Europe

PARIS, May 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Several European countries including France and Britain on Thursday moved to further lift crippling coronavirus lockdown measures, but fresh restrictions in parts of Asia signalled the crisis is far from over.

As much of the world grapples to find the path forward, with the deadly virus still spreading in some places and a vaccine at best a distant reality, Europe is slowly emerging from isolation.

28 May 2020; MEMO: The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday asked the Palestinian Authority (PA) to provide clarification regarding the status of the Oslo Accords, Israeli newspaper

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: The Kremlin regrets that a number of EU countries have been prohibited by their allies from asking Russia for assistance in the struggle against the coronavirus, Russian presidential spokesman, Dmitry Peskov told the media on Thursday.

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: Western countries continue to politicize human rights issues amid the coronavirus pandemic in order to put pressure on unwanted regimes, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office and other International Organizations in Geneva Gennady Gatilov told an online briefing on Thursday.

MOSCOW, May 28./TASS/: Following his talks with Tbilisi, Russian envoy Grigory Karasin said on Thursday that he was set to discuss in any format a visit by Russian experts to the Georgia-based Richard Lugar Center for Public Health Research with Georgian prime minister’s special envoy for Russia Zurab Abashidze.

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani discussed the situation on the global hydrocarbon markets and the status of affairs in Syria in a telephone conversation, the Kremlin’s press service said on Thursday.

"Opinions were exchanged on key international topics, including the situation on the global hydrocarbon markets," the press service said.

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: Countries need to make a joint decision on removing sanctions and Russia can’t be expected to take the first step, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"In this particular case, everyone needs to make decisions simultaneously. No country is likely to act alone. It is hardly possible and reasonable to do so," he said, when asked if Moscow planned to remove food restrictions in light of Russian officials’ statements about the need to lift sanctions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: Russia’s government will allocate almost 11 bln rubles ($155 mln) for aid to airports amid the pandemic, the prime minister said at a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

"Almost 11 bln rubles will be allocated to supporting our airports," he said, adding that "the funds should be spent on wages and insurance contributions payment first of all."

MOSCOW, May 28. /TASS/: The Russian industry considers developing heavy drones to control the border in Arctic regions, First Deputy Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB), Border Guard Service Head Vladimir Kulishov told TASS on Thursday.

MOSCOW, May 28./TASS/: The Kremlin believes that data claiming a 'high' COVID-19 death rate among medics in Russia is inaccurate and it will ask the Ministry of Health for comments, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Thursday.

"To the best of my knowledge, this is not so," he told journalists when asked to comment on media publications saying that the death rate among the medics in Russia was allegedly higher than in other countries.

"But we will certainly ask the Ministry of Health to comment on that," he added.