Paris-Berlin Relations: Why Do the Two Remain at Odds?

Defense and economic issues may exacerbate existing tensions between France and Germany in the near future.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna did not think twice before arguing that both President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz share the view that the relationship between Paris and Berlin remains a "driving force" for Europe in her recent comments. It seems, however, that the two’s current relations are not that smooth.

Read more

🗯"The US for about 20 years was constantly harping on the fact that China subsidizes many of its industries and it finally sort of gave up because it wasn't ever winning those cases before WTO tribunals. And the reason is fairly simple, and that is that the WTO rules prohibit subsidizing industries with a view toward or with the aim of out-competing other countries in export sectors," Robert Hockett, law and public policy professor at Cornell University, said.

🎧Listen to more of Hockett's analysis in our podcast: Feds Probe Musk, Russian Airfield Explosions, Georgia Runoff

EU Likely to Impose Price Cap on TTF Gas Futures Before Year End, Von der Leyen Says

The European Union is likely to introduce a price cap for gas futures on the TTF, Europe's main trading hub for natural resources, before the end of 2022, with disagreements over the ceiling's level expected to be settled soon, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

The European Commission proposed a "safety price ceiling" of 275 euros ($289) for TTF gas futures on November 22. However, on November 24, the EU energy ministers failed to reach an agreement on the issue and scheduled a new meeting for December 13. On Tuesday, reports suggested that EU member countries wanted to lower the cap to 220 euros per MWh.

Read more

More Than 1,000 New York Times Guild Members to Strike Thursday - a First in Decades

The last NewsGuild strike of this size was a multi-day strike in September and October of 1965. It shut down multiple papers for days, including the Baltimore Sun and the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner.

The New York Times members of the NewsGuild are planning to walk out for a one-day strike on Thursday after union representatives and management were unable to reach a deal acceptable to both sides.

Last week, 1,100 NYT Guild members signed a letter stating they would walk out if their demands were not met or a reasonable compromise could not be reached. Just after 7 p.m. (EST) the guild released a statement confirming their walkout.

Read more

The CIA has warned Turkey that strikes against Syria threaten US troops - report

CIA Director Bill Burns told the head of Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization, Hakan Fidan, that Turkish artillery fire and airstrikes in northern Syria are putting US troops at risk, according to a US media outlet.

The call between the two intelligence agency heads came after a Turkish airstrike reportedly landed less than 1,000 feet from US troops stationed in the Kurdish-dominated Al-Hasakah Governorate in northern Syria.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Russia's Health Ministry has refuted a joint report by UNAIDS and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control that claimed Russia was among the world's top five countries in terms of HIV infection rates. The ministry called the report "another propaganda provocation" against Russia.

▪️According to the country's health ministry, the incidence of HIV infection in Russia decreased by 31.4% from 2018 to 2021, from 58.6 to 40.2 per 100,000 people.

▪️The ministry added that by the end of 2021, the number of people living with HIV in Russia numbered only 851,754, which is about 0.58% of the country's population.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🌏UN Secreteary-General Antonio Guterres at the Biodiversity Conference called for 'true peace pact' with nature

💬"It’s time for the world to adopt an ambitious biodiversity framework — a true peace pact with nature — to deliver a green, healthy future for all," Guterres told reporters at the UN biodiversity conference in Montreal.

▪️He called on governments to develop national action plans on biodiversity preservation and private businesses to put nature protection as a priority in their business plans.

▪️Guterres is present at the 2022 UN Biodiversity Conference taking place in Montreal from December 7-19.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🇧🇷🐈‍⬛ The representative of the Brazilian national team felt that the cat was disturbing him during the press conference at the World Cup and threw it off the table. The video went viral, leaving viewers debating if the kitty was mistreated

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

🤔 White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre refused to answer a reporter's questions about Biden's talks with Twitter during the election, citing the Hatch Act, which prohibits civil service employees in the executive branch of the federal government except the president and vice president from engaging in some form of political activity.

"I'm covered by the Hatch Act and so I'm just not going to comment on the question that you're asking me," said Karine Jean-Pierre.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Latest statements by Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov:

▪️Russia's Finance Ministry intends to minimize the use of the National Welfare Fund (NWF) in financing the budget deficit, will enter the debt market;

▪️The ministry intends to use the funds of the NWF primarily for investments in infrastructure projects;

▪️ Russia's budget deficit in 2022 will be about 2% of the GDP;

▪️Russia is preparing countermeasures to the attempt to impose a price cap on oil;

▪️It is still premature to talk about the oil price cap's effect on Russia's national budget;

▪️The introduction of a price cap on oil will have consequences for the world market.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

⚡️An update from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov:

▪️Russia is not going to include new territories, but parts of Russia's new regions occupied by Kiev will have to be liberated;

▪️Germany's statements about Ukraine's attacks on Russian territories do not contribute to the resolution of conflict;

▪️Kremlin on risks of potential attacks in Sevastopol and Crimea: they exist, Kiev continues a policy of organizing attacks, but measures have been taken;

▪️Kremlin on the Triple Gas Union (Russia-Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan): gas will not be supplied in exchange for political conditions, it is about coordination in the energy sector;

▪️Each country will continue to sell its resources focusing on commercial benefits within the framework of the Triple Gas Union;

▪️Moscow is finishing the preparation of countermeasures to the West's decision to impose a price cap on Russia’s oil.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📱 A phone thief in Dewsbury, UK, tried to escape the store with two brand-new smartphones. However, the door suddenly locked and the thief couldn’t manage to run away.

“My mate's outside! He forced me to do it," the intruder told the store owner after he was caught red-handed.

While some social media users laughed at the thief's excuses, others wondered how it was possible for the owner to lock the door remotely: he’s not seen pressing any alarm button on the video.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗️Russian’s MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️Russian forces performed multiple high-precision strikes on Ukrainian targets, destroying five US-made MLRSs and German-made MARS-II MLRS in the Zaporozhye region;

▪️The Russian Army destroyed two US-made HIMARS rocket systems in the DPR;

▪️As a result of the Russia’s high-precision air strike in the Kharkov region, more than 90 Polish mercenaries were eliminated;

▪️Russian forces eliminated more than 60 Ukrainian troops, as well as three infantry combat vehicles and two other vehicles near Krasny Liman (DPR);

▪️The Russian Army eliminated more than 70 Ukrainian troops, as well as two infantry combat vehicles and three other vehicles near Kupyansk (Kharkov region);

▪️Russian troops eliminated more than 30 Ukrainian soldiers, as well as a Ukrainian infantry combat vehicle, armored carrier and two other vehicles near Nikol’skoye settlement (DPR);

▪️Russian forces hit 93 Ukrainian artillery units at their firing positions;

▪️Russian troops destroyed the Ukrainian Tochka-U rocket system in the Kharkov region, as well as a US-made AN/TPQ-50 radar station in the DPR;

▪️Russian air defense destroyed five Ukrainian UAVs, as well as intercepted 15 HIMARS, Olkha, Uragan and HARM rockets.

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

📹 "They smoked weed, sniffed spice - I saw it a couple of times": A Ukrainian soldier who laid down his arms speaks about how his colleagues used drugs and how his friend was trained by US instructors

Subscribe to @SputnikInt

World’s Oldest DNA Found in Greenland Reveals Arctic’s Lost Nature

The world’s oldest known fragments of DNA have been found in the permafrost of Cape Copenhagen at the northern edge of Greenland, offering an extraordinary glimpse at the extraordinary ancient ecosystem of the world’s largest island.

The analyzed genetic material dates back at least two million years, which is nearly twice as old as the mammoth DNA from Siberia which was the previous record holder.

Read more