International

• Saturday, June 13th 2015 - 07:04 UTC

  Interpol suspends $29m agreement with FIFA to fight illegal betting and match-fixing

  

  Interpol has suspended its $29 million agreement to fight illegal betting and match-fixing amid the bribery allegations engulfing world football’s governing body. The 10-year deal was struck in May 2011 and under the agreement, Interpol was to have received 4 million Euros in each of the first two years, followed by 1.5 million Euros in each of the following eight.

• Saturday, June 13th 2015 - 06:40 UTC

  Brussels Declaration with references to sovereign debt and 'territorial integrity' satisfies Argentina

  

  Argentina expressed satisfaction with the Brussels Declaration at the end of the two-day European Union/Celac summit because it included strong backing to the country's efforts to change international rules regulating restructuring of sovereign debt and also there was a mention to territorial integrity, a tangent statement referred to the ongoing dispute over Falkland Islands sovereignty.

• Friday, June 12th 2015 - 05:42 UTC

  FIFA communications director ousted; former Brazilian star wants Blatter's job

  

  The director of communications & public affairs at FIFA has stepped down with immediate effect. FIFA announced on June 11, via release, that Walter de Gregorio would be stepping down and serving on a “consultancy basis” through the calendar year. De Gregorio joined FIFA in September 2011.

• Friday, June 12th 2015 - 05:24 UTC

  Pope tells Putin “a sincere and great effort” was needed for peace in Ukraine

  

  Barely a few days after Europe’s most powerful leaders presented a common front on Russian sanctions; President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia landed in Italy and met privately with Pope Francis at the Vatican, his second audience with the pope in the past 18 months.

• Friday, June 12th 2015 - 05:05 UTC

  Rousseff denies being upset with Argentina over Mercosur and trade policies

  

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff stated on Thursday in Brussels she was not upset by differences with Argentina over the trade agreement Mercosur is to sign with the European Union, despite president Cristina Fernandez administration's cold feet on the issue.

• Friday, June 12th 2015 - 04:55 UTC

  “Isolated” mad cow case in Ireland; OIE had recently returned the “controlled risk status”

  

  Irish authorities have identified a suspected case of Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or “mad cow disease”, on a dairy farm in County Louth, the first such case to be discovered in the country since 2013. The Irish Department of Agriculture said on Thursday the five-year-old diseased cow was discovered as part of ongoing inspections of animals that die on farms.

• Thursday, June 11th 2015 - 04:13 UTC

  Timerman waters down Mercosur/EU agreement expectations

  

  Argentine Foreign minister Hector Timerman affirmed that a trade deal would not be signed between Mercosur and the European Union (EU) in the second summit of the Community of Latin American States (CELAC) and the European body, which is taking place in the Belgian city of Brussels.

• Thursday, June 11th 2015 - 04:05 UTC

  Falklands triggers strong reply from Cameron when Timerman brings up the issue at Celac/EU summit

  

  Foreign Minister Hector Timerman defended on Wednesday Argentina’s right to claim the Falkland/Malvinas Islands during the summit of the Community of Latin American States (CELAC) and the European body which is taking place in the Belgian city of Brussels. UK Prime Minister David Cameron responded by describing his comments as threatening, according to British sources.

• Thursday, June 11th 2015 - 01:11 UTC

  Battle of coins re-edits the Battle of Waterloo 200 years later

  

  Belgium finally has managed to circumvent French resistance to the introduction of Euro coins to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon's defeat in Waterloo (18th June 1815). It has done so by invoking a little-known European Union rule that allows countries to issue Euro coins of their choice, provided they are in an irregular denomination.

• Thursday, June 11th 2015 - 00:41 UTC

  Mercosur ready to deliver its proposal for the trade agreement with EU

  

  Mercosur is ready to deliver its proposal on goods, services and tariff reductions as part of the negotiations with the European Union for a trade and cooperation agreement, said Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff on Wednesday, following a meeting in Brussels with Charles Michel, Belgium's Prime minister.