Europe

BULBOACA, Moldova, June 1 (Reuters) - The presidents of Serbia and Kosovo insisted on Thursday they want to defuse a violent crisis in northern Kosovo but showed little sign of backing down from their opposing positions.

Arriving at a summit in Moldova of more than 40 European leaders, Serbia's Aleksandar Vucic and Kosovo's Vjosa Osmani did not acknowledge each other even as they stood just metres apart on the red carpet.

OSLO, June 1 (Reuters) - Moscow cannot stop Ukraine from becoming a NATO member, the alliance's chief Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday, as divisions among allies about the speed of Kyiv's accession became apparent only weeks before a decisive mid-July summit in Vilnius.

"All allies agree that Moscow does not have a veto against NATO enlargement," Stoltenberg told reporters as NATO foreign ministers gathered in Oslo, seeking to dispel any signs of discord ahead of the summit.

"We are moving, allies agree that Ukraine will become a member."

01 June 2023; MEMO: International reports revealed that the European Union (EU) would use former German Chancellor Angela Merkel as a mediator between it and Turkiye to facilitate the transfer of natural gas discovered on the Greek Cypriot side, taking advantage of her good relations with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

ROME, May 31 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Italy on Wednesday said that the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine has had a sprawling impact on the economic health of Italy and Europe in general, pushing the overall median wealth and consumer confidence lower.

BULBOACA, Moldova (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at a sprawling summit of some 50 European leaders in Moldova on Thursday, becoming the focal point of an event that seeks to quell regional conflicts and shore up unity in the face of Russia’s war.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched yet another aerial bombardment of Kyiv on Thursday, killing at least three people and wounding others, authorities said.

Following a reported 17 drone and missile attacks on the Ukrainian capital in May, Russian forces hit the capital in the early morning with ground-launched missiles.

MOSCOW, May 31. /TASS/: Gazprom set a new historical record for daily gas supplies to China via Power of Siberia pipeline on May 30, the company said on Wednesday.

"On May 30, the Chinese side's offer for the supply of Russian gas via the Power of Siberia gas pipeline once again exceeded the daily contractual obligations. Gazprom delivered all the requested volumes, setting a new historical record for daily gas supplies to China," the statement said.

Deliveries are made under a bilateral long-term gas purchase and sale agreement between Gazprom and China's CNPC.

VIENNA, May 31. /TASS/: Russia cannot leave the OSCE "at the mercy" of the West and will not allow the organization to be turned into a Russophobic platform, Russian Permanent Representative to the organization Alexander Lukashevich told TASS Wednesday

"I believe that we simply have no right to leave [the organization] at the mercy of this predatory Western gang. We are also talking about post-Soviet territory, where the OSCE operates as well," the diplomat said.

PARIS, May 31. /TASS/: The West may reconsider its aid for Ukraine, if the conflict turns into a protracted one, French President Emmanuel Macron said during the Globsec international security conference in Bratislava, adding that high hopes are being place on the potential Ukrainian counter-offensive.

BERLIN, May 31. /TASS/: The German government made the decision to close by this November its consulates general in the Russian cities of Yekaterinburg, Kaliningrad and Novosibirsk, after Moscow’s earlier decision to cap Germany’s diplomatic staff stationed in Russia at no more than 350 people, a German diplomat said on Wednesday.