Volkswacht Bodensee - News from Lake Constance, St. Gallen, Thurgau, Schaffhausen, Switzerland, Europe and the whole world

Switzerland is set to vote on reinforcing its neutrality, campaigners said Wednesday, Russia's war in Ukraine having reopened questions over the country's long-standing position on non-engagement in foreign conflicts.

European equity markets mostly fell Wednesday despite a bright Asian performance and fresh Wall Street records as anxious traders awaited the outcome of the Federal Reserve's interest-rate meeting.

French regulators said Wednesday they were fining Google 250 million euros ($272 million) for breaching commitments on paying media companies for reproducing their content online and for using their material for its AI chatbot without telling them.

EU member states and lawmakers on Wednesday reached a deal to cap duty-free imports of a range of Ukrainian farm goods, which were allowed in the wake of Russia's invasion but have drawn fierce protests from farmers in the bloc.

Ferrari's Carlos Sainz is set to be back in the cockpit at the Australian Grand Prix this week after recovering from surgery for appendicitis, the team said Wednesday.

Former Brazil international footballer Dani Alves is to be released from jail pending an appeal against his rape conviction in exchange for posting bail of one million euros ($1.08 million), a Barcelona court said Wednesday.

Dutch airline KLM misled consumers with "vague and general" adverts about its efforts to reduce the environmental impact of flying, an Amsterdam court ruled Wednesday in a greenwashing case brought by a pressure group.

US top diplomat Antony Blinken was set to return to the Middle East Wednesday in a new bid to secure a truce in the Israel-Hamas war as the threat of famine looms in besieged Gaza.

Polish farmers on Wednesday staged tractor blockades on roads nationwide in their latest protest against farm imports from outside the European Union and the bloc's environmental red tape.

When Herve found out he had glioblastoma -- the most aggressive form of brain cancer -- at the age of 40, he made a deal with himself.

Police have been asked to look at claims that at least one worker attempted to access the confidential medical records of Catherine, Princess of Wales during her hospitalisation for abdominal surgery, a minister said on Wednesday.

Russian rescuers were scrambling to save 13 workers trapped inside a giant gold mine near the Chinese border for a second day on Wednesday, as officials warned of a "difficult situation".

China blasted critics of Hong Kong's new national security law on Wednesday, after Western powers and the United Nations said it would further curtail freedoms in the finance hub.

French regulators said Wednesday they were fining Google 250 million euros ($272 million) for breaching commitments on paying media companies for reproducing their content online and using their material for its AI chatbot without telling them.

A top EU court on Wednesday ruled to lift sanctions against Russian ex-Formula 1 driver Nikita Mazepin, whose career was brought to a halt by Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Chinese internet giant Tencent on Wednesday posted its lowest annual profit since 2019, despite slight improvements recently in China's economy and a more lenient attitude taken by regulators towards the tech sector.

Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant will be under scrutiny on their return to action as the Indian Premier League begins on Friday, with the T20 World Cup hot on its heels.

Son Heung-min said Wednesday that the Asian Cup bust-up with Lee Kang-in had brought the South Korean team closer, on the eve of a World Cup qualifier against Thailand.

Britain's annual inflation rate fell more than expected in February, official data showed Wednesday, fuelling speculation that the Bank of England will start cutting interest rates in the coming months.

Apple CEO Tim Cook was on a China charm offensive Wednesday ahead of a new flagship Shanghai store opening, weeks after a report suggested the company's sales in the country slumped at the start of 2024.

China blasted critics of Hong Kong's new national security law on Wednesday, after Western powers and the United Nations said it would further curtail freedoms in the city.

EU member states and lawmakers on Wednesday reached a deal to cap duty-free imports of some Ukrainian grains, which were allowed in the wake of Russia's invasion but have drawn fierce protests from farmers in the bloc.

Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant will be under scrutiny on their return to action as the Indian Premier League begins on Friday, with the T20 World Cup hot on its heels.

South Korea on Wednesday announced the allocation of 2,000 new medical school admissions slots nationwide every year, moving ahead with a reform plan to create more doctors despite a crippling month-long strike by medics opposed to it.

Asian markets mostly rose Wednesday as traders tracked another record day on Wall Street ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting, while the yen further weakened a day after Japan's rare interest rate hike.

Photographer to the stars Annie Leibovitz, inducted into the French Academy of Fine Arts on Wednesday, told AFP that AI was not a threat to her trade -- just another artistic tool.

In a tiny television studio in the French capital, two unveiled Afghan women face the camera on a mission to provide a lifeline to their fellow countrywomen back home.

Sequestered at home in a remote Afghan town, 18-year-old Shekiba often roams the house hunting for the patchy internet signal that is her last link to an education.

Every day, farmer Nguyen Hoai Thuong prays in vain for rain to fall on the cracked dry earth of her garden in Vietnam's Mekong Delta -- the country's "rice bowl" agricultural heartland.

The lakeside mansion where Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi spent years under house arrest went under auction on Wednesday with a minimum price of $150 million -- but attracted no bids, officials said.

Former NBA champion Jeremy Lin has been banned for five games for violating anti-doping rules over blood treatment for an injury, Taiwan's P. League+ said.

China lashed out against critics of Hong Kong's new national security law on Wednesday, accusing the British government of having the "mindset of a coloniser" and condemning the EU's "hypocritical" position.