Iraq says to work with Kurdish forces to retake Mosul
ATHENS (Reuters) – Baghdad will cooperate with Kurdish forces to try to drive militant out of Mosul, Iraq’s foreign minister said on Wednesday, a day after an al Qaeda splinter group seized the country’s second biggest city.
Japan protests China fighter jets’ close brush over East China Sea
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan protested after Chinese fighter jets flew “abnormally close” to Japanese military aircraft over the East China Sea on Wednesday, Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said.
Vietnam says China moving rig; China denies sending warships
HANOI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Vietnam said on Wednesday a Chinese oil rig at the centre of an increasingly bitter territorial dispute appeared to be on the move again, as China denied Vietnamese accusations that it had sent warships to the scene.
Autopsy for Palestinian killed in alleged Israeli war crime
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – An autopsy was due to be performed on Wednesday on the body of a Palestinian teenager killed last month in an incident that a human rights group said might constitute an Israeli war crime.
Mosul falls to militants, Iraqi forces flee northern city
MOSUL Iraq (Reuters) – An al Qaeda splinter group seized control of the Iraqi city of Mosul on Tuesday, putting security forces to flight in a spectacular show of strength against the Shi’ite-led Baghdad government.
China downplays visit of Taiwan African ally that upsets Taipei
BEIJING (Reuters) – China shrugged off Taiwan’s concern over the visit of the president of Taiwan diplomatic ally Sao Tome and Principe on Wednesday, saying it was a private visit and that not too much should be read into it.
Philippines captures top al Qaeda-linked militant
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine security forces captured on Wednesday a top al Qaeda-linked Islamist wanted by the United States and involved in the kidnapping of Western tourists, and hailed the arrest as a major blow to his militant network.
Japan blasts Chinese bid for U.N. recognition of Nanjing massacre
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan protested to China on Wednesday after Beijing applied for the inclusion of the 1937 Nanjing massacre and the “comfort women” forced to work in wartime military brothels in a UNESCO program, the latest flare-up of tensions in rel…
Australia says seeking military technology cooperation with Japan
TOKYO (Reuters) – Australia wants greater military technology cooperation with Japan, and in talks between the two on Wednesday, wants to take a step paving the way for a possible agreement for Japan to supply it with stealth submarine designs, Austral…
After Ukraine, U.S. trains more special forces in eastern Europe
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – As NATO refocuses on its eastern borders after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the United States is quietly deploying more troops to train special forces in former Soviet bloc states anxious about Moscow’s intentions.
