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EU Parliament votes to lift far-right German lawmaker's immunity

EU Parliament votes to lift far-right German lawmaker's immunity

Yahoo06-05-2025

The European Parliament on Tuesday voted to lift the immunity of Petr Bystron, a leading lawmaker from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), over investigations into money laundering and bribery.
Bystron is suspected of having received money from the pro-Russian outlet Voice of Europe in order to act in favour of Russia in the Bundestag, Germany's lower house of parliament.
Additionally, Bystron is accused of several counts of tax evasion and fraud, according to a report by the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs.
The politician has repeatedly denied the allegations and called the proceedings politically motivated.
Voice of Europe is suspected of having paid money to European politicians and of spreading pro-Russian propaganda. In mid-May, the platform was banned from broadcasting in the European Union.

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NATO needs to get ready for modern war — and fast, top commander tells BI
NATO needs to get ready for modern war — and fast, top commander tells BI

Business Insider

time38 minutes ago

  • Business Insider

NATO needs to get ready for modern war — and fast, top commander tells BI

NATO still has work to do before it becomes the 21st-century fighting force that it needs to be, and allies need to invest heavily in their domestic defense industries, a top commander told Business Insider. "I think it's a struggle," Adm. Pierre Vandier, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation and the man overseeing alliance modernization efforts, said during an interview this week at his office in Norfolk, Virginia. In recent decades, NATO militaries have been focused predominantly on lower-end counterinsurgency operations in places like Africa or Afghanistan, depending heavily on expeditionary forces enabled by uncontested airpower. In this context, allies thought differently about their own defense, and supporting industries were not sufficiently focused on preparing the alliance for a modern war against a top adversary. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 set off alarm bells throughout NATO, with Western officials warning that Moscow could feel emboldened to push deeper into Europe if it wasn't adequately deterred, presenting the alliance with the possibility of a large-scale conventional war or worse. The past three years have seen many NATO states dramatically boost their defense spending and buy more weaponry. Countries along the eastern and northern edges — the front lines of the alliance, as they share borders with Russia — are hardening their defenses. However, many still argue that there's more work to be done. "I think we forgot all the big principles of a symmetric war, and so it's where we need to reinvest," Vandier said, referring to a conflict in which combatants are more evenly matched. He added that because the defense industrial base shrank so much over the years, ramping it up is "very difficult." Delivering on high-end platforms like warships, fighter jets, and missiles can be a yearslong process. A single F-35 stealth aircraft, for instance, takes around 18 months to build. Vandier warned that if a fight breaks out before NATO has sufficiently bolstered its defenses, the alliance could have a major problem. He acknowledged that NATO still has a long way to go to reach its full potential as a modern fighting force. Member countries are pledging to spend more of their respective GDPs on defense, but the process of going from funding projects to delivery is far from quick. "It's a question of speed," Vandier said. In 2014, when Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula, NATO members agreed to spend 2% of their national GDP on defense. Since then, amid increased Russian aggression, the number of allies that have met or exceeded that goal has steadily risen from three to 22 last year. Earlier this week, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said all allies will reach the 2% target this year, though he is calling for heads of state to agree to a new target — 5%, in line with calls from the Trump administration — at a summit later this month. "The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defense," he said Monday at an event in London. "We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defense plans in full. The fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends." Modernizing at speed In its quest to become a modern fighting force, NATO is also focused on integrating asymmetric solutions like drones and other new emerging technologies into its planning. The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have highlighted the value of uncrewed systems. Vandier and his Allied Command Transformation are at the forefront of these efforts. 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Indiana University changes rule about overnight protests on campus
Indiana University changes rule about overnight protests on campus

Indianapolis Star

time41 minutes ago

  • Indianapolis Star

Indiana University changes rule about overnight protests on campus

The Indiana University board of trustees voted to change a policy intended to tighten restrictions on campus protests after a federal judge found it was likely to violate the First Amendment. Nearly a year ago, IU's board passed its "expressive activity" policy to ban overnight camping and the use of unapproved structures in response to a pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment that stood on campus for months during the spring 2024 semester. Violators faced a range of possible disciplinary actions, including suspension, expulsion, loss of university employment and a responsibility to pay for damages. However, the policy was paused after a judge ruled two weeks ago that it likely violates the campus community's First Amendment rights. Time, place and manner restrictions on free expression are legal as long as they are narrowly tailored; the judge's order said IU's policy was not. During its June 12 meeting, the board unanimously agreed to end the prohibition on overnight protesting and other expressive activities. It also added language saying the policy should be "interpreted in favor of free speech rights." While the overnight restriction is removed, protests stretching after hours, like the pro-Palestinian encampment, may still prove difficult. Camping is not permitted, and protesters must still obtain prior approval for structures. The trustees voted to amend the policy at their June 12 meeting without explicitly detailing the changes before the vote. The policy was updated online about 15 minutes after the vote. General Counsel Anthony Prather said he and other administrators were evaluating changes to the policy prior to the court's decision. The new version is a combination of stakeholder feedback and takeaways from the preliminary injunction, he said. Newly sworn-in trustee James Bopp Jr., a longtime conservative First Amendment lawyer, said he agreed that the previous policy overstepped constitutional rights. The new version, he said, adequately weighs guardrails and rights to on-campus speech. "This issue, not only in my general practice but for the purposes of the university, is of critical importance that we get this right," Bopp said. "I really want to compliment the general counsel, in my opinion, as having done that now." Trustees were also set to discuss resident undergraduate tuition, the budget and President Pamela Whitten's compensation during the June 12 meeting. Last year, trustees crafted an update to IU's "expressive activities" policy after a Dunn Meadow encampment resulted in several clashes with police and dozens of arrests. The university fenced off the area last school year to make pricey repairs it said the encampment caused. Three of the nine trustees voted against it during its initial passage last summer. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has since removed three of the board's members, including two of the dissenting trustees, under his new appointment powers, codified last legislative session. The campus community widely decried the policy as unconstitutional, and protesters staged midnight candlelight vigils throughout the fall 2024 semester to test and challenge IU's enforcement of the policy. The Indiana Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit challenging the policy on First Amendment grounds last August, which resulted in the policy's temporary halt this May. The USA TODAY Network - Indiana's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners.

Chinese social media posts falsely claim German right-wing leader praises China
Chinese social media posts falsely claim German right-wing leader praises China

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Chinese social media posts falsely claim German right-wing leader praises China

China's former consul general to Belfast Zhang Meifang shared the 13-second clip of Weidel speaking in German on her account on X on May 21, 2025. "Co-chairwoman of Germany's AfD Weidel said only China's strength can defeat the United States' arrogance and force it sit down and negotiate!" its caption says. "Throughout history, the United States has only sat down for equal negotiations twice -- once during the Korean War, and again during the trade war. China was on the other side of the negotiations both times." Simplified Chinese text overlaid on the clip largely repeats the claim. The post appeared alongside a tide of false claims about the trade war between Washington and Beijing circulating online, which were amplified by Chinese state media outlets (archived link). The two sides announced a truce on May 12 that halted tit-for-tat tariffs announced since President Donald Trump's return to the White House, with a further "framework" agreement reached on June 10 (archived link). China would supply rare earth minerals to the United States, which in turn would allow Chinese students to remain in US universities. Posts suggesting Weidel spoke about the trade war were shared elsewhere on X, TikTok and Weibo. Social media users appeared to believe the circulating claim, with one saying, "She is the guiding light of Germany". Another wrote, "Such an outspoken woman!" Despite having lived and worked in China, Weidel rarely publicly comments on the country (archived link). However, her subtitled speeches circulate widely on Chinese social media, with German broadcaster Deutsche Welle attributing her popularity to AfD and Beijing having similar stances on issues such as European military aid for Ukraine (archived link). The circulating video in fact shows Weidel criticising the German government, not praising China. A reverse image search found the clip was taken from a livestream of her speech at an AfD rally in Thuringia on August 31, 2024, a month before regional elections in Germany (archived link). During her remarks, she called the government's deportation of 28 Afghan nationals -- who German authorities said were "convicted offenders" with no right to remain -- a day before the AfD rally a "gimmick" (archived link). The false clip can be seen at the 55:04 mark of the livestream, where she went on to say, "Nothing is achieved. It should be up to a thousand people, not just 28." She did not mention China during the speech. German media reported Weidel told rally-goers that AfD would "ban Antifa as a terrorist organisation" if her party came to power during her speech (archived link).

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