United Kingdom

LONDON (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday and is experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms, Buckingham Palace said, adding that she still plans to carry on working. The diagnosis prompted concern and get-well wishes from across Britain’s political spectrum for the famously stoic 95-year-old.

Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and a fixture in the life of the nation, the queen reached the milestone of 70 years on the throne on Feb. 6, the anniversary of the 1952 death of her father, King George VI. She will turn 96 on April 21.

LONDON (AP) — People with COVID-19 won’t be legally required to self-isolate in England starting in the coming week, the U.K. government has announced, as part of a plan for “living with COVID” that is also likely to see testing for the coronavirus scaled back.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said ending all of the legal restrictions brought in to curb the spread of the virus will let people in the U.K. “protect ourselves without restricting our freedoms.” He is expected to lay out details of the plan in Parliament on Monday.

LONDON, Feb 18 (Reuters) - An Atlantic storm battered Britain and Ireland on Friday with record winds of up to 122 miles per hour, killing at least one person, knocking out power for tens of thousands and shredding the roof of London's O2 arena.

Storm Eunice, which brewed in the central Atlantic and was spun up from the Azores towards Europe by the jet stream, posed a danger to life, Britain's Meteorological Office said.

LONDON, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Russia is ready to invade Ukraine but the Kremlin could use an unconventional attack on its former Soviet neighbour which might require the West to make a swift judgement call on the imposition of Russian sanctions, a senior Western official said.

Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine said on Friday they planned to evacuate their breakaway region's residents to Russia, a stunning turn in a conflict the West believes Moscow could use to justify an invasion of Ukraine.

LONDON (AP) — Millions of people in the U.K. were urged to cancel travel plans and stay indoors Friday as the second major storm this week prompted warnings of high winds and flying debris across northern Europe.

Britain’s weather service said Storm Eunice, known as Storm Zeynep in Germany, was likely to cause significant disruption and dangerous conditions, with gusts that may exceed 90 miles per hour in highly exposed coastal areas. The Met Office later said a 122 mph gust was recorded on the Isle of Wight, provisionally the strongest ever recorded in England.

16 Feb 2022; MEMO: A coalition of civilian society, human rights and religious organisation in the UK have stepped up the coordination of opposition activities against a controversial law which is currently being debated in parliament.

The Nationality and Borders Bill which has already passed its third and final reading in the House of commons will give the Home Secretary the right to strip Britons with foreign ancestry of their nationality without notice.

LONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Britain's Queen Elizabeth on Wednesday quipped to members of the royal household that she could not move much as she carried out her first in-person engagement since her son Prince Charles tested positive for COVID-19.

Charles, 73, the heir to the throne, last week pulled out of an event after contracting coronavirus for a second time. A palace source said the 95-year-old monarch was not displaying any symptoms but the situation was being monitored.

LONDON, February 15. /TASS/: Russia will not invade Ukraine, unless the Kiev regime resorts to provocations that would hurt Russian citizens, Russian Permanent Representative to the EU Vladimir Chizhov said in an interview for The Guardian.

"We will not invade Ukraine unless we are provoked to do that," he said. "If the Ukrainians launch an attack against Russia, you shouldn’t be surprised if we counterattack. Or, if they start blatantly killing Russian citizens anywhere - Donbass or wherever."

LONDON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Russian mercenaries with ties to Moscow's spies have increased their presence in Ukraine in recent weeks, stoking fears among some NATO members that Russia could try to engineer a pretext for an invasion, three senior Western security sources said.

They said their concerns had strengthened in recent weeks that a Russian incursion into Ukraine could be preceded by an information war, and cyber attacks on Ukraine's critical infrastructure such as electricity and gas networks.

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Britain sees signs of a diplomatic opening with Russia over Ukraine, but the latest intelligence is still not encouraging, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday.

Russia said some of its military units were returning to their bases after exercises near Ukraine, following days of U.S. and British warnings that Moscow might invade its neighbour at any time.