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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Volkswagen manager faces new probe over illegal bonuses A former top Volkswagen manager is being investigated on suspicion of breach of trust after he received huge bonuses from the German auto giant in the wake of the Dieselgate scandal. The Bild am Son‐ ntag newspaper reported on Sunday that the manager who specialized in technical development for the Wolfsburg-based car firm is facing a preliminary probe over whether he received unjustified gratuities. The German business daily Handelsblatt later partly identified the manager as Hanno J. He was one of four executives charged on Monday along with ex-VW chief Martin Winterkorn for their roles in the emissions-cheating affair.

Can Pakistanʼs Imran Khan reset ties with Iran?

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Iran on Sunday on a two-day official visit to the neighboring country. He was scheduled to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Monday. Pakistani officials say the two leaders will discuss a range of topics, including an expansion of bilateral trade and the issue of militancy along the two countriesʼ shared border. The state-run IRNA news agency said Khanʼs trip was expected to help "develop ties between the two countries, especially those related to regional cooperation in fighting terrorism and safeguarding borders." But ties between Iran and Pakistan have remained tense due to a deep mistrust of each other. Pakistan has generally tried to maintain close ties with both Saudi Arabia and Iran — bitter regional foes — but has drifted away from Tehran in the past few years.

92/2019 • 23 APRIL, 2019

Egyptian voters urged to ‘do the right thing’ on second day of referendum The level of the turnout is a key issue

After the first day of voting, international observers reported there were no hurdles to voting. But the level of the turnout is a key issue.

Democrats subpoena Deutsche Bank over Trumpʼs finances Deutsche Bank and several other banking institutions were subpoenaed on Monday by two US House of Representatives committees investigating President Donald Trumpʼs finances.

The Houseʼs Intelligence and Financial Services committees issued subpoenas to the German lender — as well as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup — seeking information about Trumpʼs business dealings and possible Russian money laundering.

"The potential use of the US financial system for illicit purposes is a very serious concern. The Financial Services Committee is exploring these matters,

including as they may involve the president and his associates, as thoroughly as possible," Financial Services Committee chair Maxine Waters said in a statement. The subpoenas mark a renewed push by Democratic leaders to collect information on the presidentʼs finances and that of the Trump Organization since they gained control of the House last fall.

Deutsche Bank has been one of the few major banks to lend to Trump and his family-owned organization, following several defaults and bankruptcies by the real-estate mogul. The German bank stopped lending to Trump after he became president in 2017.

Collective push against climate change more powerful than youʼd think Peter Kalmus sits outside Californiaʼs Pasadena City Hall in his electric car.

His sons, aged 10 and 12, are on steps of the grand building, waving signs with the slogans: "School strike for climate" and "Adults, act like it!"

Kalmusʼ Tesla is just the kind of luxury youʼd expect a climate scientist at NASAʼs jet propulsion laboratory to have. But he doesnʼt exactly live a

lavish lifestyle. Actually, he says, he usually cycles. He hasnʼt been on a plane since 2012, and he eats a vegetarian diet. As someone who works in climate science, Kalmus feels thereʼs no excuse not to reduce his carbon footprint. "This is an urgent crisis," he says. "Those of us who understand that should act like itʼs an urgent crisis."

News Ukraine election: Volodymyr Zelenskiy wins landslide victory Comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy won the Ukrainian election by a substantial margin on Sunday. Exit polls showed Zelenskiy winning 73% of the vote, beating incumbent President Petro Poroshenko in the run-off elections. Poroshenko quickly conceded defeat and congratulated comedian Zelenskiy on his landslide victory. He said the results were "clear" and a reason to "call my opponent and congratulate him." "I will leave office but I want to firmly stress — I will not quit politics," he added. Zelenskiy said in a speech: "We have accomplished this together." "All citizens of the postSoviet countries, look at us! Everything is possible."

Sudan protesters suspend talks with military leadership Sudanese protest leaders on Sunday vowed to escalate their demonstrations after the countryʼs military rulers refused to commit to returning power to civilians immediately. Addressing a rally outside the Defense Ministry in central Khartoum, protest leader Mohamed al-Amid said protesters were suspending their talks with the Transitional Military Council that assumed power after the overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir on April 11.

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92/2019 • 23 April, 2019

Chinese investments in EU in a downward spin Chinese investments in the European Union fell sharply for the second consecutive year in 2018, a report by the Berlin-based Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS) and US consulting firm Rhodium Group showed. Chinese companies completed FDI deals worth €17.3 billion ($19.6 billion) last year, down 40 percent from 2017 levels and way below the record €37.2 billion investment seen in 2016. The decline is part of a trend that has seen Chinese investments fall in most regions of the world over the past two years as Beijing continues to maintain a tight grip on outward investment by its residents amid slowing economic growth and atrade war with the United States.

Chinese investors have also been forced to back away by "growing political and regulatory backlash against Chinese capital around the globe,"the authors of the report,Thilo Hanemann, Agatha Kratz and Mikko Huotari, wrote. "This shift in attitudes has been remarkably rapid in Europe," they said.

Monte Carlo Masters: Fabio Fognini beats Dusan Lajovic in final talyʼs Fabio Fognini won a Masters 1000 event for the first time with a straight-sets victory over Dusan Lajovic at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Fognini, 31, beat Serbiaʼs Lajovic 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 38 minutes. World number 18 Fognini entered the Monte Carlo Masters on a five-match losing streak but beat Alexander Zverev, Borna Coric and 11-time winner Rafael Nadal en route to the final. "It was really tough, Dusan played an unbelievable week," Fognini said. Lajovic made the better start, breaking Fogniniʼs serve early on but the Italian fought back, breaking twice to take a 4-2 lead in the opening set.

High hopes for Indiaʼs economy after elections The Indian economy has grown under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who came into office on a wave of economic populism. But anyone who thought Indiaʼs growth would explode like its Asian neighbor China will have to wait.

When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office five years ago,he launched a series of ambitious economic programs, including "Make in India," "Skill India" and "Digital India." After Modiʼs Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won a majority in parliament, he promised to usher in a new era of prosperity for his country. Indeed, during Modiʼs time as chief minister of Gujarat between 2001 and 2014, this

state on Indiaʼs west coast grew into one of Indiaʼs most successful economies.

And many voters supported Modi and the BJP in 2014 because they considered him to be a leader who would take the economy in the right direction. German business also had big expectations for India in 2014, and hoped it would churn out a similar economic miracle like what China had in place over the previous decade.

Summit Meeting of the Schlager Stars at Nassfeld As part of the sun skiing programme, Nassfeld brings the stars of the local schlager scene to the stage for a big open-air concert on 5 and 6 April 2019. Including: the chart topper Melissa Naschenweng, Nino de Angelo, Marco Ventre & Band, Marc Pircher and many more.

Number 1 in the Austrian album charts, highest entry as a newcomer in Switzerland and more than 1 million views of her video clip “I steh auf Bergbauernbuam“ within just three weeks; Melissa Naschenweng and her new album ”Wirbelwind“ bring a breath of fresh air to the schlager scene and to Nassfeld. Because the ski resort brings the successful singer to the Schlager Summit Open-Air Concert directly on the piste on Friday, 5 April 2019. But her colleague DJane Bibi

Booom also represents a new, young generation of artists who simply cross the lines between different genres.

With her typical mix of dance music, schlager and popular party hits, the musician in her dirndl and the red headphones has already established her fan community some time ago: ”The music is a wild mix but if the groove is a hit and the party is a great success, then this is all that counts in the end.“ And this is what you can expect from her at Nassfeld! Hannah and “Die Draufgänger“ with their cover version of “Cordula Grün“ will also fire up the party atmosphere on Friday.

It will also be a concert on home turf for Marco Ventre & Band. They will get the schlager fans going on Saturday, 6 April 2019. Nino de Angelo, an “old“ hand and one of the greatest in the industry, will perform many songs to sing along to also on Saturday.

Múzeum+ February at Museum of Fine Arts The February edition of monthly event series Múzeum+ is being held on the 14th at the Museum of Fine Arts.

For each of these events, besides interactive workshops and concerts, an English-language guided tour also features.

This time the theme is German Renaissance Art, starting at 7pm. For the complete schedule, check the museum website.

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ITB Berlin tourism partner Malaysia claims it has ʼno gaysʼ Malaysia faces a potential backlash from lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) rights groups after claiming that the Muslim-majority country doesnʼt have gays. On Tuesday, Tourism Minister Datuk Mohammaddin bin Ketapi was asked by reporters ahead of the opening of the ITB Berlin tourism fair whether the country was safe for gay and Jewish visitors. After initially sidestepping the question, the minister was asked again whether gays were welcome and he replied: "I donʼt think we have anything like that in our country." Denial could hurt bookings Despite efforts by Malaysian officials to downplay the incident, Ketapiʼs comments could derail attempts to entice more tourists to visit Malaysia. The remarks came after he spoke for several minutes about the countryʼs natural beauty and welcoming culture. The country has set itself a target of receiving 30 million visitors in 2019.

Germany extends ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia Germany announced Wednesday it would extend a temporary ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia until the end of the month. The ban, which Germany instituted followed the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and applies to countries involved in the Yemen war, has led to both domestic and international tension, with Chancellor Angela Merkelʼs government facing pressure from theGerman arms industryand some EU neighbors angered over the export freeze. The ban was originally set to last until March 9.

"We decided this [extension] with a view to developments in Yemen," Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said following a meeting of Merkelʼs cabinet. "We believe that the Yemen war must end as soon as possible."

"Not only will there not be any permits issued until the end of this month, but products with permits already granted will also not be delivered," Maas added. The minister said that the German government would evaluate the arms export situation with respect to developments in Yemen over the course of the month.