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| China starts search for missing jet in Chinese territory Monday, Mar 17, 2014 08:30 PM PDT BEIJING (Reuters) - China has begun to searching for a missing Malaysia Airlines jet with 239 passengers and crew on board in Chinese territory which covers a northern corridor through which the aircraft could have flown, said state news agency Xinhua on Tuesday, quoting Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Huang Huikang. (Reporting by Li Hui and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Michael Perry) Full Story | Top |
| China rules out hijack, attack by Chinese passengers on Malaysian jet Monday, Mar 17, 2014 08:18 PM PDT There is no evidence Chinese passengers were involved in a hijack or terror attack on a Malaysia Airlines flight that vanished 10 days ago, state media quoted China's ambassador to Malaysia as saying on Tuesday. Ambassador Huang Huikang told Chinese reporters that Beijing had carried out a detailed investigation of the Chinese passengers and could rule out their involvement, state television said on one of its official microblogs. No trace of flight MH370 has been found since it vanished soon after taking off from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing early on March 8 with 239 passengers and crew on board. Huang said there were multiple reasons for the confusion and rumors about what had happened to the aircraft, including Malaysia's "lack of experience". Full Story | Top |
| Venezuela unrest toll rises as soldier is shot in head Monday, Mar 17, 2014 07:26 PM PDT  By Daniel Wallis and Diego Ore CARACAS (Reuters) - A Venezuela National Guard captain died on Monday after being shot in the head during a demonstration, the military said, the 29th fatality in six weeks of clashes between protesters and security forces. General Padrino Lopez, head of the armed forces' strategic operational command, said the captain was shot late on Sunday at a street barricade set up by demonstrators in the central city of Maracay, in Aragua state. "Our armed forces don't repress peaceful protests, they protect them." Since early February, students and hardline opposition leaders have been calling supporters onto the streets to protest against President Nicolas Maduro and his socialist government. The demonstrators are demanding political change and an end to high inflation, shortages of basic foods and one of the worst rates of violent crime in the world. Full Story | Top |
| U.S., EU set sanctions as Putin recognizes Crimea 'sovereignty' Monday, Mar 17, 2014 06:43 PM PDT  By Aleksandar Vasovic and Adrian Croft SIMFEROPOL/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The United States and European Union imposed personal sanctions on Monday on Russian and Crimean officials involved in the seizure of Crimea from Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing the region as a sovereign state. The moves heightened the most serious East-West crisis since the end of the Cold War, following a disputed referendum in the Black Sea peninsula on Sunday in which Crimea's leaders declared a Soviet-style, 97-percent vote to secede from Ukraine. Within hours, the Crimean parliament formally asked that Russia "admit the Republic of Crimea as a new subject with the status of a republic". Putin will on Tuesday address a special joint session of Russia's State Duma, or parliament, which could take a decision on annexation of the majority ethnic-Russian region. Full Story | Top |
| Warmest winter on record worsens California drought Monday, Mar 17, 2014 06:28 PM PDT By Laila Kearney SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California is coming off of its warmest winter on record, aggravating an enduring drought in the most populous U.S. state, federal weather scientists said Monday. The state had a average temperature of 48 Fahrenheit (9 Celsius) for December, January and February, an increase from 47.2 F in 1980-81, the last hottest winter, and more than 4 degrees hotter than the 20th-century average in California, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in a statement. Warmer winters could make the already parched state even drier by making it less likely for snow to accumulate in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, NOAA spokesman Brady Phillips said. "Winter is when states like California amass their main water budget, when snowpack is building," said Phillips, a marine biologist. Full Story | Top |
| Malaysian jet probe looks at suicide as possible motive Monday, Mar 17, 2014 06:22 PM PDT  No trace of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 has been found since it vanished on March 8 with 239 people aboard. A search of unprecedented scale involving 26 countries is under way, covering an area stretching from the shores of the Caspian Sea in the north to deep in the southern Indian Ocean. Airline chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya also told a news conference on Monday that it was unclear exactly when one of the plane's automatic tracking systems had been disabled, appearing to contradict comments by government ministers at the weekend. Suspicions of hijacking or sabotage had hardened further when officials said on Sunday that the last radio message from the plane - an informal "all right, good night" - was spoken after the tracking system, known as "ACARS", was shut down. Full Story | Top |
| Japan to impose sanctions on Russia for Crimea move Monday, Mar 17, 2014 06:14 PM PDT TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan will suspend talks on investment pact and relaxation of visa requirements as part of sanctions against Russia after Moscow recognized Crimea as a sovereign state, top government spokesman said on Tuesday. "Japanese government does not recognize a referendum in Crimea," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said, adding that the referendum had no legal force as it was in breach of Ukraine's constitution. "The recognition of Crimean independence by Russia violates Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and is regrettable," he told a regular news conference. ... Full Story | Top |
| Amnesty accuses Cyprus of holding refugees in prison conditions Monday, Mar 17, 2014 05:04 PM PDT Cyprus routinely detains asylum seekers and refugees in prison-like conditions, sometimes breaking European Union law by holding them for more than an 18-month maximum, Amnesty International said on Monday. While Cyprus is not one of the main routes for migrants to reach Europe, thousands do enter the island each year and Amnesty accused the government of using detention as a way of discouraging the flow. "By detaining scores of people for months at a time, Cyprus is displaying a chilling lack of compassion and a complete disregard for its international obligations," said Sherif Elsayed-Ali, head of refugee and migrants' rights at Amnesty. "It is incomprehensible that the Cypriot authorities are detaining Syrian nationals ... when it is Cyprus' official policy not to return Syrians to Syria," Elsayed-Ali said. Full Story | Top |
| Azerbaijan sentences opposition leaders as crackdown on critics eyed Monday, Mar 17, 2014 04:12 PM PDT By Nailia Bagirova Margarita Antidze BAKU (Reuters) - Azerbaijan sentenced the deputy head of the biggest opposition party and the leader of a human rights group to prison terms, a court spokesman said on Monday, in a case that critics say highlights a government-led crackdown in the oil-rich country. Azerbaijan, a largely Muslim former Soviet republic in the South Caucasus, serves as a transit route for U.S. troops in Afghanistan as well as the source of energy supplies destined to Europe. The country is governed by strongman Ilham Aliyev, whose rule is often lambasted by international rights organizations for curbing public dissent and freedom of speech. Tofig Yagublu, deputy head of the opposition Musavat Party, and Ilgar Mammadov, leader of the rights group Republican Alternative (ReAl), were sentenced to five years and seven years, respectively, according to the court spokesman. Full Story | Top |
| Iran, six powers seek nuclear progress in shadow of Ukraine crisis Monday, Mar 17, 2014 04:09 PM PDT  By Fredrik Dahl and Parisa Hafezi VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran and six world powers will try to make headway toward resolving their nuclear dispute in talks starting in Vienna on Tuesday, with Western officials hoping the uphill challenge will not be made even more difficult by the Ukraine crisis. So far, diplomats say, there is little sign that the worst East-West confrontation since the Cold War will undermine the quest for a deal to end the long standoff over Iran's atomic activity and avert the threat of a Middle East war. ... Full Story | Top |
| Analysis points to China's work on new anti-satellite weapon Monday, Mar 17, 2014 03:07 PM PDT By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A detailed analysis of satellite imagery published Monday provides additional evidence that a Chinese rocket launch in May 2013 billed as a research mission was actually a test of a new anti-satellite weapon based on a road-mobile ballistic missile. Brian Weeden, a former U.S. Air Force space analyst, published a 47-page analysis on the website of The Space Review, which he said showed that China appears to be testing a kinetic interceptor launched by a new rocket that could reach geostationary orbit about 36,000 km (22,500 miles) above the earth. "If true, this would represent a significant development in China's anti-satellite (ASAT) capabilities," wrote Weeden, now a technical adviser for Secure World Foundation, a Colorado-based nonprofit focused on secure and peaceful uses of outer space. "No other country has tested a direct ascent ASAT weapon system that has the potential to reach deep space satellites in medium earth orbit, highly elliptical orbit or geostationary orbit," he wrote, referring to orbital paths that are above 2,000 km (1,250 miles) over the earth. Full Story | Top |
| Despite scandal, Indonesia election could entrench political dynasties Monday, Mar 17, 2014 02:13 PM PDT  By Andrew R.C. Marshall MAKASSAR, Indonesia (Reuters) - Makassar is a scrappy, traffic-choked port city in South Sulawesi where everybody knows your name. The family of Syahrul Yasin Limpo, the second-term governor of this resource-rich Indonesian province, has dominated local politics for three generations, and a fourth waits in the wings. Eight of Limpo's close relatives will run in the country's parliamentary elections on April 9: two sisters, one brother, two brothers-in-law, two nephews and a daughter. It all adds up to a formidable dynasty in a country where political families are both increasingly common and dogged by allegations of corruption, neglect and misrule. Full Story | Top |
| Alberta government shaken by defections as popularity fades Monday, Mar 17, 2014 02:08 PM PDT  By Scott Haggett CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Alberta's Progressive Conservative government, which has run the oil-rich Canadian province for more than four decades, suffered another defection on Monday in what was the latest protest against the leadership of Premier Alison Redford. Donna Kennedy-Glans, a junior member of Redford's cabinet, said on Monday she would resign as associate minister for electricity and renewable energy and sit as an independent in the provincial legislature. "Since being elected ... and particularly since joining cabinet, I am increasingly convinced that elements of this 43-year-old government are simply unable to make the changes needed to achieve that dream of a better Alberta," Kennedy-Glans said in a statement. The resignation is the second from the Progressive Conservative caucus in less than a week. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. forces seize tanker carrying oil from Libya rebel port Monday, Mar 17, 2014 01:53 PM PDT  By Ulf Laessing and Feras Bosalum TRIPOLI (Reuters) - U.S. special forces have seized a tanker that fled with a cargo of oil from a Libyan port controlled by anti-government rebels, halting their attempt to sell crude on the global market. Gunmen demanding regional autonomy and a share of oil wealth had managed to load the ship, which escaped Libya's navy and triggered a crisis that prompted parliament to sack the prime minister. A U.S. SEAL commando team boarded the tanker Morning Glory from a Naval special warfare rigid inflatable boat as it sat in international waters off Cyprus on Sunday night. The seizure was approved by U.S. President Barack Obama and requested by the Libyan and Cypriot governments, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said. Full Story | Top |
| Malaysian airplane investigators look at suicide as possible motive Monday, Mar 17, 2014 01:34 PM PDT No trace of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 has been found since it vanished on March 8 with 239 people aboard. A search unprecedented in its scale is now under way for the plane, covering an area stretching from the shores of the Caspian Sea in the north to deep in the southern Indian Ocean. Airline chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya also told a news conference that it was unclear exactly when one of the plane's automatic tracking systems had been disabled, appearing to contradict the weekend comments of government ministers. Suspicions of hijacking or sabotage had hardened further when officials said on Sunday that the last radio message from the plane - an informal "all right, good night" - was spoken after the tracking system, known as "ACARS", was shut down. Full Story | Top |
| EU adopts Russia sanctions as Crimea crisis deepens Monday, Mar 17, 2014 12:33 PM PDT By Adrian Croft and Justyna Pawlak BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union took a cautious approach to imposing sanctions against Moscow on Monday, targeting 21 people in Russia and Crimea while leaving open the possibility of adding harsher economic measures when EU leaders meet later this week. Those targeted include Russian legislators and military commanders as well as politicians responsible for calling for and organizing Sunday's referendum in Crimea, when 97 percent of voters decided the region should secede from Ukraine and join Russia. "Any further steps by the Russian Federation to destabilize the situation in Ukraine would lead to additional and far-reaching consequences for relations in a broad range of economic areas," EU foreign ministers said in a statement after meeting in Brussels. Of the 21 people targeted with EU travel bans and asset freezes, 10 were Russian politicians, three were military officials and eight were Ukrainians, mostly from Crimea. Full Story | Top |
| Losses mount as South Africa faces biggest post-apartheid mine strike Monday, Mar 17, 2014 12:14 PM PDT  By Ed Stoddard and Zandi Shabalala JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - With no end in sight, South Africa's platinum strike is set to become the biggest single stoppage to hit the country's mining sector since the end of apartheid in 1994, and now threatens the viability of an industry already in deep trouble. Revenue and production losses look sure to top those experienced in 2012, when a wave of rolling, wildcat strikes pushed Anglo American Platinum into the red and forced Lonmin into a rights issue to shore up its finances. Entering its eighth week, the wage strike by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) against the world's top three platinum producers - Amplats, Lonmin and Impala Platinum - is likely to drag on for several more weeks, with both sides poles apart and neither blinking. As costs mount, the sheer scale of the strike is also an unwelcome development for President Jacob Zuma and the ruling African National Congress, with a general election on May 7. Full Story | Top |
| Italian judge rejects Indian bid to recover helicopter deal guarantees Monday, Mar 17, 2014 12:04 PM PDT  An Italian judge has rejected a request by India to recover more than 278 million euros ($387 million) in bank guarantees backing a scrapped helicopter deal with Finmeccanica, the Italian defense group said on Monday. India canceled the 560 million-euro order with Finmeccanica unit AgustaWestland for 12 top-end helicopters in January, citing a breach of integrity relating to alleged corruption. The ruling by a Milan court in favor of AgustaWestland, which is represented by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, confirms a temporary freeze decided by the same court in January. "The Milan court has confirmed the ruling made last January, prohibiting... the payment of collateral of more than 278 million euros deposited in relation to the contract," Finmeccanica said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
| Moscow wins overwhelming Crimea vote, West readies sanctions Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:54 AM PDT By Mike Collett-White and Alastair Macdonald SIMFEROPOL/KIEV (Reuters) - Crimea's Moscow-backed leaders declared a 96-percent vote in favor of quitting Ukraine and annexation by Russia in a referendum Western powers said was illegal and will bring immediate sanctions. As state media in Russia carried a startling reminder of its power to turn the United States to "radioactive ash", President Barack Obama spoke to Vladimir Putin, telling the Russian president that he and his European allies were ready to impose "additional costs" on Moscow for violating Ukraine's territory. The Kremlin and the White House issued statements saying Obama and Putin saw diplomatic options to resolve what is the gravest crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War. But Obama said Russian forces must first end "incursions" into its ex-Soviet neighbor while Putin renewed his accusation that the new leadership in Kiev, brought to power by an uprising last month against his elected Ukrainian ally, were failing to protect Russian-speakers from violent Ukrainian nationalists. Full Story | Top |
| Car bombs kill at least eight at Libya army academy in Benghazi Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:53 AM PDT  By Ayman al-Warfalli BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - A powerful car bomb attack targeted a military academy in Libya's eastern of city of Benghazi on Monday, killing at least eight people and wounding more than a dozen, hospital and security officials said. Instability in the eastern city is part of the struggle a weak central government faces in controlling armed groups, militias and brigades of former rebels who once battled Muammar Gaddafi and now refuse to disarm. A first bomb exploded at the front gate of the academy as soldiers were leaving a graduation ceremony, security officials said. In a separate explosion hours later in Benghazi, one person was killed when another car bomb went off near the state oil firm Brega Petroleum Marketing Co, which sells fuel products inside Libya, a security source said. Full Story | Top |
| Putin signs decree recognizing Crimea as sovereign state Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:39 AM PDT  President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday recognizing Crimea as a sovereign state after the Ukrainian region declared itself independent and applied to join Russia following a weekend referendum. The decree, which took effect immediately, says Moscow recognition of Crimea as independent is based on "the will of the people of Crimea". Crimea's leaders declared a Soviet-style 97-percent result in favor of seceding from Ukraine in a vote condemned as illegal by Kiev and the West. The Crimean parliament formally proposed that Russia "admit the Republic of Crimea as a new subject with the status of a republic". Full Story | Top |
| Iran says it foiled sabotage attempt on Arak reactor Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:12 AM PDT  Pumps at Iran's planned Arak reactor, seen by the West as a potential source of plutonium for nuclear bombs, were tampered with in a failed attempt to sabotage the country's nuclear program, a senior official said on Monday. Asghar Zarean, deputy chief for nuclear protection and security at the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, said the incident was one of several such attacks foiled over the past few months, the official IRNA news agency reported. Iran has in the past often accused its Western and Israeli foes of seeking to sabotage its nuclear program, which Tehran says is peaceful but the United States and its allies fear may be aimed at developing a nuclear weapons capability. But this was believed to be the first time Iran has made sabotage suspicions public since a major thaw in ties with the West after a relative moderate, Hassan Rouhani, was elected president last June on a platform to ease Tehran's isolation. Full Story | Top |
| Canada says imposing more sanctions on Russian/Crimean officials Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:06 AM PDT Canada will impose further sanctions on Russian and Crimean officials as the result of "the illegal, dangerous and unilateral actions of the Putin regime in Crimea over the weekend," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Monday. "Today, once again, the government will be announcing and is announcing more economic sanctions and travel restrictions on various senior people in Russia and Ukraine, in Crimea specifically," he told reporters as he met Ukraine's ambassador ahead of Harper's planned visit to Kiev on March 22. Full Story | Top |
| Merkel says Russian sanctions decision "not taken lightly" Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:02 AM PDT BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that Europe had shown great unity on the Ukraine crisis but it had not been an easy decision to impose sanctions on Russia for a referendum in occupied Crimea and its refusal to talk to the government in Kiev. "It was a decision that nobody took lightly," she told a joint news conference with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. "It wasn't our aim. ... Full Story | Top |
| Planning could hold key to disappearance of Flight MH370 Monday, Mar 17, 2014 11:01 AM PDT  By Siva Govindasamy and Tim Hepher KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Whether by accident or design, whoever reached across the dimly lit cockpit of a Malaysia Airlines jet and clicked off a transponder to make Flight MH370 vanish from controllers' radars flew into a navigational and technical black hole. Understanding the sequence that led to the unprecedented plane hunt widening across two vast tracts of territory north and south of the Equator is key to grasping the motives of what Malaysian authorities suspect was hijacking or sabotage. By signing off from Malaysian airspace at 1.19 a.m. on March 8 with a casual "all right, good night," rather than the crisp radio drill advocated in pilot training, a person now believed to be the co-pilot gave no hint of anything unusual. Two minutes later, at 1.21 a.m. local time, the transponder - a device identifying jets to ground controllers - was turned off in a move that experts say could reveal a careful sequence. Full Story | Top |
| China rejects North Korean crimes report, hits chance of prosecution Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:47 AM PDT  By Tom Miles and Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - China dismissed on Monday a U.N. report alleging North Korea has committed crimes against humanity, effectively confirming the fears of human rights advocates that Beijing will shield its ally from international prosecution. The report, published in February, accused the reclusive country of mass killings and torture comparable to Nazi-era atrocities and said officials, possibly even Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un himself, should face the International Criminal Court (ICC). Chen Chuandong, a counsellor at China's mission in Geneva, told the U.N. Human Rights Council that the independent commission of inquiry had made unfounded accusations and recommendations that were "divorced from reality". Full Story | Top |
| Merkel says impressed by reforms in Italy Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:45 AM PDT  BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced strong support on Monday for economic reforms unveiled by new Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, saying his course struck the right balance between growth and stability. "I have been very impressed. We are seeing a structural change in Italy," Merkel told reporters in Berlin at a joint news conference with Renzi. "For me it is also clear that Italy is adhering to the Stability and Growth Pact, with both of its components: growth and employment, and on the other hand stability and a recognition of the fiscal compact. ... Full Story | Top |
| White House does not rule out future sanctions on Russia's Putin Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:44 AM PDT The Obama administration does not rule out any Russian officials as possible future targets for U.S. sanctions over the Ukraine crisis, a White House spokesman said on Monday when asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin could later be subject to punitive measures. "The authority exists to apply sanctions to a variety of individuals and entities," White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters. "We're not going to rule out individuals or rule out actions." Putin himself was not named among the group of 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials, including several of his aides, who were slapped with sanctions on Monday for Russia's military incursion in Ukraine's Crimea region. "The people around him... have a great deal of influence in Russia and the actions of the Russian government," Carney said. Full Story | Top |
| Iran seeks banned nuclear items, uses China trader for missile parts: U.S. Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:35 AM PDT By William Maclean DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran has pursued a longstanding effort to buy banned components for its nuclear and missile programs in recent months, a U.S. official said, a period when it struck an interim deal with major powers to limit its disputed atomic activity. Vann Van Diepen, principal deputy assistant secretary of state for international security and non-proliferation, added that a Chinese businessman indicted in the United States in 2009 over sales of missile parts to Iran continued to supply such items despite U.S. pressure on China to tighten export controls. Reuters was unable to reach the Chinese businessman, identified as Li Fangwei and also known as Karl Lee, for comment, as the mobile phone he previously used appeared to be out of service despite numerous calls made to it. Contacted by Reuters on Feb 4, 2013, for an earlier story about his business, Li said he continued to get commercial inquiries from Iran but only for legitimate merchandise. Full Story | Top |
| BBC apologises to university for undercover trip to North Korea Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:30 AM PDT  By Julia Fioretti LONDON (Reuters) - The BBC apologised on Monday to a leading British university for sending two undercover reporters to accompany an academic trip to North Korea, after an internal investigation found that it had failed to inform students of the potential risks. The publicly funded BBC joined the trip to North Korea for students and post-graduates of the London School of Economics (LSE) in March 2013. Two undercover journalists - including the respected reporter John Sweeney - attached themselves to the group to gain access to the secretive state and film a documentary for Panorama, a current affairs programme. The university said the students had been told "a journalist" would accompany them, but it had not been made clear the BBC's aim was to use the visit to secretly record footage for Panorama, a current affairs programme. Full Story | Top |
| Factbox: The 11 Russians and Ukrainians facing U.S. sanctions Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:10 AM PDT U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday imposed sanctions on 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials blamed for Russian forces' seizure of Ukraine's Crimea region, which has voted to join Russia. VIKTOR YANUKOVICH, DEPOSED PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE Yanukovich, 63, was ousted as president on February 22, one day after concluding an agreement with his political opponents in Ukraine that set out plans to hold an early presidential election and form a national unity government. He is now wanted for mass murder in Ukraine, following clashes in Kiev between police and protesters in which about 100 people were killed. Ukraine's new prime minister said loans worth $37 billion went missing from state coffers during his rule and a luxury residence which was opened to the public after he fled the country shocked the population with its extravagance. Full Story | Top |
| Cubans fret as government prepares currency unification Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:09 AM PDT By Rosa Tania Valdes HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba is laying plans to move to a single currency, a reform that many feel is one of the toughest challenges facing President Raul Castro as he tries to kick-start the Communist country's moribund economy. For years Cuba has had two currencies -- the peso (CUP), in which most wages are paid and local goods priced, and the convertible peso (CUC), used in tourism, foreign trade and some stores carrying imported goods. The peso, says the government, will remain and the CUC will become history. News this month that state companies were ordered to prepare for unification and that personnel are being trained for what the government dubs "Day Zero" has added to the worry. Full Story | Top |
| Russian upper house speaker calls U.S. sanctions 'political blackmail' Monday, Mar 17, 2014 10:07 AM PDT The speaker of Russia's upper house of parliament on Monday denounced as "political blackmail" U.S. sanctions imposed by the White House on her and 10 other Russian and Ukrainian officials over Moscow's takeover of Crimea. "This is an unprecedented decision. Such a thing was unheard of even during the Cold War," Valentina Matviyenko, 64, Russia's leading female politician and its third highest-ranking figure, told the Interfax news agency. "This is political blackmail," Matviyenko said, adding that the sanctions would not hurt her as she said she held "no accounts and no property abroad." (Reporting by Alissa de Carbonnel; Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine to sign political aspects of EU pact on Friday Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:56 AM PDT Ukraine will sign an agreement on closer political cooperation with the European Union on Friday, leaving the signature of a more far-reaching trade accord for later, the EU said on Monday. EU foreign ministers said in a statement after meeting in Brussels that they looked forward to the signing of the political provisions of the so-called association agreement that Ukraine had negotiated with the 28-nation EU, on March 21. An EU official said it was not yet known if Ukraine's interim prime minister, Arseny Yatseniuk, or another Ukrainian official would sign. Pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich turned his back on signing the association agreement in favor of closer ties with Moscow last November, prompting months of street protests that eventually led to his fleeing the country. Full Story | Top |
| Ex-mafioso wins British battle against extradition to Italy Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:52 AM PDT  By Julia Fioretti LONDON (Reuters) - A fugitive Sicilian mafioso arrested in Britain last year after living a quiet suburban life under an alias for two decades won a battle against extradition on Monday when the court found that Italy's prison overcrowding could breach his human rights. Domenico Rancadore, 65, came to Britain in 1994, cutting all contact with his family in Italy and establishing himself as "Marc Skinner" in Uxbridge, west London, where he lived undetected for over 20 years with his wife and two children. After being tried in his absence in Italy, he was sentenced to seven years in prison for mafia-type criminal association between 1987 and 1995. Rancadore's life under the radar came to an end when he was arrested at his London home last August. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine will never accept Crimea annexation-acting president Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:45 AM PDT Ukraine's acting president on Monday said Kiev was ready for talks with Russia on Moscow's takeover of Crimea, but it would never accept annexation of the peninsula. "We are ready for talks, but will never be reconciled with the annexation of our territory," Oleksander Turchinov said in a televised address to the nation. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry earlier rejected a Russian proposal to create a contact group to mediate in the crisis and suggest changes to Ukraine's constitution. In his address, Turchinov also said that any actions inciting mass disorder in Ukraine would been viewed as "abetting the military aggressor and a crime against the state". Full Story | Top |
| Winter storm blasts U.S. mid-Atlantic days before spring Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:31 AM PDT A late winter storm landed a final punch on the U.S. mid-Atlantic states on Monday, dumping more than a foot of snow in some places, shutting schools and federal offices and cancelling flights. No change in the cold weather in the eastern United States is likely for the next week, said meteorologist Brian Korty of the National Weather Service. He said a few snow flurries would linger until the afternoon, but the storm that hit Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and southern New Jersey had largely moved out to sea. The storm dumped 7 inches of snow on Washington, the second-heaviest snowfall the capital has recorded this late in the season, Korty said. Full Story | Top |
| Top Ahmadinejad aide indicted amid Iran graft case Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:31 AM PDT  Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's top aide has been indicted, apparently in connection with allegations of corruption in the previous administration, Iranian media reported on Monday. Former Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi has been the target of a lengthy judicial investigation into his possible role in several high-profile bribery and embezzlement cases that also spill into Turkey, as well as Central and East Asia. Rahimi has denied all the accusations and last year, while still in office, he said he would "volunteer to have my hands severed if even one of these charges is proved against me". Mohsen Eftekhari, a Tehran judge, told Shargh newspaper that Rahimi had been indicted and that his case would be referred to a special court. Full Story | Top |
| Russia proposes international 'support group' on Ukraine Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:22 AM PDT Russia proposed on Monday creating an international "support group" to mediate in the Ukraine crisis but outlined terms that Kiev said were absolutely unacceptable and the West is unlikely to welcome. In response to Western calls for what it terms a "contact group", Russia's Foreign Ministry suggested the "support group" could push for Ukraine to recognize the outcome of a referendum in which the Crimea region voted to join Russia. Full Story | Top |
| Tanker with oil from rebel port returning to Libya: government Monday, Mar 17, 2014 09:20 AM PDT TRIPOLI (Reuters) - A tanker that loaded oil at a Libyan rebel port is on its way back to Libya after U.S. Navy forces seized it, the Libyan government said on Monday. The crew is safe and would be dealt with in line with Libyan and international law, the government said in a statement, thanking the United States and Cyprus for their efforts to secure the tanker. (Reporting by Feras Bosalum and Ulf Laessing; editing by Jason Neely) Full Story | Top |
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