Foreign intelligence services try to initiate communication with members of the Slovak parliament and thus influence events in the country, says Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď (OĽaNO) According to the minister, the Military Intelligence primarily focuses on eliminating activities of the Russian and Chinese intelligence services. Foreign agents try to contact MPs, senior state officials and senior members of the Armed Forces of the Slovak Republic. You have just exceeded the number of devices allowed. Your active subscription only allows a limited number of browsers to access locked content. To continue reading this article on this device/browser, please edit the list of registered devices in your profile settings here: manage devices You can read all about device management here . The rest of this article is premium content at Spectator.sk Subscribe now for full access Subscription for 4 weeks 4 € Buy Subscription for 1 years 39,90 € Buy … [Read more...] about Defence Minister warns MPs against foreign agents
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French paratroopers conduct military drill in Estonia
French armed forces conducted a surprise military exercise in Estonia, deploying more than 100 paratroopers in the Baltic country that neighbors Russia , the French defense ministry said Wednesday. The airborne operation conducted on Tuesday night and dubbed Thunder Lynx “enabled, at very short notice, the dropping of about 100 paratroopers” from France’s 11th Airborne Brigade “over an area secured by Estonian soldiers,” the statement said. The hastily organized exercise in Estonia, a NATO ally, was executed as an act of “strategic solidarity” amid Russia's war in Ukraine. “The airborne operation illustrates the ability of the French armed forces to intervene, in emergency, and support an allied country,” a French defense ministry statement said. France was one of the first countries to send its troops to Europe’s eastern flank following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. Recommended By-elections show voters have run out of patience with Boris … [Read more...] about French paratroopers conduct military drill in Estonia
EU Commission proposes cutting pesticides by half by 2030
The European Union 's executive arm on Wednesday proposed setting legally binding targets to reduce the use of chemical pesticides by 50% by 2030 and a ban on all pesticide use in areas such public parks, playgrounds and schools. The European Commission said the current rules limiting the use of pesticides were too weak and have not been applied consistently across the EU. A study by the group Pesticide Action Network Europe last month said the contamination of fruit and vegetables produced in the European Union with the most toxic pesticides has substantially increased over the past decade. To facilitate the transition from chemical pesticides to alternative methods, farmers would be able to use EU funds to cover the cost of the new requirements for five years, the European Commission said. The commission also wants to introduce a law aimed at repairing environmental damage by 2050. Recommended By-elections show voters have run out of patience with … [Read more...] about EU Commission proposes cutting pesticides by half by 2030
Diary of 12-year-old Ukrainian refugee to be released
The reflections of a 12-year-old refugee from the Russian invasion of Ukraine will be published this fall. Yeva Skalietska's book is called “You Don’t Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl from Ukraine.” Union Square & Co. will release her account Oct. 25. “Everyone knows what the word ‘war’ means, but practically no one knows what this word really represents,” Skalietska said in a statement released Wednesday. “I want the world to know what we have experienced.” Skalietska's book begins with her 12th birthday, shortly before the Russians attacked on Feb. 24. She had been living in Kharkiv with her grandmother when the bombing began. (Yeva's parents separated when she was a baby, and her grandmother has raised her). “She describes the bombings they endured while sheltering underground, and their desperate journey to West Ukraine. She shares her confusion about why the Russians would attack them, since she speaks Russian and follows many of their customs,” … [Read more...] about Diary of 12-year-old Ukrainian refugee to be released
With mortgage rates spiking, how much more do Bay Area home buyers pay now for the same home?
This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 As Bay Area residents continue to see inflation at the gas pump and checkout registers, the price of buying a home is also going up , even as demand is starting to cool. And with mortgage rates also rising , what home buyers could have afforded just six months ago may now be out of reach. According to a new report from real estate listings site Zillow, rising rates have had a particularly dramatic impact in the pricey Bay Area, with average monthly mortgage payments more than 50% higher than what they were just one year ago. “Home prices in the Bay Area have shot up since the pandemic, but historically low mortgage rates have kept monthly payments somewhat affordable,” said Matt Kreamer, data spokesperson for Zillow, in an email. “Now that rates are ballooning, more and more people are being priced out.” According to Zillow data, the monthly mortgage payment for a … [Read more...] about With mortgage rates spiking, how much more do Bay Area home buyers pay now for the same home?
UK’s Glastonbury Festival welcomes back fans after pandemic
This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 13 LONDON (AP) — Thousands of people are returning to England's Glastonbury Festival as the five-day music and performing arts event reopened Wednesday for the first time in three years after being disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival, which is marking its 50th anniversary, has 3,000 performers scheduled, including Billie Eilish, Diana Ross, Kendrick Lamar and Paul McCartney. McCartney's weekend gig will make him, at age 80, the festival's oldest solo headline performer. Festival-goers started lining up to enter the gates at Worthy Farm in Somerset, southwest England, early Wednesday. Many struggled to get to the site because the festival coincided with the largest rail strike that Britain has seen in decades. Just 60% of trains were expected to run on Wednesday, with more walkouts planned for Thursday and … [Read more...] about UK’s Glastonbury Festival welcomes back fans after pandemic
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson dead at 26
Jaylon Ferguson, a Baltimore Ravens linebacker and Louisiana Tech standout, has died at age 26, the team announced Wednesday. “He was a kind, respectful young man with a big smile and infectious personality,” the Ravens said in a statement. “We express our heartfelt condolences to Jaylon’s family and friends as we mourn a life lost much too soon.” No details were revealed about his death but a spokesperson for the Baltimore Police Department told the Daily News that officers were called to a home just before midnight Tuesday and found Ferguson, who was unresponsive. Ferguson never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead at the scene. No signs of trauma were noted and foul play is not suspected, but investigators are not ruling out the possibility of an overdose, the police department spokesperson told The News. Ferguson’s body has been taken to the medical examiner’s office to determine a cause of death. Ferguson was drafted by the Ravens in the third round in … [Read more...] about Baltimore Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson dead at 26
Rio Ferdinand calls for new ‘inspiring’ online platform to combat child bullying
Rio Ferdinand has called for a new social media platform to be set up as he criticised tech giants for failing to get a grip on bullying and “toxic behaviours”. The former England footballer, who suffered racial abuse as a child, said he wanted to stop his daughters going through the same experience. He also backed the Government’s Online Safety Bill , which will allow Ofcom to fine companies up to 10% of their turnover if they fail to protect children online. Ferdinand said: “Passing the online Bill will be a good start, making the social media platforms accountable for a lot of the online hate. Recommended Train strike: Stations deserted as UK grinds to halt “Social media companies haven’t reacted in the positive way we anticipated they would, given some of the big news stories that have happened around social media and toxic behaviours. “Hopefully the online Bill will help that – I don’t think it will eradicate everything completely, but we … [Read more...] about Rio Ferdinand calls for new ‘inspiring’ online platform to combat child bullying
Zendaya forced to deny she’s pregnant after trending on Twitter due to viral TikTok prank
Zendaya has been forced to shut down rumours that she’s pregnant , after fans posted prank TikTok videos about her expecting a child. The 25-year-old actor acknowledged she’s been trending on Twitter , due to the pregnancy rumours, in her Instagram Story on Wednesday. “See no, this is why I stay off Twitter…” she wrote. “Just making stuff up for no reason..weekly”. In her following story, she wrote, “anyhow, back to filming”, along with a tennis ball emoji, referring to how she’s been shooting for her new sports drama movie, Challengers . She then shared a photo of someone’s legs, as they wore a pair of white sneakers and had a tennis racket in their hand. Recommended Anne Hathaway and Zendaya praised as ‘iconic’ after starring in Bulgari short film together ‘Breathtakingly gorgeous’: Zendaya wears vintage Bob Mackie gown for TIME 100 Gala Zendaya did her own makeup for the Oscars red carpet The rumour first … [Read more...] about Zendaya forced to deny she’s pregnant after trending on Twitter due to viral TikTok prank
Woman reveals ‘glitch in the simulation’ after showing surveillance footage of herself cutting a lemon at work
A woman has gone viral online after sharing a video of herself cutting a lemon at work, only to realise the lemon was still intact upon second glance. Now, the internet is calling the video the “best evidence” to prove there’s a glitch in the simulation . Jade Gonzalez shared the surveillance footage of the incident to TikTok , where it has since gained more than three million views. Gonzalez – who goes by the username @kahootdaddy777 on the app – showed herself slicing lemons while working at her family’s Mexican restaurant when the supposed “glitch” occurred. “The craziest s*** happened to me earlier,” she began the TikTok. “There was a glitch in the system. I’m going to show you guys a video, okay?” In the surveillance video, Gonzalez is seen grabbing a lemon and cutting it in half. She cuts one piece of the lemon in half once more, and walks away to grab a small bag. When she returns, she picks up the lemon only to find that it was no longer cut in half. … [Read more...] about Woman reveals ‘glitch in the simulation’ after showing surveillance footage of herself cutting a lemon at work