Political News
Canada-EU sees $27 billion in gains from freer trade
QUEBEC CITY (Reuters) - The European Union and Canada would stand to gain about $27 billion a year by liberalizing bilateral trade further, according to a joint study issued on Thursday on the eve of their annual summit. Read more…
Fire damages 19th century Czech building in Prague
PRAGUE, Czech Republic - An official says a fire has destroyed part of a landmark 19th century exhibition hall in the Czech capital. Read more…
White House: No new policies from Camp David meet
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Thursday said that it did not expect any new policy announcements from the weekend Camp David meeting of President George W. Bush, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on the financial crisis. Read more…
EU climate pact under veto threat as financial crisis bites
BRUSSELS (AFP) - European Union leaders fought growing pressure on Thursday to roll back their climate change plans, standing by their targets and timetable for the package as the financial crisis bites. Read more…
U.S. and Canada win EU beef hormone appeal at WTO
GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Trade Organization's (WTO) top court largely backed the United States and Canada on Thursday in a mixed ruling in an appeal over the European Union's long-standing ban on beef treated with growth hormones. The dispute, dating back to the 1980s, has led to U.S. and Canadian sanctions of $125 million a year on European products from Roquefort cheese to mustard, and has highlighted the power of food safety issues to disrupt trade. Read more…
Spanish judge starts probe of Civil War atrocities
MADRID, Spain - A Spanish judge opened a criminal investigation Thursday into atrocities committed during the Spanish Civil War and ensuing right-wing dictatorship, launching the first official probe into one of the darkest chapters of the nation's history. Read more…
WTO backs U.S. and Canada in EU beef hormone appeal
GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Trade Organization's top court largely backed the United States and Canada on Thursday in a mixed ruling in an appeal over the European Union's long-standing ban on beef treated with growth hormones. Read more…
Red Cross: Iran, Iraq agree to trace war missing
GENEVA - Iran and Iraq have signed an agreement to trace missing persons from the war between the two countries in the 1980s, the International Committee of the Red Cross said Thursday. Read more…
15 EU countries on track to meet Kyoto targets
COPENHAGEN, Denmark - The European Union's environment agency says 15 member states should meet their commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions under the Kyoto treaty. Read more…
Alleged top mobster arrested from bunker in Italy
ROME - Italian police say they have arrested an alleged fugitive mobster believed to be the head of an organized crime clan involved in the slaying of six people in Germany last year. Read more…