英音听力讲解:英国回应神经毒剂事件

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BBC News with Debby Russ.

The European Union has said Britain can count on its support as it responds to a nerve agent attack on its soil. The UK has said it was highly likely Russia was responsible. The European Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said the EU would show solidarity with Britain. Moscow has denied accusations that it was involved in the attack on a former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia. A British government minister told the BBC the country was considering a wide range of sanctions against Moscow.

Two Singaporean companies have denied accusations in a leaked UN report that they violated sanctions on North Korea. The two firms were alleged to have sold luxury goods to the North including wines and spirits as recently as last year.

A plan for takeover of the American computer chip company Qualcomm by a Singapore based rival has been halted by President Trump. He put it down to security concerns. The rival Broadcom says there is no such risk.

A South African court has temporarily blocked plans by the power company Eskom to sign 27 renewable energy deals. Unions argued they would lead to the closure of coal fired plants, putting 30,000 jobs at risk and pushing up prices.

The American Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is in Afghanistan in a previously unannounced visit. He told reporters there were signs that some members of the Taliban were interested in talks with the Afghan government.

The Gulf State of Qatar is to screen all adults for Type 2 diabetes, almost 1 in 5 people there have the condition, which increases the risk of stroke or heart attack and it’s a major cause of blindness.

Thieves have stolen an ancient shark’s tooth from the world’s heritage site in Western Australia. The eight-centimeter tooth came from the giant megalodon species which is believed to have died out round 2.5 million years ago. It disappeared from the remote Ningaloo Coast National Park.

BBC News.