Europe

20 April 2020; MEMO: A huge delivery of personal protective equipment (PPE) to the UK from Turkey has been delayed, The New Arab reports.

The substantial delivery of the desperately needed PPE was delayed for “logistical reasons”.

Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Robert Jenrick claimed in a statement that the shipment would arrive on Sunday, and would include 84 tonnes of supplies including 400,000 surgical gowns for Britain’s National Health Service (NHS).

20 April 2020; MEMO: Russia has confirmed its rejection of Israel’s plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, stressing that this would undermine the settlement of the conflict on the basis of a two-state solution, and especially the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

ROME, April 20 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Some 180 migrants rescued at sea will be held in isolation on an Italian ferry off the coast of Sicily, the coast guard said.

Italy has refused to take in saved migrants due to the coronavirus epidemic, saying the outbreak, which has killed over 23,000 people, meant it could no longer be considered a port of safety.

Thirty-four people pulled to safety by Spanish NGO rescue vessel Aita Mari were transferred to the Rubattino ferry, which is anchored outside the port of Palermo and staffed by 22 Red Cross volunteers.

BERLIN (Reuters) - The European Union’s Economics Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told German magazine Der Spiegel that aid worth around 1.5 trillion euros ($1.63 trillion) could be needed to tackle the coronavirus crisis.

“The Eurogroup has now made proposals for aid worth more than 500 billion euros to finance healthcare and short-time work and to help small and medium-sized companies. That leaves at least one trillion euros. This is roughly the amount we need to be dealing with now.”

He said the funds could be raised via the EU’s next multi-annual budget.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank will give banks ample time to return to normal capital and liquidity levels after the coronavirus crisis passes, the ECB’s chief supervisor told Spanish newspaper El Confidencial.

“We will have to decide on the path to return to the normal capital and liquidity levels on a bank-by-bank basis,” Andrea Enria was quoted as saying on Monday.

Although the ECB has asked banks not to pay dividend during the current crisis, Enria said it was not planning to put any constraints on payments of additional Tier 1 and Tier 2 coupons.

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German procurement proposal to replace Germany’s aging fleet of Tornado fighter jets foresees the purchase of up to 93 Eurofighters, and up to 45 F-18s from Boeing, a German Defense Ministry source said.

Parliament would probably only deal with the proposal in 2021 or 2022, the source added.

The Eurofighter is built by Airbus, Britain’s BAE Systems and Italy’s Leonardo SpA.

DUBLIN, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The second batch of personal protective equipment (PPE) ordered from China is expected to arrive in Ireland soon, the Irish national radio and television broadcaster RTE reported on Sunday, quoting an official.

Paul Reid, head of the Health Service Executive (HSE), a state agency responsible for public health service in Ireland, was quoted as saying at an HSE weekly briefing that the delivery of the second batch of PPE ordered by the Irish government from China had commenced on Saturday.

MOSCOW, April 19. /TASS/: Some 60% Muscovites with a confirmed coronavirus infection are showing no symptoms, compared with 40% a week ago, the anti-coronavirus crisis center reported on Sunday.

MOSCOW, April 19. /TASS/: The role of international interaction in combating the novel coronavirus and the demand in this cooperation is growing, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" program on Rossiya-1 TV channel.

"Here it’s impossible to distance from each other. On the contrary, the importance and demand in communication is only growing," Peskov said.

"Our countries cooperate. And the heads of state have contacts. And they provide mutual assistance and exchange information," the Kremlin spokesman noted.

MOSCOW, April 19. /TASS/: Russia’s National Wealth Fund will amount to nearly 7 trillion rubles ($94.6 bln) by the end of 2020 with all planned spending and these reserves will be enough until 2024 under the current oil prices, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Sunday.

"Given all expenses of this year, by the end of the year we expect some 7 trillion rubles in the National Wealth Fund. If we look at the oil prices today, this resource will be enough for us until 2024," Siluanov told "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" program.