Von der Leyen lays out cards to EU lawmakers ahead of vote
Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen sought on Tuesday to win over skeptical European socialist and liberal lawmakers to back her as European Commission president, laying out ambitious social, climate and migrant policies ahead of a crunch vote.
Dutch appeals court postpones verdict on Crimean gold
A Dutch appeals court on Tuesday postponed its verdict on the ownership of a collection of gold artifacts from Crimea that was on loan to a Dutch museum when Russia seized the peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, saying it needed more information.
No need to take EU steps against Turkey seriously: foreign minister
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday there is no need to take very seriously decisions made by the European Union to curb contacts and funding for Ankara over its drilling for gas and oil off Cyprus.
UK PM contender Johnson more radical on Irish Brexit backstop, lawmaker says
Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to replace Theresa May as Britain’s prime minister next week, has become more radical on the issue of the Irish backstop making the Brexit picture starker, Conservative lawmaker Dominic Grieve said on Tuesday.
U.S. ambassador to Japan to resign this month
U.S. Ambassador to Japan William Hagerty is resigning this month after two years in office, the U.S. Embassy said on Tuesday.
‘More than 30’ feared trapped in Mumbai building collapse
An old four-storey building collapsed in India’s financial capital of Mumbai on Tuesday, trapping more than two dozen people in the rubble, with at least four confirmed dead, a fire department official said.
Iran judiciary confirms arrest of French-Iranian scholar, gives no details
Iran’s judiciary on Tuesday confirmed the arrest of French-Iranian scholar Fariba Adelkhah, a day after French President Emmanuel Macron raised the issue with Tehran.
Papua New Guinea leader to visit Australia as it seeks to shore up its Pacific influence
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape will make a state visit to Australia, its government said on Tuesday, as it seeks to cement its position with Pacific island’s new leader amid rising competition for influence in the region.
Move over Trump: China’s tweeting diplomats open fresh front in propaganda fight
Tweets from Chinese diplomats abroad, including seasoned ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai, have opened a fresh front in Beijing’s increasingly assertive approach to diplomacy and propaganda and may be a sign of things to come.
Greek police believe they have solved U.S. scientist’s murder
Greek police believe they have found the killer of an American biologist who was murdered on the island of Crete on July 8, a source said on Tuesday.
