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Ukraine’s EU reforms ‘deeply impressive’: Von der Leyen

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

TERVUREN, Belgium — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday that Ukraine had fulfilled “almost” all the requirements set out by the EU to start accession talks, ahead of a pivotal European Council summit in December. “To see the deep and structural reforms that Ukraine is doing while fighting an existential war is to me deeply impressing,” von der Leyen told a POLITICO event.“They have fulfilled all the necessary requirements for almost all the seven steps we asked them to do … when they became a candidate country.”The EU is expected to announce the opening of accession talks for Ukraine, which was granted candidate status in June, following the mid-December summit of European leaders in Brussels.Earlier this month, von der Leyen said Ukraine had completed “well over 90 percent” of the prerequisites set out by the EU, as the Commission recommended opening accession talks with both Ukraine and Moldova.Du...

Zelenskyy’s split with military is ‘Russian propaganda’: Ukraine parliament chief

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

BRUSSELS — The chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, dismissed what he called “rumors” of tension between the country’s government and its military high command in an interview with POLITICO. Russia, he said, was using the insinuations to splinter Kyiv’s unity following Moscow’s full-scale invasion.Ukraine’s sluggish progress in recovering some of its lost territory during its counteroffensive to repel Russian forces has led to the first public signs of friction between Zelenskyy and his generals, as the Ukrainian president scrambled to preserve support among Western allies.Ruslan Stefanchuk, speaker of the parliament and a former top aide to Zelenskyy, claimed the rumors of discord were spread from “Russian channels,” calling them “Russian propaganda.” “There has never been a single case of tension between the political and the military leadership,” said Stefanchuk, who is typically presen...

By the numbers: POLITICO 28 Class of 2024

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

POLITICO has unveiled its ranking of the 28 most powerful people in Europe.Donald Tusk, the former European Council president, takes the top spot after leading the Polish opposition’s battle to regain power in last month’s election. Tusk succeeds Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the most powerful person in Europe.The remaining 27 entries are divided into three categories: doers, disrupters and dreamers. Politicians take 21 spots in the list, which features people from a diverse range of backgrounds, including in climate, economy, sport and diplomacy.Among the non-politicians are Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, and Jovita Neliupšienė, the incoming EU ambassador to the U.S. Power in Europe, as reflected in this ranking, is not gender-balanced (there are 10 women in the list) and not racially diverse: all 28 members of the list are white. Only two of them are under 40: Jenni Hermoso, the Spanish football star who has become...

The most powerful person in Europe: Donald Tusk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

Check out the POLITICO 28: Class of 2024.

Donald Tusk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

For two decades, two men have waged a battle for Poland’s soul. In the blue corner, fighting for a democratic, modern, European vision of the future: Donald Tusk, a former prime minister who served as president of the European Council before returning as leader of the centrist opposition; in the red corner, duking it out for the traditionalists, the Catholic conservatives, the nationalists: Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of the Law and Justice Party (PiS). Each man has had a chance to shape Poland in his image, only to have the other wind back the clock. Now, after eight years of Kaczyński, the country is on the cusp of a new age of Tusk, and the wind of change is blowing once more.Tusk’s showing in October’s election, in which the charismatic 66-year-old led a grouping of parties ranging in views from the center right to the left, gives his coalition a clear path to power. His performance in the EU’s fifth most-populous country — secured despite increasingly desperate attempts by PiS t...

Former co-owner of Sons of Boston pleads guilty to helping cover up 2022 stabbing death of Marine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

A former co-owner of the Sons of Boston bar changed her plea on Tuesday, admitting to accusations that she helped a bouncer charged with the 2022 stabbing death of a Marine veteran.Alisha Dumeer of Everett pleaded guilty in Suffolk Superior Court as part of a plea deal, over a year after Chicago native and United States Marine Daniel Martinez was stabbed to death outside of the Sons of Boston on March 19.She was previously indicted on a charge of Accessory After the Fact to Murder, while former bouncer Alvaro Larrama was charged with second-degree murder, accused of stabbing Martinez twice in the chest during a confrontation.According to prosecutors, Dumeer helped dispose of Larrama’s blood-soaked clothing that night and gave him new clothes before ushering him out a backdoor. Surveillance video also showed Dumeer return to the trash containing the bloody clothing and attempt to better conceal the evidence.She also told police that she was unaware that there had been a stabbin...

Driver expected to face charges in connection with crash into former restaurant in Saugus

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

A driver is now expected to face charges in connection with a violent crash that sent two cars into a former Boston Market restaurant in Saugus on Monday. The crash happened Monday night along Route 1. Police soon responded and in an initial statement said a 62-year-old man appeared to have slammed into a parked car, pushing both vehicles into the shuttered Boston Market. In an update Tuesday, police said the Boston man had a suspended license and drugs on him at the time of the crash. The driver was taken to a hospital Monday night. While was still recovering as of Tuesday afternoon, police said he is expected to face charges of negligent operation, operating an unregistered car without a license and possession or either fentanyl or heroin.New video emerged, in the meantime, as people in the area shared their reactions to this incident. “It almost sounded like a bomb going off,” said local business owner Phil Castinetti. “It was that loud.”Castinetti said security cameras...

Veteran jumps into action to help driver after crash in Plaistow, NH

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

A man in Plaistow, New Hampshire recently jumped into action, getting a driver to safety after her car went off the road and slammed into a pair of trees over the weekend. The crash happened on Saturday afternoon in the area of Forrest Street in Plaistow and was caught on camera. Shane Johnson was inside his home watching football with his family at the time of the crash and later spoke to 7NEWS about his response. “I just heard loud screeches, heard a big crash,” he said. “[I] look out the window and see there’s a car.” “Immediately, I was like ‘I need to call 911,’” he said. Johnson said the car crashed over a stone wall and ended up pinned between trees. An Army veteran, Johnson said his training kicked in immediately after he realized the severity of the situation. “The car was smoking, making weird sounds, everything like that,” he said.Plaistow police said the woman driving the car had severe trauma injuries and was flown by helicopter to a Boston hosp...

Healey sketches out process to address coastal threats

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

Massachusetts has more than 1,500 miles of coastline across 78 communities that count nearly 2.5 million people as residents, and the Healey administration on Tuesday mapped out the skeleton of its strategy for preparing those areas to deal with the impacts of a changing climate.The ResilientCoasts initiative will be led by a new chief coastal resilience officer within the Office of Coastal Zone Management, and is expected to “pursue a multipronged approach to identify regulatory, policy, and funding mechanisms to develop focused long-term solutions” to coastal climate change risks.Next year, the ResilientCoasts effort will divide the coastline into Coastal Resilience Districts to group places that share similar landscape characteristics and face similar hazards. Then, based on those districts, the state plans to collaborate with communities to implement “tailored resilience policy and regulatory strategies,” including nature-based solutions, dredging, coasta...

Ticker: Rent-A-Center to pay $8.75M in AG probe; Home prices extend record streak 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:25:00 GMT

Attorney General Andrea Campbelll announced Tuesday that Rent-A-Center had agreed to pay $8.75 million and cease a slate of business practices after an investigation into alleged “abusive” collection practices.“I am proud of my team’s dedication in securing a settlement with Rent-A-Center, which sadly utilized egregious tactics to target and exploit low-income communities for profit,” said AG Campbell. “My office will continue to protect all consumers from harmful and exploitive practices by those who do business in our state.”Campbell’s office found the Texas-based company “repeatedly engaged in coercive and abusive conduct towards consumers who missed or otherwise failed to make rental payments under their RAC contracts, leading to significant emotional and financial harm.”As part of the settlement, RAC has agreed to the payment and to cease the business practices flagged by the AG.Home prices extend record streakHome prices in the U.S. extended their climb, reaching a fresh recor...