By Michael Kahn, Robert Muller and Anna Koper PRAGUE/WARSAW (Reuters) – Central European companies are scouting out locations, signing contracts and launching projects deep in war-torn Ukraine, seeking a foothold for future reconstruction work that could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars. While most current projects are focused on essential infrastructure damaged or destroyed…
By Naomi Rovnick and Libby George LONDON (Reuters) – Rivalry with China, fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine and wrangling once again in Washington over the U.S. debt ceiling have put the dollar’s status as the world’s dominant currency under fresh scrutiny. Russia’s sanctions-imposed exile from global financial systems last year also fuelled speculation that…
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s internal spy agency said on Thursday it had detained two Ukrainian saboteurs plotting to blow up the power lines of two nuclear power stations to shut down the reactors and embarrass Russia on the eve of this month’s Victory Day holiday. The Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor to the…
KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine said on Thursday it had shot down all 36 Iranian-made drones launched by Russia in overnight attacks which it said probably targeted critical infrastructure and military facilities. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it had been an “uneasy night” but commended the work of air defences. “Continuing to terrorise Ukraine, the enemy used…
By Navya Mittal and Echha Jain (Reuters) -Australia’s Treasury Wine Estates warned on Thursday that inflation was squeezing demand for its commercial-grade wine and driving up packaging costs, sending its shares nearly 8% lower. The country’s biggest winemaker flagged challenging market conditions and consumption outlook for commercial wine, especially in Australia and the United Kingdom,…
MOSCOW (Reuters) -United States intelligence agencies believe that a drone attack on the Kremlin this month was likely orchestrated by Ukrainian spies or military intelligence, the New York Times said. The newspaper said the attack appeared to be part of a series of covert operations that have made officials in the United States — Ukraine’s…
MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said Russia had said from the start that Ukraine was behind a drone attack on the Kremlin in early May, after the New York Times reported that U.S. spy agencies assessed one of Ukraine’s special military or intelligence units probably orchestrated it. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy denied at…
By Peter Hobson LONDON (Reuters) – The United Arab Emirates has become a key trade hub for Russian gold since Western sanctions over Ukraine cut Russia’s more traditional export routes, Russian customs records show. The records, which contain details of nearly a thousand gold shipments between Feb. 24, 2022 and March 3 this year, reveal…
By Ksenia Orlova and Vladimir Soldatkin (Reuters) – Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday he expected no new steps from the OPEC+ group of oil producers at its meeting in Vienna on June 4, Russian media reported, after the group announced a significant output cut earlier this year. Saudi Arabia and other…
By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Increased political resistance to new EU laws to protect the environment has left the European Commission fighting to keep intact its vision for Europe’s green transition. Ahead of elections in the European Parliament in June next year, the European Union is racing to finish legislation that includes two landmark…
