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.
Japan says it will approve Fukushima operator’s revival plan
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s trade ministry said it would approve on Wednesday a revival plan for the utility responsible for the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Tokyo Electric Power Co, its second attempt at restoring battered finances.
Australia tightens secrecy over ‘success’ in blocking asylum seekers
Canberra (Reuters) – Australia’s government on Wednesday touted its success in deterring asylum seekers from arriving by boat, even as it moved to further restrict access to information about its secretive immigration policies.
Western spies contact Damascus to discuss security, Syria says
DUBAI (Reuters) – The intelligence services of some Western countries opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have visited Damascus to discuss security cooperation with his government, Syria’s deputy foreign minister said in remarks broadcast on We…
