United Nations, United States | AFP | The United Nations Security Council on Saturday said it hoped a week-long delay in DR Congo’s election will allow Congolese “to express themselves freely” during the ballot. Presidential, legislative and provincial elections had been scheduled for Sunday in the vast, volatile African country, …
Read More »UN fails to reach deal on budget shortfall as US funding dips
United Nations, United States | AFP | United Nations member states failed to come up with a deal Friday to make up for a $220 million budget black hole left by the United States downsizing its contribution to peacekeeping operations, diplomats said. The United States had paid around 28 percent …
Read More »EAC Burundi crisis summit postponed again
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | An East African summit scheduled for December 27 to help broker an end to Burundi’s political crisis has been postponed for a second time, according to a regional bloc organising the talks. Burundi has been caught up in crisis since President Pierre Nkurunziza sought a …
Read More »N. Korea says denuclearisation depends on removal of US threat
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korea said Thursday its commitment to denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula was bound up with a “complete removal of US nuclear threats”. Following a rapid diplomatic rapprochement this year, the North’s leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump signed a vaguely-worded statement …
Read More »US approves $3.5 billion Patriot missile sale to Turkey
Washington, United States | AFP | The United States said Wednesday it approved the sale of $3.5 billion in missiles to Turkey, offering an ultimatum after US outrage over the NATO ally’s plans to buy from Russia. The announcement came as President Donald Trump said that US forces would withdraw …
Read More »Ethiopian Airlines reopens Moscow route after 27 years
ethip Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | Ethiopian Airlines on Monday resumed flights to Moscow after a gap of 27 years stretching back to the demise of the Soviet Union, which saw relations with Moscow dive. “Moscow is a vital addition to our European service, a very important region. It’s …
Read More »France ‘the sick man of Europe’: Polish foreign minister
Warsaw, Poland | AFP | France is “the sick man of Europe” and its problems are hurting the region, Poland’s foreign minister said Monday, citing the “yellow vests” protest movement and last week’s jihadist attack. “France is the sick man of Europe, it is a drag on Europe while Poland …
Read More »Sudan’s Bashir visits Damascus, meets Assad: Syrian presidency
Damascus, Syria | AFP | Sudan’s President Omar al-Bachir visited Damascus on Sunday, the Syrian presidency said, in his first such visit to the war-torn country since the start of the conflict. “President Omar Hassan al-Bashir… arrived this afternoon on a visit to the Syrian Arab Republic,” the presidency said. …
Read More »Ottawa’s envoy in China meets with second detained Canadian
Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Ottawa’s ambassador to Beijing has met with the second Canadian detained in China on suspicion of threatening national security, Canada’s foreign ministry said Sunday. The ministry said Ambassador John McCallum had met with Michael Spavor, a business consultant, two days after meeting with another detained …
Read More »US calls for ‘immediate’ dialogue over Cameroon conflict
United Nations, United States | AFP | The United States on Thursday called for “immediate and broad-based reconciliatory dialogue” in between Cameroon’s government and separatists, urging talks “without pre-conditions.” “We urge all sides to forswear violence, to restore peace, and to resolve their grievances through political dialogue,” said Jonathan Cohen, …
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