News from Italy
The News: Short Weekly World Tour
Lithuania: Announced that it has ended energy trade with Russia. As of May 22, it completely stopped buying oil, electricity and natural gas from Russia. (23 May 2022)
USA – President Joe Biden announced that they have launched the “Indo-Pacific Economic Framework” (IPEF) with 13 countries, including Japan. (23 May 2022)
Iran – An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.5 occurred in the province of Sistan-Baluchistan, located in the southeast of the country. (23 May 2022)
Australia – The leader of the victorious Labor Party, Anthony Albanese, took the oath as the country’s 31st prime minister at a ceremony held in the capital, Canberra. (23 May 2022)
UN- The United Nations reported that the number of displaced people exceeded 100 million. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has called for urgent international action to address the underlying causes of conflicts and the climate crisis, called the “Stunning Milestone”. (23 May 2022)
Russia – State Department Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claimed that George Orwell’s dystopian book 1984 is about the end of liberalism, not totalitarianism. (23 May 2022)
Belarus – President Lukashenko: “Poland wants to take the western part of Ukraine”. (May 23, 2022)
Italy- Europe’s largest volcano Etna has started to erupt again, spewing lava. (23 May 2022)
Russia – Coffee chain Starbucks has announced that it will withdraw from the Russian market. Starbucks has 130 stores and approximately 2,000 employees in Russia. (23 May 2022)
USA / Ukraine – USA announced that 20 countries will provide new weapons aid to Ukraine
Oxfam /Poverty – International charity Oxfam has called for action, noting that the wealth of the world’s wealthiest people has increased by 42 per cent during the Covid-19 pandemic, and 250 million people face the threat of extreme poverty this year. (23 May 2022)
USA / China – The statement of US President Joe Biden during his Tokyo visit, “We will respond if there is an attack on Taiwan”, came from China. “The United States should not underestimate the determination of the Chinese people to protect Taiwan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, nor should it stand against the will of the 1.4 billion Chinese,” said Wang Wenbin, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry. (23 May 2022)
EU / Ukraine – The European Union will send an additional 500m euros in support to Ukraine. Together with this aid, the total financial aid provided by the European Union to Ukraine reached 2 billion Euros. (May 24, 2022)
Armenia – Protesters in Armenia stormed the Foreign Ministry to protest the negotiations with Azerbaijan and demand the resignation of the prime minister. (May 24, 2022)
Germany / Russia – German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said that the European Union will decide to impose an embargo on Russian oil imports. (Tuesday, May 24, 2022)
EU /Hungary /Russia: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that the embargo on Russian oil should not be discussed at the European Council meeting next week. (Tuesday, May 24, 2022)
Putin – Putin announced that they will increase cooperation with countries, especially China, that do not comply with the sanctions decisions of the West and that look out for mutual benefit. “The Russian economy will definitely be open,” Putin said. (Tuesday, May 24, 2022)
from the streets one by one. The last pay phone was also removed in New York City, USA. (May 24, 2022)
Airbnb / Chinese market – Housing rental company Airbnb has announced that it will end its operations in the country as of July 30, by joining the Western internet platforms that have decided to withdraw from the Chinese market. (May 24, 2022)
Russia / Sanctions – In a list released over the weekend, the Russian Foreign Ministry banned 963 US citizens from entering the country. (May 24, 2022)
USA / Ukraine – The US Chief of Staff stated that the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine again is a distant possibility and that a presidential decision is needed for this. (May 24, 2022)
Hungary – A new government is formed in Hungary. Hungarian President Katalin Novak approved the cabinet presented by Prime Minister Viktor Orban. (May 24, 2022)
Hungary / State of Emergency – Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who won the general election in Hungary on April 3, declared a state of emergency in Hungary as of midnight due to the Ukraine-Russia war, right after the new government was formed. (May 24, 2022)
NATO / Sweden-Finland – Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced that Sweden and Finland, whose membership applications were vetoed by Turkey, will attend the NATO meeting to be held in Madrid next month. (May 24, 2022)
Russia – NATO – Russian Defense Minister Sergey Soygu said that NATO is approaching the borders of Russia and significantly increasing its combat potential. In his speech at the Meeting of the Ministers of Defense of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Shoigu said that the collective security situation in Eastern Europe has deteriorated significantly and noted that NATO has been expanded to the east and offensive weapons have been deployed near Russian territory. (May 24, 2022)
Armament / Terrorism – 19 students and two teachers lost their lives in a gun attack targeting an elementary school in the US state of Texas. (May 24, 2022)
Ukraine / Poland – Chechen leader Ramazan Kadyrov warned Poland about Ukraine. Kadyrov said that Ukraine should not side with other western countries in defending against Russia. Continuing to say that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy used cocaine in the video published on the official Telegram page, and said, “Ukraine will be ours soon. Mr. Zelensky will either run out of cocaine or come to his senses and accept the conditions presented by our President Vladimir Putin”. (May 27, 2022)
Monkeypox virus – Monkeypox virus which was first detected in Argentina among Latin American countries, also spread to Mexico. The virus has also been seen in eastern Ireland. According to the data of the World Health Organization, the cases of monkeypox virus in the world have exceeded 200. (May 28, 2022)
Myanmar / UN – The United Nations (UN) Security Council could not publish the statement, which was written to convey its concerns about the violence and human rights violations in Myanmar under the junta and to call for a peaceful solution, as a result of the objections of China and Russia. (28 May 2022)
Russia /US /EU /NATO – Russian President Vladimir Putin had a phone call with Macron and Scholz. It was reported that Putin said that the Russian side is open to the resumption of dialogue. It was also stated at the meeting that Putin criticized the shipment of Western weapons to Ukraine and warned that it increased the risks. Noting that global food security concerns were raised during the meeting, the statement said, “Russia is ready to help find options for unhindered grain exports, including Ukrainian grain exports from Black Sea ports. Increasing the supply of Russian fertilizers and agricultural products will also help reduce tensions in the global food market, but this will certainly require the removal of relevant sanctions”. (28 May 2022)
Culture and Art – Cannes 2022 – The film Triangle of Sadness won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. (May 28, 2022)
Health / England – In the UK, companies will not be able to advertise in the media about operations that may attract the attention of people under the age of 18 and change the physical appearance, such as chest or nose surgeries. This includes television and social media. (29 May 2022)
Health / Kinder – The French General Manager of Ferrero, the producer of Kinder chocolates, Nicolas Neykov, stated that the contamination was caused by a filter in the milk fat tank at the factory. “The virus either got there through previously infected raw materials or was transmitted by workers. On December 15, we stopped all production lines and discarded the ones produced. In the following days, all our tests were negative, so we reopened the factory”. (29 May 2022)
NATO – NATO will hold exercises in the Baltic Sea with the participation of tens of warships, warplanes and 7,000 soldiers from many countries. Sweden will host the exercise, which will be held on June 5-17. (29 May 2022)
Plane crash – The plane with 22 people on board disappeared in Nepal. (29 May 2022)
Culture Art – Discovery – Archaeologists discovered Mayan ruins palaces, pyramids and a multi-storey ancient city at the industrial site construction site to be built in Merida, Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula. (29 May 2022)
Japan / Ukraine – The Japanese government announced an emergency aid package of 1.7 million dollars to Ukraine, where Russia continues its attacks. (29 may 2022)
Energy / Russia – Serbia – President Aleksandar Vucic announced that they will sign a 3-year gas purchase agreement with Russia. (29 May 2022)
WHO / Monkeypox – The World Health Organization announced that the cases of monkeypox increased to 257, and 120 suspected cases were investigated. In the statement of the organization, it was stated that the number of cases is likely to increase as the follow-up of the virus expands (29 May 2022)
Natural disaster / Brazil – The number of people who lost their lives due to floods and landslides in the state of Pernambuco on Friday rose to 84. (29 May 2022)
Culture Art / Mona Lisa – Leonardo da Vinci’s work, La Gioconda (Mona Lisa), exhibited at the Louvre Museum in Paris, was attacked again. (29 May 2022)
