Europe

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The owner of Russia’s Wagner military contractor threatened Friday to withdraw his troops next week from the protracted battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, accusing Moscow’s military command of starving his forces of ammunition and causing them heavy losses.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, a wealthy entrepreneur with longtime links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, claimed that Wagner had planned to capture Bakhmut by May 9, Russia’s major Victory Day holiday celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.

MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/: Polish authorities have designs on the remnants of Ukraine, and this is the clearest signal Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky will ever receive on country’s NATO bid, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

The diplomat drew attention to Zelensky's words, who said on Thursday that Ukraine understood that it could not join NATO during the conflict, but wanted a "clear signal" that it would be accepted later.

MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/: Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has urged to create an international tribunal against Russia.

"The aggressor must feel the full power of justice. This is our historical responsibility. <…> Only one institution is capable of responding to the original crime, the crime of aggression: a tribunal," Zelensky told the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Thursday during his visit to The Hague.

MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/: Citydrive is experiencing problems with its GPS inside the Garden Ring in downtown Moscow in the service’s app, the car sharing service told TASS.

"GPS problems have been observed in the area inside the Garden Ring. Users experience challenges accessing vehicles in this zone because cars may not be correctly displayed on the map. We advise choosing other routes when planning trips before May 9 inclusive," the press service said.

The failure is not related to the service’s operations, Citydrive’s press service stressed.

LONDON, May 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives are braced for heavy losses in their first major electoral test since he became the UK’s third leader in the space of a few chaotic weeks last year.

In the depths of the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades, the local council elections across England on Thursday will shed light on the main parties’ standing ahead of a UK-wide general election expected next year.

PARIS, May 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni “is incapable of resolving the migration problems” faced by her country, France’s interior minister said Thursday in comments that risk fuelling tensions
between Paris and Rome.

In a radio interview in Paris, Gerald Darmanin said Italy faced a “very serious migration crisis” and he drew parallels between Meloni and French far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

ROME, May 4 (Reuters) - Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called off a trip to Paris on Thursday, saying the French interior minister had insulted Italy with comments that were highly critical of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The French minister, Gerald Darmanin, had earlier told RMC radio that Meloni was "unable to solve the migration problems on which she was elected" and accused her of "lying" to voters that she could end a crisis over growing numbers of boat migrants.

May 4 (Reuters) - Russia accused the United States on Thursday of being behind what it says was a drone attack on Moscow's Kremlin citadel intended to kill President Vladimir Putin.

A day after blaming Ukraine for what it called a terrorist attack, the Kremlin administration shifted the focus onto the United States, but without providing evidence. The White House was quick to reject the charge.

THE HAGUE, May 4 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday night for a surprise visit, following his visit to Finland earlier the day.

The plane with Zelensky arrived at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam at 10.15 p.m. local time (2115 GMT). It came from Helsinki, Finland, where the Ukrainian president had attended a summit with Nordic nations -- Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland.

FRANKFURT, May 4 (Xinhua) -- The European Central Bank (ECB) decided on Thursday to raise its main interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) in a bid to quell inflation.

As of May 10, the interest rates on the main refinancing operations, the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will be increased to 3.75 percent, 4.00 percent and 3.25 percent, respectively, the bank said in a statement.

The interest rate on the deposit facility has been brought up to a level last seen in October 2008, it said.