Author: staff
World leaders gathered at Madrid’s Teatro Real on Wednesday evening as King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia inaugurated the 30th Ibero-American Summit. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez greeted arriving delegations from the 22-member community. Despite the ceremonial welcome, only 10 countries were represented by their heads of state or government. Argentina’s Javier Milei, Chile’s José Antonio Kast and Guatemala’s Bernardo Arévalo were among the seven Latin American presidents present. Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum and Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodríguez stayed away, highlighting political divisions ahead of Spain’s general election on 29 November. UN chief António Guterres…
In France, seven leading technology companies, with Indra at the forefront alongside SAES, UTEK, Aragon Photonics, Iqua Robotics, FYLA and Sateliot, joined forces in Paris on Wednesday to address one of the greatest vulnerabilities in international security: shielding the seabed. During the Euronaval trade fair, senior industry executives signed a strategic agreement to develop the SIPRIS initiative, a project intended to give Spain technological sovereignty in the protection and continuous surveillance of cables and critical infrastructure under water. Indra will lead coordination of the ecosystem and will take on overall system integration through its Seadef architecture and the sovereign artificial…
Adif President Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña has submitted his resignation to Spain’s new transport minister, Carlos Cuerpo. Adif, responsible for Spain’s rail infrastructure, signaling and traffic control, is under intense scrutiny after last week’s devastating crash near Urda, Toledo, that claimed 69 lives. De la Peña’s resignation was first reported by local media, and confirmed by a Spanish government official in a text message. This marks Cuerpo’s first notable action since stepping into the ministry after former Transport Minister Oscar Puente’s resignation Tuesday night. Puente left his post following a marathon hearing before Congress’ Permanent Deputation, where both…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Madrid on Wednesday for a series of high-level meetings coinciding with the Ibero-American Summit. His visit, which was kept secret for security reasons until his plane landed, includes a schedule of meetings with international leaders over the summit’s two days. Zelenskyy will take part in a meeting on Thursday with several of the leaders who have travelled to the capital, among them UN Secretary-General António Guterres and European Council President António Costa. The presence of the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is also expected, along with other Ibero-American representatives. Besides this meeting, the Ukrainian…
“Knocking on Heaven’s Door”: in 1997 Bob Dylan sang Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door in front of John Paul II. Almost thirty years later, the American singer songwriter is back in the Vatican, this time to meet Pope Leo XIV. It is an encounter that intertwines music, spirituality and a commitment to peace, centred on an artist who has spanned generations and has even inspired Popes’ speeches. The musician, 85, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, was received on Wednesday afternoon in the Apostolic Palace. The meeting was described on social media by Father Antonio Spadaro, who accompanied Dylan together…
The positive tone “was intentional,” said Loubet. “There’s a sense of gloom in the country. We need to offer a little hope, a vision, a direction.” The recent protest movements that have swept Spain, France, Italy and, to a lesser extent, Germany, have centered around complaints about the cost of living, especially for the young. They echo anger in the U.S., where polls showed young Americans felt their economic situation was deteriorating as the country headed in the wrong direction. “The affordability debate in the United States breaks on class lines,” said Penny Naas, a senior vice president at the…
Young voters gathered at a bar in Portland, Maine, to follow the 2026 US midterm election results, celebrating as Democrats secured control of the Senate and made major gains across the country. The celebrations came as Democrat Troy Jackson defeated longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins in Maine, ending her bid for a sixth term. Jackson, 58, a former state Senate president and fifth-generation logger, campaigned on the rising cost of living, particularly housing and healthcare. His victory was another significant gain for Democrats in a state where Collins had survived several tough re-election battles. For some young voters, the results…
Apple started a long-delayed trial of its artificial intelligence tools for Chinese users on Wednesday, as it tries to catch up with homegrown smartphone makers in one of its most important markets. The trial of Apple Intelligence, the company’s suite of on-device AI features, is limited to developers for now. Apple said in a statement at the weekend that the public will get access in December. The features first launched in the United States and other markets in autumn 2024, Apple’s first major move into generative AI. Their arrival in China was held up by the country’s strict rules on…
While member state authorities would still take decisions on returns, the EU border agency will become “responsible for return-related support from the beginning to the end, from A to Z,” Brunner said. Under the Commission plan, Frontex could also help deport people from EU countries to hubs in countries outside the bloc, and from those hubs to third countries, the commissioner confirmed. Centrist and left-leaning lawmakers said they were worried that the expanded mandate and scope would come with larger fundamental rights pitfalls. “How will we guarantee that Frontex will comply with EU law while they have to obey the…
The recording shows people gathered outside a former school building, anxiously discussing the threat of further attacks. “Misha, is it coming again?” a woman asks, before a warning crackles over a police radio: “Guided aerial bombs heading towards Komyshuvakha! Take shelter!” Officers urgently direct people down the stairs into an underground refuge. Moments later, the camera records a violent explosion. The strike killed at least 37 people, according to Ukraine’s national police, including the officer whose bodycam captured the attack. The shelter, located inside a former school building, was hit by a Russian FAB-3000 aerial bomb, a powerful weapon weighing…