Author: Tasos Mallotis

It was bitter cold, but I don’t remember freezing or being cold. Hemingway wrote that the air was so cold when you took a breath it was like drinking water. We travelled by train, then we walked through the cold streets, no bus was running, we had to hustle to catch the last ride up the mountain, then it was up to the mountain, bundled up in two thick woolen blankets with the snow showering us. It was warm looking out of the peep hole I created, flying up the mountains sitting on the last ride of the day. The…

For many years, Tajikistan has been gravely affected by drug trafficking. At least 15-20 tons of opium and between 75 and 80 metric tons of heroin are smuggled into the country each year from Afghanistan either for local consumption or for transfer to Russia and Europe. Despite an official Tajik government policy to fight illicit drug trafficking in cooperation with foreign governments and international organizations, trafficking continues to increase. The volume of drug transit through Tajikistan is now equivalent to 30 percent of the country’s GDP. So far, the success of domestic Tajik policies and international assistance has been minimal. Trafficking is a product of numerous complex…

ISTANBUL — A Greek Coast Guard boat chased an inflatable dinghy to within a few dozen meters of the Turkish coast Friday, local media reported, threatening a diplomatic incident between the neighbors. Turkish news website Bodrum Kent TV published a video it said showed the Greek vessel chasing the Zodiac-style dinghy — thought to be linked to people trafficking — in Turkish territorial waters at Akcabuk Bay, near Bodrum, southwest Turkey. The inflatable boat, reportedly carrying one person, landed in front of a holiday complex as the Greek boat abruptly gave up its pursuit and sped away from the Turkish shore.…

Women’s clothes are high on the government’s agenda once again in Tajikistan, where authorities and Islamic leaders are working on new guidelines on what women should wear to work and during their leisure time. The new dress code — the second of its kind in six years — is expected to be made public in the coming days, and a special event is reportedly being planned for the capital, Dushanbe, in August to showcase compliant clothes. Sulaimon Davlatzoda, the head of the state Committee for Religious Affairs and the Regulation of Traditions, told a press briefing in the capital this week that…

Promises made to restore the rule of law and deal effectively with the illegal construction on Mykonos, arguably the most famous Greek island, have not been carried out. At least not yet, and definitely not to the extent needed to start making things right. To be fair, it is not an easy task. Strong interests and powerful people with influence are involved. Still, the authorities have to show the necessary resolve to fight corruption. Despite numerous inspections and discoveries by the island’s police, the urban planning abuses continue unabated. There have been very few, if any, cases of illegal constructions…

The Turkish Coast Guard Command early on Friday said it rescued dozens of irregular migrants pushed back by Greece along the Aegean coast and caught dozens more attempting to make the crossing. Some 16 migrants were found drifting on two rubber boats after being pushed back by Greek elements into Turkish territorial waters off the coast of Dikili and Çeşme districts in western Izmir province, the agency said. It also picked up 52 other migrants, including 16 children, who were trying to attempt to cross to Greece on rubber boats in the same region. Separately, it said it found 30…

With its thousands of islands and islets grouped into archipelagos, Greece is home to some uniquely beautiful destinations. For a week’s getaway or longer, here is our list of the most beautiful Greek islands by archipelago, from the classics of Santorini and Mykonos in the Cyclades to Rhodes and Patmos in the Dodecanese. The Saronic Islands, the archipelago at the doors of Athens Located in the Aegean Sea, between Attica and the Peloponnese, the Saronic Islands are closest to Athens: the nearest is less than 40 minutes from Piraeus by hydrofoil, the furthest 2h30 at most. Hydra, the elegant, arty…

Kiev (6/6 – 33.33) The air was thick with tension as the elite Ukrainian special forces team, known as the “Steel Wolves,” huddled in a makeshift command post on the outskirts of a war-torn city. Outside, the sound of distant gunfire echoed through the night, a grim reminder of the relentless advance of Vladimir Putin’s troops. Colonel Yuri Ivanov, the commanding officer of the Steel Wolves, surveyed his men with steely determination. These were the best of the best, handpicked for their courage, skill, and unwavering loyalty to Ukraine. They had been fighting tooth and nail to slow the Russian…

The current interconnected global economic system just isn’t working, some economists say. They are calling for a recalculation of globalization, and what it means to be wealthy, independent, and secure. Globalization has had a rough time lately. Worldwide, just-in-time supply chains suffered under stiff tariffs. COVID-19 shutdowns and travel restrictions caused further distress. Now, the war in Ukraine and sanctions on Russian companies are making matters even worse. Inflation and price increases have made energy and food more expensive. Ordinary customers, especially the poor, are suffering. Is the world order falling apart? Is the status quo even worth saving? The world is changing, and…

Sandoz has announced the opening of two new European facilities in Austria and Germany to strengthen the development and supply of critical medicines in the EU and beyond. The two facilities include a new facility for the production of penicillin at Kundl, Austria, along with a new biosimilar development centre in Holzkirchen, Germany. Both facilities align with Sandoz’s commitment to ensuring sustainable access to quality antibiotics as well as spearheading the development of biosimilars. Source : PT