Author: staff

Published on 23/02/2026 – 12:41 GMT+1 Christine Lagarde disclosed on Friday that she received 130,457 Swiss francs (€142,700) from the Bank for International Settlements last year, according to a letter sent to MEPs Fabio De Masi and Dick Erixon and cited by the Financial Times. Internally, ECB workers have called out the apparent dishonesty of Christine Lagarde’s “double salary”. One employee bluntly posted “Preach water, drink wine!” as per screenshots seen and reported on by the FT. Staff members said they are prohibited from accepting outside payments for work-related duties. Even the designated ECB employee who accompanies Lagarde to her…

Asked whether Ukraine was still keen to get back all the land seized by Russia, Zelenskyy replied: “In any case, we will achieve that. That is absolutely clear. It is only a matter of time.” However, he added: “To do it today would mean losing a huge number of people, millions of people, because the Russian army is large and we understand the cost of such steps.” Zelenskyy insisted Ukraine would ultimately prevail. “What is land without people? Honestly, nothing,” he argued. He said that restoring the country’s 1991 borders would be “a victory for justice” and emphasized that Ukraine…

“The thing that shocks me fundamentally is that while Ukraine is defending itself against the might of the Russian army, Hungarians used to understand what it’s like … I would’ve expected a much greater feeling of solidarity from Hungary for Ukraine,” he said. Instead, he alleged Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has painted Kyiv as the enemy, and “now is trying to exploit that” narrative to win an April general election. Orbán, who has been in power for almost two decades, is trailing in the polls against an ascendant opposition.  While Wadephul said he would “urge [Hungary] to rethink their…

Published on 23/02/2026 – 10:26 GMT+1 There is a famous joke from Soviet times. You turn on the radio and hear about Lenin. You open the newspaper and read about Lenin. You are terrified to open your fridge. These days, one could say the same about US President Donald Trump and his global tariffs. Because after a US Supreme Court ruling last week called his tariffs unconstitutional, Trump simply doubled down and announced a new 15% import tax anyway. So, what actually happened, and how will it affect you? The Supreme Court ruled that the US Constitution grants the power…

Published on 23/02/2026 – 10:39 GMT+1 Legendary British punk band Sex Pistols is set to embark on a UK and Ireland tour, commemorating five decades of punk rock. Dubbed ‘The Anarchy In The UK’ tour, the celebratory series of concerts planned for London, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dublin in December marks 50 years since the release of the band’s seminal track ‘Anarchy in the UK’. The band will be joined by musician Frank Carter (vocals) and will feature original band members Steve Jones (guitars), Paul Cook (drums) and Glen Matlock (bass). The group formed in 1975 and was known for their…

“We will continue to monitor the situation and expect to see the perpetrators of violence brought to justice,” it posted on X, which was retweeted by the U.S. embassy in Paris. The publication angered the French government, which has been trying to contain the political fallout from Deranque’s death and its risks to public safety, weeks ahead of local elections in March. “We refuse to allow this tragedy to be exploited for political ends,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on radio France Inter on Sunday. “We have no lessons to learn, particularly when it comes to violence, from international…

Published on 23/02/2026 – 10:30 GMT+1•Updated 10:40 Lithuania is calling for an overhaul of the European Union’s voting system following Hungary’s announcement it is blocking two key decisions in relation to Ukraine because of problems with Budapest’s access to cheap Russian oil through the Soviet-era Druzhba pipeline. Ahead of Monday’s foreign affairs meeting in Brussels, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó posted on X: “At tomorrow’s Foreign Affairs Council, the EU aims to adopt the twentieth sanctions package. Hungary will block it. “Until Ukraine resumes oil transit to Hungary and Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline, we will not allow decisions important…

Published on 23/02/2026 – 9:17 GMT+1 Postponing sanctions against Russia is a “failure” for Europe, Sweden’s Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told Euronews’ morning show Europe Today on Monday. “Every delay that we have in the adoption of a sanctions package is a failure for Europe,” the minister said, calling for more support for Ukraine. “We need to increase the pressure on Russia, hence the sanctions, and I expect them to behave like Europeans today, but I’m not sure,” she added. Her comments come just 24 hours after Hungary’s Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said Budapest would block any new EU…

Published on 23/02/2026 – 8:52 GMT+1 For 15 minutes, the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo had a new neighbour: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Activists hung the unflattering arrest photo of the disgraced British royal at the Louvre museum in Paris to show “how the world will remember” the former Prince. On Sunday, the UK-based anti-billionaire group Everyone Hates Elon mounted the photo on a wall of the famous French museum, alongside a caption naming the picture as “He’s Sweating Now” – a reference to the “nuclear explosion level bad” 2019 Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis, in which the former royal…

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