Europe

MOSCOW, August 13 /TASS/: S7 has signed a contract with leasing company GECAS for supply of two Boeing 737-800BCF air freighters, the Russian air carrier said on Thursday. These are the first airplanes fully focused on freight transportation only in the airline fleet.

KIEV, August 13. /TASS/: The National Salvation Front of Belarus whose creation was announced earlier by Valery Tsepkalo, presidential candidate denied registration by the Central Election Committee, announced the collection of materials to bring a case against incumbent President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko before the court, the organization’s Telegram channel reported on Thursday.

MOSCOW, August 13. /TASS/: Meeting with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko is not scheduled on the agenda of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin press service told TASS on Thursday.

"There is no such meeting in his schedule," the press service said.

MOSCOW, August 13. /TASS/: Protective properties of Russian vaccine against the coronavirus will be intact for at least two years after its administration, Director of the Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology of the Russian Healthcare Ministry Alexander Gintsburg said.

"Effective period of the vaccine, its protective properties will last not during a short term, half a year - one year but for at least two years," he said in an interview with the 60 minutes show on the Russia-1 TV channel.

MOSCOW, August 13. /TASS/: Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has dismissed as groundless attempts to find a "Russian connection" to the unrest in Belarus.

"We expect that professional cooperation by the investigative committees, prosecutor generals’ offices and other agencies of the two countries will help clear up the situation involving the detention of 33 Russian citizens as soon as possible. It is important to stress that the attempts to find a ‘Russian connection’ to the latest unrest in Belarus are groundless," Zakharova told a news briefing.

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary wants the European Union to pursue dialogue with Belarus and avoid ostracising it, its foreign minister said on Thursday, after days of violent protests in Minsk where President Alexander Lukashenko claimed a landslide re-election victory.

“We are interested in the EU making decisions based on dialogue, which do not make it impossible for the European Union and Belarus to build their relationship in the future, or set back the Eastern Partnership Programme,” Peter Szijjarto said in a Facebook post.

PARIS (Reuters) - Shares in European planemaker Airbus (AIR.PA) fell on Thursday after the U.S. government said it would maintain 15% tariffs on the company’s aircraft and 25% tariffs on other European goods.

Airbus shares were down 2.1% at 0705 GMT, making the stock the worst performer on France's benchmark CAC-40 index .FCHI.

On Wednesday, the U.S. government said it would maintain the tariffs on Airbus and other European goods despite moves by the European Union to resolve a 16-year-old dispute over aircraft subsidies.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices held steady on Thursday after the International Energy Agency lowered its 2020 oil demand forecast following unprecedented travel restrictions and data showing a decline in U.S. inventories provided some support.

Brent crude LCOc1 fell 12 cents, or 0.3%, to $45.31 a barrel by 1027 GMT, and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 was down 7 cents, or 0.2%, to $42.60 a barrel.

“The oil market enjoys some calm summer weeks, seemingly taking a break from the turbulent times earlier this year,” said Norbert Rücker, analyst Swiss bank Julius Baer.

13 Aug 2020; MEMO: France said Wednesday that it will temporarily increase its military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean in the coming days, Anadolu reports.

President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis discussed the latest situation in the region, Macron’s office said in a statement.

BERLIN (Reuters) - German services union Verdi on Thursday said Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) had walked away from negotiations over a package to cut staff costs after the German flag carrier received a 9 billion euro ($10 billion) government bailout to secure its future.

“The refusal is a slap in the face of the employees,” Verdi deputy chairwoman Christine Behle said in a statement, adding that Lufthansa was demanding income cuts without giving guarantees for jobs security.