Jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny is in poor health, according to one of his lawyers. The lawyer said Navalny is suffering back pain and has virtually lost the use of one of his legs.
Lawyer Olga Mikhailova said Navalny, 44, received an MRI scan but had not been given the results.
 
“In my opinion, he is in bad shape healthwise because he is experiencing severe pain in his back and in his right leg,” she said on TV Rain, according to Reuters. “One of his legs practically doesn’t work.”
 
She added that pleas for Navalny to be given necessary medicine were ignored for four weeks.
 
Russian authorities said Navalny was in “satisfactory” condition, according to the French news agency.
 
Navalny allies are asking for proof of his health after reports that his lawyers were denied access to him.
 
Navalny was sentenced to two-and-a half-years in prison in February on an embezzlement charge.
 
He is being held at the Pokrov correctional colony, which he described as “a real concentration camp.”  
 
Navalny survived a near-fatal poisoning last year and was arrested when he returned to Moscow in January following lifesaving treatment in Germany.  
 
The United States and other countries have sanctioned Kremlin officials over the poisoning, and many are calling for Navalny’s release.
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Denmark is embarking on a program to move tens of thousands of immigrants out of ethnically-concentrated communities, in what the country’s media have dubbed “the biggest social experiment of this century.”  To encourage integration, the center-left government is planning mass housing evictions and a cap on the number of migrants allowed to live in 58 housing estates and neighborhoods deemed as troubled and designated as “special prevention areas” because of high crime.The strategy aims to prevent the continuation of what top officials have called self-isolating communities and the emergence of “parallel religious and cultural societies.”The plan is drawing fire from minority groups and civil libertarians, who accuse the government of stigmatizing migrants and of planning to evict public tenants to gentrify estates for the benefit of more affluent Danes.Critics say the measure is based on false premises. They say surveys show that migrants want to live in mixed neighborhoods, but that is hard to do because of a national housing crisis. One-third of migrants polled said they wanted also to live close to friends and family for practical assistance and emotional support.  Marie Northroup, a tenants’ activist in Copenhagen’s Mjolnerparken housing estate, has dismissed the government characterization of migrant communities as self-isolating and says the government is whipping up public panic “in order to discriminate.”The proposal by the center-left government is seen as a continuation of the approach of the previous center-right government, which started drawing up a list of neighborhoods designated as “ghettos.”    The largest migrant groups in the country comprise 64,000 Turks, 43,000 Syrians, 33,000 Iraqis, 27,000 Lebanese, 26,000 Pakistanis and 23,000 Bosnians.FILE – Young Muslim women in burqas chat on a playground in a park near Mjolnerparken, in Copenhagen, Denmark, May 3, 2018.Under the plan, some of these migrants would be relocated elsewhere, away from Copenhagen and some of the large cities, which have severe housing shortages.  Denmark’s government says the migrant dilution would help foster social cohesion, curb crime and give migrants better opportunities to assimilate and expose them more to “Danish values.”“There are a number of large residential areas with high rates of unemployment and crime, a low degree of education and with social and integration problems,” according to Kaare Dybvad Bek, the housing and interior minister.The goal is that by 2030, there will be no residential area in Denmark that has more than 30 percent of non-Western immigrants and their descendants.  “We have the next 10 years to strike a balance in our integration policies and in the way we live and work together. Otherwise, I think we end up with a two-part society where people withdraw from each other,” Bek told lawmakers earlier this month. “This whole effort is about fighting parallel societies and creating a positive development in residential areas, so that they are made attractive to a broad section of the population,” he added.  Under the initiative, which still needs parliamentary approval, municipalities would be prevented from allocating housing to specific groups in some areas, in order to prevent concentrations of low-income families or people who are not European Union citizens.  Municipalities would also be directed to pay attention to social and income mixes and to maintain a balance. Government ministers say the eviction and relocation of some poorer residents in order to bring in private renters opens up opportunities for “left-behind” residents.  FILE – Men pray at the Grand Mosque of Copenhagen, a Sunni house of worship popular with residents of nearby Mjolnerparken, in Copenhagen, Denmark, May 11, 2018.The main opposition group, the center-right Liberal Party, is supportive of the measure, but has raised concerns about the large number of people the government will have to relocate, questioning how the move will be achieved without using force.   Speaking this week in a meeting hosted by Facebook, Bek said, “We need to get better at spreading cultures so that not all perpetrators of violence live together and reinforce the norms they have been accustomed to.” Migrant representatives have pushed back against that characterization, saying crime rates in the so-called troubled neighborhoods are in line with rates elsewhere.Bek added, “We do not interfere in what people eat or do not eat, or how they arrange themselves, but we believe that people must adapt to the basic values and norms we have in Denmark.”   In a statement, the housing ministry said there is a better chance of that happening by breaking up large concentrations of migrants, creating the circumstances for them to mix more with native Danes.  “The objective is to give every child in Denmark the same life opportunities regardless of the neighborhood they grow up in or of their parents’ background. This means that they have to be exposed to the cultural norms of society as such and not grow up in closed and isolated communities,” the ministry said.  Public sentiment in recent years has turned distinctly against migrants. The far-right Danish People’s party recently proposed that any refugees denied resident permits, and who are deemed to be criminals, should be herded on to a remote island. Race- and religious-based hate crimes have become more frequent in recent years.  The Liberal Party proposed this month that foreign nationals applying to become citizens should face much tougher interviews designed to examine whether they have absorbed “Danish values.” The government has expressed support for the idea.  “Good behavior alone is not enough. If you want to be a Danish citizen, you should have taken Denmark in,” the Liberal Party spokesperson for citizenship, Morten Dahlin, told the newspaper Jyllands-Posten. 
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U.S. officials say Russian state media is citing false reports to undermine faith in Western COVID vaccines to promote Russia’s own Sputnik V vaccine.  Daria Dieguts has the story.Camera: Artyom Kokhan  
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George Kent, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian Affairs, spoke with VOA’s Ukraine service Wednesday, discussing Ukraine as well as Russia and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.The following interview, held at the U.S. State Department, has been edited for clarity and brevity.VOA: In the last two months since President Joe Biden took office, the U.S. is demonstrating its commitment to have a strategic partnership with Ukraine. However, the administration is clearly stating its priorities, importance of the delivering on the reform agenda, anti-corruption effort, is President Volodymyr Zelensky delivering on those fronts?George Kent: Well first, welcome back to the State Department. I know it’s been a long time. I would say what’s most important is that President Zelensky delivers on his promises and the priorities of the Ukrainian people because they are the ones who elected him. And if you look back at 2019, with the presidential and Rada elections, President Zelensky … [was] elected on a mandate of reform and change. So I think first and foremost that is the answer that the current Ukrainian authorities have to answer. What the U.S. wants is clear. And U.S. Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken mentioned it in his testimony two months ago. We are ready to support Ukraine, defending against aggression from abroad primarily from Russia and from the challenges from within, and that’s the reform agenda. You mentioned this administration is putting authority on anti-corruption action and helping democracies thrive because we believe democracies are best placed to address the challenges of the 21st century, and this issue is something that is shared by Ukrainians and Americans.And so I think the needs are clear. The expectations of Ukrainians and Americans are clear. Reform efforts need to continue and deepen. The justice sector is absolutely essential. How Ukrainian authorities get out of the constitutional crisis created by the constitutional court undermining reversing changes that were made is a real challenge for Ukrainians. The U.S. as a partner is here to be supportive. But to be very clear, any legislation that rolls back the independence of organizations, whether it’s the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, NBU, or the central bank, does not help Ukraine and that will make it very difficult for international partners, whether it’s the IMF or the United States, to continue to be as supportive of efforts when they are not leading to reform the change that Ukraine needs.VOA: Since President Biden took office, he spoke to many world leaders, however he did not speak to President Zelensky yet. How important it is to establish the contact between leaders and is their trust issue between two leaders?Kent: So I think you’re right that trust is very important in any relationship. That’s again within a country as well as between countries. And I think President Biden established an excellent record when he was vice president of reaching out and trying to establish that trust with Ukrainian counterparts. Trust is a two-way street, obviously, and I anticipate that there will be a call between our leaders in the near future. But I believe it’s also important to understand that a call, while taken as a symbol, has to be backed up by actions and the issues that we were discussing, the issues that are on the U.S.-Ukraine agenda. We want Ukraine to succeed. That means we want the government and President Zelensky to succeed. But for that success, there needs to be the right actions and the right reforms.VOA: The phone call between the two presidents is a hot political topic since we all remember well the last call between President [Donald] Trump and President Zelensky, is this a factor in today’s decision about the call?Kent: The Biden administration will make the right decisions for the U.S. interests in this administration, so I would not put any link between those.VOA: The Nord Stream 2 pipeline has become a serious issue between the U.S. and its European partners. Secretary Blinken made it clear that the U.S. opposed the building of the Nord Stream. What is the U.S. prepared to do if Germany and others will decide to go ahead with their plan to complete the pipeline?Kent: Yesterday, Secretary Blinken was in Brussels and stood up next to the NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and he reiterated what he had issued last week. President Biden and the Biden administration considers Nord Stream to be a bad deal. It’s bad for Europe, it’s bad for our allies. And we think it fundamentally contravenes the concept of European energy security. And we do have obligations under our law to take action when we have. I think that’s the intent of the Biden administration.VOA: So what is the United States prepared to do?Kent: Well, again there are requirements under legislation to sanction companies that are directly involved in the pipe preparation planning process. So we are gathering information and considering next steps.VOA: U.S.-Russia relations are a hot topic as well, specifically after the security report about Russian interference in the U.S. election. There was an announcement about special sanctions or serious response to Russia. What should we expect?Kent: Well, we have not yet announced the package of response measures but as President Biden indicated last week. Russian actions do demand a response. So stay tuned.VOA: In Ukraine there’s a lot of fear that Russia will take on Ukraine in response to the United States and even possible escalation on Donbas, what is the United States prepared to do to ease the tension?Kent: Well we’re very concerned. You can see it in open-source reporting, different actions along the line of contact. New trenches near the old Donbas airport. I think the key thing is our expectation for Russia, the same as Ukraine is that President Vladimir Putin and Russia need to live up to the obligations and commitments that Putin made in February of 2015, six years ago. There would be a total cease-fire, foreign forces, by which mean Russian forces, are recalled from Russia and that Ukraine recovers the control of its sovereign border.And today seven years later, Russia has not lived up to its obligations.VOA: Is the United States prepared to be more active in negotiations with Russia in Normandy Format or other formats?Kent: I think you will see as we fill out our team at the State Department, we still don’t have a confirmed deputy secretary nominated or confirmed undersecretary or new assistant secretaries. As we all get vaccinated and are able to resume travel, you will see more active U.S. diplomacy in this area.VOA: The United States hasn’t had an ambassador in Ukraine for a long period of time and there’s a lot of questions about that. The United States is not represented well in Ukraine. When can Ukraine expect to have a U.S. ambassador on the ground?Kent: First of all, the State Department has full faith and confidence in our charge, we understand that all countries expect having fully accredited ambassadors and we expect the Biden administration to nominate a fully qualified person. And then it will be up to the Senate to confirm and look forward to having a U.S. ambassador.VOA: Do you have an idea about the timeline?Kent: Nope. And in that sense, ambassadors are the prerogative of the president and the White House with a role in the Senate to advise and consent. So no timeline yet.VOA: Could you comment on why Ukraine is important for the region since you were responsible for the whole region in the last three years. So what is the United States looking at in terms of Ukraine and its effect on the region?Kent: Ukraine is an important country in its own right. It’s an important country for the region. It’s an important country symbolically. It is the linchpin of, if you will, the eastern Slavic world. And I think the importance of Ukraine has never been understated, even by outsiders who may not follow the details on a daily basis.My former professor [Zbigniew] Brzezinski once said that if Ukraine succeeds, that gives the real impulse for Russia to have the possibility of reform in the long term. And so we treat Ukraine on its own merits and that’s why it is such a focus of our assistance that’s provided by Congress. It’s the focus of our diplomacy.We understand the great human potential of Ukrainians, whether it’s in information technology, whether it’s in agribusiness, whether it’s the dynamism of civil society. And we want to support that for Ukraine to succeed in its own right. And because we also understand that if Ukraine succeeds, then other countries farther to the east will understand that many of the false narratives and claims by Russia are simply not true.
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George Kent, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian Affairs, spoke with VOA’s Ukraine service Wednesday, discussing Ukraine as well as Russia and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.The following interview, held at the U.S. State Department, has been edited for clarity and brevity.VOA: In the last two months since President Joe Biden took office, the U.S. is demonstrating its commitment to have a strategic partnership with Ukraine. However, the administration is clearly stating its priorities, importance of the delivering on the reform agenda, anti-corruption effort, is President Volodymyr Zelensky delivering on those fronts?George Kent: Well first, welcome back to the State Department. I know it’s been a long time. I would say what’s most important is that President Zelensky delivers on his promises and the priorities of the Ukrainian people because they are the ones who elected him. And if you look back at 2019, with the presidential and Rada elections, President Zelensky … [was] elected on a mandate of reform and change. So I think first and foremost that is the answer that the current Ukrainian authorities have to answer. What the U.S. wants is clear. And U.S. Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken mentioned it in his testimony two months ago. We are ready to support Ukraine, defending against aggression from abroad primarily from Russia and from the challenges from within, and that’s the reform agenda. You mentioned this administration is putting authority on anti-corruption action and helping democracies thrive because we believe democracies are best placed to address the challenges of the 21st century, and this issue is something that is shared by Ukrainians and Americans.And so I think the needs are clear. The expectations of Ukrainians and Americans are clear. Reform efforts need to continue and deepen. The justice sector is absolutely essential. How Ukrainian authorities get out of the constitutional crisis created by the constitutional court undermining reversing changes that were made is a real challenge for Ukrainians. The U.S. as a partner is here to be supportive. But to be very clear, any legislation that rolls back the independence of organizations, whether it’s the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, NBU, or the central bank, does not help Ukraine and that will make it very difficult for international partners, whether it’s the IMF or the United States, to continue to be as supportive of efforts when they are not leading to reform the change that Ukraine needs.VOA: Since President Biden took office, he spoke to many world leaders, however he did not speak to President Zelensky yet. How important it is to establish the contact between leaders and is their trust issue between two leaders?Kent: So I think you’re right that trust is very important in any relationship. That’s again within a country as well as between countries. And I think President Biden established an excellent record when he was vice president of reaching out and trying to establish that trust with Ukrainian counterparts. Trust is a two-way street, obviously, and I anticipate that there will be a call between our leaders in the near future. But I believe it’s also important to understand that a call, while taken as a symbol, has to be backed up by actions and the issues that we were discussing, the issues that are on the U.S.-Ukraine agenda. We want Ukraine to succeed. That means we want the government and President Zelensky to succeed. But for that success, there needs to be the right actions and the right reforms.VOA: The phone call between the two presidents is a hot political topic since we all remember well the last call between President [Donald] Trump and President Zelensky, is this a factor in today’s decision about the call?Kent: The Biden administration will make the right decisions for the U.S. interests in this administration, so I would not put any link between those.VOA: The Nord Stream 2 pipeline has become a serious issue between the U.S. and its European partners. Secretary Blinken made it clear that the U.S. opposed the building of the Nord Stream. What is the U.S. prepared to do if Germany and others will decide to go ahead with their plan to complete the pipeline?Kent: Yesterday, Secretary Blinken was in Brussels and stood up next to the NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and he reiterated what he had issued last week. President Biden and the Biden administration considers Nord Stream to be a bad deal. It’s bad for Europe, it’s bad for our allies. And we think it fundamentally contravenes the concept of European energy security. And we do have obligations under our law to take action when we have. I think that’s the intent of the Biden administration.VOA: So what is the United States prepared to do?Kent: Well, again there are requirements under legislation to sanction companies that are directly involved in the pipe preparation planning process. So we are gathering information and considering next steps.VOA: U.S.-Russia relations are a hot topic as well, specifically after the security report about Russian interference in the U.S. election. There was an announcement about special sanctions or serious response to Russia. What should we expect?Kent: Well, we have not yet announced the package of response measures but as President Biden indicated last week. Russian actions do demand a response. So stay tuned.VOA: In Ukraine there’s a lot of fear that Russia will take on Ukraine in response to the United States and even possible escalation on Donbas, what is the United States prepared to do to ease the tension?Kent: Well we’re very concerned. You can see it in open-source reporting, different actions along the line of contact. New trenches near the old Donbas airport. I think the key thing is our expectation for Russia, the same as Ukraine is that President Vladimir Putin and Russia need to live up to the obligations and commitments that Putin made in February of 2015, six years ago. There would be a total cease-fire, foreign forces, by which mean Russian forces, are recalled from Russia and that Ukraine recovers the control of its sovereign border.And today seven years later, Russia has not lived up to its obligations.VOA: Is the United States prepared to be more active in negotiations with Russia in Normandy Format or other formats?Kent: I think you will see as we fill out our team at the State Department, we still don’t have a confirmed deputy secretary nominated or confirmed undersecretary or new assistant secretaries. As we all get vaccinated and are able to resume travel, you will see more active U.S. diplomacy in this area.VOA: The United States hasn’t had an ambassador in Ukraine for a long period of time and there’s a lot of questions about that. The United States is not represented well in Ukraine. When can Ukraine expect to have a U.S. ambassador on the ground?Kent: First of all, the State Department has full faith and confidence in our charge, we understand that all countries expect having fully accredited ambassadors and we expect the Biden administration to nominate a fully qualified person. And then it will be up to the Senate to confirm and look forward to having a U.S. ambassador.VOA: Do you have an idea about the timeline?Kent: Nope. And in that sense, ambassadors are the prerogative of the president and the White House with a role in the Senate to advise and consent. So no timeline yet.VOA: Could you comment on why Ukraine is important for the region since you were responsible for the whole region in the last three years. So what is the United States looking at in terms of Ukraine and its effect on the region?Kent: Ukraine is an important country in its own right. It’s an important country for the region. It’s an important country symbolically. It is the linchpin of, if you will, the eastern Slavic world. And I think the importance of Ukraine has never been understated, even by outsiders who may not follow the details on a daily basis.My former professor [Zbigniew] Brzezinski once said that if Ukraine succeeds, that gives the real impulse for Russia to have the possibility of reform in the long term. And so we treat Ukraine on its own merits and that’s why it is such a focus of our assistance that’s provided by Congress. It’s the focus of our diplomacy.We understand the great human potential of Ukrainians, whether it’s in information technology, whether it’s in agribusiness, whether it’s the dynamism of civil society. And we want to support that for Ukraine to succeed in its own right. And because we also understand that if Ukraine succeeds, then other countries farther to the east will understand that many of the false narratives and claims by Russia are simply not true.
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed America’s commitment to NATO as he sought to strengthen the transatlantic relationship in a two-day summit this week in Brussels, which wrapped up Wednesday. As Henry Ridgwell reports, a broad agenda included the growing threat posed by China.
Camera: Henry Ridgwell
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to NATO as he sought to strengthen the transatlantic relationship in a two-day summit this week in Brussels, which wrapped up Wednesday.”You have our unshakeable vow: America is fully committed to NATO,” Blinken said in a speech at NATO headquarters in the Belgian capital.He promised a new relationship with European allies.”Trust has been shaken to some degree over the past few years. So, let me be clear about what the United States can promise to our allies and partners. When our allies shoulder their fair share of the burden, they’ll reasonably expect to have a fair say in making decisions,” Blinken said.He outlined the military threats facing the alliance, warning that NATO must evolve to defend democracy and the rules-based international system.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is seen on the second day of a NATO foreign ministers meeting at the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, March 24, 2021.”Our shared values of democracy and human rights are being challenged — not only from outside our countries, but from within. And new threats are outpacing our efforts to build the capabilities we need to defend against them,” he said.  “Beijing’s military ambitions are growing by the year. Coupled with the realities of modern technology, the challenges that once seemed half a world away are no longer remote. We also see this in the new military capabilities and strategies Russia has developed to challenge our alliances and undermine the rules-based order that ensures our collective security,” Blinken said.   He added that NATO must evolve to counter emerging threats, including disinformation, cyberattacks, climate change and the coronavirus pandemic.  NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the U.S. commitment and gave further warnings of the dangers facing the alliance.  “Russia undermines and destabilizes its neighbors, including Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova. It supports the crackdown on Belarus and tries to interfere in the Western Balkans region,” Stoltenberg told reporters Wednesday. “We see that Russia continues to deploy new and destabilizing nuclear weapons. We need agreements that cover more weapons and more nations like China.” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gives a press briefing at the end of a NATO Foreign Ministers’ meeting at the Alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, March 24, 2021.China’s rise poses a relatively new challenge for NATO, analyst Simona Soare of the European Union Institute for Security Studies said.  “It’s not about NATO moving into the Indo-Pacific but rather being more aware and more prepared to tackle the potential negative consequences of Chinese presence in Europe. And what this means is, of course, more awareness of foreign direct investment that could target potentially strategic technologies or critical infrastructure,” Soare told VOA.  The U.S. secretary of state said Washington still expects European allies to meet the NATO defense spending target of 2% of GDP by 2024, which was a key demand of the Trump administration.  U.S. President Joe Biden is pursuing a different strategy, Soare said.   “He has also put forward a proposal that allies spend more together through NATO’s common budget, and that common expenditure should go towards funding, at least in part, some of NATO’s missions and operations. And this has been framed as being key to solidarity.”  NATO’s mission in Afghanistan also was high on the agenda, with U.S. troops set to withdraw by May 1 under a peace deal signed by the Trump administration and the Taliban in 2020. Blinken said the situation was under review, and that the U.S. would consult with NATO allies.  FILE – U.S. troops patrol at an Afghan National Army (ANA) Base in Logar province, Afghanistan, Aug. 7, 2018.”We went in together, we adjusted together, and when the time is right, we will leave together,” Blinken told reporters.  Despite the harmonious words from the U.S. delegation, tensions within NATO resurfaced during the summit. In a sideline meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Blinken urged Ankara to drop its purchase of a Russian S-400 air defense system. Turkey said Wednesday that the “deal is done.”  FILE – First parts of a Russian S-400 missile defense system are unloaded from a Russian plane near Ankara, Turkey, July 12, 2019.Blinken also made clear U.S. opposition to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that would bring Russian gas directly to Germany and warned that companies involved in its construction could face U.S. sanctions.  “The pipeline divides Europe. It exposes Ukraine and central Europe to Russian manipulation and coercion. It goes against Europe’s own stated energy security goals,” Blinken told reporters.  Following the NATO summit, Blinken also met with European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Foreign Policy Minister Josep Borrell. Despite the hawkish tone against China within NATO, the EU is finalizing a trade agreement with Beijing.  Blinken said Europe and the U.S. should work together on shared goals.  “We know that our allies have complex relationships with China that won’t always align perfectly. But we need to navigate these challenges together. That means working with our allies to close the gaps in areas like technology and infrastructure, where Beijing is exploiting to exert coercive pressure,” he said.  U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is welcomed by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell ahead of meeting in Brussels, Belgium, March 24, 2021.Borrell said Europe sees China “as a partner, as a competitor and a systemic rival.”  “We agreed to launch the European Union-United States dialogue on China as a forum to discuss the full range of related challenges and opportunities. We decided to continue meetings at the senior official and expert levels on topics such as reciprocity, economic issues, resilience, human rights, security, multilateral, and areas for constructive engagement with China, such as climate change,” Borrell said at a news conference Wednesday evening.  Blinken said the EU was the United States’ “partner of first resort.” His words have been warmly welcomed in Europe, but analysts say the true test of the new transatlantic relationship is yet to come as the alliance faces threats on multiple fronts. 
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Becoming a “free French woman” hasn’t been easy for Claire Koç, a 37-year-old French TV presenter and daughter of Turkish immigrant parents.  And it may prove dangerous.  To finish her university education and marry the man she loved she had to break with her family. She suffered hostility from them, too, when she decided in 2008 to become a French citizen.  And now her account of what she calls her “journey toward emancipation” detailed in a book, Claire, le Prénom de la Honte (Claire, the Name of Shame), is earning her death threats and the offer of police protection.  Supporters of French President Emmanuel Macron have praised Koç’s book, arguing it shows why he is right to explore ways the government can encourage assimilation and stop minority and immigrant communities from isolating themselves and living apart from the French Republic.  Last year, Macron warned against religious sectarianism, which he said “often results in the creation of a counter-society.” Cultural and religious separatism is leading to kids being kept out of school, and sports, cultural and other community activities being used as a “pretext to teach principles that do not conform to the laws of the republic,” he said.Claire Koç is seen on the cover of her book Claire, le Prénom de la Honte or Claire, the Name of Shame (Social media)Koç has received favorable book reviews. “Her book … is a rare plea for freedom and integration, against communitarianism and all obscurantism,” wrote reviewer Carine Azzopardi.But some of France’s 6 million Muslims, especially Turkish ultranationalists, have voiced outrage. On social media sites, they accuse her of insulting Turkey. Some Muslim radicals say the book risks fueling Islamophobia.The book is both an angry denunciation of the Turkish migrant community for its resistance to assimilation and a very personal tale of one woman’s emotionally painful struggle to make her own choices in life.Koç told VOA she decided to use her family as an example of the resistance to assimilation. She was one year old when her parents immigrated to France in 1984 and grew up in Brittany and Strasbourg in public housing projects. In her book, she explains that as a child she was sent to Turkish lessons, where in the morning she would join her classmates in chanting the mantra, “Let my existence be a gift to Turkey.”  But she felt French, and increasingly so, and found herself at odds with her classmates. Her refusal as a youngster to attend mosque also marked her out.  The battles at home grew worse as she became a teenager.  “I wanted to work, I wanted to decide whom to marry and I wanted to go to university,” she told VOA. “My family told me that it wasn’t for an Anatolian woman to decide these things.” Her parents wanted her to marry a boy from Turkey, preferably from their home village.She says satellite television helped her family maintain cultural separateness from the French — they would watch only Turkish channels all day and followed Turkish politics, Turkish sports. Her family was uninterested in France and made no effort to adjust or to adopt French values, she says.Nor did they learn to speak French.  “How is it possible,” she writes in her book, “to live for 40 years in a country without mastering the language and to think … that a boss will take you on if you have made no effort to integrate?” Her father, she says, just mirrored what many others in the Turkish community do — complain about racism, accept welfare payments and make little effort to get work.  “I had one wish — to escape and to leave a family I found archaic,” she told VOA. Her godsend, she says, was the cinema: movies helped her to understand the country she lived in and to learn things she wasn’t learning at home.  Defying her family, she attended a university, and there met by chance a young Turkish man from a family of Alawites, a sect of Shia Islam. When her family found out she was seeing him, they insisted they marry. She was 22 years old, but soon after they were together, her new husband told her she had to stop studying.
 
“He wanted me to live a similar life to my mother’s,” she says. Within a year they were divorced and she returned to the Université de Strasbourg, to the frustration of her parents and the disdain of Turkish neighbors. “They would cross the road when they saw me: they looked at me as though I were a whore,” she explains.Her family rejected her completely when she married a Frenchman following the divorce.The wounds of her struggle with her family have not healed.That became clear during VOA’s interview with Koç. She choked up as she explained how she learned of her father’s death two months ago from COVID-19. “I found out from a text message,” she says.His death precluded any opportunity for a reconciliation, one she still harbored hopes might take place one day, given time. “It is very difficult,” she said, shedding tears. “I had hoped my father one day would meet my son.”For her naturalization procedure, Koç changed her given name from Cigdem to Claire.“Claire? Are you serious? What a disgrace!” her brother said when she told him of the switch, she writes in the book. Her two brothers have shown no interest in communicating with her since their father’s death.Koç is unsparing in criticism, taking aim not only at religious and cultural obscurantism but also at some anti-racist politicians and groups for feeding, she says, an attitude that immigrants are always victims of racism. And she criticizes French mosques, funded by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government, for encouraging Turkish immigrants to maintain themselves apart from mainstream French society.“I am not denying my origins,” she tells VOA. “But I am proclaiming my love for France, which has allowed me to be free.”Koç has filed a criminal complaint after facing a torrent of abuse and insults on social media sites. One post, accusing her of being a traitor, displayed a Turkish flag and a gray wolf’s head, the emblem of Turkish ultranationalists.  Her lawyer, William Goldnadel, says the threats are alarming. “Those people don’t mess around: When they describe you either as a traitor to your country or as a terrorist and try to find your address with determination, it’s very worrying.”French politicians have rallied to her side. Rachid Temal, a Socialist Party senator, tweeted this week: “All my support to Claire Koç who like everyone has the right to choose their life, their loves and their life course. No one should be harassed for their choices.”Senator Valerie Boyer, a member of the liberal-conservative Republican Party, tweeted it is “intolerable that she has been harassed because she loves France too much. How long are these threats going to continue?” 
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The European Commission’s proposal to create a health passport to facilitate safe, free movement inside the EU during the remainder of the COVID-19 pandemic could be a solution to save the tourism industry in parts of southern Europe this summer.  But with the vaccine rollout off to a slow start and the infection rates going up across Europe, few are hoping for a recovery soon. Jonathan Spier narrates this report by Alfonso Beato in Barcelona.
Camera: Alfonso Beato, Filip Huygens   
Producer:   Jon Spier 
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to outline in a speech Wednesday in Brussels a commitment by the Biden administration to rebuild and revitalize U.S. alliances. That has been part of his message during his first visit to the region as the top U.S. diplomat this week, showing a departure from four years of foreign policy under former President Donald Trump that focused on prioritizing U.S. interests. The address comes on the final day of a two-day NATO ministerial meeting, during which Blinken is holding a number of sideline talks with his counterparts. Wednesday’s schedule includes separate talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, a session with the foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, as well as meetings with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Blinken told reporters Tuesday the United States wants to rebuild its partnerships, “first and foremost with our NATO allies.”U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, rear center, waits for the start of a round table meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, March 23, 2021.The White House said U.S. President Joe Biden plans to discuss boosting U.S.-EU relations during a videoconference with EU leaders on Thursday. Biden’s stance is a marked contrast to that of former President Donald Trump, who frequently assailed other NATO countries for not meeting the alliance’s goal that each country spend the equivalent of 2% of the size of its national economy on defense.    “The last thing we can afford to do is take this alliance for granted,” Blinken, a longtime Biden confidant, said. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian welcomed Blinken’s favorable comments about NATO, which was founded in 1949 to contain a military threat from the then-Soviet Union.    One of the major topics for discussion during two days of meetings in Brussels is the NATO mission in Afghanistan, as a May 1 deadline approaches for the full withdrawal of all U.S. troops under a peace agreement made last year between Afghanistan’s Taliban and the Trump administration.  Blinken said the situation is under review, and that part of his work in Brussels would be conferring with NATO allies, both to listen and to share U.S. thinking. He said whatever the United States decides to do, its actions will be with the consultation of other member countries that have been a part of the military mission.    “We went in together, we have adjusted together, and when the time is right, we’ll leave together,” Blinken said.  NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said he welcomes the peace effort, stressing it is the “only path to a lasting political solution in Afghanistan.” But the NATO chief said that in order to achieve peace, all parties must negotiate in good faith, there needs to be a reduction of violence, and the Taliban must stop supporting international terrorists such as al-Qaida.  German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned against a premature pullout that would undercut security gains.  “We want a conditions-based withdrawal of all forces from Afghanistan,” Maas said. 
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Benjamin Briere is a French tourist who was arrested last May while visiting Iran with his drone and minivan. Still detained, he was charged with espionage and “spreading propaganda against the system.” His lawyers deny the charges.If found guilty, he could be sentenced to death.Briere’s case is the latest in a series against foreigners at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the West over Iran’s nuclear activities.Bernard Hourcade is a geographer and Iran specialist.  He thinks that the cases against this French tourist and the 2019 arrest of the French Iranian academic, Fariba Adelkhah, are separate issues which would have no impact on the JCPOA talks or other negotiations between the two countries.France, along with Britain, Germany and the European Union, are trying to bring the United States and Iran to the table for informal talks as a first step toward reviving Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal — also known as JCPOA — which lifted international sanctions on the Islamic Republic in exchange for curbs to its nuclear program.Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 29, 2016, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Syria.However, tensions are growing over Teheran’s nuclear activities, and U.S Secretary of State Anthony Blinken last month said Iran is “heading in the wrong direction.” Jean-Yves Le Drian, France’s Foreign minister, echoed those concerns.Le Drian recently told a French Senate hearing that Iran’s nuclear activities were developing in violation of the Vienna agreement. The minister also added that Iran conducted attacks in Iraq and Saudi Arabia to destabilize those countries. So, it is crucial to start de-escalation to ease tensions, he added.A source with the French Foreign ministry told VOA the French government has been in regular contact with Briere. But French officials have stuck to their regular strategy of maintaining discretion when dealing with Iran in order to increase the chances of obtaining the release of their citizens.Analysts point to Iranian leaders’ history of using hostages to get what they want.Mohammad Reza Djalili is an honorary professor of international relations at the Geneva Graduate Institute.He describes the hostage situation in the U.S Embassy in Teheran in 1979 as the founding act for Iranian Islamic diplomacy. Djalili presents an Iranian policy to take Western hostages as a diplomatic weapon to release their own pro-regime citizens sentenced in France, Belgium and other countries. Iran seems very interested in dual citizens to gain leverage, according to Djalili.In this image released by the US State Department US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook welcomes Princeton graduate student Xiyue Wang on arrival in Switzerland after his release from Iran on Dec. 7, 2019. (Ho /US State Department/AFP)The most recent high-profile releases of foreign prisoners in Iran — of American Xiyue Wang in December 2019, American Michael White in March 2020 and Frenchman Roland Marchal, also in March — were all accompanied by the release of Iranians held abroad on sanctions-busting charges.The case highlights for Western countries the complexity of dealing with Iran. Analysts say European countries appear to have less leverage than the United States does.Hourcade said France has tried several times to bring together Iran and the United States and resume talks, but overall France and Europe are weak partners if neither Washington nor Teheran has the political will to act. Therefore, Europeans are waiting to see how the situation will evolve.The presidential election is scheduled for June 18 in Iran and many observers believe that no major negotiations could resume before the poll.  
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday the United States wants to rebuild its partnerships, “first and foremost with our NATO allies,” as he expressed the Biden administration’s “steadfast commitment” to the alliance. Blinken spoke to reporters in Brussels alongside NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg before the two held talks ahead of the start of a NATO ministerial meeting later in the day.Stoltenberg said he welcomed the new U.S. administration’s approach, saying there is a “unique opportunity to start a new chapter in the transatlantic relationship.”U.S. President Joe Biden is planning to join a videoconference of European Union leaders on Thursday, a top EU official said, as part of the U.S. commitment to NATO.Biden’s stance is a marked contrast to that of former President Donald Trump, who frequently assailed other NATO countries for not meeting the alliance’s goal that each country spend the equivalent of 2% of the size of its national economy on defense.”The last thing we can afford to do is take this alliance for granted,” said Blinken, a longtime Biden confidant.French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian welcomed Blinken’s favorable comments about NATO, which was founded in 1949 to contain a military threat from the then-Soviet Union.One of the major topics for discussion during two days of meetings in Brussels is the NATO mission in Afghanistan, as a May 1 deadline approaches for the full withdrawal of all U.S. troops under a peace agreement made last year between Afghanistan’s Taliban and the Trump administration.Blinken said the situation is under review, and that part of his work in Brussels would be conferring with NATO allies, both to listen and to share U.S. thinking. He said whatever the United States decides to do, its actions will be with the consultation of other member countries that have been a part of the military mission.“We went in together, we have adjusted together, and when the time is right, we’ll leave together,” Blinken said.Stoltenberg said he welcomes the peace effort, stressing it is the “only path to a lasting political solution in Afghanistan.” But the NATO chief said that in order to achieve peace, all parties must negotiate in good faith, there needs to be a reduction of violence, and the Taliban must stop supporting international terrorists such as al-Qaida.NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg holds a news conference during a NATO Foreign Ministers’ meeting at the Alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, March 23, 2021.German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned against a premature pullout that would undercut security gains.”We want a conditions-based withdrawal of all forces from Afghanistan,” Maas said.Blinken’s itinerary in Brussels also includes a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief. The State Department said agenda items include economic recovery efforts in response to the coronavirus pandemic and addressing “global challenges that come from Iran, Russia and China.”Regarding Iran, the top U.S. diplomat is expected to consult with EU colleagues about the prospects of the United States and Iran mutually returning to the agreement signed in 2015 that limited Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.Both the United States, which left the deal under Trump in 2018, and Iran, which responded by taking steps away from its commitments, have expressed a willingness to observe the agreement once again, but each has signaled the other side should act first.The final part of Blinken’s trip agenda is bilateral talks with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès.  
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Press freedom advocate Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is suing Facebook in France, saying the social media platform spreads misinformation. The suit was filed Monday with the Paris public prosecutor.  “Reporters Without Borders accuses Facebook of ‘deceptive commercial practices’ on the grounds that the social media company’s promises to provide a ‘safe’ and ‘error-free’ online environment are contradicted by the large-scale proliferation of hate speech and false information on its networks,” the group said in a press release. Specifically, the group says Facebook allows “hate speech” against the media, as well as misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic. The group said Facebook allowed posts that were insulting and threatening against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, as well as targeting the TV program “Quotidien” and a regional newspaper, L’Union. Facebook said in a statement that it “has zero tolerance for any harmful content on our platforms,” Bloomberg reported. “Over the last few years, we’ve tripled the size of our safety and security team to 35,000 and built artificial intelligence technology to proactively find and remove harmful content,” the statement continued, according to Bloomberg. “While nobody can eliminate misinformation and hate speech from the internet entirely, we continue using research, experts and technologies to tackle them in the most comprehensive and effective way possible.” Should RSF win its case, the decision could have global repercussions for Facebook, as its terms of service are similar worldwide. Any change in France could trigger changes elsewhere. Facebook and other Big Tech companies have been under intense pressure to stop what some call misinformation. In December, the EU proposed new regulations that could hit companies with fines of up to 6% of their global revenue for not complying with orders to remove content deemed violent hate speech, according to Bloomberg. 
 
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Results of an independent inquiry announced Monday cleared Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, of breaking a ministerial code of conduct, but she is likely to face an opposition-led vote of no confidence in parliament Tuesday.  Sturgeon has been under intense scrutiny over what she did and did not do when she learned of complaints by several women against Alex Salmond – her predecessor as first minister and, once a close friend and ally in the cause of Scottish independence.  Salmond was charged in 2019 with sexual assault and attempted rape after allegations by nine women who had worked with him as first minister or for the party.He was acquitted by a criminal court in 2020, and claims the allegations made by several women were part of a conspiracy to wreck his political career.James Hamilton, a widely respected Irish lawyer appointed to conduct an independent inquiry into Sturgeon’s conduct, found that she had not breached the ministerial code. Had he reached the opposite conclusion, she would have been expected to resign.Hamilton rejected suggestions that she had broken the rules by failing to record meetings with Salmond in 2018, that she tried to influence an investigation into his behavior or that she misled the Scottish parliament.A second inquiry, by a committee of Scottish lawmakers, is due to publish a report on Tuesday. British media have reported that the committee voted 5-4 in favor of finding that Sturgeon gave an inaccurate account to Scotland’s Edinburgh-based parliament about when she learned of allegations against Salmond.The Conservatives, who are in power in the United Kingdom as a whole but in opposition in Scotland, are planning a vote of no confidence in Sturgeon on Tuesday.  With an election coming in May, Sturgeon called the vote a “political stunt” and said she was confident of winning.
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After aviation, Europe’s cultural and creative sector has been hit hardest by the coronavirus crisis, losing nearly $240 billion, according to a recent study by an accounting firm. Now as France weathers its third lockdown in a year, the creative arts industry is pushing back, with a growing protest movement now occupying dozens of theaters nationwide.It’s been months since the Odeon theater was last open. But these days, Parisians can listen to a bit of live jazz at this Paris Left Bank landmark. Some were dancing on a recent afternoon, despite a chilly rain.A jazz band previews Odeon theatre’s afternoon assembly by occupation protesters. (VOA/Lisa Bryant)This was just a preview to the main act. The Odeon has been holding daily public assemblies— ever since a group of protesters took over the theater earlier this month.  They listed the latest tally of other occupied theaters across France—now about 70 and growing. The occupation movement began with demands the government reopen cultural venues—shuttered for months under coronavirus restrictions.  They also want benefits extended for out-of-work artists and the repeal of an unpopular unemployment reform.  Opera singer Aurelie Magnier, who attended the assembly, says she has been out of work for months. Luckily, she says, her partner has a steady job. Otherwise she wouldn’t be able to make ends meet.  Also here is Monique Pedron, a member of the yellow vest protest movement that sparked a political crisis in France a couple years back. Its presence at the Odeon shows how this latest protest movement is spreading to include students and others hard hit by the pandemic’s fallout.  Pedron says she misses culture, and she’s had it with COVID-19 restrictions. It’s more dangerous to take the metro, she says, than to attend a play. She hopes other French will join the occupation movement.  Europe-wide, revenues from the cultural and creative industries dropped nearly a third last year from 2019, accounting firm EY reported recently. Banners at the Odeon proclaim “Culture Sacrificed” and “Power to the People.”Protesters gather at the Odean theater, which started the nationwide theater protest movement. (VOA/Lisa Byrant)That was also the message at France’s Cesar film awards ceremony, where actress Corinne Masiero stripped naked to demand more government support. She’d written “no culture, no future” on her torso.   Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot visited the Odeon. She says she understands the artists’ concerns but calls the occupations of the theaters useless and dangerous. It’s not clear, however, whether anyone here or elsewhere is listening.  
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is holding talks Tuesday with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels, then attending meetings with NATO foreign ministers and a separate session with his counterparts from Britain, France and Germany. Stoltenberg said ahead of the start of the two-day NATO session that ministers would look toward strengthening the alliance for the future and specifically consult about the situation in Afghanistan as well as what NATO can do to build stability in the Middle East and North Africa. For Blinken, the State Department said his trip to Belgium is aimed at boosting ties with NATO allies and partnering on issues such as climate change, counterterrorism and ongoing efforts in combating the coronavirus pandemic.  FILE – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks during a media conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Feb. 15, 2021.”It’ll be an opportunity for the secretary and the foreign ministers to discuss the NATO 2030 initiative,” Philip Reeker, acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, told reporters ahead of Blinken’s trip. “Proposals under that (2030 initiative) for alliance adaptation, concerns over China and Russia, as well as climate change, cybersecurity, hybrid threats, combating terrorism, energy security — clearly the global pandemic enters into this, and other common challenges that we face together.”   After four years of foreign policy under former President Donald Trump that focused only on prioritizing U.S. interests, Reeker said Blinken will deliver a speech in Brussels outlining a commitment to “rebuilding and revitalizing alliances,” while highlighting the importance of NATO.   “We know we’re stronger and better able to overcome challenges when we face them together, and we’re going to modernize our alliances, mend them as needed, and deal with the world as we face it,” Reeker said.  Blinken’s arrival in Europe on Monday came as the United States issued coordinated sanctions with the European Union on both China and Myanmar. The Myanmar sanctions targeted top officials who are linked to last month’s military coup, while the China sanctions were aimed at several Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses against the Muslim Uyghur minority in China’s Xinjiang province. FILE – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell hold a joint news conference, in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 8, 2020.Regarding Iran, Reeker said the top U.S. diplomat will consult with EU colleagues about the prospects of the United States and Iran mutually returning to the agreement signed in 2015 that limited Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.  Both the United States, which left the deal under Trump in 2018, and Iran, which responded by taking steps away from its commitments, have expressed a willingness to observe the agreement once again, but each has signaled the other side should start first.  The final part of Blinken’s trip agenda is bilateral talks with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès. 
 
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European Union solidarity is breaking down amid a vaccine debacle that analysts say may have long-lasting repercussions for the future of European political integration.Member states are divided over the wisdom of imposing a vaccine export ban threatened by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The ban is mainly focused on Britain, a bid to secure more vaccines for the EU, but critics warn it could backfire on the bloc and tarnish its much vaunted commitment to free trade and internationalism.And there is also an emerging dispute on whether the vaccines the bloc is receiving are being distributed fairly by the European Commission among the EU’s 27 member states.Five central European and Baltic countries, led by Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, have complained of unequal treatment and plan to raise more forcefully their objections over the apportionment at a summit Thursday of EU heads of state and government.“The last few weeks have shown that deliveries are currently not being made according to population keys and that this is set to intensify in the coming months,” reads a complaint signed by Kurz and four other national leaders.The disgruntled national leaders added: “This approach clearly contradicts the political goal of the European Union — the equal distribution of vaccine doses to all member states. If the distribution were to continue in this way, it would result in significant unequal treatment — which we must prevent.”Cases and frustration growingThe mood in European capitals is turning sour. Locals complain they can’t see the light at then of the pandemic tunnel. Coronavirus infections are rising rapidly across the continent, in contrast to Britain and America, where much quicker and nimbler vaccine rollouts are seeing a significant falloff in the rate of confirmed cases.Much of the frustration among member states is being directed at von der Leyen, who was the driving force behind persuading member states to sign on to a vaccine procurement and distribution program managed by the authorities in Brussels.Medical workers prepare doses of Oxford/AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination center in Antwerp, Belgium, March 18, 2021.She and EC commissioners argued a bloc-wide approach would alleviate the risk of vaccine rivalry between member states as they scrambled to place procurement orders and would advertise the strengths of the EU, which in turn would help garner more public support for greater political integration.But it hasn’t turned out that way and Europe is lagging behind on inoculation as a third wave of the pandemic hits the continent. EU countries are short overall on vaccines — but are also sitting at the same time on millions of doses of the British-developed AstraZeneca vaccine because of public doubts about its safety.Seventeen states, including France and Germany, paused administering Astra jabs last week because of worries that the vaccine caused blood-clots, but then reversed the halt, leaving behind however residual public fear about Astra and increasing incidents of Europeans refusing Astra jabs.Vaccine fightVon der Leyen on Sunday raised the vaccine war stakes with London, threatening again to block AstraZeneca from exporting jabs manufactured in the EU to Britain if the Anglo-Swedish company doesn’t first meet its supply obligations to EU countries. Brussels says Britain has grabbed more than its “fair share” of vaccines and hasn’t been sending to Europe any Astra vaccines produced in Britain. The British argue their contract pre-dates the EU’s by several months and because the EU was late in ordering, it is suffering the consequences.“We have the possibility to forbid planned exports,” Von der Leyen told German newspapers. “That is the message to AstraZeneca, ‘You fulfill your contract with Europe before you start delivering to other countries.’” An export ban would likely target not just the Astra vaccines manufactured in the EU but also the export of Pfizer-BioNTech doses, which are produced in Belgium.Privately, British officials say they would consider retaliating if a ban is imposed by blocking crucial ingredients shipped from Yorkshire needed for the manufacture in Belgium of the Pfizer vaccine. The U.S. drug maker has warned Brussels that production at its main vaccine plant in Belgium would “grind to a halt,” if Britain opted to retaliate.The threat of an export ban is causing alarm among several member states, with Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden all against the proposal to block vaccine exports. They have warned it would tarnish the bloc’s reputation as a champion of free trade and the rule of law. Belgian officials say they’re worried that export bans would impair supply chains that rely on international trade.British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with Alexander De Croo, the Belgian Prime Minister. “We discussed our efforts to tackle COVID-19. We also touched on the importance of global supply chains and on common efforts to speed up vaccine production,” De Croo said after the conversation. British officials say they are hopeful about shaping an alliance against Brussels on the issue of an export ban and remain confident German Chancellor Angela Merkel would also oppose such a drastic step.EC commissioners place some of the blame for the slow pace of inoculations largely on member states. EU countries have vaccinated barely 10% of the bloc’s population compared to Britain which has inoculated more than 50%. EU officials say they are being scapegoated by member states.But major EU powers, including Germany and Italy, are pointing the finger at Brussels, and their leaders are tiring of what they say are severe shortages in EU supplies. A German official told VOA the EU commissioners are proving to be “the gang that can’t shoot straight.”The Sputnik optionJens Spahn, the German health minister, told reporters “there is not yet enough vaccine in Europe to stop the third wave through vaccination alone. Even if the deliveries from EU orders now come reliably, it will still take several weeks until the risk groups are fully vaccinated.” He has warned Germany might decide to buy Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine even before the EU medicines regulator has authorized it. “I am very much in favor of us doing it nationally, if the EU does not do something,” he said Saturday.German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center, looks on as Health Minister Jens Spahn, left, and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer talk prior to the weekly cabinet meeting in Berlin, March 17, 2021.Mario Draghi, the Italian Prime Minister and a former head of the European Central Bank, has also raised the prospects of ignoring the EU and purchasing the Russian vaccine. With case numbers spiraling out of control in Italy, there are fears that the third wave could be as deadly as the first wave, and Draghi says his priority is “giving the greatest number of vaccinations in the shortest time possible.”“If European coordination works, fine,” the Italian leader said at a press conference when asked about buying Sputnik “Otherwise on health, you have to be ready to do it yourself. This is what Merkel said and this is what I am saying here,” he added.Hungary and Slovakia have already purchased Sputnik doses.Frustrations over the vaccine program and the reimposition of lockdown restrictions in many European countries is boiling over in parts of the continent. Thousands of anti-lockdown protesters took to the street in Germany and Switzerland in protests organized by activists by both far-left and far-right groups.Police officers remove demonstrators from a square during a protest against the government’s COVID-19 restrictions in Kassel, Germany, March 20, 2021.There are also signs voters mean to make their feelings clear in upcoming elections about their frustrations with the vaccine rollout as well as re-tightened lockdowns. German Chancellor Angela Merkel Christian Democrats suffered last week historic defeats in state elections, seen as a test of voter opinion before September’s nationwide German federal ballot. French President Emmanuel Macron has also seen his polls numbers drop.Guy Verhofstadt, an EU lawmaker and the former Belgium prime minister, admits the vaccine campaign has been “ a fiasco,” but says, “in these troubled times, European integration is the only sensible way forward for our continent.” He maintains it proves the EU needs a proper “health union.”However, voters might not see it that way. Some analysts question whether the EU will come out of the pandemic stronger than it went into it with some suggesting that Brussels’ handling of the pandemic will undermine the appetite for further political integration.“With its disastrous vaccine procurement policy, the EU committed the ultimate mistake: it has given people a rational reason to oppose European integration,” argues Wolfgang Münchau, director of Eurointelligence, a specialist news service. 
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A protest in the English city of Bristol against new policing legislation turned into violent clashes that left at least 20 officers injured — two of them seriously — widespread damage to a police station and police vehicles torched, police said Monday.Seven people were arrested during the protest, which started Sunday afternoon and ran through to the early hours of Monday morning. Police said the number of arrests would likely increase in coming days as officers study closed circuit television footage.The violence, which also saw several police vehicles damaged, was branded as “unacceptable” by Britain’s interior minister, Priti Patel.”Thuggery and disorder by a minority will never be tolerated,” she said.What started as a peaceful demonstration of around 3,000 people on College Green in the heart of the city in western England turned violent after hundreds of protesters descended on the New Bridewell police station.Many demonstrators donned face masks and carried placards criticizing the legislation, such as “Say no to U.K. police state” and “Freedom to protest is fundamental to democracy.”The protesters were ostensibly venting their anger at the government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which is currently going through parliament. Under the terms of the legislation, which covers England and Wales, police will be handed new powers to tackle demonstrations.Sue Mountstevens, police and crime commissioner for the Avon and Somerset region, said seven people have been arrested but that there would be “many more” detained.”It’s disgraceful and outrageous,” she said. “Police officers went to work yesterday and some have returned home via hospital battered and bruised.”Protesters attempted to smash the windows of the glass-fronted police station and damaged 12 vehicles, including two that were set on fire.Andy Marsh, chief constable of Avon and Somerset Police, said 12 police vehicles were damaged and “significant damage” was caused to the New Bridewell police station.”Officers were pelted with stones and missiles and fireworks and it was a terrifying situation for them to deal with,” he said.”I believe the events of yesterday were hijacked by extremists, people who were determined to commit criminal damage, to generate very negative sentiment about policing and to assault our brave officers,” he added.Two of the police officers injured were treated in hospital after suffering broken ribs and an arm. Both have since been discharged.Bristol mayor Marvin Rees, who said he had “major concerns” about the bill, condemned the violence and said the unrest would be used to justify the legislation.One of the reasons why the British government has pushed through new legislation on the police’s powers over protests relates to last summer’s anti-racism protests, including the toppling of a statue of slave trader, Edward Colston, in Bristol.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Brussels Monday for meetings this week that the State Department says are aimed at boosting ties with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies and partnering on issues such as climate change, counterterrorism and ongoing efforts in combating the coronavirus pandemic. Blinken is scheduled to take part in a meeting of NATO foreign ministers Tuesday and Wednesday, and to also hold talks with NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. “It’ll be an opportunity for the secretary and the foreign ministers to discuss the NATO 2030 initiative,” Acting Assistant Secretary Philip Reeker for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs told reporters ahead of Blinken’s trip. “Proposals under that [2030 initiative] for alliance adaptation, concerns over China and Russia, as well as climate change, cybersecurity, hybrid threats, combating terrorism, energy security — clearly the global pandemic enters into this, and other common challenges that we face together.”Banners displaying the NATO logo are placed at the entrance of new NATO headquarters during the move to the new building, March 18, 2021.After four years of foreign policy under former President Donald Trump that focused only on prioritizing U.S. interests, Reeker said Blinken will deliver a speech in Brussels outlining a commitment to “rebuilding and revitalizing alliances” while highlighting the importance of NATO.  “We know we’re stronger and better able to overcome challenges when we face them together, and we’re going to modernize our alliances, mend them as needed, and deal with the world as we face it,” Reeker said. Blinken’s itinerary also includes a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Union’s (EU) foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. The State Department said agenda items include economic recovery efforts in response to the coronavirus pandemic and addressing “global challenges that come from Iran, Russia and China.” Specifically, regarding Iran, Reeker said the top U.S. diplomat will consult with EU colleagues about the prospects of the United States and Iran mutually returning to the agreement signed in 2015 that limited Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Both the United States, which left the deal under Trump in 2018, and Iran, which responded by taking steps away from its commitments, have expressed a willingness to observe the agreement once again, but each has signaled the other side should start first. The final part of Blinken’s trip agenda is bilateral talks with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sophie Wilmès. 
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Germany will likely institute another lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, which would make it the latest European country enacting fresh restrictions.A draft of recommendations to be presented to German Chancellor Angela Merkel will push for lockdowns to be extended until April 18, Reuters reported Sunday.In Poland, which is seeing the highest number of daily cases since November, new measures have forced nonessential shops and other facilities to close for three weeks.  Poland recorded more than 26,000 new cases Sunday and more than 350 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.  Nonessential stores have also been closed in Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv, where only food markets are allowed to stay open. It recorded more than 15,000 new cases Sunday and nearly 270 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Largest Vaccine Producer Delays Shipments to Some CountriesSome European countries resume use of AstraZeneca vaccineAbout one-third of France’s population is under lockdown after measures were imposed Friday in Paris and several regions in northern and southern parts of the country. More than 4,300 people were in intensive care units in France Saturday, the health ministry said, the most this year.About 6.1 million people in France have received their first COVID-19 shot, or just less than 12% of the adult population.But in Marseille, in the south of France, thousands of people took to the streets Sunday to celebrate carnival in defiance of pandemic restrictions.In the United States, officials in the popular Florida tourist destination of Miami Beach extended an emergency curfew of 8 p.m. for up to three weeks after dozens were arrested Saturday. Officials say 1,000 people have been arrested in the beach town since March 1. On Saturday, crowds of Spring Break partiers were met with pepper spray balls and SWAT teams in the beachfront city as they defied the highly unusual 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew. On February 26, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, said the state is an “oasis of freedom” from coronavirus restrictions. Meanwhile, the world’s largest vaccine producer has told at least three countries that their COVID vaccine shipments will be delayed. The Serum Institute of India has informed Brazil, Morocco and Saudi Arabia that India’s overwhelming need for the vaccine is the cause of the delay.India is experiencing a surge in infections. The South Asian nation has the third-highest number of coronavirus cases, with 11.6 million. Only the United States and Brazil have more, at 28.7 million and 11.9, respectively.India’s Serum Institute has come under criticism for selling or donating more vaccines than putting shots into arms in India.Meanwhile, Brazil is in talks with the United States to import excess doses of coronavirus vaccines, its Foreign Ministry tweeted Saturday.On Sunday, Brazil reversed a decision that required local authorities to save half their COVID-19 vaccine stockpiles for second doses, instead opting to get the first shots in as many Brazilians as possible.The South American country’s vaccine campaign has lagged, as it recorded 79,069 new cases of coronavirus infections in a 24-hour period, its Health Ministry said Saturday, and reported more than 2,400 COVID-19 deaths.The U.S. has millions of doses of vaccine developed by Britain’s University of Oxford and the pharmaceutical giant that have been approved by the World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency but not for use in the U.S. yet.Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who famously told his country to “stop whining” about the country’s death from “a little flu,” has signed three measures to speed the purchase of vaccines, including those from Pfizer-BioNTech and Johnson & Johnson.
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A year ago, Greece prided itself on successfully quashing its coronavirus curve like few countries worldwide. Now, it is struggling with a roaring resurgence of the bug that causes the COVID-19 disease. As infections continue to surge, the government in Athens is preparing to draft doctors from the private sector to aid the state’s strained health system and hospital staff exhausted by an influx of patients.Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis says Greece is fighting a last battle in its war against the pandemic.But the voluntary assistance it has requested from doctors across the nation, in recent days, has not come through. … And that has the conservative leader here saying he will not think twice about drafting medical personnel from the private sector to reinforce the health care system in the public sector.Greece Sidelines Thousands of Asylum-Seekers in National Inoculation DriveCritics say the policy echoes far-right practices and is further proof Greece is mistreating refugeesThe prime minister’s warning comes as Greece grapples with a surge in coronavirus infections, a startling spike that has seen cases grow from around 3,000 in September to nearly 240,000 this past week.Sofia Pouriki, a doctor at the state Sotiria hospital, describes the severity of the situation.This last wave, she says, is just terrible. She says too many patients are being admitted to hospitals and that is overwhelming the health care system with intensive care wards running out of beds to treat people.Hospital doctors and staff, says Pouriki, are exhausted.  Of about 200 doctors requested by the government to assist their colleagues in the public sector, just 50 have come forward. Worse yet, attempts over the weekend to woo them with bonus fees failed.  Doctors associations across the country say the government should first recruit residents at state hospitals and other medical staff waiting to be hired before proceeding with the order, which they describe as absolutely extreme.Athanasios Exadaktylos, president of the country’s doctors’ federation, warns against it.Ultimatums of this sort he says, can only prove counterproductive.  Much of Greece has been in lockdown since November, fueling frustration, riots and deepening financial woes in a country still crawling out from a decade-long recession.  And while draconian measures have not helped the government effectively manage the health crisis, it is now opting for a different approach, allowing shops and businesses to operate anew in a desperate bid to least salvage the failing state of the economy.The government says it will also start distributing free self-test kits in the coming weeks to alleviate pressure on the health care system. Experts say the move may pave the way for a new way of self-care against the pandemic within the European Union. 
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U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s surprise withdrawal from a European treaty aimed at protecting women against violence.In a statement, Biden called Turkey’s rejection of the treaty “unwarranted” and “deeply disappointing.”“Countries should be working to strengthen and renew their commitments to ending violence against women, not rejecting international treaties designed to protect women and hold abusers accountable,” the U.S. leader said. “This is a disheartening step backward for the international movement to end violence against women globally.”Turkey’s Erdogan Quits European Treaty on Violence Against WomenNo reason was provided for the withdrawalIn 2011, Turkey was the first European country to adopt the pact known as the Istanbul Convention, but Erdogan withdrew from it early Saturday. In recent years, Erdogan and other members of his ruling party claimed the agreement reached in Turkey’s largest city undermined the country’s conservative policies.“We will not leave room for a handful of deviants who try to turn the debate into a tool of hostility to our values,” Erdogan told his party during a speech in Ankara in August.The accord was aimed at eliminating domestic violence and promoting equality, but femicide has nonetheless surged in Turkey in recent years.Conservatives in Turkey and in Erdogan’s Islamist-rooted ruling AKP contended that the accord undercut family structures and encouraged violence.Some critics also were opposed to the pact’s principle of gender equality and viewed it as promoting homosexuality, given the convention’s call for non-discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation.”Preserving our traditional social fabric” will protect the dignity of Turkish women, Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Twitter. “For this sublime purpose, there is no need to seek the remedy outside or to imitate others.”Family, Labor and Social Policies Minister Zehra Zumrut said the Turkish constitution and laws guarantee women’s rights.The Council of Europe said the Turkish action was “devastating.”“The Istanbul Convention covers 34 European countries and is widely regarded as the gold standard in international efforts to protect women and girls from the violence that they face every day in our societies,” the council said in a statement.“This move is a huge setback to these efforts and all the more deplorable because it compromises the protection of women in Turkey, across Europe and beyond,” the council said.In his statement, Biden said, “Gender-based violence is a scourge that touches every nation in every corner of the world. In the past few weeks, we’ve seen too many examples of horrific and brutal assaults on women, including the tragic murders in (the U.S. state of) Georgia.” He was referring to a shooting last week in the Atlanta area in which six of eight people killed were women of Asian descent.“And we’ve seen the broader damage that living under the daily specter of gender-based violence does to women everywhere,” the U.S. leader said. “It hurts all of us, and we all must do more to create societies where women are able to go about their lives free from violence.”
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Russia’s ambassador to the United States returned to Moscow on Sunday after being recalled for emergency consultations amid rising tensions with Washington following President Joe Biden’s comments that he believed his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, was a killer. 
 
Biden’s remark in a TV interview earlier in the week in turn prompted a terse quip from Vladimir Putin who wished the U.S. president “good health” and said that people tend to refer to others as they really see themselves. 
 
The Biden interview came on the heels of the release of a report by the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence that concluded Putin had “authorized, and a range of Russian government organizations conducted, influence operations aimed at denigrating President Biden’s candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting former President [Donald] Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process and exacerbating sociopolitical divisions in the United States.” 
 
The Kremlin immediately denied the findings of the report, saying they were “absolutely unfounded.” 
 
Ambassador Anatoly Antonov landed at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport early on March 21, Russian news agencies reported, after he was recalled last week over the spat. Before takeoff in New York he told news agencies he would stay in Moscow “as long as needed” and that several meetings were scheduled. 
 
“The Russian side has always stressed that we are interested in the development of Russian-American relations to the same extent as our American colleagues are,” he was quoted as saying by TASS. 
 
Moscow, which rarely recalls ambassadors, last summoned its envoy in the United States in 1998 over a Western bombing campaign in Iraq. 
 
In 2014, after the U.S. said Russia would face repercussions for the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, Putin held back on recalling Moscow’s envoy, describing the measure as a “last resort.” Biden, who has spent more than four decades in politics, said “I do” during an ABC News interview broadcast on March 17 when asked if he believed the Russian president was a killer. 
 
The Kremlin immediately responded that Biden’s statement was “very bad” and “unprecedented.” 
 
Putin has since proposed a phone call with Biden to talk about the COVID-19 pandemic and regional conflicts, among other topics, and said it should be open to the public. 
 
The Kremlin has suggested the offer was intended to avoid permanent damage in Russian-U.S. relations from Biden’s characterization. 
 
Putin’s two decades as Russia’s leader have included Western accusations of state-sponsored assassination attempts against political opponents at home and abroad, though no U.S. president had previously said in public that they believed the Russian leader was directly responsible for murder. 
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French language lovers could celebrate International Francophonie Day on Saturday with a new online interactive dictionary. Rolled out by the French government, it reflects not only the language’s evolution but also the reality that most of today’s speakers are not French.Did you receive a “pourriel” or “throw a camel” today? If you are wondering what these expressions mean, you will not find the answers here in France. In Canadian French, a pourriel — a version of courriel, French for email — means spam mail. When you “lance un chameau” or throw a camel in the Democratic Republic of Congo, you have made a spelling mistake.Both these expressions are included in a new online dictionary sponsored by the French government.French Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot says the dictionary is not just for France’s 67 million citizens, but for the 300 million French speakers worldwide. It aims to modernize and enrich the French language, she says, embracing its evolution.President Emmanuel Macron proposed the idea of this Francophones’ Dictionary in 2018. The dictionary already contains about 600,000 terms.It got a new word last week, when Louise Mushikiwabo, who heads the International Organization of la Francophonie, representing French-speaking countries, proposed “techniquer” — which in her native Rwanda means figuring out creative solutions with limited resources.Unlike past dictionaries, which were products of elite French academics, this dictionary is interactive, democratic — and a work in progress. Anybody can propose a word. A group of experts will decide whether it should be added.So, what do non-French francophones think about the new dictionary? A stroll through a multicultural Paris neighborhood provided some insight.Mimi, from Senegal, immediately checked out the dictionary on her smartphone. She couldn’t think of any words to propose right away, but she found the idea interesting.Longtime resident Nicole Sika offered up “go” — which means your female friend in her native Ivory Coast — or “zo” — which means you are smartly dressed.Other French dictionaries have expanded their lexicon. The iconic Le Petit Larousse French dictionary has added words like “taxier” — an Algerian expression meaning, not surprisingly, taxi driver. But this new, interactive dictionary is the first sponsored by France’s government, ending three centuries in which only the elite French Academy determined which words to include.“The French no longer have a monopoly on French,” French magazine L’Express wrote recently, “and that is good news.”
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