Exclusive: Japan considering joint U.S. air patrols in South China Sea – sources
TOKYO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Japan’s military is considering joining the United States in maritime air patrols in the South China Sea in response to China’s increasingly assertive pursuit of territorial claims, a Japanese and a U.S. source familiar wit…
Saudi foreign minister is Washington insider, confidant of king
RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s new foreign minister, a U.S.-educated connoisseur of Washington’s diplomatic scene and longtime adviser to the kingdom’s rulers, is an articulate spokesman for his country’s new assertive approach to the Middle East’s …
Britain issues Burundi travel warning after protests in capital
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Britain warned its citizens on Wednesday to avoid “all but essential travel” to Burundi, where protesters have taken to the streets of the capital for four straight days to protest at President Pierre Nkurunziza seeking a third term…
Austria, backed by 159 nations, calls for ban on nuclear weapons
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Austria on Tuesday called for banning nuclear weapons because of their catastrophic humanitarian effects, an initiative it said now has the backing of 159 countries.
Indian minister disparages farmers for suicides, draws opposition ire
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – An Indian state minister who heads the farmers’ wing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party has drawn flak from the opposition for branding as “cowards” some farmers who committed suicide after unseasonal rains destroyed their cr…
Sri Lanka parliament passes diluted reforms
(Story corrects paragraph 11 to say opposition’s attempt turned down)
Fewer than half Hong Kong residents back electoral reform: survey
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Fewer than half Hong Kong’s residents back electoral reforms which would see a pro-China nominating committee select candidates for the next leader in 2017, results of a survey suggested, after protests demanding open nominations …
Wife shields Greece’s Varoufakis from anarchist attack at restaurant
ATHENS (Reuters) – A group of self-styled anarchists threw glass objects at Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis and his wife Danae at an Athens restaurant late on Tuesday, but she hugged him to shield him from the attack, the finance ministry said….
U.S. military sends jets to northern Afghan city under siege
KABUL (Reuters) – The U.S. military has sent fighter jets to Afghanistan’s northern province of Kunduz, where Taliban insurgents have launched a major offensive and overrun government checkpoints close to the main city, U.S. and Afghan sources said.
Top U.S. diplomat on way to try to halt unrest in Burundi
BUJUMBURA (Reuters) – A top U.S. diplomat was heading to Burundi on Wednesday, seeking to halt escalating unrest triggered by President Pierre Nkurunziza’s decision to seek a third term in office, a move protesters say is unconstitutional.
