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December 30, 2019

December 29, 2019

The Netherlands: Dutch Resistance movement during the 2nd World War - These Dutch girls seduced Nazis — and lured them to their deaths - by Isabel Vincent

When she came across a Nazi killing an infant by repeatedly swinging its tiny body against a brick wall, Truus Oversteegen didn’t flinch.

The freckle-faced teenager, who was just three months shy of her 17th birthday when Germany invaded the Netherlands in May 1940, was a newly minted member of the Dutch resistance.

She had been mostly assigned to hide Jewish children, political dissidents and homosexuals in various safe houses throughout Haarlem, her hometown, which was about 12 miles west of Amsterdam.

But what she saw now forced her to act with a sudden, brutal energy.

Read the complete report at: These Dutch girls seduced Nazis — and lured them to their deaths

December 28, 2019

Britain: Inside Boris Johnson's £20,000-a-week Caribbean Christmas getaway

Pictures have emerged of the luxury Caribbean villa where Boris Johnson and his girlfriend Carrie Symonds will see in the New Year. The pair will have a pick of three swimming pools, six bedrooms and stunning views in every direction at the £20,000-a-week hideaway. The Oceanus villa on the island of Mustique comes with a dedicated butler, housekeeper, chef and gardener. They arrived today after stopping off in St Lucia where he was congratulated on his election victory by the country’s prime minister, Alan Chastanet. But he is expected to leave all formal prime ministerial work at the door to spend time with Ms Symonds, 31.

Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/12/27/inside-boris-johnsons-20000-week-caribbean-christmas-getaway-11966178/?ito=cbshare
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/
Pictures have emerged of the luxury Caribbean villa where Boris Johnson and his girlfriend Carrie Symonds will see in the New Year. The pair will have a pick of three swimming pools, six bedrooms and stunning views in every direction at the £20,000-a-week hideaway. The Oceanus villa on the island of Mustique comes with a dedicated butler, housekeeper, chef and gardener. They arrived today after stopping off in St Lucia where he was congratulated on his election victory by the country’s prime minister, Alan Chastanet. But he is expected to leave all formal prime ministerial work at the door to spend time with Ms Symonds, 31.

Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/12/27/inside-boris-johnsons-20000-week-caribbean-christmas-getaway-11966178/?ito=cbshare
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/
Carrie Symonds and Boris Johnson
Pictures have emerged of the luxury Caribbean villa where Boris Johnson (55) and his 31 year old girlfriend Carrie Symonds will see in the New Year.

The pair will have a pick of three swimming pools, six bedrooms and stunning views in every direction at the £20,000-a-week hideaway.

The Oceanus villa on the island of Mustique comes with a dedicated butler, housekeeper, chef and gardener.

They arrived today after stopping off in St Lucia where he was congratulated on his election victory by the country’s prime minister, Alan Chastanet. But he is expected to leave all formal prime ministerial work at the door to spend time with Ms Symonds,

Read more at: Inside Boris Johnson's £20,000-a-week Caribbean Christmas getaway | Metro News

December 27, 2019

NATO: European Security in Crisis: What to Expect if the United States Withdraws from NATO - by Liana Fix and Bastian Giegerich

t is February 2021. A few months after his re-election as president of the United States, Donald Trump declares that NATO has become obsolete and the United States withdraws from the alliance. All U.S. forces — military personnel and equipment — including nuclear and missile defense assets will be withdrawn from Europe as soon as possible.

This nightmare scenario has been on the mind of many security policy officials, and experts, ever since the New York Times reported in January 2019 that Trump discussed several times over the course of 2018 wanting to withdraw from the alliance. Congress has acted and passed the NATO Support Act, which prohibits the use of funds to withdraw the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Yet the possibility of such a move cannot entirely be excluded.

A policy game prepared by Körber-Stiftung and the International Institute for Strategic Studies sought to answer these questions this summer in Berlin. Five country teams with experts from France, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States addressed a fictional scenario that involved a U.S. withdrawal from NATO, followed by crises in a NATO member state in the western Balkans and across Eastern Europe. How would Europeans react to such a scenario? What are the red lines, interests, and priorities of the respective actors? How might Europeans organize their defense if the United States withdraws from NATO, and what role could the United States play in European security after the withdrawal?

European Security in Crisis: What to Expect if the United States Withdraws from NATO - War on the Rocks

December 25, 2019

EU - reality check: - Who Still Needs the EU?

The EU elicits a range of reactions. What's behind the preconceptions and skepticism? DW reporters go looking for answers in Germany, Poland, Italy and Brussels

December 23, 2019

Christmas: Canada Is Officially The Christmas Capital Of The World

Christmas is a magical time all around the world, but we're proud to announce that Canada has taken the top spot and been officially named the #1 most Christmassy country in the whole world.

According to the rankings, there were several reasons why Canada took the top spot. There is an impressive amount of people here who listen to Christmas music relative to other countries, which also makes sense given that staple Canadian singers Justin Bieber and Michael Bublé have both released Christmas albums. 

Read more at: Canada Is Officially The Christmas Capital Of The World - Narcity

December 21, 2019

USA: Major Christian Publication Says Trump Should Be Removed from Office

"It’s time to say what we said 20 years ago when a president’s character was revealed for what it was".

Note EU-Digest: The well known US Christian Magazine "Christianity Today", finally spoke out on behalf of many Pastors and millions of Christian's around the world, including the US, who don't support Donald Trump, and said he should resign.

Read the complete report at:
https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2019/december-web-only/trump-should-be-removed-from-office.html

The Americas - Cuban and Suriname relations: Cuba and Suriname reaffirm cooperation ties (+ Photo)

Cuba and Suriname reaffirmed today the common interest of deepening
cooperation ties, in the context of the celebrations to mark the 40th
anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.



Read more at: The Americas - Cuban and Suriname relations: Cuba and Suriname reaffirm cooperation ties (+ Photo)

December 19, 2019

Suriname Rice Production: Suriname eyes Cuba, Barbados rice markets

Suriname’s Agriculture Minister, Rabin Parmessar is in Cuba to secure rice exports for next year.  That country’s ministry says it will do everything to make urea fertiliser and other inputs

Read more at:
http://demerarawaves.com/2019/12/15/suriname-eyes-cuba-barbados-rice-markets/

The Netherlands: Is the Netherlands becoming a narco-state?

The murder of a prominent lawyer ended a common misconception: that drug cartels only kill their own.

Read more at:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50821542

December 18, 2019

The Netherlands: Global warming:When will the Netherlands disappear?

 The low-lying country has centuries of experience managing water. Now climate change is threatening to flood it completely.

Global warming: do something about it, demonstrate in the street and in your workplace. Make your Government understand you are not accepting their "business as usual" reactions anymore.

Read more at:
https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3042428/when-will-netherlands-disappear

December 15, 2019

December 14, 2019

The Netherlands - Brexit-British elections: 'We've lost our minds': British nationals in NL after election result

British nationals in the Netherlands have been turning to social media to express their feelings following Thursday night’s British election results which will see Brexit become a reality at the end of January next year.

Some 49,000 first generation British nationals currently live in the Netherlands. ‘Gutted beyond words. What happened to the British people? We’ve lost our minds,’ said one woman on Facebook. ‘No fan but hey – at least we are one step closer to knowing where we stand and moving on from the last 3 years…

Always a bright side,’ said another British resident in the Netherlands. ‘The other bright side being – you don’t live there.’ Others pointed out that youngsters will be hardest hit. ‘The future of the UK’s youth has just been made harder.

That is NOT progressing but going back to the days before the young Europeans had job opportunities throughout Europe,’ said Leroy Moorrees on Facebook. Author Ben Coates, who describes himself as a ‘recovering Tory’, said on Twitter people must now accept that millions of people were not tricked into supporting Brexit.

Read more at: 'We've lost our minds': British nationals in NL after election result - DutchNews.nl

December 13, 2019

Britain: Election results 2019: Tories on course to win majority - exit poll

First results are coming in, with the Tories gaining a seat from Labour, as the exit poll suggests Boris Johnson's party is on course for an 86-seat majority.

Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50765773

December 12, 2019

The Netherlands: Chint switches on the Netherlands’ self-styled largest solar project - by José Rojo Martín

The Netherlands has recently marked the operational launch of one of the largest solar farms seen to date, a plant delivered in the country’s northeast by Chinese partners.

Chint Solar has now powered up the 103MWp Midden-Groningen Solar Park, built within eight months this year to the east of the city of Groningen.

The 315,000-panel installation was equipped by PV module maker – and Chint’s sister firm – Astronergy and is now supplying the Dutch grid from its 117-hectare site near the village of Sappemeer.

Construction got underway in February 2019 and was completed by the October 2019 deadline thanks to favourable weather conditions this summer, Chint explained.

Read more at: Chint switches on the Netherlands’ self-styled largest solar project | PV Tech

December 11, 2019

The Netherlands: Amsterdam has the most expensive parking in the world

Amsterdam has topped another global list this week, only this time the honor is not nearly as friendly as a title like Best Place to Live, or the Safest City in the EU. Drivers resource website and app Parkopedia has named the Dutch capital the most expensive city globally for street parking.

Read more at:
https://nltimes.nl/2019/12/08/amsterdam-expensive-parking-world

December 10, 2019

The Netherlands: The Province of Brabant remains the favorite base for foreign multinationals

BOM Foreign Investments again broke its own record when it came to job creation in the province of Brabant last year, with 1,661 new jobs created in 2014 thanks to foreign companies either moving to the region or expanding their operations there.

These companies also invested €154.2 million in the province, the Brabant Development Agency (BOM) announced yesterday at its biennial Investors Day.

The 2014 figures yet another gain for BOM Foreign Investments over the preceding year, when 1,313 jobs were created and investments stood at €52 million.

Read more at: Brabant remains the favorite base for foreign multinational

December 9, 2019

EU-US Relations: Trump escalates fight over tax on tech giants - by Naomi Jagoda and Emily Birnbaum

The long-running fight between the U.S. and Europe over how to tax American tech giants is heating up.

The Trump administration on Monday proposed retaliating against France for a tax on digital services, floating $2.4 billion in tariffs, and Paris is vowing to hit back. 

The dispute is raising pressure on international negotiators to develop a framework for taxing tech companies whose businesses span the globe. But as the complicated talks unfold, the U.S. is threatening to launch more investigations.

December 8, 2019

NATO: Macron spars with US and Turkey over Nato - by Nikolaj Nielsen

EU Defense Force: Europe needs to control it's own destiny
The presidents of France, Turkey and the United States sparred over Nato as the 29 leaders of the 70-year old alliance gathered in London.

In a late night tweet on Tuesday (3 December), French president Emmanuel Macron entrenched his views on the future of the fraying alliance.

"We can't put money and pay the cost of our soldiers' lives without being clear on the fundamentals of what Nato should be," he said.

The position follows his earlier comments describing Nato as "brain dead", given Turkey's October invasion into north-east Syria, displacing tens of thousands of people.

After US president Donald Trump abandoned the Kurdish militias, who had fought alongside US and French troops in the struggle against the Islamic State, Turkey moved in.

Note EU-Digest: Macron is right on this one. US President Trump pulled out of Syria without consulting any of his NATO partners, except possibly Turkey, and created a chaos at the border between Syria and Turkey. It is high time the EU gets off the lap of the US and creates its own military defense force, which focuses on the interests of Europe.

Read more at: Macron spars with US and Turkey over Nato

December 7, 2019

USA: Why is tourism to the United States on the decline? - Gun violence

The decrease isn't steep, but any decline is seen as alarming, given the overall rise in global tourism.

One of the major reasons for this decline in tourism to the US is the fear of gun violence in America, which is widely publicized around the world.

Read more at:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2019/09/06/more-people-are-traveling-world-than-ever-number-coming-america-is-dropping/

December 5, 2019

The Netherlands-USA Relations - Global Warming - Tampa Teams Up With Netherlands to Deal With Climate Change - by Dalia Dangerfield

The Bay Area and the Netherlands are teaming up to raise awareness on climate change. 
  • Tampa working with Netherlands on climate change
  • Tampa Chief of Staff John Bennett toured Netherlands to get ideas
  • Tampa to develop action plan with ideas
Tampa Chief of Staff John Bennett was invited to the Netherlands by Dutch Leaders to learn how their country deals with climate change.

"When you're riding around the country, it looks like any other country, but when you know what you're looking at, you're like 'wow that's a neat project," Bennett said.

The Netherlands is very vulnerable to floods and storm surge.  Their answer includes using natural resources as a defense. Something Bennett agrees with.

"Lets use nature as much as possible instead of putting more infrastructure in place," Bennett said.

 Read more at: Tampa Teams Up With Netherlands to Deal With Climate Change

December 3, 2019

Global Warming:Why we strike again – by Greta Thunberg, Luisa Neubauer and Angela Valenzuela

Facing grim science and growing activism, world leaders are increasingly recognising the urgency of the climate crisis. Yet nothing has been done.

Read more at
https://www.socialeurope.eu/why-we-strike-again

December 2, 2019

The Netherlands: Black Friday, "American Consumerism on Steroids", has hit the Netherlands: what the media say

The sales mania of Black Friday is everywhere – in the high street, on the internet and in the junk emails in your mailbox.

Now the Dutch media have turned their attention to the latest American craze to hit the Netherlands.

The Volkskrant calls Black Friday ‘unescapable’ and has published a list of tips for would-be bargain hunters. ‘If you can’t beat them join them but at least don’t fall for the retail trick of imaginary discounts,’ the list states.

It also recommends checking the prices of electronic goods, at sites such as Tweakers and Hardware Info which monitor prices throughout the year. The Volkskrant’s top tip: ask yourself do I really need another blender?
:
The sales mania of Black Friday is everywhere – in the high street, on the internet and in the junk emails in your mailbox. Now the Dutch media have turned their attention to the latest American craze to hit the Netherlands. The Volkskrant calls Black Friday ‘unescapable’ and has published a list of tips for would-be bargain hunters. ‘If you can’t beat them join them but at least don’t fall for the retail trick of imaginary discounts,’ the list states. It also recommends checking the prices of electronic goods, at sites such as Tweakers and Hardware Info which monitor prices throughout the year. The Volkskrant’s top tip: ask yourself do I really need another blender?

Read more at DutchNews.nl:
Black Friday has hit the Netherlands: what the media say - DutchNews.nl

December 1, 2019

The Netherlands: Man arrested for teen stabbings on Hague shopping street

Police in the Netherlands arrested a 35-year-old man in connection with the stabbings of three teenagers on the Grote Marktstraat in Den Haag. The man, with no fixed address, was being taken to a police station where investigators planned to interrogate him, Den Haag police said in a statement. No suspected motive was released immediately after the arrest. Earlier on Saturday,

Read more at
https://nltimes.nl/2019/11/30/man-arrested-teen-stabbings-hague-shopping-street