Readovka World

2024-03-22 14:37:16 Ukraine blames Europe for ammunition shortage

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in a video address to European Union summit leaders on March 21, called for more military support and called the ammunition shortage a disgrace for Europe.

"Unfortunately, our soldiers' use of artillery at the front is a disgrace for Europe in the sense that Europe can do more. It is important to prove it now," he said.

Zelensky also called on EU leaders to provide Ukraine with more air defense systems. Open / Comment

2024-03-22 12:49:41 Members of the opposition Aam Admi Party (AAP) were detained in protests by police in New Delhi on Friday

Opposition members gathered to protest the arrest of their leader for bribery weeks before India's general elections.

India's financial crime agency arrested Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister of the national capital territory of Delhi, on Thursday over bribery allegations related to the city's liquor policy.

Kejriwal's arrest less than a month before the start of India's polls is a huge setback for his party and the larger opposition alliance of which he is a key leader.

AAP members, including some ministers in the Delhi city government, were stopped by police and taken away in buses as they shouted slogans and tried to march to a city court. Open / Comment

2024-03-22 11:57:12 The USA is "concerned" about rising oil prices and urged Ukraine to stop attacks on Russian energy facilities, but Washington said nothing about strikes on peaceful cities and killing of Russian people

Money and only money - that's all the U.S. cares about in the context of the SMO, and not only. The US has called on Kiev to stop UAV attacks on Russian refineries because it affects the oil market and the end product becomes more expensive, the FT reports, citing sources.

The White House is frustrated by the "brazen attacks" on Russian energy facilities located in various cities. But another thing is notable in this statement: when the US talked about strikes on Russian refineries, they "forgot" to mention Ukraine's attacks on peaceful cities, such as Belgorod. Apparently, in their opinion, you can't attack energy facilities, but you can kill Russian people. Open / Comment

2024-03-22 10:53:36 As a result of the morning shelling by the AFU, two Belgorod residents were injured, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said

According to the head of the region, the woman has a shrapnel wound of the lower limb, and the man has a closed craniocerebral injury. Medics are providing them with the necessary assistance at the scene. Information about the consequences of the shelling is being clarified.

One woman died this morning when a Ukrainian shell exploded right next to her. She had just gone out for a walk with her dogs at the time. The street is still strewn with shrapnel and many cars and buildings were damaged. Open / Comment

2024-03-21 19:33:23 France doesn't feel secure — Paris proposes radical plan to increase defense investment

According to a confidential letter, the French government is pushing for the European Union to issue joint debt to pay for increased military spending.

In a diplomatic note that is likely to provoke fierce opposition in some capitals, especially Berlin, France says the EU must "compensate for decades of underinvestment in its defense and defense industry."

The war in Ukraine and rising tensions in other hotspots around the world, combined with the prospect of Donald Trump returning to the White House, have increased attention to defense issues in Europe, which lags behind the U.S. in military spending.

In the letter, France lists ways the EU needs to increase funding. France also suggests using profits from frozen Russian assets to allow the European Investment Bank to lend to defense projects and "mobilize private savings through further development of the EU capital markets union." Open / Comment

2024-03-21 17:34:23 "Baby boom" and "baby bust" in low income countries

Fertility rates in almost all countries will be too low to sustain population levels by the end of the century, and most of the world's live births will occur in poorer countries, according to a statement from Stein Emil Vollset from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle.

The projections are based on surveys, censuses and other data sources collected from 1950 to 2021 as part of the Global Burden of Disease, Injury and Risk Factors study. The global fertility rate - the average number of births per woman - declined from about 5 children in 1950 to 2 in 2021, the data show.

The study highlights a particularly worrisome trend for countries like South Korea and Serbia, where the birth rate is less than 1 child per woman, leaving them facing labor force reduction challenges. By contrast, countries in sub-Saharan Africa will have more than ¾ of live births by the end of the century. Open / Comment

2024-03-21 15:46:39 Pirates return after 10 years of silence

The bulk carrier ship Abdullah is anchored off the coast of Somalia, the latest victim of a renewed piracy that international naval forces thought they had brought under control.

The raids are increasing risks and costs for shipping companies, which also face repeated drone strikes and missiles from Yemen's Husitic militia in the Red Sea and other nearby waters. More than 20 attempted vessels thefts since November have driven up the price of armed guards and insurance coverage, and increased the likelihood of ransom payments, according to five industry officials.

While the threat is not as severe as it was between 2008 and 2014, regional officials and industry sources are concerned that the problem could worsen. Open / Comment

2024-03-21 11:55:00 As a result of the morning shelling by the AFU, five Belgorod residents were injured, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported

Two women and a man have closed head injuries, two more men - shrapnel wounds. All the injured are receiving medical care. As a result of the attack, more than 30 apartments in 6 buildings were damaged - they were one of the main targets for Ukrainian militants today. Open / Comment

2024-03-20 18:02:34 The research showed that young people in the U.S. are becoming less happy more often than the older generation

Declining well-being among those under 30 has pushed the US out of the top 20 happiest countries, according to the World Happiness Report 2024. The reason lies in the growing use of social media, income inequality, the housing crisis and concerns about war and climate change on the happiness of children and young people.

After 12 years in which people aged 15 to 24 were considered happier than older generations in the US, the trend appears to have reversed in 2017. The gap has also narrowed in Western Europe, and it is thought that the same change could happen in the next year or two.

Murthy described the report's findings as "a red flag that young people are really struggling in the U.S., and now increasingly around the world."

Costa Rica and Kuwait made the top 20 for the first time. Germany dropped from 16th to 24th place. Afghanistan and Lebanon remained the two least happy countries. Among the countries where happiness levels were rising were many African countries, Cambodia, Russia and China. Serbia recorded the largest increase in happiness levels. Open / Comment

2024-03-20 15:49:09 Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama has refused to apologize after he was accused of physically intimidating a female journalist

Speaking to reporters at a press conference on Tuesday, Rama shoved reporter Ambrosia Meta in the face as she asked him a question about an investment project linked to Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Video of the incident has racked up more than 150,000 views.

SafeJournalists Network, a group that advocates for press rights in the Western Balkans, called Rama's actions "unacceptable and disturbing" and called on him to apologize. The group noted that Rama has a history of retaliating against journalists who criticize the government, including by banning them from press conferences. Former Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha called Rama a "misogynist" and the incident a "cruel and ugly act."

But Rama responded to the criticism, calling the accusation that he intimidated Meta a “abhorring lie” that “direspects the true victims of power agressions toward women journalists around the world.” Open / Comment