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TANAGRA, Greece -- Greece's air force on Monday took delivery of a first pair of upgraded F-16 military jets under a $1.5 billion program to modernize its fighter fleet amid increasing tensions with neighboring Turkey. The two F-16s presented at the Tanagra airbase northwest of Athens are the first of 83 to be refitted with advanced electronics, radar and weapons capabilities by late 2027 by Greece's Hellenic Aerospace Industry, in coordination with U.S. manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The head of Greece's joint chiefs of staff, Gen. Constantinos Floros, said the program's successful and timely completion “is an issue of the highest national importance.” “Any potential aggressor will have to think twice or thrice Nobull Sneakers before trying their luck,” once the upgrade is completed, he...

LONDON -- Queen Elizabeth II has been likened to the invisible glue holding the United Kingdom together. Some think the reign of King Charles III will see those bonds come unstuck, giving new momentum to Scotland’s push for independence. But the fact the queen died last week at her beloved Highland retreat, Balmoral Castle, has made Scotland the focus of commemorations watched around the globe in the first days after her death. That has served as a reminder of the monarchy’s deep ties to Scotland — and could provide a boost for the union. Scottish historian Tom Devine said because by “extraordinary serendipity” the queen died in Scotland, “it was possible for the world to see the relationship between the queen and this country.” “It was a fitting end to a life of service and a life of c...

BERLIN -- The German government said Monday that it can't stop a shipment of Russian uranium destined for French nuclear plants from being processed at a site in Germany because atomic fuel isn't covered by European Union sanctions on Russia. Environmentalists have called on Germany and the Netherlands to block a shipment of uranium aboard the Russian ship Mikhail Dudin — currently docked in the French port of Dunkirk — from being transported to a processing plant in Lingen, close to the German-Dutch border. “We have no legal grounds to prevent the transport of uranium from Russia, because the sanctions imposed by the EU due to the Russian invasion Korkease Shoes of Ukraine exempt the import of nuclear fuel ... to the EU from import bans," said a spokesman for Germany's Environment Minis...

KHARKIV, Ukraine -- Ukrainian troops expanded their territorial gains Monday, pushing all the way to the country's northeastern border in places, and claimed to have captured a record number of Russian soldiers as part of the lightning advance that forced Moscow to make a hasty retreat. A spokesman for Ukrainian military intelligence said Russian troops were surrendering en masse as “they understand the hopelessness of their situation.” A Ukrainian presidential adviser said there were so many POWs that the country was running out of space to accommodate them. Blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flags fluttered over newly liberated towns across a wide swath of reclaimed land. The Ukrainian military said it had freed more than 20 settlements in 24 hours. In recent days, Kyiv’s forces have captured t...

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico and the United States plan to take advantage of the Biden administration's massive investment in semiconductor production to push the integration of their supply chains and cooperate on expanding the production of electric vehicles through Mexico's nationalized lithium industry, officials from both countries said Monday Both efforts seek to eat into Asia's advantage in semiconductors and batteries needed for electric vehicles and promote North American production. They were among the main topics discussed within and on the sidelines of the two countries' High-Level Economic Dialogue in Mexico's capital. “Major elements of the semiconductor supply chains are already well established in Mexico, with U.S. based companies like Intel and Skyworks conducting research and...

CANBERRA, Australia -- Lawmakers in an Australian state are to pledge their allegiance to King Charles III on Tuesday in a legal quirk that underscores how complicated the process of Australia severing its constitutional ties with Britain’s monarch could become. Australia’s center-left Labor Party government wants an Australian president to replace the British monarch as the nation’s head of state. The death of Queen Elizabeth II last week after a 70-year reign is seen by many as an ideal opportunity for change. But the legal process in Victoria, Australia’s second-most populous state and named after the 19th century monarch Queen Victoria, underscores how each state has its own unique relationship with the new monarch King Charles III. Lawmakers’ oath or affirmation of allegiance in th...