The European Union and Cuba signed an agreement on political dialogue and cooperation with aim to normalize relations between the West and the island state, reports AFP. Ceremony of the agreement signing took place in Brussels. The document was signed by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla. The...

South Korean parliament voted to impeach the country's president Park Geun-hye. 234 MPs (with 200 needed) voted in favor, and 54 were against. The impeachment resulted from a scandal with Park Geun-hye’s friend, who was closely involved in public decision-making process. Fate of Park Geun-hye is now handed over to the country's Constitutional Court, which must decide whether ouster is justified....

The European Commission initiated an investigation against seven EU countries. The member states are blamed for passivity in investigation of the scandal around the Volkswagen, and claiming inadequate penalties from the concern. This is stated in the EC’s release. "National regulators in the EU should ensure that car manufacturers do provide obedience to EU laws and regulations," - said the...

According to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the United States and Western Europe are selling four fifths of weapons that make companies included in Top 100. Compared to 2014, sales of arms and military services of the largest corporations in the world fell by 0.6%, says the organization’s paper. "In 2015, sales of Top 100 largest defense companies in the world grew 37%...

The UK Government has published an investment plan for a number of projects, according to which development of infrastructure in the next few years will receive allocated a record amount of 500 million pounds ($ 634 billion), writes Bloomberg. To implement all the plans into practice, Treasury announced creation of the National Investment Fund of 23 billion pounds. Projects to be financed by the...

On Monday night, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced his resignation after defeat of his initiative constitutional reform in the referendum. Mr. Renzi’s proposition was to reduce role of upper house of the parliament, and strengthen centralization of political power. This, in his view, would help to enact laws without unnecessary bureaucratic procedures. Basically, the referendum was...

Universum has published its annual Happiness Index, which measures level of employee satisfaction in different countries throughout the world. The company surveyed more than 200 thousand young professionals in 57 countries and comprised the rating. Universum used a system of points awarded for three main factors: level of employee satisfaction, their willingness to recommend their current...

US court authorized the Federal Tax Service to request data on Bitcoin transactions and accounts, if they are related to US citizens. In particular, the authorities refer to Bitcoin wallets in Coinbase service. Watchdogs suspect that some people could use the service to dodge taxes. On Wednesday, the Federal Court for the Northern District of California ruled that the US Internal Revenue Service...

Brussels named countries – violators of EU fiscal discipline. The worst performance is observed in Italy, Spain, Portugal and Slovenia. Finland, Cyprus, Lithuania and Belgium also have problems. If the budget plan for 2017 is approved with violations, the disturbers may fall under sanctions. The European Commission has issued a warning to eight countries that do not comply with budgetary...