Europe

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank must remain a key stabilizer of the euro zone economy as the bloc is at risk of suffering longer-term damage from its pandemic-induced double-dip recession, ECB chief economist Philip Lane said on Saturday.

A sustained period of low activity reduces labour productivity, weakens corporate balance sheets and saps confidence, leading to a potential downward spiral, Lane said in a speech to the Spring workshop of The European House - Ambrosetti.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Belarus authorities warned on Saturday that anyone participating in protests is liable to criminal prosecution, as armoured vehicles and police buses moved into the centre of Minsk ahead of an expected new round of protests.

Opposition figures, who have led demonstrations against President Alexander Lukashenko since an election they deemed rigged in August last year, have recently called on the public to ramp up protests once again, after a two-month lull.

PARIS (Reuters) - The French government and the European Union’s executive are close to an agreement on the terms of a bailout for Air France, which like other carriers has been hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, Le Monde reported.

The expected deal would see Air France give up fewer airport flight slots at its Paris base than initially sought by the European Commission, notably at Orly airport, the newspaper said in a report published late on Friday.

GENEVA, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Commenting on the "new type of world war" in the rhetoric over vaccine distribution, a World Health Organization (WHO) official on Friday stressed the importance of collaboration between world leaders.

"Frankly, we are in a war, and leaders are right. We are in a war and it's a war against the virus, not against each other," said Bruce Aylward, senior advisor to the Director-General of WHO at a virtual press conference from Geneva,

LONDON, March 27 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Saturday that the violent protest over a crime bill in Bristol, a city in southwestern England, was "disgraceful".

"Last night saw disgraceful attacks against police officers in Bristol. Our officers should not have to face having bricks, bottles and fireworks being thrown at them by a mob intent on violence and causing damage to property," Johnson said on Twitter.

"The police and the city have my full support," he added.

MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/: US Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan told reporters on Friday that he welcomes any contacts with Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov and the Russian Foreign Ministry.

"I always welcome the opportunity to speak with my friend Ambassador Antonov," he said, adding that he also welcomes contacts with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/: Moscow expects that the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU) will approve the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Friday.

MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/: Russia’s Il-112V light military transport plane will make its second test flight from the Voronezh Aviation Plant’s airfield on March 30, an aircraft industry source has told TASS.

"Low-frequency tests of the plane were completed in late January 2021. The date of the second flight is March 30," the source said.

TASS has been unable to officially confirm the information at the time of the publication.

BERLIN, March 26. /TASS/: The construction of Nord Stream 2 will be finalized this year, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Russia’s gas producer Gazprom Viktor Zubkov told reporters on Friday.

"The active work is underway, with quite a bit remaining to be done," he said. "It will surely be completed this year, definitely," Zubkov added. The works have been fulfilled by 90-92%, he noted.

MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/: Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has dismissed as lies NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s claims Russia is reluctant to hold a dialogue.