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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Germany ʼnot spending enoughʼ on defense, US ambassador says US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell on Sunday criticized Germanyʼs pledge to incrementally raise its defense spending to 1.5 percent until 2024 in an interview with German Sunday newspaper Welt am Son‐ ntag. "Germanyʼs NATO promise to raise defense spending to 1.5 percent is not enough," Grenell said. "Again, it is not US standards that have to be met here but NATO commitments that Berlin has already agreed to. The US is simply reminding its great German ally that now is not the time to undercut or weaken NATO." Defense spending isa contentious subject that has strained relations between Washington and Berlinsince Donald Trump assumed the US presidency in 2016.

Trump hasrepeatedly accused the German governmentof failing to meet its defense spending commitments.

Romania seeks to block former anti-corruption official from top EU post At the same time Romania holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, the countryʼs justice minister, Tudorel Toader, is actively trying discredit anti-corruption officials.

Toader has announced that he will use all possible means to block the appointment of his compatriot Laura Codruta Kovesi as the chief prosecutor of the future European Public Prosecutorʼs Office (EPPO). Kovesi previously led the Romaniaʼs DNA anti-corruption authority before being dismissed under questionable circumstances. An independent commission of twelve experts named her as the preferred candidate for the EUʼs prosecutor job on February 4.

35/2019 • 11 FEBRUARY, 2019

Hundreds of Russian and Chinese spies in Brussels Diplomats have reportedly been told to avoid certain eateries

The EUʼs de facto capital is teeming with Russian and Chinese spies, according to officials cited by a German newspaper. Diplomats have reportedly been told to avoid certain eateries in the European quarter.

EU slashes 2019 growth forecast The European Commission has slashed its 2019 growth forecast by almost a third to 1.3 percent. It has cited "global uncertainties" and "trade tensions" for its decision.

"Subdued" economic momentum has prompted the European Commission (EC) to revise its growth forecasts for 2019, trimming almost one-third of the formerly predicted growth. The announcement comes off the back of a slowdown in its largest economy, Germany, and amid deadlock and a ticking clock on negotiations for the UK to leave the EU. The Commission

has said it now forecasts euro area GDP to grow 1.3 percent this year, down from its autumn estimate of 1.9 percent. Predicted growth across the broader EU area was also cut from 1.9 to 1.5 percent. Read more: The small, but surprising secret to Germanyʼs economic success "The slowdown is set to be more pronounced than expected last autumn, especially in the euro area," Economy Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said.

"Growth should rebound gradually in the second half of this year and in 2020."

2019 Grammy Awards boost chances for women and black artists The debate raging ahead of the Grammy Award event is similar to the one that preceded the Oscars: There are too few African-Americans and women among the nominees, and among the winners (in 2018, for instance, only one female solo performer was awarded during the live ceremony). But the debate that led to

the #OscarsSOWhite protests has generated change at the 61st Grammy Awards. To give African-American and female artists a better chance in main categories which, unlike theOscars, donʼt gift separate awards for men and women, there are eight nominations instead of the usual five.

Lithuania set to ban fake news from Russia Walking outside the Lithuanian parliament, a toddler cries out: "Davai, davai," pulling his mother behind him.

Loosely translated as "letʼs go," the Russian phrase is common in colloquial Lithuanian and often heard from sports competitors on TV. The woman responds bluntly: "Thereʼs no such word [in Lithuanian]!" Read more: Germanyʼs ʼBildʼ falls for hoax, unleashes debate on fake news The interlude on the snowy pathway reflects what some describe as child-like attempts to fight Russian disinformation and domestic problems in the Baltic nation. Instead of tackling the problem itself, the ruling majority is only eliminating the issue from public discourse, according to Dainius Radzevicius, director of the Lithuanian Union of Journalists (LZS).

Turkey tells China to close Muslim ʼconcentration campsʼ Turkeyʼs foreign ministry has called on China toend the mass detention of its Muslim Uighur minorityand shut down a network of "concentration camps" in the countryʼs northwest.

"The policy of systematic assimilation against the Uighur Turks carried out by the authorities of China is a great shame for humanity," foreign ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement on Saturday. In a lengthy response posted online, Chinaʼs Embassy in Ankara called the remarks unacceptable and demanded Turkey "withdraw its accusations."

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35/2019 • 11 February, 2019

NATO tries to prevent an arms race

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos accuses National Enquirer newspaper of blackmail

Like many meetings before, the NATO-Russia Council took place at the alliance headquarters in Brussels.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg gave a frank account of Fridayʼs meeting of the military allianceʼs NATO-Russia Council.

"There was no real progress in the meeting," he said. "Especially when tensions are high, when we have some real differences, some real difficulties, then it is important to meet." There was little hope among observers that either Russia or NATO would budge from their positions on the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) at the meeting.

Stoltenberg again stated that Russia, with the installation of SSC-8c cruise missiles in Europe, is in violation of the INF treaty, and that this has been the case for years. Russia has insisted that the controversial nuclear weapons systems can only fly 480 kilometers (298 miles), meaning that they fall just below the 500-kilometer range limit stipulated by the INF treaty.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has accused the National Enquirer of blackmail, saying the tabloid threatened to publish intimate photos of him. The paperʼs publisher has said it will "thoroughly investigate" the claims.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beats Pierre-Hugues Herbert to win first title since 2017

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Thursday accused the owner of the US newspaper National Enquirer of blackmailing him with threats to publish "intimate photos." In a blog post, Bezos claimed that "top people" at the Enquirer had approached him with a deal, asking him to stop investigating how it had obtained his personal text messages, which were published in a story several weeks ago.

The Amazon chief said he was also asked to make a public statement announcing that the Enquirerʼs reporting

on him was not politically motivated.

In return, he said the tabloid promised not to publish "intimate photos" he had sent to his mistress. The National Enquirerʼs parent company and publisher, American Media Inc (AMI), has said it would "thoroughly investigate" Bezosʼ claims of blackmail and take any necessary action. It also defended its reporting, saying "it believes fervently that it acted lawfully in the reporting of the story of Mr. Bezos."

Sharks use Israelʼs coast as a Jacuzzi Since the end of November, an unusually large number of sharks have been sighted off the coast of Israel.

In the colder winter months, sometimes 50 to 100 sharks cavort in the shallow water off the coastal town of Chadera, some 50 kilometers north of Tel Aviv. Such a large population ofsandbar sharks anddusky sharksis rare to see, saysmarine researcher Ejal Bigal, who has been studying for four

years what the animals are doing in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. In the last 100 years, 95 percent of Mediterranean sharks have been exterminated, Bigal said. Since they prefer shallow water near the coast, they are caught faster by fishermen.

In addition, sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) reproduce late often after 20 years. It is all the more astonishing to see so many specimens of this endangered species in one place.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga won his first ATP title since 2017, beating fellow Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-4 6-2 to win the Open Sud de France in Montpellier. Herbert, the seventh seed, was aiming for his first ATP singles title, but Tsonga only dropped four points on his serve. The 33-year-old was only in Montpellier courtesy of a wildcard.

No Red Bull Air Race for Budapest in 2019 Budapest Mayor István Tarlós has not authorised the organisation of the Red Bull Air Race in Budapest this summer – according to a statement just issued by the Mayor’s Office. Held annually in several major cities with notable landmarks for skyline backdrops, the Red Bull Air Race is Formula 1 in the air, presenting incredible stunt-flying spectacles performed by the world’s best pilots. Every year except one since 2003, Budapest has hosted the race, but now it seems that for 2019, the Red Bull Air Race will skip the Hungarian capital.

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Surge in German arms sales to Saudi Arabia and Turkey Germanyʼs Economic Affairs Ministry disclosed Thursday that German firms sent €160 million ($184 million) worth of arms to Saudi Arabia between January and October last year. That was up €50 million on the whole of 2017.

Berlin only decided on afull stop in November, prompted by the Saudi murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, amid restrictions already applying over Riyadhʼs role in war-torn Yemen. Read more:Amnesty slams Western arms sales to Saudi Arabia Riyadh leads a nine-country coalition backing a Yemeni government opposed by Iranbacked Houthi rebels, who last month reached a fragile ceasefire arrangementunder UN mediation. German weapons exports to Turkey — mostly naval items — more than tripled to €202 million in the same timeframe, up on €62 million in 2017, the ministry said in its reply to parliament. Erdogan isunder international scrutinyover his intention to dislodge Kurdish rebel groups in neighboring war-torn Syria.

Syrian girls attacked in Berlin, racism suspected A man spouting racist insults allegedly confronted two Syrian teenagers in northeastern Berlin and punched them in the face, authorities said Saturday. He hit the girls, aged 15 and 16, "with his fist several times ... before fleeing into a shopping arcade," police alleged in a statement. Both girls were taken to hospital for treatment.

Read more: Racist or Islamist — lonewolf attackers show similar patterns Hours later, a woman reportedly attacked a 12-year-old girl in the southeastern district of Neukölln.

Officers alleged the suspect tried to tear off the girlʼs headscarf, pulled her hair and threatened her with pepper spray. The woman also allegedly attempted to stab the child with a syringe filled with what appeared to be blood, police said. Officers from the state security police are investigating the incidents, which took place late Friday. The suspected hate crimes highlight tensions over migration in Germany. Last month, a 50-year-old German man was charged with attempted murder after he deliberately drove his car into foreigners in the western cities of Bottrop and Essen. Eight people were injured in the New Yearʼs Day attack, including a 4-year-old Afghan boy and a 10-year-old Syrian girl.