Politics

Bloomberg The Biden administration has confronted China’s government with evidence that suggests some Chinese state-owned companies may be providing assistance for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine, as it tries to ascertain if Beijing is aware of those activities, according to people familiar with the matter. The people, who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations, declined to detail the ...

Bloomberg Serbia will look into a European Union plan that proposes normalizing ties with Kosovo as it risks losing its chance to join the bloc, President Aleksandar Vucic said. Serbia’s leader for more than a decade, Vucic announced plans for a broad public debate to consider the proposal which, according to media reports, envisages the Balkan country and Kosovo developing ...

Bloomberg Latvia’s top envoy criticized Germany over its indecision on whether to send Ukraine the Leopard 2 tanks, saying there are no longer any “good arguments” not to give Kyiv the heavier weapons it demands. The three Baltic nations — Latvia, along with Estonia and Lithuania — were expected to reiterate calls for Germany to send the tanks when the ...

  Bloomberg Burkina Faso ended its military collaboration with France, the second West African nation to sever defense links that were forged to combat a decade-long insurgency in the region. The government on January 18 criticized a 2018 agreement that enabled the troops to operate in Burkina Faso, according to a letter sent by the nation’s Foreign Affairs Ministry to ...

  Bloomberg French President Emmanuel Macron’s government formally presented its flagship pension reform at a cabinet meeting on Monday, paving the way for parliament to debate it as unions and opposition parties ready further strikes and protests against the plan. The bill, which raises the minimum retirement age to 64 from 62 and aims to erase deficits in the system ...

Bloomberg Joe Biden’s deputy chief of staff, Jen O’Malley Dillon, has ruled out returning as campaign manager for the president’s planned 2024 reelection bid, people familiar with the matter say. O’Malley Dillon, who served as campaign manager for his 2020 effort, will stay at the White House rather than reprise the role, the people said. She’ll still be closely involved ...

Bloomberg Former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who is trailing in his bid to win the nation’s presidency this week, drew criticism for saying during a televised debate that he wouldn’t send troops to aid Nato allies. The billionaire ex-premier, who was voted out of power in 2021 and now leads the largest opposition party, backtracked after saying he wouldn’t ...

  Bloomberg Slovakia took a step closer toward early general elections aimed at ending a year-long political deadlock that triggered the government’s collapse last month. The euro area country of 5.4 million people will probably hold the ballot on Sept. 30, interim Prime Minister Eduard Heger said, after negotiations with his former ruling partners in Bratislava on Sunday evening. Heger’s ...

Bloomberg Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said time is running out to give Ukraine the advanced weapons it needs before an expected Russian offensive in the spring, as both the US and Germany hold out against Kyiv’s requests for their most powerful battle tanks. Austin said allied officials agreed at a meeting in Germany on Friday they would ensure that ...

Bloomberg Germany and France renewed calls for a more closely aligned Europe to counter the imperialist ambitions of Russian President Vladimir Putin and to bolster the democratic values that underpin the EU. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Sunday to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Elysee Treaty, which was ...