Europe

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: The price of futures contracts of Brent crude oil for July 2020 delivery gained 14.12% to $31.04 per barrel on London's ICE on Tuesday, according to the trading data as of 9:19 pm Moscow time.

The price of Brent crude oil was last above $31 per barrel on April 14, 2020.

The price of futures contracts of WTI is up by 16.24% at $26.48 per barrel.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: Russian business ombudsman Boris Titov expects that enterprises, including restaurants, shops and museums that had to close due to the coronavirus pandemic to resume operations from mid-May. He said this on Tuesday during an online broadcast.

"I hope that starting May 12-15, part of the businesses will start to resume their operation. This applies to certain restaurants, shops, museums, exhibitions, sightseeing sites. They will be allowed to resume work on condition they observe special regulations," he said.

PRAGUE, May 6. /TASS/: The Russian embassy in the Czech Republic has received the Czech Foreign Ministry’s diplomatic note suggesting that the two countries launch consultations on tensions that escalated following the demolition of a monument dedicated to WWII Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev in Prague, Embassy Spokesman Nikolai Bryakin told TASS.

"We have received such a note," he said.

MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday will chair a meeting on the coronavirus situation in the country.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS earlier that the meeting’s participants would particularly discuss ways to gradually lift lockdown restrictions.

PARIS, May 5 (Xinhua) -- French people would have to spend summer holidays at home as international trips and travel within Europe may have to be limited on risks of new wave of coronavirus epidemic, President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday.

"It is too early to say whether we can take holidays. What I can say is that we will limit major international travel, even during the summer holidays," Macron said during a visit to a school in Paris suburbs.

LONDON (AP) — Britain now has Europe’s highest official coronavirus death toll after the latest round of daily figures Tuesday showed it overtaking Italy. Only the United States has recorded more virus-related deaths.

The British government said another 693 people died in hospitals, nursing homes and other settings after testing positive for COVID-19, taking the total to 29,427 — above Italy’s 29,315.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, who has contracted COVID-19, is feeling normal in general and is receiving treatment as scheduled, his Spokesman Boris Belyakov said on Tuesday.

"Mikhail Vladimirovich is staying in one of state medical facilities under doctors’ supervision," Belyakov said. "He is feeling normal in general. The treatment is going on as scheduled, using the drugs recommended by the Health Ministry for patients to cure this disease." "The prime minister is actively contacting with his colleagues by phone," he said.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: Sukhoi Superjet 100 passenger plane has emergency landed in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport due to engine failure, emergency services told TASS.

"The preliminary data suggests that the jet’s left engine failed after taking off for Saratov. The crew decided to return. At 07:16, they emergency landed as normal," TASS was told.

The services clarified that the SSJ-100 left for Saratov around 06:45. It made a few circles before the landing, spending 30 minutes in the air. The plane will soon be examined by technical services to clarify the causes.

PARIS (Reuters) - French carrier Air France is to require all passengers on board its flights to wear masks from May 11 to comply with French government guidelines on COVID-19 protection measures.

The company said in a statement that passengers would have to supply the masks themselves, and would be expected to keep them on for the duration of their flight.

Major airlines, among them Lufthansa, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, have already mandated face masks for all passengers.

BRUSSELS, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Belgium began its first phase of deconfinement on Monday as the Belgian health institute Sciensano confirmed that the spread of the virus in the country is decreasing with a COVID-19 reproduction rate of 0.6 over the past 24 hours.

With the reproduction rate of 0.6, an infected person infects less than one person now, unlike the rate of 2 to 3 at the beginning of the epidemic.