TOP NEWS

The future of the EU
Kristersson met Meloni at snowy summit

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) has today met several European leaders in Finnish Lapland. The “north-south” summit was attended by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo was also present.

The leaders discussed, among other things, European defense, Ukraine and migration issues, writes the Italian news agency Ansa.

“Europe needs to take greater responsibility for our own security,” writes Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in a statement with a picture from a snowy Finland.

Political situation in Italy
Salvini acquitted of stopping migrant boat in 2019

Italy's deputy prime minister, far-right politician Matteo Salvini, has been acquitted in court after stopping a Spanish rescue boat with 147 migrants from docking at the island of Lampedusa, writes AP.

The incident occurred in 2019 when Salvini was interior minister. He has always maintained his innocence of the charges.

- Protecting our country's borders from smugglers is not a crime, Salvini said after the court's decision on Friday.

New elections in Iceland
Iceland has a new coalition government

A new coalition government led by Kristrún Frostadóttir and her party, the Social Democratic Alliance, has been formed in Iceland, reports AFP.

The party, which won the largest number of votes with 20.8 percent in the new elections on December 1, will govern together with the Liberal Reform Party and the People's Party.

“These three parties have received a very strong mandate,” says 36-year-old Frostadóttir, who will become one of Iceland’s youngest prime ministers.

High inflation and interest rates will be the new government’s first priority.

The new election was called after Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson, who belongs to the Independence Party, dissolved his coalition in mid-October after a row over migration and asylum policy.

Political situation in Albania
Albania bans Tiktok for a year after murder case

Albania is shutting down Tiktok in the country for a year after the murder of a 14-year-old boy raised concerns about the impact of social media on young people, reports The Guardian.

The boy was stabbed to death by a classmate in November, which was preceded by a row on social media. Clips were also spread on Tiktok in which other young people praised the murder.

Prime Minister Edi Rama blames social media, and Tiktok in particular, for fueling violence among young people.

– The problem is not our children, but us and our society [...] Tiktok and the others are taking our children hostage, he says.
 

Roof collapse in Serbia
Serbia's Vucic on demands for resignation: "I don't care"

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will not give in to the protests and demands for resignation after the deadly roof collapse.

– Let me be completely honest: I don't actually care. They can do whatever they want, he says according to AFP.

Vucic adds that his lesson from politics is not to give in to "pressure and harangues".

It was on November 1 that a roof collapsed at a train station in the city of Novi Sad, killing 15 people. Since then, student- and teacher-led demonstrations have been taking place in the country, with accusations of corruption and a lack of oversight within the government.