Europe

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin may be in jail, but he refuses to be silenced.

His social media accounts are regularly updated with anecdotes about his life in detention or video commentary criticizing President Vladimir Putin’s rule. He gives interviews to media outlets by providing written answers to questions through his lawyers from behind bars.

He uses court appearances as an opportunity to speak out against the Kremlin’s devastating war in Ukraine — which is exactly what he is being prosecuted for.

GENEVA (AP) — The IOC approved its human rights strategy on Friday, completing a years-long process months after the Beijing Olympics brought scrutiny on how sports engage with a host nation’s record on discrimination and civil liberties.

The 50-page Olympic document guided by United Nations principles was also published one week after the outgoing U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet released a report that said China’s detention of Uyghurs and other ethnic groups may be a crime against humanity.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian forces on Friday claimed new success in their counteroffensive against Russian forces in the country’s east, taking control of a sizeable village and pushing toward an important transport junction. The United States’ top diplomat and the head of NATO noted the advances, but cautioned that the war is likely to drag on for months.

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III says he feels “profound sorrow” over the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, and is vowing to carry on her “lifelong service” to the nation.

Charles is making his first address to the nation as monarch Friday. He became king on Thursday after the queen’s death.

“That promise of lifelong service I renew to all today,” he said. He delivered the address with a framed photo on the queen on a desk.

08 Sep 2022; MEMO: Turkish President, Tayyip Erdogan, said on Thursday he wanted grain from Russia to be exported, too, adding Vladimir Putin was right to complain that grain from Ukraine under an UN-backed deal was going to wealthy rather than poor countries, Reuters reports.

The grain-export agreement aimed to avert a global food crisis by guaranteeing the safe passage of ships in and out of Ukrainian ports, allowing them to export tens of millions of tonnes of grain that had been blockaded by Russia's invasion.

08 Sep 2022; MEMO: The former defence minister of Greece, Evangelos Apostolakis, has urged that warnings from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan should be taken seriously. Apostolakis, who served previously as chief of staff, said during a television interview that Erdogan got across the message that Turkiye is serious about its threats.

MOSCOW, September 8. /TASS/: The Russian Finance Ministry considers reasonable in the current environment to create reserves in gold, the yuan, and other currencies of friendly states, Minister Anton Siluanov said in an interview with the Rossiya-24 TV Channel.

"The yuan role in reserves will certainly grow further. Therefore, I believe if creating reserves in the current environment and keeping money in gold and currency reserves, then this should certainly be gold, in the first instance, the yuan and certain other currencies of friendly states," the Minister said.

MOSCOW, September 8. /TASS/: A St. Petersburg Prosecutor has filed a lawsuit to recognize the siege of Leningrad as a war crime and genocide of the Soviet people, the press service of the Russian Prosecutor General's Office told TASS on Thursday.

VIENNA, September 8. /TASS/: Attempts to weaken Russia did not succeed. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Thursday.

"Eleven thousand sanctions are currently in effect against Russia but the war continues and attempts to weaken Russians were not crowned with success," Orban said, cited by MTI news agency.

Hungary "will have enough gas" in winter and there is no need to halt production at plants in the country, the Prime Minister said. "Energy will be enough for everyone and everybody who wants to invest and produce can come and invest here," he added.

BERLIN, September 8. /TASS/: The European Union may face recession in the wake of record-high gas prices, as the coming winter is likely to be "one of the worst in history," EU Commissioner for Economy Paolo Gentiloni said in an interview with Der Spiegel on Thursday.

"No one can rule that out. The current inflation will throw our economy into turmoil, and the coming winter could be one of the worst in history. We are experiencing unprecedented uncertainty. But the figures for the EU economy as a whole are still positive, and the situation on the labor market is good," he said.