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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Belgium and Netherlands swap land in the New Year A new Dutch-Belgian border agreement has gone into effect, giving the Netherlands two peninsulas the size of 23 soccer fields. The discovery of a headless body prompted the border move to clear up jurisdictional issues.

Alongside fireworks and champagne, the Netherlands and Belgium rang in the New Year with some new territory aftera revised border agreementbetween the European neighbors went into effect on Monday. The curious border situation centers on an area between the eastern Belgian municipality of Vise and the southwestern Dutch municipality of Eijsden that are split by the Meuse River. Over time, the riverʼs changing course meant that two uninhabited peninsulas that belong to Belgium ended up on the Dutch side of the river while a section of Dutch territory ended up on the Belgian side of the Meuse.

Berlin police arrest fleeing murder suspects at airport German police arrested a man and a woman at Schönefeld airport as the couple was trying to leave the country. The suspects were wanted over a murder after a body was discovered in Berlinʼs Wedding district. The 36-year-old man and the 27-yearold woman were detained while trying to fly to Turkey from Berlin Schönefeld airport, police said on Sunday. According to the authorities, the man had already garnered "significant attention" from the police over his connections to the drug scene in south Berlinʼs Kreuzberg neighborhood. The man and his female acquaintance were arrested on suspicion of murder, Germanyʼs federal police said. Officials launched the case after the body of a 55-year-old woman was discovered in Berlinʼs area of Wedding about a week ago. A passer-by had noticed a strange looking bundle of fibers next to a construction rubble container and alerted the police, who found the body and opened a murder investigation.

1/2018 • 2, JANUARY 2018

Pope Francis bemoans 2017 as a year of war, lies and injustice He complained that 2017 had been squandered and abused

Amid tension over North Korea, Pope Francis has warned of the threat of nuclear war during his last service of the year.

How a hard Brexit could hurt Germany: Reckoning with the worst that may befall Despite the endless media coverage and fevered political rhetoric, no one yet knows for sure what is ultimately going to happen with Brexit.

But should Germany really be scared of a messy outcome?

Brexit means Brexit. At least thatʼs what UK Prime Minister Theresa May has told us several times.The problem with that is, 18 months on from the referendum, no-one seems to know what that crucial ʼBrexitʼ bit itself means.

Hard, soft or medium-boiled? Rare or well done? Or, to borrow another impenetrable phrase of Mayʼs — a ʼred, white and blue Brexitʼ? With a year of difficult negotiations past and another

one ahead, every outcome is still on the table, including what is surely the nightmare scenario for all parties — that in March 2019, the UK leaves the EU, the customs union and the single market without a deal, or with one that significantly changes the status quo.

Were that to happen, what would it mean for Germany? Europeʼs largest economy has been inextricably bound to the continentʼs second largest one for decades. A sundering is inconceivable. Yet out of a clear blue sky, it has emerged as a troubling reality that German business leaders, economists, trade unionist and industry representatives must face.

Germany must allow third gender in registry of births, court rules An intersex person has won a court case to allow them to enter a third gender into the registry of births.

The case was appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court after failing at lower levels.

Germanyʼs Federal Constitutional Court on Wednesday called for a third gender option in the registry of births.

Intersex people, who are neither male nor female, should be able to register their sexual identity as such, the Karlsruhe court ruled. The court found that the general right to the protection of personality in Germanyʼs Basic Law meant the register had to be altered to al-

low a third gender. The court ruled seven to one that lawmakers must create new legislation by the end of 2018 to allow for a third sex, providing the examples of "intersex," "diverse" or another "positive designation of sex." Another possibility raised was to scrap gender entries altogether. "Assignment to a gender is of paramount importance for individual identity; it typically plays a key role both in the self-image of a person and in the way in which the person concerned is perceived by others.

The gender identity of those persons who are neither male nor female is protected,"the court ruled.

Bulgaria takes over EU presidency in turbulent times Bulgaria has taken up the rotating sixmonth EU Council presidency. The country, which is under monitoring by Brussels, must work hard to keep the bloc united amid a looming Brexit and unresolved migration issues. Taking over the EU presidency in the present times poses a serious challenge for Bulgaria.Ongoing Brexit talks, debates to establish a coordinated position onrefugee and migration matters, and preparations for the new EU budget from 2020 onward are just three of the most pressing issues to date. Bulgariaʼs minister for the EU presidency, Lilyana Pavlova, said that a successful presidency will require reaching political consensus, engaging in dialogue and reaching mutual understanding. Bulgaria will endeavor to maintain the unity and stability of the bloc, Pavlova said. But her country has additional objectives, too.

Likud Party calls for defacto annexation of West Bank settlements Hundreds of delegates from Likudʼs Central Committee voted unanimously to support the non-binding resolution. The move may prompt PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who is the target of a corruption probe, to call an early election. Israeliʼs conservative Likud Party passed a non-binding resolution Sunday, unanimously urging legislators to effectively annex Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank — land that Palestinians want for a future state. Such a move could accelerate procedures for the construction and expansions of settlements.

weather today BUDAPEST

2 / 6 °C Precipitation: 13 mm

1/2018 • 2, January 2018

US and Poland strike $10.5 billion missile defense deal

VW aims to block emissions audit in constitutional court

The US has approved the $10.5 billion sale of a Patriot anti-missile system to NATO ally Poland. Eastern European NATO states have been ramping up their military capabilities in the face of perceived Russian aggression.

In a move likely to irk Russia, the US and Poland agreed on Friday a major arms deal that could see the eastern European NATO member soon begin conducting air and missile defense operations. As part of the $10.5 billion (€8.9 billion) sale, Poland is expected to receive 208 Patriot Advanced Capabilty-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement missiles, 16 M903 launching stations, four AN/MPQ-65 radars, four control stations, spares, software and associated equipment. Made by US defense contractor Raytheon, the missiles are reportedly designed to detect, track and engage unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), cruise missiles and shortrange or tactical ballistic missiles. In a statement issued following the sale, the State Department said that: "A secure Europe capable of deterring air and missile threats and other forms of aggression promotes peace and stability within NATO and on the European continent."

The German carmaker has lodged a complaint with Germanyʼs highest court, seeking to overturn a lower courtʼs ruling that it must appoint a special auditor to investigate its Dieselgate emissions scandal.

Serena Williams to return to tennis in Abu Dhabi The former world number one will make her comeback this month after birth of her first child. The 36-yearold will take on the reigning French Open champion. American tennis star and former world number one Serena Williams is set to make her comeback on December 30 after birth of her first child. The 36-year-old will play her first competitive match in 11 months in the United Arab Emirates. Serena Williams will play an exhibition match on the final day of the Mubadala event on December 30, tournament organizers announced Sunday.

Germanyʼs Constitutional Court on Friday confirmed media reports that Volkswagen (VW) was seeking to prevent the instalment of a special auditor to investigatemanagement actions during its diesel emissions scandal. A lower court appointed the auditor in November, in a victory for shareholder groups that want to establish whether VW bosses withheld market-moving information about the manipulation of emissions tests in VW vehicles. The court in the town of Celle ruled that VW could not appeal, which the auto maker views as a

violation of its fundamental rights, according to German newspaper Süd‐ deutsche Zeitung, which researched the report together with public TV channels NDR and WDR. Shortly after the Dieselgate scandal broke in September 2015, VW hired US law firm Jones Day and advisory firm Deloitte to investigate the circumstances of its wrongdoing and who was responsible. Although VW had pledged to improve transparency, it never published the findings that were used as the basis for a $4.3 billion settlement with the US Justice Department.

New Yearʼs Eve: Are fireworks harming the environment?

But how bad are these colorful explosions for our environment? And what are the health effects?

Starting a new year can be costly.

Germans, for instance, send €100 to 200 million ($240 million) up in smoke every New Yearʼs Eve, as spectacular fireworks displays light up the sky above villages and cities across the country. But the annual tradition also has an environmental cost, with each rocket releasing a toxic mix of chemicals and particulates into the air. "Each rocket consists of about 75

percent potassium nitrate, 15 percent charcoal and 10 percent sulfur," said Günter Klein-Sommer, a chemist and pyrotechnist, speaking at a recent lecture on the chemistry of pyrotechnics at the University of Cologne. Depending on the desired effects, other components might be added, including copper, barium or strontium compounds. These end up coloring the fireworks blue, green or red. All of these chemicals require high amounts of energy to be produced, only to fizzle out in a few short seconds, critics have argued.

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China sales behind German carmakersʼ rosy third quarter Strong vehicle sales in the wordʼs most important car market have been essential in enabling German carmakers to end their third quarters on a positive note. Their dependence on China is expected to increase further.

Germanyʼs top carmakers would not have been able to present positive thirdquarter results without a booming auto market in China, a study by consultancy EY showed Tuesday. It said China had long become the most important market for Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler, with one in three of their cars sold in the third quarter having gone to the Asian nation. To be more precise, the Chinese market accounted for 34 percent of Germanyʼs overall car sales between July and September, the highest ever rate logged so far. Back in 2010, only 23 percent of Germanyʼs quarterly car sales ended up in China.

Ousted Venezuelan opposition leader escapes house arrest, flees to Spain Ousted Caracas mayor Antonio Ledezma has likened his escape to a film. He plans to take the fight against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro abroad.

The ousted opposition mayor of Caracas arrived in Spain on Saturday after orchestrating a daring escape from house arrest in Venezuela. Antonio Ledezma landed in Madrid from Bogota, Colombia, where he arrived a day earlier after slipping across the border. He was greeted by his wife and two daughters who live in Spain.

Ledezma said he planned to organize resistance from abroad to President Nicolas Maduro, under whose rule millions of Venezuelans have suffered from shortages of food and other basic supplies. "I am going to travel the world to spread the hope of all Venezuelans to escape this regime, this dictatorship," Ledezma said. The 62-year-old opposition figure was removed as mayor of Caracas and arrested in 2015 on allegations he sought to topple Maduro. He was later put under house arrest due to health issues.

Ledezma was one of the opposition leaders who led protests against the government in 2014, which also resulted in the arrest of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. He remains under house arrest.