#Romania’s #finance ministry has confirmed that the general government #budget deficit rose by 70% y/y to €5.8bn in the first two months of 2024. This is 1.67% of the year’s projected #GDP up from 1.07% of GDP in the same period last year. tinyurl.com/2sxkbs8y

Chinese leader #XiJinping told visiting Dutch Prime Minister #MarkRutte on Wednesday that attempts to restrict #China’s access to #technology will not stop the country’s advance. #ASML #Netherlands tinyurl.com/yck873at

#Ukrainian forces shot down 26 out of 28 attack #drones launched overnight by #Russia, #Kyiv's #military said on Thursday. #Ukraine tinyurl.com/4x7vczhn

#Russia has no designs on any #NATO country and will not attack #Poland, the #BalticStates, or the #CzechRepublic, but if the West supplies #F16 fighters to #Ukraine, then they will be shot down by Russian forces, said President #VladimirPutin. tinyurl.com/32bwjh9r

#Ukraine's PM Denys Shmyhal was in #Poland on Thursday for talks with his counterpart Donald Tusk to address #farmers’ demands that regulations be applied to the cheap Ukrainian food #imports that they say are undercutting their livelihoods. tinyurl.com/559rdse5

The top #UnitedNations court on Thursday ordered #Israel to take measures to improve the #humanitarian situation in #Gaza, including opening more land crossings to allow food, water, fuel and other supplies into the #war-ravaged enclave. CIJ_ICJ #UN #Aid tinyurl.com/yj4y4sc3

#NATO member #Romania said it had found fragments of what appeared to be a #drone on a farm near the #DanubeRiver and the border with #Ukraine late on Thursday. tinyurl.com/2hyb95xy

International Atomic Energy Agency chief condemned a #Ukrainian drone strike on one of six nuclear reactors at the #Russian-controlled #Zaporizhzhia #NuclearPowerPlant, saying such attacks significantly increase the risk of a major #nuclear accident. #IAEA tinyurl.com/yp3e32e9

#US Treasury Secretary Secretary Janet Yellen warned #China on Monday that #Washington will not accept new industries being decimated by #Chinese #imports as she wrapped up four days of meetings to press her case for #Beijing to rein in excess industrial capacity. tinyurl.com/26pp9wcc

#Nicaragua on Monday called on the UN’s top court to halt #German military and other #aid to #Israel, arguing that #Berlin’s support was enabling acts of #genocide and breaches of international humanitarian law in the #Israel–#Hamas war in #Gaza. CIJ_ICJ tinyurl.com/4e7k375w

#EU states and the #EuropeanParliament on Monday agreed tougher restrictions on some #Ukraine farm imports, #EuropeanUnion presidency holder #Belgium said. tinyurl.com/5n6z5cpe

Six northern European countries bordering the #NorthSea said Tuesday that they have signed an agreement to work together to protect underwater infrastructure in the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean from an increased risk of sabotage. tinyurl.com/2u8zd7sx

Israeli Prime Minister #BenjaminNetanyahu's approach to the #war in #Gaza is a “mistake,” #US President #JoeBiden said in an interview published on Tuesday, offering further criticism of #Israel's handling of the conflict. tinyurl.com/ye28k49d

#Oil prices rose on Wednesday after two straight days of losses, as the deadlock in #Gaza #ceasefire talks renewed uncertainty about the security of supplies from the #MiddleEast, offsetting a bigger-than-expected build in #US #crude inventories. tinyurl.com/49j4ypuu

The #EuropeanUnion ramped up pressure on #Chinese clean-tech #investments, potentially squeezing out its local suppliers amid #EU efforts to transform the bloc into a #GreenEconomy. #WindEnergy #China tinyurl.com/5dasabje

#EU lawmakers approved a major revamp of the bloc’s #migration laws, aiming to end years of debate over how to handle the illegal entry of thousands of people and deprive the far right of a vote-winning campaign issue ahead of the June elections. tinyurl.com/mw7c3v5m

#Lufthansa decided to prolong the suspension of #flights to #Tehran on Thursday due to security concerns in the #MiddleEast, where Iran is on high alert for possible retaliation for a suspected #Israeli #airstrike on #Iran's embassy in #Syria. #Travel tinyurl.com/mpxbxe3

The World Bank maintained its January estimate and stated on Thursday that it anticipates #Romania's GDP to rise by 3.3% in 2024. tinyurl.com/bdeuvyhf

Authorities said on Thursday that nearly 12,000 homes in a Russian area bordering #Kazakhstan have flooded as a result of the #UralRiver's ongoing rise in water levels, which is likely to cause further #flooding. #Russia tinyurl.com/yrrytt42

#US President #JoeBiden stated he was dedicated to “deepening #maritime and #security ties” with #Japan and the #Philippines, reassuring allies concerned about #China's increasingly assertive actions in disputed waters. tinyurl.com/yn9t3yts