Europe

GRINDAVIK, Iceland, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Icelandic authorities were on Tuesday preparing to build defence walls around a geothermal power plant in the southwestern part of the country that they hope will protect it from lava flows amid concerns about an imminent volcanic eruption.

Seismic activity and underground lava flows intensified on the Reykjanes peninsula near the capital Reykjavik over the weekend, prompting authorities to evacuate nearly 4,000 people from the fishing town of Grindavik on Saturday.

MOSCOW, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia is in contact with its strategic partners on the potential supply and joint production of its fifth-generation Su-57 fighters, local media reported Tuesday.

"The fifth-generation Su-57E fighter, which is presented by Rosoboronexport at the Dubai Airshow 2023 ... is a high-tech product," TASS, the Russian news agency reported, citing Alexander Mikheev, director general of the country's state-run arms exporter Rosoboronexport.

BUDAPEST, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Compared to the second quarter of this year, Hungary's economic output in the third quarter increased by 0.9 percent according to official figures, ending a technical recession.

Hungary's gross domestic product (GDP) decreased by 0.4 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, the country's Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Tuesday citing preliminary data.

MOSCOW, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Russia is concerned over the tense situation in the Arctic and the increased potential for conflict in the region, local media reported Tuesday citing Nikolai Korchunov, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

"The international situation in the Arctic region is very difficult and tense," which can lead to a growing potential for conflict, Korchunov said.

Korchunov expressed concern over the fragmentation of international cooperation in the Arctic, further pointing to the weakening of the Arctic Council.

MOSCOW (AP) — A Moscow court on Tuesday fined Google for failing to store personal data on its Russian users, the latest in a series of fines on the U.S. tech giant amid tensions between the Kremlin and the West over the fighting in Ukraine.

A magistrate at Moscow’s Tagansky district court fined Google 15 million rubles (about $164,200) after the company repeatedly refused to store personal data on Russian citizens inside the country. Google was previously fined over the same charges in August 2021 and June 2022.

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union nations acknowledged on Tuesday that they risk failing to provide Ukraine with the ammunition they pledged to help Kyiv stave off the Russian invasion and win back its territory.

Early this year, EU leaders promised to provide 1 million rounds of ammunition to Ukraine’s front line by spring next year in what would have amounted to a serious ramp-up of production. But the 27-nation bloc, for over half a century steeped in a “peace, not war” message and sheltering under a U.S. military umbrella, is finding it tough to come up with the goods.

MOSCOW, November 13. /TASS/: The United Nations is unlikely to help resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Israeli Ambassador to Russia Alexander Ben Zvi said on Monday.

"I doubt that the UN will be able to resolve our conflict because up to now I haven’t seen a single conflict settled by the United Nations," he said. "The UN is a waste of space because this organization has done nothing positive for Israel in our conflict."

MOSCOW, November 13. /TASS/: Deliveries of the Russian SJ-100 aircraft fully assembled from domestically produced components will begin en masse next year, as previously expected, the press service of Rostec told TASS.

The holding noted that delivery times could be delayed by a few months so that the company has time to ensure the safety requirement of the aircraft, and this should not be viewed as a problem.

MOSCOW, November 13. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin is always open to dialogue, but it must be productive, not just empty talk, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Commenting on a recent remark by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz who said he was open to holding talks with Putin in the future, Peskov said: "The president never rules out contacts, as he always says that he is open to various talks, especially summits. But the president has always been and remains a fan of results-oriented communication, not just talk for the sake of talk."

LONDON, Nov 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Former U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron was appointed foreign secretary Monday in a sweeping reshuffle of current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s cabinet.

Cameron was seen walking into No. 10 — the official residence and office of the British prime minister — to meet with Sunak, following the abrupt sacking of Suella Braverman as interior minister.

Cameron served as prime minister from 2010 to 2016 and presided over Britain’s controversial Brexit vote, which ultimately led to his resignation.