Europe

MOSCOW, January 24. /TASS/: The Bank of Russia made the decision not to purchase foreign currency on the domestic part within the fiscal rule mechanism implementation framework, the regulator said on Monday.

"The Bank of Russia decided not to buy foreign currency on the domestic market within the framework of fiscal rule mechanism implementation from 15.00 pm Moscow time of January 24, 2022. This decision was made for purposes of increasing predictability in actions of monetary authorities and reduction of financial markets volatility," the Central Bank said.

MOSCOW, January 24. /TASS/: A Bloomberg report about Chinese President Xi Jinping allegedly asking Russian leader Vladimir Putin not to attack Ukraine during the Beijing Olympics is spectacular fake news, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the Ekho Moskvy (or Echo of Moscow) radio station on Monday.

MOSCOW, January 24. /TASS/: Gas reserves in underground gas storages (UGS) of Europe and Ukraine are record low, Gazprom said on Monday.

"The level of reserves in European UGS moved to the area of record minimums since January 11, 2002, throughout long-term observations. Reserves were 1.85 bln cubic meters lower than the minimal indicator as of this date on January 22," Gazprom said.

ANTAVILIAI, Lithuania, Jan 24 (Reuters) - A huge steel barn outside Lithuania's capital, whose long corridor and windowless rooms with carpets and soundproof doors once served as a CIA detention centre, will soon go on sale.

Washington's so-called "rendition programme", under which suspected Islamist militants from conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq were spirited to jails outside U.S. jurisdiction, remains shrouded in secrecy more than a decade after it ended.

LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was fighting to shore up his premiership on Monday as he faced the publication later this week of an investigation into boozy parties at the heart of the British state during COVID-19 lockdowns.

Johnson, who in 2019 won the biggest Conservative majority in more than 30 years, is now assailed by scandal, facing accusations that he and his staff partied during the worst pandemic for a century and a new accusation of racist discrimination in his party. 

LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Monday was given the chance to challenge at Britain's highest court a decision allowing him to be extradited to the United States to face 18 criminal charges including breaking a spying law.

U.S. authorities want Australian-born Assange, 50, currently in jail in London as he awaits a ruling on his extradition, to face trial on 18 counts relating to WikiLeaks’ release of vast troves of confidential U.S. military records and diplomatic cables which they said had put lives in danger.

KIEV, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday welcomed the decision of the European Union (EU) to approve 1.2 billion euros (about 1.36 billion U.S. dollars) macro-financial assistance to Ukraine.

"The EU once again demonstrates its firm support for Ukraine," Zelensky tweeted.

Earlier in the day, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the new financial assistance package to Ukraine, saying it will help the Eastern European country to address its financing needs.

MOSCOW, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- A total of 20 Russian warships and supporting vessels have entered the designated areas of the Baltic Sea to conduct exercises, Russia's Western Military District said in a statement on Monday.

The ships from the Russian Baltic Fleet, forming in several tactical groups, will carry out anti-submarine, air defense and mine-sweeping tasks, the statement said.

LONDON, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Britain has begun to withdraw staff from its embassy in Kiev, the country's Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said Monday.

Some embassy staff and dependents are being withdrawn from Ukraine, but the embassy remains open and will continue to carry out essential work, it said.

"The FCDO advise against all travel to Donetsk oblast, Luhansk oblast and Crimea. The FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the rest of Ukraine," it said.

BRUSSELS (AP) — As the United States grapples with the 5G rollout affecting airlines, a European Union watchdog warned on Monday the EU faces much bigger economic and security threats unless member countries step up cooperation.

The alarm bells are included in a special report on the 27-nation bloc’s preparations for 5G, the fifth and next generation of wireless communications. 5G is projected to propel the world into a new digital age -- one with greater technological innovations but also vulnerabilities.