Some foreign entities instigate coups in Africa – ECOWAS chair

Ghana President Akufo-Addo is current Chairman of ECOWAS ACCRA, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ghana President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has pointed out that some foreign elements are neck-deep in regime-changing moves in Africa to serve their parochial interests.“Some foreign entities regard coups in Africa as a means of enhancing their…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Pres Joe Biden, Canadian PM Trudeau and top US govt officials banned from entering Russia

Joe Biden, US president MOSCOW, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russia says it has put Joe Biden, United States President, Justin Trudeau, Canadian Prime Minister and a dozen top US officials on a “stop List” that bars them from entering Russia.Alongside Biden, US officials on list included Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin,…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Court slaps fine on Russian woman after on-air TV protest against Ukraine invasion

MOSCOW, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A Russian woman who denounced the war in Ukraine during a live news bulletin on state television was fined 30,000 roubles (UD$280) on Tuesday, a court said, after the Kremlin denounced her act of protest as “hooliganism”. Marina Ovsyannikova, a Channel One employee, was found guilty of…

Sahara desert dust coats swathes of Spain

  MADRID, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A mass of hot air from the Sahara desert dumped dust on large parts of Spain including Madrid on Tuesday, colouring the sky orange and coating cars and streets. People used hoses to wash down the dust in the centre of the capital where…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Fox News cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski killed in Ukraine

NEW YORK, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A cameraman for Fox News, Pierre Zakrzewski, has been killed in Ukraine outside Kyiv, the US network said. Zakrzewski was killed and his colleague Benjamin Hall was wounded when their vehicle was struck Monday by incoming fire in Horenka, outside the capital, Fox News…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: President Zelensky concedes Ukraine will not become a member of Nato

KYIV, March 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said that his country should accept that it will not become a member of the US-led NATO military alliance, a key Russian concern it used to justify its invasion. “Ukraine is not a member of NATO. We understand that. We have…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Kremlin says too early for conclusions on Ukraine talks

  MOSCOW, March 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Kremlin said Tuesday it was too soon to draw any conclusions from talks to resolve the conflict in Ukraine as  fighting intensified around the capital Kyiv. “The work is complex, but the very fact that the work is continuing is in itself positive,” Kremlin spokesman…

Peru’s Parliament to debate impeaching President Castillo, yet again

LIMA, March 15 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Peru’s Congress passed by 76 voted in favor, 41 against, and one abstention a motion to debate the impeachment of President Pedro Castillo Terrones for “permanent moral unfitness” to hold office. The debate on the so-called “motion to vacate” will be held March 28, Speaker…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Ecuadorian banana producers seek declaration of emergency

QUITO, March 15 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Ecuadorian banana producers in the coastal provinces of Guayas, Los Rios, and El Oro, have staged road blockades demanding the government to step in and purchase the surplus resulting from Russia’s military operation in Ukraine. “We request that the President of the Republic, with the…

Russia-Ukraine conflict: Mercosur and associate members want fertilizers off Russia’s sanctions list

BRASILIA, March 15 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Mercosur country members plus associate Chile and Bolivia (in the process of joining the block) want fertilizers excluded from the list of sanctions on Russia, according to Brazilian Agriculture minister Tereza Cristina da Costa Dias. “Brazil has secured the support of Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay,…