Pig hearts transplanted into baboons – could humans be next?
Pig hearts have been transplanted into baboons – a development that could pave the way for humans to receive porcine organs in future.
Germany
Merkel won’t seek a 5th term as German chancellor
Angela Merkel set off Monday on what could be a three-year countdown to the end of her leadership of Germany, a stint that has made her the European Union’s longest-serving leader and a key figure in facing the continent’s many crises.
Why Implanted Microchips in Humans Are About to Go Big
Experts admit that, so far, getting humans to adopt microchip implants has been a tough sell. Many Christians reject them because of concern they could be a prelude to ‘the mark of the Beast’ which Revelation chapter 13 says will be ‘a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads.’
U.S. tops World Economic Forum’s ‘Global Competitiveness Report’ for first time in a decade
Organizers of the annual Davos conference ranked the United States first in their ranking of the world’s most competitive economies for the first time in a decade Wednesday, saying the No. 1 spot reflects a new methodology and long-term factors more than recent policies of the Trump administration.
IMF downgrades global growth outlook, places responsibility on US-China trade tensions
The IMF has cut its global economic forecast for 2018 and 2019, citing above all rising import tariffs between the US and China. A fall in trade volumes and manufacturing orders could hit Germany particularly hard.
Poll finds Israelis extremely, and near uniquely, supportive of Trump, US policy
Israelis have an extremely positive view of US President Donald Trump and his administration, and are largely isolated in this outlook in the international community, a survey by the Pew Research Center shows.
Abbas said planning UN event aimed at thwarting Trump’s peace plan
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will host a conference on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly this week to review ways to torpedo the Trump administration’s plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace, Israeli television reported Monday.
EU, Iran set financial “vehicle” to ease trade between them
Five world powers and Iran agreed late Monday to establish a financial facility in the European Union to facilitate payments for Iranian imports and exports including oil, a key move sought by Tehran following the U.S. pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and its re-imposition of sanctions.
Fresh Debate As Germany Mulls Joining Airstrikes in the Event of Another Chemical Attack in Syria
Amid growing concerns about a possible chemical weapons attack in Syria’s Idlib province, Germany appears to be mulling participation in any retaliatory U.S.-led airstrikes, in a reversal of its traditionally hesitant stance on military engagement.
Thousands join rival migrant protests in Germany’s Chemnitz
Thousands of opponents and supporters of Germany’s immigration policy marched Saturday through the eastern city of Chemnitz after a wave of racist violence that followed a knife killing.
Iran said to give Iraqi militias ballistic missiles capable of hitting Israel
Iran has given ballistic missiles to Shi’ite proxies in Iraq and is developing the capacity to build more there to deter attacks on its interests in the Middle East and to give it the means to hit regional foes, Iranian, Iraqi and Western sources said.
With the Return of US Sanctions, EU Enacts Statute Aimed at Keeping European Companies in Iran
In a bid to sustain trade and economic relations with Iran, the European Union is looking to its so-called ‘blocking statute’ that will forbid European companies from complying with enacted U.S. sanctions.
Has Europe become an Iranian tool to circumvent U.S. sanctions?
On Monday, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, in conjunction with the top diplomats of Britain, France and, for that matter, Germany, released a joint statement expressing ‘deep regret’ over the re-imposition of American sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Venezuela’s Inflation to Reach 1 Million Percent, IMF Forecasts
Venezuela’s inflation will skyrocket to 1 million percent by the end of the year as the government continues to print money to cover a growing budget hole, the International Monetary Fund predicted on Monday.
Trump stirs up NATO meeting with objection to Russian-German gas pipeline
President Trump on Wednesday stoked divisions in Europe by wading into the middle of an intense fight over the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, a project that critics fear will give Moscow new leverage in the region and could create a geopolitically dangerous Russian-German economic alliance.
U.S., France and Gulf allies agree to new round of talks on Syria
French President Emmanuel Macron and President Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Brussels have reportedly agreed on a plan to push Middle East allies Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan to start talks on way to put an end to Syria’s seven-year civil war.
U.S. Seeks to Thwart Iran Flying Millions in Cash Out of Germany
Top Trump administration officials are working to stop Germany from allowing Iran to fly more than $350 million in cash out of the country and back to Tehran as part of a bid by the Iranian regime to restock its coffers ahead of a major financial crackdown by America, according to conversations with senior U.S. diplomats and officials on Capitol Hill.
Warning of a global crisis, Germany’s Angela Merkel pledges ‘every effort’ to avert a U.S. trade war
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday that the European Union will make every effort to avoid a trade war with the United States, and underlined her country’s commitment to raise defense spending gradually — another point of contention with Washington.
Trump’s Iran strategy targets oil, presses allies to end oil imports by Nov. 4
Following through on President Trump’s promise to squeeze Iran as he took the U.S. out of the 2015 nuclear deal, the Trump administration on Tuesday announced details on new sanctions that will pressure countries from Europe to Asia to slash imports of Iranian oil to zero by Nov. 4, giving allies no wiggle room to deal with Tehran.
Russia-to-Germany undersea pipeline unnerves U.S., riles region
It has driven a wedge between America and its allies, given Russia a chance to put a stranglehold on European energy markets and may even threaten U.S. national security, some observers suggest, by potentially doubling as a spy device.