Europe

MOSCOW, November 20. /TASS/: After the Maidan [coup] Ukraine has lost its state independence and turned into an "impoverished, destitute land," Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a commentary marking the tenth anniversary of the start of the Ukrainian Euromaidan protests.

MOSCOW, November 20. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in an extraordinary online BRICS summit on the escalation of the situation in the Middle East, the Kremlin press service said on Monday.

"On November 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in an extraordinary BRICS summit (in the videoconference format) to discuss the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," it said.

HELSINKI, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Finland's President Sauli Niinisto said on Monday it had become impossible to return asylum seekers who did not meet the criteria for protection, and that this had to be taken into account when policies are set.

Over 500 asylum seekers, mostly from Yemen, Somalia, Syria and Iraq, arrived in Finland via Russia during the past two weeks, leading Helsinki to shut half its border crossings and accuse Moscow of funnelling migrants to its border.

Nov 19 (Reuters) - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday demanded rapid changes in the operations of Ukraine's military medical system, as he announced the dismissal of the commander of the medical forces.

Zelenskiy's move was announced as he met Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, and coincided with debate over the conduct of the 20-month-old war against Russia, with questions over how quickly a counteroffensive in the east and south is proceeding.

BARCELONA, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Colombian singer Shakira on Monday reached a settlement with prosecution to avoid a trial over charges she failed to pay 14.5 million euros ($15.74 million) in Spanish income tax between 2012 and 2014.

As part of the deal that puts an end to the trial, prosecution changed jail time for the singer with fines, the judge said during the trial's first hearing.

MOSCOW, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday it had taken note of statements about Russia from Argentina's President-elect Javier Milei who has said he wants to pull back from relations with Moscow, but still hoped the two countries could maintain strong ties.

Milei, a right-wing libertarian who on Sunday won almost 56% of the vote in the election's second round, has previously said he would retreat from ties with countries including Russia, China and Brazil, citing disagreement with their governments' policies.

KYIV, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Ukraine sacked two senior cyber defence officials on Monday, a government official said, as prosecutors announced a probe into alleged embezzlement in the government's cyber security agency.

Yurii Shchyhol, head of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine (SSSCIP), and his deputy, Viktor Zhora, were dismissed by the government, senior cabinet official Taras Melnychuk wrote on Telegram.

BUDAPEST, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Hungary's ruling party unveiled billboards vilifying European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen on Monday, the first time it has made her a personal target in a campaign similar to one against her predecessor that angered Brussels.

The billboards, erected overnight to launch a campaign for next June's European parliamentary election, depict Von der Leyen alongside Alex Soros, the son of liberal Hungarian-born financier George Soros, a perennial target of hostility from Orban's Fidesz Party.

MOSCOW, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Moscow urged Britain to stop its involvement in the Ukraine crisis, local media reported on Monday.

"The British leadership continues to demonstrate its focus on comprehensive support for Ukraine. The British have a thesis about the need to inflict 'defeat on the battlefield' on Russia," said Sergei Belyaev, director of the Second European Department at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

LONDON (AP) — Boris Johnson, the former British prime minister, struggled to come to grips with much of the science during the coronavirus pandemic, his chief scientific advisor said Monday.

In keenly awaited testimony to the country’s public inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic, Patrick Vallance said he and others faced repeated problems getting Johnson to understand the science.