Politics

BLOOMBERG A fifth night of unrest across France was more subdued as authorities contained the fallout from the killing of a teenager that has reignited debate about racism and inequality. The riots and looting, which have drawn comparisons with America’s reaction to the murder of George Floyd in 2020, have become a moment of reckoning for the country which has ...

BLOOMBERG President Vladimir Putin’s defense minister visited combat troops in Ukraine, in an apparent Kremlin effort to bolster his position after a mercenary leader’s mutiny demanding the removal of top military chiefs. Sergei Shoigu was shown on state television meeting with officers at what the Defense Ministry said was the forward command post of Russia’s ‘Zapad’ group of forces in ...

BLOOMBERG Argentina’s presidential election is increasingly poised to usher in a pro-market government after the ruling bloc coalesced around centrist Economy Minister Sergio Massa. Markets in Argentina may rally after Massa announced his run, analysts said, fuelled by optimism that economic policy will eventually move in a new direction after four years of byzantine measures that have left the country ...

BLOOMBERG Germany’s defense chief said the country is prepared to station a permanent brigade of some 4,000 troops in Lithuania to help shore up Nato’s eastern flank against potential Russian aggression. The announcement by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius during a visit to Vilnius represented a more robust pledge after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government previously said the German military contingent would ...

BLOOMBERG The European Union (EU) has assessed that it can’t legally confiscate outright frozen Russian assets and instead is focussing on using those assets temporarily, according to a document obtained by Bloomberg. The EU is zeroing in on two options as it keeps exploring how it could harness more than €200 billion ($219 billion) in frozen Russian central bank assets ...

BLOOMBERG The Swiss government agreed on the parameters for possible future negotiations with the European Union (EU), part of its long-running effort to arrange new treaties with the bloc. The government seeks to “stabilise and develop relations with the EU. It aims to guarantee barrier-free access to the EU’s single market in certain sectors,” it said in a statement. The ...

BLOOMBERG Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged Germans to sign up to his vision of the country’s technological and environmental transformation and warned against the rise of “ill-tempered” political rivals he accused of exploiting the fears of ordinary citizens. In a clear reference to recent gains by the far-right AfD in opinion polls, Scholz said the priority for him and his government ...

BLOOMBERG Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised the public he would fix problems with the introduction of a national ID card that have damaged support for his government and raised concerns about data breaches. Kishida told a news conference he is taking seriously the problems with what is known as the “My Number” card. “We will work on the complete ...

BLOOMBERG Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faces mounting pressure from members of his Conservative Party to help Britons struggling with surging mortgage costs, amid fears that the UK’s sticky inflation and skyrocketing interest rates will cost them their seats in the next general election. Data showed the government is struggling to deliver on its promise to halve inflation this year, with ...

BLOOMBERG A North Korean satellite launch that ended in failure will provide a trove of information about the secretive state’s rocket programme as South Korea salvages large sections from the bottom of the sea. South Korea released photos of a 14.5-metre (15-yard) portion of the North Korean rocket that failed in flight shortly after takeoff on May 31. South Korea’s ...