BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for unity in his struggling coalition on Saturday, saying Germany faced growing threats from political extremists to destabilize the country. Speaking at a conference of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the Bavarian sister party of his conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), Merz said Germany faced “extraordinarily serious challenges”. “How do we safeguard our freedom and our security in Europe, in the face of growing threats from extremists within and foreign powers from without?” he said.

 

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MOSCOW (AP) - Russia has warned of a “firm response” to Moldova’s decision to declare a Russian embassy staff member in Chisinau persona non grata, describing the move as a “hostile action.” “These hostile actions by the Moldovan leadership will not go unanswered, and Russia will deliver an adequate and firm response,” the Foreign Ministry said on Friday. Moldovan President Maia Sandu announced Friday that Chisinau had declared a Russian Embassy staff member persona non grata, claiming a Russian-made Geran attack drone violated the country’s airspace and crashed near family homes and an energy facility. Russia said no evidence had been presented to substantiate the drone’s alleged origin.

 

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KYIV (AFP) – Ukraine again has a “stable connection” to Starlink, the government said on Saturday, after days of tensions with Washington over the SpaceX-made network crucial to the Ukrainian army’s operations. Kyiv relies on the civilian Starlink satellite communications system and the military-grade Starshield version as it tries to defend itself from Russian missile and drone attacks.

 

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YILAN (Reuters) - Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, killing 1 person and injuring more than 500, downing trees and severing power, as it continued to weaken and head north towards the Chinese coast though it was not expected to make landfall there. At one point a super typhoon and one of the strongest storms in the Pacific this year, Champi is weakening though still packing gusts of around 126 kph (78 mph) near its center, according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration. The storm was about 170 km (106 miles) northeast of Taiwan, having glanced off the island’s northeastern coast in Yilan County early on Saturday, the CWA said. The center of the storm turned south around midnight, hugging the Yilan coastline before making a rare loop offshore and moving away northward. Wind gusts touched 227 kph (141 mph) in some coastal areas, knocking down power lines and sending roof tiles flying.

 

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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The head of the UN nuclear agency said Friday that he expects the use of nuclear power could more than triple by 2060. Rafael Grossi said in the International Atomic Energy Agency’s annual report to the UN General Assembly that this will be driven by electrification, data centers powered by artificial intelligence and “technology companies’ appetite for reliable, carbon-free power.” Nuclear energy is seen by a growing number of countries as key to improving their energy security, he said, stressing that it is on par with solar energy and “safer than every other option.” “In 2025, more than 400 operating reactors in more than 30 countries produced 10% of global electricity and a quarter of its low-carbon electricity,” the IAEA director-general said. “More than 60 new reactors are under construction and the projections for future nuclear capacity have shifted dramatically upward.”