Europe

June 23 (Reuters) - Ukraine said on Thursday it had received U.S. supplies of High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), a powerful long-range weapon system that Kyiv hopes can help turn the tide on Russia's invasion.

Moscow's forces are advancing in Ukraine's east in a bid to capture the industrial heartland known as the Donbas where Ukraine fears some of its troops could be encircled in a Russian pincer. 

KYIV, June 23 (Reuters) - Ukraine is set to be accepted as a candidate to join the European Union on Thursday, a move that boosts the country's morale as Russian assaults wear down the defenders of two cities in the eastern Donbas region.

Although the approval of the Kyiv government's application by EU leaders meeting in Brussels is just the start of what will be a years-long process, it marks a huge geopolitical shift and will anger Russia as it struggles to impose its will on Ukraine.

BERLIN, June 23 (Reuters) - Germany triggered the "alarm stage" of its emergency gas plan on Thursday in response to falling Russian supplies but stopped short of allowing utilities to pass on soaring energy costs to customers in Europe's largest economy.

The measure is the latest escalation in a standoff between Europe and Moscow since the Russian invasion of Ukraine that has exposed the bloc's dependence on Russian gas supplies and sparked a frantic search for alternative energy sources.

LONDON (AP) — As the World Health Organization convenes its emergency committee Thursday to consider if the spiraling outbreak of monkeypox warrants being declared a global emergency, some experts say WHO’s decision to act only after the disease spilled into the West could entrench the grotesque inequities that arose between rich and poor countries during the coronavirus pandemic.

LONDON (AP) — Millions of people in Britain faced disruption Thursday as railway staff staged their second national walkout this week.

The 24-hour strike by 40,000 cleaners, signalers, maintenance workers and station staff canceled about four-fifths of passenger services across the country. A third walkout is planned for Saturday as part of Britain’s biggest and most disruptive railway strike in 30 years.

LONDON (AP) — Got European travel plans this summer? Don’t forget to pack your passport, sunscreen and plenty of patience.

Liz Morgan arrived at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport 4 1/2 hours before her flight to Athens, finding the line for security snaking out of the terminal and into a big tent along a road before doubling back inside the main building.

London, Jun 21 (PTI) British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday called for a sensible compromise on the pay demands by workers' unions that have resulted in the UK's worst rail strike in 30 years, with a majority of the staff walking out to cripple the networks.

Just one in five trains are expected to run on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday when workers are on strike, with services across England, Wales and Scotland being affected from Monday evening. Passengers have been urged to travel by train only if necessary.

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders on Thursday are set to grant Ukraine candidate status to join the 27-nation bloc, a first step in a long and unpredictable journey toward full membership that could take many years to achieve.

Making the war-torn country a contender now seems to be a done deal after leaders were initially divided on how fast they could move to embrace the war-torn country’s bid that was launched only a few days after Russia launched its invasion on Feb. 24.

22 June 2022; MEMO: Media platforms revealed that the authorities in some Spanish provinces established a team of specialists and economists with the aiming of searching for alternative sources to the Algerian markets in North Africa.

Spanish sources pointed out that the regional government of the "Murcia" Region has opened communication channels with the affected companies to provide the government with the necessary information about the markets and the development of the crisis with Algeria.

MARIUPOL, June 21. /TASS/: Turkey’s Azov Concord has become the first foreign ship to leave the port of Mariupol, a TASS correspondent reported, adding that the vessel was headed to Russia’s Novorossiysk.

The ship’s captain Ivan Babenkov said that the Azov Concord was not carrying any cargo.

The Turkish vessel was repaired after suffering damage from the Ukrainian military, and new crew members were hired.