Section: The News International (Pakistan)
Moldovans face ?East-West? choice in presidential runoff
CHISINAU: Moldovans were voting on Sunday to choose between pro-Moscow and pro-European candidates in a runoff vote for the next president of the impoverished ex-Soviet country. It marks the first time in 16 years that Moldova — wracked by corruption scandals in recent years — is electing its leader by national vote instead of having...
UK spy chief sees growing threat from Russian cyber-attacks, espionage
Russia is pushing its foreign policy in increasingly aggressive ways including cyber-attacks and espionage, posing a growing threat to Britain and the rest of Europe, the head of Britain´s internal intelligence agency MI5 has said. The Kremlin dismissed the allegations as untrue and challenged its critics to produce evidence. MI5 Director General...
Bosphorus ship spotters set sights on Russian war boats
ISTANBUL: Minutes after fishermen tip him off that a ship is about to pass through Istanbul’s Bosphorus, Yoruk Isik drops what he’s doing and rushes to his favourite vantage point, camera in hand. The vessel is not one of the dozens of cargo boats that pass through the strait between Europe and Asia every day. It is a Russian warship,...
Nato head backs stronger European defence
ROME: Nato head Jens Stoltenberg welcomed on Friday European efforts for a more closely integrated defence policy, boosted since Britain´s vote to leave the EU, but warned against trying to create “an alternative” to the North Atlantic Alliance. “Stronger European defence will be good for the European Union, it will be good for...
Election in Georgia seen as test of stability after violence
TBILISI: A close parliamentary election in Georgia on Saturday is being seen as a test of stability in the ex-Soviet state after a car bombing and a shooting marred the run-up to the vote. Criss-crossed by strategically important oil and gas pipelines and traditionally buffeted between Russia and the West, a fifth of Georgian territory remains...
Russia demands loyalty or silence: Tatars
BAKHCHYSARAY: Crimean Tartar activist Ilmi Umerov walks slowly and has difficulty controlling his left arm but his voice is strong and his eyes are piercing as he reiterates his rejection of Moscow´s rule in the peninsula, an opinion for which he faces trial. The deputy head of the Mejlis — the Crimean Tatars´ elected assembly — was...
Moonshine kills at least 23 in east Ukraine
KIEV: At least 23 people have died after drinking moonshine in impoverished rural regions of eastern Ukraine that border on the former Soviet republic´s war zone, officials said on Tuesday. The prosecutor´s office of the eastern city of Kharkiv reported the deaths of another five people over the past 24 hours, adding to the 13 killed by the...
EU parliament backs visa-free travel for Ukraine
BRUSSELS: Ukrainians´ hopes of securing visa-free travel to the European Union received a boost on Monday when a key committee of the European Parliament backed their cause, but further hurdles remain. Ukraine, an ex-Soviet republic of 45 million people, faces stiffer resistance from some EU member states at a time of heightened public concern...
Ukraine hands back stolen Dutch masterpieces
THE HAGUE: Five stolen 17th and 18th-century masterpieces were handed back to the Netherlands on Friday, foreign ministry officials said, and will soon return to a local museum from where they disappeared 11 years ago. “Ukrainian authorities have handed over five Dutch paintings to the Westfries Museum. The handover has just taken place at the...
Ukraine moves to ban ?illegal? Russian books
KIEV: Ukraine escalated its cultural war with Moscow on Thursday by proposing a ban on Russian books that promote the ouster of Kiev’s pro-Western leadership and recognise the Kremlin’s annexation of Crimea. The bill submitted to parliament follows similar legislation that prevents channels from airing Russian shows and films deemed...
