Section: Philippines
NATO allies come to grips with Russia’s deceptive ‘hybrid warfare’
RIGA, Latvia — NATO allies are scrambling to protect vulnerable Baltic partners from the threat of hybrid warfare, a Russian tactic that officials and experts say is based on deception rather than formal declaration of war. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s use of anonymous “little green men” to slice Crimea away from...
Reports on abducted Filipino nurses in Libya false–DFA
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Tuesday said reports on Filipino nurses abducted by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis) are false. DFA Spokesman Charles Jose said in a press conference the four medical workers were taken to safety by a Libyan friend. The Philippine Embassy in Tripoli has confirmed the...
China building second aircraft carrier, says naval exec
BEIJING — China is building its second aircraft carrier, a senior naval officer has told media, the most explicit confirmation yet of a widely expected move that will boost Beijing’s maritime power. China’s first aircraft carrier was a 300-meter (1,000-foot) Soviet-era vessel bought from Ukraine and commissioned in September...
Obama agreed not to send arms to Ukraine –German envoy
WASHINGTON, United States — President Barack Obama agreed last month not to send lethal defensive aid to Ukraine, a top German diplomat said Monday, as lawmakers from both parties continued to press the president to shore up Ukraine’s beleaguered military in its fight against Russian-backed separatists. The German ambassador to the...
Airline group: More deaths in 2014 from fewer accidents
HONG KONG — The number of deaths in jetliner disasters spiked last year despite there being fewer accidents in total, an international airline industry group said Monday. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in its annual safety report that 641 people died in airline accidents in 2014. Its figures don’t include the...
Rebel pageant: Ukrainian fighters trade in boots for heels
DONETSK, Ukraine— Trading in their combat boots and fatigues for high heels and ball gowns, female rebel fighters who normally fight Ukrainian soldiers took Saturday off to take part in a beauty pageant. The event was organized by self-proclaimed authorities in the rebel-held city of Donetsk on the eve of International Women’s Day,...
Russian bombers enter Irish-controlled airspace, disrupt planes
DUBLIN, Ireland — One plane was diverted and another delayed to avoid two Russian bombers that flew through Irish-controlled airspace without warning in February, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) said on Tuesday. The disruption is believed to have occurred during the same February 18 incident in which British RAF Typhoon fighters were...
Kerry: Russia has lied about its activities in Ukraine
WASHINGTON, United States — Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday that Russia has repeatedly lied to him about its activities in Ukraine where pro-Russian rebels are fighting national forces. “Russia is engaged in a rather remarkable period of the most overt and extensive propaganda exercise that I’ve seen since the very...
US troops heading to Ukraine to give medical training
WASHINGTON, United States — A U.S. military official said Tuesday the Pentagon will be deploying a small number of troops to Ukraine to provide combat medical training to forces there who have been battling Russian-backed separatists. Between five and 10 troops will go to western Ukraine next week for what will be a second round of coaching...
Truce in peril as rebels attack Ukraine troops near port city
KIEV, Ukraine — Pro-Russian forces massing near Ukraine’s port city of Mariupol are continuing to attack government troop positions, Kiev said on Monday, fuelling concerns for the fate of a UN-backed ceasefire. Continued hostilities meant a pull-back of heavy weapons could not go ahead as agreed, Ukrainian officials said. “As...
