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☆ Slovak foreign minister quits in fresh blow to ailing cabinet
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 5 (Reuters) - Slovakia's foreign minister offered his resignation on Friday, the president said, dealing a fresh blow to the centre-right cabinet which has already been serving in a caretaker capacity ahead of elections in September. Rastislav Kacer's departure follows a string of other ministerial resignations and piles pressure on Prime Minister Eduard Heger, who had been facing mounting opposition calls to quit and make way for a technocrat government. Caputova, whose role gives her the power to appoint a new prime minister, said she would discuss the situation with Heger and parliament speaker Boris Kollar on her return. SaS joined a leftist opposition party in voting through a no-confidence motion in December, accusing the government of not helping people cope with the higher energy costs. The prime minister said he would not comment until he meets the president.

☆ UK Conservatives suffering 'terrible' night with local election losses
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Andrew Macaskill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Peter CziborraLONDON, May 5 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives were facing a bleak set of local election results with voters punishing his party over political scandals, sluggish economic growth and high inflation, early results showed on Friday. The Conservative Party suffered a net loss of 144 seats on local councils that were up for re-election, the early results showed. Johnny Mercer, a member of parliament for the area, said it had been a "terrible" night for the Conservatives. The Labour leader Keir Starmer visited Plymouth and Stoke-on-Trent during local election campaigning as the party threw resources into winning back control of the councils. The last time most of these local election seats were contested was in 2019 when the Conservatives lost more 1,300 seats, shortly before the then prime minister Theresa May was forced to resign, which had been expected to help limit the losses in these elections.

☆ Mimicking the 19th Century in the Age of A.I.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Travis Diehl | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Five of his 11 paintings on view at Petzel incorporate A.I.-generated imagery, mostly buried in abstract spills and smears. Indeed, Price conjured the pictures using A.I., printed them “wet” on plastic, then smeared the ink with his fingers, adding an inimitable human touch. This is the distinctive garbled diction of image-generators, which imitate the look of words but not necessarily their meaning. It sure looks like a vintage photo, though: a black and white, worn-looking picture of two women, one hunching enigmatically behind the other. Human anatomy, like words, can be tricky for image-generating A.I.’s.)

☆ The President, the Soccer Hooligans and an Underworld ‘House of Horrors’
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Robert F. Worth | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

direction, and he chose not to.” Serwer speculated that Vucic has concluded the reforms required to join the E.U. The notion that Serbia can “balance” the West against Russia is largely a mirage, Bassuener said. One afternoon in Belgrade, I spent an hour talking to Boris Tadic, who served as Serbia’s president from 2004 until 2012, when he lost to Vucic’s party. Vucic, he said, had “helped put criminals in power” with the belief that he could control them. “What is the final outcome of your power if you’re going to destroy the foundations of society with hooligans and criminals?” he asked.

[1/2] A view of a polling station sign at Barley Town House, which is acting as a polling station for local elections in Royston, Britain, May 4, 2023. REUTERS/Peter CziborraLONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Voters in England will cast their ballots in local elections on Thursday in the first major electoral test for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak following a year when the governing Conservatives have suffered a cascade of scandals, strikes and economic chaos. But his party is still forecast to suffer heavy losses when the results are announced on Friday. "But if (Labour) want to be on course to win the next election, they should be hoping to get a lead in national vote share of 10 points or so." This will be the first set of elections in England where voters will be required to show a form of photographic identification to vote.

☆ BBC Chairman Resigns Over Offer to Facilitate Loan to Boris Johnson
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Max Colchester | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A screen inside the BBC’s headquarters broadcasts a statement by Richard Sharp. Photo: HENRY NICHOLLS/REUTERSLONDON—The chairman of the BBC, Richard Sharp , quit Friday after an investigation concluded he breached the U.K. government code for public appointments by failing to declare that he offered to facilitate a loan to former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson while applying for the job at the publicly funded broadcaster. The decision by Mr. Sharp, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker, to step down is the latest scandal to wash over the British Broadcasting Corp., which has been buffeted by a series of missteps that critics say has dented its image as an independent, impartial broadcaster and raised questions over whether it has bowed to pressure from the ruling Conservative government.

☆ BBC's Sharp resigns after breaching rules over Boris Johnson loan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Sarah Young | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The investigation, initiated by the public appointments watchdog, examined the way in which Sharp was selected by the government to chair the corporation in 2021. Specifically, it looked at whether Sharp fully disclosed details of his role in facilitating an 800,000 pound ($1 million) loan for Johnson before he was named chairman. The report found that, while he had breached the government's code for public appointments, that breach did not necessarily invalidate his appointment. "I have decided that it is right to prioritise the interests of the BBC," Sharp said in a statement. The report mentions Johnson's Downing Street office as having recommended Sharp as "a strong candidate" for the role, which attracted 23 applications.

☆ BBC chairman resigns after controversy involving loan deal for former PM Boris Johnson
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Peter Wilkinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —The embattled chairman of the British Broadcasting Corporaration (BBC), Richard Sharp, resigned on Friday after a report found he failed to disclose his involvement in facilitating a loan of almost $1 million to former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Sharp claimed the breach was “inadvertent and not material,” but said he was resigning to “prioritise the interests of the BBC.” He had previously denied involvement in the arrangement, or the existence of a conflict of interest as the loan happened before his appointment as head of the public broadcaster. Adam Heppinstall’s report however found Sharp “failed to disclose potential perceived conflicts of interest” to the cross-party panel of MPs which advised ministers on who to appoint. “There may well have been a risk of a perception that Mr Sharp would not be independent from the former Prime Minister, if appointed,” the report said. The former England soccer captain was later reinstated after his fellow presenters refused to go on air without him, and the corporation announced a review into what freelancers outside of its news arm (such as Lineker) can and cannot say on social media.

☆ Google was CNBC's Stock Draft's best pick, says BK Asset Management's Boris Schlossberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailGoogle was CNBC's Stock Draft's best pick, says BK Asset Management's Boris SchlossbergBoris Schlossberg, BK Asset Management managing director, joins 'Power Lunch' for Three Stock Lunch to recap the good, the bad, and the overlooked of CNBC's Stock Draft.

☆ UK PM Sunak faces first test of comeback credentials in local polls
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

With voters going through a cost-of-living crisis and inflation stubbornly high at about 10%, local council votes in much of England on May 4 give Labour an opportunity to prove their electoral credentials. Swindon has returned lawmakers representing the winning party at every national election since 1983, making it a bellwether and a key target for Labour, who chose the town for the launch of their local election campaign. "Whilst Sunak's personal poll ratings aren't great, they're not toxic in the way that his predecessors have been," he said. David Renard, the Conservative leader of Swindon Borough Council, said the national picture might hinder his attempts to focus the campaign on more local issues. In its town centre, many voters expressed unhappiness with the Conservatives but some had a degree of sympathy for Sunak personally.

"It could be some kind of non-controlling stake in public companies," Kostin said in the interview. COMPETITIONHe said some industries lacked competition, a hangover from Soviet times, a consequence of which would ultimately see more investors take money elsewhere. Telecoms operator Rostelecom (RTKM.MM), defence conglomerate Rostec and state nuclear energy company Rosatom could have subsidiaries privatised, he said, adding: "The main thing is not to miss the moment when we can attract private money here." Under that programme, state property was sold very cheaply to well-connected businessmen who became known as "oligarchs". "We have a different country now, a different president, a different government that cannot allow what happened then," he said.

☆ UK's Sunak launches charm offensive on business leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Andrew Macaskill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sunak has made reviving the economy one of his five key priorities, after Britain's gross domestic product only regained its pre-pandemic size in February. Sunak, a former investment banker, along with finance minister Jeremy Hunt and business minister Kemi Badenoch will speak at a series of events on Monday to more than 200 executives representing sectors including technology and manufacturing. "We are bringing together some of the UK's biggest companies and investors for meaningful dialogue – and I'm a prime minister passionate about working with business to unlock opportunity and progress," Sunak said in a statement. In what his office called his first ever LinkedIn Live event, business leaders will on Monday morning also have the opportunity to ask Sunak questions about business policy. The prime minister will unveil an innovation category at the Great British Entrepreneur Awards on Monday evening, hosted by the finance minister at Downing Street.

Russia has 110 official billionaires in the list, up 22 from last year, according to Forbes' Russian edition, which said their total wealth increased to $505 billion from $353 billion when the 2022 list was announced. "Last year's rating results were also influenced by apocalyptic predictions about the Russian economy," Forbes said, adding that the total wealth of Russia's billionaires was $606 billion in 2021, before the war began. The price of Urals oil, the lifeblood of the Russian economy, averaged $76.09 per barrel in 2022, up from $69 in 2021. Many Russian billionaires cast Western sanctions as a clumsy, and even racist, tool. New Russian names in the Forbes list include billionaires who made their money in snacks, supermarkets, chemicals, building and pharmaceuticals, indicating that Russian domestic demand has remained strong despite the sanctions.

☆ Do Kwon, Jailed Crypto CEO, Rejects SEC Fraud Allegations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Alexander Osipovich | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Do Kwon was arrested in Montenegro last month. Photo: boris pejovic/ShutterstockLawyers for crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon asked a judge to throw out a U.S. regulator’s lawsuit accusing him of fraud in connection with last year’s $40 billion collapse of the TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies. In a Friday evening court filing, Mr. Kwon’s lawyers said the Securities and Exchange Commission exceeded its authority when it sued him and his company, Terraform Labs Pte. Ltd., and failed to prove that they had defrauded U.S. investors.

☆ Dominic Raab, U.K. Deputy Prime Minister, Resigns Amid Bullying Scandal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Mark Landler | Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Dominic Raab, Britain’s deputy prime minister, resigned on Friday after an investigation into claims that he had bullied subordinates, as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak struggles to put a legacy of scandal behind his Conservative government. Mr. Raab, a hard-line Brexiteer who is one of Mr. Sunak’s most loyal political allies, had long denied allegations of abusive behavior. But the investigation, by an independent barrister, laid out a litany of cases in which civil servants accused Mr. Raab, who also serves as justice secretary, of mistreating them. Mr. Raab becomes the third cabinet minister in six months to be forced out over ethics issues, illustrating again the challenge that Mr. Sunak has had in delivering his promise to lead a government of “integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level.”Mr. Sunak rose to power after his former boss, Boris Johnson, was caught in a whirlpool of scandals, most prominently a series of Downing Street parties that violated lockdown rules. His immediate predecessor, Liz Truss, was forced out after her trickle-down tax cuts backfired.

☆ Germany: decisions on Patriots in Slovakia, Poland to be discussed with allies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, April 21 (Reuters) - Germany's Defence Ministry said any decisions on its deployment of Patriot air-defence systems to Poland and Slovakia will be discussed with allies in Europe, after a report said Berlin planned to end the deployment by the end of the year. The planned end to the deployment was reported by the Funke media report, citing a defence ministry spokesperson. "The statements on deployment plans of our Patriot squadrons in Poland and Slovakia referred to original plans," the ministry later said in a statement. Defence Minister Boris Pistorius will discuss and coordinate the matter with partners at Friday's meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Ramstein, it added. Germany has also delivered a Patriot system to Ukraine to support the country in the war against Russia.

☆ Allies move to bolster Ukrainian tank forces ahead of counteroffensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine has pressed its allies for long-range weapons, jets and ammunition ahead of a counteroffensive to push back Russian troops that is expected in the coming weeks or months. Abrams battle tanks will arrive in Germany in the coming weeks for Ukrainian troops to begin training, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters. NATO member states and their allies have provided Ukraine with weapons and armour, but Ukraine's leadership has repeatedly asked for more powerful weapons and quicker supplies. "The Russians are cautious to come into Ukraine because of the effective use of the Ukrainian air defense system. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban poured cold water on Ukraine's NATO prospects, simply tweeting "What?!"

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Questions being asked over Ukraine's much-awaited counteroffensive; Russia's top diplomat is in Cuba
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday that "the United States can cheat at any moment," claiming Russia had experienced this when the Western military alliance NATO expanded eastward. Lavrov claimed this deception was seen when former Soviet and Russian Federation Presidents Mikhail Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin "were assured that NATO would not expand," he added. Russia has long complained that it was deceived by Western nations at the end of the Cold War and into the 1990s into believing that NATO would not expand eastward toward its territory. Analysts say, however, that the USSR was never offered any formal guarantee on limits to NATO expansion and that the "betrayal narrative" is designed to provoke anti-Western sentiment. So we will share it with our Venezuelan colleagues," Lavrov said.

Sunak spent much of Thursday considering the findings of the independent investigation into claims against Dominic Raab, his most senior minister and ally. A spokesman for Sunak said the prime minister had received the report and was "considering the findings". One government official later said the report would not be published on Thursday as the prime wanted to go through the report thoroughly. The investigation was asked to establish the facts, but not to form a conclusion about whether Raab was guilty of bullying. The ultimate arbiter will be the prime minister, who will decide whether Raab has broken the ministerial code, which states ministers should treat officials with respect.

☆ UK PM Sunak considers bullying report into his deputy Raab
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 20 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has received an independent report into allegations of bullying against Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab and is considering his response, Sunak's spokesperson said on Thursday. "The prime minister has received the report from Adam Tolley the independent investigator. He is considering those findings," Sunak's spokesperson said. The spokesperson said that Sunak wished to publish his response as soon as possible, but did not say if that would be on Thursday. Raab, who is also justice minister, has said he was confident he had behaved professionally throughout, while Sunak initially defended his deputy when the reports surfaced, saying he did not recognise allegations that Raab had bullied staff.

☆ The 7 Best Movie and TV Dramas to Watch Right Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Wsj Arts In Review Staff | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Here’s a roundup of the most noteworthy movie and TV dramas to watch right now, as covered by The Wall Street Journal’s critics. Taron Egerton and Nikita Efremov Photo: AppleTV+When Vladimir Putin daydreams about the glories of the old Soviet Union, he’s probably not thinking about Tetris, still among the most popular videogames ever created and the U.S.S.R.’s most important contribution to international pop culture since Boris Pasternak . Mr. Putin might long to retrieve the rights to the game, though, which is what “Tetris” is all about.

☆ A 1960s-era cannon is 'kicking ass' against Russia's drones, but the country that makes ammo for it won't send more to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

But Switzerland, where Gepard ammo is made, is not allowing more of that ammo to be sent to Ukraine. The Gepard SPAAGA German Gepard anti-aircraft tank during an exercise near Munster in June 2007. German defense company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann built 570 Gepards between 1963 and 1980 — 420 for the German Bundeswehr, 95 for the Dutch army, and 55 for the Belgian army. Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty ImagesAfter being criticized for its reluctance to send heavy weaponry to Ukraine, the German government promised some 50 Gepards to Ukraine in April 2022. In February, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced that German firm Rheinmetall would restart ammo production for the Gepard.

☆ Factbox: Who is Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 17 (Reuters) - Russian opposition figure Vladimir Kara-Murza was convicted of treason by a Moscow court on Monday and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Kara-Murza, 41, is a historian, journalist and opposition politician who holds Russian and British passports and studied in England at Cambridge University. He was a close associate of Boris Nemtsov, a leading opposition figure who was assassinated near the Kremlin in 2015, and continued to speak out against President Vladimir Putin despite the mounting risks. Twice, in 2015 and 2017, Kara-Murza suddenly fell ill in what he said were poisonings by the Russian security services, on both occasions falling into a coma before eventually recovering. Kara-Murza was arrested in April 2022, hours after CNN broadcast an interview in which he said Russia was being run by a "regime of murderers".

☆ Crypto stablecoins might need limits to avoid disruptions to financial stability, warns Bank of England
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Regulators may need to introduce limits on the use of stablecoins in payments to prevent potential threats to financial stability, an official at the Bank of England warned Monday. Stablecoins are cryptocurrency tokens that aim to mirror the value of traditional assets such as fiat currencies. Such assets could include deposits at the Bank of England "or very highly liquid securities," he added. The Bank of England said in February that it was "likely" Britain would need a central bank digital currency if current trends around the decline in cash use continue. The Bank of England, Treasury and industry are still debating concerns over how such currencies would be implemented, such as the privacy of people transacting with them and implications for financial stability.

☆ An artist who won an award at a world-renowned photography competition says the winning image was actually generated by AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An artist says his image that won first prize in a photography competition was actually generated by AI. It had come top in the creative category in the open competition at the World Photography Organisation's Sony World Photography Awards 2023. "AI is not photography," Eldagsen, who has been a photographer for around three decades, wrote on his website. "For me, working with AI image generators is a co-creation, in which I am the director," he wrote on his website. Eldagsen told Insider that he wanted to start a conversation around the relationship between AI and photography.

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