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00:00Mass protests across Georgia against the government's decision to suspend EU accession talks enter
00:07a second week.
00:11Thousands of Romanians participate in a pro-Europe demonstration in the capital Bucharest as
00:16the presidential runoff nears.
00:20As France waits anxiously, President Emmanuel Macron met with political leaders to choose
00:24a new prime minister to form a government of general interest.
00:32Mass protests across Georgia against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining
00:37the European Union have entered a second week.
00:41Police have cracked down on protesters with increasing force using water cannons and tear
00:46gas to try to break up the nightly rallies.
00:49More than 300 protesters have been detained and over a hundred people have been treated
00:53for injuries.
00:54We fight for our freedom and this is a main fight for us.
00:59If we're not going to be part of the European Union and if we're not going to be free from
01:05the Russian oppression, then I don't think that we're going to be in this world.
01:12The ruling Georgian dream retained control of parliament in the disputed 26th of October
01:17election, a vote widely seen as a referendum on Georgia's EU aspirations.
01:23The opposition accused the governing party of rigging the vote with the help of neighboring
01:27Russia to keep the Moscow-friendly Georgia Dream Party in power.
01:31But the protests against the election became angrier and spread beyond Tbilisi after the
01:35decision last Thursday to put EU accession talks on hold until at least 2028.
01:42That was in response to a European Parliament resolution that criticized the elections as
01:46neither free nor fair.
01:48The EU granted Georgia candidate country status in 2023, but Brussels put that process on
01:54hold earlier this year after the passage of a controversial foreign influence law widely
01:59seen as a blow to democratic freedoms.
02:07More than 4,000 Romanians participated in a pro-Europe demonstration in a popular square
02:12in downtown Bucharest.
02:15Georgian and European Union flags were waved side by side, and protesters were heard chanting
02:20freedom and Europe.
02:22The rally comes just two days before the second round of the presidential election, set for
02:27December 8.
02:30Independent far-right candidate Kellyanne Giorgescu won the first round almost two weeks
02:34ago, garnering 23% of the vote.
02:38His anti-EU and anti-NATO sentiments have sparked protests around the country, with
02:43many viewing him as a threat to democracy.
03:07Many were hoping the presidential first-round results were a one-off, and did not signal
03:12a shifting political landscape in Romania.
03:15But far-right parties also made considerable gains in the parliamentary election on Sunday.
03:21The Alliance for the Union of Romanians secured 18% of the votes, finishing in second behind
03:26the ruling Social Democrats.
03:29Giorgescu will now face reformist Elena Lascogne of the Save Romania Union Party.
03:35The country's future hangs in the balance in what analysts predict will be a tightly
03:39contested race.
03:45French President Emmanuel Macron is receiving a number of political leaders, with a view
03:49of forming a government of general interest after the country's Prime Minister Michel
03:54Barnier was ousted by a no-confidence vote.
04:09Public sector workers staged strikes across France to demand increased funding and staffing
04:21for public services, as the country waits to see who will replace Barnier and solve
04:25the enormous social issues facing the country.
04:29Macron also invited socialist leader Olivier Faure to the LEC, in a potential attempt to
04:34create distance between the left-wing coalition which took power in recent elections.
05:04Barnier and other ministers will remain in power to act as a caretaker government until
05:14the appointment of new ministers.
05:22Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has clashed indirectly with US Secretary of State
05:27Antony Blinken at the OSCE security meeting in Malta.
05:31Lavrov accused the West of reviving the Cold War and provoking a direct conflict with Russia.
05:38He said US actions were driven by a desire to return NATO to the political spotlight.
05:44Blinken, who spoke after Lavrov left the room, put the blame for escalation in the region
05:48back on Russia.
05:50He cited the deployment of North Korean forces in Europe, the use of an intermediate-range
05:55ballistic missile to attack Ukraine and Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
06:02The foreign ministers of Ukraine, Poland and Estonia walked out of the room when Lavrov
06:06started speaking.
06:08Before leaving the podium, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sebia called Lavrov a war
06:13criminal.
06:18This is Lavrov's first visit to an EU member country since the invasion of Ukraine in February
06:232022.
06:25It's been relatively rare for Lavrov to attend forums involving senior Western officials,
06:30although he recently took part in the UN General Assembly and the G20 summit in Brazil.
06:40The controversial signing of a trade deal between the European Union and the Mercosur
06:44countries seems to be closer than ever.
06:49Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is in Uruguay for a meeting with the group's
06:53Latin American member countries on Friday.
06:58The intention is to finalize the last political negotiations to conclude what would be a groundbreaking
07:06and historic partnership agreement between the EU and the Mercosur region.
07:12French President Emmanuel Macron has warned von der Leyen that the deal is unacceptable
07:17as it stands.
07:19But France, the main opponent of the pact, is mired in a deep political crisis.
07:24Brussels hasn't said whether the final signature, which would come after 25 years of negotiations,
07:30will take place this week or not.
07:33But this wouldn't be the last step as the European Parliament and EU countries will
07:37also get a say.
07:39The agreement with the Mercosur countries, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay
07:44and Paraguay, would create the world's largest tariff-free trade area.
07:49It would allow for increased exports of European goods, such as cars.
07:54But it would also allow the import of Latin American meat and agricultural products, which
07:58some countries in Europe, particularly France, have opposed.
08:08Taken from homes, detained for months and subjected to intense propaganda before coerced
08:13adoption, a new report by Yale's School of Public Health has shed light on Russia's forceful
08:18deportation of Ukrainian children.
08:20The researchers identified 314 Ukrainian children adopted by Russian families and placed into
08:26institutions initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and he subordinates the operation
08:32is intended to russify children from Ukraine.
08:34Yesterday, our team released.
08:37The way it works is there's three interconnected databases, one of which is directly run by
08:42the Ministry of Education.
08:44After the September annexation of the area occupied by Russia, they moved the children
08:51from midpoints, basically safe houses where they had held them for six months, and then
08:56placed them in the database.
08:59While in those midpoints, Ukrainian children had to undergo forced re-education, Raymond
09:04explained, adding that it amounts to indoctrination.
09:08That includes for older boys, military training, including vehicle operation, weapons operation,
09:15parachute jumping.
09:17And then for younger children, it includes indoctrination in Russian narratives, singing
09:23Russian songs and being prohibited from speaking Ukrainian.
09:28In March of last year, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir
09:32Putin and Maria Lvova Belova for their actions and involvement in the unlawful deportation
09:36of Ukrainian children.
09:38Your report says the Kremlin launched this program in the first weeks of 2022 in tandem
09:43with its preparation for its all-out invasion of Ukraine.
09:47Evidence that we provide in this report, we provided through direct transfer to the International
09:52Criminal Court, is clear evidence of alleged crimes against humanity.
09:58And now it is up to the ICC and other jurisdictions to decide whether they want to charge.
10:05We've given them all the information we have, and we believe the case is clear.
10:10The situation might get even worse, as around 1.5 million Ukrainian children who still live
10:16in occupied areas of Ukraine remain at high risk of being forcefully deported to Russia.
10:24Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti claims their security forces have doubled in size,
10:32with plans to transition into a national army by 2028.
10:36Tensions with Serbia have risen following explosions Kosovo blames on Serbia, despite
10:41a lack of evidence.
10:42Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008, remains unrecognized by Serbia.
10:48The defence minister has announced they are working to open a state-owned ammunition factory.
11:12Some experts have expressed concern over military developments, fearing it could worsen tensions
11:17in the region.
11:28Kosovo's security forces are advancing their capabilities by acquiring armoured vehicles,
11:34drones and anti-tank missiles.
11:37The government claims their military development is for defence purposes and will only act
11:42in coordination with their allies.
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