Author: staff

As Ukraine marks its Independence Day, artist Lesia Khomenko is bringing powerful new meaning to one of the country’s busiest public spaces. Khomenko has turned the main hall of Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi train station into her temporary studio, creating a 21-by-12 metre painting that mirrors the movement and spirit of a nation fighting for its survival. Installed in partnership with Ukrainian Railways, the work marks a bold return to public art for the artist and arrives just ahead of her upcoming solo exhibition at the PinchukArtCentre, opening 28 August.  “The Central Train Station in Kyiv is a very emotional place for everyone…

Published on 24/08/2025 – 8:03 GMT+2 Antarctica, Earth’s last great wilderness, is facing growing pressure from human activity. A new study published in Nature Sustainability warns that surging tourism and expanding research bases are polluting the southern continent, accelerating snow melting and threatening fragile ecosystems already at risk from climate change. Researchers from Chile, Germany and the Netherlands spent four years travelling 2,000 kilometres across Antarctica to measure contamination. They found that in areas where humans have an active presence, concentrations of toxic metals such as nickel, copper and lead are now 10 times higher than they were four decades…

Early childhood education and care are key to success in school, work and life. The EU says every child has the right to affordable, high-quality early education and care. A child’s future should not depend on family background. However, childcare costs remain a heavy burden for many families in Europe. While some countries offer strong support, in others parents must spend a large share of their income on nurseries. So, how do childcare costs differ across Europe? What do families pay for care before and after benefits? And what share of household income goes to nurseries or day-care centres? What…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that security guarantees for Ukraine will be ready “in the coming days,” following intensified efforts to end Russia’s war on his country. “At present, the teams of Ukraine, the United States, and European partners are working on their architecture,” Zelenskyy wrote in a post on the social media platform X, after a phone call with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof. “There is now a real chance to end this war, and Ukraine is ready for constructive steps that can bring true peace closer,” Zelenskyy said in the post. “However, Russia is showing no intention…

Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage will push for the mass deportation of asylum seekers in a new Illegal Migration Bill expected on Aug. 26. In an interview with The Times published on Saturday, the far-right politician, whose party currently leads consistently in the polls, said migrants coming to Britain by small boats should be arrested on arrival, detained in Royal Air Force bases, denied the right to asylum, and deported within 30 days. “The aim of this legislation is mass deportations,” Farage told The Times, pointing to “a massive crisis in Britain” that is “not only posing a national…

Veldkamp’s colleagues from the centrist New Social Contract (NSC) party also resigned on Friday. Their departure put additional pressure on the already weak Dutch government, which collapsed in June after Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) left the coalition over a dispute about the country’s migration policy. A majority of MPs backed a call on the Israeli government to let international and national journalists into Gaza. MPs also agreed on putting “maximum pressure” on countries that “condone” Hamas leaders, according to local media reports. Some 61,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its assault on the Gaza Strip immediately following…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier Friday accused Moscow of dragging out peace talks in a bid to hold off American sanctions, which Trump has threatened to impose on Russia and its trading partners if the Kremlin does not show more efforts toward ceasefire negotiations. A Russian airstrike on Thursday hit a U.S. electronics factory operating in western Ukraine, injuring at least 15 people, according to Ukrainian officials. Asked about the strike, Trump told reporters “I’m not happy about it, and I’m not happy about anything having to do with that war.” “Over the next two weeks, we’re going to find…

The suspensions — which will not affect letters or small parcels worth less than $100 in many countries — will start on Monday and last until the postal services find practical solutions. “The suspension will be maintained for the time strictly necessary to adopt the necessary operational measures to meet the new obligations of the United States,” the Spanish national postal service Correos said on Friday. The U.K.’s Royal Mail said it hoped the interruption would only last a couple of days after which it would have “a new system up and running,” the BBC reported. Some services blamed the…

Intel posted details of the plan soon afterward, saying the administration would make an $8.9 billion investment in Intel common stock, paid for with the CHIPS grant money. The company said the stake would be funded with $5.7 billion in grants previously awarded but not yet paid, and $3.2 billion from a separate Defense Department program. It said the Trump administration will take “passive ownership, with no Board representation or other governance or information rights.” “We are grateful for the confidence the President and the Administration have placed in Intel, and we look forward to working to advance U.S. technology and manufacturing leadership,”…

We live in a world full of threats. Wars rage on, heatwaves make European summers unbearable, and economic uncertainty continues to loom. The list seems endless. But what worries people around the world most? The spread of fake news online, the economy, and terrorism are perceived as the top national threats, according to a new survey that polled more than 31,000 adults in 25 countries earlier this year. In Europe, concerns about online misinformation are particularly pronounced. In five out of the 10 surveyed European countries – Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom – the spread of…