BERLIN — Germany’s foreign minister said on Sunday that Finland and Sweden were already in essence members of NATO, but that they were just missing the official membership card. “Sweden and Finland are not just our partners, not just our friends, they have long been our European family members. Therefore, you have our full support in all decisions you are now making with view to your own security,” Annalena Baerbock told reporters at the end of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. ADVERTISEMENTRELATED STORIESWe are 100% behind Finnish, Swedish NATO membership, Norway tells TurkeyGreece says ready to welcome Finland, Sweden in NatoPutin tells Finland that swapping neutrality for Nato is a mistakeATMSubscribe to our daily newsletter By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy PolicyRead Next

SEOUL: North Korea on Sunday reported 15 additional deaths from "fever" after the country recently announced its first-ever cases of Covid-19 and ordered nationwide lockdowns. Leader Kim Jong Un has said the outbreak has caused "great upheaval" in North Korea. North Korea confirmed Thursday that the highly contagious Omicron variant had been detected in the capital Pyongyang, with Kim ordering nationwide lockdowns. North Korea has a crumbling health system — one of the worst in the world — and no Covid vaccines, antiviral treatment drugs or mass testing capacity. Analysts have warned Kim could speed up his nuclear test plans in a bid to distract North Korea's population from a disastrous Covid-19 outbreak.

SEOUL: North Korea on Sunday reported 15 additional deaths from "fever," days after officially confirming its first-ever Covid-19 cases and ordering nationwide lockdowns. North Korea has no Covid vaccines, antiviral treatment drugs or mass-testing capacity. "The spread of malignant disease comes to be a great upheaval in our country," Kim said Saturday. People watch a TV screen showing a news report about the Covid-19 outbreak in North Korea at a train station in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, May 14, 2022. Despite the public health crisis, new satellite imagery indicates North Korea has resumed construction at a long-dormant nuclear reactor.

Jurgen Klopp urged Liverpool to give one last push for the quadruple after they beat Chelsea on penalties in the FA Cup final to keep their history bid alive. Kostas Tsimikas scored the decisive penalty after Alisson Becker saved Mason Mount's effort, sparking wild celebrations from Liverpool boss Klopp and his players. Having already beaten Chelsea on penalties in the League Cup final in February, Liverpool remain in contention to become the first English team to win all four major trophies in a single season. The Reds face Real Madrid in the Champions League final in Paris on May 28 and still have an outside chance of catching Premier League leaders Manchester City. Liverpool's first FA Cup triumph since 2006 was especially meaningful for Klopp, who saluted his players for matching Chelsea blow for blow after such a gruelling campaign.

Tens of thousands of citizens went to the Exhibition Centre station to take the train on the first day of operation. A shoe was left behind at the station in the early morning after railroad fans rushed to get on the first special train of the East Rail cross-harbor extension. One passenger said crossing the harbor is “much more comfortable” as the East Rail Line is the only MTR line with a first-class carriage. A railroad fan dressed up in a T-Rex costume to catch the first train at the Exhibition Centre Station. The cross-harbor section of the East Rail Line commenced service on Sunday.

Transmission mechanisms of a country's inflation to other countriesAny inflation problem in a major economy has a spillover effect on other countries. This round of global inflation has a feature markedly different from the earlier episodes. The current round of global inflation hit two commodities particularly hard, energy and food. It should be noted that monetary policies help attenuate the demand side of inflation and minimize imported inflation. The US inflation has become everyone's problem, and how to mitigate its adverse impact is a test for their economic managers.

THE Manila Times congratulates President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. (BBM), Vice President-elect Sara "Inday" Duterte-Carpio and the others who won in the last elections. President-elect Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos, Jr. and vice president-elect Sara Duterte-Carpio. Kudos to ComelecBesides the poll winners, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) also deserves to be congratulated. Still, some remain upset about a few vote counting machines (VCMs) malfunctioning, even though the Comelec quickly handled those problems. It remains to be seen whether the Comelec will recommend buying new VCMs or overhaul the system.

Twenty-two people were on Thursday and Friday arrested for conspiracy to defraud and money laundering for cheating over HK$1.9 million from seven people after claiming to offer loans at low interest rates. The 17 men and five women, aged 19 to 38, are now remanded in police custody. Officers seized over 10 computers, 60 smartphones, about HK$1.2 million in cash, and some documents during the operation. The crime came to the police’s attention after four men and three women filed reports to police between September and December last year. Police investigation showed the fraudsters pretended to be staffers of local finance companies and cold-called the victims, claiming they could offer loans at low interest rates.

Beijing has hit back strongly at foreign countries over criticism of the chief executive election on Sunday. In a post on WeChat, the embassy in Tokyo criticized Japan for signing a G7 statement that bashed the election. They also said that the despicable acts "will only further reveal their bandit-like double-standard logic and their sinister intention of 'using Hong Kong to curb China.'" The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office said the election was another successful exercise in the development of a democratic system that is in line with Hong Kong's realities. He said "it cannot stop the general trend of Hong Kong's development from chaos to governance and from governance to prosperity."

— Thomas EdisonLAST week, we have explored the different kinds of fear that we face: Fears that hold and bind us, fears that paralyze us, and fears that chain us. These fears of our psyche consequently manifest in our financial decisions that ultimately affect our financial life. Lastly, with every bit of courage we can muster, then we are able to boldly take action and pursue that life-long dream: your dream financial life, your dream business, your dream investment. With courage, we can live a life from fear to freedom. Rienzie Biolena is a registered financial planner of RFP Philippines To learn more about personal financial planning, attend the 95th RFP program in May 2022.

Learn how to protect your small business from cyberattacks with these four tips. Before you can effectively protect your business from cyberthreats, you should have a complete understanding of your current ecosystem of online computer operations. You and your employees are often the first line of defense in protecting your business from cyberattacks. Free virtual and in-person cybersecurity training events are available from the US Small Business Administration and its partners. Cybersecurity insurance can help protect your business from financial losses caused by incidents such as data breaches, ransomware attacks and hacking.

Among the new cases, 116 were confirmed PCR tests, and 168 were positive rapid antigen test results reported by citizens. The Centre for Health Protection’s Chuang Shuk-kwan said the tally of the fifth wave of pandemic now stands at 1,195,616. Among the new cases reported today, two were staff members who prepared food and worked at the bar. Twenty-two cases were identified at designated quarantine hotels between the third and sixth day of patients’ arrival. A total of 106 patients have recovered from Covid in the past 24 hours, and 80 of them have been discharged.

WELLINGTON – New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has overseen her country’s world-leading response to the coronavirus pandemic, has tested positive for COVID-19, her office announced Saturday. ADVERTISEMENTShe has already been in isolation since last Sunday, when her partner Clarke Gayford tested positive, and was due to resume her parliamentary duties on Monday. However, it has experienced an Omicron surge since restrictions were loosened in March, with Ardern’s positive case among more than 50,000 recorded over the last week. Ardern will not be present in parliament for two high-profile domestic announcements — the release of the government’s emissions reduction plan on Monday and the unveiling of the annual budget on Thursday. “Our emissions reduction plan sets the path to achieve our carbon zero goal and the budget addresses the long-term future and security of New Zealand’s health system.

The election campaign may have ended, but the awakened movement lives on. Addressing her first public gathering since the May 9 polls, Vice President Leni Robredo thanked her supporters while asking them to stay around and remain organized so they can help her continue efforts to lift the lives of the marginalized. READ: Robredo to raise ‘largest volunteer network’ soon after her term as VP ends“We will establish the widest volunteer network in our country. The Vice President also asked them keep harnessing the spirit of volunteerism that powered her election campaign with her running mate, outgoing Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan. Let’s all light each other’s path.”Leni Robredo’s term as Vice President ends on June 30.

AS the country marches away from the medical and economic setbacks of the Covid-19 pandemic, itself exacerbated by the worsening climate, climate resiliency must be one of the priorities of every person, household, office, community and the entire nation. We need to build a system that is more resilient to pandemics, climate change and other emerging global challenges. The menu for environment-friendly initiatives is long and can be adopted to ensure that climate change considerations are observed and practiced in our everyday lives. Aside from being dangerous pollutants, single-use plastics are fossil fuel products that contribute to climate change. He completed his climate change and development course at the University of East Anglia and an executive program on sustainability leadership at Yale University.