BNS: Highlights of Wednesday 15min.lt



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Spread of the coronavirus. 115 new cases of coronavirus were registered in Lithuania per day. The largest outbreaks are associated with outbreaks at the Kaunas State Musical Theater and the Šiauliai Republican Hospital. Neighboring Latvia reported a record increase in morbidity, with 95 infections per day. Estonia reported 57 new cases.

Arrival of foreigners. The government has facilitated the entry of highly qualified professionals from abroad. Your applications for temporary residence permits in Lithuania will be processed remotely and, if a positive decision is made, the original biometric data of the documents will have to be sent on arrival. It was also decided at the Government meeting to waive the requirement that foreigners give a negative response to the COVID-19 survey 72 hours before arrival.

Disputes about MMA. The Tripartite Council, which represents the interests of the government, employers and workers, has failed to reach a compromise on raising the minimum wage. The Cabinet of Ministers will have different positions: the unions propose to increase the minimum wage from 607 to 663 euros (before taxes), the government representatives to 642 euros, and the companies ask that the issue be postponed after the Seimas elections. The government is scheduled to discuss the issue next week.

123RF.com Photo / Video Surveillance Cameras

123RF.com Photo / Video Surveillance Cameras

Intelligence control. The government has supported proposals to tighten intelligence controls. It is proposed to give more powers to supervise the actions of intelligence officers to the Seimas ombudsman without creating a separate intelligence ombudsman. People who suspect that secret acts have been committed against them are offered the right to go to the Lithuanian Court of Appeal, and surveillance by criminal intelligence can only be sanctioned by a court.

Voting procedure. The Central Electoral Commission presented the preparations for the Seimas elections under coronavirus conditions. Voters who go to the polls are encouraged to collect three items: an identity card, a mask, and a pen. In order to reduce the flow of people, early voting was extended to four days and more polling stations will be installed. Laura Matjošaitytė, head of the electoral commission, stated that the members of the commissions would have the right to request that the masks be removed for a short period in order to determine the identity of the voter.

Crisis management. Interior Minister Rita Tamašunienė proposes to reorganize emergency management in preparation for the second wave of COVID-19. At the Government meeting, the Minister presented amendments that propose to consolidate all civil protection issues in the Fire and Rescue Department. The name of this institution would be changed to the Department of Civil Safety and Fire, and a Civil Protection Service would be established on the basis of existing internal structures.

German attention. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has confirmed that she intends to meet with Sviatlana Cichanouskaya, a leader of the Belarusian opposition who lives in Lithuania. Earlier it was announced that the former candidate in the Belarusian presidential elections in Berlin will be held next week.

American debate. Cleveland has held the first presidential election debate between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden. In a chaotic debate, the candidates often tried to outdo each other. Trump, who is seeking reelection, called his opponent a representative of the radical left, accused him of inaction and his son: corruption. In retaliation, Biden called Trump a liar, racist, clown and puppy of Russian President Vladimir Putin. “It’s one of the worst debates ever,” said Aaron Kallas of the University of Michigan, a specialist in presidential debates.

Scanpix / AP Photo / Donald Trump and Joe Biden early debates

Scanpix / AP Photo / Donald Trump and Joe Biden early debates

Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said he does not see any possibility of holding talks with Azerbaijan on the Nagorno-Karabakh region at this time via Russia. “In the course of intense military action, it is not very appropriate to talk about the summit of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia. The negotiations require an appropriate atmosphere and conditions, “the prime minister said during a meeting with Russian journalists in Yerevan. He also stated that Armenia is considering recognizing the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, for his part, said that it will continue its military action until the Armenian forces leave Nagorno-Karabakh. As the shooting continues on the fourth day, both sides announce significant losses to opponents, but there is no way to confirm these reports. Azerbaijan has not announced its casualties and the The Armenian side has confirmed the death of 81 combatants, and the conflict claimed the lives of 17 civilians.

Dyzelgeito byla. Five years after the auto industry was rocked by the so-called diesel scandal involving the falsification of emissions data, former Audi boss Rupert Stadler went to court in Germany. He became the first former senior executive of a company in Germany to meet at the bank. Mr. Stadler has been charged in Munich with fraud, forgery and misleading advertising. Former Audi and Porsche CEO Wolfgang Hatz and two Audi engineers have also been charged. The trial is expected to last until December 2022. Volkswagen, which runs the Audi and Porsche brands, has consistently claimed that the data falsification team was the work of several lower-level employees who acted without the knowledge of the executives, but the prosecutors dispute this position.



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