For Southeast Asia, growing U.S.-China maritime row means a balancing act
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – As the United States and Japan tussled with China over the wording of a concluding statement at an Asian security meeting in Kuala Lumpur this week, caught in the middle was host Malaysia.
Shifting goal posts help Venezuela Socialists in parliament vote
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela is projecting a drastic set of migration patterns in months leading up to the pivotal Dec. 6 parliament vote: a fiercely opposition district of the capital will lose a quarter of its population while pro-government suburbs…
Romanian PM Ponta quits after street protests, paves way for new cabinet
BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta quit on Wednesday, in a surprise move that will probably produce a new cabinet led by a technocrat, after street protesters demanded resignations over a deadly fire in a Bucharest nightclub at …
Russia says Lavrov, Kerry hold phone call on Syria crisis
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday held a phone call in which they discussed ways for the international community to help support efforts to end the Syria crisis, Russia’s forei…
Iraqi oil ministry official freed after brief kidnapping: police
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A senior official in Iraq’s oil ministry was kidnapped in Baghdad but quickly freed by security forces on Wednesday, Baghdad Operations Command said in a statement.
Clashes with Kurdish militants kill 18 in southeast Turkey
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) – Eighteen people were killed in clashes in Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeast region on Wednesday, a day after the military launched air strikes there, and authorities announced a curfew in two provincial districts.
Greece carries out first relocation of refugees to Luxembourg
ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece relocated six asylum-seeking families to Luxembourg on Wednesday, the first such transfer from its soil under an European Union plan to ease the burden on nations inundated by an influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees.
Flush with victory, combative Erdogan demands Turkey constitution change
ANKARA (Reuters) – Flush with an election victory, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan demanded constitutional change that he wants to gain sweeping powers, and vowed to “liquidate” Kurdish guerrillas in a defiant speech that gave no quarter to those hopi…
Thai junta turns to populist subsidies to ease farmer tensions
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s junta has approved $1.3 billion in rural subsidies, akin to the populist policies of the government it ousted, to appease disgruntled and politically powerful farmers who are struggling with record low commodity prices an…
EU’s Tusk says Russia does not abide by Minsk deal on Ukraine
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Russia is not fully abiding by the terms of the Minsk peace deal for Ukraine and this will be taken into account by the European Union when it reviews its sanctions on Russia before the end of the year, the chairman of EU leaders s…
