| EU seeks peace as Ukraine death toll hits 75 Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:28 PM PST  By Richard Balmforth and Alessandra Prentice KIEV (Reuters) - European Union ministers sought to broker a political settlement in Ukraine after gun battles between police and anti-government protesters brought the death toll to 75 in two days of the worst violence in the country since Soviet times. Three hours of fierce fighting in Kiev's Independence Square, which was recaptured by the protesters, left the bodies of over 20 civilians strewn on the ground, a short distance from where President Viktor Yanukovich was meeting the EU delegation. The ministers, from Germany, France and Poland, embarked on "a night of difficult negotiations" with Yanukovich and the opposition, said EU officials who hoped a plan for an interim government and early elections could bring peace.
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| U.N. Security Council to vote on Syria aid resolution Saturday Posted: 20 Feb 2014 02:30 PM PST  By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council will vote on Saturday on a resolution to boost humanitarian aid access in Syria, where the United Nations says 9.3 million people need help, although it is unclear if Russia and China will support or veto the draft. Australian U.N. Ambassador Gary Quinlan, who co-authored the text with envoys from Jordan and Luxembourg, told reporters the vote would be held at 11 a.m. (1600 GMT) on Saturday. Russia, supported by China, has shielded its ally Syria on the U.N. Security Council during the three-year-long civil war.
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| Venezuela protests rumble as demonstrators, troops face off Posted: 20 Feb 2014 02:52 PM PST By Andrew Cawthorne and Daniel Wallis CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan security forces and demonstrators faced off in streets blocked by burning barricades in several provincial cities on Thursday as protests escalated against President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government. The protesters, mostly students, want Maduro to resign, and blame his government for violent crime, high inflation, product shortages and alleged repression of opponents. Thursday's most serious unrest was in the western Andean states of Tachira and Merida, which have been especially volatile since hardline opposition leaders called supporters onto the streets in early February demanding Maduro's departure. In the city of San Cristobal, which some residents are describing as a "war zone", many businesses remained shut as students and police faced off again. |
| U.S. report says planned cuts to Afghan forces threaten stability Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:47 PM PST  Taliban insurgents will increasingly threaten Afghan stability after international forces withdraw in December, and Kabul will need more troops than currently envisioned to provide basic security, according to a new independent strategy review. The assessment, conducted by the Center for Naval Analyses and obtained by Reuters on Thursday, warned that plans to shrink the size of the Afghan National Security Force to 228,500 from the current 382,000 would put the U.S. policy of preventing the country from becoming a safe haven for extremists "at risk." "We recommend that the international community establish a new plan to fund and sustain the ANSF at an end strength of about 373,400, with a proportionally sized assistance mission (including advisers), through at least 2018," said the report by the center, part of a nonprofit research and analysis group. The 378-page CNA report, requested in a law passed by Congress, will pressure the legislature to consider additional support for Afghan forces for several more years, even as the Pentagon is facing huge cuts to its own budget.
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| World powers and Iran make 'good start' towards nuclear accord Posted: 20 Feb 2014 09:57 AM PST  By Justyna Pawlak and Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - Six world powers and Iran made a "good start" in talks in Vienna towards reaching a final settlement in the decade-old stand-off over Tehran's nuclear program, but conceded their plan to get a deal in the coming months was very ambitious. By late July, Western governments hope to hammer out an accord that would lay to rest their suspicions that Iran is seeking the capability to make a nuclear bomb, an aim it denies, while Tehran wants a lifting of economic sanctions. "We have had three very productive days during which we have identified all of the issues we need to address in reaching a comprehensive and final agreement," European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told reporters. Senior diplomats from the six nations, as well as Ashton and Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, will meet again on March 17, also in Vienna, and have a series of further discussions ahead of the July deadline.
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| Anti-Putin protesters face verdict after 'show trial' in Russia Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:05 PM PST  By Steve Gutterman MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian court is expected to jail eight anti-Kremlin protesters on Friday, sending a message that President Vladimir Putin will brook no challenge to his rule as Ukraine burns and casting a shadow over the final days of the Sochi Olympics. The mother of one of the defendants said the violence in Kiev, where an estimated 67 people have been killed in clashes between security forces and anti-government protesters since Tuesday, increased the chance of a harsh verdict in the trial. The eight defendants are charged with assaulting police during clashes at an anti-Putin rally on May 6, 2012, the day before he was sworn in for a third Kremlin term after weathering the biggest opposition unrest of his rule. Putin tacked back before the Olympics, a major prestige project, engineering the release of two women from Pussy Riot and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was widely seen as a political prisoner after more than 10 years in jail.
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| Dalai Lama appears at right-wing US think tank Posted: 20 Feb 2014 05:04 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — Smiling and in saffron robes, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Thursday brought a message of compassion and care for humanity to the free market mavens of a right-leaning Washington think tank.
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| Top Asian News at 1:00 a.m. GMT Posted: 20 Feb 2014 05:03 PM PST SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The first reunions of North and South Koreans in more than three years came too late for 90-year-old Seo Jeong-suk. She died in South Korea just 15 days ago. So the daughter she grew old with, Kim Yong-ja, could not reintroduce her to the one she had not seen in more than 60 years. Kim, 68, could only sob and hand her long-lost sister a framed photograph of Seo, according to South Korean media pool reports. |
| Obama to host Dalai Lama on Friday at White House Posted: 20 Feb 2014 05:01 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama will meet with Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Friday at the White House. |
| White House: No decision yet on Ukraine sanctions Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:50 PM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House expressed renewed outrage Thursday over the continuing deadly violence in Ukraine but had reached no decision on whether to impose sanctions. |
| Nadal into quarterfinals in Rio _ no back problems Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:48 PM PST RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Rafael Nadal showed no problems with his tender back as he marked the second match in his return from injury with a 6-1, 6-2 win over fellow Spaniard Albert Montanes to reach the quarterfinals of the Rio Open on Thursday. |
| MLS buys Chivas USA from Vergara and Fuentes Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:39 PM PST NEW YORK (AP) — The troubled tenure of Chivas USA's Mexican owners, Jorge Vergara and Angelica Fuentes, has ended with Major League Soccer purchasing the team. |
| Obama to meet Dalai Lama on Friday as U.S. urges talks with China Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:39 PM PST  President Barack Obama will meet exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama at the White House on Friday, a meeting that comes as the United States raises concerns about tensions and human rights in Tibetan areas of China. "We are concerned about continuing tensions and the deteriorating human rights situation in Tibetan areas of China," said Caitlin Hayden, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council.
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| Lagerfeld meme at Fendi, Katy Perry at Moschino Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:33 PM PST  MILAN (AP) — Miuccia Prada has created a fashion incarnation of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's "Lola," Karl Lagerfeld received an homage with a Fendi fur mini-me and Australian actress Rose Byrne was up with the early-morning fashion crowd to grab a front-row seat at Max Mara as Milan Fashion week offered its second day of womenswear previews for next fall and winter.
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| Top Asian News at 12:30 a.m. GMT Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:33 PM PST SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The first reunions of North and South Koreans in more than three years came too late for 90-year-old Seo Jeong-suk. She died in South Korea just 15 days ago. So the daughter she grew old with, Kim Yong-ja, could not reintroduce her to the one she had not seen in more than 60 years. Kim, 68, could only sob and hand her long-lost sister a framed photograph of Seo, according to South Korean media pool reports. |
| U.N. chief wants 3,000 more troops for Central African Republic Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:30 PM PST  By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday appealed to the international community to send an additional 3,000 troops and police to Central African Republic to combat worsening sectarian violence until a likely U.N. peacekeeping force is established. He told the U.N. Security Council he would shortly report to the 15-member body with a recommendation for a U.N. peacekeeping force with a robust mandate to protect civilians and promote stability in the landlocked former French colony. The people of the Central African Republic do not have months to wait," he said. "The international community must act decisively now." Ban proposed that an international force of African, French and European troops be increased by a third within weeks to 12,000 soldiers and police.
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| Scores killed in deadly Ukraine day of protest Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:29 PM PST  KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Protesters advanced on police lines in the heart of the Ukrainian capital on Thursday, prompting government snipers to shoot back and kill scores of people in the country's deadliest day since the breakup of the Soviet Union a quarter-century ago.
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| Biden tells Yanukovich that U.S. prepared to sanction officials over violence Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:25 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich in a phone call on Thursday that the United States is prepared to sanction officials responsible for violence against civilian protesters in Kiev, the White House said. "He called upon President Yanukovich to immediately pull back all security forces - police, snipers, military and paramilitary units, and irregular forces," the White House said in a statement. ... |
| Puerto Rico to monitor popular bioluminescent bay Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:21 PM PST SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico is building a water quality monitoring station to help protect a popular bioluminescent bay in the neighboring island of Vieques. |
| Consortium says Panama Canal work resumed Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:20 PM PST  PANAMA CITY (AP) — A European-led consortium says work has resumed on a major expansion of the canal, following a two-week shutdown caused by a dispute over who is to pay for $1.6 billion in cost overruns.
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| Greek financial crisis tied to worsening health Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:08 PM PST  LONDON (AP) — Researchers say they have found new evidence that Greece's financial crisis is taking a toll on the health of its citizens, including rising rates of HIV, tuberculosis, depression and even infant deaths.
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| Nigerian leader ousts reformist Central Bank chief Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:07 PM PST  LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria's president on Thursday ousted the Central Bank governor who exposed billions of missing petrodollars, a move critics say is a warning to whistleblowers in the run-up to a hotly contested presidential election in Africa's biggest oil producer.
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| US, Canada and Sweden, Finland to meet in semis Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:03 PM PST  SOCHI, Russia (AP) — For hockey fans, it should be a fantastic Friday.
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| Kiev protest violence kills scores Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:02 PM PST KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Protesters advanced on police lines in the heart of the Ukrainian capital on Thursday, prompting government snipers to shoot back and kill scores of people in the country's deadliest day since the breakup of the Soviet Union a quarter-century ago. |
| UN chief wants more troops to end C. Africa bloodshed Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:00 PM PST  United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called Thursday for the urgent deployment of at least 3,000 extra troops to the Central African Republic to protect civilians against the country's spiralling violence. Speaking before the UN Security Council, Ban appealed for more military forces to be sent "in the coming days or weeks" and asked that they be equipped "with air mobility." The Central African Republic, which has a long history of coups and rebellions since independence from France in 1960, has been gripped by turmoil since mostly Muslim rebels overthrew the government last March. French and African Union forces have struggled to restore security to the capital, Bangui, where they are based, let alone across the rest of the sprawling nation.
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| Venezuela opposition denounces 'brutal repression' Posted: 20 Feb 2014 04:00 PM PST  CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan opposition leaders condemned the government Thursday for its heavy-handed attempt to subdue a protest movement with nighttime sweeps that have turned many parts of the country into dangerous free-fire zones.
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| Drugs on Maersk ship where 2 ex-SEALs died Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:59 PM PST NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Drugs were in the room where two former Navy SEALs were found dead aboard the Maersk Alabama, a ship that was the focus of a 2009 hijacking dramatized in the movie "Captain Phillips," a company spokesman said Thursday. |
| Consortium resumes work on Panama Canal expansion Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:52 PM PST  By Lomi Kriel and Sonya Dowsett PANAMA CITY/MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish-led consortium resumed expansion work on the Panama Canal on Thursday, raising hopes the two sides will finally draw a line under an acrimonious stand-off over massive cost overruns. As workers returned to the construction site after a stoppage lasting more than two weeks, a source close to the consortium led by Spanish builder Sacyr and Italy's Salini Impregilo said it had resolved internal disagreements over the key issue of financing. "The restarting of the works is being done in a way that will enable it to reach full pace in the shortest time possible," the consortium said in a statement. A source close to negotiations between the consortium and the Panama Canal Authority confirmed that work had resumed.
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| Women's skicross racers brace for tough course Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:50 PM PST  KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — It almost sounds like a sightseeing tour through Moscow: Start with the Bolshoi, keep the speed up through Gorky Park, be careful around Red Square and cruise past the Kremlin.
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| New US study casts doubt on Afghan plan post-2014 Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:49 PM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — A new assessment of Afghanistan's future says the country could revert to a terrorist haven unless U.S. and international partners underwrite a larger, and more expensive, Afghan security force than is currently planned beyond 2014.
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| Mexico billionaire Carlos Slim tightens grip on America Movil Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:49 PM PST  Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, who already controls America Movil, tightened his grip slightly on Latin America's biggest phone company, according to a U.S. regulatory filing on Thursday that shows two companies controlled by Slim bought more shares. The purchases, made in November and December last year, come on top of a massive buyback effort by America Movil, whose share price has been under pressure since Mexico's government last year passed a reform plan that seeks to curb the company's dominance. Slim's real estate company Inmobiliaria Carso and his bank Grupo Financiero Inbursa spent $212.5 million and $34.7 million purchasing 187.11 million and 30.98 million shares respectively in America Movil, a document sent to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed. Slim, his three sons, three daughters and their controlled companies and foundations now own about 47.6 percent of America Movil's outstanding shares, up from 47.3 percent when the group made their last filing in November, according to a Reuters calculation.
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| Irish see chink in England's armour in front row Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:42 PM PST LONDON (AP) — In a tasty Twickenham clash, the pressure will be keenest on Cian Healy and his fellow Ireland front-rowers Rory Best and Mike Ross. |
| Haiti court says human rights charges can be brought against Duvalier Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:37 PM PST  By Amelie Baron PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - A Haitian appellate court on Thursday ruled that deposed dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier could be charged with crimes against humanity under international law and that he may also be held responsible for abuses committed by the army and paramilitary under his rule. The appellate court reversed a ruling by a judge in 2012 who said Duvalier could not be charged with crimes against humanity filed by alleged victims of forced disappearances and torture during his rule because the statute of limitations had run out. "Right has triumphed," said human rights lawyer Pierre Esperance. Haiti is not isolated and international right applies in the country.
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| Haiti court urges further probes on Duvalier trial Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:36 PM PST PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A Haitian appellate court called for further investigation into human rights abuses allegedly committed during the 15-year rule of former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier, creating an opportunity for the prosecution to submit more evidence and perhaps even launch a trial against him. |
| Canada eyes gold-medal double in Olympic curling Posted: 20 Feb 2014 03:34 PM PST  SOCHI, Russia (AP) — One down, one to go. Over to you, Brad.
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