Dakar, Senegal | AFP | Qatar’s emir landed in Senegal on Wednesday at the start of a six-nation tour of West Africa as Doha seeks out new markets after Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries cut ties with the wealthy emirate. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani’s is expected to visit …
Read More »Putin, Trump discuss N Korea in phone call
Washington, United States | AFP | Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump discussed the crisis over North Korea’s nuclear program in a phone call Thursday, in which the US president took the unusual step of thanking his Russian counterpart for praising America’s economy. The two heads of state discussed “the situation in …
Read More »UN warns of cost if South Sudan stymies ‘last chance’ peace plan
United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN Security Council warned Thursday of “cost and consequences” for any side in South Sudan that blocks a new regional peace initiative set to open next week in Ethiopia. In a unanimous statement, the council said a high-level forum organized by the …
Read More »Don’t sleepwalk into war over N. Korea, warns UN boss
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | United Nations chief Antonio Guterres Thursday warned the world against “sleepwalking into war” over North Korea, as he called for diplomatic efforts to banish nuclear weapons from the Korean peninsula. Speaking on a visit to Japan, Secretary-General Guterres said: “The worst possible thing that could …
Read More »Palestinians have right to Jerusalem as capital: Saudi king
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Palestinians have the right to Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital, Saudi King Salman said Wednesday, echoing calls at an Islamic summit in Istanbul from which he had stayed away. “The kingdom has called for a political solution to resolve regional crises, foremost of which …
Read More »US sanctions Ugandan, Sudanese LRA ivory traders
Washington, United States | AFP | The United States on Wednesday imposed economic sanctions on two Africans accused of using the illegal ivory trade to funnel weapons and money to Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army. Washington blacklisted Kony and his rebel guerilla group last year, accusing them of …
Read More »Tillerson: My failure if US resorts to force on North Korea
Washington, United States | AFP | Secretary of State Rex Tillerson expressed confidence Tuesday that Washington is doing all it can to force North Korea to negotiate its nuclear disarmament. And he added that if diplomacy and sanctions fail and the US military is forced to take pre-emptive action, it will …
Read More »Putin calls for Mideast talks to resume, including on Jerusalem
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin called Monday for Israeli-Palestinian peace talks to resume, including on Jerusalem, following the controversial US decision to recognise the city as Israel’s capital. Speaking on state television during a visit to Egypt, Putin stressed the importance of “the immediate resumption of …
Read More »Cairo, Moscow sign contract for Egypt’s first nuclear plant
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Egypt and Russia signed a final contract on Monday for the building of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant, during a visit to Cairo by President Vladimir Putin. The contract to build the plant in Dabaa on the Mediterranean coast was signed during a live ceremony shown …
Read More »Qatar signs $8-bn deal to buy 24 Typhoon fighters from UK
Doha, Qatar | AFP | Qatar signed a multi-billion-dollar deal Sunday to buy 24 Typhoon fighters from Britain, its second major defence agreement this week, which comes during the worst political crisis in the region for years. The $8-billion (6.8-billion-euro) deal was signed in Doha by Qatar’s Defence Minister Khalid …
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