Morning Bird: A memorial mass for the deceased Pope will be held in St. Vitus Cathedral today. The agreement between the United States and Ukraine on mineral resources is still being prepared
A mass for the late Pope Francis will take place today in St. Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle. The Pope's funeral will then take place tomorrow in the Vatican. After the United States and Ukraine signed a memorandum on a strategic materials agreement last week, the agreement itself is now being prepared. However, Kiev stated that there are still some issues that are being discussed.
Believers will remember the message of the deceased Pope Francis at mass
A mass will take place today for the deceased Pope Francis at St. Vitus Cathedral on Prague Castle. The requiem for the pope will be served by the Apostolic Nuncio in the Czech Republic, Archbishop Jude Thaddeus Okolo. In memory of Pope Francis, who died on April 21 at the age of 88, the Zikmund bell rang out in St. Vitus Cathedral on the day of his death.
According to his doctor Sergio Alfieri, Pope Francis died without pain and did not suffer in the last moments of his life. The cause of death of the head of the Catholic Church was a stroke. On Saturday in the Vatican, the pope's funeral will take place with the participation of many world leaders and about 170 foreign delegations. More than 200 thousand people are expected to attend, according to the portal Ceskenoviny.cz.
Kyiv and Washington have made progress in the agreement on mineral resources, but it's not yet complete
Kyiv and Washington have made progress in preparing the agreement on the American share of the Ukrainian mineral wealth, however the deal will not be finalized this week, as stated yesterday by Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko.
"Progress has been made and our teams are now working very closely together,"
Marčenko said and added:
"There are still some questions we are discussing."
Last week, the United States and Ukraine signed a memorandum of the agreement on strategic raw materials, based on which Washington wants to obtain a share of profits from Ukrainian mineral wealth, reported on the server Ceskenoviny.cz.
Spain halts controversial agreement to purchase ammunition from Israel
The Spanish government on Thursday halted a controversial agreement to buy ammunition from Israel for 7.5 million dollars following criticism from far-left allies who are part of the government coalition. The country's Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez intervened to cancel the agreement after the left-wing Sumar party threatened to withdraw from the government coalition. Last February, the government declared that it would not buy weapons from Israel, but just a few weeks later, the Ministry of Interior signed a deal with Israel to buy 15 million bullets. The ammunition was intended for the Spanish paramilitary police, specified Al Jazeera.
Belgian teenagers hid thousands of ants in an African guesthouse
Two Belgian teenagers, who kept 5,000 ants worth $9,200, in other words about 200,000 crowns, in their flat will be convicted in two weeks. The ants were reportedly destined for European and Asian markets. Belgian nationals Lornoy David and Seppe Lodewijckx, both 19, were arrested in a guesthouse in Kenya and charged with violating nature conservation laws. The teenagers told the judge they didn't know that keeping ants was illegal, they were just having fun, as the agency AP reported.
Sources: Ceskenoviny.cz, AP, Al Jazeera
