Iraqi commander denies paramilitary groups involved in killings
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi lawmaker and paramilitary commander Hadi al-Amiri defended Shi’ite fighters at the forefront of the battle against Islamic State from accusations of mass executions and burning homes, and urged the United States to upgrade Ira…
EU backs Ukraine peace drive, hawks urge no easing of sanctions
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union foreign ministers lined up behind a Franco-German effort to end the Ukraine war on Monday but some said the EU must maintain sanctions on Russia until the situation in eastern Ukraine improved.
Don’t issue ultimatums to Putin: Russian radio cites Kremlin
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be spoken to in the language of ultimatums at talks on the Ukraine crisis, a Russian radio station quoted the Kremlin as saying on Monday.
Nine more Ukrainian servicemen killed in the east
KIEV/DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) – Nine Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and 26 wounded in fighting with Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine’s eastern regions in the past 24 hours, a Kiev military spokesman said on Monday.
Russians write open letter to Putin over foreign-currency mortgages
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russians with foreign-currency mortgages have written an open letter to President Vladimir Putin seeking help with repayments that have soared because of the ruble’s plunge, saying they were misled by banks.
Juncker tells Greek PM: don’t assume euro zone will accept your plans
NAUEN, Germany (Reuters) – European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday advised Greece’s new government not to assume the euro zone would simply accept all the promises its leftist leader Alexis Tsipras made to Greek voters about scrappi…
China executes businessman linked to former security tsar
BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese authorities on Monday executed a former mining tycoon connected to the eldest son of retired domestic security chief Zhou Yongkang, himself the focus of a high-profile corruption investigation, state media reported.
Al Shabaab militants kill another Somali lawmaker in Mogadishu
MOGADISHU (Reuters) – A Somali lawmaker was killed in Mogadishu on Monday when al Shabaab gunmen sprayed his car with bullets, police and the militants said, the sixth such attack since the start of 2014.
Amid ‘challenging’ times, Thailand and U.S. start scaled down drills
NAKHON NAYOK, Thailand (Reuters) – The United States said on Monday its relationship with longtime ally Thailand was going through a “challenging” period as the two sides began a major military exercise, scaled down over Washington’s concerns about the…
Italy’s Padoan says Europe needs to be bolder in boosting investment
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Europe needs to be bolder in boosting investment and needs to take policy steps that encourage private sector spending particularly in infrastructure, Italian Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said on Monday.
