TV Berlin highlights Azerbaijan’s expanding strategic role for Germany
The German broadcaster says energy, trade, transport and regional stability are transforming relations between Baku and Berlin....
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 16th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Former Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko has been arrested by anti-corruption detectives while attempting to flee the country. The arrest forms part of the ‘Midas’ investigation into an alleged $100 million (£80m) kickback scheme involving the state nuclear operator, Energoatom, which previously prompted his resignation. The move underscores Kyiv’s intensified efforts to root out graft within the energy sector, a crucial requirement for the nation’s European Union accession bid.
In an unprecedented joint appeal, the military chiefs of Britain and Germany have urged the public to accept the moral necessity of rearmament to counter the growing threat from Russia. Writing in The Guardian newspaper, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton and General Carsten Breuer argued that strengthening industrial capacity and defence spending is not ‘warmongering’ but essential deterrence. They warned that Moscow’s military posture has shifted decisively westward, requiring a unified European response to preserve peace and security.
Tehran has signalled a readiness to compromise on its nuclear programme in exchange for economic benefits and sanctions relief ahead of renewed talks with Washington. With a U.S. delegation led by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff due to meet Iranian officials in Geneva this week, Iranian diplomats have struck a conciliatory note, suggesting potential flexibility on uranium enrichment. However, tensions remain, as the U.S. has dispatched a second aircraft carrier to the region to underpin diplomacy with the threat of military force.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has backed a report by five European allies concluding that late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was killed with a lethal toxin derived from poison dart frogs. On the second anniversary of his death in a Russian penal colony, nations including the UK and Germany stated that forensic analysis confirmed the presence of epibatidine, accusing Moscow of deliberate poisoning. While the Kremlin dismissed the findings as a ‘propaganda hoax’, Western leaders maintain that only the Russian state possessed the means and motive for the assassination.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has confirmed that Italy will participate as an observer in President Donald Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ initiative, citing constitutional constraints that prevent full membership. Speaking ahead of the body’s inaugural leadership meeting in Washington on Thursday, Meloni described the move as a solution to support Middle East peacemaking efforts while adhering to Italian law. The initiative, launched in Davos, aims to foster a settlement in Gaza and has invited various European partners to engage in a similar capacity.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the reimposition of a U.S. naval blockade on all Iranian ports and warned that power plants and bridges could be targeted next week unless Tehran returns to negotiations.
The United States carried out a third consecutive night of airstrikes against Iran, targeting military capabilities around the Strait of Hormuz as Donald Trump announced the reinstatement of a blockade on Iranian shipping and proposed a 20% fee on cargo passing through the strategic waterway.
The death toll from the fire at a live music pub in Bangkok has climbed to 32 after two more victims died from their injuries, according to Thailand's Police Hospital.
Ukraine and Russia exchanged fresh attacks on Tuesday, with Kyiv targeting shipping and energy infrastructure inside Russia while Moscow launched another large-scale missile and drone assault on Ukrainian cities.
India's investigation into last year's Air India crash that killed 260 people has entered its final stages, with investigators completing a transcript of the cockpit voice recorder and carrying out a psychological autopsy as they work towards a final report.
The Trump administration is pressing ahead with new immigration rules that will impose fixed time limits on visas for foreign students, cultural exchange visitors and journalists, tightening requirements for thousands of people who study and work in the U.S.
Keir Starmer has reaffirmed that the UK's "unwavering" support for Ukraine will continue, during his final visit to the country as Prime Minister.
Two British hackers who carried out a cyberattack on Transport for London (TfL) that cost the transport authority £29 million to remediate have been jailed for a total of 11 years.
At least 11 people have been killed and 19 injured in a fire at an orphanage on the outskirts of the Algerian capital, state media reported. The blaze broke out early on Thursday at the institution in the eastern suburbs of Algiers.
A woman whose husband was sucked out of the window of a plane during a Ryanair flight has recounted pulling her husband to safety. Serbian couple Svetlana Maksimovic and Ljubisa Karovic had just settled into a flight with the airline last week, when a loud bang pierced the hum of engines.
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