Politics

Bloomberg Ireland’s government warned of a “real risk” that hackers will release sensitive medical information, as it vowed again not to pay a ransom. Hackers have threatened to release private health records on Monday after infiltrating the system, in the latest cyberattack by an international crime gang. Spending minister Michael McGrath on Sunday repeated the government’s pledge not to make ...

Bloomberg Annalena Baerbock, the co-leader of Germany’s Green party, is losing ground in the race to become the country’s next chancellor, a new poll shows. Baerbock would receive 20% of the vote if national elections were held on Sunday, a drop of 4 points compared with last week, according to the poll by Insa published in the Sunday edition of ...

Bloomberg The UK government pushed back on claims from the former chief aide of Prime Minister Boris Johnson that officials pursued a herd immunity strategy in the early days of the pandemic. Dominic Cummings, who is due to give evidence on the government’s handling of the pandemic to lawmakers on Wednesday, unleashed a series of tweets criticising the UK’s response. ...

Bloomberg Taiwan reported a steady increase in Covid-19 cases, as the government’s decision to revise up past daily totals dented confidence in official data at a time when soft lockdown measures appear to be slowing the rate of new infections. Health authorities reported more than 600 new cases at the weekend, 287 on Sunday and 353 on May 22, and ...

Bloomberg President Joe Biden said he would appoint a special envoy to address issues regarding North Korea and vowed to coordinate policy towards Pyongyang closely with South Korea’s government. Following meetings with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Washington, Biden said he’s appointing Ambassador Sung Kim to be the special envoy and that the US and South Korea are willing ...

Bloomberg The Philippines and China held talks on the South China Sea through a bilateral online forum set up by both nations to promote dialogue and cooperation over the disputed waters. “The two sides had friendly and candid exchanges on the general situation and specific issues of concern in the South China Sea,” according to a statement released by the ...

Bloomberg The Biden administration has prepared economic sanctions against Ethiopia that could halt financing from the US and loans by international financial institutions, according to two people familiar with the matter. The action, if confirmed, would set back relations between two longtime allies in the fight against extremism in the Horn of Africa. They’d add pressure to Ethiopia’s state finances ...

Bloomberg Germany will impose fresh restrictions on travellers from the UK starting on Sunday due to the rapid spread in Britain of the coronavirus strain first identified in India. Travellers from the US will have to spend two weeks in quarantine upon arrival in Germany even if they test negative for the virus, according to the foreign ministry. In addition, ...

Bloomberg Australian writer Yang Hengjun will face trial in China for espionage next week, a development that is sure to strain already fraught ties between Beijing and Canberra. The Chinese government notified the Australian authorities that Yang would face trial on May 27, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in a statement. Yang was detained in January 2019 on allegations ...

Bloomberg President Joe Biden is looking to build on a denuclearisation agreement Donald Trump reached with North Korea, a move likely to be welcomed by South Korea, which has seen it as a starting point for disarmament discussions. Kurt Campbell, Biden’s Asia coordinator, made the administration’s first on-record comments that it would accede to the agreement struck in 2018 between ...