ABU DHABI / WAM Denmark has selected the United Arab Emirates as its only partner in the Middle East for its Carbon Diplomacy, a top Danish diplomat told the Emirates News Agency, WAM. “A significant aspect in bilateral relations is the importance Denmark attaches to the UAE with regard to cooperation in energy, environment and climate change,” Franz-Michael Skjold Mellbin, ...

Bloomberg Three dozen mourners were crushed to death in a stampede at the funeral for a powerful Iranian general slain in a US drone strike. Qassem Soleimani’s exploits in conflicts from Syria to Yemen made him a national hero, and hundreds of thousands have turned out this week as his funeral procession stopped in various cities, first in Iraq, where ...

Bloomberg Germany has temporarily moved some troops from Iraq due to safety concerns following the US killing of a top Iranian general. Of Germany’s 120 soldiers in Iraq as part of a training mission, 32 have transferred to Jordan and three to Kuwait, Defense Ministry Spokesman Joerg Schroeder said on Tuesday by phone. The troops could return anytime to continue ...

Bloomberg Pakistan’s lawmakers approved a bill granting legal cover to a three-year extension in service to current army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, ending an apparent stand-off between the nation’s strong military and the judiciary. The move, endorsed by a majority vote in the National Assembly, came after Pakistan’s Supreme Court in November accepted Bajwa’s six-month extension in term on ...

Bloomberg Indonesia will not compromise on its sovereignty in the South China Sea amid the recent sighting of Chinese fishing vessels near the Natuna Islands, which lie between Malaysia and Borneo, President Joko Widodo said. Speaking at a plenary cabinet session in Jakarta, Jokowi, as Widodo is known, said the increased presence of Chinese ships in the disputed waters since ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump is wavering over how he wants his impeachment trial in the Senate to unfold, people familiar with his thinking said, but an offer by his former top national security aide to testify challenged Republican plans for a quick proceeding. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell gave no indication that John Bolton’s willingness to testify was putting pressure ...

Bloomberg Sebastian Kurz was sworn in as Austria’s chancellor by President Alexander Van der Bellen, heading a new alliance of conservatives and environmentalists that now has to figure out how to fund its ambitious climate goals. Kurz, 33, is breaking new ground in Europe by forging a coalition between his People’s Party and the Greens. Their programme combines Kurz’s trademark ...

Bloomberg The risk of a US-Iran conflict is bringing fresh focus to the question of what Jerome Powell meant when he said it will take a “material” change in the outlook for the Federal Reserve to raise or lower interest rates. The answer so far — as investors wait to see how Tehran responds to the US killing of its ...

Bloomberg UBS Group AG expects to cut as many as 500 private banking jobs as the lender moves forward with a wealth management overhaul aimed at strengthening regional units and speeding up decision making. As part of the revamp, UBS will split up the private banking business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, giving Caroline Kuhnert responsibility for central ...

Bloomberg The race to find a rescuer for a struggling Indian shadow bank at the center of an industry crisis has narrowed. Altico Capital India Ltd is one of the latest caught up in the nation’s shadow banking crisis that started in 2018, and had been courting suitors. One of them, Kotak Investment Advisors Ltd, won’t make a binding bid ...