Author: Karlee Beste

Defence dialogues between Beijing and Washington have been restored following a rare meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden near San Francisco on Wednesday. However, analysts were less optimistic that these lines of communication could resolve deep-seated disagreements between China and the US on security in the Asia-Pacific. Disagreements over Taiwan and US sanctions against Beijing’s former defence minister have suspended these lines of communication for more than a year. Beijing halted telephone calls between theatre commanders as well as meetings to coordinate defence policy and discuss maritime safety after then US House speaker Nancy Pelosi led a US delegation to…

Turkey’s central bank pledged not to compromise from its current policy mix aimed at reining in runaway inflation, indicating that its actions are endorsed by the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The bank, which has raised its key interest rate to 35% from 8.5% since June, said in a biannual report that it’s seeing eye-to-eye with Turkey’s “decision makers” on the need to slow price growth, which surged past 60% last month. Governor Hafize Gaye Erkan’s remarks in the Financial Stability Report on Thursday highlight her efforts to convince investors that she won’t be forced by the government to…

WASHINGTON, Oct 26 (Reuters) – Newly elected U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said on Thursday that funding to support Ukraine and Israel should be handled separately, suggesting he will not back President Joe Biden’s $106 billion aid package for both countries. Johnson, speaking in an interview on Fox News, has concerns about Ukraine funding in general, and believes any money for Israel will need to be funded by cuts elsewhere. He met Biden on Thursday and said he told White House staff “our consensus among House Republicans is we need to bifurcate those issues.” Biden wants Congress to provide…

The star of Daniel Craig’s Knives Out sequel is on the Greek island of Spetses, which with its glamorous mansions, hiking trails, and secluded beaches provides the setting of the Netflix movie. Spetses is an upscale affluent island of the Saronic Islands, where production for Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery took place in the summer of 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. The Greek island that has escaped mass tourism is the perfect place to enjoy a wonderful walk, as the distinctive architecture, cobble streets, and fragrant gardens packed to the brim with jasmine and bougainvillaea, make it a…

The Greek government on Thursday tabled in Parliament a draft law seeking to further reduce non-performing loans in banks’ portfolios by expanding the “Hercules” program. The draft legislation envisages measures to introduce greater transparency, more information and respect of debtors’ rights for servicers, modernize an out-of-court mechanism and expand protection for vulnerable debtors, improving the operating framework of a sale and leaseback agency, introducing measures to boost competition, such as loan offering from non-banking agencies, and expanding transactions through the IRIS system. National Economy and Finance Minister Costis Hatzidakis said that the government’s intervention for banks and loans combined the…

Istanbul experienced the impact of snow in the week hours of Sunday, which later turned into a mix of rain and snow, accompanied by a storm that adversely affected city life. Following the warnings from the General Directorate of Meteorology, precipitation was effective throughout the city on Sunday, turning into snow in the early morning hours in the higher elevations of the city. Istanbul residents heading to work on the weekend encountered a white landscape in many parts of the city. The snow, which was effective for a while, later gave way to rain and sleet. Due to intermittent precipitation,…

There is a Greek village in Mani, on the Peloponnesian peninsula, called Neochori where residents boast that they are true descendants of the Spartans. While Maniots claim their ancestors were natives to the southeastern part of Peloponnese even before Sparta became a famed city-state, the ties between Sparta and Mani have been continuous since historical antiquity. Ancient Maniots were both slaves and landowners who paid fifty percent of their agricultural products as a tithe, or tax, to Sparta. In the wealthier areas of outer and lower Mani, the landowners had helots (slaves), as well. The close ties of ancient Maniots…

A massive weather deterioration with the first snowfalls is underway on upcoming weekend November 18-19, 2023. Greece’s National Meteorological Service EMY issued a weather warning on Thursday afternoon. Main features of the weather deterioration are forecast to be: Affected with be mostly the Northern Greece and the islands of the eastern Aegean Sea. Temperature in the north will drop by 6-8 degrees Celsius. EMY Weather Warning A deep barometric low from the north-northwest accompanied by a cold front is going to cause a deterioration of the weather over the weekend with gale-force winds in almost the whole country and locally…

Four metro stations in downtown Athens and changes in public transport routes are scheduled for Friday, November 17, due to events and rallies to commemorate the 50th anniversary since the 1973 Polytechnic students’ uprising against the military junta then ruling Greece. The Αthens Urban Transport Organization (OASA) announced that there will be changes in the routes and departure stations of buses and trolley around the Polytechnic and the center of Athens, depending on prevailing traffic conditions and the instructions of the Greek Police until Saturday, 18 November, at 06:00. Additionally, on Friday 17 November, the metro stations: Syntagma, Monastiraki, Megaro…

Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Education Above All Foundation, and SDG advocate, participated Wednesday in a high-level summit entitled “United for Peace in Palestine”. Hosted in Istanbul by the Turkish First Lady, Emine Erdogan, the summit brought together first ladies and government officials from around the globe to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine and call for a ceasefire. Her Highness Sheikha Moza thanked Emine Erdogan for her staunch and unwavering support of the Palestinian people. She applauded all those who raise their voice in support of the people of Palestine and their cause, particularly…