Editor’s note: On Friday’s, the Collegian will publish “Around the world,” a weekly series focused on delivering quick-hitting international news from the past week. This is the third installment of the series.
Violence ensues at a Greek migrant camp
The strain of the migrant crisis on Greece has become more apparent. On Tuesday, when migrants tried forcing their way past Macedonia’s heavily-guarded fence, they were met by law enforcement officials with tear gas and in riot gear on the other side. The event, which occurred along the border between Greece and Macedonia, draws attention to an issue German Chancellor Angela Merkel is advocating for: the European Union must open more borders and relieve the strain on Greece and the refugees alike, she says.
Last week, the same topic was a point of contention between Greece and Austria, a huge proponent of the opposition movement. As more immigrants come into Europe through Greece each day, the need for alternative places for them grows more dire. There will be a summit with Turkey about this issue on March 7.
More about the arguments for and against opening the borders in Europe can be found here: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35658776
UN approves tough sanctions against North Korea
As a result of nuclear tests preformed by North Korea earlier this year, the United Nations Security Council voted Wednesday to impose more restrictive sanctions against them. These tougher restrictions will include the inspection of all incoming and outgoing goods, and the addition of North Korean entities and trade representatives to a UN blacklist. Within hours of the resolution passing, though, North Korea reportedly fired set off six short-range projectiles into the sea. This demonstration of North Korea’s force also coincided with South Korean parliament passing “its first legislation on human rights in North Korea,” reports Al Jazeera.
More on the sanctions and the build up to them can be found at this link: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-nuclear-un-idUSKCN0W41Z2
Socialist coalition proposal rejected in Spain
In his first bid to become the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez was unable to procure the necessary votes in Parliament to support his nomination, falling 40 votes short of the 176 absolute majority required. Sánchez, the leader of Spain’s Socialist party, has another chance of forming a government Friday. The Popular Party and the Podemos party do not show any sign of changing their opinions on the candidate, though. Failure to get support from the other parties, however, could eventually result in a completely new vote from the Spanish people in June.
For further details on the Spanish government and the changes it is undergoing, check out this website: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/spain-political-limbo-socialist-party-leader-pedro-sanchez-fails-form-government-1547218
Debris found, possibly from missing MH370 flight
A piece of metal was found off of the Mozambique coast in Africa on Feb. 25. Many believe it is from the Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 that went missing nearly two years ago. Although no one has confirmed yet if it does come from the plane, the Australian Minister for Infrastructure and Transport says that it was found in “a location consistent with drift modeling commissioned by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.”
The actual part appears to be a piece of the horizontal stabilizer of the plane’s tail, consistent with the kind that would have been on the disappeared aircraft, reports CNN. Officials in Australia will be testing the debris to see if the piece truly does belong to the missing aircraft, hoping to possibly having a clue as to what happened to the plane. There were 239 people on board the airplane when it went missing two years ago.
For more details on the missing airline and what this piece could help uncover, click here: http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/02/us/mh370-possible-debris-found/index.html
‘Brexit’ from the European Union?
Should they stay or should they go? The British government will ask the people to decide whether or not the UK should remain part of the European Union on June 23. This date was set after “24 hours of intense negotiations” between British Prime Minister David Cameron and heads of the EU over giving the UK a special status in the EU, according to CNN. The main concerns of the British people on both sides of the discussion revolve mainly around the impact leaving would have on the British economy, labor force and general national security. Cameron is campaigning very strongly that the nation remain part of the union. This would be the first referendum held in the UK on its status in the EU since 1975.
Further information on the referendum, including reasons for and against a Brexit, can be found at this link: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-32810887
Sabrina Negron can be reached at [email protected].
