Russia, China, others snub U.N. meeting on Crimea human rights
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Russia, China, Venezuela and Angola snubbed an informal United Nations Security Council meeting on Thursday on human rights in Crimea a year after Russia seized the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine, diplomats said.
U.N. peacekeepers previously supported blacklisted Congo generals
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – U.N. peacekeepers previously worked with two Democratic Republic of Congo generals accused of abuses, but have refused to support the men in a new campaign against Rwandan rebels because Congolese authorities did not investig…
Sierra Leone president replaces sacked deputy with ex-ambassador
FREETOWN (Reuters) – Sierra Leone’s President Ernest Bai Koroma swore in his new deputy on Thursday though the ousted vice president has pledged to challenge his removal in court.
U.S. embassy in Djibouti closes for day to review security
NAIROBI (Reuters) – The U.S. Embassy in Djibouti closed its doors to the public on Thursday to review security in the tiny Horn of Africa state that hosts an American military base, the embassy said in a statement posted on its website.
EU ties lifting Russia sanctions to full Ukraine peace accord
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to link lifting economic sanctions on Russia to the full implementation of a Ukraine ceasefire agreement, European Council President Donald Tusk announced.
No Iraq request for coalition air support in Tikrit campaign
ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) – Iraq has not requested air support from the U.S.-led coalition for its campaign to retake Tikrit from Islamic State insurgents, a senior military official in the coalition said on Thursday, as the assault on the city remained on…
For Hong Kong, a chill sets in as rich China tourists shop elsewhere
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Chinese tourists are rapidly deserting Hong Kong, leaving retailers who built businesses around once insatiable demand from mainland neighbors with bigger but emptier stores and squeezing the whole city’s visitor-dependent economy…
U.S. to move ahead with training Ukrainian guardsmen: Pentagon
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – About 290 U.S. Army paratroopers will travel to western Ukraine next month to train three battalions of Ukrainian national guard troops, the Pentagon said on Thursday, moving ahead with a long-planned mission that was delayed due…
Exclusive: Japan civilian R&D agency to get military role to spur arms innovation – sources
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan plans to get its biggest state-funded research and development agency involved in military research for the first time in a bid to lure more Japanese companies into the development of cutting-edge weapons technology, two sources…
U.S. ‘deeply disturbed’ by reports of chemical weapons in Syria: Kerry
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States is deeply disturbed by reports that Syrian government forces attacked the town of Sarmin using chlorine as a weapon on Tuesday, Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement on Thursday.
