World News: EU leaders meet in Brussels for informal talks focused on defence

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On February 3, European Union leaders gathered in Brussels for informal discussions centered on defense and security.

The meeting addressed concerns over potential U.S. tariffs on European goods, as indicated by President Donald Trump.

While French President Emmanuel Macron stressed Europe's need to assert itself, if its commercial interests are threatened, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed a preference for cooperation.

Other leaders, including Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, also highlighted the negative implications of a trade war and the importance of unity.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer also joined the bloc's 27 leaders in the meeting.

Starmer became the first UK prime minister to attend an EU leaders' meeting since the country left the bloc five years ago.

In Greece, the tourist island of Santorini, is on alert after more than 200 undersea earthquakes were recorded between February 1 and 3.

The most substantial quake, a magnitude 4.8, occurred on Monday local time, leading to landslides and rockslides on the island.

In response, authorities have closed schools in related areas, advised residents and tourists to avoid abandoned buildings, and issued tsunami warnings.

Emergency teams, including rescue units and medical personnel, have been deployed as a precaution.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has urged residents to stay calm and adhere to protection guidelines.

The frequency and intensity of the recent quakes have led to many residents to temporarily leave the island.

In Russia, an explosion in the lobby of a luxury apartment complex in Moscow has killed pro-Russian paramilitary leader Armen Sarkisyan and his bodyguard. Three others were injured.

Russian authorities labeled the bombing in the Scarlet Sails luxury apartment complex on Monday, local time a "carefully planned assassination," as the explosive device reportedly detonated remotely just as Sarkisyan entered the lobby.

Sarkisyan was the founder of the Arbat battalion, a pro-Russian militia operating in eastern Ukraine.

He had been accused by Ukraine's Security Service of participating in illegal armed groups and organizing pro-Russian military units.

In the UK, London Zoo on Monday celebrated the successful breeding of 33 endangered Darwin's froglets, following a rescue mission from a forest in southern Chile.

In October 2024, a team of conservationists collected 52 healthy Darwin's frogs and transported them to London in climate-controlled conditions.

A devastating fungus had caused a 90% decline in the population of Darwin's frogs in Chile since 2023.

The amphibians, named after naturalist Charles Darwin, are known for their unique behavior

where males carry developing tadpoles in their vocal sacs for safety.

Choi Chi-hee, Arirang News.