’s easy,” Simonyte told reporters after taking the oath, in reference to the gender balance in her cabinet, a first for Lithuania.
    Lithuania became the second-worst hit country by coronavirus in the European Union, behind Luxemburg, on the day Simonyte took office, and she went directly from the oath to a meeting to discuss additional measures to curb the spread of the virus.
    Simonyte, 46, was the finance minister during the 2009-2010 crisis, when she oversaw cutting retirees pensions to avoid currency devaluation.     In 2019, the self-professed Metallica fan made an unsuccessful bid for the presidency.
    For a period lasting several months in 2019, the Lithuanian government included no women at all, with the then prime minister, Saulius Skvernelis, saying that personal “qualities, competence and professionalism” were more important than gender parity.
    “We love women and we nurture them towards equality,” he said in 2019.
    Elsewhere in the European Union, Belgium, France and Spain have same number of men as women in their cabinets, while Austria, Finland and Sweden have a female majority.
    Simonyte will join premiers of Denmark, Finland and Germany as the only female heads of the government in the bloc.
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

12/11/2020 How Cuba’s Monetary Reform Will Take Place And Impact The Economy by Marc Frank
FILE PHOTO: A farmer holds a wad of Cuban money at a vegetable stall at a market in Sagua La Grande, in the province of
Villaclara in central Cuba, around 240 km (149 miles) east of Havana October 12, 2013. REUTERS/Desmond Boylan/File Photo
    HAVANA (Reuters) – The Cuban government announced on Thursday it would start a long-awaited monetary reform in January, unifying its dual currency and multiple exchange rate system in a bid to bring more dynamism to its centrally planned economy.
    The reforms were first adopted by the Communist Party a decade ago as it moved toward a more market driven system and closer links with the international economy but foundered thanks to bureaucracy and internal divisions.
HOW DOES CUBA’S MONETARY SYSTEM WORK?
    For nearly three decades, two currencies have circulated in Cuba: the peso and the convertible peso (CUC), both officially valued at one-to-one with the dollar. Neither are tradable outside the country.
    The currencies are exchanged at various rates: one-to-one for state-owned businesses, 24 pesos for 1 CUC for the public and others for joint ventures, wages in the island’s special development zone and transactions between farmers and hotels.
    Cuba created the system as part of a package of measures to open up its economy after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
    While the system helped Cuba get through the shock of the Soviet collapse, it ended up also hiding the real economic situation.
WHAT CHANGES NOW?
    The CUC will be eliminated.    President Miguel Diaz-Canel said it would leave the peso at a single fixed rate of 24 to the dollar, scrapping other more favorable rates in the first official devaluation of the peso since Cuba’s 1959 revolution.
GOODBYE CUC, HELLO DOLLAR!
    The government has also begun opening stores that sell consumer goods for dollars and other traded currencies, though only with a bank card.
    Havana says this is a temporary measure but the partial dollarization will also provide some stability, especially for families who receive remittances.
    Meanwhile, state and private companies can now keep tradable currency accounts with up to 80% of their export earnings instead of handing them over to the state.
SHOCK THERAPY?
    Devaluation is inflationary, while ending subsidies leads to layoffs, yet the Cuban government says it expects to avoid any “shock therapy” in the economy where the state sets most prices and wages.
    Economists expect triple digit inflation, and the government has said the initial devaluation will be accompanied by a five-fold increase in average state wages and pensions even as many state-controlled prices also may rise.
    But the wage increase does not apply to around 2 million of the 7 million plus labor force in the private sector, informal sector or who simply do not work.
    Meanwhile the government says state-run companies, as a rule, will no longer be subsidized.
    Cuban economists estimate around 40% of state companies operate at a loss and though some will benefit with the reform, others will go under.
    Still, the government says some companies will be given a year to get their books in order before ending subsidies.
    The government says residents will be given 180 days to exchange convertible pesos once they are taken out of circulation.
WHY NOW?
    Cuba is seeking to reverse its worst crisis since the fall of the Soviet Union, with growth seen plummeting more than 8% this year by boosting business conditions and productivity.
    The country is dependent on imports for more than 50% of food and fuel, plus inputs for agriculture and pharmaceuticals.    Yet a combination of U.S. sanctions, local economic blunders and the COVID-19 pandemic have gutted Cuba’s ability to earn tradable currency.
    Cuba has been rapidly piling up debt in recent years, while still being plagued by a scarcity of basic goods, from food and personal hygiene products to medicine and fuel.
(Reporting by Marc Frank; Editing by Christian Plumb and Marguerita Choy)

12/12/2020 Polish Government Remains Intact As Junior Partner Votes To Stay
FILE PHOTO: Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki attends a meeting after a night of negotiation during a face-to-face
EU summit amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2020. Olivier Hoslet/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    WARSAW (Reuters) – The arch-conservative United Poland party decided on Saturday to remain in government despite its opposition to a European Union budget deal, the party’s leader said, meaning the ruling coalition will keep its majority.
    United Poland had called for a veto of the EU’s 2021-2027 budget and coronavirus recovery fund because of a clause linking cash with respect for the rule of law.
    It said the clause threatened Poland’s sovereignty and would make funding dependent on the acceptance of liberal policies.
    The eurosceptic party reacted with fury when Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, a member of the largest coalition partner Law and Justice (PiS), agreed a compromise during an EU leaders’ summit earlier this week.
    But United Poland leader Zbigniew Ziobro, who is the country’s justice minister, told a news conference on Saturday that the party’s leadership had voted to stay in the coalition.
    “The voting was secret, and by 12 votes of leadership members to eight the motion of one of our colleagues to leave the coalition was rejected,” Ziobro said, though he reiterated his party’s opposition to Morawiecki’s deal.
    “We believe the prime minister’s decision was a mistake … we believe there are things you can’t measure in amounts of money,” he said.
    Many religious conservatives in predominantly Roman Catholic Poland say the EU’s rule of law mechanism could be a first step to forcing the country to accept policies like gay marriage.
    United Poland has drawn in hard-right voters opposed to LGBT rights and immigration.
    Ziobro is the architect of judicial reforms which have brought Poland into conflict with the EU and which critics say aim to increase political control of the courts.     The coalition’s other partner, Accord, led by Deputy Prime Minister Jaroslaw Gowin, has a more centrist and pro-European approach. It backed the EU compromise.
(Reporting by Alan Charlish, Alicja Ptak and Justyna Pawlak; Editing by Mark Potter and Helen Popper)

12/12/2020 Austrian Police Seize Haul Of Weapons Intended For German Extremists
FILE PHOTO: Austria's Interior Minister Karl Nehammer speaks during a news conference at the Interior Ministry
after exchanges of gunfire in Vienna, Austria November 3, 2020. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo
    ZURICH (Reuters) – Austrian police seized a huge cache of automatic weapons, explosives and hand grenades intended to arm right-wing extremist groups in Germany, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer said on Saturday.
    Five people were arrested following a series of house searches, Nehammer told a press conference in Vienna.    “We have struck a massive blow against the right-wing extremist scene in Austria and organised crime, and how they are connected,” Nehammer told reporters.
    The group had built up the arsenal with the goal of attacking society, democracy and basic freedoms, Nehammer added.
    The raids were carried out as part of an investigation initially into drug-related crime, but officers also uncovered links between far-right groups and organised crime, the minister said.
    The network was active in Germany, with officers from Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia also involved in the inquiry.
    The raids led to the seizure of 25 semi-automatic and fully automatic weapons, believed to have been bought with the proceeds of drug trafficking, said Michael Mimra from the state criminal police office in Vienna.
    The haul included Uzi sub-machine guns, AK-47 assault rifles, Scorpion machine guns and ammunition, Mimra said.
    More weapons and ammunition were seized on Thursday, while more than 100,000 rounds of ammunition were found in a warehouse in lower Austria.
    Overall 76 automatic and semi-automatic weapons were recovered, along with 14 handguns and ammunition and six hand-grenades, as well as detonators and explosives. Some had been packed for transportation.
    Investigations in Germany meanwhile had led to two arrests and the seizure of a large quantity of drugs, Mimra said.
    Investigators are now trying to establish the origin of the weapons, with forensic examinations underway to see if they have been used in crimes.    “The investigation has only just begun,” Mimra said.    “It will last a while.”
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by David Holmes)

12/12/2020 Russia Says May Retaliate After New Round Of UK Sanctions
FILE PHOTO: The British flag flies on the embassy building in front of the Moscow International Business
Center, also known as "Moskva-City", in Moscow, Russia March 23, 2018. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – A new round of British sanctions against Russian individuals over alleged human rights abuses in Chechnya is “unfounded” and Moscow may retaliate, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.
    “Undoubtedly, this politically-charged demarche will have a negative impact on Russian-British interstate relations,” the ministry said, adding Russia “reserves the right to take appropriate countermeasures.”
    Britain said on Thursday it was imposing sanctions on 11 individuals, including security figures and officials from Russia, Venezuela, Pakistan and Gambia, in a coordinated move with the United States on human rights violations.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; Editing by Toby Chopra)

12/12/2020 Swiss Freeze Assets Of Belarus Leader Lukashenko
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko visits a polling station during the
presidential election in Minsk, Belarus August 9, 2020. Sergei Gapon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    ZURICH (Reuters) – Switzerland has frozen the financial assets of the president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, following the violent aftermath of the elections in the east European country.
    Lukashenko and son Viktor are among 15 people banned from entering or travelling through Switzerland, the government said.
    The individuals are alleged to be responsible for the use of violence and arbitrary arrests, it said.
    “Switzerland is deeply concerned by the ongoing tensions and is calling for dialogue between the Belarus government and civil society,” the government said.
    It demanded the release of people who have been arbitrarily detained and the investigation of allegations of torture and ill-treatment by security forces.
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Mark Potter)

12/13/2020 More Than 130 Anti-Lukashenko Protesters Detained In Belarus – Rights Group
Opposition supporters carry historical white-red-white flags of Belarus as they attend a rally
to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus December 13, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) -Police in Belarus detained 135 demonstrators at a Sunday march, the Belarusian rights group Viasna-96 (Spring-96) said, as weekly protests demanding the resignation of veteran President Alexander Lukashenko continued.
    Belarus, a country of 9.5 million that Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election that Lukashenko said he won. His opponents say the vote was rigged.
    More than 120 marches took place in the Belarus capital Minsk and other cities on Sunday, with numbers at each ranging from dozens to several hundred, according to local news outlet Nasha Niva.    Police regularly arrest participants, issuing numbers of detainees on Mondays.
    Some protesters marched in outlying residential areas of Minsk, waving white flags with a red stripe in the middle, a symbol of the opposition, and shouting “long live Belarus.”
    More than 30,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the start of the protests in August, according to opposition leaders.
    Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years. The European Union imposed travel bans and asset freezes on almost 50 Belarusian officials in protest over the election the West says was rigged and over Lukashenko’s crackdown on opponents.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; Editing by Alex Richardson and Philippa Fletcher)

12/14/2020 Russia Successfully Test Launches Heavy Lift Space Rocket After Long Hiatus
Angara A5 space rocket blasts off at the Plesetsk cosmodrome, Russia in this photo
released December 14, 2020. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia on Monday successfully test launched its heavy lift Angara A5 space rocket after a six-year hiatus in a project President Vladimir Putin describes as having huge significance for national security.
    First test-launched in 2014, it is being developed to replace the Proton M as Russia’s heavy lift rocket, capable of carrying payloads bigger than 20 tonnes into orbit.    A launch pad for the new rocket is due to open in 2021.
    The Angara has however been dogged by manufacturing delays and technical issues, including the discovery last year of a defect in its engines that scientists said could destroy it in flight.
    The defence ministry and space agency Roscosmos said Monday’s launch, from the Plesetsk cosmodrome in the country’s northwest, had been successful however.
    Roscosmos has suffered a series of setbacks and corruption scandals in recent years, including during the construction of the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the country’s far east where contractors were accused of stealing state funds.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/14/2020 Romania’s President Plans Fresh Talks To Form New Government
FILE PHOTO: Romania's President Klaus Iohannis arrives to attend a face-to-face EU summit amid the coronavirus
disease (COVID-19) lockdown in Brussels, Belgium December 10, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman/Pool
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis will call on political parties for fresh talks on forming a centre-right government following an inconclusive parliamentary election on Dec. 6, he said on Monday.
    “The first round of talks is over and we’ve had a good exchange of views.    But today not all terms for designating a new prime minister have been met,” Iohannis told reporters.
    The ruling National Liberal Party proposed incumbent Finance Minister Florin Citu as the next prime minister, while the party’s likely allies – the centrist USR-Plus alliance – would like former European agriculture commissioner Dacian Ciolos to take over.
(Reporting by Radu Marinas; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

12/14/2020 Russia Had Nothing To Do With Suspected U.S. Treasury Email Snooping, Says Kremlin
FILE PHOTO: A man holds a laptop computer as cyber code is projected on him in this
illustration picture taken on May 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/Illustration
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia had nothing to do with alleged monitoring by hackers of internal email traffic at the U.S. Treasury and Commerce departments, the Kremlin said on Monday.
    People familiar with the matter told Reuters the hackers were believed to be working for Russia and that they feared the hacks uncovered so far may be the tip of the iceberg.
    One person familiar with the matter said the hack was so serious it had led to a National Security Council meeting at the White House on Saturday.
    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the allegations.
    “Once again, I can reject these accusations and once again I want to remind you that it was President (Vladimir) Putin who proposed that the American side agree and conclude agreements (with Russia) on cyber security,” said Peskov, saying Washington had not responded to the offer.
    “As for the rest, if there have been attacks for many months, and the Americans could not do anything about it, it is probably not worth immediately groundlessly blaming the Russians. We didn’t have anything to do with it.”
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/14/2020 Russia’s Lavrov Says Bosnia’s Peace Deal Must Not Be Changed
FILE PHOTO: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during a news conference after a meeting with his Armenian
counterpart Ara Aivazian in Moscow, Russia December 7, 2020. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
    SARAJEVO (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that any attempt to change the U.S.-brokered Dayton peace agreement that ended Bosnia’s war 25 years ago may have “grave consequences.”
    Lavrov was speaking on a visit to Bosnia on the anniversary of the day when the peace accords, agreed previously in the U.S. air base in Ohio, were signed in Paris by the then presidents of Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia, all parties to the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
    “We are witnessing the efforts to bring down the Dayton, to erode it … this may cause risks and grave consequences,” Lavrov told a news conference in East Sarajevo.
    He said the deal must not be changed in any way, referring to comments by some Western diplomats and Bosnian politicians that the agreement, which was made to stop the war, needs to be upgraded to enable Bosnia to make progress forward with reforms.
    The peace deal ended the war among Bosnian Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) in which about 100,000 people were killed and two million were moved from their homes.
    But a quarter of century later Bosnia, which was split into two autonomous regions, remains dysfunctional, with reforms blocked by the rival ethnic leaders.    The two regions are the Serb-dominated Serb Republic, and the Federation shared by Bosniaks and Croats, all linked via a weak central government.
    Upon his arrival, Lavrov first visited Milorad Dodik, the Serb member of the country’s three-man presidency, in the Serb Republic’s government office just outside the capital Sarajevo.
    He urged the closure of the office of an international peace overseer in Bosnia which was set up as part of the Dayton deal, saying that international protectors should have left the country “long ago.”
    Dodik has repeatedly said that any changes to the Dayton structure would be the reason for the Serb Republic to secede from Bosnia.
    Lavrov is scheduled to separately meet the leader of the largest Croat HDZ party on Monday evening.
    He will meet the members of Bosnia’s inter-ethnic presidency on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic and Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by William Maclean)

12/15/2020 Putin Congratulates Joe Biden On U.S. Election Victory – Kremlin
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday congratulated Joe Biden on his victory in the U.S. presidential election, after Biden won the state-by-state Electoral College vote that officially determines the U.S. presidency, the Kremlin said.
    The Kremlin had said it would wait for the official results of the election before commenting on its outcome, even as other nations congratulated Biden on the win in the days after the Nov. 3 vote.
    “For my part, I am ready for interaction and contact with you,” the Kremlin cited Putin as saying in a statement.
    “Putin wished the president-elect every success and expressed confidence that Russia and the United States, which have a special responsibility for global security and stability, could, despite their differences, really help to solve the many problems and challenges facing the world,” the Kremlin said.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/15/2020 Retirement Home Fire Kills 11 In Russia
A view shows a burnt building at a retirement home in Ishbuldino village in the
region of Bashkortostan, Russia December 15, 2020. Investigative Committee of Russia/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Eleven elderly people with mobility issues died after being trapped in a burning retirement home in the early hours of Tuesday in the Russian region of Bashkortostan in the Urals mountains, authorities said.
    The fire was reported at about 3 a.m. (2200 GMT Monday) in the village of Ishbuldino, the emergencies ministry said in a statement, and was put out three hours later.
    “Four people evacuated (the site) on their own before the arrival of firefighters,” the ministry said.
    Russian news agency Interfax quoted the district authorities as saying that one of the survivors was a staff member, while three others were residents whom she managed to lead out of the one-storey wooden building.
    The 11 victims were also elderly residents who had mobility issues and could not be quickly evacuated, Interfax reported.     Russia’s investigative committee said it has launched a probe into the incident.
(Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Stephen Coates)

12/15/2020 Ukraine Says Dozens Of Police Hurt In Clashes With Lockdown Protesters
Ukrainian law enforcement officers leave a square during a rally of entrepreneurs and representatives of small businesses amid
the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Kyiv, Ukraine December 15, 2020. Entrepreneurs gathered to demand governmental
support and to protest against restrictive measures introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
    KYIV (Reuters) – One police officer was knocked unconscious and 40 others received chemical eye burns from gas on Tuesday in clashes between police and thousands of people protesting a government lockdown to fight the coronavirus, the interior ministry said.
    President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government has announced a tight national lockdown starting in January to fight the spread of COVID-19, in the wake of a recent spike in cases.
    At a rally of entrepreneurs and representatives of small businesses on Kyiv’s Independence Square, clashes between helmeted riot police and demonstrators erupted after the protesters tried to set up tents.
    “One policeman was hit on the head – and he lost consciousness.    Another 40 received chemical eye burns,” the interior ministry said in a statement.
    Three police officers were hospitalised after being attacked by a group of drunk men, police said in a separate statement.     More than 900,000 people have contracted the novel coronavirus in Ukraine.
    The new lockdown measures, which include the closure of schools, cafes, restaurants, gyms and entertainment centres and a ban on mass gatherings, will be in force from Jan. 8 to 24.
    The government last month introduced a lockdown at weekends, closing or restricting most businesses except those involved in essential services such as grocery shops, pharmacies, hospitals and transportation.    It lifted the restrictions on Dec. 2.
(Reporting by Gleb Garanich; Writing by Matthias Williams; Editing by Paul Simao)

12/15/2020 Bosnian Presidency Members Snub Russia’s ‘Disrespectful’ Lavrov by Daria Sito-Sucic
FILE PHOTO: Newly elected members of Bosnia's tripartite inter-ethnic presidency, Croat member Zeljko Komsic,
Serb member Milorad Dodik and Bosniak member Sefik Dzaferovic, attend the presidential inauguration ceremony
in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina November 20, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File Photo
    SARAJEVO (Reuters) -The Croat and Muslim Bosniak members of Bosnia’s inter-ethnic three-man presidency declined on Tuesday to meet visiting     Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, saying he had shown disrespect towards their state.
    Lavrov, whose nation is a champion of Serbian interests in Bosnia and the wider Balkans, met the Serb member of the presidency Milorad Dodik on Monday and again on Tuesday.
    Croat presidency member Zeljko Komsic said the first meeting, in the government office of Bosnia’s autonomous Serb region just outside the country’s capital Sarajevo, was insulting as no national flag was on display despite the Russian being on an official visit.
    “Mr Lavrov, as one of the worlds’ three top diplomats…is sending us a message … which we interpret as disrespectful and a denial of the state he is visiting,” Komsic told reporters.
    He and Bosniak Muslim presidency member Sefik Dzaferovic did not attend a planned meeting with Lavrov at the presidency building in Sarajevo, where the Russian met Dodik again.
    “The incident…is, I believe, irrelevant to Russia’s position, to the development of relations with the people of Bosnia…,” Lavrov said after meeting President Aleksandar Vucic of Serbia in its capital Belgrade.
    “The politicians who made this decision are not independent,” Lavrov said.    “I think (they are) clearly acting on someone’s prompting and most likely expressing the interests…of external forces.”
    Komsic said that Lavrov, who on Monday endorsed the Serb Republic parliament’s resolution on military neutrality, knew that a regional legislature cannot decide such strategic policy.
    “We are aware that we are small and weak, but we are not ready to be a hostage in any kind of games by Russia when it comes to their relations with the European Union and NATO members,” Komsic said.
    Earlier on Tuesday after meeting his Bosnian counterpart Bisera Turkovic, Lavrov said: “Russia confirms its principled and strong support for Bosnia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and equality of all of its constituent peoples.”
    The Russian echoed a long-time request by Bosnian Serbs to shut an international peace overseer’s office, set up as part of the U.S.-brokered Dayton pact to end Bosnia’s war 25 years ago.
    Under the deal, Bosnia was split into two autonomous regions, the Serb-dominated Serb Republic and the Federation shared by Bosniaks and Croats, which are linked via a weak central government.
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic with additional reporting by Paulina DevittEditing by Andrew Cawthorne and Mark Heinrich)

12/15/2020 Armenia And Azerbaijan Exchange First Prisoners After Karabakh War
A view shows a Russian military aircraft transporting Armenian prisoners of war, part of a swap following a conflict
between the troops of Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces over Nagorno-Karabakh, after landing at Erebuni military airport
in Yerevan, Armenia December 14, 2020. Tigran Mehrabyan/Armenian Prime Minister Press Service/PAN Photo via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Armenia and Azerbaijan have begun exchanging groups of prisoners of war, part of an “all for all” swap mediated by Russia after a bloody conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, Russia’s defence ministry said on Tuesday.
    The six-week conflict between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces over the region and its surrounding areas was brought to a halt by a Russian-brokered ceasefire deal last month.
    The fighting locked in territorial gains for Azerbaijan and has stoked anger in Yerevan, prompting street protests against Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
    Russian peacekeeping forces have deployed in the region.
    Late on Monday, Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan said a group of 44 Armenian prisoners had returned to Armenia after Russian mediation, the Interfax news agency reported.
    A Russian military aircraft also flew a group of 12 Azeri prisoners to Baku as part of the same swap, Rustam Muradov, the commander of Russia’s peacekeeping forces, said in a defence ministry video published on Tuesday.
    Azeri authorities confirmed their arrival.
(Reporting by Nailia Bagirov; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/15/2020 Hungary Amends Constitution To Redefine Family, Limits Gay Adoption by Marton Dunai and Anita Komuves
FILE PHOTO: Same sex couple Adam Hanol and Marton Pal play with their four year old adopted son Andras at a playground
in Budapest, Hungary, November 19, 2020. Picture taken November 19, 2020. REUTERS/Krisztina Fenyo/File Photo
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary amended the definition of family in its constitution Tuesday to allow an effective ban on adoption by same-sex couples, another win for the ruling conservatives but decried by one pro-LGBTQ group as “a dark day for human rights.”
    The nationalist Fidesz party of Prime Minister Viktor Orban has worked to recast Hungary in a more conservative mold since winning a third successive landslide in 2018, and anti-gay verbal attacks and legislation have become common.
    In recent years Orban, facing a unified opposition for the first time, has doubled down on propagating his increasingly conservative ideology, deploying strong language against immigrants and Muslims who he says could upend European culture.
    The new Hungarian constitution defines family as “based on marriage and the parent-child relation.    The mother is a woman, the father a man.” It also mandates that parents raise children in a conservative spirit.
    “Hungary defends the right of children to identify with their birth gender and ensures their upbringing based on our nation’s constitutional identity and values based on our Christian culture,” it says.
    Hungary has never allowed gay marriage but still recognises civil unions.    Adoption by gay and lesbian couples was possible until now if one partner applied as a single person.
    Although there are exceptions when single people or family members can adopt children, “the main rule is that only married couples can adopt a child, that is, a man and a woman who are married,” Justice Minister Judit Varga wrote.
    The legislation passed on Tuesday follow the passing of a new law earlier this year banning gender change in personal documents and ideological battles over children’s books showing diversity positively.
    Nearby Poland’s ruling nationalist PiS party also made homophobia a key plank of its campaign in an election this year, endorsing “LGBT-free zones” despite European Union criticism.
    As per the new law, single people in Hungary must get their adoption requests approved by the family affairs minister, a post held by ultra-conservative Katalin Novak, who promotes the traditional family model.
    “Do not believe that us women should continuously compete with men,” Novak said in a video published on Monday.    “Do not believe that in every waking moment we must measure up and have at least as high positions or as large salaries as (men).”
“DARK DAY FOR HUMAN RIGHTS”
    Rights groups denounced the changes and called on European leaders to raise their voices.     “This is a dark day for Hungary’s LGBTQ community and a dark day for human rights,” said David Vig, Director of Amnesty Hungary.     Masen Davis, Executive Director at Transgender Europe, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen should pay attention to the issue as the EU reviews Hungary’s rule of law record and a connected punitive legal procedure.
    Hungary and Poland last week escaped the immediate prospect of losing EU funding because of rights transgressions seen as contrary to the European mainstream, leaving potential counter-measures weakened and delayed in time.
    “We are deeply concerned for the health and safety of trans children and adults in Hungary in such a hostile climate,” Davis said.
    Katrin Hugendubel, advocacy director at international gay rights group ILGA, said the changes meant “LGBTI children will be forced to grow up in an environment which restricts them from being able to express their identities.”
(Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

12/15/2020 Ukraine Parliament Restores Powers Of Anti-Corruption Agency In Bid For Foreign Loans
FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news briefing with Polish President Andrzej
Duda (not pictured) as they meet in Kyiv, Ukraine October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool/File Photo
    KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian lawmakers voted to restore the powers of the NAZK anti-corruption agency on Tuesday in a bid to secure new loans from the International Monetary Fund to fight a sharp economic slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
    The constitutional court had ruled in October against some anti-corruption laws, citing as excessive the punishment for false information on officials’ asset declarations.    It also struck down some powers of the NAZK agency which is responsible for checking the asset declarations.
    The decision hobbled a $5 billion IMF deal that was already mired in concerns about Ukraine’s reform momentum and the independence of the central bank.
    President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had warned the country could slide into “bloody chaos” and be stripped of its prized visa-free access to European Union countries if anti-corruption reforms were not restored.
    Ukraine’s economy is expected to contract by 5% this year, dragged into recession by the coronavirus pandemic.    Cases have spiked since September and the government announced it would introduce a stricter national lockdown in early January.
    Parliament on Dec. 4 approved a draft law to restore accountability for false asset declarations by officials, though some lawmakers criticised the legislation as ineffective.
(Reporting by Natalia Zinets; writing by Matthias Williams, editing by Ed Osmond)

12/15/2020 Cuba Rejects U.S. Report On Diplomat Health Incidents
A view of Cuban and U.S. flags beside the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, December 15, 2020. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
    HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba on Tuesday rejected a U.S. government report concluding that directed radio frequency was the most plausible explanation for mysterious ailments suffered by U.S. diplomats in Havana and elsewhere, calling it more “very unlikely” hypothesis than “demonstrated fact.”
    Between 2016 and 2018, dozens of U.S. embassy staff, largely in Cuba, reported symptoms that included hearing loss, vertigo, headaches and fatigue, a pattern consistent with mild traumatic brain injury that came to be known as the “Havana syndrome.”
    Canada has said more than a dozen of its embassy staff and relatives stationed in Havana experienced similar symptoms.
    The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump said the diplomats were attacked by some sort of secret weapon. Cuba has repeatedly said there is no evidence for that and denied any involvement.
    The Cuban Academy of Sciences said on Tuesday the report by the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, commissioned by the U.S. State Department and published on Dec. 6, gives no scientific evidence of the existence of radio frequency waves.
    “Cuba’s Academy of Sciences disagrees with the final conclusion regarding the causes of the ailments,” the academy said in a statement read to journalists by its President Luis Velazquez.
    Velazquez, who did not take any questions at the news briefing in Havana, said the “investigation about these health ailments has suffered from a lack of fluid communication between U.S. and Cuban scientists.”
    U.S. officials say off the record they cannot cooperate with Cuba on such a sensitive investigation where its Communist government has a strong interest in the outcome.
    Cuba said the Trump administration has used the health incidents to further its political agenda of dismantling U.S.-Cuban relations, after Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama had worked to improve diplomatic ties with Havana.
    The administration reduced the U.S. embassy in Havana to skeletal staffing and hiked its warning on travel to Cuba following the mysterious incidents.
(Reporting by Nelson Acosta in Havana; Writing by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Bill Berkrot)

12/16/2020 Romanian Top Court Overturns Ban On Gender Identity Studies
FILE PHOTO: A girl wearing a PRIDE cap and a face mask bearing a black X attends an LGBT event outside the president's office to urge him to
send a bill banning gender identity studies back to parliament, in Bucharest, Romania, June 18, 2020. Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea via REUTERS
    BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romania’s Constitutional Court overturned on Wednesday a blanket ban on gender identity studies voted through by lawmakers and which rights groups and universities said would infringe on human rights and fuel discrimination.
    Parliament passed the amendment to the education law earlier this year, pushing Romania’s sexual politics closer to the conservative stances of neighbouring Hungary and Poland.
    Centrist President Klaus Iohannis challenged the bill, which was approved without public debate, at the top court.
    Socially conservative Romania decriminalised homosexuality in 2001, decades later than other parts of the European Union, and is one of the only EU states that bar marriage and civil partnerships for same sex couples.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; editing by Alistair Bell)

12/16/2020 Russia Dismisses Media Reports Outing Navalny’s Alleged Poisoners As ‘Amusing’ Reading
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally
in Moscow, Russia, February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    ZAGREB (Reuters) – Russia on Wednesday rejected the findings of a joint media investigation that said it had identified Russian state security assassins behind the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, describing it as an “amusing” read.br>     “We’re already used to the fact that the United States and other Western countries make new accusations against Russia in the media, be it about hackers or revelations about the double or even triple poisoning of Navalny,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
    “It’s amusing to read these news items,” Lavrov added during a news conference in Zagreb alongside his Croatian counterpart Gordan Grlic Radman.
    Navalny on Monday declared his poisoning case solved after a joint media inquiry said it had identified a team of assassins from Russia’s FSB security service as his would-be killers who had stalked him for years.
    It said FSB operatives “that have specialised training in chemical weapons, chemistry and medicine” secretly followed Navalny around Russia for the last four years more than 37 times.
    The investigation was carried out by Bellingcat and Russian media outlet The Insider in cooperation with CNN and the German newsmagazine Der Spiegel.
    The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected any suggestion that Russian authorities tried to kill Navalny, one of President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critics.
    Navalny, 44, suddenly fell ill on a flight from Siberia to Moscow in August.    He was airlifted for medical treatment to Germany, where he continues to undergo rehabilitation.
(Reporting by Igor Ilic in Zagreb and Tom Balmforth in Moscow; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

12/16/2020 COVID Beds Run Short In St Petersburg As Russian Vaccine Rollout Gathers Pace
FILE PHOTO: A medical specialist wearing protective gear takes care of a patient at the intensive care unit of the Vologda City Hospital Number 1, where patients
suffering from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are treated, in Vologda, Russia November 24, 2020. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – St Petersburg is running out of hospital beds for COVID-19 patients, city authorities said, as one of around half a dozen firms licenced to produce Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine began deliveries across the country.
    Biotech group Biocad said on Wednesday it was supplying shots as part of a national inoculation programme.    More than 200,000 people in Russia have already been vaccinated against the disease.
    Russia is battling a second wave of the virus and, while authorities have so far relied on targeted curbs rather than imposing a second national lockdown to contain it, the Kremlin warned last week that St Petersburg was close to crossing a “red line.”
    Oleg Ergashev, deputy governor in the city – Russia’s second largest and President Vladimir Putin’s birthplace – said just 4% of the beds allocated to COVID patients were vacant.
    “We understand that additional capacities need to be deployed,” he told local television late on Tuesday.
    The city of around 5 million people has recorded 6,529 deaths since the start of the pandemic, compared with 48,564 nationwide.
    Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of Moscow, told the city’s parliament there were about 12,000 people hospitalised there with the virus, leaving a reserve of around 5,000 vacant beds.
    The capital did not plan to impose a lockdown or other harsh restrictions over the next few months, he said.
    Russia recorded nearly 140,000 deaths in excess of the five-year average between April and October, including more than 50,000 in October, state statistics service data showed.
    Epidemiologists say excess mortality is the best way of gauging the number to have died from a disease outbreak because it is internationally comparable.
    Data published this week found the Sputnik V vaccine, which Russian regulators approved in August after less than two months of human testing, to be 91.4% effective.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova, Tom Balmforth, Polina Nikolskaya and Gleb Stolyarov; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Katya Golubkova and John Stonestreet)

12/17/2020 Putin Says Kremlin Critic Navalny Not Worth Poisoning, Alleges U.S. Smear Campaign by Andrew Osborn and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends his annual end-of-year news conference, held online in a video conference mode,
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia December 17, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin said media reports that Russian state security agents had poisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny were part of a U.S.-backed plot to try to discredit him, saying Navalny was not important enough to be a target.
    Navalny, one of Putin’s leading critics, was airlifted to Germany in August after collapsing on a domestic flight.
    Laboratory tests in three European countries, confirmed by the global chemical weapons watchdog, established he was poisoned with a Soviet-style Novichok nerve agent but     Russia denies this and says it has yet to be shown any evidence.
    Citing flight records and mobile phone geolocation data, investigative website Bellingcat and Russian media outlet The Insider published results of a joint investigation on Monday carried out in cooperation with Der Spiegel and CNN.
    The investigation, which Navalny endorsed, said it had identified a team of assassins from Russia’s FSB security service, who had stalked him for years.    It named the intelligence officers and poison laboratories it said were behind the operation.
    Putin on Thursday dismissed the investigation, saying it was made up of information provided by U.S. intelligence services.
    “It’s a trick to attack the leaders (of Russia),” Putin told his annual news conference.
    He suggested Navalny enjoyed the support of U.S. intelligence, an allegation Navalny denies.    It was therefore right, said Putin, that Russian security agents kept an eye on him.
    “But that absolutely does not mean he needs to be poisoned,” said Putin.    “Who needs him?”
    “If someone had wanted to poison him they would have finished him off,” he added.
    Putin avoids mentioning Navalny’s name in public and only referred to him as “the patient from the Berlin clinic.”
    Kira Yarmysh, Navalny’s spokeswoman, said on Twitter that Putin’s comments meant he had confirmed that Navalny was being followed by FSB agents.
    Fielding a question about a series of recent media investigations into people close to him, including one of his daughters, Putin said they looked like Washington’s revenge for alleged Russian hacking of U.S. elections, something he has repeatedly denied.
    “It’s revenge and an attempt to influence public opinion in our country to try to interfere in our domestic politics,” Putin said.
(Additional reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Olesya Astakhova; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

12/17/2020 Putin Calls On U.S. To Extend New START Arms Control Treaty For One Year
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends his annual end-of-year news conference, held online in a video conference mode,
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia December 17, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called on Washington to extend the New START arms control treaty that expires in February for one year.
    The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) accord, signed in 2010, limits the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers that Russia and the United States can deploy.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Andrew Osborn; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

12/17/2020 Russia To Ramp Up Support For Ukraine’s Rebel-Held East – Putin
FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a session of the Artificial Intelligence Journey conference via a video link
at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow, Russia December 4, 2020. Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia would ramp up its support for Ukraine’s rebel-controlled eastern Donbass region where conflict broke out in 2014 between pro-Moscow rebels and government forces.
    Putin told his annual news conference that Russia would help the region upgrade its factories, infrastructure and help it meet the social needs of local people whom he said faced challenges.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Andrew Osborn; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/18/2020 Bosnia Prosecutors To Investigate Origin Of Icon Gifted To Russia’s Lavrov
FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, President of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik and Prime Minister of Republika
Srpska Zeljka Cvijanovic attend a meeting in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 21, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File Photo
    SARAJEVO (Reuters) – Bosnian prosecutors said on Friday they would investigate whether a 300-year-old icon presented as a gift by the Bosnian Serb leader to Russia’s visiting foreign minister may have been illegally smuggled out of war-torn eastern Ukraine.
    Ukraine’s embassy in Sarajevo has raised concerns over the artefact after the Bosnian Serb news agency Srna published a photograph of the icon and its seal of authenticity, which suggest it may originate in the city of Lugansk, where pro-Russian separatists have been battling Kiev’s forces.
    Dozens of Bosnian Serbs have fought alongside the rebels in the war in eastern Ukraine, which started in 2014.    Serbia and Bosnia’s Serbs have close ties with Russia, with which they share the Eastern Orthodox faith.
    Milorad Dodik, the Bosnian Serb representative in Bosnia’s three-member presidency, gave the gilded icon to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during his visit to Sarajevo this week.
    The Croatian and Bosniak presidency members refused to meet Lavrov over what they labelled his “disrespect” for Bosnia’s state symbols and institutions.
    Dodik has so far declined to comment on the matter.
    Ukraine’s foreign ministry confirmed on Friday that its embassy in Sarajevo had asked Bosnian authorities to provide “clarification and full information on the circumstances of this case,” and said it would hold talks on the issue in coming days.
    In a letter published by Bosnian media, Ukraine’s embassy said failure to provide information about the icon would be viewed as indicating support for “the aggressive policies and military actions of the Russian Federation in Ukraine.”
    The embassy declined to provide a copy of the letter or further details to Reuters on Friday.
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic and Natalia Zinets; Editing by Gareth Jones)

12/19/2020 U.S. To Halt Work At Two Consulates In Russia After COVID-19 Drawdown
FILE PHOTO: Russian and U.S. state flags fly near a factory of Ford Sollers, a joint venture of U.S. carmaker
Ford with Russian partners, in Vsevolozhsk, Leningrad Region, Russia March 27, 2019. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The United States is halting work at two consulates in Russia, the State Department said, citing safety and security issues at the facilities where operations had been curtailed over COVID-19.
    Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in consultation with Ambassador John Sullivan decided to shut the consulate in Vladivostok in the far east and suspend operations at the consulate in Yekaterinburg, a State Department representative said in a statement emailed to Reuters on Saturday.
    The decision, part of “ongoing efforts to ensure the safe and secure operation of the U.S. diplomatic mission in the Russian Federation,” did not affect Russian consulates in the United States, the statement said, without offering detailed reasons for the move.
    Asked this week about Russian media reports that the two consulates might be closed, the U.S. embassy in Moscow said it had suspended operations at the Vladivostok consulate and rolled back operations in Yekaterinburg in March because of the pandemic.
    U.S.-Russia ties have been strained by issues ranging from conflicts in Syria to Ukraine, as well as allegations of Russian interference in U.S. politics, which Moscow denies.
    Hackers believed to be working for Russia are accused of wide-ranging hacks of U.S. government agencies and a private companies.    Pompeo said on Friday it was “pretty clearly” evident that Russia was involved in the attacks that have sent computer network security teams worldwide scrambling to limit the damage.
    The Kremlin denies Russian involvement.
    At his annual news conference on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he hoped U.S. President-elect Joe Biden would help resolve some of the difficult issues in relations between Moscow and Washington.
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by William Mallard)
[Okay Putin the Democrats have already sold their souls to the Chinese so you just as well get on their bandwagon too.].

12/19/2020 Hungarian PM Cuts Local Business Tax, Budapest’s Opposition Mayor Cries Foul by Krisztina Than
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban leaves an EU summit amid the coronavirus disease
(COVID-19) outbreak in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2020. Fransisco Seco/Pool via REUTERS
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary’s government will extend a moratorium on household and business loan repayments until July and halve a local business tax collected by municipalities, a move strongly criticised on Saturday by Budapest’s opposition lord mayor.
    Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that local tax for small and medium-sized businesses would be halved from Jan. 1 to support jobs during the coronavirus crisis.
    The local business tax is a vital source of revenue for municipalities.    Opposition leaders said the tax cut would jeopardise public services and allow the nationalist government to exert political pressure on cities.
    Orban said towns with fewer than 25,000 inhabitants would receive support from the government, while the financial situation of bigger municipalities would be “considered one by one.”
    “Halving this tax does not manage this crisis, but deepens it,” Budapest’s lord mayor Gergely Karacsony, a liberal sociologist, said on his Facebook page.
    The opposition amalgamated in October 2019 and handed Orban’s party its first major setback, wrestling back control of Budapest and some other big cities in a local municipal election.
    Orban, in power for a decade, faces tough elections in 2022, fighting the effects of the pandemic against an opposition that has unified for the first time to unseat him.
    The government projects gross domestic output will shrink by about 6% in 2020 as a result of the pandemic.
    Orban said on Saturday that the government will cover two-thirds of wage costs of businesses in December and January that have to temporarily close in the tourism and hotel sector, as well as restaurants and private bus companies.
    Families with children or expecting a child will be eligible for a preferential loan of up to 6 million forints and non-refundable grants to renovate their homes.
    “We made these decisions…and we hope we can save several hundred thousands of jobs,” Orban said.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Editing by Alexander Smith and Christina Fincher)

12/20/2020 US to close consulates in Russia by Matthew Lee, ASSOCIATED PRESS
    WASHINGTON – The Trump administration notified Congress that it intends to shutter the last two remaining U.S. consulates in Russia.
    The State Department told lawmakers last week that it will permanently close the consulate in the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok and temporarily suspend operations at the consulate in Yekaterinburg just east of the Ural Mountains.
    The notice went to Congress on Dec.10 but received little attention. Three days later, word came of a major suspected     Russian computer intrusion into U.S. government and private computer systems that has raised grave cybersecurity fears.    The department’s notification to Congress, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, said the closures are due to caps placed by Russian authorities in 2017 on the number of U.S. diplomats allowed to work in the country.
    The moves are “in response to ongoing staffing challenges of the U.S. Mission in Russia after the 2017 Russian imposed personnel cap on the US Mission and resultant impasse with Russia over diplomatic visas,” it said.
    Following the closures, the only diplomatic facility the U.S. will have in Russia will be the embassy in Moscow.    Russia ordered the closure of the U.S. consulate in St. Petersburg in 2018 after the U.S. ordered the Russian consulate in Seattle closed in tit-for-tat actions over the poisoning of an ex-Russian spy in Britain.
    The consulate in Vladivostok had been temporarily closed in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.

12/20/2020 Keep Up The Good Work, Putin Tells Spy Agency Staff
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a ceremony marking the Security Agencies Worker's Day at the headquarters of the Foreign Intelligence
Service in Moscow, Russia December 20, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said the foreign intelligence service was exceptionally important for protecting the country, in comments made soon after it was accused by some of being behind a major hack on U.S. government departments.
    Speaking at an event commemorating 100 years since the founding of the SVR foreign intelligence service, Putin said the agency and other security services were a crucial guarantee of Russia’s “sovereign, democratic, independent development.”
    Some international cyber researchers have suggested that Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service may have been behind an unprecedented attack on U.S. government computer systems first reported by Reuters last week.
    U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday that Russia was responsible for the attack.    The Kremlin has always denied Moscow’s involvement in cyber-attacks against the West.    It has said that Russia had nothing to do with this latest assault.
    Putin told attendees of the event, which also marked the Day of the Security Services Worker, that it was important to continue developing the work of counterintelligence agencies.
    “I know what I’m talking about here,” Putin, a former KGB agent, said, in comments shared on the Kremlin website.    “And I rate very highly the difficult professional operations that have been conducted.”
    “The most serious attention must be paid to information security, to the fight against extremism and against corruption,” he added.
    He also told members of the agency to pay particular attention to risks posed by conflicts “simmering” near the country’s borders.
    Clashes have again been reported between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave despite a Russian-brokered ceasefire. Weekly anti-government protests continue in Belarus.
    “I expect that the Foreign Intelligence Service will continue to respond flexibly to the highly changeable international context, actively participating in identifying and neutralising potential threats to Russia, and improving the quality of its analytical materials,” Putin said.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova, editing by Louise Heavens)

12/20/2020 Bosnia’s Divided Town Of Mostar Holds First Local Vote In 12 Years by Dado Ruvic
Aerial view of buildings, mosques and churches destroyed during the 1992-1995 war in the old part
of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina December 20, 2020. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
    MOSTAR, Bosnia (Reuters) – Citizens in Bosnia’s ethnically divided town of Mostar voted for their city councillors on Sunday for the first time in 12 years, after the rival Croat and Bosniak parties that rule the town agreed on long-disputed electoral rules.
    The town, in the south of the country, is renowned for its Ottoman-era Old Bridge over the river Neretva, which was destroyed during Bosnia’s war in the 1990s but has since been restored.
    It is the most multi-ethnic town in Bosnia, but the Croat and Bosniak communities have been largely separated by the river since the end of the war in which they fought each other.
    Mostar has not held an election since 2008 because its Catholic Croats and Muslim Bosniaks were unable to agree on electoral rules.
    But the dispute has been settled thanks to a 2019 court ruling won by Irma Baralija, a philosophy teacher who filed a suit against Bosnia at the European human rights court for failing to hold elections in Mostar.
    “This is a very emotional day, for us this has already been a victory,” Baralija told Reuters TV, after casting her ballot.    She is standing for the multi-ethnic Our Party in the election.
    The voters will choose 35 city councillors from six ethnically-based electoral units and a central city zone.
    About 17% of about 100,000 registered voters had cast their ballots by 1000 GMT, obeying measures against the coronavirus pandemic, election authorities said.    The polling stations will close at 1900 (1800 GMT) and the preliminary results are expected around midnight.
    The Croat and Bosniak nationalist HDZ and SDA parties have held a firm grip over Mostar for the past quarter century, each governing its own part of the divided town and its separate utilities, postal companies, universities and hospitals.
    The city centre is still dominated by buildings damaged during the war and much of the town’s infrastructure is in disrepair.    Many state-owned firms in the town have shut down due to mismanagement and there has been exodus of young people.
    “I expect the city to start functioning because so far nothing has been functioning,” said Hedija Hadzic, a woman in her 50s, after casting the ballot.
    “At least, we’ll get the city council.”
(Reporting by Dado Ruvic, writing by Daria Sito-Sucic. Editing by Jane Merriman)

12/20/2020 Around 100 Protesters Detained In Belarus In Weekly March
FILE PHOTO: Opposition supporters carry historical white-red-white flags of Belarus as they attend a rally
to reject the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus December 13, 2020. REUTERS/Stringer
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Authorities in Belarus detained around 100 protesters on Sunday during a weekly anti-government march in Minsk, an Interior Ministry representative said in a statement.
    Belarus, a country of 9.5 million, which Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election that veteran President Alexander Lukashenko said he won.    His opponents say the vote was rigged and have been demanding his resignation.
    Instead of coming together in one big march, as in the first months of the protests, demonstrators have increasingly adopted a different tactic, participating in multiple small-scale marches across the capital that start at staggered times throughout the day.
    More than 30,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the start of the protests in August, according to opposition leaders.
    Two female journalists were among those detained on Sunday, the Belarusian Association of Journalists said.
    Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years.    The European Union imposed travel bans and asset freezes on almost 50 Belarusian officials in protest over the election, which the West says was rigged, and over Lukashenko’s crackdown on opponents.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

12/21/2020 Kremlin Foe Navalny Says He Pranked Secret Agent, Learns Of Underwear Murder Plot
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally
in Moscow, Russia, February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) -Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny said on Monday he had tricked a Russian secret agent into disclosing details of the botched plot to kill him and had been told that poison had been placed in his underpants.
    Navalny, one of President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken critics, was airlifted to Germany for treatment in August after collapsing on a plane in Russia.    Germany has said he was poisoned with a Soviet-style Novichok nerve agent in an attempt to murder him, an assertion many Western nations accept.
    Navalny declared his poisoning case solved earlier this month when a joint media inquiry said it had identified a team of assassins from Russia’s FSB security service.
    In a video published on his website on Monday, Navalny said he had phoned up some of his alleged poisoners before the joint investigation was released and posed as an aide to the secretary of Russia’s Security Council.
    One of the men, named by Navalny as an employee of Russia’s FSB security service, spoke to him for 49 minutes and appears to have been part of the clean-up team, he said. Navalny published a recording and transcript of the conversation.
    Reuters could not independently verify the fact of the phone call or the identity of Navalny’s interlocutor.
    The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected any suggestion that Russia tried to kill Navalny.
    “The video clip with the phone call is fake,” the FSB said, according to the state TASS news agency, calling Navalny’s investigation into his alleged poisoning a “planned provocation.”
    In the video, Navalny can be heard asking a voice on the phone.    “Why did nothing work out?”
    “Well, I’ve asked myself this question more than once,” the voice responds.
    When asked why Navalny survived, the voice says it was probably because the plane he was on at the time made an unplanned emergency landing and he was treated professionally and quickly by Russian medics.
    “If it had been a bit longer, then it’s possible it would all … have ended differently,” the voice says.
    Putin last week dismissed media reports about Navalny’s poisoning, saying they were made up of information provided by U.S. intelligence services and were an attempt to smear Putin himself and make Navalny seem more important than he really was.
    Navalny is convalescing in Germany, but has said he plans to return to Russia at an undisclosed date.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Andrew Osborn; editing by Angus MacSwan and Giles Elgood)

11/22/2020 Belarus To Allow Exiled Archbishop To Return Home
FILE PHOTO: The Archbishop of Minsk, Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, speaks during an interview in Minsk, Febuary 26, 2008. REUTERS/Vladimir Nikolsky (BELARUS)/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) -Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has decided to allow Minsk’s exiled Catholic archbishop to return home after a personal appeal from Pope Francis, the Vatican’s embassy in Minsk said on Tuesday.
    Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz angered Lukashenko by defending the rights of anti-government protesters and was denied entry in August as he tried to return from a ceremony in neighbouring Poland.
    The respected Rome-based website Il Sismografo, which specialises in Vatican affairs, posted a photo of a statement from the Vatican’s ambassador in Minsk saying it had been informed by the government that “there are no more obstacles” to Kondrusiewicz’s return.
    In the Italian-language statement, the Vatican ambassador, Archbishop Ante Jozic, thanks the government for “responding positively to the request by His Holiness Pope Francis” to allow Kondrusiewicz to return in time for Christmas.
    Belarus Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey said earlier on Tuesday that Lukashenko had asked officials “to find a solution” to the case out of respect for the pope.
    Mass protests demanding Lukashenko leave power erupted after an Aug. 9 presidential election and are still being staged weekly, though their size has diminished amid a crackdown.
    A special envoy from the pope met Lukashenko last week.    Vatican diplomats have been working for nearly five months to persuade Lukashenko to allow Kondrusiewicz to return, and a senior Vatican source said the Holy See was trying to get him back in time for Christmas.
    Belarusians overwhelmingly observe Orthodox Christianity, but the country has small Catholic minorities, observing the Roman rite common in Poland or the Eastern rite found in neighbouring Ukraine.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth in Moscow and Philip Pullella in RomeEditing by Andrew Osborn and Matthew Lewis)

12/22/2020 Putin Beefs Up Protections For Former Russian Presidents
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting via video link on a memorandum of intent on cooperation signed between
Britain's AstraZeneca, Russia's Gamaleya Institute, which developed the Sputnik V vaccine, Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF),
and R-Pharm pharmaceutical company, in Moscow, Russia December 21, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin signed laws on Tuesday granting former Russian presidents expanded immunity from prosecution and allowing them to become senators for life in the upper house of parliament once they leave the Kremlin.
    The new laws follow sweeping reforms of Russia’s political system initiated by Putin this year.    Among other things, these allow him to run for two more six-year terms in the Kremlin if he chooses.    He would otherwise have had to step down in 2024.
    The reforms are being parsed for clues as to what Putin, 68, may do at the end of his current term, which is his second consecutive term and his fourth overall.
    Former presidents were already entitled to immunity from prosecution for crimes committed while in office, but the new law grants them lifelong immunity and says they cannot be arrested, searched, questioned or prosecuted.
    The new legislation also makes it harder to revoke a former president’s immunity.
    Among other things, the process involves the upper house of parliament voting overwhelmingly to revoke it on the strength of accusations by the lower house that the president has committed treason or another serious crime.
    The other laws signed by Putin allow presidents to name up to 30 senators to the Federation Council, Russia’s upper house, and to join the Council themselves once they have left office.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Polina Devitt; Editing by Alex Richardson and Mark Potter)

12/22/2020 Kremlin Mocks Foe Navalny Over Alleged Underwear Poison Plot
Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny is seen during a phone call, when he had tricked a secret agent into disclosing details of the botched plot to
kill him, at undisclosed location in Germany, on this still image obtained from video, December 21, 2020. NAVALNY.COM/Social Media via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin on Tuesday mocked opposition politician Alexei Navalny and tried to call his sanity into question, a day after he said he had tricked a Russian secret agent into disclosing lurid details of a botched plot to kill him.
    Navalny, one of President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken critics, was airlifted to Germany for medical treatment in August after collapsing on a plane in Russia.
    Germany has said he was poisoned with a Soviet-style Novichok nerve agent in an attempt to murder him, an assertion many Western nations accept.
    The Kremlin has repeatedly rejected any suggestion that Russia tried to kill Navalny.
    Navalny on Monday released a recording of him speaking by phone at length to a man he described as a state security agent who told him, among other things, that the poison had been placed in his underpants.    Navalny said he had posed as an aide to a senior Russian security official to gain the man’s confidence.
    Russia’s FSB security service dismissed the recording as a fake.
    Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman, told reporters on a conference call on Tuesday he was speaking in a personal capacity, but thought Navalny was suffering from psychological issues.
    “We can say that the patient (Navalny) has a pronounced persecution mania.    You can also clearly identify certain signs of megalomania,” said Peskov.
    Kira Yarmysh, Navalny’s spokeswoman, said on Twitter that it looked like Peskov had been forced to improvise and mocked what she portrayed as the Kremlin’s attempts to obscure the truth.
    She pointed out that Putin himself had recently confirmed that state security agents had kept an eye on Navalny, something she suggested sat oddly with the Kremlin now accusing him of having persecution mania.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Nick Macfie)

12/22/2020 Kremlin Says New U.S. Sanctions Are Hostile Act By Outgoing Trump Administration
FILE PHOTO: The flag of the Russian Federation flies at the Russian Embassy in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Tuesday that the new round of U.S. sanctions against Russia marked another hostile act by the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump and would further harm already poor ties between Moscow and Washington.
    The Trump administration on Monday published a list of Chinese and Russian companies with alleged military ties that restrict them from buying a wide range of U.S. goods and technology.
    “Every kick like this pushes us further from the point of normalisation and makes it extremely difficult to get out of the damaging tailspin in our bilateral relations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov and Maxim Rodionov; wWiting by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams)

12/23/2020 Police Blame Residents For Fire At Bosnia Migrant Centre
Migrant camp "Lipa" is seen under fire in Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina December 23, 2020. REUTERS/Dzemal Catic
    SARAJEVO (Reuters) – A fire at a migrant centre housing about 1,200 people in northwestern Bosnia on Wednesday was probably set by migrants displeased with its temporary closure, police and a United Nations official said.
    Police in the town of Bihac said the fire, which destroyed four large tents at the Lipa camp, was extinguished quickly.    No casualties were reported.
    Television footage showed flames and black smoke rising above the camp as migrants looked on.    Some climbed the perimeter fence, carrying their belongings.
    “The investigation is still ongoing but it’s certain the fire was set, probably by the camp residents,” police spokesman Ale Siljdedic said by telephone.
    The Lipa camp was set to be shut on Wednesday for winter refurbishing, but Bosnia’s authorities have failed to find alternative accommodation for residents.
    The migrants will join about 1,500 others sleeping rough in cold weather.    About 10,000 migrants from Asia, the Middle East and North Africa are stuck in Bosnia, hoping to reach wealthier countries in the European Union.
    “As far as we know now, a group of former residents put three tents and containers on fire after most of the migrants had left the camp,” Peter Van der Auweraert, head of the International Organisation for Migrations (IOM) that is running migrant camps in Bosnia, said on Twitter.
    Most of the migrants headed for Bihac though authorities have closed migrant centres there and refused to reopen them, urging other parts of Bosnia to share the burden of the migrant crisis.
    The United Nations mission in Bosnia expressed its concern over the lack of a political solution for the camp’s winter preparation, echoing warnings by the EU of a looming humanitarian crisis.
(Refiles to clarify camp’s location)
(Reporting by Daria Sito-Sucic; Editing by Barbara Lewis, Bernadette Baum and Timothy Heritage)

12/23/2020 U.S. Expands Sanctions On Belarus Over August Election, Crackdown On Protesters by Daphne Psaledakis
FILE PHOTO: Law enforcement officers surround participants of an opposition demonstration against presidential
election results at the Independence Square in Minsk, Belarus August 28, 2020. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko
    WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States on Wednesday expanded sanctions on Belarus, targeting four entities and 40 individuals over their roles in a disputed presidential election and the government’s subsequent crackdown on protesters.
    Belarus, a country of 9.5 million, which Russia sees as a security buffer against NATO, has been hit by repeated mass protests after the Aug. 9 vote that veteran President Alexander Lukashenko said he won.    His opponents say the vote was rigged and have been demanding his resignation.
    More than 30,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the start of the protests in August, opposition leaders say.
    “The Belarusian people continually seek to peacefully exercise their basic democratic rights, and the state repeatedly responds with violent crackdowns,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a Treasury Department statement.
    The new sanctions target Belarus’ central election commission which the Treasury said managed a vote that “included a myriad of irregularities that made it neither free nor fair, including barring opposition candidates, denying access to poll observers, and certifying inaccurate vote tallies.”
    Also blacklisted were the Minsk Special Purpose Police Unit in the capital, the Main Internal Affairs Directorate of the Minsk City Executive Committee, and KGB Alpha, which the Treasury said was involved in attacking protesters.
    The Treasury also slapped sanctions on the deputy interior minister and national police chief, Henadz Arkadzievich Kazakevich.
    The move freezes any U.S. assets of those blacklisted and generally bars Americans from dealing with them.
    The U.S. State Department also identified 39 people it said were responsible for undermining democracy in Belarus and imposed visa restrictions on them, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement. The 39 were not identified.
    “The United States continues to support international efforts to independently investigate electoral irregularities in Belarus, the human rights abuses surrounding the election, and the crackdown that has followed,” Pompeo said.
    Washington previous slapped sanctions in October on the interior minister of Belarus and seven other officials of the former Soviet Republic, echoing measures by the European Union, Britain and Canada.
(Reporting by Daphne PsaledakisEditing by Mark Heinrich)

12/23/2020 Kosovo Pins U.N. Membership Hopes On Biden Presidency by Fatos Bytyci
A man wearing a mask walks near a monument of former U.S. President Bill Clinton in Pristina, Kosovo, December 20, 2020. REUTERS/Florion Goga u000d u000d
    SOJEVE, Kosovo (Reuters) – Like many Kosovars, cattle seller Xhelal Terstena hopes incoming U.S. President Joe Biden will help the small Balkan country’s push for United Nations membership.
    Biden is respected in Kosovo for his active support of the 1999 NATO bombing of Serbia to halt the killing and expulsion of ethnic Albanians in its then southern province. Kosovo declared independence in 2008 but Belgrade refuses to recognise it.
    “For Albanians God comes first, America is second,” says Terstena, who sells live cattle on a 35-km (22 mile) road in the southeast of the country named after Biden’s late son Beau.
    Terstena echoes similar sentiments all over the country of which Washington remains the biggest financial and political supporter.
    Many hope that a Biden administration, which is likely to take more of a multilateral and diplomatic approach aimed at repairing Washington’s relationships with its key NATO allies, will actively help Kosovo’s bid for a U.N. seat.
    Some analysts, however, warn that expectations may be too high as Serbia’s traditional allies Russia and China are also blocking Kosovo’s U.N. membership.
    “It all depends how much political capital the U.S. could spend in supporting Kosovo taking into consideration all other crisis the US has to deal with,” said political analyst Agon Maliqi.
    Biden last vistaed Kosovo in 2016 when he was vice president to unveil a memorial of his son Beau who had worked in the country after the 1998-99 war ended, helping train local prosecutors and judges.
    The memorial is in front of the U.S. military base Bondsteel, home to some 700 American soldiers who help maintain the fragile peace in Kosovo.
    Naming streets after U.S. officials is a tradition in Kosovo.    In the capital Pristina, the biggest boulevard is named Bill Clinton and it is linked with a road named after his successor George W. Bush.
    There was even talk of naming a lake after Trump.
(Editing by Ivana Sekularac; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

12/23/2020 Russian Lawmakers Vote For Jail Penalties For Online Slander
Russia's President Vladimir Putin chairs a joint meeting of the country's State Council and the Council for
Strategic Development and National Projects via a video conference call at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence
outside Moscow, Russia December 23, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s lower house of parliament approved in its third and final reading on Wednesday a draft law on introducing jail terms for people found guilty of making slanderous comments on the internet or in the media.
    The bill, which still requires the approval of the upper house and President Vladimir Putin’s signature to become law, has drawn criticism from opponents of the Kremlin who say the authorities could use it to jail critics and stifle dissent.
    Under the draft legislation, a person convicted of slander on the internet could be jailed for up to two years and fined up to 1 million roubles ($13,300).
    People accused of making “slanderous” accusations of rape or other grave crimes could face up to five years behind bars, the text of the bill says.
    Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny suggested that if the bill becomes law, it should be used against the Russian authorities.
    “I remember very well how Putin declared victory over the coronavirus this summer,” Navalny wrote on Twitter, in a sarcastic reference to a surge in COVID-19 infections that began soon after the president’s remarks.
    Russia has introduced tougher internet laws in recent years that require search engines to delete some search results, and messaging services to share encryption keys with security services.
    Last year Russia introduced new fines for people who insult the authorities online or spread fake news.
($1 = 75.0850 roubles)
(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Tom Balmforth and Timothy Heritage)

12/23/2020 Lawmakers Pass Bill To Restrict Websites That ‘Discriminate’ Against Russian Media
FILE PHOTO: The YouTube app logo is seen on a smartphone in this picture
illustration taken September 15, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s lower house of parliament voted on Wednesday to pass legislation allowing authorities to block or restrict websites like YouTube if they “discriminate” against Russian media on their sites.
    The authors of the legislation cited complaints from Russian media outlets RT and the RIA news agency about what they described as the “censorship” of their accounts on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
(Reporting by Nadezhda Tsydenova; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Katya Golubkova)

12/23/2020 Russia Says Efforts To Reach Libya Peace Settlement Should Be Stepped Up – RIA
FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin
Abdulrahman Al-Thani in Moscow, Russia December 23, 2020. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that international efforts to reach a peace settlement in Libya should be intensified, the RIA news agency reported.
    Libya descended into chaos after the NATO-backed overthrow of leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.    In October, the two major sides in the country’s war – the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) and Khalifa Haftar’s eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) – agreed a ceasefire.
(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Writing by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; editing by John Stonestreet)

12/23/2020 Hungary’s Ruling Fidesz Falls Behind Unified Opposition In Polls
FILE PHOTO: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban leaves an EU summit amid the coronavirus disease
(COVID-19) outbreak in Brussels, Belgium December 11, 2020. Fransisco Seco/Pool via REUTERS
    BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Support for Hungary’s ruling nationalist Fidesz party has fallen behind an alliance of opposition parties, a poll by research institute Republikon published on news site Telex.hu showed on Wednesday, reflecting similar recent polls.
    Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has held a chokehold on power since 2010, faces his toughest election in 2022 as the coronavirus pandemic and its economic effects linger and as opposition parties grouped together against him.
    Fidesz has been embroiled in conflicts at home and in the European Union as the premier vetoed the 27-nation bloc’s 1.85 trillion euro ($2.25 trln) budget and recovery package, ignoring criticism from his domestic opposition.
    Fidesz also suffered as it was hit by a major scandal with a senior EU lawmaker resigning after he fled a Brussels orgy in violation of lockdown rules and in possession of illegal drugs, according to Belgian authorities.
    Following months of talks, six major Hungarian opposition parties agreed on Sunday to hold primary elections for the first time in a national vote and challenge Fidesz one-on-one in all voters districts, behind a single leader and a single programme.
    Their cumulative support has grown to 35% of all voters in the December 8-15 poll from 32 percent in November, Republikon found, while Fidesz slipped to 30% from 32%.
    Other pollsters have measure similar trends.    Fidesz support fell by 6 percentage points in a single month to 34% in December, Median said last week, while the opposition added 2 percentage points and took over Fidesz at 36%.
    Zavecz Research also said earlier this month that Fidesz support fell to 30% among all voters while the opposition had the backing of 34%.
    Even pro-government pollster Nezopont said last week that while support for Fidesz was at 42% of all voters, up from 40% in its last public poll in July, the opposition narrowed the gap to score 40%, up from 31% in July.
($1 = 0.8216 euros)
(Reporting by Marton Dunai, editing by Louise Heavens)

12/25/2020 Russian Opposition Activist Lyubov Sobol Taken In For Police Questioning – Ally
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition figure Lyubov Sobol takes part in a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov's murder and
to protest against proposed amendments to the country's constitution, in Moscow, Russia February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian police raided the home of opposition activist Lyubov Sobol early on Friday and then took her in for questioning, Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and his supporters said.
    Navalny’s supporters said they thought the police action was a response to her trying to knock at the door of an alleged FSB security agent in Moscow who Navalny says took part in a botched plot to poison him in August.
    The FSB has dismissed Navalny’s allegations as a provocation.
(Reporting by Moscow staff; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/26/2020 Slovakia Starts Vaccinations Against COVID-19
Healthcare worker Vladimir Krcmery, receives the first injection nationwide, with a dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at the
University Hospital, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, in Nitra, Slovakia, December 26, 2020. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa
    NITRA, Slovakia (Reuters) – Slovakia on Saturday started to vaccinate its population against the coronavirus as the country joined a coordinated push by the European Union against the global pandemic.
    Vladimir Krcmery, a member of the government’s Pandemic Commission, was the first person in the country inoculated by the vaccine produced by Pfizer and BionTech.
    Hungary also began vaccinating its people on Saturday, a day ahead of rollouts in several other countries including France, Germany and Spain.
(Reporting by Radovan Stoklasa, Writing by Robert Muller, Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

12/26/2020 U.S. Whistleblower Edward Snowden’s Wife Shares Photos Of Their New Son
Former Right Livelihood laureate Edward Snowden speaks from a video screen during the 2019 Right Livelihood Award
ceremony at Cirkus, Stockholm, Sweden December 4, 2019. TT News Agency/Erik Simander via REUTERS ATTENTION
EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. SWEDEN OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN SWEDEN.
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – U.S. whistleblower Edward Snowden’s wife has given birth to a son, photographs posted on her social media page on Saturday showed.
    “Happy Holidays from our newly expanded family,” Lindsay Mills wrote, sharing photographs on Instagram of the couple holding the newborn.
    Snowden, 37, who fled the United States after leaking secret National Security Agency files in 2013 and was given asylum in Russia, said last month that he would be seeking Russian citizenship together with his wife for the sake of their future family.
    The couple said they feared being separated from their son, in an era of pandemics and closed borders, if they did not become dual U.S.-Russian citizens.
    Russia has already granted Snowden permanent residency rights, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said earlier this year, a vital step towards Russian citizenship.
    U.S. authorities have for years wanted Snowden returned to face a criminal trial on espionage charges brought in 2013.
    “As we expected, there is a new addition to his family. Edward and Lindsay have had a son.    The mother and baby are in excellent health,” Russia’s Interfax news agency reported on Saturday, citing Kucherena.
(Reporting by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Mike Harrison)
[MAYBE TRUMP WILL PARDON YOU SO YOU CAN COME BACK TO THE U.S. AND TELL ALL OF US ABOUT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION CORRUPTIONS THAT MADE THEM GO AFTER YOU SO AMERICA CAN KNOW HOW CORRUPT THEY WERE FOR 8 YEARS SPYING ON AMERICANS AND THEY ARE MAD AT YOU FOR EXPOSING THEM.].

12/26/2020 Russia Opens Criminal Case Against Ally Of Kremlin Critic Navalny
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition figure Lyubov Sobol takes part in a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov's murder and to protest
against proposed amendments to the country's constitution, in Moscow, Russia February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia launched a criminal case on Friday against Lyubov Sobol, an ally of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, over accusations she had violently entered a flat that her supporters said was linked to a secret agent involved in plot to kill Navalny.
    The move against Sobol is the latest in a clampdown on the Kremlin’s opponents before next year’s parliamentary election.    Sobol aims to run for office, although outspoken critics of the Kremlin are often prevented from standing.
    Sobol was detained for 48 hours after questioning, Navalny, one of the Kremlin’s fiercest opponents, wrote on Twitter.
    Russia’s Investigative Committee, which handles serious crimes, said on its website on Friday it had launched a criminal case against Sobol.    It did not mention any detention.
    Sobol’s supporters and the authorities gave different accounts of events leading up to Friday’s actions.
    Her supporters said she rang the doorbell on Monday of an apartment owned by the family of a man who Navalny has said was an FSB security service officer involved in a bungled attempt to poison him using a nerve agent.
    The FSB has dismissed Navalny’s account of the poisoning.
    In its account, the Investigative Committee said Sobol and several others tried to gain entry to an old woman’s flat in Moscow, wearing uniforms used by the state consumer health watchdog.
    It accused her of tricking a delivery courier to enter the apartment block before barging into the woman’s flat when she opened the door.    It said Sobol was suspected of using violence to enter illegally, an offence that can carry a jail term of up to two years.
    Navalny wrote on Twitter: “They are locking up the mother of a small child for two days to tell everybody: don’t dig into this case.    Don’t dare to mess with our killers and poisoners and knock on their doors.    These killers are untouchable.”
    Germany and other Western nations say Navalny was poisoned with a Soviet-style Novichok nerve agent in a murder attempt.    The Kremlin has repeatedly denied the accusations.
(Reporting by Moscow newsroom; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Edmund Blair)

12/27/2020 Czech Republic Starts Coronavirus Vaccine Rollout
Prime Minister Andrej Babis of the Czech Republic receives the first injection nationwide with a dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Military University Hospital,
as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, in Prague, Czech Republic, December 27, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny
    PRAGUE (Reuters) -Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis became the first person in the country to be given a vaccine against the new coronavirus on Sunday, as European Union member states begin a pushback against the pandemic which is surging across the continent.
    Hungary and Slovakia stole a march on their fellow EU nations as they began vaccinating people against COVID-19 on Saturday. Germany officially launches its inoculation campaign on Sunday, along with coutries such as France and Italy.
    Babis received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at the Central Military Hospital in Prague, just before other hospitals in the capital and second-largest city Brno started to distribute the 9,750 doses the country has received so far.
    “The vaccine which arrived from the European Union yesterday, that is a hope, a hope that we will return to a normal life,” Babis said before receiving the jab.
    He said that the country has ordered 15.9 million vaccines in total, more than half of which will be the Pfizer/BioNTech jab, which should cover nearly 9 million people in the country of 10.7 million.
    Emilie Repikova, 95, a World War Two veteran, was also one of the first to be vaccinated, shortly after Babis.
    The country closed non-essential shops, services and ski lifts and enforced a stricter curfew from Sunday as it seeks to curb another rise in COVID-19 infections and hospitalisations.
    As of Sunday morning, Czechs had reported 670,599 cases in total, 93,714 of them currently active, 4,226 hospitalised with the illness, and 11,044 have died.
(Reporting by Robert Muller; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

12/27/2020 Putin Decides To Receive Coronavirus Vaccine – Kremlin
FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin chairs a joint meeting of the country's State Council and the
Council for Strategic Development and National Projects via a video conference call at the Novo-Ogaryovo
state residence outside Moscow, Russia December 23, 2020. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s president Vladimir Putin will receive the Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a Russian state TV channel on Sunday.
    “He said he will be vaccinated, he made this decision and was waiting until all formalities are completed,” the spokesman was quoted as saying to Rossiya 1 TV Channel on its website.
    Russia launched a voluntary vaccination programme with the Russia-made Sputnik V vaccine earlier in December, starting with the most vulnerable groups in Moscow.
    People over the age of 60 may begin to apply for shots on Monday, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on his website on Sunday, the day after the Russian health ministry said the vaccine was approved for use by elderly people after a separate trial.
    68-year-old Putin said earlier that the Russian vaccine was effective and safe and he saw no reason not to be vaccinated addeing that he was waiting until it became available.
    Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak in Russia, Putin has mainly worked remotely, held meetings via videolink and limited travel.
    He said in August that one of his daughters had taken part in the clinical trial of the vaccine and felt well afterwards.
(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova, editing by Louise Heavens)

12/28/2020 Russia Gives Kremlin Critic Navalny An Ultimatum: Return Immediately Or Face Jail
FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally in
Moscow, Russia, February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s prison service on Monday gave Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny a last minute ultimatum: Fly back from Germany at once and report at a Moscow office early on Tuesday morning, or be jailed if you return after that deadline.
    Navalny, one of President Vladimir Putin’s leading critics, was airlifted to Germany for treatment in August after collapsing on a plane in what Germany and other Western nations say was an attempt to murder him with a Novichok nerve agent.
    Russia has said it has seen no evidence he was poisoned and has denied any involvement in the incident.
    The Federal Prison Service (FSIN) on Monday accused Navalny of violating the terms of a suspended prison sentence he is still serving out over a conviction dating from 2014, and of evading the supervision of Russia’s criminal inspection authority.
    Citing an article in the British medical publication The Lancet about his treatment, it said Navalny had been discharged from hospital in Berlin on Sept. 20 and that all symptoms of what it called his illness had vanished by Oct. 12.
    “Therefore the convicted man is not fulfilling all of the obligations placed on him by the court, and is evading the supervision of the Criminal Inspectorate,” it said.
    Navalny is serving out a suspended three-and-a-half-year prison term over a theft case he says was politically-motivated.    His probation period expires on Dec. 30.
    The prison service said in a statement late on Monday that it had summoned Navalny to report to the inspection authority and that his suspended sentence could be changed to a real jail term if his suspected violations of the terms of the suspended sentence were proven to be true.
    The prison service mentioned no deadline, but Navalny posted a screenshot of a message to his lawyer which said he had until 0900 on Tuesday to return and show up at a Moscow office.
    His spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, said on Twitter, it was impossible for Navalny to return in time, that he was still convalescing after his poisoning, and accused the prison service of acting on orders from the Kremlin.
    “There’s no way he could appear at the Moscow Criminal Inspectorate tomorrow.    But does the FSIN really care about common sense? They were given an order, they are fulfilling it,” she wrote.
    The Kremlin has said Navalny is free to return to Russia at any time like any other Russian citizen.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/28/2020 Russia Labels Veteran Rights Activist, Four Others, Media ‘Foreign Agents’
FILE PHOTO: Riot police detain human rights activist Lev Ponomaryov during an unsanctioned protest in Moscow
May 7, 2012. Vladimir Putin was sworn in as Russia's president in a glittering Kremlin ceremony on Monday, starting a six-year
term in which he faces growing dissent, economic problems and bitter political rivalries. REUTERS/Denis Sinyakov
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s Ministry of Justice added five people, including veteran rights activist Lev Ponomaryov, to its list of media “foreign agents” on Monday, the first time individuals have been targeted under legislation used against media outlets.
    Russia first passed a law in 2012 allowing it to label foreign-funded non-governmental organisations and rights groups it viewed as engaged in political activity as “foreign agents,” a term with negative Soviet-era connotations.
    The law was later expanded to label “foreign agent” media outlets and independent journalists and bloggers.    Rights groups say the law is open to abuse and has been used to stifle dissent and harass civil society groups.
    On Monday, the justice ministry announced the addition of Ponomaryov, 79, a longtime critic of President Vladimir Putin, to its list of media foreign agents alongside four other people, including a journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
    Until now, the list had only contained the names of media outlets, including various regional services of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty as well as the Voice of America and a Czech outlet.
    Ponomaryov said he was unsure how the designation would affect him and that he was surprised that he, as a non-journalist, had been named, the Interfax news agency reported.
    Rights groups and other organisations designated by the justice ministry as foreign agents can be subjected to spot checks and face bureaucratic scrutiny.
(Reporting by Tom Balmforth; editing by Andrew Osborn)

12/28/2020 EU’s Borrell Accuses Russia Of Spreading COVID-19 Disinformation To Sell Its Vaccine
FILE PHOTO: Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, attends a news conference
after a European Union Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels, Belgium December 7, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS
    BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union’s top diplomat said on Monday that Russian public media had spread false information on European and American COVID-19 vaccines in countries where it wants to sell its own shot against the coronavirus.
    “Western vaccine developers are openly mocked on multi-lingual Russian state-controlled media, which has in some cases led to absurd claims that vaccines will turn people into monkeys,” Josep Borrell said in a blog post.
    “Such narratives are apparently directed at countries where Russia wants to sell its own vaccine, Sputnik V,” Borrell added, noting that these moves threatened public health amid the COVID-19 pandemic. He gave no specific examples.
    Moscow has repeatedly denied these accusations, and alleges that Sputnik V is being targeted by a foreign-backed disinformation campaign.
    The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) which is responsible for marketing the vaccine abroad, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Borrell’s statement.    The health ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.    Roskomnadzor, the Russian media and communications watchdog, also did not respond immediately.
    When drugmaker AstraZeneca, which worked with Oxford University on its vaccine, paused a clinical trial in September due to the then unexplained illness of a volunteer, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Sputnik V was more reliable because it was based on an adenovirus found in humans, whereas the British candidate was a “monkey vaccine.”
    Trials of the vaccine, which uses a bioengineered version of a harmless common cold virus found in chimpanzees to instruct human cells to make antigens, were resumed in Britain within days after getting the green light from safety watchdogs.
    Russia last week dispatched its first batch of coronavirus vaccine to Argentina as part of a 10-million-dose deal.    It has signed supply deals with a number of other Latin American and Asian countries. The Russian shot costs less than $20 per person for the necessary two doses.
(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio; Additional reporting by Polina Ivanova; Editing by Alison Williams)

12/28/2020 Belarusian Leader To Gather Delegates For Reform Plan Critics Call A Sham
FILE PHOTO: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko visits a polling station during the presidential
election in Minsk, Belarus August 9, 2020. Sergei Gapon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said on Monday that a National Assembly of unelected delegates would meet in February for the first time since 2016, part of a reform plan critics view as a stalling tactic to weather a political crisis.
    Belarus has been rocked by mass protests since an Aug. 9 presidential election marred by voter fraud allegations.
    Lukashenko, in power since 1994, has rejected criticism while presiding over a sweeping crackdown in the ex-Soviet republic.
    Facing the biggest crisis of his rule, Lukashenko has suggested constitutional reforms, backed publicly by traditional ally Russia, that could clip presidential powers.
    He has given few details, but said that decisions to redistribute those powers could be taken at a meeting of the National Assembly, a political body with no formal power itself, but one that Lukashenko said could be given authority soon.
    The body usually meets every five years and brings together several thousand delegates whose candidacy is put forward by local state councils, pro-Lukashenko parties and groups of workers in the Soviet-style command economy.
    Lukashenko’s political opponents, the most prominent of whom have been jailed or fled the country, have dismissed the reform proposals as a stalling tactic to help him ride out the protests.
    Lukashenko said the process of selecting delegates would begin on Tuesday: “It should be people who represent all the layers and groups of the population, the whole Belarusian people,” he said.
    The National Assembly itself would meet on Feb. 11-12.
    Russian President Vladimir Putin has publicly urged Lukashenko to engage in dialogue with opposing forces in Belarus.    The two leaders met in September at a summit at which Lukashenko spoke publicly about initiating reforms.
    “It’s possible Lukashenko will try with the help of this assembly to sabotage the constitutional reform that he appeared to promise the Kremlin in September,” said Alexander Klaskovsky, a political analyst.
(Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

12/28/2020 Russia Reports 20.5% More Deaths Since Pandemic – State Statistics Service
FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Vologda City Hospital Number 1, where patients suffering from the coronavirus
disease (COVID-19) are treated, in Vologda, Russia November 24, 2020. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov/File Photo
    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has recorded 20.5% more deaths since the COVID-19 pandemic began in the country in April, data from the Rosstat state statistics service, tallied by Reuters, showed on Monday.
    The total figure, at 241,193 more deaths in April-November 2020 than during the same period the previous year, is significantly higher than the preliminary pandemic death toll of 55,265 so far, reported on a cumulative daily basis by the government’s coronavirus crisis centre.    This figure includes deaths recorded in December.
    Though death tolls fluctuate year-to-year, tallies of what are referred to as excess deaths can illustrate the impact of the pandemic by including cases where the novel coronavirus was not a confirmed cause of death, as well as deaths from other causes that could be linked to the fact that national medical systems are over-stretched.
    Rosstat data, tallied by Reuters, showed that less than half the total number of such excess deaths – at 116,030 since the start of the pandemic in Russia in April – can be attributed directly to the coronavirus.
    This is still more than double the preliminary death toll figure reported on a daily, cumulative basis by the Russian government coronavirus crisis centre, which is overseen by the health ministry and the consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor.    It stands at 55,265 so far, and includes deaths reported in December.
    Rosstat shared new data on Monday about the total number of deaths reported in Russia in November.
    The data showed the number of deaths was 55.6% higher compared to the same month last year, or 219,872 more deaths in total.
    Of these, the statistics service said, 35,645 deaths were directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
    Earlier this month, the service reported the number of deaths in October, which indicated deaths were up 30.3% on the same month the previous year.
(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov and Andrey Ostroukh; Writing by Polina Ivanova; editing by Barbara Lewis)

12/29/2020 Putin Regime Arrests Monk Who Called For Political Change by OAN Newsroom
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting to discuss the Ukrainian peace process. (Photo by Adam Berry/Getty Images)
    A Moscow court detained a patriotic Russian monk for two months pending trial over his calls for political change.
    In a ruling on Tuesday, the court said Abbot Sergiy Romanov was “undermining state security,” as he faces charges on three separate counts.
    On Monday, Russian special forces arrested the abbot at his monastery in the Urals Region.    This year, Abbot Sergiy gained prominence on Russian social media for denouncing the Kremlin’s corruption. He also called for a change of government in Russia.
    “You had 20 years to show who’s in charge of Russia,” Abbot Sergiy Romanov said.    “You, President Vladimir Putin, and you Patriarch Cyril, you are all the enemies of Russia, and you put your interests above life eternal.    Step down, or else you will be weighed on a scale and found wanting, and your days are counted.”
    Abbot Sergiy has also accused top officials at the Orthodox Church of corruption and illegal commercial activities.
His trial is slated for February.

    This page created on 10/1/2020, and updated each month by 10/31/2020, 11/30/2020, 12/31/2020.

Please close this window when done, or select the previous tab or back button to return to previous page.
Or return to the Table of Contents - Chapter Eight or
Or return to the Astronomical Events To Appear Between 2014 Through 2017 A.D.
Or return to the Beast That Came Out Of The Sea or
2011-2022 ????? Unknown future of the Sixth group of Twelve years
Or return to King Of The North in 2020 July-September