Section: The Malaysian Insider (Malaysia)
Obama jokes, swigs beer with Bavarians at start of G7 trip
Joking that he wanted to buy a pair of lederhosen leather shorts, US President Barack Obama drank beer and mixed with Bavarians in a light-hearted start to his trip to Germany, before turning to more serious talks on the conflict in Ukraine. Introduced by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Obama spoke warmly to a crowd of men in...
Obama heads for G7 summit focused on Ukraine
President Barack Obama left Washington late Saturday headed for a G7 summit in southern Germany focused on violence in eastern Ukraine. Due in the Bavarian mountains Sunday, the US president is set to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel ahead of the start of the gathering of leaders from the world’s seven most industrialized...
Kiev gay rights march ends in injuries, arrests
At least seven people were injured and more than 20 arrested today in Kiev as scuffles broke out between members of a rare Ukrainian gay pride march and their nationalist opponents. The socially-conservative country – locked in a bruising war with pro-Russian insurgents – is seeking a closer alliance with Europe and remains keen to promote…...
Don’t be afraid of Russia, Putin tells West
Russia is not a threat to the West, President Vladimir Putin insisted in an interview published today, saying that he supported a Ukraine peace deal following a fresh outbreak of violence in the east of the ex-Soviet country. “I would like to say – there’s no need to be afraid of Russia,” Putin told Italian newspaper...
G7 summit to discuss wars, jihadists, China’s rise
The Bavarian Alps venue may look tranquil, but global turmoil – from Ukraine to Islamist militants and the Greek crisis – dominates the agenda of the G7 summit, which is being held without Russia. From Sunday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel hosts US President Barack Obama and the other leaders of the Group of Seven rich nations, with...
Nato flexes muscles in Baltics, Poland
US-led Nato drills began Monday in the Baltic states and Poland, a move intended to reassure Russia’s nervous neighbours amid tensions over Ukraine. Russia’s increased military presence in the Baltic Sea and regional airspace since its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine last year has jangled nerves in the area, which lay behind the...
Russian FM dimisses ‘absurdity’ of EU anger over entry bans
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday dismissed the “absurdity” of EU complaints over a travel ban imposed by Moscow on 89 Europeans over the Ukraine crisis. “It is even quite embarrassing to explain the absurdity and awkwardness of such logic as it’s an attempt to substitute international law with one’s...
Ukraine faces looming HIV treatment shortage
A group of Ukrainians infected with HIV warned on Wednesday that thousands could soon perish because the war-torn country was running out of treatment for the virus responsible for AIDS. The activists staged a poignant protest in which they marked out territory for a symbolic cemetery outside the government building in central Kiev. “We...
German woman, 65 and mother of 13, has quadruplets
A 65-year-old German woman, who is already a mother of 13 children, has given birth to quadruplets after undergoing an artificial insemination procedure in Ukraine, RTL television reported early today. The three boys and one girl were born premature at 26 weeks in a Berlin hospital but have “good chances of surviving,” the report...
Merkel sets tough line at EU summit with eastern partners
German Chancellor Angela Merkel told the EU’s eastern partners Thursday not to expect too much of the bloc and warned Russia to mend its ways over Ukraine if it wanted to rejoin the G7 club of top nations. At the same time, Merkel, who has played a key role in Ukraine peace efforts, said Russia had no reason to fear closer ties between...
