Almost all Hungarians see Novák, despite her head-of-state status, as a mere puppet under the longtime prime minister. Orbán, after all, is the one calling the shots as far as politics in this Central European state is concerned. The other person hit by the turmoil is Judit Varga, a Hungarian lawmaker who was to lead … Read more
Demands and priorities Britain is providing the executive an extra £3.3 billion to start patching holes in services and pay long-delayed wage hikes that just triggered the biggest public sector strike in Northern Ireland’s history. The trouble is, the head of Northern Ireland’s civil service, Jayne Brady, has already told the new leaders that these eye-watering sums are still … Read more
Two Chinese mega bridges in Eastern Cape are finally making progress towards completion. As we reported back in 2023, in the face of engineering complexity, public unrest and other unforeseen delays, the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) could only set to work in earnest on the Mtentu and Msikaba Chinese mega bridges in … Read more
BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to build “bridges” with Europe during a meeting with Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo in Beijing, just as China’s defense ministry warned it would “crush” independence movements in Taiwan. “Facing the turbulent international situation, more ‘bridges’ need to be built between China and Europe. The two sides … Read more
TAIPEI — Forget Xi Jinping or Joe Biden for a second. Meet Taiwan’s next President William Lai, upon whom the fate of U.S.-China relations — and global security over the coming few years — is now thrust. The 64-year-old, currently Taiwan’s vice president, has led the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to a historic third term … Read more
