Greece and Cyprus turn the volume down low-noise pyrotechnics
Greece and Cyprus turned down the volume this New Year’s Eve, replacing traditional fireworks with low-noise pyrotechnics in capitals.
Officials said the change is intended to make celebrations more welcoming for children and pets. The displays were still spectacular, as the pictures on the wires show.
Their respective capitals, Athens and Nicosia, replaced the traditional, booming fireworks displays with a blend of low-noise pyrotechnics, dazzling light shows, and innovative drone spectacles.
This significant shift is driven by a desire to create more child- and pet-friendly festivities, particularly benefiting animals with sensitive hearing, marking a distinct departure from past loud, combustible traditions.
Nicosia has gone further, abandoning conventional fireworks altogether after assessing their toll. Event planners and municipal officials say fireworks can cause distress to elderly residents, infants, people with autism and those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
“This decision forms part of the municipality’s broader effort to modernize public celebrations and align them with European trends and sustainability objectives,” the municipality said.
Ukrainian president’s New Year’s Eve address
The Ukrainian president, Zolodymyr Zelenskyy, said in his address that Ukraine wants peace but not at all costs.
He thanked leaders who have participated in the peace efforts and warned that without durable peace, the conflict could extend to Europe.
Cold swims, fireworks and king’s speech in Copenhagen
Copenhagen has brought in 2026 with a chilly New Year’s Eve swim in the harbour, before fireworks lit up the night sky over the city.
Danes also tuned in to the traditional new year’s speech by King Frederik X, his second as monarch.
He made mention of the war in Ukraine, saying it “brings pain and tragedy to Ukrainians and spreads uncertainty and insecurity across Europe”.
“The fighting rages on Ukrainian soil, but it concerns the right to security, independence, and sovereignty – on our continent and beyond, because something fundamental is at stake,” he said.
“Ukrainians never wanted war; therefore, they deserve peace.”
Taiwan president vows to ‘steadfastly defend national sovereignty’ in new year speech
In his new year’s speech, Taiwan’s president Lai Ching-te vowed to defend the democratic island’s sovereignty after China carried out military drills.
“My stance has always been clear: to steadfastly defend national sovereignty, strengthen national defence and whole-of-society resilience, comprehensively establish effective deterrence capabilities, and build robust democratic defence mechanisms,” Lai said in a televised address from the presidential office.
Lai’s remarks came a day after China declared it had “successfully completed” military drills around Taiwan.
China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels this week to encircle Taiwan’s main island.
The drills were aimed at simulating a blockade of key ports and assaults on maritime targets.
Taipei slammed the war games as “highly provocative and reckless” and said they failed to impose a blockade of the self-ruled island.
No comments:
Post a Comment