Europe

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday Russia was hoping to minimize the risk of a direct clash with Turkey in Syria even though soldiers from both countries were in close proximity in Idlib region on different sides of a live conflict.

Moscow was commenting a day after Syrian government forces entered parts of a strategic rebel-held town called Saraqeb with Russia’s help. The Russian Defence Ministry said Russian military police had also entered Saraqeb.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European airlines warned on Tuesday the worst is still to come in economic damage to the industry from the rapid spread of coronavirus Covid-19.

They also called for a relaxation of airport regulations under which airlines can lose lucrative landing and take-off slots if they cancel flights for a prolonged period.

“We request that a temporary waiver be granted by all (EU) member states,” Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) CEO Ben Smith said ahead of an annual conference of the Brussels-based lobbying group.

MYTILENE (Greece), March 3 (NNN-Xinhua) — Greece has adopted a tougher stance and is treating the migration challenge as a national security issue, Interior Minister Takis Theodorikakos said.

The Greek official was referring to thousands of people gathered at the country’s land border with Turkey in the past few days and hundreds still crossing the Aegean Sea on dinghies.

LONDON, March 3 (NNN-Xinhua) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson chaired a Monday meeting of the government’s COBRA emergency committee amid rising threat of the novel coronavirus as Britain confirmed four new COVID-19 cases on the same day, bringing its total number of infections to 40.

During the meeting, a four-stage “battle plan” was agreed by ministers, which lays out in detail the measures that could be used if and when they are needed.

PARIS, March 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Say no to a handshake, refuse kisses on the cheeks and definitely avoid hugging. Instead, a direct gaze or maybe a gesture with the hands.

All around the world people are changing their daily habits at work, at home and in worship to reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus and prevent it from spreading any further.

Lets take a look at how habits are changing around the world due to the coronavirus, which has killed 3,060 worldwide.

BRUSSELS, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) and Britain started the negotiations for a new partnership here on Monday.

The talks began with a bilateral meeting between the chief negotiators, the EU's Michel Barnier and the UK's David Frost, according to the audiovisual service website of the European Commission.

With around 100 British officials participating, the first round of negotiations will cover 11 areas including trade in goods and services, energy and transport, as the agenda showed on the UK government's website.

GENEVA, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that the spread of COVID-19 in South Korea, Italy, Iran and Japan has become the greatest concern.

South Korea has so far reported more than 4,200 cases and 22 deaths, meaning it has more than half of all cases outside China, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a daily briefing.

GENEVA, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The United States has adopted a double standard policy of counter-terrorism, which is based entirely on its own national interests, disregarding the appeal of other countries and regions, a scholar said here Monday.

PARIS (AP) — A global agency says the spreading new virus could make the world economy shrink this quarter for the first time since the international financial crisis more than a decade ago.

In a special report on the impact of the virus, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Monday that the world economy is still expected to grow overall this year and rebound next year.

BERLIN (AP) — Scientists say that half of the world’s sandy beaches could disappear by the end of the century if climate change continues unchecked.

Researchers at the European Union’s Joint Research Center in Ispra, Italy, used satellite images to track the way beaches have changed over the past 30 years and simulated how global warming might affect them in the future.