Displaying items by tag: Europe

Many believe the Russian government hopes that a TV interview with the two men suspected of being spies and using Novichok in the UK will generate sympathy at home (see ). Putin says they are sports nutrition salesmen, not assassins. But the risk for Russia is that the interview raises more questions than it answers and offers more details for sceptics to unpick and challenge. The two suspects accused of carrying out the nerve agent attack claimed they had travelled to Salisbury to see its famous cathedral. The BBC reported that one of them said, ‘Maybe we did approach Skripal's house, but we don't know where it is located.’

If Western sanctions go as far as excluding Russia from the World Wide Web, the country's own internet is ready, according to Russia’s presidential aide on the internet. ‘Technically, we are ready for anything now,’ he said. However, the shutdown will not be painless. Failures always occur when moving from one technology to another, and those keeping data abroad will experience difficulties. Russia has a data privacy law. All companies processing personal data of Russian citizens are obliged to store it on servers within the country’s borders. The professional network website LinkedIn has already been banned in Russia for refusing to comply. Twitter and other social networks have agreed to move data about Russians to the country.

How do you persuade someone who already thinks they’re a Christian to become one? The largest mission field in Western Europe is not self-identifying atheists or Muslim immigrants; it is people who call themselves Christians but exhibit few, if any, signs of faith. A Pew Research Centre report stated that people who identify with Christianity, but rarely or never attend church services, make up the biggest segment of the region’s population. 46% of Western Europeans are non-practising Christians, 18% are regular church attendees, 24% are religiously unaffiliated, and 5% follow other faiths.

Last week it was reported that the Arctic Sea is breaking up for the first time on record, and we prayed for nations to acknowledge climate change and seek ways to turn it around. The acceleration of climate change has greater impact on the Arctic region than elsewhere, posing serious threats to the sensitive environment and those who depend on it. Good cooperation is needed between researchers, public authorities, companies, and Arctic inhabitants. Pray for the adoption of a new kind of climate-resilient thinking. Further development is needed in flood warning systems and dam safety. In response to these needs, and as part of its 2017-2019 chairmanship of the Arctic Council, Finland will be hosting the first Arctic Resilience Forum on 10-11 September 2018.

Pope Francis visited Ireland on 25 and 26 August and begged forgiveness for clerical child sex abuse. He said no-one could fail to be moved by stories of those who ‘suffered abuse, were robbed of their innocence, and left scarred by painful memories’. In a speech at Dublin Castle, the Pope expressed his shame at the Catholic Church's failure to address adequately the ‘repellent crimes’ of sex abuse by clergy. He later met eight survivors of sexual abuse, telling them that he viewed clerical sex abuse as ‘filth’. Since the last Papal visit Ireland has ‘modernised’ laws on abortion, contraception, divorce and same-sex marriage. Pray for the church to move on, even stronger, now that past sins are repented of.

After meeting Dominic Raab on 21 August, Michel Barnier outlined things yet to be done: a backstop solution for avoiding a hard border in Ireland; outstanding issues of the Withdrawal Agreement, eg protection of borders; and a political declaration on future relationships. We can pray for the teams now working on these issues to make progress according to God’s timing and strategy. Mr Barnier also said, ‘As you know, we need a legally operational backstop solution in the Withdrawal Agreement. We must find pragmatic solutions, in line with the commitments made by Theresa May in December and March. We must de-dramatise the issue, and spell out which controls are needed, and and how they should be done. Next time we meet, Dominic and I will take stock of this work. The negotiations are now entering the final stage. We have agreed that the EU and the UK will negotiate continuously from now on.’ See also UK article on Brexit key dates.

After a motorway bridge collapsed in Genoa on 14 August, causing at least 39 deaths, prime minister Giuseppe Conte has declared a state of emergency for the region. As stories emerge of how some people miraculously escaped, attention has shifted to who (if anyone) might have been responsible for the disaster. Autostrade per l'Italia, which is responsible for the country’s motorways, has rejected accusations that it was making huge profits and not spending enough on maintenance. It says checks were carried out quarterly by world-leading experts and had shown no cause for alarm. Also, Brussels has dismissed claims by deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini that EU spending rules prevented the country from spending enough to keep its infrastructure safe. A spokesman stated that in fact, the EU has encouraged investment in infrastructure in Italy. See

Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in Bucharest the day after 450+ people were hurt and about 30 arrested in a huge anti-corruption protest on 10 August. Police had used water cannon and tear gas to disperse protesters calling for the left-wing government to resign. Many protesters needed treatment after inhaling pepper spray and tear gas; others suffered blows. Floarea Toader, 64, said, ‘My children work in Spain and they would like to come back. But for now that's not possible as the politicians are only interested in themselves and do nothing for anyone else.’ Four million people have left Romania in the last fifteen years, seeking a better life. Romania's average monthly wage is £465. Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz, whose country currently holds the EU rotating presidency, criticised the violence, in which an Austrian public broadcaster cameraman was hurt.

In the elections on 9 September, the anti-immigration Eurosceptic party Sweden Democrats hopes to become the country’s largest political party. It has accused the ruling centre-left coalition of allowing ‘no-go zones’ to emerge in deprived areas with large migrant populations. On 13 August gangs of masked youths dressed in black firebombed at least 100 cars in several cities. Violent crime is high on the political agenda after a spate of shootings and grenade attacks. Prime minister Stefan Lofven said that the perpetrators threatened to ‘destroy’ neighbourhoods and asked them, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ Pray for Mr Lofven and his law enforcement to bring peace and calm to challenging areas ahead of the elections. Operation World states, ‘Politicians (often without any clear faith in Jesus) are frequently chosen to sit on parish councils.’

Migrant aid workers in Calais are being intimidated and harassed by French police, with Britons singled out in some cases, according to a report submitted to France’s independent human rights watchdog. Four aid associations on the northern French port, including the British group Help Refugees, published a report detailing 600 incidents against volunteers between November 2017 and July 2018, citing 33 testimonies, 37 incidents of physical violence, including police pushing aid workers to the ground, confiscating phones and forcing people away from food distribution points. Other incidents include repeated identity checks and ‘stop and search’, arbitrary parking fines, threats, and insults. British volunteers were singled out and prevented from giving out food and water.  Those with British passports or British vehicles were barred entry to an area near Dunkirk to distribute meals to the homeless refugees and migrants. Calais' sprawling ‘Jungle’ camp was razed in 2016 but hundreds have returned, with the figures officially at 350 to 400 people.