France confirms bird flu vaccination after favourable tests

PARIS (Reuters) – France confirmed its aim to launch a vaccination programme against bird flu in the autumn after results from a series of tests on the vaccination of ducks showed “satisfactory effectiveness”, the farm ministry said.  A severe strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has ravaged poultry production around the…

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Russia moves ahead with deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus

By Guy Faulconbridge MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia moved ahead on Thursday with a plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, whose leader said the warheads were already on the move, in the Kremlin’s first deployment of such bombs outside Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. The U.S. State Department denounced the deployment…

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Mississippi family seeks charges after officer shoots 11-year-old boy

(Reuters) – A Mississippi family on Thursday demanded a police officer be dismissed and charged with aggravated assault for shooting an 11-year-old boy when police responded to the child’s own domestic disturbance call at his home. Aderrien Murry, who called police at the request of his mother, was unarmed and following instructions from Indianola officer…

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Turkey cenbank’s net forex reserves negative for first time since 2002

ANKARA (Reuters) – The Turkish central bank’s net forex reserves dropped into negative territory for the first time since 2002, standing at $-151.3 million on May 19, official data showed on Thursday, as it sought to counter forex demand ahead of Sunday’s runoff vote. President Tayyip Erdogan led rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu comfortably in the presidential…

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Argentina VP says IMF hinders growth in Revolution Day speech

By Lucinda Elliott and Eliana Raszewski BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentine Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner slammed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday, saying that the program agreed to with the multinational lender is holding back the country’s economy. Fernandez de Kirchner, speaking at an event commemorating Revolution Day in Buenos Aires’ historic…

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U.S., Chinese commerce chiefs raise complaints on trade, investment, export policies

By David Lawder and Liz Lee DETROIT/BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao traded barbs on trade, investment and export policies in talks on Thursday described by Raimondo’s office as “candid and substantive.” Their meeting in Washington was the first U.S.-China cabinet-level exchange in months, after a string of…

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DeSantis to stump in early voting states after rocky presidential launch

By James Oliphant and Doina Chiacu WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ fledgling presidential campaign was looking to push forward on Thursday after a troubled online launch event drew mockery from his rivals and renewed doubts about his viability as a national candidate. DeSantis plans to barnstorm the early nominating states of Iowa, New Hampshire…

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Putin ally says Ukraine war could last for decades – RIA agency

(Reuters) – A top ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Ukraine war could last for decades, with long periods of fighting interspersed by truces, Russia’s RIA news agency reported on Thursday. It said former President Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Putin’s powerful security council, had spoken during a visit to Vietnam. Medvedev often…

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