Month: April 2019

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Russia for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korean state media confirmed.

With his Russia visit, North Korea’s Kim is seen working to build up foreign support for his economic development plans, since the breakdown of the second U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi in February led to stalled talks with Washington on the sanctions relief Pyongyang had sought.

State media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the visit will happen “soon,” but did not elaborate the time or the venue.

Putin and Kim are on track to meet by the end of April, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.

Kim Jong Un’s chief aide, Kim Chang Son, was seen in Vladivostok on Sunday according to South Korean news agency Yonhap, leading to speculation that the Putin-Kim summit will be held in the city around April 24-25.

NK News, a group that follows North Korea, showed photos on its website on Monday of preparations underway at Vladivostok’s Far Eastern Federal University, likely to host part of the summit, with workers installing North Korean and Russian flags.

After the diplomatic failure at the Hanoi summit, Kim is likely looking to prove that he is still being sought after by world leaders, and that he has more options, said Artyom Lukin, a professor at Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok.

“Kim does not want to look too dependent on Washington, Beijing and Seoul,” he said. “As for Russia, the Putin-Kim summit will reaffirm Moscow’s place as a major player on the Korean Peninsula. This meeting is important for Russian international prestige.”
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As spring flower fields around the Netherlands burst into bloom, painting the countryside with dazzling swaths of red, white, and blue, a modern day tulip bubble may be forming: tourists.

More than a million foreign sightseers are expected to visit this country of 17 million people on Easter weekend, a record, the Dutch Tourism Bureau said on Thursday.

Director Jos Vranken said he expects them to spend 300 million euros — a boon for the national economy. Many are attracted to the country’s museums and other cultural offerings, but in April, the flower fields and Keukenhof flower show in Lisse top many “must see” lists.

While flower lovers and the photographs they share on social media are free advertising for the country’s tourism, cut flower and bulb industries, it isn’t all a bed of roses.

“That has a downside,” Vranken said. “Farmers are having increasing damage to their fields from tourists taking photos.”

Foreign and Dutch tourists alike have learned to use “Flower Radar” websites to identify where fields are in bloom, especially in the main bulb-growing center known as the “Bollenstreek” along the coast between Haarlem and Leiden.

Do Not Tiptoe Through the Tulips

Signs and barricades — now printed in Chinese and English — saying “Enjoy the Flowers, Respect Our Pride” have gone up at the edge of many fields.

They illustrate the concept that taking photos at the edge of a field is okay, but actually walking among the flowers to take pictures ruins them.

Meanwhile, farmers in less-promoted areas of the country sense an opportunity.

In Creil, northwest of Amsterdam, one enterprising group has set up a “Tulip Experience” complete with designated selfie area, hundreds of tulip varieties on display, helicopter tours, food and drinks, and bouncy castles for kids.
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North Macedonia’s pro-Western candidate, Stevo Pendarovski, and his main rival Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova emerged tied in the first round of a presidential vote dominated by deep divisions over a change of the country’s name under a deal with Greece.

The change, which Greece demanded to end what it called an implied territorial claim on its northern province of Macedonia, resolves a decades-old dispute and opens the door to North Macedonian membership of NATO and the European Union.

But the accord continues to divide Macedonians and has eclipsed all other issues during campaigning for Sunday’s election, in which about 1.8 million voters were able to chose among three candidates.

Results on the State Election Commission website based on 98% of the votes counted showed Pendarovski got 42.7% of the votes, while Siljanovska-Davkova had 42.5% of the votes.

The two will face a run-off on May 5, reflecting differences over the deal pushed through by the pro-Western government of Prime Minister Zoran Zaev.

Blerim Reka, the candidate of the second largest Albanian party, came third with 10.4% of the votes.

Polls opened at 7 a.m. local time (0500 GMT). The State Election Commission put turnout at 41.9%.

Both Zaev’s Social Democrats and the opposition VMRO-DPMNE proclaimed victory.

“I am convinced that in the second round we will have a European president of our state,” Zaev told journalists late on Sunday.

This election is about voting to move the country forward, he said.

“We won,” said Hristijan Mickoski, leader of the opposition VMRO-DPMNE, which supported Siljanovska-Davkova. VMRO-DPMNE opposed the deal with Greece.

Analysts said the low turnout was down to disillusion among voters at the government’s lack of progress in attracting foreign investment and tackling high unemployment.

“We need a new and better president, a nation’s father that will help move this country forward,” said Sonja Kjurcieva, a 49-year old housewife from Skopje. “Together with the government they will bring us closer to Europe.”

The presidency has no authority to block constitutional amendments that were passed earlier this year by a two-thirds majority of parliament to enable the name change.

Shaping the future

Pendarovksi said the vote will be for how the country’s future will be shaped rather than a choice of president.

“I expect to win the elections and be the first woman president of Macedonia,” Siljanovska-Davkova said after casting her vote.

“I am a professor of European law, so I’ll respect (the agreement with Greece),” she said. “But I’ll do my best to show that some of the solutions are against our constitution.”

The presidency of the former Yugoslav republic is a mostly ceremonial post, but acts as the supreme commander of the armed forces and signs off on parliamentary legislation.

The refusal of outgoing nationalist President Gjeorge Ivanov to sign some bills passed by parliament has delayed the implementation of some key laws, including one on wider use of the Albanian language — 18 years after an ethnic Albanian uprising that pushed North Macedonia to the brink of civil war.
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Climate change protesters who have brought parts of London to a standstill said Sunday they were prepared to call a halt if the British government will discuss their demands.

Some 963 arrests have been made and 42 people charged in connection with the ongoing Extinction Rebellion protests.

On the seventh day of demonstrations that have occupied key spots in the British capital, Swedish teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg addressed the demonstrators, telling them: “Humanity is standing at a crossroads.”

Organizers said they were willing to switch tactics from disruption to dialogue next week — if the government enters talks.

“We are prepared to pause, should the government come to the negotiating table,” Extinction Rebellion spokesman James Fox told AFP.

“What the pause looks like is us stopping an escalation.

“We can discuss leaving if they are willing to discuss our demands.

“At the moment, we haven’t received a response from the government… so we’re waiting on that.”

Extinction Rebellion was established last year in Britain by academics and has become one of the world’s fastest-growing environmental movements.

Campaigners want governments to declare a climate and ecological emergency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2025, halt biodiversity loss and be led by new “citizens’ assemblies on climate and ecological justice.

“We’re giving them an opportunity now to come and speak to us,” Fox told AFP.

“If they refuse to come and negotiate with us, then this is going to continue and this is going to escalate in different, diverse and very creative ways.”

Thunberg, the 16-year-old activist who has inspired pupils worldwide to boycott classes to join climate protests, addressed the cheering crowds at the Marble Arch landmark, the only authorized demonstration site.

“For way too long the politicians and people in power have got away with not doing anything at all to fight the climate crisis and ecological crisis,” she said.

“But we will make sure that they will not get away with it any longer.”

She continued: “How do we want the future living conditions for all living species to be like?

“Humanity is now standing at a crossroads. We must now decide which path we want to take.

“We are waiting for the others to follow our example.”

Police said they had managed to clear the protesters from Parliament Square and the Oxford Circus and Piccadilly Circus junctions.

Those charged range in age from 19 to 77. They hail from around England and Wales, with one person from France charged.

The charges are for various offenses including breaching public order laws, obstructing a highway and obstructing police.

Calling for an end to the protests, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said more than 9,000 police officers had been responding to the demonstrations, which had left the force as a whole overstretched.

“This is now taking a real toll on our city… this is counter-productive to the cause,” he said.

“I’m extremely concerned about the impact the protests are having on our ability to tackle issues like violent crime.

“You must now let London return to business as usual.”

In the blazing sunshine on Waterloo Bridge, police lifted protesters and carried them off to waiting police vans.

“I’m genuinely terrified. I think about it all the time. I’m so scared for the world. I feel like there is going to be calamity in my lifetime,” student Amber Gray told AFP.

“I don’t even feel comfortable bringing children into this world knowing that that is coming.

“And I don’t want people in the future to say to me, ‘why didn’t you do anything?’.”
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French Catholics on Sunday celebrated Easter mass in Paris in the shadow of the badly burned Notre-Dame Cathedral, praying that the landmark monument — and along with it the entire Catholic Church — can be renewed.

The fire at Notre-Dame six days earlier destroyed the cathedral’s spire and two-thirds of its roof. The damaged building is now to be closed for years to visits and worship.

Deprived of access to Notre-Dame, regular worshipers instead lined up patiently to celebrate Easter Sunday mass a short walk away, on the Right Bank of the Seine at Saint-Eustache church.

Throughout, the service was pervaded by the spirit and hope of a fresh start, infused by the Easter celebrations commemorating the resurrection of Christ according to the Bible.

‘Recreate unity’

The flames that devastated the cathedral were a “sign” said worshiper Marie Fliedel, 59, adding that she now felt a “renewal, a communion and a spirit”.

“I hope Christians react and take note of all that is taking place in this sad period and that this will bring us back together,” she said.

“This will recreate unity among Catholics. In misfortune, the fire will give strength to find ourselves again and defend our religion,” added Francois Toriello, 70.

The Catholic Church worldwide has been hit by a series of sexual abuses scandals, including in France where French cardinal Philippe Barbarin was handed a six-month suspended jail sentence last month for failing to report sex abuse by a priest under his authority.

Another sombre mark came from the series of devastating bomb blasts that ripped through high-end hotels and churches holding Easter services in Sri Lanka on Sunday, killing more than 200 people, including dozens of foreigners.

‘Courage, knowledge and prayers’

The Saint-Eustache service, also attended by Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo, was led by Archbishop of Paris Michel Aupetit who thanked the capital’s fire brigade for saving the cathedral from an even worse fate.

“When, for a moment, we thought that the bell towers could also fall, these towers that are so well known throughout the would, courage and knowledge came together with the prayers of all the faithful,” he told members of the fire service, several of whom were present in the front pews.

Laurence Mahoudeau, 55, who had come with her husband to celebrate the mass, said she had her doubts over whether the fire would prompt major change in the Catholic Church.

“Notre-Dame is something that goes beyond our religion, it’s historic, it is our heritage,” she said.

“I don’t know if this will prompt a renewal. There needs to be time. We want a strong Church. But it must be something completely different after the suffering and the sexual abuse.”
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Pope Francis expressed closeness to the Christian community struck by the attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter day. In his Easter message he also prayed for peace in Syria, Yemen, Libya and South Sudan. Addressing tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter’s Square from the central balcony of the basilica, the pope said the resurrection of Christ, he said, is the principle of new life for every man and woman.

Under grey skies, but in a Saint Peter’s Square filled with flowers, Pope Francis, dressed in white vestments, celebrated Easter mass in front of tens of thousands of faithful and tourists.

At the end of the mass the pope gave his traditional message and blessing to the city and to the world. His last words before he wished everyone a Happy Easter were for the people of Sri Lanka struck he said by the serious attacks on Easter day, which brought mourning and pain in some of the churches and other sites in the country. He said he learned the news with sadness and expressed closeness to the Christian community gathered in prayer.

Earlier in his message the pope said, “The resurrection of Christ is the principle of new life for every man and every woman, for true renewal always begins from the heart, from the conscience.” Yet Easter, the pope added, is also “the beginning of the new world, set free from the slavery of sin and death.”

The pope’s first thoughts went to the people of Syria, “victims of an ongoing conflict to which we risk becoming ever more resigned and even indifferent.” He urged a new commitment for a political solution that will respond for the hopes for peace and confront the humanitarian crisis. The pope’s thoughts also turned to “the people of Yemen, especially the children, exhausted by hunger and war,” and to the situation in Libya.

The pope said, “May conflict and bloodshed cease in Libya, where defenseless people are once more dying in recent weeks and many families have been forced to abandon their homes.” Pope Francis urged the parties involved to “choose dialogue over force and to avoid reopening wounds left by a decade of conflicts and political instability.”

The pope also prayed for peace in other parts of the African continent, which he said is still rife with “social tensions, conflicts and at times violent forms of extremism that leave in their wake insecurity, destruction and death.” He mentioned Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon. But he also spoke of Sudan, which he said is “presently experiencing a moment of political uncertainty.”

Referring to the recent spiritual retreat held with South Sudanese leaders in the Vatican, the pope expressed the hope for “a new page open in the history of that country, in which all political, social and religious components actively commit themselves to the pursuit of the common good and the reconciliation of the nation.”

The pope also mentioned the crisis Venezuela and the situation in Nicaragua, where he expressed hope for a “peaceful negotiated solution.”
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Several world and religious leaders condemned the explosions on Easter at Sri Lankan churches and hotels that killed scores of people.

Dozens of foreigners — British, Dutch and American citizens — are believed to be among them the dead.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said attacks were “truly appalling.”

“The acts of violence against churches and hotels in Sri Lanka are truly appalling, and my deepest sympathies go out to all of those affected at this tragic time,” she tweeted. “We must stand together to make sure that no one should ever have to practice their faith in fear.”

The Catholic Church in Jerusalem released a statement saying “We pray for the souls of the victims and ask for speedy recovery of the injured, and ask God to inspire the terrorists to repent of their killing and intimidation.”

But during the traditional Easter address at the Vatican, Pope Francis conveyed sadness over the attacks.

“I want to express my affectionate closeness with the Christian community, attacked while it was at prayer, and to all the victims of such cruel violence,” he said.

Sunday’s bomb attack came a month after dozens of Muslims were killed in a shooting at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern such violence was “devastating”.

“New Zealand condemns all acts of terrorism, and our resolve has only been strengthened by the attack on our soil on the 15th of March. … New Zealand rejects all forms of extremism and stands for freedom of religion and the right to worship safely. Collectively we must find the will and the answers to end such violence,” Ardern said in a written statement.

Meanwhile in the U.S., President Donald Trump said Americans stand “ready to help.”

”Heartfelt condolences from the people of the United States to the people of Sri Lanka on the horrible terrorist attacks on churches and hotels,” he tweeted.

The World Jewish Congress denounced the attack as “heinous” and appealed for “zero tolerance of those who use terror to advance their objectives.”

“This truly barbarous assault on peaceful worshippers on one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar serves as a painful reminder that the war against terror must be at the top of the international agenda and pursued relentlessly,” World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder said.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin called the attacks despicable.

“We are all children of God; an attack on one religion is an attack on us all,” he said on Twitter.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan condemned  in the “strongest terms possible the Easter terror attacks in Sri Lanka. This is an assault on all of humanity.” While Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said terrorism must be condemned and confronted globally as is a global menace with no religion.

“Terribly saddened by terrorist attacks on Sri Lankan worshippers during Easter. Condolences to friendly government and people of Sri Lanka. Our thoughts and prayers with the victims and their families,” he said.

 
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The U.S. ambassador to Poland wished Jews a happy Passover in Polish, and the reaction has been a wave of angry comments on Twitter.

Ambassador Georgette Mosbacher also wished Poles a happy Easter on Sunday. But by then, she was accused of offending the country with her Passover tweet and reminded that she is serving in a mostly Roman Catholic country.

Krystyna Pawlowicz, a lawmaker with Poland’s ruling right-wing party, called it a “provocation.”

Robert Bakiewicz, a far-right activist who organizes a yearly Independence Day march that government leaders joined last year, said “Christ died and was resurrected also for you, pagans and traitorous Jews.”

Some came to Mosbacher’s defense, recalling that Poland also has a small Jewish population. Poland was home to Europe’s largest Jewish population before the Holocaust.
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France is spearheading a new higher education plan aimed to make it a more attractive destination for foreign students — but also a more expensive one. The move to raise foreign tuition fees has sparked protests, especially when it comes to African students who make up nearly half the country’s foreign student body. 

In many ways, the University of Paris-Est Creteil, or UPEC, is the face of today’s France — and of France’s reputation abroad. Nearly 10 percent of its student body is international.

So it’s no surprise its administration has been closely tracking the government’s new higher education plan. Dubbed “Welcome to France,” the strategy aims to boost foreign student numbers from about 300,000 to half-a-million by 2027. UPEC supports many aspects of the plan. Except one: a sharp tuition hike next academic year.

No increase here

Laurent Thievenet is UPEC’s vice president for international relations. He says a large part of its international student body comes from North and sub-Saharan Africa. They can’t afford a tuition increase.

Even with the tuition increase, French fees are much lower than elsewhere in the West. But like a number of other French universities, UPEC has opted not to raise costs for foreign students. Even so, some like Nanto Ralibera, a graduate student from Madagascar, are worried.

Ralibera said he was shocked to hear about the tuition hike, which would have amounted to about 15 times more than what he pays now. It’s not part of the budget of students like himself when they left their countries.

Katarina Vuckovic from Serbia is also on a tight budget.

“I definitely have the impression that part of the strategy of the French government will not contribute to the attraction as they want,” she said.

Vuckovich says she’s happy about the quality of education here. But she says Serbian students like herself may not be afford to study in France if tuition costs are raised.

Popular but losing ground

France is the world’s top non-Anglophone destination for foreign students and fourth overall. It’s home to the iconic Sorbonne university and prestigious business schools. A big draw is also the country’s inexpensive tuition. Still France has been losing ground in recent years.

“We are competitive — we are very competitive. … The problem is that we receive a lot of students, but maybe we don’t receive them very well,” said Olivier Rollot, a French journalist specializing in higher education.

“When you come here from all over the world, you expect to live like in America, in big university campuses. In France it’s not like that. So maybe students are a bit disappointed,” he said.

The government plan aims to tackle some of the hurdles by simplifying student visas, offering better housing and more French language classes. It also aims to expand France’s educational presence in Africa.

Larger goals

Experts say the country’s higher education strategy serves larger goals, by expanding French influence and interests abroad. Over the decades, presidents and business leaders, especially from France’s former African colonies, earned university degrees here.

“It’s important to get the best students that tomorrow will be in charge of their countries,” Rollot said.

France may also profit from potential barriers to studying elsewhere, including tougher immigration restrictions in the United States and uncertainty over Brexit.

The government aims to increase scholarships to offset tuition hikes for the neediest students. But in today’s competitive environment, that may not be enough. A recent study by Campus France, which represents French education globally, found a sharp drop so far in African enrollment since the plan was announced.

“It’s not a problem for Chinese students or Indian students or American students to pay more,” Rollot said. “It’s a problem for African students to pay more.”

Rollot says the best and brightest students risk going elsewhere. Saudi Arabia and Turkey, for example, offer attractive scholarships.

While aiming to attract more students from other parts of the world, UPEC wants to expand its presence in Africa, including through collaborations with African universities. UPEC’s Thievenet says its mission aims to contribute to Africa’s development and to a more balanced relationship with France.
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A Frenchman who has spent 113 days floating across the Atlantic in a custom-made barrel says he is in high spirits as he approaches the end of his journey.  

Earlier this week, Jean-Jacques Savin, 72, posted on his Facebook page that he was just 750 kilometers from the island of St. Martin. But he has traveled only 250 kilometers in the past week because of the lack of wind.  

But he does not seem to mind. “There is no hurry, let’s leave time to time and now there are a series of favorable days coming to push me towards the South-West,” he wrote.  

With no engine, sails or paddles, the unusual craft has relied on trade winds and currents to push Savin 4,800 kilometers from the Canary Islands to the Caribbean.  

Savin spent months building his bright orange, barrel-shaped capsule of resin-coated plywood that is strong enough to withstand battering waves and other stresses.  

The barrel is 3 meters long and 2.10 meters across, has a small galley area, and a mattress with straps to keep him from being tossed out of his bunk by rough seas.   

Portholes on either side of the barrel and another looking into the water provide sunlight and a bit of entertainment. The unique craft also has a solar panel that generates energy for communications and GPS positioning. 

As he drifts along, Savin is dropping markers in the ocean to help oceanographers study ocean currents. At the end of the journey, Savin himself will be studied by doctors for effects of solitude in close confinement. 

He also posts regular updates, including GPS coordinates that track his journey, on a Facebook page.

He described his journey as a “crossing during which man isn’t captain of his ship, but a passenger of the ocean.” 

Savin’s adventure, which will cost a little more than $65,000, was funded by French barrel makers and crowdfunding.  

Savin hopes to end his journey on a French island, like Martinique or Guadeloupe. “That would be easier for the paperwork and for bringing the barrel back,” he told AFP.  
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French police said they arrested more than 100 “yellow vest” demonstrators on Saturday in Paris as thousands of protestors took to the streets for a 23rd week of anti-government marches.

AFP journalists reported scuffles between police and protesters in the afternoon, after hours of calm, as police used anti-riot grenades and tear gas to disperse marchers in the center of the French capital.

Police headquarters reported 126 arrests and 11,000 checks on individual protesters.

Paris seemed to bear the brunt of Saturday’s protests, but other French cities were also expecting demonstrations.

Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron signed into law legislation that gave security forces greater powers at demonstrations but which opponents claimed violated civil liberties.

One measure banned protestors from covering their faces, but France’s Constitutional Council, its highest constitutional authority, refused to give its green light to one of the most contentious parts of the legislation.

It would also have given the authorities the power to ban from demonstrations any individual “posing a particularly serious threat to public order.”

The “yellow vest” movement is demanding changes to the government’s social and fiscal policies.

 
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Tourists, devout Catholics and others are looking on mournfully at Notre Dame Cathedral, regretting that they can’t get inside the magnificent monument on this Easter weekend because of the damage caused by a violent fire.

The Paris fire service said Saturday that the last hot points have been cooled, and firefighters who had worked inside non-stop since Monday’s fire have now left.

Crowds lined the embankments across from the cathedral Saturday, taking photos or just staring in shock. The fire collapsed the spire and destroyed the roof of the 12th century monument, and Easter services normally held in Notre Dame are being conducted elsewhere.

Visitor Susan Harlow of Kansas City, Missouri, said: “We didn’t get here in time to see it. And now we probably never will,” given the many years it’s expected to take to repair.

 
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