Hungary says it will block Ukraine joining EU and NATO because of Ukraine’s education law
Budapest will not support Ukraine's accession to the European Union and NATO because of the country's education law, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said after a meeting with UN Human Rights Assistant Secretary General Ilze Brands Kheris.
news.yahoo.comHungary FM: Sweden should 'act differently' to join NATO
Sweden's government should “act differently” if it wants to clinch Turkish support for its bid to join NATO, Hungary's foreign minister said Tuesday, adding that a recent Quran-burning protest outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm was “unacceptable." Peter Szijjarto made the remark at a news conference following talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Hungary’s capital Budapest. Both diplomats addressed the Jan. 21 anti-Turkish protest that increased tensions between Ankara and Stockholm as Sweden seeks Turkey’s approval to join the NATO military alliance.
news.yahoo.comEU reaches deal on Ukraine aid, tax on big corporations
The European Union has reached a deal in principle to send an 18 billion euro ($18.93 billion) financial aid package to Ukraine and approve a minimum tax of major corporations in a big move that narrowed a rift between the European Union and recalcitrant member Hungary.
EU Commission proposes blocking billions in funds to Hungary
The European Union’s executive branch has recommended that billions of euros in EU funds be withheld from Hungary over its failure to implement solid rule-of-law reforms, a move highlighting lingering divergences between the European partners.
In a first, coin bearing zodiac found off Israel's coast
Israel's Antiquities Authority said Monday it has discovered a rare 1,850-year-old bronze zodiac coin during an underwater survey off the coastal city of Haifa. The coin bears the image of the zodiac sign Cancer behind a depiction of the moon goddess Luna. Experts say the coin was minted in Alexandria, Egypt, under the rule of the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius, who ruled between the years 138–161 A.D. It is part of a series of 13 coins depicting the 12 zodiac signs and one of the entire zodiac wheel.
news.yahoo.comHungary accuses Ukraine of interfering in upcoming election
Hungary’s foreign minister on Wednesday accused Ukraine’s leadership of attempting to interfere in the upcoming Hungarian election, a charge later denied by his Ukrainian counterpart in an episode that put further strain on relations between the two countries. In a video on social media, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto claimed that there was “ongoing coordination between the Hungarian left and representatives of the Ukrainian government,” and that Ukraine was attempting to influence Hungary’s April 3 election in favor of a coalition of opposition parties.
news.yahoo.comThe Latest: Australia official urges against AstraZeneca
The top health official in Australia's Queensland state is advising adults under age 40 not to take the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine because of the risk of a rare blood clotting disorder, even though the Australian government is making those shots available to all adults.
The Latest: Nevada to open vaccination to everyone over 16
FILE - In this Feb. 17, 2021, file photo, people receive the COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)CARSON CITY, Nev. — Nevada is making all residents ages 16 and older eligible for the coronavirus vaccine starting April 5 as part of its efforts to inoculate the population as quickly as possible. Dr. Marcela Nunez-Smith, the White House COVID-19 equity task force chair, says the administration is spending $150 million to broaden access to monoclonal antibodies. In contrast, Arizona and Montana are achieving equity in vaccine coverage, directing vaccines to counties with more economic and social disadvantages. AdThe CDC analyzed vaccine coverage through March 1 and included data representing 49.2 million people who had at least one dose.
Hungary's doctors warn of soaring coronavirus deaths ahead
But Hungarian Chamber of Doctors has warned that the number of ICU beds and ventilators are overshadowed by a lack of qualified doctors and nurses to treat ICU patients. Hungary has 2,000 specialists for ICU wards and a similar number of ICU nurses. The country of nearly 10 million people has seen 3,281 confirmed coronavirus deaths, half of them in the last three weeks. Hungary’s shortages of health care workers predates the coronavirus pandemic: doctors have emigrated in large numbers since the country joined the European Union in 2004. Despite recent pay raises to doctors and nurses, Hungary remains near the bottom in the EU on investments in its health care system relative to GDP.
Cambodia bans state-organized events in capital over virus
Szijjarto tested positive for the coronavirus after arriving in Thailand for an official visit, Thai and Hungarian officials said Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020. (Pool Photo via AP)PHNOM PENH – Cambodia on Wednesday banned all state-organized events in the capital and a neighboring province for two weeks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus after a number of people connected to a Hungarian official's visit tested positive. Two Hungarian ambassadors, to Thailand and to Cambodia, are among people who have tested positive since Szijjarto's visit. Thai authorities said Tuesday a Hungarian diplomat in Bangkok tested positive for the virus, the only local case in Thailand so far linked to Szijjarto. The 53-year-old Hungarian diplomat in Bangkok was sent to an infectious disease facility for treatment and isolation.
Europe hunkers down but also notes wins against virus surge
But glimmers of hope emerged from France, Belgium and elsewhere that tough restrictions might be starting to work. Health Minister Olivier Veran said early indications are that the measures may be starting to slow the latest virus surge and that it would “have flared up faster and stronger” without them. The drop follows a return to partial lockdown measures including the closure of nonessential businesses and extending a school vacation. In Germany, the health minister said increased infections seem to be leveling off but that it’s too early to talk of a trend. But Health Minister Jens Spahn said Monday “we are seeing that the momentum is flattening, that we have less strong increases."
Asia Today: Malaysia expands virus measures to more areas
Another 1,168 new cases were reported Saturday, bringing Malaysia's total tally to 39,357 — compared to just 13,993 a month ago. It said he tested positive for the disease when he applied Wednesday to have his work permit renewed. The country has confirmed a total of 3,830 coronavirus cases, including 60 deaths. Szijjarto tested positive upon arrival in Thailand on Tuesday after his Cambodia visit. Hun Sen and four Cabinet ministers are in quarantine after they met with Szijjarto the same day he tested positive.
Asia Today: India's virus cases jump on New Delhi resurgence
With 8.3 million confirmed cases of coronavirus, India is the second worst-hit country behind the United States. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)NEW DELHI – India’s coronavirus outbreak increased by more than 50,000 cases Thursday amid a resurgence of infections in the capital. Nerves are frayed in New Delhi after it reported a record 6,842 new cases in the past 24 hours. With 8.3 million confirmed cases of coronavirus, India is the second worst-hit country behind the United States. Indonesia has reported more than 425,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the largest in Southeast Asia and second only to India’s 8.3 million in all of Asia.
The Latest: WHO says COVID-19 spread in Europe accelerating
(AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)GENEVA — The World Health Organization says there has been a “further acceleration” in the speed of COVID-19's spread in Europe, which was responsible for about half of the globe’s new cases reported last week. The livestreamed audience is the same setup Francis used during the Vatican’s nearly three-month COVID-19 lockdown in the spring and summer. ___BANGKOK — Hungary’s foreign minister tested positive for the coronavirus after arriving in Thailand for an official visit, officials said Wednesday. Coronavirus cases are on an “upward spiral,” making it unsafe to hold trials, said Tim Kenny, chief judge at Wayne County Circuit Court. Libertas Christian School in Hudsonville sued to stop the Ottawa County health department from closing the school.
Hungary's foreign minister tests positive for coronavirus
Szijjarto tested positive for the coronavirus after arriving in Thailand for an official visit, Thai and Hungarian officials said Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020. (Pool Photo via AP)BANGKOK – Hungary's minister of foreign affairs and trade tested positive for the coronavirus after arriving in Thailand for an official visit, Thai and Hungarian officials said Wednesday. The 42-year-old foreign minister will return on one plane and the other members of his party in a separate aircraft, Anutin said. The Hungarian news agency MTI, citing the chief press officer at Hungary’s foreign ministry, confirmed that Szijjarto tested positive for the coronavirus. During his visit, Szijjarto paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Hun Sen and held separate meetings with Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn and the ministers of commerce and agriculture.
Hungarian government launches coronavirus questionnaire
BUDAPEST BUDAPEST, HungaryHungarys government on Monday published a new questionnaire with 13 topics centering on the coronavirus pandemic. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has carried out several similar propaganda campaigns since returning to power in 2010. Speaking Monday in parliament, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that all Hungarian citizens would receive the questionnaire in the mail, asking them to return it by Aug. 15. We have a very serious need to create points of agreement based on which we can also win the upcoming phases of protection against the pandemic, Szijjarto said. Hungary has registered 4,014 coronavirus cases and 548 deaths.
Hungary lets Romanian and Bulgarian citizens stuck in Austria transit: minister
BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary will allow a one-off transit of Romanian and Bulgarian citizens stuck in Austria on Tuesday night after their governments requested it, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Tuesday. Hungary shut its borders to foreign travellers from Tuesday and is allowing only Hungarian citizens to enter the country. There was a 20-km (12 miles) queue at the Hegyeshalom border crossing on the Austrian border on Tuesday, with cars and trucks waiting to enter Hungary. We expect Austrian authorities to maintain order on the Austrian side of the border and allow Hungarian citizens and freight traffic to use the border crossing, Szijjarto said. The government has said that in coming days there would be cluster infections, not just individual cases as the virus spreads.
feeds.reuters.comDemocrats subpoena Energy Secretary Perry in Trump impeachment probe
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional Democrats issued a subpoena for U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry on Thursday over any possible role he played in President Donald Trumps effort to get Ukraines president to investigate a political rival. Recently, public reports have raised questions about any role you may have played in conveying or reinforcing the Presidents stark message to the Ukrainian President, the chairmen of three House of Representatives committees leading the probe wrote in a letter to Perry. The letter from the chairmen of the Oversight, Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees sought documents by Oct. 18, the latest effort from Democrats in Congress to secure evidence and testimony from the Trump administration. The White House said on Tuesday it would refuse to cooperate with the congressional impeachment inquiry, hours after the administration abruptly blocked a key witness in the Ukraine scandal from testifying to congressional panels. The Ukraine investigation has cast a pall over Trumps campaign to win back the White House in 2020.
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