Angry MPs on Tuesday rejected the terms of a bailout aimed at saving Cyprus from bankruptcy, decrying as "blackmail" a deal that had been reached with a troika of lenders that now lies in tatters.

Fitch on Tuesday affirmed its top 'AAA' credit rating for the European Union, judging financial support by member countries as providing a strong backstop to its limited borrowing.

Furious MPs took turns in parliament Tuesday to rail against the harsh terms of a bailout aimed at saving Cyprus from bankruptcy, decrying the eurozone "blackmail" as the deal hammered out at the weekend appeared to be unravelling.

An Indian court on Tuesday ordered Sunil Bharti Mittal, the billionaire head of India's biggest mobile firm Bharti Airtel, to appear in court on corruption allegations over the 2002 allotment of telecom airwaves.

Britain sent a Royal Air Force plane to crisis-hit Cyprus on Tuesday carrying one million euros ($1.3 million) in emergency loans for British military personnel, the defence ministry said.

Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan said Tuesday the European Parliament has approved setting up a single eurozone bank supervisor which supporters say will help stop troubled banks forcing their governments to seek bailouts.

Britain gave the go-ahead on Tuesday for the first of a planned new generation of nuclear power plants.

The United Nations has expressed concern that the Philippines could encourage smoking by hosting one of the world's biggest tobacco trade shows, a health official said Tuesday.

Cyprus turned to Russia on Tuesday as President Nicos Anastasiades battled to garner support from lawmakers for a controversial eurozone bailout deal that the central bank warned was in danger of collapse.

The controversial levy on bank savings in Cyprus will not be repeated in other European countries, Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Tuesday, saying a unique situation had gripped Nicosia.

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades has called an emergency meeting of party leaders for Wednesday, the presidency said, amid reports a parliamentary vote on a controversial EU bailout deal may again be delayed.

A top US debt restructuring expert has recommended that Cyprus convert large bank deposits into term deposits to stem the crisis and avert a run on the country's banks when they reopen.

An Indian court on Tuesday ordered Sunil Bharti Mittal, the billionaire head of India's biggest mobile firm, to appear in court to face corruption accusations over the 2002 allotment of telecom airwaves.

Europe's main stock markets dipped on Tuesday ahead of a key parliamentary vote in Cyprus on a crucial bailout deal that sent global share prices reeling the previous day.

Recycling of household waste rose by 50 percent in Europe over a decade but some countries are dragging their feet for meeting a target set for 2020, the European Environment Agency (EAA) said in a report issued on Tuesday.

Cyprus on Tuesday dropped a controversial levy on bank savings below 20,000 euros, sparking a warning by the central bank governor that the crucial eurozone bailout deal was now in danger of collapse.

Recycling of household waste has tripled in Europe over the past decade but some countries are dragging their feet for meeting a target set for 2020, the European Environment Agency (EAA) said in a report issued on Tuesday.

International monitoring body the OSCE has warned that government plans in Britain for a new media regulator risked undermining the freedom of the press.

Athens is "ready" to absorb the subsidiaries of three Cyprus banks active in Greece, the Greek finance minister said as the eurozone sought to amend a controversial levy on the island nation's bank deposits.

A revised Cyprus bailout plan drops a controversial tax on bank savings below 20,000 euros but retains the levy at 6.75 percent on deposits of 20,000-100,000 euros and 9.9 percent above 100,000, according to an amended tax bill seen Tuesday by AFP.