France's tax has been a source of tensions between Paris and Washington, as the latter believes the tax unfairly targets US companies.

BELGRADE (Sputnik) - A rally against coronavirus restrictions continued in the Serbian capital for the fourth day on Friday, with protesters demanding the government's resignation.

The US Army is testing an armored cavalry unit’s ability to rapidly deploy to Europe, despite more than a week of record-breaking daily new COVID-19 cases in the United States.

Earlier this week, Gerald Darmanin, the former budget minister, who was accused of raping Sophie Patterson-Spatz in 2009, was promoted to interior minister in a government reshuffle.

BERLIN (Sputnik) - The German Foreign Office summoned the Chinese ambassador earlier on Friday to discuss the situation around Hong Kong.

The news comes after the Dutch Public Prosecution Service agreed to delay the hearings from this autumn to February-March 2021, after a request by attorneys and representatives of the victims.

In February, France's President Emmanuel Macron pledged a crackdown on Islamic separatism, also vowing to end a system that stipulates foreign countries sending imams to preach in French mosques.

The Portuguese capital, Lisbon, is to host a special mini-tournament to decide the winner of this season’s Champions’ League. The holders, Liverpool, were knocked out by Atletico Madrid just days before the coronavirus lockdown began.

New Delhi (Sputnik): India has urged its military equipment suppliers to expedite the delivery of weapons systems, as tensions along the 4,057 km Line of Actual Control have escalated since April. The US, France and Russia have agreed to supply military systems within three months once an order is placed, say government sources.

In early June, the UK reportedly signalled its readiness to reach a compromise with the EU on trade regulations and fisheries if Brussels scraps its "maximalist" demands on the matter.

A previous risk assessment by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) found some 2 percent of rejected asylum seekers pose a security risk. Notably, Finland's first-ever terrorist attack, the 2017 Turku stabbing, was carried out by a rejected asylum seeker.

On the issue of wearing face masks as a safeguard against coronavirus, Denmark has moved closer to most European nations, such as Germany or France, where the use of masks is recommended or even obligatory.

Following the recent wave of Black Lives Matter riots across the United States, several American sports teams are now considering changing their names, including the Washington Redskins and Cleveland Indians. The Swedish club Frölunda Indians is now on the same track.

The Centre for Body Donations at Paris Descartes University has been closed since last November after it was uncovered that thousands of donated human bodies were being kept in unsanitary conditions and sold for unethical purposes. The university is currently facing a criminal investigation by French authorities.

ATHENS (Sputnik) - The Greek parliament on Thursday approved of a bill that will regulate public protests amid a night of unrest in Athens.

MADRID (Sputnik) - The US Moderna biotechnology company, which is developing a vaccine against the coronavirus infection, announced on Thursday its collaboration with Spain's ROVI pharmaceutical company on the vaccine's large-scale manufacturing. 

As the COVID-19 pandemic revealed failings in the EU bloc’s mechanisms for jointly tackling crisis situations, member states are being increasingly urged to rally together, with European solidarity touted as "a lasting investment".

BERLIN (Sputnik) - RT Deutsch and Sputnik have been singled out for allegedly spreading Russian propaganda in Germany by the domestic intelligence agency BfV in its annual report, presented on Thursday.

Gerald Darmanin, the former budget minister, was promoted to interior minister this week in a government reshuffle. His appointment triggered widespread criticism since he has previously been questioned following rape allegations.

BELGRADE (Sputnik) - The unrest in Serbia over the last two days has been an attempt to start a civil war, the country's defence minister, Aleksandar Vulin, said Thursday.