No U.S. troop cuts without credible North Korea nuclear deal, says Kerry
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – It is too premature to talk about reducing American forces in the Korean Peninsula without “authentic and credible” negotiations with Pyongyang about ending its nuclear program, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday.
U.S. judge gives ex-Colombian rebel 27 years prison for taking hostages
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. judge sentenced a former member of a Colombian rebel group to 27 years in prison on Friday for his role in keeping three Americans hostage in the Colombian jungle in the mid-2000s.
International financial watchdog warns on Iran, North Korea
PARIS (Reuters) – An international financial watchdog said on Friday member states should take action to ward off risks emanating from Iran and North Korea, which it said had failed to tackle money-laundering and financing of terrorism.
French court approves Kazakh tycoon Ablyazov’s extradition to Russia
LYON France (Reuters) – A French appeals court approved on Friday the extradition from France to Russia or Ukraine of jailed Kazakh tycoon Mukhtar Ablyazov, accused of embezzling up to $6 billion from his former bank BTA.
Suspicious powder sent to western consulates in Istanbul: officials
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Packets of an unidentified yellow powder were sent to five western consulates in Istanbul on Friday, officials said, prompting security alerts following two militant attacks in Canada this week.
U.S. diplomat criticizes PM Orban’s Russia policies
BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Hungary should back European Union sanctions against Russia and not talk about granting autonomy for ethnic Hungarians living in Ukraine at this time of instability, an American diplomat said in Budapest on Friday.
Putin accuses United States of damaging world order
LAURA Russia (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the United States on Friday of endangering global security by imposing a “unilateral diktat” on the rest of the world and shifted blame for the Ukraine crisis onto the West.
U.N. authorizes ship inspections near Somalia for arms, charcoal
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations Security Council authorized the inspection of boats suspected of carrying illegal shipments of charcoal or weapons to and from Somalia on Friday, though Russia and Jordan abstained from the vote over concer…
Political Islam tries to adapt to Tunisia election landscape
SFAX Tunisia (Reuters) – From behind a niqab veil masking all but her eyes, Tunisian activist Fedia Mkaouar stops passersby in a busy street to make a pitch for her conservative Islamist party chasing votes in Sunday’s parliamentary election.
Tunisian forces kill six after standoff with militants outside Tunis
TUNIS (Reuters) – Tunisian security forces on Friday killed six people, including five women, after a standoff with an Islamist militant group on the outskirts of Tunis two days before a parliamentary election, authorities said.
