Europe

MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/: The Russian Space Systems Company (part of the space agency Roscosmos) has developed onboard receivers and transmitters for transmitting data from satellites to Earth, the Company said in a statement on Wednesday.

"Specialists of the Russian Space Systems Holding Company have developed and launched into production new onboard receivers and transmitters for future space vehicles for the reliable exchange of ‘satellite-Earth’ data," the statement says.

MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/: Two large amphibious assault ships of the improved Project 11711 currently under construction at the Yantar Shipyard on the Baltic coast will displace 40% more tonnes compared to standard warships of this class, Shipyard CEO Ilya Samarin told TASS on Wednesday.

"Standard [large amphibious assault] ships displace about 6,000 tonnes whereas upgraded warships will displace 40% more," the chief executive said.

SOCHI, February 17. /TASS/: Russia, Turkey and Iran have agreed to continue cooperation aimed at eliminating terrorists of the Islamic State and Al-Nusra Front groups (outlawed in Russia) in Syria.

In their joint statement after the 15th international meeting on Syria in the Astana format, the sides "reiterated their determination to combat terrorism in all forms and manifestations and stand against separatist agendas aimed at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria as well as threatening the national security of neighboring countries."

MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/: The price of Bitcoin gained 4.15% during the trading session on Wednesday reaching the highest level of $51,200, a fresh all-time high, according to the data as of 10:57 am Moscow time.

As of 11:08 am, the Bitcoin price slowed down growth to 3.3% trading at $50,772.

MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/: The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) demands that Russia immediately release opposition figure Alexey Navalny based on Rule 39 of the Rules of Court on interim measures, the blogger’s attorney Olga Mikhailova told TASS Wednesday.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Wednesday, underpinned by a major supply disruption in the southern United States this week where a winter storm hit Texas.

Benchmark Brent crude gained $1.37, or 2.2%, to $64.72 a barrel at 1237 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.18, or 2%, to $61.23 a barrel.

Both contracts were at their highest level since January 2020.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Fortnite creator Epic Games has taken its fight against Apple to European Union antitrust regulators, ramping up it dispute with the iPhone maker over its App Store payment system and control over app downloads.

The two companies have been locked in a legal dispute since last August, when the game maker tried to avoid Apple’s 30% fee on some in-app purchases on the App Store by launching its own in-app payment system.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Russia needed to ensure that its parliamentary vote scheduled for September is free of foreign meddling following mass protests calling for the release of one of his fiercest critics.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission on Wednesday pledged more funds to step up the EU’s capabilities to identify and tackle variants of the new coronavirus.

More contagious mutations are spreading fast across the world, and experts believe a British variant is likely to become prevalent on the European continent.

However, most European Union states have so far done little or nothing to spot new variants, as they lack the capabilities to sequence the genome of the virus on a large scale.

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson is plotting a staged exit from lockdown that would see the United Kingdom’s battered economy returning to work over the next five months after leaping ahead of most of the world on vaccinating its people.

The novel coronavirus, which emerged in China in late 2019, has killed 2.4 million people worldwide, upended normal life for billions and tipped the United Kingdom into its worst slump in 300 years.