02 Mar 2019; DW: Germany's car industry association says billions will be spent on electromobility over the next three years to cement the future of the auto sector. Domestic car production is, however, expected to fall this year.

Germany's automotive industry is planning an aggressive investment in electric and autonomous cars, along with digitization, the president of the Verband der Automobilindustrie (VDA) car industry association said on Saturday.

NEW YORK, March 2 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders kicked off his 2020 presidential campaign as a second-time runner on Saturday in his hometown borough of Brooklyn, New York, reiterating his Democratic socialist views that have been reshaping the Democratic Party.

On the snow-covered campus of Brooklyn College, Sanders, 77, expressed his determination to fight for a "Medicare-for-all" healthcare system and a 15-U.S.-dollar hourly minimum wage, and vowed to address climate change and other priority issues that altogether form a progressive agenda.

TEHRAN, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's deputy foreign minister said in Iran that the Venezuelans are determined to defend their country against any possible foreign attack, Tasnim news agency reported on Saturday.

"The government and its leadership are ready to defend the country if attacked. Venezuela's peaceful history shows that we will defend our country to our last man," Ruben Dario Molina told Tasnim in an interview.

Armed forces are also loyal to President Nicolas Maduro, Molina, who visited Iran recently, was quoted as saying.

The US jobs engine has continued to deliver for nearly a decade, putting more Americans back to work and sending unemployment to a historic lows.

But, just over a year after Congress enacted sweeping corporate tax cuts meant to jolt the economy, a shadow has crept into the picture: Layoffs are also on the rise.

While claims for unemployment benefits remain low, major companies have begun to swing the axe even as many enjoy the tax windfall and solid profits, and are spending record amounts of cash to buy back their own stock from investors.

MOSCOW, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Russia is ready for consultations on the Venezuela crisis with the United States in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Saturday.

According to a statement by the ministry, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the situation around Venezuela with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a telephone conversation.

CAIRO, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The Sharm El-Sheikh Asian Film Festival (SAFF) opened on Saturday in Egypt's Red Sea South Sinai province, with China as the guest of honor of the festival's third edition.

The opening ceremony was presented in cooperation with the Chinese Cultural Center in Cairo. Ancient Chinese folk dances were performed during the ceremony.

The festival features 58 films from 26 countries competing for nine awards in five competitions.

03 Mar 2019; AFP: Nearly 300 Syrians suspected of belonging to the Islamic State jihadist group have been freed because they have "no blood on their hands", Kurdish authorities who were holding them said.

Their release was announced late Saturday by the semi-autonomous Kurdish administration of northern Syria, which said in a statement that 283 Syrians had been set free.

Tribal chiefs and other local officials had lobbied for their release.

03 Mar 2019; AFP: US President Donald Trump's administration is brandishing the threat of sanctions against foreign companies "trafficking" with Cuba, a move hitherto mothballed by Washington so as not to offend allies.

The White House has broken with two decades of precedent in threatening to activate Title III of the Helms-Burton Act, which extended the US embargo to apply to foreign companies trading with Cuba.

02 Mar 2019; DW: Anti-racism demonstrators gathered in their thousands outside the northern Italian city's cathedral. Their anger focused on Italy's controversial right-wing interior minister, Matteo Salvini.

Tens of thousands of people took to Milan's streets on Saturday to protest against what they said are racist policies promoted by the national government.

WASHINGTON, March 2 (Xinhua) -- The Pentagon announced on Saturday that the United States and South Korea have decided to "conclude" the Key Resolve and Foal Eagle series of military exercises, which the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has viewed as provocative.

The announcement came after a phone call between U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan and his South Korean counterpart Jeong Kyeong-doo earlier on Saturday, the Pentagon said in a statement.

MOSCOW, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Russia will have to take reciprocal and asymmetrical measures in response to possible threats brought by intentions of the United States to use outer space for military purposes, a Russian military official said Saturday.

According to the chief of the Russian Armed Forces General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the U.S. intentions to use space for military purposes, in particular, the decision to form a Space Force, create prerequisites for the militarization of outer space.

03 Mar 2019; DW:  In a two-hour speech, Trump took aim at the Democrats, the Green New Deal and the Russia probe. His remarks came after a week of setbacks, which saw him come home empty-handed from a nuclear summit with Kim Jong Un.

In a speech laced with sarcasm and his characteristic "off script" style, US President Donald Trump targeted special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation and Democratic lawmakers at a conservative conference on Saturday.