Europe

LONDON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - A flurry of military activity in Belarus this week has caught the attention of Ukraine and the West as a potential sign that President Alexander Lukashenko may commit his army in support of Russia's flailing war effort in Ukraine.

Lukashenko has ordered troops to deploy with Russian forces near the Ukraine border, and his defence ministry says "combat readiness" drills are under way. On Tuesday, the interior ministry held exercises to eliminate "sabotage groups" near Yelsk, only 20 km (12 miles) from the border with Ukraine.

BRUSSELS, Oct 12 (Reuters) - A Russian nuclear strike would change the course of the conflict and almost certainly provoke a "physical response" from Ukraine's allies and potentially from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a senior NATO official said on Wednesday.

Any use of nuclear weapons by Moscow would have "unprecedented consequences" for Russia, the official said on the eve of a closed-door meeting of NATO's nuclear planning group on Thursday.

LONDON, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The United Kingdom's (UK) gross domestic product (GDP) declined by 0.3 percent in August, after growth of 0.1 percent in July, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Wednesday.

The 0.3 percent GDP fall in August was below economists' previous forecast of zero growth, deepening the concerns that the UK economy is sliding into recession.

MOSCOW, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Russia is ready to deliver additional volumes of natural gas to the European Union in the autumn-winter period, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday.

One of the two branches of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has survived the recent leak incident and Russia is willing to send gas through it to Europe, Putin said at the plenary session of the "Russian Energy Week" international forum in Moscow.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian missile attacks caused a crippled nuclear plant in Ukraine to lose all external power for the second time in five days, increasing the risk of a radiation disaster because critical safety systems need electricity to operate, Ukraine’s state nuclear operator said Wednesday.

PARIS (AP) — The French government on Wednesday started the process of requisitioning workers at petrol depots of ExxonMobil’s French branch Esso in an attempt to ensure that service stations around the country are supplied with badly needed fuel amid an ongoing strike.

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Statements made this week by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko have reignited fears that his army could join Russian forces in Moscow’s war against Ukraine, but the authoritarian leader appears reluctant to lend his troops to the effort, despite perceived pressure from Moscow.

LONDON (AP) — As anti-government protests roil cities and towns in Iran for a fourth week, tens of thousands of Iranians living abroad have marched on the streets of Europe, North America and beyond in support of what many believe to be a watershed moment for their home country.

12 October 2022; MEMO: UAE President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan met yesterday with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and discussed bilateral relations and the latest regional and international developments.

Sheikh Mohammed, who is on an official visit to Russia, hailed the bilateral cooperation with Russia, saying trade volume between the two countries doubled from $2.5 to $5 billion during the COVID-19 pandemic, while half a million Russian tourists have visited the UAE.

11 October 2022; MEMO: Turkiye and Greece inaugurated a "friendship line" ferry link between the seaside town of Izmir in western Turkiye and the northern Greek port city of Thessaloniki, Turkish media reports.

According to the report, Greek-based shipping company, Levante Ferries, announced "Smyrna di Levante" vessel started ferrying passengers this week.

The Thessaloniki-Izmir ferry line marks the first direct maritime link between mainland Greece and Turkiye, the report says.