Section: AsiaOne (Singapore)
Lithuania adopts euro to cement ties with the West
VILNIUS – Lithuania hopes joining the eurozone on Jan 1 will boost its security at a time of heightened anxiety over Russia, but many in the Baltic state fear the currency switch will also bring price hikes.The stroke of midnight will signal the end of a year marked by Russian intervention in Ukraine – the biggest threat to the Baltic...
After turbulent 2014, next year may be no calmer
NEW YORK – From financial crisis in Russia to cyber warfare with North Korea, 2014 has generated new flashpoints right into its final days, setting 2015 up to be just as turbulent.Almost all of the major confrontations, such as the battle with Islamic State militants, the West’s stand-off with Russia over Ukraine and the fight against...
Belarus’ Lukashenko dismisses prime minister and top ministers
MINSK – Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko has dismissed the country’s prime minister, central bank head and other top ministers, the presidential press service said on Saturday, in the biggest government reshuffle since 2010.The shake-up follows Belarussian moves to protect its economy, run along Soviet-style command lines by...
Russia says to supply coal, electricity to Ukraine
MOSCOW/KIEV – Russia has agreed on a new deal to supply coal and electricity to Ukraine, which is struggling with a lack of raw fuel for power plants due to a separatist conflict in the industrial east, Russian officials said on Saturday.The move comes a day after Kiev said it would suspend train and bus services to Crimea, effectively...
Kiev and rebels swap hundreds of captives in peace push
KOSTYANTYNIVKA , Ukraine – Ukraine and pro-Russian rebels were on Saturday set to complete a swap of hundreds of prisoners as part of a new push for peace that came despite Kiev’s decision to cut off key transport links to breakaway Crimea.The exchange began Friday on a dark and isolated stretch of a road north of the devastated...
Russia says N Korea comedy ‘scandalous’, slams US
MOSCOW – Russia has slammed the United States over a raunchy comedy featuring a fictional plot to kill North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un, saying Pyongyang’s anger was understandable.On Christmas Day, “The Interview” – which has become an unlikely symbol of free speech in the West – opened in crowded US movie...
Ukraine takes historic step towards NATO
KIEV – Ukraine took a historic step towards NATO on Tuesday in a parliamentary vote that stoked Russia’s anger ahead of talks on ending the ex-Soviet state’s separatist war.Lawmakers in the government-controlled chamber overwhelmingly adopted a bill dropping Ukraine’s non-aligned status – a classification given to...
From Baltic to Asia, East-West aerial confrontations heat up
NEW YORK – From the skies of the Baltic to the South China Sea, a new era of confrontation with Russia and China is pitting US and allied pilots against their counterparts on a scale not seen since the Cold War era.It is, current and former officials say, a major shift for air crews who by and large have spent more than a decade flying...
International journalist deaths soar in 2014: press watchdog
NEW YORK – The gruesome murders of foreign journalists by the Islamic State group contributed to 2014 being a particularly deadly year for international correspondents, an annual review by the Committee to Protect Journalists reported Tuesday.The CPJ study found that an “unusually high proportion” of the 60 journalists who died...
Ex-minister Kudrin warns of ‘full-fledged crisis’ in Russia
Russia’s government has pushed the country into an economic crisis by not tackling its financial problems fast enough, former finance minister Alexei Kudrin said on Monday, as evidence mounted of trouble spreading through the economy.The central bank bailed out its first victim of the collapsing currency, authorities announced a tax on...
