DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Brexit: UK lawmakers reject greater say for final deal vote British Prime Minister Theresa May won a vital parliamentary vote on Wednesday, which allows her government to press ahead with offering lawmakers a take-it-or-leave-it decision on any final Brexit deal. MPs voted by 319 to 303 to reject a rebel amendment to the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, which sets the legal framework for the UK to leave the European Union. Pro-EU politicians spent months lobbying for parliament to be given the opportunity tostop Britain crashing out of the EU without a future trade deal, which could spell disaster for the British economy. May has offered parliament a vote on the final terms of any deal with Brussels, but has rejected what she sees as any attempt to undermine the chances of a strong Brexit deal. Those opposed to a hard Brexit wanted the option to return negotiators to talks with the EU, rather than crashing out with no trade deal at all — something the government says will weaken its position in the eyes of Brussels.
EU to impose countertariffs on US products as of Friday A raft of retaliatory tariffs from the European Union on US products will come into effect on June 22. The EUʼs list of targets reads like a summary of emblematic American exports, including motorbikes and jeans. EU countertariffs on a list of US products would come into force on Friday, the European Commission said Wednesday. The retaliatory measure comes in response to US tariff hikes on steel and aluminumthat were imposed on EU member countries on June 1, with the White House citing grounds of national security.
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Ukraineʼs Yulia Tymoshenko to run in next yearʼs presidential election Although she enjoys undying support in some quarters, many voters see her as part of the problem
US withdraws from UN Human Rights Council The United States told the United Nations on Tuesday of its intention to withdraw from the intergovernmental organizationʼs Human Rights Council. US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the announcement at a press conference in Washington. It comes a day after the HRC denounced the Trump administrationʼs policy ofseparating children from their migrant parents at the US borderwith Mexico, with UN human rights chief Zeid Raʼad alHussein calling the practice "unconscionable."
Germanyʼs Angela Merkel accused of ʼbuyingʼ deal on The two-time ex-prime minister, who spent three years in jail for corruption, says she will run against Petro Poroshenko.
Ford and Volkswagen eye strategic partnership Ford and Volkswagen said in a joint statement late on Tuesday that they had signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at "exploring a strategic alliance designed to strengthen each companyʼs competitiveness." Reports earlier Tuesday suggested the two carmakers were interested in collaborating on vans and pickup trucks, but a Ford spokeswoman said it was too early to say what the final outcome of the partnership would be.
Read more: Ford plans huge invest-
ment in e-mobility In a separate statement, Fordʼs president of global markets, Jim Farley, noted that the move was intended to boost the US carmakerʼs effectiveness and efficiency. "This potential alliance with the Volkswagen Group is another example of how we can become more fit as a business, while creating a winning global product portfolio and extending our capabilities," he said.
Conductor Simon Rattle bids farewell to the Berlin Philharmonic The end of an era: In the Berlin Philharmonie and in live transmissions vialive streamand inmovie theatersacross Europe, Sir Simon gives the downbeat to his farewell at 7:30 p.m. CEST on Wednesday. It ends as it began. In 1987, Rattle gave his debut with the Berliners with the same work, Mahlerʼs Sixth. In 2002, he began his stint as artistic director and principal conductor of the renowned orchestra with Mahler as well; then it was the Symphony No. 5. The combi-
nation of Mahler, Rattle and the Philharmonic marked other highlights during his tenure in Berlin, notably in 2010/11 and 2011/12 seasons, when he conducted the composerʼs complete symphonies. An open-air event titled "Goodbye, Sir Simon" on June 24 marks Rattleʼs very last appearance as chief conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. The playbill at BerlinʼsWaldbühneincludes popular works by the composers Joseph Canteloube and Paul Lincke.
asylum with Emmanuel Macron World Refugee Day could barely have come at a more delicate moment for Angela Merkel and Horst Seehofer. The German chancellor is still locked in a power struggle with her interior minister over his potentially illegal plansto turn certain asylumseekers away at the border. And yet on Wednesday, the two government leaders attended an event at Berlinʼs German Historical Museum to commemorate the victims of forced displacement. As if to make the afternoon slightly more awkward, the pair afterwards posed for photos on either side of Umeswaran Arunagirinathan, a former refugee who had fled the Sri Lankan civil war as an unaccompanied minor, attended school in Germany and briefly faced deportation, before eventually becoming a heart surgeon and German citizen.
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Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte dismisses Roma census proposal as ʼunconstitutionalʼ Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Tuesday criticizedInterior Minister Matteo Salviniʼs plans to create a Roma "register." "No one is planning to create files or conduct a census on the basis of ethnicity, which would be unconstitutional because it is clearly discriminatory," Conte said in a statement Tuesday. Read more: Forgotten victims of Hungaryʼs Roma murders Conte also called for checks to ensure Roma children had access to school services, as "they are often kept out of compulsory education courses." Salvini, who also serves as deputy prime minister, announced his intentions of carrying out a Roma census during a television question-andanswer session on regional television channel TeleLombardia on Monday. The far-right League party leader said the census would mean Roma who were in the country illegally could be deported, but "as for the Italian Roma, unfortunately, one has to keep them at home."
Burger King sorry after offering Whoppers to women impregnated by World Cup players
Trumpʼs economic boom stalked by trade fears "Our economy is perhaps BETTER than it has ever been. Companies doing really well, and moving back to America, and job numbers are the best in 44 years."
There will be no prizes for guessing either the author of the above quote or the medium on which it was delivered. President Donald Trumpʼs tweet on Sunday afternoon was typically hyperbolic — there is little evidence to support the claim that the American economy is in its best shape in 242 years, after all. Nonetheless, the US president has a point:the American economy is doing well.Despite the many trade conflicts brewing between it and several of its biggest
partners from Canada to the EU to China, on many important indicators, the US economy looks to be in robust health. Trumpʼs many opponents might be quick to point towards the famous line about "lies, damned lies and statistics" but likewise his supporters feel there is considerable evidence to support the view that the US economy is doing far better than it ever did under President Obama or indeed, under many of Trumpʼs most recent predecessors.
Shakira selling Nazi-like trinket for El Dorado tour A necklace for sale on singer Shakiraʼs website resembles the Black Sun symbol used by the SS. Colombian superstar singer Shakira may want to check her online shop for some fascist fare. As pointed out by media outlet Bento on Tuesday, a necklace she has for sale for her El Dorado tour bears not just a striking resemblance, but is identical to a symbol used by the Nazis. The small gold necklace reads "Shakira El Dorado World Tour" surrounding a sun pattern. That pattern is the same as the Black Sun, or Schwarze Sonne in German, which is still used today in some neo-Nazi occult circles. Inspired by ancient occult
symbols, the Black Sun was incorporated into a mosaic on the floor of Wewelsburg Castle, the ideological home base of Heinrich Himmler and the SS. It was likely adopted by Nazis as significant because of its alleged relationship to ancient Germanic runes and sagas — and perhaps even the round table of Britainʼs legendary King Arthur. Although it is almost certainly an accident, it seems that whoever made the design for Shakiraʼs promotional necklace didnʼt do much research. Nazi symbols are banned in Germany and, according to Bento, the Black Sun is on the list of far-right symbols to watch out for in at least two German states.
The Russian arm of the burger business initially offered a lifetime supply of their signature Whopper burger and 3 million rubles (roughly €41,000 or €47,000) to women who became pregnant by the countryʼs World Cup players. The prize was offered to women who get "the best football genes" and "ensure the success of the Russian team for generations to come." After widespread criticism, the company removed the announcement from its social media accounts and posted a Russian-language statement on local network VKontakte saying "we offer apologies for the announcement we made. It was too offensive."
Nicki Minaj and Future confirmed for Budapest Queen of rap Nicki Minaj and influential American hip-hop artist Future are coming to Budapest.
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German erotica chain behind worldʼs first sex shop relaunches The new company, be you, said itwould operate the online and retail units of the old Beate Uhse erotica chain and market the brands Beate Uhse in Germany, Adam & Eve in France and Pabo in the Netherlands. The company added that Chief Executive Michael Specht would retain his position in the post-insolvency company. Its main stakeholder would be Robus Capital Management, the firm said from its headquarters in Flensburg, Germany, on Wednesday. The Beate Uhse erotica chain began as a mail-order shop founded by the firmʼs namesake. It claimed to have opened the worldʼs first sex shop in Germany in 1962. Following the outsourcing of the logistics unit and a considerable reduction in fixed overheads, the new stakeholder plans to focus on online retail where newer companies had pushed out the former Beate Uhse chain. According to earlier reports, creditors and investors are likely to lose everything in the insolvency proceedings. Staff will be down to 150, from 500 before the firm went bankrupt.
In North Korea, stunted growth still rife among children A UN report published on Wednesday showed that malnourishment remained widespread in North Korea despite a "slight" improvement across the country. Around one in five children in North Korea is smaller than the average for his or her age, the report said. The UN Childrenʼs Fund (UNICEF) noted that stunting is "an indication of chronic or recurrent malnutrition." The rate of stunted children has decreased over the past decade, dropping from 32.4 percent in 2009 to 19 percent in 2017. Despite the improvement, "only one in three children age six to 23 months receive the minimum acceptable diet," UNICEF Asia and Pacific director Karin Hulshof told reporters in Geneva. A UN-led report published last year found widespread food insecurity in North Korea, with roughly 41 percent of the population undernourished. Hulshof noted that the government survey of 8,500 households marked improved cooperation between Pyongyang and the UN, noting that the information was more reliable than in the last survey in 2009.