Support for Swedish opposition was growing before election called: poll
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Support for Sweden’s main center-right opposition and for the unaligned Sweden Democrats was growing before the government called a snap election, according to a poll released on Friday.
French-Indian Rafale deal to wrap up in ‘months’: French minister
PARIS (Reuters) – A deal between France and India to sell 126 Rafale fighter jets to India in a deal worth an estimated $15 billion will need several months more negotiations, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Friday.
China defends Confucius Institute after new doubts in U.S.
BEIJING (Reuters) – China defended its government-funded Confucius Institute programs on Friday after new questions were raised in the United States about their transparency and effect on academic freedom.
Danish bookseller sentenced to four years for inciting terrorism
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – A Danish-Moroccan bookseller has been jailed for four years for supporting and inciting terrorism in posts on Facebook.
Taiwan reappoints most of cabinet in post-poll reshuffle
TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan put most of its cabinet ministers back to work in a minimal government reshuffle on Friday following a weekend election that trounced the ruling party, prompting the premier to quit and President Ma Ying-jeou to step down as p…
China’s Xi urges faster development of new weapons systems
BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged faster development of advanced new military equipment to help build a strong army, state media reported, as the country steps up an ambitious modernization plan that has rattled nerves across t…
Greenland’s top party shuns opposition, forms coalition
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Greenland’s top political party, which narrowly won a parliamentary election last Friday, has formed a coalition government with two junior parties shunning the main opposition with whom it had talks about sharing power.
Swedish PM sees chance of broad cooperation after March vote
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said on Thursday he expected the country’s mainstream parties to be able to cooperate to exclude the far right after a snap election in March if no bloc wins a majority.
Communist comeback fears hang over German state vote
BERLIN (Reuters) – The Cold War has flared up again in Germany ahead of a tight and unpredictable state assembly vote on Friday in the eastern state of Thuringia, where the reform communist Left party is yearning to take control of a regional governmen…
German accused of fighting for Islamic State to be sentenced
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Judges will give their verdict on Friday and sentence a 20-year-old German accused of fighting for Islamic State in Syria in the first case of its kind in Germany, where dozens of suspected home-grown jihadis are awaiting trial.
