Europe

by Seymanur Yont

The war between Russia and Ukraine since 24 February has already had a global impact. Energy prices have spiked, triggering a sharp increase in the cost of food. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation's food price index that measures the monthly global price change in food commodities reached an all-time high last month.

MOSCOW, April 14. /TASS/: Russia’s COVID-19 case tally rose by 11,348 over the past day to 18,041,927, the anti-coronavirus crisis center reported on Thursday.

In relative terms, the growth rate reached 0.06%.

As many as 3,131 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Russia over the past day, down 5% from a day earlier. The number of hospitalized patients decreased in 45 regions, while in 31 regions the figure increased. The situation remained unchanged in nine regions. A day earlier, 3,297 people were rushed to hospitals.

MOSCOW, April 14. /TASS/: The unconditional support of the Ukrainian authorities by Washington and Brussels has become the culmination of the West's Russophobic course, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday at the Digital International Relations - 2022 conference at MGIMO.

"The culmination of this Russophobic course has been Washington and Brussels' unconditional support for the radical nationalist Kiev regime, the nurturing of ultra-radicals in Ukraine, and the creation of an 'anti-Russia' out of Ukraine," he said.

MOSCOW, April 14. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin has never refused in principle to hold a meeting with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, but a document must be drafted before such meeting can be arranged, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

"There is no detailed novation regarding this issue," Peskov said speaking at a daily news briefing. "We have already spoken about this meeting saying that in principle the [Russian] president never refused it, but certain conditions must be arranged before this meeting, namely a text of the document."

LONDON, April 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A London Court handed down a life imprisonment sentence on convicted terrorist Ali Harbi Ali for the Oct 16, 2021, murder of British Conservative MP Sir David Amess.

Wednesday’s whole-life sentence means there is no possibility of parole for the terrorist killer, who had been found guilty of the charges against him Monday by a jury that needed less than 20 minutes to reach a verdict.

April 14 (Reuters) - Frustration is growing among German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's junior coalition partners over what they say are shortcomings in his leadership on Ukraine, an internal rift that risks undermining Western unity against Russia.

After a dramatic policy pivot at the start of the crisis, when Scholz halted the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project with Russia days before its invasion of Ukraine, and then vowed a big jump in defence spending, his partners accuse him of dithering.

CHISINAU, April 14 (Reuters) - Moldova on Thursday accused Russia's army of trying to recruit Moldovan citizens, days after British military intelligence said that Moscow was trying to replenish its forces in Ukraine by recruiting in the breakaway Transdniestria region. 

Transdniestria is a narrow strip of land held by pro-Russian separatists that runs along the east of Moldova and comes to within about 25 miles (40 km) of the Ukrainian port of Odesa. 

LONDON, April 14 (Reuters) - One of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest allies warned NATO on Thursday that if Sweden and Finland joined the U.S.-led military alliance then Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and hypersonic missiles in an exclave in the heart of Europe.

Finland, which shares a 1,300-km (810-mile) border with Russia, and Sweden are considering joining the NATO alliance. Finland will decide in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday. 

PARIS, April 13 (Xinhua) -- France's Constitutional Council announced on Wednesday the official results of the first round of the country's presidential election, confirming Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen as winners.

From a total of 48,747,876 registered voters, 35,923,707 have voted, which represents an abstention rate of 26.31 percent, said Laurent Fabius, president of the council.

Incumbent President Emmanuel Macron won 9,783,058 votes, or 27.85 percent of valid ballots cast and his rival, far-right candidate Marine Le Pen won 8,133,828 votes, or 23.15 percent.

(AP) --- The head of the European Central Bank could drop more hints Thursday about when the bank will start raising interest rates, with pressure increasing to follow the United States, United Kingdom and other countries in taking a harder line to combat soaring consumer prices.

People in the 19 countries that use the euro currency have seen costs increase for everything from food to fuel as inflation rose to an annual rate of 7.5% last month, the highest since statistics began in 1997.