News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Mitterlehner does not want Finance post

The designated head of the ÖVP, Reinhold Mitterlehner, has said he does not want to take on the position of Finance Minister. The key government post was one of three high profile positions left vacant yesterday after the surprise resignation of Michael Spindelegger. At an emergency meeting last night in Vienna, the ÖVP's executive committee unanimously selected Mitterlehner to take over as party head, meaning he will now also take over as Vice-Chancellor.

Poland says Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine

Speaking a few moments ago in Kiev, Ukraine's Prime Minister said he has information indicating that Russia is planning a blockade of gas deliveries to the E.U. this winter. Staying with that story and Poland says its secret service has definitive proof that Russian soldiers are being used in active combat in Eastern Ukraine, countering claims by the Kremlin that pro-Russia rebel groups are made up of volunteer fighters. The new revelations come amid fierce fighting in Ukraine and one day after Russia's President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko held their first direct talks over the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine. The meeting brought no real breakthrough, but Poroshenko said a "roadmap" to end the fighting would be drawn up: "A road map will be made on the basis of the peace plan. We'll try have consultations through the contact group to reach a ceasefire as soon as possible. It will be secured by the members of the OSCE monitoring mission."

IMF Head under investigation for fraud

The head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, has been placed under formal investigation by French magistrates for her alleged role in a long-running political fraud case. The allegations date back to her days as French Finance Minister and her role in a 400 million-euro payment to a businessman. In French law, magistrates place someone under formal investigation when they believe there are indications of wrongdoing, but it does not always lead to a trial.

Israel and Palestinians agree long-term ceasefire

A long-term ceasefire agreed between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip has come into force. The truce - which is aimed at ending 7 weeks of conflict - was brokered by Egypt. It calls for Israel to ease its blockade of Gaza so that aid and construction materials can get in. Mark Regev is a spokesman for the Israeli government: "Ultimately, we give a green light for support to Gaza's people. We will support civilian reconstruction, but we will not support, for obvious reasons, the rebuilding of Hamas' military machine."

Afghanistan faces conflict over vote re-count

Efforts to resolve the prolonged dispute over Afghanistan's recent presidential election are close to collapse, threatening to divide the country and spark renewed conflict. A UN-supervised recount of votes began a month ago after both candidates in the run-off claimed victory. But now one of the candidates, Abdullah Abdullah, says he will boycott the re-count due to widespread fraud.

The weather

While frequent sunny periods can be expected in the south, the rest of the country can expect rain and thundershowers before partly clear skies later in the day. Windy with highs ranging from 14 to 25 degrees.

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