Russia s aid to Africa, including free grain and military support, is part of a strategy to strengthen ties and gain support for its ambitions. The donations have helped Russia expand its presence in countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, and Somalia.
On Thursday, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) -which owns and operates Eurovision -announced that they had conducted a review and made the decision to allow Israel to participate.
Beijing reacted angrily Wednesday to reports that the European Union plans to target three Chinese companies as part of the bloc’s 13th round of sanctions against Russia.
The Council of the European Union shortened on Monday the duration of a renewed arms embargo and individual sanctions against Venezuela from one year to six months in light of a recent breakthrough in talks between the South American nation s government and opposition.
While there are some difficulties regarding finalization of a final APEC statement due to the frictions over the Ukraine issue, the members still aim for a release of a consensus statement at the end of the leaders summit this week in San Francisco, US ambassador Matt Murray told reporters on Monday.