Europe

LONDON—A woman has died after being blown off a cliff in the Republic of Ireland, Irish police confirmed. The woman was in her 50s died after a caravan was swept off the cliff in the west of Ireland on Sept. 19. Irish police told PA, “At approximately 7:45 a.m., a report was received that a […]

BERLIN–The German government is taking steps to counter a surge in Chinese bids for stakes in German technology companies, including the creation of a billion-euro fund that could rescue such firms that are in financial trouble, a government source told Reuters. Senior officials are also working on changes to foreign trade regulations to ensure that […]

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump told Polish President Andrzej Duda that he’s considering his counterpart’s offer of putting a U.S. military base in Poland, because of concerns about Russian military aggression in the region. Duda offered to pay more than $2 billion for the permanent base, according to Trump, who cited it as a potential model for other […]

The event did not make the news until Sept. 14, when the Chinese Embassy in Sweden issued a public notice warning Chinese not to visit Sweden on account of poor safety and abuse by the local police.

There has been a dramatic boom in urban farming in France over the last few years.

A prominent ant-Kremlin activist who was apparently poisoned in Moscow was saved by prompt medical treatment, his Berlin doctors claim. Pyotr Verzilov publishes an online Russian-language news portal–and has close ties with the Russian activist group Pussy Riot, Reuters reported. He participated in—and was jailed for—an incident during the 2018 World Cup soccer match when […]

DUBLIN—Ireland has collected 13.1 billion euros ($15.2 billion) in disputed taxes from Apple plus interest of 1.2 billion euros, which it will hold in escrow pending an appeal against a European Union tax ruling, Ireland’s finance minister said Sept. 18. The European Commission ruled in August 2016 that Apple had received unfair tax incentives. Both […]

Syrian antiaircraft defenses mistakenly shot down a Russian patrol plane, killing all 15 people on board, during an Israeli air strike on hostile positions in Syria. The Russian Ilyushin IL-20 was downed Sept. 17 by a Syrian S-200 missile, according to Russian news agency TASS. While the Russian military initially blamed Israel for the incident, […]

BERLIN—A scandal over migrants being chased through the streets has exposed a rift between Angela Merkel and Germany’s security establishment that is dividing her coalition and hindering efforts to contain the fall-out from her “open door” refugee policy. The crisis blew up when Hans-Georg Maassen, chief of the BfV intelligence agency, said he was not […]

BUCHAREST, Romania—Two U.S. basketball players have been stabbed in a club in eastern Romania and one is in a serious condition, Romanian authorities said Sept. 16. Police said Darrell Bowie, 24, and Joseph McClain, 25, who play for local club ACS Cuza Braila, were attacked Sept. 15 night in the city after a fight broke […]

LONDON—Police have closed roads and summoned a hazardous response team after two people became ill at a restaurant in the English city where a Russian ex-spy and his daughter were poisoned with a chemical nerve agent.Wiltshire Police described the emergency steps taken in response to “a medical incident” Sunday in Salisbury as precautions. The city […]

News Analysis STOCKHOLM–Following the elections on Sept. 9, Sweden has entered a period of great uncertainty, as its parliamentary situation seems hopelessly deadlocked. Although the final result isn’t in yet, no significant changes are expected. There are currently three “blocks” in the Riksdag—the Swedish Parliament—none of which hold the necessary majority to rule effectively, and […]

Ukraine and China have increased partnerships in recent years, as the former is badly in need of cash to bolster its infrastructure, while the latter wants to get its hands on Ukrainian technologies. However, a U.S. Pentagon official, while on a trip to the Ukraine capital, warned that China’s investments could be a double-edged sword. […]

PARIS—French police closed off part of the Champs Elysees boulevard in the capital on Sept. 16 as bomb disposal officers used a sniffer dog and robot to investigate a suspicious vehicle, before determining there was no security threat. A Reuters photographer said police cordoned off the avenue close to the Arc de Triomphe and that […]

LONDON/KIEV—Britain’s court of appeal has ruled that Ukraine had a justiciable defense in a $3 billion Eurobond case that was originally brought by Russia and said the case should be allowed to go to full trial. The decision in effect sets aside a lower court judgment that went in favor of Russia in March 2017, […]

COPENHAGEN—The Danish supreme court ratified fines given to four Uber drivers on Sept. 14— for operating illegally paving the way for similar fines on a further 1,500 drivers. The four taxi drivers, one of whom was fined 486,500 Danish crowns ($78,060), were charged with failing to have permits and for violating a law introduced to combat […]

A man has driven his car into a crowd of people outside a bar in southern France while shouting “Allahu Akbar,” according to witnesses. The suspect is believed to be a local man, aged 32, who drove his white Peugeot car towards a crowd of about 50 people around 1 am Thursday in the town […]

Taiwan’s diplomatic relations with the European Union got a boost on Sept. 12 when the European Parliament passed a resolution that, in part, seeks to discourage Beijing from “endangering peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.” The resolution, drafted by Bas Belder, a Dutch politician and member of the European Parliament, received 530 votes in […]

SINGAPORE—Many global markets climbed on Sept. 13 following a report that the United States has proposed a new round of trade negotiations with China before going ahead with plans to slap tariffs on $200 billion or more in Chinese goods. According to the Wall Street Journal, U.S. officials recently proposed a new round of trade […]

VATICAN CITY–Pope Francis has ordered an investigation of an American bishop accused of sexual misconduct with adults and accepted his resignation, deepening a worldwide clerical abuse scandal. The Vatican and U.S. Church officials announced the investigation on Sept. 13 as the pope was meeting U.S. Catholic Church leaders to discuss a scandal that has shaken […]