Kerry says undeterred by Israeli criticism of peace push
KUWAIT (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday he would not let criticism of his Middle East peace efforts attributed to Israel’s defense minister deter him from trying to achieve a framework Israeli-Palestinian deal.
Turkey reassured that NATO shield not designed for Israel
TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Turkey has accepted assurances a planned NATO missile defense system in which it is playing a part is not designed to protect Israel as well, the alliance’s deputy secretary-general said on Wednesday.
BoE’s Carney to visit Scotland as independence campaign heats up
LONDON (Reuters) – Bank of England Governor Mark Carney will travel to Scotland this month where he is expected to make his first comments on issues relating to September’s referendum on Scottish independence with the economy ranked as the key issue by…
Russian security forces battle militants before Olympics
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Three Russian servicemen and four gunmen were killed in a shootout in southern Russia on Wednesday during a sweep for militants before the Sochi Winter Olympics.
Poland to speed up troop withdrawal from Afghanistan
WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland is to speed up the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, reducing its contingent there to about 500 soldiers by May 2014, Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said on Wednesday.
U.S., India meet to get ties back on track after dispute
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A senior U.S. diplomat met India’s ambassador to the United States on Tuesday with the aim of getting bilateral ties back on track after the arrest and strip search of a female Indian diplomat and tit-for-tat expulsions.
West Bank mosque partly torched in suspected settler attack
DEIR ISTIYA, West Bank (Reuters) – A mosque in the Israeli-occupied West Bank was partly set on fire on Wednesday in what Palestinian residents said was an attack by Jewish settlers living nearby.
Japan self-defense ship, fishing boat collide; two in critical condition
TOKYO (Reuters) – A Japanese Self-Defence Force ship and a leisure fishing boat collided off the coast of Hiroshima in western Japan, leaving two of the fishing boat’s crew in critical condition, the country’s defence minister said on Wednesday.
Hong Kong leader takes aim at poverty, housing in policy speech
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying on Wednesday pledged to spend about HK$3 billion ($387 million) a year to help tackle poverty in a policy speech dominated by bread-and-butter issues that some saw as an attempt to dodge discussion…
Specter of disease in Tonga after Cyclone Ian batters islands
CANBERRA (Reuters) – Widespread destruction caused by a tropical cyclone that hit the South Pacific island nation of Tonga last week is raising fears of a disease outbreak in the island kingdom.
