Paris, France | AFP | The mayors of Paris, London and Seoul on Wednesday launched an initiative to rate the most polluting vehicles in a bid to keep them off the roads of their cities. The aim of the “Air’volution” scheme is to help drivers avoid buying the most harmful …
Read More »India’s parliament passes key tax reform bills
New Delhi, India | AFP | India’s lower house of parliament on Wednesday passed four supporting bills that will pave the way for a landmark tax reform and transform the world’s fastest growing economy into a common market. The government aims to launch the goods and services tax (GST) law by …
Read More »Britain delivers letter launching Brexit process
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Britain formally launched the process to leave the EU on Wednesday, handing a letter to EU president Donald Tusk formally notifying the bloc, an AFP journalist said. Tim Barrow, Britain’s ambassador to the European Union, personally delivered the letter signed by British Prime Minister Theresa May …
Read More »Spy fiction? Byzantine Russia tale envelops Washington
Washington, United States | AFP | Secret meetings, phone taps, Russian oil money and mysterious intelligence dossiers: the swirling scandal over Donald Trump’s ties to Moscow has all the makings of a classic spy novel — whose ending has yet to be written. But the maelstrom engulfing Washington over Russia’s …
Read More »Trump son-in-law Kushner to face Russia investigation panel
Washington, United States | AFP | Donald Trump’s son-in-law and top aide Jared Kushner will appear before a Senate panel investigating Russian interference in the US election, the White House said Monday. Kushner, 36, was Trump’s main intermediary with foreign governments during the 2016 election campaign and now plays that …
Read More »World giants China Southern and American Airlines announce tie-up
Shanghai, China | AFP | China Southern Airlines said Tuesday it would sell almost a one-tenth stake to American Airlines in a $200 million tie-up that could see two of the world’s biggest carriers cooperate in a range of areas. American Airlines is the world’s largest carrier by scheduled passengers carried, …
Read More »Erdogan says would be ‘easier’ if EU rejects Turkey bid
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday lashed out again in the diplomatic row with the European Union saying it would be “easier” if the EU just rejected Turkey’s bid to join the bloc. Turkey and Europe are locked in a bitter dispute after Germany …
Read More »Troubled EU renews vows on 60th anniversary
Rome, Italy | AFP | European Union leaders renewed their vows at a special summit in Rome on Saturday, celebrating the troubled bloc’s 60th anniversary with a commitment to a common future without Britain. With British Prime Minister Theresa May absent, the other 27 countries signed a new declaration on …
Read More »Trump, after stinging defeat, promises a ‘great’ health plan
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump sought Saturday to put a good face on his most stinging political setback yet, declaring that Obamacare would collapse and vowing to develop a “great” replacement. “ObamaCare will explode and we will all get together and piece together a great healthcare …
Read More »Pope in Milan hinterland to rally poor
Milan, Italy | AFP | Pope Francis arrived in Milan on Saturday to meet families on a working-class housing estate, have lunch in a prison and hold a mass for hundreds of thousands of believers in nearby Monza. Bells in church towers across over 1,000 dioceses rang out as Francis …
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