Europe

5 Oct 2019; MEMO: Germany’s new military sales to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), despite Gulf country’s involvement in the Yemen conflict, has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition and voluntary groups, Anadolu Agency reports.

Describing arms transfer an “irresponsible policy” pursued by the Chancellor Angela Merkel, German opposition, the Left party (Die Linke) criticized the deal.

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged the United States on Saturday to use its influence to defuse tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, where Cyprus and Turkey are locked in a dispute over offshore rights.

Mitsotakis told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Turkish moves south of the island in recent days were a “flagrant violation” of Cyprus’ sovereign rights.

(Reuters) - The European Union has rejected a British request to hold Brexit talks this weekend, British media reported, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson reiterated his commitment to leaving the bloc on Oct. 31 despite the possibility of not reaching an exit deal.

The European Commission said that Johnson’s new Brexit proposals do not provide any basis for finalising a separation agreement, according to Sky News.

MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine must investigate the activities of U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son to establish whether his role in a Ukrainian gas company complied with the country’s laws, Mykola Azarov, Ukraine’s former prime minister, said in an interview.

Azarov did not specify to which Ukrainian laws he was referring.

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - U.S. and North Korean officials arrived to begin nuclear talks at an isolated conference center on the outskirts of Stockholm on Saturday, in an attempt to end months of stalemate.

The meeting will be the first formal working-level talks since U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met in June and agreed to restart negotiations that stalled after a failed summit in Vietnam in February.

ROME, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Two Italian police officers were shot dead and three others wounded by two robbery suspects at a police station in the northeastern port city of Trieste on Friday.

None of the wounded officers was in serious condition, Italian news agency ANSA reported.

The report said that the two suspects are brothers, aged 29 and 32. They were suspected of stealing a scooter. They used a gun stolen from an agent in the shooting, then tried to flee but were apprehended soon after.

LONDON, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- One of the recent leading Conservative contenders to be Britain's prime minister announced Friday he is to quit parliament and will bid to become the next mayor of London.

Rory Stewart announced he was resigning as an MP by deciding not to stand in the next election. Hours later came the dramatic announcement that he will stand as an independent candidate in next May's election to choose the Mayor of London.

Sadiq Khan currently holds the job and is favorite to win a second four-year term, having in 2016 succeeded Boris Johnson.

MADRID, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- The new tariffs of 25 percent on European Union (EU) agricultural products announced by the U.S. government will harm Spanish key exports, Spain's Secretary of State for Commerce Xiana Mendez has said.

The tariffs, planned to come into effect on Oct. 18 for EU food and drink, will affect key sectors of the Spanish economy, such as olive oil, wine and milk-based produce such as cheese, Mendez said in a press conference on Thursday.

ROME, Oct 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Italy presented a scheme on Friday to accelerate the expulsion of migrants who have no right to stay in the country, cutting the time it takes to decide on whether an asylum seeker must return home.

Immigration flows helped fuel the rise of Italy’s far-right League party, whose leader Matteo Salvini imposed a crackdown on arrivals while he was interior minister until August.

Salvini closed Italy’s ports to migrant rescue ships, threatening the charities operating them with fines of up to €1 million (US$1.10 million) if they tried to dock.

ZHYTOMYR, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s top prosecutor said Friday his office is reviewing several cases related to the owner of a gas company where the son of former Vice President Joe Biden sat on the board, but he added that he wasn’t aware of any evidence of wrongdoing by either Biden.