Amid austerity, EU agrees to boost defense cooperation
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to cooperate more closely on making falling defense budgets go further, while President Francois Hollande failed to win any promise of EU help to pay for French military operations in Afric…
Almost 90 hurt as ceiling collapses at London theatre
LONDON (Reuters) – Emergency services said nearly 90 people were injured on Thursday when part of the ceiling collapsed during a performance at a packed London theatre, bringing the city’s West End entertainment district to a standstill.
U.N. says peacekeeping base in South Sudan attacked, deaths reported
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – A United Nations peacekeeping base in South Sudan’s Jonglei state was attacked on Thursday and the organization has received reports that some people have been killed, a senior U.N. official said.
U.S. tries again to calm India over accused diplomat
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A senior U.S. official called India’s foreign secretary on Thursday in another attempt by Washington to tamp down the furor in India over the arrest and treatment of one of its diplomats in New York.
Russia blocks U.N. statement condemning Syrian attacks: diplomats
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Russia blocked a U.N. Security Council statement on Thursday that would have condemned the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for recent missile and “barrel bomb” attacks on civilians, including children, U.N. dip…
Iran, six world powers resume expert talks on nuclear deal
GENEVA/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Iran and six world powers resumed expert-level talks in Geneva on Thursday to work out how to put into practice a landmark deal obliging Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for some relief from economic sanctions.
Amid austerity, EU agrees to boost defense cooperation
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to work more closely on defense and make falling military budgets stretch further, but British Prime Minister David Cameron said London would resist any attempt to form a European army.
Putin to pardon jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky
MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin is to pardon one of his best known opponents, oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, after a decade in jail in what may be a gesture to critics of his human rights record before Russia hosts the Winter Olympics.
Serbia, Kosovo to pursue talks to mend ties
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Serbia’s launch of membership talks with the European Union will not spell the end of EU-mediated talks with its former province Kosovo on mending their relations, the EU’s top diplomat said on Thursday.
Egypt court rulings pave way for Shafik return
CAIRO (Reuters) – Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister, Ahmed Shafik, will soon be free to return from self-imposed exile and perhaps make a political comeback after Egyptian courts on Thursday acquitted him in one corruption case and shelved another.
