Europe

BRUSSELS, June 12. /TASS/: The North Atlantic Council recognized Ukraine as an Enhanced Opportunities Partner, according to the statement of NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu.

"This decision recognizes Ukraine’s strong contributions to NATO missions, and demonstrates the Alliance’s continued commitment to its partnerships despite the COVID-19 pandemic," Lungescu said.

LONDON, June 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Prime Minister Boris Johnson said a wave of anti-racism protests across Britain had been “hijacked by extremists”, as fears mounted about clashes between activists and far-right groups.

In London, authorities boarded up several statues, including of World War II leader Winston Churchill, after previous damage and with further demonstrations planned.

Mayor Sadiq Khan said the monuments, as well as the Cenotaph war memorial, were being protected against the risk of “disorder, vandalism and violence”.

MOSCOW, June 13. /TASS/: One person died and three others were injured in an explosion of liquefied gas in a gas storage facility in Kazan, emergency services told TASS.

"Liquefied gas exploded at the Kazan cluster base of Gazprom Liquefied Gas, in an above-ground gas storage capacity of 100 cubic meters. As a result, one person died and three were injured," the source said.

After the explosion, a fire broke out with a risk of spreading to other containers.

13 June 2020; AFP: EU leaders are set to join Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Saturday for talks on jumpstarting the nation's economy, but opposition figures shunned the hastily organised -- and roundly criticised -- initiative.

Despite a bevy of A-list political speakers, Italians such as far-right leader Matteo Salvini planned to sit out Conte's conference, casting it as a media stunt designed to boost the premier's profile.

PARIS (Reuters) - France will lift restrictions at its borders for EU travellers on June 15, the French Interior and Foreign ministries said in a statement on Friday.

“Given a favourable development of the health situation in France and Europe and in accordance with the recommendations of the European Commission...France will lift on June 15 (0h00) all traffic restrictions at its European internal borders (land, air and sea), implemented to fight the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement said.

LONDON (Reuters) - British Airways was labelled a “national disgrace” by lawmakers for its treatment of employees on Saturday, adding to pressure on the airline as it juggles job cuts and new quarantine rules.

Britain’s Transport Select Committee said that BA and its parent company IAG (ICAG.L) were trying to take advantage of the coronavirus crisis to cut 12,000 jobs and downgrade the terms and conditions of other employees.

LONDON, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Britain on Friday formally ruled out the possibility of an extended post-Brexit transition period, leaving business in uncertainty again.

Michael Gove, the British cabinet office minister, said Friday in a tweet that he formally confirmed the decision.

"I formally confirmed the UK will not extend the transition period & the moment for extension has now passed. On 1 January 2021 we will take back control and regain our political & economic independence," he said.

THE HAGUE, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The international community has bashed U.S. sanctions against some International Criminal Court (ICC) officials investigating possible war crimes committed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

The White House said Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump has authorized economic sanctions against ICC officials "directly engaged with any effort to investigate or prosecute United States personnel without the consent of the United States," as well as the expansion of visa restrictions against these officials and their family members.

PARIS, June 13 (NNN-AGENCIE) — The coronavirus pandemic has killed 425,000 people since it emerged in China late last year, according to a tally of official sources at 0130 GMT on Saturday.

A total of 425,282 deaths have now been recorded from 7,632,517 cases.

Europe has registered 186,843 deaths from 2,363,538 cases, but the epidemic is progressing most rapidly in Latin America, where there have been a total of 76,343 deaths recorded from 1,569,938 cases.

PARIS (AP) — The French praised the altruism of their prized textile and luxury goods companies when production facilities got diverted from churning out the latest fashions to making cloth masks designed to protect the general public from the coronavirus.