Europe

Berlin, Aug 8; AFP: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned today that US President Donald Trump's decision to reimpose sanctions on Iran could further destabilise the Middle East and boost radical forces in the region.

Trump brought back the punishing sanctions after unilaterally pulling out of a landmark 2015 deal between Tehran and Western powers to halt Iran's nuclear ambitions.

"We still think that it is a mistake to give up on the nuclear accord with Iran," Maas said in an interview with the daily Passauer Neue Presse.

7 Aug 2018; DW: Even 23 years after the Battle of Vukovar, a divide remains between Croats and Serbs in the city. In school, children are separated according to their ethnicity. Srecko Matic visited the eastern Croatian city.

MOSCOW, August 7. /TASS/. Russia’s first heavily upgraded Tupolev Tu-22M3M strategic missile-carrying bomber has been outfitted with new radio-electronic equipment, Tupolev Aircraft Company CEO Alexander Konyukhov told TASS on Tuesday.

"As a result of deep modernization, we have actually got a new plane, Tu-22M3M. It features absolutely new onboard radio-electronic equipment," the chief executive said.

MOSCOW, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Russia said Tuesday it would do everything to preserve and fully implement the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which is under threat by U.S. unilateral sanctions.

"The introduction of the first batch of U.S. restrictions is aimed at disrupting the implementation of the JCPOA, which Washington unilaterally abandoned on May 8," a Russian Foreign Ministry statement said.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order to restore sanctions against Iran.

BERLIN 7 Aug 2018; A German mother, identified as Berrin T, and her partner have been convicted for raping her son and selling him to paedophiles.

The Freiburg state court convicted the couple for a total of 40 counts of serious sexual abuse of children.  Couple were also convicted for of rape and human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation.

6 Aug 2018; DW: Swastikas have been daubed at the spot where a Syrian child was killed in an accident in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Local politicians condemned the graffiti, which is being investigated by police.

The small town of Schönberg in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has become the scene of an ugly neo-Nazi hate campaign after a young boy was hit by a tractor on June 20. Two men have since been identified in connection with the crime.

BRUSSELS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU)'s updated Blocking Statute will enter into force Tuesday as a countermeasure to Washington's re-imposed sanctions against Iran, the European Commission announced it on its website on Monday.

The statute, introduced in 1996 in response to U.S. extra-territorial sanctions legislation, was amended on June 6 by adding within its scope the list of extra-territorial U.S. sanctions on Iran.

Brussels, Aug 6 (AP) The European Union today said that new measures are ready to take effect to protect European businesses from the impact of US sanctions on Iran.

The measures also aim to save the agreement meant to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions after the US abandoned the pact. The EU insists the deal is important for global security and is trying to keep economic and financial supply lines to Tehran open.

The EU's executive Commission said today that the "blocking statute" will take effect beginning at midnight Washington time (0400 GMT Tuesday).

MOSCOW, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Russia on Sunday started imposing additional import tariffs of 25-40 percent for a range of U.S. goods, according to the Russian government.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev last month signed a government order setting the new tariffs, stipulating that it would become effective 30 days after its official publication on July 6.

5 Aug 2018; DW; UK trade minister Liam Fox has accused the European Union of pushing Britain toward an exit from the bloc without a trade deal. He said Brussels was obsessed with EU rules, rather than focusing on economic well-being.

Britain's international trade secretary, Liam Fox, has put the odds of the UK leaving the European Union without agreeing terms to formally finalize its exit at 60-40.