German cabinet signs off on minimum wage from 2015
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s cabinet agreed on Wednesday to a national minimum wage of 8.50 euros ($11.75) per hour – a flagship project for the Social Democrats (SPD) who share power with Angela Merkel’s conservatives.
Suicide bomber blows himself up outside Afghan interior ministry
KABUL (Reuters) – A suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Afghan interior ministry building in the center of Kabul on Wednesday, wounding several police officers, the ministry said in a statement.
French leftist Montebourg promoted in cabinet reshuffle
PARIS (Reuters) – French leftist Arnaud Montebourg, who as industry ministry has long accused the European Union of hurting economic growth with demands for lower public deficits, won new powers as economy minister in a cabinet reshuffle announced Wedn…
Thai court takes on new case as PM Yingluck’s legal woes mount
BANGKOK (Reuters) – A Thai Court accepted a new case against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Wednesday over her removal of the security chief three years ago, compounding her legal problems after months of sometimes violent anti-government protes…
NATO suspends cooperation with Russia over Ukraine crisis
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – NATO suspended all practical cooperation with Russia on Tuesday in protest at its annexation of Crimea, and ordered military planners to draft measures to strengthen its defenses and reassure nervous Eastern European countries.
Greeks evoke past injustices to overcome bailout shame
ATHENS (Reuters) – Germany is footing much of the bill for Greece’s 237 billion euro bailout but Athens-trained dentist Aristomenis Syngelakis feels no gratitude; Berlin owes his country billions in reparations for Nazi crimes during World War Two, he …
‘Toy-like’ drone that crashed in South Korea came from North: media
SEOUL (Reuters) – A South Korean military inquiry into a drone found on a border island has concluded that North Korea flew the unmanned aircraft to conduct reconnaissance missions, a South Korean media report said on Wednesday.
Close Hollande ally Sapin named French finance minister
PARIS (Reuters) – Michel Sapin, a long-time political ally of President Francois Hollande who was his labor minister, was named to the powerful finance minister post on Wednesday.
Frustrated Kuwaitis ask, why is Kuwait falling behind?
KUWAIT (Reuters) – With a youthful, well-educated population, strong relationships with both neighbors and world powers, and a strategic location on the Gulf, major oil producer Kuwait should be as dynamic a hub for the region as Dubai or Doha.
Japan may only be able to restart one-third of its nuclear reactors
TOKYO (Reuters) – Three years after the Fukushima disaster prompted the closure of all Japan’s nuclear reactors, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is moving to revive nuclear power as a core part of the energy mix, but many of those idled reactors will never c…
