00:00Former Cuban President Raul Castro indicted in the U.S. over the 1996 fatal downing of two civilian planes operated
00:08by exiles of the country.
00:11Montenegro marks 20 years of independence from a union with Serbia this week, eyeing integration into the EU as its
00:17next milestone.
00:20The European Union has vowed to stand firm with its strategy to squeeze Russia's war economy, as the United Kingdom
00:27scrambles to reassure its allies that its latest decisions fall short of lifting sanctions.
00:33London caused confusion on Tuesday when it published an open-ended license allowing the imports of diesel and jet fuel
00:40made from Russian crude and other countries, such as Turkey and India, where the oil is purchased at discounted prices.
00:47A separate license was also made available, which enables the provision of short-term service contracts with Russia's Sakhalin II
00:55and Yamal LNG projects until January 2027.
00:59The publication caught Brussels by surprise, who refrained from commenting on their allies' move, but stressed their continued commitment to
01:07banning Russian energy.
01:08We remain committed to our sanctions on imports of Russian oil and gas, and we need to reiterate the call
01:25for Russians not to be benefiting from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
01:33It's too ironic.
01:35The UK, however, sought to portray the debacle as a case of bad communication.
01:40What we announced yesterday was a strong new package of new sanctions, going well beyond existing sanctions.
01:49So it's a new package.
01:50This includes new bans on maritime services on LNG, and new bans on refined oil products from Russia.
01:58We also issued two targeted short-term licenses to phase the new sanctions in and to protect UK consumers.
02:09Ukraine said it was clarifying with the UK what the new move would entail, noting that it was concerned with
02:15the added revenues it may generate for Moscow's budget.
02:18The news from London also comes just one day after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant confirmed Washington will extend
02:26its waiver on Russian oil at sea for the third time this year.
02:32The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday inducted 94-year-old former Cuban President Raul Castro on murder charges.
02:40Raul Castro, who is the brother of the late Fidel Castro, is accused over the 1996 downing of a plane
02:47that carried critics of the Cuban state.
02:50An unsealed indictment accuses him and others of conspiracy to kill Americans, among other charges.
02:57Today, we are announcing an indictment, charging Raul Castro and several others with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals.
03:13Mr. Castro and the others are charged with additional crimes as well, including destruction of aircraft and four individual counts
03:22of murder.
03:23Current Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel denounced the indictment, calling the charges a political maneuver devoid of any legal foundation.
03:33Raul Castro succeeded his brother, Fidel, as president of Cuba and oversaw a historic 2015 rapprochement with the United States
03:42under Barack Obama that Donald Trump later reversed.
03:46Tensions between Washington and Havana have spiked in recent months since U.S. forces ousted Cuba's regional ally, Venezuela's president,
03:56Nicolas Maduro,
03:57and then imposed a painful energy blockade on the already economically struggling island nation.
04:03Speaking after the indictment, U.S. President Donald Trump said there was no need for escalation with Cuba.
04:14An air raid alert was issued on Wednesday morning across parts of Lithuania, with authorities urging people to take shelter.
04:22Vilnius Airport was briefly closed due to the alert, which was lifted after less than an hour at 11 in
04:29the morning.
04:29The country's defense ministry said NATO Baltic air policing had been activated after a suspected drone had been detected approaching
04:39from Belarus, near to the border.
04:41Such alerts have become increasingly common in Baltic states, such as Estonia and Finland, due to Ukraine stepping up strikes
04:49in the nearby St. Petersburg region.
04:52This, however, was the first time in an EU and NATO member state since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine
04:59in 2022.
05:01Latvia's prime minister stepped down last week after a political row over her response to drones crash landing in the
05:08country.
05:09In a statement posted on social media soon after the alert, European Commission President von der Leyen placed responsibility on
05:17the drone alerts with Russia and Belarus,
05:20declaring that Europe would respond with unity and strength.
05:26Portuguese people are among the Europeans most eager to travel in 2026, according to Europe Assistance Annual Summer Vacation Barometer.
05:35Despite the unstable geopolitical climate, there are still those who choose to travel abroad.
05:41I plan to go to Cabo Verde, which is my land of Natal.
05:45I think that this war has influenced a lot of things, especially on the price of the tickets, which are
05:52now exorbitant.
05:54However, the Portuguese show a greater preference for travelling within the country, especially to the beaches of Algarve, with a
06:01slight decrease in international travel.
06:04The war in the Middle East seems to have dampened some travellers' interest in going abroad, mainly due to financial
06:10constraints and increased safety concerns.
06:13I plan to go to the streets and, therefore, I have marked the streets for Algarve, for Portugal, because I
06:20think now it's a bit complicated to go abroad.
06:22And that's why we hold the streets, as much as possible to go abroad,
06:26and therefore, face to the situation that seems to be seen in the future, we keep the streets here,
06:35we keep it in Portugal, to avoid the most costs possible.
06:38Conditiona a little bit, I thought I was going to go faster, but I was going to go.
06:44I was afraid.
06:46And, all of this, are also very expensive, the travel and all kinds of all.
07:10Inflation remains the main reason holding people back when making plans.
07:14Portugal is the European country where this fear is most pronounced,
07:18and it's also the European country where high prices have the greatest impact on the budget set aside for leisure.
07:29Montenegro marks 20 years of independence from a union with Serbia this week,
07:34with concerts and various celebrations being held in the capital Potgorica and other towns across the country.
07:41Having already joined NATO in 2017,
07:43the country's next milestone is full integration into the European Union, according to the president.
07:50Support for EU in Montenegro is very strong.
07:55It's currently at about 80%.
07:5880% of the citizens of Montenegro support Montenegro's EU accession.
08:04And this is ultimately what really makes Montenegro a resilient future member state of the EU.
08:13Montenegro is considered a frontrunner for EU membership among the six countries in the Western Balkans.
08:19The EU has formed a working group to draft an accession treaty, a signal that membership remains within reach.
08:25What was missing in the last 14 years, we have to provide now just in the six months, you know.
08:31So it's really demanding, but, you know, the process is going on.
08:36So we are, with each close to negotiating chapters, we are a step closer to the European Union.
08:42So, as I said, I think this is a clear perspective, but it will probably take longer than six months.
08:49EU officials are expected to reiterate the message at a meeting in the coastal Montenegrin town of Tivat in early
08:56June
08:56with the leaders of Western Balkan candidate nations, including Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo.
09:08For the first time, Athens is hosting a major exhibition dedicated to the extraordinary artist and performer Tilda Swinton,
09:15whose unforgettable screen presence has captivated audiences for decades.
09:18In the exhibition ongoing, Swinton brings together costumes, personal objects, photographs and film excerpts linked to the creative collaboration
09:26and friendships she has developed over the past 40 years with eight influential figures from cinema and fashion.
09:34What seems to happen is, you're a young emerging artist, you've had your first album, your first collection, your first
09:40film, your first book.
09:41You got there out of a web, a web of friendship, a web of your family, a web of your
09:47university, your art school, your college, whatever.
09:50And then you're encouraged, sometimes subtly, sometimes not so subtly by the record label or the gallerist or the film
10:00studio to just go solo, to just separate yourself.
10:04You're now, it's important for you to brand yourself as a commodity.
10:09And so, I thought, ha, my show at I, this is what I could maybe offer as some way of
10:19being useful, a portrait of a different way of working, which happens to be accurate to my story.
10:27The exhibition is a collaboration between Onasi Stegi and I Film Museum, where it was first presented.
10:34The acclaimed actress shares with visitors the defining moments and collaborations that have shaped her artistic journey,
10:40from her early work with Derek Jarman to her more recent projects with Perder Almodovar.
10:45Derek Jarman always used to say, prepare to go to the set as if you're going to a party.
10:52And that was really how it was.
10:55And, as we all know, a good party is a party, you don't, you know, you don't want the host
11:01to be completely responsible for the energy in the room.
11:06You don't want a bunch of guests who stand around waiting for the host to tell them how to have
11:11a good time.
11:12A good party is shared, the energy is shared with everybody.
11:16Somebody puts on the music, somebody pours the drinks, somebody brings the food.
11:20Till the Swinton Ongoing runs until June 28th and is accompanied by a Summer Rooftop Film Screening Program at Onasi's
11:27Ready Cultural Center.
Comments