Europe

LONDON (AP) — British news agency Press Association reports that German tennis legend Boris Becker has been freed from prison after serving eight months of his sentence and now faces deportation from the U.K.

The 55-year-old German, who has lived in Britain since 2012, was released on Thursday morning ahead of his deportation, PA reported, without citing sources.

Becker, the three-time Wimbledon champion, ​​had been sentenced to 30 months in prison in April for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt.

LONDON (AP) — Self-proclaimed free speech warrior Elon Musk’s more unfettered version of Twitter could collide with new rules in Europe, where officials warn that the social media company will have to comply with some of the world’s toughest laws targeting toxic content.

PARIS (AP) — Crowds in Paris and other French cities erupted in shouts of joy as France advanced to the World Cup final Wednesday, while disappointed Morocco fans mingled with the exuberant supporters of the winning team, paying tribute to the African country’s unprecedented achievement.

Football fans streamed to the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, shooting off firecrackers and red flares, to an unending chorus of honking cars.

On the famous avenue, many were brandishing French flags and singing “we are in the final.”

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — When 25-year-old Anastasia Mokhina donned fatigues and rushed off with her husband to help Ukraine defend itself as Russia invaded on Feb. 24, she quickly realized the military wasn’t well prepared for an influx of women volunteers.

MINSK, December 14. /TASS/: Minsk aims to work with traditional and new strategic partners, especially in Eurasia, the new head of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, Sergey Aleinik, said on Wednesday.

"We have always put and will always put the realization of our economic interests first, we will continue working with our strategic traditional and new partners and cooperation at integration sites with the focus on Eurasia," he said during an introduction to employees of the diplomatic department.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s State of the Nation Address to the Russian Federal Assembly is likely to be arranged next year, a source in the parliament told TASS on Wednesday.

"The address is organized once a year and the countdown starts from the date of the previous address. This is why the address may be held next year… I believe that it won’t be organized this year," he said.

The source also said that "substantial preparations for the address are required, yet there is almost no time left before the end of the year."

MELITOPOL, December 14. /TASS/: Moscow deems the demilitarization of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP) to be inadmissible because this would allow Ukraine’s militants to take over the nuclear facility, so the establishment of a security zone is warranted, Vladimir Rogov, chairman of the We Are Together with Russia movement, said commenting on remarks by Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/: Russian forces eliminated five Ukrainian subversive/reconnaissance groups in the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics in the past day during the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Wednesday.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/: Member-states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) will start calculating trade statistics in currencies other than the US dollar soon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

"The EAEU is one of the most vigorously developing regional associations. It unites almost 185 mln of consumers, and the total gross income is over two trillion US dollars," Lavrov said. "We are counting in dollars by inertia, although I am sure that will pass off soon," he noted.

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a videoconference meeting with the Strategic Development and National Projects council on Thursday, December 15, the Kremlin’s press service said on Wednesday.

"The plan is to discuss matters of providing technological sovereignty and investment support during the meeting," the Kremlin said.