FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Ukraine Training - Stadion Arcul de Triumf, Bucharest, Romania - June 16, 2021 Ukraine's Artem Besedin with teammates during training REUTERS/Marko Djurica
Ukrainian forward Artem Besedin is out for the rest of Euro 2020 with a knee injury from a tackle by Sweden’s Marcus Danielson, a team coach said on Wednesday.
Danielson was sent off after his attempt to track down a pass resulted in a studs-up challenge against Besedin during Ukraine’s 2-1 defeat of Sweden in their last-16 knockout game.
Besedin is returning to Ukraine for tests, said assistant coach Oleksandr Shovkovskiy.
“We are no longer able to count on Artem Besedin in our next matches,” Shovkovskiy wrote on Facebook. “He is forced to leave the team and return to Kyiv for a full examination.”
Ukraine face England in Rome in the quarter-finals on Saturday. To show support, all Ukrainian ministers wore the team’s yellow-and-blue jerseys in cabinet on Wednesday.
In a moderate ceremony at the State House in Banjul, the secretary-general and head of the Civil Service, Noah Touray, on behalf of the Gambia government received 100 metric tons of rice from the Republic of Pakistan.
In his remarks, Touray praised Gambia-Pakistan relations, saying that the gesture would go a long way towards addressing food insecurity in The Gambia as a result of COVID-19, as well as enhancing bilateral cooperation.
The Pakistan High Commissioner to The Gambia based in Dakar, Dr. Ali Ahmed Arain, said the donation was an expression of the goodwill that exists between the two friendly nations.
He added that the donation would help enhance the food security drive of The Gambia.
High Commissioner Arain also butressed Pakistan’s willingness to share experiences with The Gambia in dealing with natural disasters, adding that his country remains committed to strengthening the ties between the two nations.
Colombia’s military has seized six metric tons of cocaine from guerrillas of the leftist National Liberation Army (ELN) in a jungle region in the southeast of the country, Defense Minister Diego Molano said on Tuesday.
The cocaine was seized in an operation in the rural municipality of Samaniego in Colombia’s Narino province, close to the Pacific coast.
“This strike is to the detriment of the finances of this group,” Molano said in a statement to journalists, adding that the drugs were seized from a complex that supplies the ELN with monthly profits worth $8 million.
Despite decades fighting drug trafficking, Colombia remains one of the world’s top producers of cocaine and faces constant pressure from the United States to reduce crops and production of the drug which has long financed Colombia’s internal armed conflict.
The area occupied by coca crops – the chief ingredient in cocaine – in Colombia expanded to 245,000 hectares (605,408 acres) at the end of 2020, and cocaine production capacity rose to 1,010 metric tons a year, the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) said last week.
Colombia’s security forces destroyed some 130,000 hectares of coca in 2020, and confiscated around 505 metric tons of cocaine.
The ELN is estimated to have some 2,500 combatants and has fought the government since its 1964 founding by extremist Roman Catholic priests.
The rebel group, which is accused of financing itself with kidnapping, extortion, drug trafficking and illegal mining, has failed to reach a peace deal to end its part in Colombia’s conflict – which has left more than 260,000 dead and millions displaced – due to its diffuse chain of command.
The ELN’s top leaders deny the group is involved in drug trafficking, which they say is a government strategy to discredit them.
President Abdel Fattah El Sisi says Egypt welcomes intensified cooperation with Malaysia at all international gatherings.
In a meeting with visiting Malaysian Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, the president also stressed keenness on boosting economic, trade and investment cooperation with Kuala Lumpur.
This, Sisi said, is part of Egypt’s policy of openness to joint cooperation, construction and development with all world countries and for the best interest of all peoples.
Sisi asked Hishammuddin to convey his best regards to Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, said presidential spokesman Bassam Rady.
For his part, Hishammuddin conveyed best regards of Muhyiddin to Sisi and stressed that his country is keen on boosting bilateral ties with Egypt in all fields and at international gatherings.
The meeting also took up regional and international issues of mutual concern, with focus on the fight against terrorism, Rady said.
Hishammuddin praised Egypt’s efforts to counter terrorism at the internal and regional levels and refute their extremist ideologies. He also appreciated the leading role played by Al Azhar in this regard.
For his part, the top Malaysian diplomat described as “historical” his meeting with Shoukry and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi earlier in the day.
Hussein said his visit to Egypt reflects the success of relations between the two countries and paves the way for more economic cooperation, particularly in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
He pointed out that an agreement was reached to assign senior officials with preparing the agenda of the joint committee that was supposed to be held in 2008 and holding a business forum soon.
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Round of 16 - Belgium v Portugal - La Cartuja Stadium, Seville, Spain - June 27, 2021 Belgium's Romelu Lukaku reacts Pool via REUTERS/Alexander Hassenstein
Doubters over Italy’s chances of going all the way at Euro 2020 have pointed to their comfortable path to the quarter-finals, but that will all change on Friday, up against a Belgium side whose leading marksman knows the Italians all too well.
Romelu Lukaku enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career in 2020-21, voted player of the year in Italy’s Serie A as the Belgium forward fired Inter Milan to their first top-flight title in 11 years.
Next in his sights are club team mates and players used to trying to stop him on a weekly basis in Serie A as Belgium and Italy, who have won four out of four games each at Euro 2020, go head to head in Munich in the last eight.
Italy are on a record unbeaten run of 31 matches, last losing back in September 2018 against Portugal. However, such a run has not convinced everyone, given Roberto Mancini’s side have beaten lower-ranked opposition in Switzerland, Turkey, Wales and Austria so far.
With Lukaku in town, spearheading the attack for the world’s top-ranked team according to FIFA, Italy will have no such easy ride.
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football – Euro 2020 – Round of 16 – Italy v Austria – Wembley Stadium, London, Britain – June 26, 2021 Italy’s Giovanni Di Lorenzo takes a throw-in Pool via REUTERS/Catherine Ivill
“We know Lukaku well because we also face him in Serie A,” Italy and Napoli defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo told UEFA.com. “We know he is a great striker, he had a wonderful season with Inter.
“He is to be kept under observation, but Belgium have many strong players and it will be a great match.
“The further you go, the stronger teams you face, but the approach is always the same.”
Lukaku’s 24 league goals last season for Inter represents his second-best career return for a domestic campaign, but his chances of adding to his three Euro 2020 strikes so far could be affected by key injuries to two of his chief providers.
Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, who made the joint-second most assists in the English Premier League last season, suffered an ankle injury in Belgium’s 1-0 last-16 win over Portugal, while captain Eden Hazard limped off with a leg muscle problem.
Both could be fit for Friday’s clash, but should either not make it, facing a defence who conceded their first goal in 19 hours and 28 minutes against Austria last Saturday, Lukaku could be in for a tough afternoon.
But those resolute Azzurri defenders know from experience that he should be underestimated at their peril.
As the Chinese Embassy in Banjul observes the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, the ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to The Gambia, H.E MA Jianchun has stated that China will engage The Gambia on new needed infrastructural projects at the end of this year.
Delivering a speech on the reception at the event that was held at the Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara Conference Center on Thursday, he said: “We will guarantee the quality and completion time of the existing projects. The road and bridge projects in the URR will be completed in August 2021.
The Chinese agricultural experts are now assisting Gambians in improving rice verities, advancing agricultural technology and training agricultural talents.
After more than two years efforts, they have got certain achievements on SAPU experimental area in CRR, and have welcomed a pretty good harvest recently.”
To alleviate the impact of Covid-19, Ambassador MA further stated that his government will continue to provide food aid to the country this year, while adding that after relieves of traveling restrictions, they will resume people-to-people exchange with Gambia in order to provide more opportunities for both youth and women to visit China and boost up their capacity.
He continued that since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese people have fostered unbreakable friendship with Africans.
He said China-Africa cooperation has become a model of cooperation among developing African countries’ political parties and governments to explore ways of supporting Africa’s development, share experience in governance, and jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind.
“China calls on political parties in all countries to join hands and become builders of world peace, contributors to global development, and defenders of the international order.”
The Chinese ambassador reiterated that more than 2,000 years ago, an ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius observed that one should make friends with people who are upright, sincere, and well-informed, stating that the CPC keeps on promoting exchanges with political parties of other countries to share ideas on enhancing party competence and state governance.
“As a Chinese saying goes, a stone taken from another mountain may serve as a tool to polish the local jade. In the new era, the CPC will continue to engage in dialogues, exchanges and cooperation with the people and political parties of other countries.”
FILE PHOTO: A food delivery man cycles past a closed restaurant, on the day Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered all restaurants to close in response to the number of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases continuing to grow, in London, Britain, March 20, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls
Britain said it wanted to help businesses to access state aid with a new and more flexible subsidy system, and that leaving the European Union would allow it to support domestic priorities like building green industry.
The new system, which has previously been outlined by ministers, will be set out in legislation for the first time later on Wednesday.
“When people ask ‘what are the benefits of Brexit?’ – this is it,” business minister Kwasi Kwarteng said on Twitter.
He criticised the EU system, which previously applied to Britain until it completed its exit from the bloc at the end of 2020, as overly bureaucratic and slow.
“The UK’s new, flexible system will empower public authorities to deliver subsidies to viable businesses in a timely and effective way,” Kwarteng said.
First outlined in February, the system will be based on the principle that subsidies are permitted if they deliver value for the British taxpayer.
State aid would not be used to prop up ailing or insolvent firms indefinitely, or to allow one region of Britain to undercut another, the business department said.
Britain has criticised states such as China for heavily subsidising state-owned enterprises that distort international trade. However, the government argues that its new plan will let it foster growth industries, small businesses and research and development.
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Round of 16 - England v Germany - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - June 29, 2021 England manager Gareth Southgate celebrates after the match Pool via REUTERS/Carl Recine
England manager Gareth Southgate prefers ‘managing expectations’ to euphoria but such an approach is hard to maintain when your team has just beaten their old rivals Germany and kicked off the biggest party since the pandemic hit the country.
The 40,000 crowd at Wembley had been particularly raucous, the 5pm local kick-off time leading many to take the day off work and fully make the most of re-opened pubs and bars.
Hours after the final whistle had blown on a 2-0 victory the once self-mocking but now aspirational refrain of “Football’s Coming Home” could still be heard in tube stations across the capital.
The morning’s newspapers captured the mood of confident hope for a team without a trophy since 1966.
“Time to Dream – Nation’s joy as Three Lions end Germany hoodoo and open up road to final” declared the front page of the Daily Mirror after what it called “England’s night of glory” while the Daily Telegraph’s reflected the post-lockdown vibe with “Finally something to cheer about”.
Even the Guardian, known for its more restrained relationship with national pride, headlined their report with “Like emerging from a dream into a strange new light”.
The bearded Southgate, who has the demeanour of a rather sensitive and supportive schoolteacher and chooses his words with the calculation of a career politician, was, however, very much ‘on-brand’ after the game.
He quickly turned talked to his team keeping “feet on the ground”, mentally being “in the right space”.
“It is a dangerous moment for us. We will have that warmth of success and the feeling around the country that we only have to turn up to win the thing, but we know it is going to be an immense challenge from here on in,” he said.
That is the right and prudent approach for a coach to take, of course, but it is not only those waking up with a hangover and St George’s flag on the kitchen floor that expect them to beat Ukraine in the quarter-final.
By any objective measure, England are clear favourites for Saturday’s game in Rome and would also be expected to beat Denmark or the Czech Republic in an eventual semi-final back on home turf.
Indeed, a look at the two squad lists before Tuesday’s game showed England had an array of talent — young, skilful players performing weekly in the Premier League and Champions League — that should have been expected to beat a German team that was mediocre by their often world-beating standards.
Quite a lot of that talent was left on the bench though by Southgate, who rather than trust the likes of Jack Grealish, Phil Foden or Marcus Rashford to dominate, opted to play five defenders and two defensive midfielders.
There is nothing like a victory to change a narrative and many observers felt that the result was vindication of that approach.
But it didn’t feel to be working when, ten minutes into the second half, that trio of players warmed-up on the touchline to cheers from the crowd, while their team mate’s laboured with little craft.
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football – Euro 2020 – Round of 16 – England v Germany – Wembley Stadium, London, Britain – June 29, 2021 England’s Raheem Sterling celebrates after the match with teammates Pool via REUTERS/Catherine Ivill
GREALISH IMPACT
Grealish eventually entered the field, to a loud roar and promptly changed the course of the game and possibly the tournament for England.
Was it tactical genius from Southgate to introduce the Aston Villa playmaker when the opposition were tiring or was it a belated recognition that has overly-cautious approach wasn’t working?
Either way, Grealish showed again he has the ability to make things happen, to open up space, to draw players to him, to go past people and to deliver the killer ball. Whatever Southgate’s intentions for the last eight clash, Ukraine coach Andriy Shevchenko will surely be hoping the player is again on the bench.
Of course, the style of England’s football will be of little concern to anyone in the country, should they end their 55 year wait for a trophy at Wembley on July 11.
No-one in Portugal cared that they won the tournament five years ago after failing to win a group stage game and only once winning a match inside 90 minutes.
Likewise, you will struggle to find a Greek whose memories of their unlikely 2004 triumph are focused not on the celebrations and glory but on the defensive tactics their coach employed — indeed, the German Otto Rehhagel was made an honorary citizen of Athens.
England could win this tournament playing enthralling and entertaining football built around an outstanding generation of attacking talent.
But that is not the Southgate way — and if his more cautious, careful, measured approach delivers a first ever European Championship — few of his compatriots will care.
Anything less and you can be sure the narrative will change again.
The African Development Bank, the Korean Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Export-Import Bank of Korea have signed an agreement, under which Korea will provide $600 million in co-financing for energy projects alongside the African Development Bank.
The Korea-Africa Energy Investment Framework (KAEIF) pact follows the signing on 28 May 2021 of a General Cooperation Agreement between the Bank and the Korean government.
The KAEIF has a particular focus on renewable energy solutions in Africa, including generation, transmission, distribution, off-grid- and mini-grid, policy & regulatory reform, energy efficiency and clean cooking projects.
“The KAEIF demonstrates the close cooperation between the African Development Bank and the Republic of Korea on the development of Africa’s energy sector. KAEIF will provide much needed additional funding, to supplement the Bank’s financing, to support accelerated energy access and the continent’s just transition to clean energy,” said Dr. Kevin Kariuki, the African Development Bank’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth.
The Korean Ministry of Economy and Finance stressed that “similar to how the Korean Government prioritized the Green New Deal as its latest growth engine in the post COVID-19 landscape, the Facility is expected to help African countries transition to green energy while simultaneously improving access to energy.”
KAEIF funds will also support project preparation, capacity building and knowledge-sharing activities through the Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation (KOAFEC) Trust Fund. Korea joined the African Development Fund and the Bank’s Capital in 1980 and 1982, respectively.
In 2013, the Korean government set up KOAFEC as a conduit for contributions to multi-donor and special funds managed by the Bank.
Switzerland’s government was meeting on Wednesday to pick a next-generation fighter plane after a decade-long political tug-of-war over a 6 billion Swiss franc ($6.5 billion) contest among bidders from Europe and the United States.
Contenders include the Rafale from France’s Dassault, Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin’s F35-A Lightning II and the four-nation Eurofighter built by Germany and Spain backed Airbus, Italy’s Leonardo and Britain’s BAE Systems.
Swiss television reported last week that the F-35 provided the best technical and financial features in a Swiss evaluation, but the final decision was still open.
A deal by Switzerland with a European manufacturer could be seen as an attempt by Bern to heal relations with the European Union after the collapse of talks earlier this year about a new agreement to regulate their ties, analysts said.
Neutral Switzerland last year narrowly approved the funding for new fighters in a national referendum.
Opinion polls had shown the plan would easily win approval in a country where armed neutrality is a tradition, but only 50.2% of voters approved the funding in September.
The result is being closely watched as the first of three face-offs ahead of procurement decisions in Finland and Canada.
Switzerland’s latest bid to procure fighters is driven by a pressing need to replace ageing Northrop F-5E/F Tiger II and its 30 Boeing F/A-18 Hornet combat jets, which go out of service in 2030.
Seven migrants drown as boat capsizes off Italy’s Lampedusa At least seven migrants, one of them pregnant, drowned after a boat carrying them capsized five miles off the Italian island of Lampedusa early on Wednesday, officials said.
About 10 other people were missing, Luigi Patronaggio, the chief prosecutor of a team leading investigations into the deaths, told Reuters.
The migrants are believed to have started their journey in Tunisia, said Patronaggio, who is working with magistrates based in the Sicilian city of Agrigento.
“This latest tragedy in the Mediterranean is heartbreaking, I wonder what else has to happen to make Italy and Europe understand that we cannot go on like this,” Lampedusa’s mayor, Toto Martello, said.
Coastguard units managed to rescue about 46 other migrants from the 8-metre-long boat after it overturned, and bring them back to Lampedusa, officials said.
More than 250 more migrants landed on the tiny island overnight on four other ships, local media reported.
Arrivals in Italy – one of the main migrant routes into Europe – had been falling in recent years, but numbers picked up again in 2021.
Almost 19,800 migrants have arrived since the beginning of the year – many of them fleeing conflict and poverty in Africa and the Middle East – against just over 6,700 in the same period last year, Interior Ministry figures show.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
