Author: admin@primenews

If Ukraine is going to get anything out of an EU leaders’ summit on Thursday, it will need the grudging backing of Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orban. He has strongly resisted Kyiv’s bid to join the EU and its pleas for aid. “We are the voice of common sense in Europe,” he told the Hungarian parliament on the eve of the summit. War, corruption, a big agricultural sector and mistreatment of its Hungarian minority disqualify Kyiv from joining the EU any time soon, he said. A symbolic invitation to Ukraine to start formal negotiations tops the agenda of the two-day…

Etsy is cutting about 225 jobs, or 11% of its workforce, as part of a plan to bring down its costs. As part of the move several executives will leave the online marketplace, including its chief marketing officer. Chief executive Josh Silverman told staff the cuts were needed as sales had been “essentially flat” for two years. He acknowledged the “unfortunate” timing of the cuts, during the holiday season, adding that laid-off staff would be paid until at least 2 January. The job cuts are part of a strategy to make Etsy a “more focused, agile company”, Mr Silverman said in…

Scientists now have good numbers to describe the true scale of the world’s biggest iceberg, A23a. Satellite measurements show the frozen block has a total average thickness of just over 280m (920ft). Combined with its known area of 3,900 sq km (1,500 sq miles), this gives a volume of roughly 1,100 cubic km and a mass just below a trillion tonnes. The iceberg, which calved from the Antarctic coast in 1986, is about to drift beyond the White Continent. It has reached a critical point in its journey, researchers say, with the next few weeks likely to decide its future…

A woman once branded “Australia’s worst mother” has had her convictions for killing her four children quashed. The New South Wales Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the evidence originally used to jail Kathleen Folbigg was “not reliable”. The 56-year-old was pardoned and freed by the state government in June, after spending 20 years in prison. Ms Folbigg welcomed the latest news but said proof of her innocence had been “ignored and dismissed” for decades. “The system preferred to blame me rather than accept that sometimes children can and do die suddenly and unexpectedly and heartbreakingly,” she said outside court…

The US House of Representatives has voted to formalise its impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. Lawmakers voted along party lines to back a resolution that Republicans say will give them more power to gather evidence and enforce legal demands. Three Republican-led House committees allege bribery and corruption during Mr Biden’s tenure as vice-president. But they have yet to present evidence of wrongdoing, and Mr Biden says his opponents are “attacking me with lies”. The lower chamber of Congress, which Republicans control by a slim eight-seat margin, approved the inquiry on Wednesday afternoon by a vote of 221 to 212.…

“There is no ‘red line’,” in Hong Kong any more, says a 30-something humanities professor in the city. “If they want to come after you, everything can be used as an excuse.” He did not wish to reveal his name because of the repercussions that could follow. He says his nightmare is being named and attacked by Beijing-backed media, which could cost him his job, or worse, his freedom. That fear has swept through Hong Kong’s universities and academic circles, which once attracted top talent. The city was close to the mainland, yet far enough to host progressive classrooms, world-class…

When Jake O’Brien and his new wife Robin stepped inside the airport terminal in Grand Rapids, Michigan, they locked eyes and Jake said, “Are you ready?” Robin nodded. She then took a plus-sized envelope out of her handbag, opened it and read the card aloud: “Portland, Maine”. At first, Jake felt a sense of shock. “Portland?” he said. “Really?” Jake and Robin were about to begin their honeymoon and, it seemed, they’d be doing it in Maine. As they were planning their wedding, they couldn’t decide where to go on the traditional postnuptial getaway. They hemmed and hawed. They combed…

England let a dominant position slip as they fell to a four-wicket defeat by West Indies in the opening game of the T20 series in Bridgetown. Captain Jos Buttler and Phil Salt took the tourists to 77-0 at the end of the powerplay and that became 112-2 at the halfway stage before England collapsed in the second half of the innings to be bowled out for 171. Andre Russell, making his first West Indies appearance since November 2021, was the pick of the bowlers, taking 3-19, while Romario Shepherd also impressed with figures of 2-22. The Windies also made a…

Thomas Tuchel summed up how Erik ten Hag must be feeling just now. In the aftermath of Bayern Munich’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford, a result that eliminated Ten Hag’s side from all European competition, the former Chelsea boss eloquently outlined the negatives of being a football manager when results have not gone your way. “He does not need my advice or clapping on the shoulders,” said Tuchel. “He is experienced enough to go through it. “I had not a nice moment last Saturday. Sometimes you feel pretty lonely as a coach.” The difference between Bayern’s 5-1 loss at…

The E3 gaming show, once the biggest event in the gaming calendar, has been permanently cancelled. In a statement, the organisers said: “After more than two decades of E3, each one bigger than the last, the time has come to say goodbye.” It added: “Thanks for the memories. GGWP [good game well played]”. The 2023 expo had already been called off after analysts said it had “struggled to remain relevant”. Industry body Entertainment Software Association (ESA), which ran E3, confirmed to the BBC that the event will not go ahead in the future. E3 – which stands for Electronic Entertainment Expo -…