Europe

10 Feb 2023; MEMO: Keir Starmer is "serious" about purging the Labour party of anti-Zionism, Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves, has said in an interview with Jewish News where the MP from Leeds West conflated anti-Semitism with Israel's founding political ideology.

MOSCOW, February 10. /TASS/: The Bank of Russia decided to retain the key rate at 7.5% per annum at its first meeting this year, the regulator said in its report on Friday.

"On 10 February 2023, the Bank of Russia Board of Directors decided to keep the key rate at 7.50% per annum. Current price growth rates are increasing, remaining moderate in terms of sustainable components. Inflation expectations of households and businesses edged down but remain elevated. Economic activity trends evolve better than the Bank of Russia’s October forecast," the statement said.

MOSCOW, February 10. /TASS/: The United States is prodding the Zelensky regime into committing war crimes with its new military aid package for Ukraine that includes anti-personnel mines, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Friday.

GENEVA, February 10. /TASS/: The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed its concerns to the Defense Ministry of Ukraine over the mistreatment of Russian POWs, including murder of captives, OHCHR Spokeswoman Marta Hurtado told TASS Friday.

She noted that the UN human rights monitoring commission in Ukraine "documents and reports violations of international humanitarian law by all sides."

MOSCOW, February 10. /TASS/: The issue of the possibility of signing a peace treaty with Japan remains closed for Russia for the time being, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing on Friday.

MOSCOW, February 10. /TASS/: The threat to Russia's national security from the Western track will be robustly neutralized and the diplomatic service will do everything necessary to strengthen national sovereignty, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a special meeting on the occasion of Diplomatic Worker's Day on Friday.

 LONDON, Feb 10 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Britain said Thursday it had paid a whopping £ 2.3 billion to settle a long-running row with the EU, despite having quit the bloc.

A final payment of £ 1.1 billion was made this week to resolve the dispute over textiles and footwear imported into Britain from China, Treasury minister John Glen said.

Since Brexit took full effect three years ago, Britain is no longer bound by European Union rules.

BRUSSELS, Feb 10 (NNN-AGENCIES) — European Union (EU) leaders have agreed on tougher rules aimed at making it easier to expel asylum-seekers whose refugee applications are denied, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said.

The measures are a response to increasing European concern over rising irregular immigration that has become a hot-button issue in several member countries.

That problem is “a European challenge that requires a European response,” EU leaders said in a final document at the end of a 16-hour summit looking at that and other topics.

BRUSSELS, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday accused France of jeopardising EU unity on Ukraine by organising a Franco-German dinner in Paris with the Ukrainian president that excluded other European allies.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday evening on the eve of an EU summit, where the Ukrainian leader called for more weapons in the fight against the Russian invasion.

KYIV, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Two Russian missiles crossed into Romanian and Moldovan airspace before entering Ukraine on Friday, the top Ukrainian general said.

Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, said two Kaliber missiles launched from the Black Sea had entered Moldovan airspace, then flew into Romanian airspace, before entering Ukraine.

Reuters could not immediately verify the statement. Russia did not immediately comment on it.