Feed aggregator

While women are in the frontline on fighting the pandemic, they are also exposed more to the economic crisis that will follow. The pay gap could also grow. More security for flexible jobs, and investment in care work, could help.

Several Asian countries have seen the coronavirus surge back after easing restrictions - despite their initial success in restraining the outbreak. As a result, EU member states maybe starting to loosen restrictions without having a 'concrete' example to learn from.

EU leaders hold a videoconference Thursday to bridge divisions over financing Europe's recovery from the corona crisis, in talks interlinked with the bloc's long-term budget.

Now (as before) there are lessons to learn about how a number of Eastern countries are tackling this coronavirus crisis. We have to drop our bipolar world view of ​​the 'free West' against the 'authoritarian East'.

A few weeks ago, the European Union underwent a fundamental change: it ceased being a bloc of exclusively democratic states. Even worse - leaders across Europe barely flinched.

Malta voiced concern that intensified fighting in Libya could push thousands more refugees to Europe at Wednesday's EU foreign affairs videoconference, EU foreign relations chief Josep Borrell said. It also proposed a special €100m fund to help Libya stop them coming, despite deplorable conditions there. Malta said its health system was "overwhelmed" by coronavirus and could not take migrant patients. Borrell called for a "humanitarian truce" between Libya's warring parties.

The world is facing widespread famine "of biblical proportions" because of the coronavirus pandemic, the chief of the UN's food relief agency has warned, with a short time to act before hundreds of millions starve, the Guardian reports. More than 30 countries in the developing world could experience widespread famine, and in 10 of those countries there are already more than one million people on the brink of starvation.

Now isn't the time for "blame games", but "a full understanding of the epidemiology of coronavirus will be essential" in future, EU foreign relations chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday, reacting to Australian calls for an inquiry into alleged Chinese cover-ups. "The priority now has to be saving lives," Borrell said. EU states, led by France, were to launch humanitarian "air bridges" to help African states get medical supplies, he added.

Plans, due in mid-May, for how to resume air travel in Europe will include social-distancing rules, guidelines on masks, and plane disinfections, EU transport commissioner Adina Valean said Wednesday on social media. "I cannot say right now when this [resumption of air travel] is going to start happening because we have to listen to the advice of the health specialists," she said. The air-travel industry also fears post-pandemic price wars.

Airlines in Europe have applied for €12.8bn government support since the start of the coronavirus pandemic with no binding environmental conditions attached, according to an analysis of the sector's bailout pleas by the Guardian. The analysis published on Wednesday reveals that five of the airlines seeking or receiving state aid as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have earned more than €1bn in net profits in the past five years.

The €1.1 trillion of bonds the European Central Bank (ECB) is to buy from pandemic-distressed EU states this year must be purchased at market prices, not directly from governments at fixed ones, ECB chief Christine Lagarde has said in a letter to an MEP, Reuters reported Wednesday. Direct buying would go against "disciplined budgetary policy," she said. ECB "helicopter" payments for EU households faced too many "legal complexities," she added.

Last year was the hottest-ever in Europe and the hottest 11 out of 12 years in history fell in the past 20 years, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, an EU offshoot. Temperatures in 2019 were four degrees Celsius higher than in 2018, with record-breaking heatwaves in France and Germany, it said Wednesday. The figures come as a reminder of climate problems, as pandemic-emergent EU nations restart economies.

The EU has threatened to take action if Israel's new government annexed Palestinian land in the West Bank, Europe's foreign affairs spokesman said Wednesday. "If this proceeds, it will not be left unanswered," Peter Stano said. The EU deemed annexations were "illegal" under international law, he added. The Israeli coalition agreement foresees talks on annexation, a central election promise of right-wing prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to start on 1 July.

A Szlovák Hidrometeorológiai Intézet (SHMÚ) előrejelzése szerint derűs idő vár ránk csütörtökön, a legmagasabb nappali hőmérséklet 16 és 21 Celsius-fok között alakul.

Egy palesztin merénylő elgázolt és ollóval megsebesített egy ellenőrző pontnál őrködő izraeli katonát Jeruzsálem mellett. A katona közepesen súlyosan sebesült meg, a támadót agyonlőtték – jelentette a helyi média.

Jeruzsálem mellett, a Maálé Adumim telepesváros felé vezető út Abu-Disznél található ellenőrző pontjánál egy fehér furgon hajtott megállás nélkül egy ott őrködő izraeli katonának, majd a sofőr kiugrott a járműből, és nekiesett az elgázolt őrnek. Több, szintén ott őrködő katona az áldozat segítségére sietett, és a merénylőt a helyszínen lelőtték. A furgont később átvizsgálták, és egy csőbombát találtak benne, amelyet a merénylő valószínűleg a többi katona felé akart dobni.

Az ollóval felsőtestén megszúrt, húsz év körüli katonát a mentők a jeruzsálemi Saáré Cedek kórházba szállították közepesen súlyos állapotban. A koronavírus-világjárvány kezdete óta a Ciszjordániában elkövetett terrortámadások száma jelentősen visszaesett, legutóbb február elején hajtottak végre tizenkét katona ellen gázolásos merényletet Jeruzsálemben.

Der Kreis Heinsberg musste als einer der ersten Landkreise in Deutschland einer Ausbreitung des Coronavirus entgegenwirken. Nun kann das Vorgehen des Kreises zum Vorbild für andere werden.

Alors que la région de l’Afrique de l’Ouest concentre tous ses efforts dans la lutte contre le Coronavirus, plusieurs organisations dont Action contre la faim , Solidarité International, Oxfam, Care, Save the children, le Réseau des Organisations Paysannes et des Producteurs de l’Afrique de l’Ouest ainsi que le Reseau Billital Maroobé préviennent l’opinion sur le […]

L’article Covid-19 en Afrique de l’Ouest : des organisations paysannes et internationales appellent les Etats à la mutualisation des forces est apparu en premier sur Afrik.com.

In einem Brief an Wettbewerbs-Kommissatin Marghrete Vestager fordert die österreichische Regierung unter Anderem, dass Beihilfen nicht mehr gemeldet werden müssen.

Americas

The 354th Fighter Wing has taken delivery of its first two F-35A fighters at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska on April 21. The jets flew non-stop from Forth Worth, Texas with mid-air refueling from two KC-135s from the 168th Wing. “This first aircraft is a milestone,” said Col. Benjamin Bishop, the 354th Fighter Wing commander. “Making the first aircraft arrival possible has been a long path, but it’s also just the first step in a journey that will continue at Eielson Air Force Base for decades to come.” By the end of 2021, 54 F-35s will make up two squadrons at Eielson, which is near Fairbanks.

The Pentagon announced that it is awarding $133 million to increase domestic production of N95 masks by over 39 million over the next 90 days. Under the contract, 3M will receive $76 million, O&M Halyward will receive $29 million and Honeywell will receive $27.4 million to make the masks, which have been in short supply since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Department of Defense, the investment is intended to ensure the United States government “gets dedicated long term industrial capacity to meet the needs of the nation.” 3M is contracted to provide 78 million units within six months, with an additional 13 million units per month by June, where O&M Halyward will add 25 million units within 6 months and an additional 12.5 million masks every month after. Under the contract Honeywell will add 38 million units within six months and 12 million units per month after.

Middle East & Africa

II Corps Consultants won a $68.7 deal for the Center for Advanced Operational Culture Learning program. The Center for Advanced Operational Culture Learning ensures Marines deploy with an operational understanding of the local military and partner cultures and regional dynamics relevant to the mission, with select Marines being language-enabled, in order to facilitate mission success. CAOCL’s designs, delivers, and manages programming throughout the education and training continuum, conducts research and assessments, and provides scientific, policy, and subject matter advising. It also serves as one of the three proponents for Language, Regional Expertise, and Culture (LREC)-related doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership, personnel, and facilities (DOTMLPF) issues throughout the Marine Corps as directed by the LREC Operational Advisory Group (OAG) Charter and the Marine Corps LREC Strategy. Work will take place in Virginia, Bahrain and Afghanistan. Expected completion date will be by April 2025.

Europe

Three Orion Unmanned Aerial Vehicles have been accepted by the Russian Ministry of Defense, JSC Kronshtadt Group said. General Designer of Kronshtadt, Nikolay Dolzhenkov, added that the aircraft will be modified for additional requirements that were not specified in the original contract. Orion is a Russian unmanned combat aerial vehicle developed by Kronshtadt Group. It can carry four bombs and four missiles and has maximum payload of 200 kg.

As health services across the world battle Coronavirus, NHS Wales is stepping up its defense against viruses of the technological kind. A new agreement with Thales will enable the NHS Wales Informatics Services (NWIS) team to protect vital systems from a surge in cyber-attacks by accessing Thales’s technical threat analysis service, a global centre of knowledge about the latest and emerging threats. According to Thales, the company will be providing the service to NHS Wales free of charge. Thales’s intelligence service makes available its intelligence, identification, computer virus spread monitoring, threat analysis and rapid response skills to healthcare systems across the world, now including NHS Wales.

Asia-Pacific

Guizhou Aviation Industry Corporation is expecting to fly a new variant of its JL-9 advanced jet trainer that is capable of operating from China’s aircraft carriers soon. The company announced recently that assembly is finished and the jet is being prepared for its maiden flight. It has been suggested that the new variant has removed the drag chute. While the Guizhou company did not elaborate on the project, it said in a separate statement in March that the goal was to “win a new victory in developing and producing the Naval Mountain Eagle,” and the statement came with a picture showing an aircraft carrier at sea, with a Naval Mountain Eagle flying above the carrier and J-15 fighter jets parked on the carrier’s flight deck.

Today’s Video

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wK9jQsWcsU

Frankreichs Präsident Emmanuel Macron hat sich recht deutlich positioniert und insbesondere Deutschland kritisiert. Das hat auch mit der französischen Innenpolitik zu tun, schreibt Claire Stam.