Croatia, Bosnia sign major gas pipeline deal

Ravi Coltrane has a tough task: honour his father John and fellow legend Miles Davis without imitating them, he tells AFP, beer in hand during an interview in Poland.

The younger Coltrane has teamed up with multiple Grammy winner Terence Blanchard for a series of concerts across Europe marking the centennials of his father and Davis which will culminate at the revered Grand Rex in Paris -- a venue that meant a lot to both men.

"If you're doing a tribute to somebody... the assumption might be that we're going to be imitating their style," Coltrane -- named after Ravi Shankar, the Indian sitar player who inspired The Beatles and a host of other Western musicians -- told AFP in Wroclaw.

"To really truly honour them, it's not to copy them, but to peer in and try to find our own voices within the repertoire that they play," he said. 

His collaborator, five-time Grammy-winning trumpet player and composer Blanchard, said the younger Coltrane was a resounding success like his father.

"It's not about his last name," he said of Coltrane, who has performed with the likes of Carlos Santana, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner and Chick Corea.

"It's about what he's doing as an artist." 

"The difficult thing to do is to find our own personal way with the music," he said, calling it "more rewarding" as a result. 

Together on stage, the pair strike contrasting notes -- Blanchard raising his horn to the ceiling while a demurer Coltrane undulates through his solos with depth and precision. 

- 'The hardest thing' -

While not related to Miles Davis, Blanchard -- like many trumpet players -- is deeply influenced by the jazz great, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and branded "the most revered jazz trumpeter of all time" by Rolling Stone magazine. 

Like Coltrane, he does not emulate Davis.

"The easiest thing would be for me to go up there and try to play like Miles Davis... yet that would be the hardest thing," he said.

"You can't recreate that time from which those things were created," he added, referencing the social and political tumult of the 1960s.

"There was a lot of suffering going on in the world," he said, adding: "They (Davis and Coltrane) didn't turn a blind eye to that." 

Blanchard, who has written two operas and dozens of film and television scores, is passionate about mentoring and educating younger musicians.

"That's the thing I always tell my students," he said. "Be a person first ... and learn how to use all of the tools musically to express what it is you're feeling inside." 

Ravi Coltrane said it was Blanchard who came to him with the idea of doing a joint tribute, something he might have otherwise turned down. 

"He's probably the only one I would have agreed to do this with," he said, reminiscing on their first meetings in New York in the 1990s, where Coltrane went to begin his career.

It's a harkening back to the collaboration between Davis and the older Coltrane -- whose 1959 joint album "Kind of Blue" is lauded by many critics as the greatest jazz record ever made. 

- Paris is a 'special place' -

Ahead of the concert at the Grand Rex, Coltrane and Blanchard reflected on the French capital's influence on their mentors, themselves, and the genre. 

"Paris has always had a special place in my heart," Blanchard said, recalling his New Orleans origins and the French influences he grew up around. 

Miles Davis spent considerable time in Paris, playing concerts, recording the score to film noir classic "Elevator to the Gallows," and -- like many of his generation -- seeking refuge from the racial discrimination of the United States.

"Bringing this show there, given Miles's relationship with Paris, is very powerful and very meaningful for me," Blanchard adds. 

For Ravi Coltrane, the concert is one of many celebrations of the work of his father, his mother pianist Alice Coltrane, and the myriad other mentors and collaborators he has played with and learned from over the course of his career. 

"The reality is we pay tribute to these artists every day," he says, "every time we pick up our instruments, in some way we're paying homage and honor to the men and women who have gotten us this far". 

"It never goes away". 

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Croatia and Bosnia on Tuesday signed a deal to build a major gas pipeline backed by investors close to US President Donald Trump, aiming to cut Sarajevo's reliance on Russian gas.

The pipeline will connect Bosnia to the European gas network, notably the liquefied natural gas terminal on Croatia's northern island of Krk, which receives significant volumes of US gas.

Hailing it as a "major step forward", Bosnian Prime Minister Borjana Kristo also thanked US partners.

"I signed with Croatia the Southern Interconnection Agreement, boosting energy security and supply diversification," Kristo said in a post on X.

The agreement was also signed by her Croatian counterpart Andrej Plenkovic on the sidelines of a Three Seas Initiative summit in Dubrovnik.

The agreement sets out cooperation between the two countries to build a gas interconnection on both sides of the border.

The project is being pushed by the AAFS Infrastructure and Energy company, headed by Jesse Binnall, a former lawyer to President Trump, and Joseph Flynn, brother of retired general Michael Flynn.

The latter served as national security adviser during Trump's first term.

But the proposal has sparked a warning from Brussels, with the EU's ambassador to Bosnia, which is a candidate for membership, penning a letter urging the country to "carefully consider its obligations" when signing contracts for energy projects.

In addition to a pipeline, the $1.5 billion project would build gas-fired power plants to reduce coal-based electricity production in a country badly affected by air pollution.

No construction dates have yet been announced, but the project is considered of major importance to Bosnia, which would be affected by the EU's ban on Russian gas imports set to take effect in 2027.

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The International Criminal Court on Tuesday ordered $8.5 million in compensation to be paid to victims of the Malian former jihadist leader Al Hassan, who was found guilty in 2024 of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The court said it had awarded "collective community-based reparations ... focused on rehabilitation" and "symbolic and satisfaction measures" to 65,202 victims.

"The Chamber assessed Mr Al Hassan's liability for reparations at approximately 7,250,000 euros, equivalent to 4,755,688,250 CFA francs," said presiding judge Kimberley Prost.

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, known as Al Hassan, was a member of Ansar Dine, one of a number of jihadist groups that seized control of Timbuktu between April 2012 and January 2013.

The 48-year-old Islamic police chief was found guilty of three counts of crimes against humanity and five of war crimes in 2024, including flogging, amputation of a hand and torture, and was jailed for 10 years.

He listened impassively to the reparations order, dressed in an ochre robe and a traditional white scarf.

The collective rehabilitation measures ordered by the ICC, which sits in The Hague, will include "socio-economic support, educational programmes or trainings, and psychological support", a statement read.

Those who suffered torture and other acts of mutilation will receive individualised rehabilitation programmes, it added.

Women and girls "suffered particular moral and material harm as a result of the crime of persecution", which had to be reflected in the implementation of reparations, it went on.

"Due to Mr Al Hassan's financial situation, the reparations will be implemented through the Trust Fund for Victims," the court said, urging countries, organisations, businesses and individuals to contribute.

Al Hassan was acquitted of the war crimes of rape and sexual slavery, as well as forced marriage, which is a crime against humanity.

The former jihadist leader was arrested by the Malian authorities and sent to The Hague in March 2018.

He is due for release in March next year instead of 2028, as the court ruled in July last year that a reduction was "in the interests of justice" because he had waived his right to appeal the verdict and sentence.

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EU lawmakers on Tuesday approved the first ever common European rules for cats and dogs including bans on abusive practices and illegal pet trading.

The European Union is home to over 72 million dogs and 83 million cats, according to the European Commission. The 27-country bloc has so far only had rules on health requirements for cats and dogs travelling inside the EU.

The rules introduce bans on harmful breeding practices as well as on ear-cropping and tail-docking, and cats and dogs must have microchips.

The European Parliament in Strasbourg voted on the final text that also introduces minimum welfare criteria for dogs and cats in kennels and shelters.

The EU wants to better regulate a market worth 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) and animal rights groups say the rules will help tackle animal trafficking from countries like Bulgaria and Romania.

The law also prohibits inbreeding and the breeding of animals with accentuated traits, such as overly short legs, that could affect their welfare.

Inbreeding is allowed in some cases, such as species with low genetic diversity.

The final text bans crossbreeding between domestic and wild breeds, which can lead to behaviours unsuitable in domestic animals.

Police, military and border patrol dogs will, however, be exempted from some rules including the ban on coercive collars that are used to train the animals.

There had been an attempt by lawmakers to ban the keeping or selling of dogs and cats in pet shops, but that was removed from the final text.

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The European Parliament on Tuesday threw its weight behind a more ambitious and bigger long-term EU budget, demanding new taxes to ramp up future spending.

The EU executive last year proposed a nearly two-trillion-euro ($2.3-trillion) long-term budget bazooka for 2028-2034 that includes paying off the bloc's coronavirus-related debt.

EU lawmakers rejected that proposal, and called on the European Union to rollover the debt to finance a 10-percent increase in spending and raise new money, notably through taxes on digital giants and online gambling.

Their desire for a bigger budget has pit them against EU nations including Germany, which has the bloc's largest economy. Berlin instead calls to cut spending in some areas.

Romanian EU lawmaker Siegfried Muresan, who will lead negotiations with member states, demanded a "strong" budget. 

"The position of the European Parliament is clear: we believe we cannot do more with less," he said during a parliamentary debate in Strasbourg.

Time is of the essence, say top EU officials.

EU budget chief Piotr Serafin told lawmakers during the debate that a final deal on spending for 2028-2034 had to be completed by the end of the year.

Pointing to wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, Serafin said the EU "should not expect the years ahead of us to be easier, on the contrary. This is why a timely agreement on the (budget) is more important than ever".

There are also concerns about elections next year including in France and so the EU wants an agreement by the end of 2026 as officials fear a potential French far-right government in 2027 could throw negotiations into disarray.

Potential French presidential candidate for the far-right National Rally party Jordan Bardella slammed the scramble to get a deal before France's vote.

"How can we not be alarmed by these manoeuvres to provide the European Union with a budget before the French presidential election scheduled for spring 2027, contrary to the usual timetable, and all in order to force the hand of the next president?" he said.

Bardella also opposed the larger budget, describing it as a "headlong rush" that will cost the French taxpayers "20 billion euros".

The parliament's text will form the basis of its negotiations with member states, which usually have the final say over the budget.

But the member states are far apart on the issue, with France pushing for more joint borrowing and Germany and the Netherlands diametrically opposed.

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German rescuers launched a fresh bid Tuesday to free a humpback whale stranded for a month off the country's coast, aiming to transport the cetacean to deeper waters in a barge.

The 13-metre (over 40 foot) whale and its struggle for survival have gripped Germany since it beached on a sandbank near the city of Luebeck, far from its natural habitat in late March.

The rescue -- financed by two entrepreneurs -- will involve loading the sea mammal onto a special barge to carry it from Germany's Baltic Sea coast to deeper waters in the North Sea.

As the bid got underway, rescuers in diving suits could be seen attaching straps to the whale and then attempting to drag it through the water towards the vessel.

Once the mammal is on the barge, "we can hopefully begin the journey," said Till Backhaus, environment minister for the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

"Ideally by sunset we should have the whale on the barge".

He had earlier given the green light for the operation after vets examined the creature, dubbed "Timmy" by German media, and said it was medically fit to be transported.

The whale was first spotted stuck on a sandbank on March 23 before freeing itself and then becoming stuck again several times.

At the start of April officials gave up on the animal, saying they believed it could not be saved. 

But this triggered an outcry and authorities were persuaded to let the entrepreneurs come up with a rescue plan.

Some scientists have strongly criticised the decision to allow further rescue bids, believing they will be too risky for the whale and estimating the chances of success as low.

But Backhaus defended the latest rescue bid, saying it was "definitely worth it".

"I've always said, those who do nothing make no mistakes," he added.

The saga has sparked a media frenzy -- with non-stop coverage from TV channels, online outlets and social media influencers -- but has also led to angry spats and conspiracy theories.

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British energy giant BP on Tuesday reported a sharp increase in profits in the first quarter as crude oil prices soared amid the Middle East war.

Oil prices have risen since the start of the US-Iran conflict on February 28, often swinging violently in response to the war's ever-changing headlines. 

BP's profit after tax jumped to $3.8 billion for the January-March period from $687 million in the same quarter a year earlier, London-listed BP said in an earnings statement.

The closely followed underlying profit figure more than doubled to $3.2 billion from $1.4 billion the previous year, a figure that "reflects exceptional oil trading contribution", the statement said.

"Overall, our business continues to run well. This was another quarter of strong operational and financial delivery, and we made further progress towards our 2027 targets," said CEO Meg O'Neill, who was appointed at the end of last year to replace Murray Auchincloss.

The group had announced in mid-April that it expected to benefit from rising oil prices, noting that the price of Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark, averaged $81.13 a barrel in the first quarter, up from $63.73 in the fourth quarter of last year.

Oil prices have been volatile due to the war, coming close to $120 a barrel in March, which BP traders were able to profit from.

"Traders do best in periods of volatility as sharp swings in the price create gaps between buyers and sellers ... and greater hedging demand from industries like the airline sector," said AJ Bell head of markets, Dan Coatsworth.

"The highest quarterly profit in the best part of three years is not a bad way for new BP CEO Meg O'Neill to begin her tenure."

BP shares were up 3 percent Tuesday by midday on the London Stock Exchange.

The company said in mid-April that each one dollar variation in the price of a barrel has a $340 million impact on its annual operating profit before tax.

BP "has been working relentlessly to keep our assets producing safely, reliably and efficiently," while working "in an environment of conflict and complexity," O'Neill said.

The American CEO took up her post in early April with a mission of implementing a recovery plan for the struggling group, whose profit after tax in 2025 plunged 86 percent year-on-year to $55 million.

- 'Simpler, stronger' -

BP's performance has generally fallen behind that of its rivals in recent years, and last year the company mounted a boardroom shakeup after slashing clean energy investment and pivoting back to its more profitable oil and gas business.

O'Neill plans to reorganise the company, clearly separating its upstream and downstream activities.

Her aim is to make BP "a simpler, stronger, more valuable company," she said Tuesday.

"Now, we have to capitalise on the opportunity that exists across our portfolio, simplifying how we work, unlocking growth and driving improved returns," she added.

The new CEO faced a stinging rebuke from shareholders last week at the annual general meeting where they largely rejected two board proposals as a step backwards on transparency, particularly concerning climate strategy.

One proposal aimed to revoke two resolutions adopted at previous general meetings, which required BP to publish certain climate-related information. 

The other was intended to authorise holding shareholder meetings exclusively online.

BP chairman Albert Manifold, who took office on October 1, faced a personal rebuke, with around 18 percent of shareholders voting against his election.

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Oil prices jumped Tuesday on lack of progress towards re-opening the Strait of Hormuz while stocks diverged as attention turned back to the outlook for interest rates and company earnings.

The White House has refused to say if US President Donald Trump is inclined to accept Iran's latest proposals to end the two-month old conflict and re-open the crucial waterway.

Oil prices rallied more than two percent, with Brent holding  above $110 a barrel and WTI just a whisker below $100 a barrel.  

Hopes for a deal had been rising going into last weekend but Trump dashed them on Saturday by scrapping a planned trip by his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad.

Stock markets mostly fell in Asia, under further pressure after the Bank of Japan sharply raised its inflation forecasts for the current year and halved its growth projections owing to surging oil prices.

"The Bank of Japan left its key interest rate unchanged but signalled that it would be keeping a very close eye on inflation dynamics," said analyst Andreas Lipkow at CMC Markets. "This triggered profit-taking. A similar picture could emerge at the meetings of the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank."

Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Mumbai, Bangkok, Manila and Wellington all closed lower, though Seoul rose again thanks to a resumption of the tech rally that has pushed the Kospi to a record high.

In Europe, shares were slightly higher in late-morning trading, boosted by energy companies, even as investors overall took a cautious stance ahead of a series of key central bank meetings. 

In London, BP shares were up more three percent after it reported strong first-quarter earnings, while in Paris TotalEnergies was up just under three percent.

The European Central Bank meets Thursday, with eyes on what President Christine Lagarde says at her press conference.

The ECB is not expected to announce an interest rate hike, but "every word will be scrutinized for any potential shift in tone regarding this persistent energy shock," said John Plassard of Cite Gestion.

The US Federal Reserve begins a two-day meeting Thursday amid the same growing inflationary concerns over the surge in energy costs.

Meanwhile in New York, tech giants Meta and Microsoft are due to report earnings Wednesday with Apple following Thursday. Older industrial companies including Ford and ExxonMobil are also reporting this week.

In Zurich, Novartis shares were down more than two percent after the Swiss drugmaker reported disappointing results.

- Key figures at 1045 GMT -

West Texas Intermediate: UP 3.5 percent at $99.75 a barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 2.6 percent at $111.15 a barrel

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 10,369.85 points 

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 8,168.37 Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 24,116.02

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.0 percent at 59,917.46 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 25,679.78 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 4,078.64 (close)

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 49,167.79 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1697 from $1.1722 on Monday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3490 from $1.3534

Dollar/yen: UP at 159.59 yen from 159.39 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 86.69 pence from 86.61 pence

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Nepali guides on Tuesday opened the route past the icefall on Mount Everest, which was blocked for two weeks by a large chunk of dangerous ice.

A team of highly skilled mountaineers, known in Nepal as "icefall doctors", began fixing ropes and ladders on Everest last month, to prepare for the spring climbing season.

But a serac -- a block of glacial ice -- above the already treacherous Khumbu icefall disrupted their work, sparking fears of delays in the limited summit season on the world's highest peak.

"A team of 21, including eight icefall doctors, went up this morning, opening the route up to Camp 1," Lakpa Sherpa of 8K Expeditions, who coordinated the effort, told AFP.

"The serac is still there so the risk persists... We expect it will melt soon."

Sherpa said teams would work to set the route up to the summit to ensure there are no more delays.

The government has issued more than 900 climbing permits for various Himalayan mountains this season, including 425 for Everest.

A sea of tents to host more than 1,000 people -- foreign climbers and support staff -- has built up at the foot of Everest, readying to scale the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) summit.

Climbers at the base camp have been anxiously watching the developments on the route. They must cross the icefall, a constantly shifting maze of crevasses and ice blocks, to reach higher on Everest.

"We are not yet sending people up," said Lukas Furtenbach of Furtenbach Adventures, saying he would await a decision from the committee which mobilises the icefall doctors. 

Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks and attracts hundreds of climbers each spring, when temperatures are warmer and winds calmer.

A climbing boom has made mountaineering a lucrative business since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa made the first ascent in 1953. 

Around 700 people reached Everest's summit last year from the Nepali side, according to the tourism department, with another 100 climbers believed to have reached the peak from the northern side, via China.

In 2023, three Nepali guides were killed when a falling block of glacial ice swept them into a deep crevasse as they were crossing the Khumbu icefall with supplies.

Autumn summits on Everest in 2019 were also thwarted by a serac.

In 2014, an immense tumbling wall of snow, ice and rock killed 16 Nepali guides on the icefall, one of the deadliest accidents in the Himalayas.

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An Indian billionaire's son offered on Tuesday to take hippos descended from those introduced to Colombia by drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, rather than have the animals killed.

Anant Ambani, the son of tycoon Mukesh Ambani, said he had formally requested the Colombian government to stay a decision to kill the animals, which have wreaked havoc on rivers in the South American nation.

Instead, he has asked to allow the "safe, scientifically-led translocation that would bring the 80 animals to a permanent home" at his Vantara animal centre.

The vast zoo in India's western state of Gujarat bills itself as the "one of the world's largest wildlife rescue, care and conservation centres".

Vantara is already home to hundreds of elephants, as well as 50 bears, 160 tigers, 200 lions, 250 leopards and 900 crocodiles, among other animals, according to India's Central Zoo Authority.

Experts have repeatedly sounded the alarm on Vantara's massive animal intake, including the import of critically endangered and rare species.

Escobar brought hippos -- which are native only to Africa and can weigh up to several tonnes -- to Colombia in the 1980s.

After Escobar's death, hippos from his private zoo made a new life in the lush river banks of the Colombia's Magdalena River -- where they have attacked fishermen, prompting moves to cull them.

Anant Ambani, son of the billionaire head of the multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries, said he had submitted a detailed plan to give the animals a new home at Vantara.

The animal centre is sited alongside the Reliance Jamnagar Refinery Complex, which the conglomerate says is the world's largest crude oil refinery.

Summers there can get extremely hot, with temperatures soaring above 40C.

Ambani's proposal sets out a veterinary-led capture and transport, as well as the creation of a "purpose-designed naturalistic setting" for the hippos, according to a statement.

"Vantara has the expertise, infrastructure and resolve to support this effort, entirely on Colombia's terms," the statement said.

"These 80 hippos did not choose where they were born, nor did they create the circumstances they now face," Ambani added.

"They are living, sentient beings, and if we have the ability to save them through a safe and humane solution, we have a responsibility to try."

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