Month: September 2017

Speaking in Washington on Friday night after four days of testy and inconclusive talks in Brussels with EU negotiators, the British minister overseeing Brexit negotiations, David Davis, offered the admission that Britain is weighing whether to join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Such an arrangement could at least be temporary while Britain tries to …

Read more “After Deadlocked Brexit Talks, Britain Ponders Backdoor EU Membership”

A U.S. drone strike reportedly has killed a key al-Shabab commander in southern Somalia, officials tell VOA. Local sources said the strike on Friday targeted a vehicle in which several al-Shabab officials were traveling near Kunya Barrow village in the southern Somali region of Lower Shabelle. “I can confirm that the airstrike happened on Friday. …

Read more “Somali Officials: US Drone Attack Kills Top Militant Recruiter”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday summoned a United States diplomat to Moscow in order to formally protest the planned search of Russian compounds in America. In a statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it had summoned Anthony F. Godfrey, a deputy chief at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, over the planned “illegal inspection” of a …

Read more “Moscow Summons US Envoy Over Planned Search of Russian Diplomatic Compound”

The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the United Nations General Assembly later this month. …

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on September 2 that it has summoned a high-ranking U.S. diplomat in Moscow to hand him a note of protest over what it calls U.S. plans to conduct searches in Russia’s trade-mission complex in Washington, which should soon be closed. …

Eight children and four women — originating from Russia and Kazakhstan — who had been left behind in areas liberated from Islamic State (IS) militants have been flown out of Iraq and Syria and have arrived in Russia, Russian news agencies report. …

Ukraine says it will introduce new border-crossing rules from next year, affecting citizens of “countries that pose risks for Ukraine.” …

A convoy of Islamic State fighters and their families being evacuated into jihadist territory in east Syria remained in government-held areas of Syria on Friday, U.S.-led forces said. “It has not managed to link up with any other ISIS elements in eastern Syria,” said Colonel Ryan Dillon, spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State. …

Read more “US-led Coalition Keeps Monitoring IS Convoy in Syria”

Mysterious health attacks on the American diplomatic community in Cuba continued as recently as August, the United States said Friday, despite earlier U.S. assessments that the attacks had long stopped. The U.S. increased its tally of government personnel affected to 19. The new U.S. disclosures came the same day that the union representing American diplomats …

Read more “US: Diplomats Still Being Injured in Cuba”

The digital arms race between the United States and Russia appears to be accelerating, fueled in part by new comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin, speaking to a group of Russian students Friday, called artificial intelligence “not only Russia’s future” but “the future of the whole of mankind.” “The one who becomes the leader …

Read more “Russia Sees Artificial Intelligence as Key to World Domination”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that U.S. law enforcement officials intend to search its San Francisco Consulate and some diplomatic residences, as it complained the U.S. demands were posing a “direct threat” to its citizens. …

Vladimir Putin is widely expected to run for another term as president in the March election. The newspaper Vedomosti reports that the Kremlin is considering how a woman candidate might help increase turnout and give the vote more credibility. …

Ukraine says it will introduce new border-crossing rules from next year, affecting citizens of “countries that pose risks for Ukraine.” …

The U.S. Supreme Court stepped into Texas’ congressional redistricting debate this week, temporarily halting a lower court order to correct two districts found to be drawn with racially discriminatory intent. The Supreme Court’s stay is the latest turn in a contentious six-year battle over accusations of racially motivated redistricting in Texas. Given Texas’ sizable congressional …

Read more “Minority Votes Speak to Congressional Battle in Texas”

Pakistani officials say a roadside bomb has struck a vehicle carrying an anti-Taliban elder, killing him, his son, and another person. …

Floodwaters may be slowly receding in Houston, but many freeways and neighborhoods near dams and reservoirs are still under water. Many flood victims are staying in shelters. There are several mosques that have opened their doors to the larger community. The volunteers and temporary residents in one west Houston mosque learned something they didn’t expect. …

Read more “Houston Mosques Open Doors to Flood Victims”

Administration officials are defending the president’s proposal to cut federal emergency funds even as the southern state of Texas struggles with the aftermath of the worst flooding in its history. The White House said Thursday that adequate relief funds would be available for disasters under President Donald Trump’s proposal. The White House also announced that …

Read more “White House Defends Trump’s Proposal to Cut Disaster Relief Budget”