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Russia acknowledges attacking Ukrainian infrastructure but denies deliberately seeking to harm civilians. NATO foreign ministers pledged to step up political and practical support to Ukraine and maintain it for as long as necessary. If we have air defence systems, we can protect from the next Russian missile strikes," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said. [1/4] NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg poses with foreign ministers of NATO countries during the family photo at their meeting in Bucharest, Romania November 29, 2022. Foreign ministers also reaffirmed a 2008 NATO summit decision that Ukraine would eventually become a member of the alliance.

☆ EU ministers seek to ease tensions on migration after France-Italy spat
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, Nov 25 (Reuters) - EU interior ministers sought to ease resurgent tensions over illegal migration at an emergency meeting on Friday, after the fate of migrants rescued in the Mediterranean triggered harsh words between Paris and Rome. "Everyone agrees not to repeat this kind of situation," European Commissioner Margaritis Schinas said after the meeting, referring to tensions over the Ocean Viking. While no concrete decision was taken, ministers welcomed a 20-point action plan proposed by the European Commission to address surging migration in the central Mediterranean. One focus of that plan was to seek to strengthen cooperation with third countries, including steps to prevent departures from North Africa. Southern EU countries, including Italy, Spain and Greece, where most migrants arrive, say there is too much pressure on them and EU states to the north are not helping them enough.

[1/6] A snowboarder starts a climb ahead of the season opening and amid surge in electricity costs in winter sports resort Val Thorens, France, November 24, 2022. A number of ski resorts including Chamonix and Val Thorens have also pledged to limit artificial snow production and reduce heating within buildings, officials said. Half of France's ski resorts have had to renegotiate their long-term electricity contracts this year amid record-high inflation, and they expect an annual bill that could increase three to six-fold in 2023, said Alexandre Maulin, who chairs France's ski resorts association. Val Thorens was able to secure a contract with utility EDF before the energy crunch for the most part of 2023. Our motto is that we always get out of difficult situations, and it will be the case this time again, because we will adapt," said Jerome Grellet, head of Val Thorens ski lift operator SETAM.

[1/5] A French toreador apprentice of the Arles bullfighting school practices before a bullfight show at the Monumental de Gimeaux arena in Arles, France, November 20, 2022. "Corrida is a tradition, an art, a dance with the bull," said Baptiste, one of about a dozen students who learn to wave the traditional red muleta cloth in front of bulls in the Arles bullfighting school. At the weekend, pro and anti ban protesters marched in several southern France cities where corrida is still allowed. For Caron, exceptions that allow bullfighting in some parts of France and have under a thousand bulls killed per year, should be scrapped. "Since (bullfighting) exists, there are people who have tried to ban it, " said Yves Lebas, president of the Arles bullfighting school.

☆ NATO holds emergency meeting on Poland blast, discusses air defence
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Nov 16 (Reuters) - NATO ambassadors held an emergency meeting on Wednesday to discuss a missile that hit Poland close to the Ukrainian border, with at least two alliance members calling for steps to strengthen air defence on the military alliance's eastern wing. It was unclear whether that would still be the case, after a source said Biden told G7 and NATO partners that the missile blast was caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile. The emergency NATO ambassadors' meeting was in any case likely to discuss air defence, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger said. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said NATO should swiftly deploy more air defences on the Polish-Ukrainian border and the rest of the alliance's eastern flank. The explosion near the Ukrainian border came as Russia unleashed a wave of missiles targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure, attacks that Kyiv said were the heaviest in nearly nine months of war.

[1/4] A migrant, in need of urgent hospital care, lies on a stretcher, as officers prepare them for helicopter transport from rescue ship 'Ocean Viking' in the Mediterranean Sea, November 10, 2022. The Ocean Viking, which is operated by the SOS Mediterranee charity, was sailing on Thursday by the French island of Corsica, but had previously been close to Italy. The French would also reinforce controls at its borders with Italy to prevent migrant crossings, he said. Ocean Viking was the fourth. The far-right was quick to react to the decision to let the Ocean Viking dock, with the RN's Marine Le Pen tweeting that he was being "dramatically" soft on immigration.

☆ French cardinal says abused 14-year girl, withdraws from functions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, Nov 7 (Reuters) - French Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard said on Monday that he had abused a 14-year-old girl decades ago and he would withdraw from his functions. "Thirty-five years ago, when I was a parish priest, I behaved in a reprehensible way with a young girl aged 14. Ricard asked for forgiveness and said he would withdraw from his functions and be available for legal and church authorities. In total, 11 bishops or former bishops, including a former bishop in Creteil, near Paris, Michel Santier, are currently targeted by abuse investigations, Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, head of the French bishops' conference, told a news conference on Monday. read moreReporting by GV De Clercq and Ingrid Melander, Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EXCLUSIVE Elon Musk reached out to EU industry chief to pledge content policing compliance
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Michel Rose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The exchange came after Breton took to Twitter to warn Musk about the new European legislation on Friday. "In Europe, the bird will fly by our EU rules," Breton tweeted on Friday. Companies will face fines of up to 6% of annual global turnover for breaches of Digital Services Act. Breton and Musk had met in May, and the two had signalled at the time agreement on complying with EU regulation. In a video posted on Twitter by Breton after their May meeting, the EU official says he explained the Digital Services Act to Musk.

BRUSSELS, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Some European Union foreign ministers on Monday called for new sanctions against Iran if Tehran's involvement in Russia's war on Ukraine is proven. Ukraine has reported a spate of Russian attacks with Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones in recent weeks. "We will look for concrete evidence about the participation (of Iran in the Ukraine war)," Josep Borrell told reporters as he arrived for a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, adding Ukraine's Dmytro Kuleba would take part in the gathering. Additional EU sanctions on Iran will not be limited to blacklisting some individuals should Tehran's involvement in Russia's war on Ukraine be proven, Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said. "Then it will be no longer about some individuals to be sanctioned," he told reporters as he arrived for the EU meeting.

French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech at the Sub-Prefecture in Saint-Nazaire after a visit at the Saint-Nazaire offshore wind farm, off the coast of the Guerande peninsula in western France, September 22, 2022. Macron, who said in February that he wants France to have about 50 offshore wind farms by 2050, was visiting the country's first, built off Brittany, a project which took ten years to build and which started being connected to the grid this month. "It still takes too much time in France," Macron said, adding that he wants to halve the time it takes to develop renewable energy projects. Macron said he wants France to double the speed of building wind parks in France. Other plans include making it easier to find locations to build wind farms or install solar energy panels.

Genreal view of electricity pylons and power lines leading from the Uniper coal power plant in Hanau, Germany, early morning November 23, 2016. Alongside surging European gas prices, crude oil jumped more than 2% on Wednesday after Putin announced the partial military mobilisation, escalating the war in Ukraine and raising concerns of even tighter global energy supplies. read moreAfter buying Fortum's stake, the German state will hold about 99% of Uniper, the economy ministry said. Eastbound gas flows via the Yamal-Europe pipeline to Poland from Germany were halted on Wednesday, while Russian supply via Ukraine held stable. read moreMoscow has said it would cut all oil and gas flows to the West if such cap was implemented.

☆ Factbox: Europe's efforts to shield households from soaring energy costs
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-02 | by ( Susanna Twidale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Without the measure, average home energy bills were tipped to reach over 3,500 pounds a year in October with forecasts of much higher bills to come. CZECH REPUBLICThe Czech government has agreed to cap electricity and gas prices next year to shield households from soaring prices. ITALYItaly approved an aid package worth some 14 billion euros ($14 billion) in September to shield firms and families from surging energy costs. The measures came on top of some 52 billion euros already budgeted since January to soften the energy crisis in Italy. NORWAYNorway has been subsidising household electricity bills since December and now covers 80% of the portion of power bills above a certain rate.

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