For South China Sea claimants, a legal venue to battle China
HONG KONG (Reuters) – When Philippine President Benigno Aquino compared China to the Germany of 1938 and called for global support as his country battles Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea, he put the focus on a case that Manila has filed in an in…
China and Sri Lanka seen concluding free trade pact by end of 2014
BEIJING (Reuters) – China and Sri Lanka could sign a free trade agreement by the end of the year, state news agency Xinhua cited Sri Lanka’s foreign minister as saying.
Obama to visit Japan, three other Asian countries in April
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced he will visit Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines in April, six months after a scrapped tour of the region raised questions about his commitment to an increasingly influe…
Two American soldiers killed in Afghan ‘insider’ attack: officials
KABUL (Reuters) – Men in Afghan army uniforms turned their weapons on American forces in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing two U.S. soldiers and wounding four others, officials said.
At least two killed by gunfire at Venezuela protests
CARACAS (Reuters) – At least two people were shot dead on Wednesday during anti-government protests in Caracas, escalating the worst bout of unrest in Venezuela since turmoil after President Nicolas Maduro’s election last year.
Egypt’s Sabahi calls for release of ‘prisoners of conscience’
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptian politician Hamdeen Sabahi on Wednesday called for the release of what he termed “prisoners of conscience,” days after he announced he would run for president.
Swiss immigration vote shows loss of trust in business elite: minister
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – A loss of trust in Switzerland’s business and political elite may be one of the reasons the alpine nation voted in favor of putting strict limits on immigration, Swiss Economy Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann said on Wednesday.
Syria killing accelerates as peace talks falter
BEIRUT (Reuters) – More Syrians have been killed in the three weeks since peace talks began than at any other time in the civil war, activists said on Wednesday, as troops pounded rebel towns on the Lebanese border and negotiations faltered in Geneva.
Ex-rebel leads in El Salvador presidential run-off: poll
SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) – An ex-Marxist guerrilla pledging to expand social programs is set to win El Salvador’s presidency in a March vote by 10 percent over a right-wing challenger who promised a crackdown on crime, a CID-Gallup poll said Wednesday.
Japan on backfoot in global PR war with China after Abe shrine visit
TOKYO/BEIJING (Reuters) – Japan risks losing a global PR battle with China after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to a controversial shrine for war dead and comments by other prominent figures on the wartime past helped Beijing try to paint Tokyo as t…
