World & Politics
Does Cameron Want to Keep Britain in the European Union? - 12/29/2015
The December EU summit was presented as a moment of truth in the relations between Great Britain and the European Union. At the time, apparently there happened nothing that would indicate progress or a compromise in the negotiations to amend the terms of British membership. The final communiqué of the meeting only stated that there took place just "exchange of views" and further work is expected...
Will 2020 Olympics Bring Relief to the Japanese Economy? - 12/28/2015
2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo will bring 30 trillion yen ($ 249 billion) to the Japanese economy over the next five years, reported Bloomberg referring to the Bank of Japan’s forecast. According to the regulator, influx of tourists and investments into construction during 2014-2018 will be added to the Japanese GDP of 0.2-0.3 percentage points per year. The Bank of Japan clarifies that these...
Where and How Presidents and Monarchs Celebrate Christmas and New Year - 12/25/2015
One can postpone work but never Christmas. World leaders went for the New Year holidays, and some revealed where and how they are going to spend this wintertime. Here’s what Heads of States are planning to do during the holidays. Barack Obama Barack Obama and his family spends this Christmas in his home state - Hawaii, just like the previous seven years. Traditionally, the first family of the...
EU Court Criticized Scotland's Attempts to Fight Alcohol Abuse - 12/23/2015
EU Court criticized the price struggle with alcoholism in Decision of the Scottish government to set a minimum price for alcohol in presence of other tax measures violates EU law. Such a was pronounced by the European court. It is reported by The Guardian. The Court in Luxembourg came to the conclusion that such a policy would end up with limits for the market. They can be avoided by setting...
Renminbi is Spreading Around the World: Zimbabwe Launches Internal RMB Transactions - 12/23/2015
The Government of Zimbabwe introduced calculations in renminbi in the country. This way, this African country, ruled by self-perpetuating Robert Mugabe for 35 years, is hoping to further strengthen cooperation with China. After a prolonged economic crisis, hyperinflation and devaluation, the Zimbabwean authorities have refused to use its own currency, and now South African rand, euro and the US...
Support for Chancellor Angela Merkel Rose for the First Time Since July - 12/21/2015
Public discontent with policies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel on refugees has decreased for the first time since July this year. This is evidenced by a survey of the German broadcasting company ARD. Number of those who support course of Frau Merkel has grown in comparison with beginning of November by 3 percentage points and amounted to 42%. According to a public poll conducted on 14-16...
Argentinian Peso Rushed Down - 12/18/2015
Currency of the second largest economy in South America, Argentina, fallen by 26.5% in a day. This happened after the country's new president Mauricio Macri abolished foreign exchange restrictions imposed by the previous government to curb the peso. Liberalization and market reform are among the new president’s main measures to bring the economy out of stagflation, which started under the...
Japan to Continue Financing the US Troops Presence in the Country - 12/16/2015
The US and Japan have agreed that the Japanese government will proceed to pay for the American military presence until March 2021. The military support is estimated at 198.9 billion yen. Japan will continue to financially support US troops on its territory in the amount of nearly 190 billion yen (1.6 billion dollars) a year, reported Kyodo news agency on Wednesday. According to the agency,...
Zika Virus Threatens the 2016 Olympics in Brazil - 12/15/2015
A dangerous virus Zika has spread to nine countries in Latin America, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The first cases of Zika infection were marked in Brazil in May. Recently the virus has been found in Panama (three cases), Paraguay (six cases), Mexico (three cases), Venezuela (seven cases), Guatemala, El Salvador, Suriname and Colombia. The WHO advises the authorities of...
The Delicate Equilibrium Between Data Privacy and Public Safety - 12/14/2015
Administration of Twitter warned some of its users that they might have been hacked to steal information from their accounts. At that, the attacks could have been ordered by foreign states. This is the first statement of this kind made by Twitter. Among the warning’s addressees are experts in cryptography, security researchers, political activists and journalists. In the message, Twitter...
