Europe

MOSCOW, September 16. /TASS/: Russia may re-evaluate and ramp up security at oil production facilities in the country following the attack by drones on facilities of the Saudi Arabian Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest company in terms of production volumes, Energy Minister Alexander Novak told reporters on Monday.

MOSCOW, September 16. /TASS/: Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the Telegram channel Rasstriga during an interview that the former employee of the Russian presidential staff, Oleg Smolenkov, whom the media has suspected of being a CIA agent, had worked for some time at the Russian embassy in Washington.

"He worked at our embassy in Washington for a certain period in his career. There is nothing for me to comment on. He was in charge of administrative matters," she said.

Paris, Sep 16; AP/GANASHAKTI:  Former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who leaked classified documents detailing government surveillance programs, is calling on French President Emmanuel Macron to grant him asylum.

Snowden, now living in Russia to avoid prosecution in the United States, stressed in an interview broadcast Monday on France's Inter radio that "protecting whistle-blowers is not a hostile act" and that he feels entitled to get protected status in France.

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain’s High Court ruled on Monday that the government should refuse a request from the United States to extradite Venezuela’s former military intelligence chief.

Former general Hugo Carvajal was arrested on drug trafficking charges by Spanish police in April at the request of Washington, which says it believes he will share incriminating information about Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

The court said the ex-spy chief would be freed from jail, where he has been held pending the extradition process, but did not say when he would be released.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Monday it was important to determine the facts behind the attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities before establishing who was responsible.

“It is important to clearly establish the facts and then determine responsibility for this deplorable attack,” a spokeswoman said, largely repeating a statement issued by the European Union on Sunday.

SOUTHPORT, England (Reuters) - Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage says he believes Britain’s departure from the European Union will be delayed again because parliament will reject Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s attempt to do a last-minute deal with Brussels.

Cast by his supporters as the godfather of Brexit, Farage said Britain’s exit, due on Oct. 31, was now in doubt as what he called the political elite in London was plotting with the EU to betray the 2016 referendum, in which Britain voted 52%-48% to leave.

BERLIN (Reuters) - The German government has enough other options to consider for funding a planned climate package before it needs to discuss sacrificing its “black zero” balanced-budget policy, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said on Monday.

“For me, we have sufficient options for action that we should first exhaust before such a discussion makes sense,” Scholz told a news conference with other senior figures from his Social Democrats, junior partner in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling coalition.

SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices surged nearly 20% at one point on Monday, with Brent crude posting its biggest intraday gain since the Gulf War in 1991, after an attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities at the weekend halved the kingdom’s production.

Prices came off their peaks after U.S. President Donald Trump authorized the use of his country’s emergency stockpile to ensure stable supply.

LUXEMBOURG (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have his first meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday in search of a longshot Brexit deal.

The two men are scheduled to hold talks over a lunch of snails and salmon in Luxembourg, amid claims from the U.K. — though not the EU — that a deal is in sight.

MOSCOW, Russia, Sept 16 (NNN-ITAR TASS) – Russia’s Black Sea Fleet ships are constantly monitoring the U.S. navy ship, USNS Yuma, which passed through the Bosporus Strait on Saturday evening, the Ministry of Defence said, Sunday.

The purpose of the U.S. expeditionary fast transport vessel is unknown, and it is the third time the ship entered the Black Sea this year, the ministry’s Zvezda broadcasting service said.