
Australia to mandate cash payments for essential purchases from 2026
Australia will introduce a nationwide cash mandate requiring major grocery and fuel retailers to accept cash payments from January 1, 2026, in a move aimed at protecting consumers who rely on physical currency for everyday

Statement from the Premier
This week I had another round of scans and a meeting with my care team at the Alfred and got some good news. The broken vertebra has almost fully healed and they’re letting me take

What is the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine? Will it be available in Australia soon? And does it use mRNA?
Source: abcnews The Novavax COVID-19 vaccine has been found to have more than 90 per cent efficacy, paving the way for it to be available later this year in Australia. The successful results from the phase 3

‘Signal to the world’: Singapore ready and waiting for Australian travel bubble
Singapore’s so-called “Cruises to Nowhere” have been a big hit since being given the green light last November, with more than 120,000 passengers. “They’ve made something that sounds tacky actually quite fun and enjoyable,” said

Flights between India and Australia suspended until May 15
Flights to and from India into Australia have now been suspended, amid increasing concerns over the nation’s escalating COVID-19 situation. Flights to and from India into Australia have now been suspended, Scott Morrison has announced,

Trans-Tasman travel bubble: The big difference between Australia and New Zealand
Stepping foot on-board one of the trans-Tasman bubble flights was a cause for celebration. But the surprise came on the journey home. A year in the making, it was the flight Australia was itching for.

Qantas sticks to international travel plan despite COVID vaccine delay
Despite the majority of Australians unlikely to be vaccinated against COVID-19 until next year, Qantas is holding firm on their plan to fly overseas by October 31. Australia had been aiming to open its international

Mitsotakis unveils major housing, loan and farming measures during Budget speech
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis used his address to Parliament during the debate on the State Budget to announce a series of significant policy initiatives targeting housing affordability, Swiss franc loan holders, and farmers. The announcements were described as some of the most substantial interventions of the current parliamentary term.

Meet the young greek scientist to become the first Greek Astronaut
A young scientist who is currently attending a space simulation facility at Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano spoke of his dream to become the first Greek astronaut. Avgoustos Pantazidis takes great pride from the fact that

30 Ancient ‘curse tablets’ discovered in excavated well, in Athens’ Kerameikos site
Thirty ancient Greek tablets, featuring curses in the form of invocations to the gods of the underworld, dated some 2,500 years ago, were recently discovered at the bottom of a well in the Kerameikos archaeological

Tesla €70 million project of “electric highway” through Greece
US electric vehicles pioneer Tesla wants to include Greece into Europe’s “electric highway.” The company of Elon Musk has reportedly already included significant part of the Greek national roads into a developing mega project involving
Two Greeks in quarantine in Athens hospital after returning from Wuhan
Two Greeks are in quarantine in a hospital in Athens after they arrived from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the coronavirus broke out and has claimed so far the lives of more than 800

Gas Wars in the Mediterranean
The unexpected alliance between Turkey and Libya is a geopolitical earthquake that changes the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean and across the Middle East. Turkey’s audacious move has enraged its rivals in the

Asylum seekers to get social security number in Greece in apparent policy U-turn
Five key Greek ministries on Monday decided that the country will re-introduce the practice of granting a social security number to all migrants who have applied for asylum in Greece, something that the current conservative

Libya parliament speaker declares Turkey–Libya memorandum invalid, opens door to talks with Greece, Egypt and Turkey
Libya’s House of Representatives Speaker, Aqila Saleh, has publicly declared the 2019 Turkey–Libya maritime memorandum “invalid,” marking the first such statement in six years and signalling a potential shift in Libya’s approach to maritime disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean. Speaking to the Libyan News Agency, just days after an official

SIPRI reports record arms sales in 2024
Global arms sales hit record $679 billion amid ongoing conflicts The world’s top 100 arms manufacturers reached record revenues in 2024, totaling $679 billion (€586 billion), marking a 5.9% increase compared to the previous year,

US fighter jets patrol international airspace around Venezuela, WSJ reports
US fighter jets have been conducting near-continuous patrols in international airspace surrounding Venezuela amid sharply escalating tensions between Washington and Caracas, according to a Wall Street Journal report published on Saturday. The development comes shortly

Global Airbus warning grounds Jetstar A320 flights, causes widespread travel disruption
A major global aviation alert has triggered significant travel chaos, with Jetstar confirming that several of its Airbus A320 aircraft are currently unable to depart due to a critical software issue affecting thousands of jets

Israel breaks up Turkish-linked network smuggling arms and funds to West Bank
Israel breaks up Turkish-linked network smuggling arms and funds to West Bank, uncovering what officials describe as one of the most significant counter-terrorism operations of 2025. The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and Israel Police

Cyprus calls on Turkey to negotiate maritime boundaries under UNCLOS
Cyprus Calls on Turkey to negotiate maritime boundaries under UNCLOS, with President Nikos Christodoulides extending an open invitation to Ankara to sit down with the Republic of Cyprus and engage in direct talks on defining

EU delivers landmark decision: Digital platforms to be held liable for online fraud under sweeping new rules
The European Union has reached a historic agreement introducing strict new obligations for digital platforms, social media companies and banks, making them jointly responsible for combating the rapid rise of online fraud. After eight hours

