International

• Monday, June 15th 2015 - 04:59 UTC

  Left-wing coalitions take power in Spain's main cities including Madrid and Barcelona

  

  Left-wing coalitions formally took power in four out of five of Spain's biggest cities on Sunday, marking a major political change in municipal politics a month after voters registered their anger at austerity and corruption in local elections.

• Monday, June 15th 2015 - 04:53 UTC

  UK High Commissioner dismisses Venezuela's (oily) claim on Guyana's maritime front

  

  British High Commissioner to Guyana, James Gregory Quinn has dismissed Venezuela’s most recent claim on Guyana’s oil rich Essequibo Coast, stating that it lacks solid grounds. Venezuela’s President Nicholas Maduro on May 27 signed a decree that now claims an entire portion of Guyana’s territory into the Atlantic Ocean and includes the Stabroek Block where a significant portion of oil was recently discovered by US oil giant, ExxonMobil.

• Saturday, June 13th 2015 - 07:44 UTC

  Spain's king removes duchess title from his sister involved in tax fraud case

  

  Spain's King Felipe VI has removed the title of duchess from his sister Cristina ahead of a trial in which she stands accused of tax fraud charges, in a new move designed to distance the royal family from the case.

• Saturday, June 13th 2015 - 07:17 UTC

  Global share markets slump as Greece nears a default cliff

  

  Shares on European stock markets have fallen amid reports that senior EU officials have discussed a possible Greek default for the first time. The Athens stock exchange closed on Friday nearly 6% lower. Germany's Dax and France's Cac 40 ended more than 1% lower. Shares also fell in the US, with the Dow Jones index dropping 0.8%.

• 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.