By Anne Kauranen ROVAJARVI, Finland (Reuters) – NATO countries are in the middle of Arctic military manoeuvres, vowing on Tuesday to defend their newest member, Finland, which is hosting its first joint NATO exercise in the region since becoming the 31st member of the Western alliance in April. The addition of Finland doubles the length…
By Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House on Wednesday announced the latest in a series of aid packages for Ukraine that includes up to $300 million worth of air defense systems, ammunition and other defense equipment. The security assistance package represents the 39th drawdown of equipment from the Department of Defense inventories, the…
By Alexander Marrow and Darya Korsunskaya (Reuters) – Russia’s unemployment rate dropped to a record low 3.3% in April, data showed on Wednesday, highlighting the labour shortage that is stifling economic growth, while other indicators painted a mixed picture. Russia was hit with a barrage of Western sanctions as it invaded Ukraine in February last…
By Guy Faulconbridge and Pavel Polityuk MOSCOW/KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow on Tuesday, Russia said in what one politician called the most dangerous attack on the capital since World War Two, while Kyiv was also hit from the air for the third time in 24 hours. Since Russia sent tens…
By Philip Blenkinsop LULEA, Sweden (Reuters) – EU tech chief Margrethe Vestager said on Wednesday she believed a draft code of conduct on artificial intelligence (AI) could be drawn up within weeks, allowing industry to commit to a final proposal “very, very soon”. Policymakers and many in the industry have expressed concern about AI, particularly…
By Fatos Bytyci LEPOSAVIC, Kosovo (Reuters) – NATO peacekeepers guarded town halls in ethnically polarised north Kosovo for a third day on Wednesday as Serbia’s defence minister inspected troops deployed near the border with its former province after violent unrest this week. The disturbances prompted NATO to send additional troops to the area and the…
By William James LONDON (Reuters) – Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has given his pandemic-era notebooks and messages to the government and urged officials to pass them on to an independent COVID-19 inquiry, his spokesman said on Wednesday. The Cabinet Office, which is responsible for overseeing the operation of government, is in a standoff…
By Joanna Plucinska LONDON (Reuters) – Global airlines are setting up a task force to deal with non-carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, stepping up efforts to tackle cloudy streaks formed by aircraft known as contrails, an environmental threat that until now has taken a backseat to carbon pollution in the response to global warming. The move…
By Philip Blenkinsop LULEA, Sweden (Reuters) – The United States and the European Union pledged on Wednesday to join forces to counter China’s non-market economic practices and disinformation, particularly over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The two partners sought at their Trade and Technology Council in Sweden to find common interests, such as over artificial intelligence…
By Leigh Thomas PARIS (Reuters) – France prides itself on taking its food seriously, but many consumers are now tightening their belts or skimping on quality, hit by a record inflation rate that threatens to serve up another political headache for the government. Adjusted for inflation, household spending on food fell year on year by…
