A truly 'wonderful, loving' soul: Diogo Jota's 'immense' impact on Liverpool remembered
02/07/2025
'Ukraine is at the wrong end right now: War's center of gravity is manpower, casualties, attrition'
Europe
02/07/2025
US weapons: 'Ukraine is turning towards its other allies'
Europe
30/06/2025
Stocamine in Alsace: 'Toxicity of chemical waste won't disappear, nobody knows how to deal with it'
France
30/06/2025
Southern Europe broils as heatwave sends temperatures above 40°C
Europe
29/06/2025
Red alert: Soaring temperatures prompt stay-home warnings across Europe
Europe
29/06/2025
Major heatwaves sweep Southern and Western Europe
Europe
29/06/2025
Bulgarians protest government's plan to adopt the euro
Europe
29/06/2025
France bans smoking in parks, beaches and bus stops
Europe
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France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
Spanish lawmakers reject Sanchez's power cut bill in major blow
Spanish lawmakers on Tuesday inflicted a major defeat on the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez by rejecting a law intended to avert a repeat of a huge power cut this year. The government lost a vote on the proposed law by 183 to 165. The far right and far left joined with mainstream opposition parties to counter Sanchez. The government said the proposed law aimed to toughen monitoring of Spain 's electrical system, improve technical checks and take other measures to avoid a repeat of chaos on April 28 when most of the Iberian peninsula lost power for several hours. The law would also have made deadlines more flexible for installing new wind turbines and solar parks. The main conservative opposition People's Party (PP) voted against instead of using an abstention that would have ensured the law passed. Energy companies had pressed for the PP to back the law. But the party has poor relations with the government and would not make a concession. "We do not approve of this government's energy policy, we do not approve of this so-called anti-blackout plan, which is nothing more than an attempt (by the government) to cover up its mistakes and erase its faults," PP deputy Guillermo Mariscal said before the vote. Apparently aware that the law would be rejected, Sanchez, who was on a trip to Montevideo, said just before the vote: "Those who accused us of obscurantism and of not proposing solutions that protect the user, the consumer, and ultimately our country, are the ones who are bringing down" this plan. According to a government report released in June, the April blackout was caused by an overload that caused a chain reaction in the energy system. The report highlighted mistakes by the network operator and some power companies.
France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
Trump agrees to small reduction in Philippine tariffs
Welcoming Marcos to the White House, Trump called him a "very tough negotiator" and said: "We're very close to finishing a trade deal -- a big trade deal, actually." In a social media post shortly afterward, Trump said that while the Philippines would open up completely to US goods, he would still impose a 19 percent tariff on products from the Southeast Asian country, a major exporter of high-tech items and apparel. "It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. The Philippines was among two dozen economies confronted by Trump with letters this month warning of 20 percent tariffs on all goods coming into the United States as of August 1. The 19 percent rate is still above the 17 percent threatened by Trump in April, when he threatened sweeping global tariffs. The trade rift comes despite increasingly close defense relations between the United States and the Philippines, a former US colony and treaty-bound ally that has seen high tensions with China. The United States last year, under Trump's predecessor Joe Biden, deployed ground-launched missiles in the Philippines. Washington has also eyed ammunition manufacturing in the Philippines, despite the closure in 1992 of the US naval base at Subic Bay due to heavy public pressure. "All of what we consider part of the modernization of the Philippine military is really a response to the circumstances that surround the situation in the South China Sea," Marcos said next to Trump. Trump devoted much of the appearance to attacks on his Democratic predecessors Biden and Barack Obama. "We are essentially concerned with the defense of our territory and the exercise of our sovereign rights," said Marcos. "Our strongest, closest, most reliable ally has always been the United States." Trump eyes China visit China and the Philippines have engaged in a series of confrontations in the contested waters of the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost entirely, despite an international ruling that the assertion has no legal basis. Trump has frequently questioned allies over their military spending, pondering why the United States should defend them in the NATO alliance. He has voiced fewer doubts about the Philippines. Both Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in meetings with Marcos on Monday vowed to honor the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty with the Southeast Asian nation. The Trump administration has identified China as the top US adversary but the US president has also boasted of his relationship with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Speaking alongside Marcos, Trump said he would "probably" visit China at Xi's invitation "in the not-too-distant future." He said of Marcos: "I don't mind if he gets along with China very well, because we're getting along with China very well." Trump added the Philippines had been "maybe tilting toward China" and "we untilted it very, very quickly." "I just don't think that would have been good for you," Trump said. The US president credited himself with the shift, although the turn towards Washington began after the 2022 election of Marcos, before Trump returned to power. Marcos's predecessor Rodrigo Duterte had flirted with closer relations with China and bristled at US criticism over human rights under Biden and Obama. Duterte is facing charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court over a sweeping campaign against drug users and dealers that rights groups say killed thousands. © 2025 AFP
France 24
9 hours ago
- France 24
Interpol lifts red notice for anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson
Interpol had issued the notice against Watson, known for radical tactics including confrontations with whaling ships at sea, at the request of Japan, but has now decided the measure was "disproportionate", lawyer William Julie said. A spokesperson for Interpol confirmed to AFP that the Commission for the Control of Interpol's Files (CCF) had deleted the red notice. Watson, a 74-year-old Canadian-American, was arrested and detained in Greenland in July, 2024 on a 2012 Japanese warrant, which accused him of causing damage to a whaling ship and injuring a whaler. He was released in December after Denmark refused the Japanese extradition request over the 2010 clash with whalers. On December 20, he returned to France, where his children attend school, following a high-profile campaign in his support. "The decision to delete Mr Watson's red notice was made by the CCF -- an independent body tasked to ensure that the processing of personal data by Interpol is in compliance with its constitution and rules," the Interpol spokesperson said. "This is not a judgement on the merits of the case, or the events that occurred in 2010, but a decision based on Interpol's rules on the processing of data," the spokesperson added. "The CCF decision was made in light of new facts, including the refusal by the Kingdom of Denmark to extradite Mr Watson. This is in line with normal procedures." In a statement, Julie said that the CCF considered that the red notice "did not meet Interpol's standards, citing the disproportionate nature of the charges, Mr. Watson's supposed only indirect involvement (which is contested), the considerable passage of time since the alleged facts, Denmark's refusal to extradite him, and the fact that several other countries declined to act on Japan's arrest or extradition requests." He also said that the Commission pointed to the existence of "political elements" around the case. "Regarding potential motivations, the CCF remarked that the disproportionate nature of the red notice 'tends to highlight the strategic character of the case and its symbolic importance beyond its intrinsic criminal characteristics or pure law-enforcement interest'. "The Commission suggested this may indicate the presence of political elements supporting the case –- a point it makes subtly but significantly," Jolie said in the statement. gd-mla-jh-as/bc © 2025 AFP
