Section: The Jakarta Post (Indonesia)
Ukraine parliament ratifies EU pact
Ukraine’s parliament ratified an agreement to deepen economic and political ties with the European Union on Tuesday, and passed legislation to grant autonomy to the rebellious east as part of a peace deal.The ratification vote draws a line under the issue that last year sparked Ukraine’s crisis, which resulted in the ousting of the...
3 killed, 5 wounded in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine
The city council in Donetsk says three people have been killed and five wounded in shelling overnight in the city in eastern Ukraine. In a statement published online Tuesday, the council said multiple residential buildings had been hit by shelling primarily in the north of the city, despite a shaky cease-fire between pro-Russian separatists and...
6 killed, 14 wounded in east Ukraine city
Shelling killed six people and wounded 15 others in rebel-held Donetsk, the city council reported Monday — the worst violation yet of the cease-fire between Russian-backed rebels and Ukrainian troops that took effect Sept. 5.Two northern neighborhoods were heavily shelled Sunday, leading to the casualties and damaging both residential and...
Asian stocks tumble on disappointing China data
Asian stocks tumbled Monday on weak Chinese economic data as investors looked ahead to a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting and Scotland’s independence referendum.KEEPING SCORE: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng sank 0.8 percent to 24,392.86 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.6 percent to 5,496.20. China’s Shanghai Composite Index shed...
Ukraine repels rebel attack on airport
Despite the cease-fire agreement, renewed fighting flared up Saturday in eastern Ukraine between pro-Russian rebels and government forces, while Moscow sent a second convoy of trucks into Ukraine without Kiev’s consent.Ukraine’s military operation said in a statement that it had successfully repelled a rebel attack on the...
Pope’s WWI tribute infused with personal ties
Pope Francis confronts a piece of his own family history on Saturday when he visits a World War I memorial built amid battlefields where his grandfather fought in a fierce Italian offensive against the Austro-Hungarian empire — surviving to impress upon the future pope the horrors of war. Francis’ aim in recalling those who died in the...
Dark clouds and silver linings in Asia
Asia faces growing tensions, economic slowdown and high poverty but also has reasons to be optimisticAsia generally is seeing rather dark clouds on the geopolitical, social, and economic horizons. This is the most critical moment in Asia for at least 30 years, but there are also a few reasons to be optimistic. Elusive peace Though the spectrum...
EU sanctions hit Russian oil majors, lawmakers
New European Union sanctions curbing access to western financial markets for some of Russia’s largest firms are targeting banks, arms manufacturers, the country’s leading oil company, Rosneft, as well as the crude subsidiary of its state-owned energy giant Gazprom.The measures published in the 28-nation bloc’s official journal...
Asia stocks muted; Tokyo edges up on yen slump
Asian stock markets struggled for direction on Friday after a mixed close on Wall Street. Japan’s benchmark edged higher as the yen plumbed a multiyear low and South Korean shares rising after policymakers held a key interest rate steady.KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s Nikkei 225 was 0.2 percent higher at 15,934.03, underpinned by the...
Ukraine, rebels exchange prisoners in peace deal
Government and rebel forces have exchanged dozens of prisoners captured during fighting in Ukraine as part of a cease-fire agreement sealed earlier this month.The transfer took place outside the main rebel stronghold of Donetsk early Saturday under the watch of international observers.President Petro Poroshenko says 36 Ukrainian servicemen were...
