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21/09/2022 ---- 26/09/2022

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26.09.2022
THEME: POLITICS

After Sweden now Italy: far-right parties are governing key EU countries

Sweden and Italy, two key nations in the EU group, made a substantial step towards far-right politics in the latest elections this year. On September 11 Sweden voted for a new parliament: as a result the Moderates, Sweden Democrats, Christian Democrats and Liberals had held a one-seat lead after Sunday's election. Sweden PM Magdalena Andersson - first woman PM - resigned to allow the election of a new president and government. These elections mark a significant change in Sweden political landscape: never before have the Sweden Democrats, a party who relies on anti-immigration and nationalist rhetoric, been part of a government. Further, they are now the leading force in the right coalition. Yesterday it was Italy’s turn: the three parties forming the right coalition won the elections collecting 44,2% consent and a very strong majority in both Parliament and Senate chambers. The result is particularly significant as far-right party Fratelli d’Italia - translation “Brothers of Italy” - exploded to a striking 26,5%. A conservative nationalist force which directly traces its roots to the Italian Social Movement - a neo-Fascist party created in the wake of Benito Mussolini's demise. Their leader - who is likely the next PM - is known for calling Mussolini a "good politician" who "did everything he did for Italy" and for employing a hard-right rhetorical style that emphasises "God, fatherland and family” as well as lambasting LGBTQ+ "lobbies" and “Islamist violence”. Standing alongside her is Matteo Salvini from the Lega Nord - translation “Northern League” - which began in the 1990s as a secessionist movement. He is standing on a manifesto which is consistent with anti-immigration, promising cuts to clandestine arrivals. Salvini has also been a longtime admirer of Vladimir Putin and claimed multiple times that sanctions are hurting Italians more than Russians. The third of the parties is ex-PM Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia - translation “Go Italy”. His party may have a more moderate approach, but it’s his personal history of scandals - his tax evasion conviction in 2013, his decades old friendship with Putin, and allegations of soliciting sexual services from a minor - that has attracted more scrutiny. The electoral results means he still holds considerable power. Overall, the far-right victory is an historic one because it brings full power to a party that is further to the right than any mainstream political movement Italy has seen since the days of its former fascist leader, Benito Mussolini (historic ally of Adolf Hitler). This happening in a key founder state of the EU may be the premise to unpredictable debates and change of politics in the old continent.

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23.09.2022
THEME: HEALTH

First study shows that foetuses in the womb react to flavours and smells of the mother’s diet

A study led by Durham University’s Fetal and Neonatal Research Lab in the UK has studied, for the first time, the reaction of foetuses to the flavours and smells of the mother’s diet. Foetuses can experience taste and smell through the inhalation and swallowing of amniotic fluid in the womb. Scientists performed 4D ultrasound scans of 100 pregnant women and looked at how the foetuses reacted to carrots or kale - just a few minutes after these were ingested by the mother. It has been observed that foetuses exposed to carrot showed more “laughter-face” responses while those exposed to kale showed more “cry-face” responses. These evidences help to understand the development of our taste and smell and the related perception and memory. Scientists have now begun a follow-up study with the same babies post-birth to see if the influence of flavours they experienced in the womb affects their acceptance of different foods. The same approach is likely to give, in the next future, understanding of what reactions foetuses have to alcohol and smoking, and if these exposures will impact the newborn too. How do foetuses react to mother’s smoking or drinking alcohol? It will be interesting to learn.

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21.09.2022
THEME: WORLD

Referendums announced to annex 15% of Ukraine to Russia: Putin strengthens mobilisation while Ukraine counteroffensive continues

Yesterday the Russian-installed leaders of four regions of southern and eastern Ukraine - Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk - have reiterated urgent calls for referendums to join Russia, to be held between September 23 and 27. It means around 15% of Ukrainian territory - an area about the size of Hungary or Portugal - would vote on joining Russia similarly to how Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, after a vote that drew international condemnation. Annexing more Ukrainian territory would also enable the Kremlin to claim Russia itself was coming under attack from Nato weapons. This acceleration of events comes shortly after other leaders, at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SOC) meeting last week, directly met with Putin. In particular, president of India Modi expressed concern, while president of Turkey Erdogan has recently said convincingly that the Kremlin "wants to end the war as soon as possible". Authorities in Russia have already declared the interest in the legitimacy of the accession referendum procedure, and in their approval by the SCO and BRICS. They also declared that representatives of the media, including foreign ones, will be invited to the referendum, and the regions also requested organisational aid from Russia and other states. This is how Putin justified further mobilisation of Russian troops starting today. On the other hand, president of Ukraine Zelensky declared that "Our positions are not changed by noise and announcements from somewhere, and our partners fully support us on that," promising a continued effort to regain these territories and Crimea. The progress of the counteroffensive means Ukraine could soon launch an assault on Russian forces in the occupied Donbas region.

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