government

German president urges parties to compromise, end crisis

Berlin - Muslimchronicle

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged on Monday political parties to reconsider their positions and find compromises to form a government, hours after coalition talks collapsed and plunged Germany into a crisis. "Building a government has always been a difficult process of give and take, but the mandate to form a government is... perhaps the highest mandate given by voters toRead more

Merkel optimistic on forming new coalition

Berlin - Muslimchronicle

Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that she is still optimistic about the chances of disparate parties allying to form Germany’s next government after an initial round of talks produced little visible progress. Germany’s Sept. 24 election left Merkel trying to form an untried coalition of her conservative Union bloc, the pro-business Free Democrats and the traditionally left-leaning Greens. Over theRead more

Fitch cuts Venezuela debt rating

Washington - Muslimchronicle

The Fitch ratings agency said Friday it has cut the rating on Venezuela's foreign debt after the government called for a creditors meeting to renegotiate a debt load estimated at $150 billion. Fitch cut the debt grade to "C" from "CC" based on the announcement and on "previously missed payments" which "makes a default event highly probable," the company saidRead more

Puigdemont 'still president' of Catalonia, deputy says

Barcelona - Muslimchronicle

Deposed Catalan president Carles Puigdemont "is and will remain" the president of the regional government, his deputy said Sunday, and rejected what he called a "coup d'etat" by Madrid. "The president of the country is and will remain Carles Puigdemont," Oriol Junqueras wrote in Catalan newspaper El Punt Avui after the central government seized the regional executive's powers following aRead more

Catalonia: Spanish govt says it's time for law to be respected

Madrid - Muslimchronicle

Spain's deputy prime minister defended on Thursday drastic measures proposed by Madrid to take control of Catalonia's powers, saying they were needed to ensure the law is respected. "We want to open a new stage in which the law is respected," Soraya Saenz de Santamaria said in an address to the senate, which on Friday will vote on the government'sRead more

Austria far-right agrees to government coalition talks

Vienna - Muslimchronicle

Austria's far-right FPOe party on Tuesday agreed to enter talks on forming a coalition government at the invitation of incoming chancellor Sebastian Kurz. "We have accepted this invitation," said FPO (Freedom Party) leader Heinz-Christian Strache, raising the prospect of his party entering the government for the first time in 17 years. Source:AFPRead more

Iraqi Kurd parliament postpones elections for 8 months

Arbil - Muslimchronicle

Parliament in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region decided Tuesday to hold legislative elections in eight months after they were delayed amid tensions over disputed territory with the central government in Baghdad. Simultaneous legislative and presidential elections in the Kurdish region had been due to take place on November 1 but were delayed. There was no immediate word on a date forRead more

'Errors' let Marseille attacker walk free before attack

paris - Muslimchronicle

"Errors of judgement" allowed the man who stabbed two women to death in Marseille to walk free after being arrested days earlier, an official report on the killings said Tuesday. French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb announced a major reshuffle of staff in the centre-east Rhone region where the Tunisian attacker was held for theft and then released. A government sourceRead more

Egypt’s annual urban consumer inflation rate falls to 31.6% in September

Cairo - Muslimchronicle

Egypt’s annual urban consumer price inflation eased slightly in September to 31.6 percent from 31.9 percent in August, the official CAPMAS statistics agency said on Tuesday. Inflation soared to a record high in July on the back of fuel and energy subsidy cuts by the government. Import-dependant Egypt abandoned its currency peg to the US dollar last November and theRead more

Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya faces new charges; free on bail

London - Muslimchronicle

The Indian government has brought a new money-laundering charge against a prominent Indian tycoon who is fighting extradition from Britain, prosecutors said Tuesday. Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service said Vijay Mallya appeared in court and was released on bail. He is due back in court on Dec. 4 for an extradition hearing expected to last eight days. Mallya is the co-ownerRead more