Section: The Frontier Post (Pakistan)
Signs of a new Sino-Russian alliance?
Joseph S. Nye Some analysts believe that 2014 ushered in a new era of Cold War-style geopolitics. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea was met with heavy economic sanctions from Europe and the United States, weakening Russia’s ties with the West and leaving the Kremlin eager to strengthen ties...
EU offers Ukraine $2.12 billion more
BRUSSELS (AP): The European Union has offered to lend Ukraine a further 1.8 billion euros ($2.12 billion) on the condition that Kiev respects the terms of an international bailout and continues its reform program. The EU’s executive Commission said Thursday that the medium-term loans would help Ukraine deal with deep recession, notably its...
Merkel on Russia sanctions
BERLIN (Reuters): German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday that EU sanctions against Russia tied to its intervention in eastern Ukraine could only be lifted if there was full implementation of the Minsk agreement signed between Kiev and pro-Russian fighters back in September. Speaking at a news conference in Berlin with visiting Ukraine...
Sanctions haven’t worked
There always remains a probability wherein world leaders try to find a way out from prevailing tangles and come out with a stance that exhibits statesmanship. French President Francois Hollande made a similar statement when he called upon Western nations to lift sanctions on Russia. The call, nonetheless, was conditional — requiring Moscow...
Ukraine truce hangs in balance after ‘difficult’ talks
KIEV (AFP): The latest push for peace in Ukraine appeared moribund on Thursday after initial talks failed to agree when the warring sides should meet again to try ending their eight-month conflict. Negotiations mediated by European and Russian envoys in the Belarussian capital Minsk broke up after more than five hours on Wednesday with the...
‘Kiev move to join NATO dangerous’
MOSCOW (Reuters): Kiev’s efforts to join NATO are dangerous for Ukraine itself and Europe’s security, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying on Thursday. “There are a few Western countries that want to maintain the crisis in Ukraine and to maintain and boost the confrontation between...
Ukraine’s tough choice
Ukraine has made a geostrategic choice, which is likely to have far-reaching consequences. Its decision to annul the country’s non-aligned status and formally apply for Nato membership puts it on a warpath with Russia. Parliament voted overwhelmingly to take the Brussels route which, in other words, means rupturing ties with Kremlin. Kiev...
Civilians despair as both sides break rules in East Ukraine
Tanya Lokshina In the outskirts of Donetsk, close to the airport, where fierce fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed rebels has been ongoing for months, shelling has become a part of everyday life. Local residents refer to rolls of industrial plastic wrap as “glass panes” — having once replaced the glass in shattered windows...
Russia dismisses new US sanctions
MOSCOW (AP): Russia on Saturday dismissed new US sanctions as useless and said it was poised to wait as long as it takes for the US to recognize its historic right to the Crimean peninsula. Following several rounds of sanctions earlier this year, President Barack Obama on Friday approved new restrictions on Crimea which Russia … …read...
Crimean leader slips into India during Putin visit
NEW DELHI (Reuters): The leader of Crimea, the former Ukrainian territory annexed by Russia, visited India on Thursday as a member of President Vladimir Putin’s summit delegation, in a move likely to provoke the West. India does not back Western sanctions against Russia, but the unofficial trip by Sergey Aksyonov could spoil the mood before...
