Section: Daily News & Analysis (India)
Three soldiers killed in restive east Ukraine
Three Ukrainian soldiers died when a mine exploded in the separatist-held east where isolated clashes continue to undermine a ceasefire aimed at ending a year-long war. Army spokesman Andriy Lysenko said today that “as a result of the explosion of an enemy mine … Three Ukrainian soldiers were killed, two injured” in the previous...
Russia’s Lavrov calls for pull-back of weapons in Ukraine
Both sides in the conflict in Ukraine could pull back weapons under 100 millimetres calibre from the front line in a bid to boost confidence in a ceasefire, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday. “It is necessary to monitor keeping mainly the military part of the Minsk agreements….There is a possibility to pull back...
Iran deal may vindicate Barack Obama’s view that diplomacy trumps force
Barack Obama ran for president in part on the proposition that it was time to end the United States’ wars abroad and find ways to resolve conflicts without force. Thursday’s interim nuclear deal with Iran was the biggest achievement so far of this “open-hand” diplomacy and may have helped secure a foreign policy legacy...
Iran, world powers reach initial deal on reining in Tehran’s nuclear programme
Iran and world powers reached a framework agreement on Thursday on curbing Iran’s nuclear programme for at least a decade, a step towards a final pact that could end 12 years of brinkmanship, threats and confrontation. The tentative agreement, after eight days of marathon talks in Switzerland, clears the way for negotiations on a settlement...
Operation Raahat: Evacuation of another batch of 300 Indians in Yemen underway
After the rescue of more than 350 Indians from Aden, another batch of over 300 will be evacuated from Al Hudaydah on Thursday through sea route even as government was making all efforts to get clearance for air sorties to bring back its nationals from Sanaa. INS Sumitra, which had evacuated 350 Indians from Aden on Tuesday night, was dispatched...
At least 56 killed as Russian trawler sinks in icy seas
A Russian trawler sank in icy seas off Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka peninsula on Thursday, killing at least 56 of the 132 crew, the emergencies ministry said on Thursday. Sixty-three people were rescued but 13 were still unaccounted for, hours after the Dalniy Vostok fishing vessel sank in the Sea of Okhotsk so quickly that its captain,...
US senators urge FIFA not to let Russia host 2018 World Cup
A group of US senators has written to the international soccer association FIFA, urging it to consider removing Russia as host of the 2018 FIFA World Cup because of its role in the Ukraine crisis and occupation of Crimea. In a letter dated Tuesday and released on Wednesday, the 13 Democratic and Republican US lawmakers said they “strongly...
Putin creates new agency to ‘unite Russian nation’
Russian President Vladimir Putin on today ordered the creation of a new government agency to oversee ethnic issues, according to an official decree. The proposed agency will “implement measures directed at fortifying the unity of… The Russian nation,” it said. It will also chalk out “preventive measures” against...
Ancient battle on UN Security Council ‘trigger’ bogs down Iran talks
It is one of those concepts that is particularly odious to Russia — an automatic trigger mechanism under which the UN Security Council would be forced to do something. Now a dispute over that issue threatens to wreck marathon negotiations on a preliminary political framework for a future comprehensive deal that would end the 12-year...
Lufthansa CEO faces tough test after Germanwings crash
After an already troubled first year as CEO of Lufthansa, Carsten Spohr must now deal with the aftermath of the Germanwings disaster whilst making the airline group fit to compete for the future. The crash in the French Alps, believed to have been deliberately caused by co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, happened while Lufthansa is trying to halt declining...
