Brussels, Belgium | AFP | The European Union is launching an interactive online map Friday to help businesses and officials steer through the jungle of international sanctions in force against regimes, organisations and individuals around the world. With around 30 to 40 international sanctions regimes in force against regimes such as …
Read More »Hand over Gulen for jailed pastor, Erdogan tells US
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the United States Thursday that Turkey could release a jailed American pastor if Washington handed over exiled Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen who Ankara blames for last year’s failed coup. The US pastor, Andrew Brunson, has been held by Turkish authorities …
Read More »Bashir says US sanctions caused immense hardship in Sudan
Khartoum, SUDAN | AFP | President Omar al-Bashir said on Thursday that Washington’s “unjust” trade embargo on Sudan had weakened the African country and caused immense hardship for its people. His comments came just two weeks before US President Donald Trump is to decide whether to permanently lift the embargo that …
Read More »Putin heads to Turkey for talks on weapons deal, Syria
Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday meets his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for talks on Syria and a key weapons deal, hoping to strengthen an increasingly active relationship that has troubled the West. Despite a regional rivalry that goes back to the Ottoman Empire and …
Read More »US commerce secretary in Beijing ahead of Trump trip
Beijing, China | AFP | The visiting US commerce secretary told China’s premier on Monday that the warm reception he received in Beijing “augurs very well” for Donald Trump’s upcoming visit, amid tensions over trade and North Korea. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross met with Premier Li Keqiang at the headquarters of …
Read More »New US travel ban “psychological terrorism”: Venezuela
Caracas, Venezuela | AFP | Venezuela accused the United States on Monday of “psychological terrorism” designed to bring down the government after it was included in a list of eight countries targeted by a travel ban. “These types of lists….are incompatible with international law and constitute in themselves a form …
Read More »Full text of N. Korean leader’s message to Trump
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un Friday warned he would make US President Donald Trump “pay dearly” for threatening the destruction of his country at the United Nations. Here is the full text of his statement as published by the official KCNA news agency: “The speech …
Read More »UGANDA: US ambassador’s civil rights concerns misplaced
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda Government spokesman has said US Ambassador Deborah Malac’s concerns over freedom of expression in the country are misplaced. The US Mission issued a statement on Thursday morning stating that “The UnitedStates is deeply concerned that recent arrests and raids stifle the Ugandan people’s right to free expression and …
Read More »Trump says friends going to Africa to ‘get rich’
New York, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump hailed Africa’s business potential Wednesday, telling several leaders of African nations he has many friends going there to “get rich.” At a lunch with the leaders amid the UN General Assembly, Trump mused about the vast continent’s opportunities and …
Read More »Israel’s Netanyahu vows to fight ‘Iranian curtain’
United Nations, United States | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Tuesday to fight an “Iranian curtain” descending on the Middle East, pledging not to allow Tehran to establish a permanent presence in Syria. “From the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean, from Tehran to Tartus, an Iranian curtain is …
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