Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday angrily lashed out at NATO, accusing the Western military alliance of failing to back Turkey’s campaign against Kurdish militia in Syria. Erdogan’s latest comments were among the toughest he has directed in recent times against NATO, which Turkey joined …
Read More »US concerns over EU defence pact cloud NATO talks
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | NATO defence ministers gathered for talks Wednesday amid US concerns over the EU’s landmark defence cooperation pact and increasingly strained relations between Washington and Turkey. Washington and Ankara, two of the transatlantic alliance’s most important members, are at loggerheads over Turkey’s military offensive in northern …
Read More »NATO warns N.Korea military action would have ‘devastating consequences’
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Military intervention against North Korea would have “devastating consequences”, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned Friday, after US President Donald Trump said diplomatic efforts had failed. Tensions over North Korea’s weapons programmes have soared in recent months, with Pyongyang launching a flurry of missiles and conducting its …
Read More »Russia launches war games on NATO’s eastern flank
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia On Thursday began major joint military exercises with Belarus along the European Union’s eastern flank — a show of strength that has rattled nervous NATO members. Named Zapad-2017 (West-2017), the manoeuvres, scheduled to last until September 20, are taking place on the territory of …
Read More »Alarming West, Turkey nudges closer to Russia arms deal
Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Turkey and Russia are inching towards an accord for the first major Turkish weapons purchase from Moscow, troubling Ankara’s allies in NATO even though the deal may not ultimately materialise. According to Turkish and Russian officials, all preparations have been made for the purchase of a …
Read More »Juncker says Europe can no longer ‘outsource’ protection
Prague, Czech Republic | AFP | Europe has to take care of its defence given the shift in US policy, European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker said Friday, promoting a hefty defence fund announced by Brussels. “The protection of Europe can no longer be outsourced,” Juncker told a defence conference in …
Read More »Trump moderates tone on first foreign trip
US President Donald Trump dropped his hardline rhetoric against Muslims as took his first foreign trip making stopovers in Saudi Arabia, Israel, Palestine, Italy and Belgium. While giving a speech in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Trump urged various leaders attending the summit to drive extremists out of the earth saying the …
Read More »Russia seeks ‘post-West’ order as US vows loyalty to allies
Munich, Germany | AFP | Russia Saturday called for an end to what it said was an outdated world order dominated by the West after US Vice President Mike Pence pledged Washington’s “unwavering” commitment to transatlantic allies in NATO. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov offered a diametrically opposed global vision, …
Read More »COMMENT: Hoping for the best against trump
COMMENT: By Ian Buruma His election is more like an earthquake, unleashing forces no one can control Is there any reason for liberals to feel optimistic after a year of political disasters? Is there even a shred of silver lining to be found in the tatters of , Donald Trump’s …
Read More »COMMENT: Gambia, Jammeh and looming ECOWAS intervention
COMMENT: By Abdulhamid Manzil How to deal with a country divided between two polarized, mutually dissenting political groups A showdown awaits the world after January 19 when President Yahaya Jammeh of The Gambia’s term is expected to end. Regional block ECOWAS, through its plain-speaking Commission President Marcel Alain de Souza, …
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