News Wire | Europe Archive

U.K. First to Approve Booster Targeting Coronavirus and Omicron Variant

By Andrew Jeong | The Washington Post

Britain has become the first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine booster for adults that targets both the omicron variant and original virus that circulated in 2020, its health regulator said Monday.

Leadership Vacuum Heightens Worries as Crises Loom in U.K.

By Stephen Castle | The New York Times

As energy prices and inflation soar under a caretaker prime minister, critics say transition at the top is leaving Britons in limbo at a tumultuous moment.

More from WPR: Boris Johnson Is Gone, but London’s EU Delusions Remain

Ukraine Chips Away at Russian-Held Region, but Task Is Daunting

By Michael Schwirtz | The New York Times

Ukrainian forces badly want to retake the southern region of Kherson from Russian invaders, but Moscow retains a potentially overwhelming advantage.

EU Calls for End to War Talk in Balkans Ahead of Serbia-Kosovo Meetings

By Henry Foy | Financial Times

The EU has demanded that Serbia and Kosovo abandon talk of war as the bloc and Nato prepare to hold crisis talks with the rivals this week in a bid to avert fresh conflict in the Balkans.

More from WPR: Victims of the Balkans Wars Are Still Seeking Justice

Brittney Griner Appeals Her Conviction on Drug Charges in Russia, Her Defense Team Says

By Ivan Nechepurenko | The New York Times

The defense team for Brittney Griner, the American basketball star sentenced to prison in Russia on drug smuggling charges, said on Monday that it had appealed the verdict as Russian diplomats began to speak more openly about a potential prisoner exchange with the United States.

Shelling Threatens Ukrainian Nuclear Plant, and U.N. Pleads for Access

By Alan Yuhas & Shashank Bengali | The New York Times

Shelling in Ukraine once again threatened the largest nuclear power plant in Europe on Thursday, damaging equipment on the grounds, as Russian and Ukrainian forces blamed each other for creating the risk of a catastrophic nuclear accident in the middle of a war zone.

More from WPR: Only Ukraine Can Set the Terms to End the War With Russia

Estonia to Ban Russians With Tourist Visas From Entering

Associated Press (free)

Estonia decided Thursday to bar people from neigboring Russia with tourist visas from entering the northernmost Baltic country as a consequence of the war in Ukraine.

More from WPR: The EU’s Next Ban Could Be on Russian Tourists

U.N. Ship to Carry Ukrainian Grain Directly to Countries Worst Affected by Shortage

By Carly Olsen | The New York Times

The first ship hired to carry Ukrainian grain directly to famine-stricken parts of the Horn of Africa since the Russian invasion halted food exports six months ago will arrive in Ukraine on Friday, U.N. officials said.

More from WPR: The Global Food System Was Already Unsustainable Before the War in Ukraine

A Greek Scandal Reverberates as Eavesdropping Expands in Europe

By Jason Horowitz & Niki Kitsantonis | The New York Times

Revelations that the cellphone of a top opposition politician was tapped have shaken the government and stoked concerns over just how widespread such surveillance is.

Damage at Air Base in Crimea Worse Than Russia Claimed, Satellite Images Show

The New York Times

Russian authorities had previously portrayed the blast as minor, but the satellite images show three major craters and at least eight destroyed warplanes. Local officials listed dozens of damaged buildings and declared a state of emergency.

More from WPR: Only Ukraine Can Set the Terms to End the War With Russia

Liz Truss Is Ready to Flex London’s Muscles Abroad

By Ben Judah | Foreign Policy

Britain’s likely next prime minister is a foreign-policy hard-liner.

London Children Offered Polio Vaccine Booster as Virus Found in Wastewater

By Rachel Pannett | The Washington Post

Britain will offer a polio booster vaccine dose to children ages 1 to 9 in London, after the poliovirus was detected in wastewater in parts of the city.