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By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Under the watchful eye of stern-faced American advisers, hundreds of US-trained Jordanian commandos fanned across the dusty desert plain, holding war games that could eventually form the basis of an assault in Syria. With the recent deployment of Patriot missiles near the Syrian border, and the mock Syrian accents of those playing the enemy, the message was clear: there is fear of spillover from the Syrian war in this US-allied kingdom, and the potential for a Jordanian role in securing Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles should Bashar al-Assad’s regime lose control. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading War games in Jordan send a signal to Syria
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> In the context of the war in Syria, the G8′s support for convening peace talks in Geneva “as soon as possible” and a pledge of US$1.5 billion in humanitarian aid are the diplomatic equivalent of motherhood and apple pie – a comforting reaffirmation of the decent and unobjectionable. But neither will do much to end the crisis any time soon. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Fine words but no action from G8
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Michael Hastings, the Rolling Stone journalist who triggered the 2010 downfall of US Afghanistan commander General Stanley McChrystal, died in a car crash on Tuesday, his employer announced. Hastings, whose profile of McChrystal quoted the four-star general as criticising President Barack Obama and his senior advisers, died in Los Angeles. He was 33, according to his current employer, BuzzFeed. “We are shocked and devastated by the news that Michael Hastings is gone,” said Ben Smith, editor-in-chief of the news website which the late reporter joined in February last year. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US reporter who brought down General McChrystal dies in car crash
By , on June 19th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Philippines has deployed a fresh batch of marines and supplies to a shoal in the disputed South China Sea, where a Chinese warship and surveillance vessels appeared last month and triggered a new standoff in the strategic waters, the Philippine defence secretary said on Wednesday. The new contingent of Filipino marines replaced troops at the Second Thomas Shoal, where the arrival last month of Chinese ships sparked diplomatic protests from the Philippines. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Philippines sends fresh troops to shoal at centre of dispute with China
By , on June 18th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Former soccer player David Beckham has more than 400,000 followers only a day after making his official Sina Weibo debut. “Hi I am David! Welcome to the OFFICIAL David Beckham Sina Page! Talk to you soon!” the Englishman wrote in his first post, which has been shared by more than 50,000 people. “Thank you for coming to Sina!
Continue reading David Beckham, soccer ambassador in China, joins Sina Weibo
By , on June 17th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Leaders of eight of the world’s wealthiest nations sought elusive progress on lowering trans-Atlantic trade barriers and pushing the warring factions in Syria towards the negotiating table as the G8 summit opened yesterday amid high security in peaceful Northern Ireland. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US-EU trade pact, Syria top agenda as G8 chiefs convene in Belfast
By , on June 17th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Iranian president-elect Hassan Rowhani said he will make the country’s nuclear programme more transparent as he seeks to ease tension with the US and reduce “brutal” sanctions that have crippled the economy. He ruled out any halt to the nuclear activity that has drawn UN sanctions but said he hoped an early deal could be reached to allay the fears of major powers. The moderate cleric, who won outright victory in Friday’s presidential election on the hopes of millions for an end to the economic hardship caused by Western sanctions, pledged greater transparency in the talks. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Iran’s Hassan Rowhani vows nuclear transparency to ease tension with US
By , on June 17th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> British Prime Minister David Cameron says leaders gathering on Monday for the G8 summit in Northern Ireland should reach speedy agreement on trade and tax reforms, and draw inspiration from the host country’s ability to resolve its own stubborn conflict. Speaking hours ahead of the summit’s official opening at a lakeside golf resort, Cameron said he expects formal agreement to launch negotiations on a European-American free trade agreement. He said a pact to slash tariffs on exports would boost employment and growth on both sides of the Atlantic. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Britain’s Prime Minister Cameron rallies world leaders to G8 summit
By , on June 16th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the international community on Sunday against easing sanctions on Iran following the election of a reformist-backed president, as the country’s nuclear efforts remain firmly in the hands of Iran’s extremist ruling clerics. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Israel’s Netanyahu says sanctions on Iran should increase
By , on June 16th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> The Pentagon confirmed on Saturday that F-16 fighter jets and Patriot missile interceptors will remain in Jordan after the end of a joint military exercise this month. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US says fighter jets, missiles will stay in Jordan after joint exercises
By By MICHAEL R. GORDON and THOM SHANKER, on June 16th, 2013 The move came as efforts were being made on multiple fronts on Saturday to increase the pressure on the government of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria.
Continue reading U.S. to Keep Warplanes in Jordan, Pressing Syria
By By MICAH COHEN, on June 14th, 2013 Polls have found that public support for intervention in Syria increases sharply under circumstances where it is confirmed that the Assad regime used chemical weapons.
Continue reading FiveThirtyEight: Polls Show Chemical Weapons Affect Public’s View on Syria
By , on June 14th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Iran chooses a new president on Friday in an election the reformists hope their sole candidate will win in the face of divided conservative ranks, four years after the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. More than 50.5 million people are eligible to vote for the man – no women candidates were approved – to succeed Ahmadinejad, who is barred from standing for a third consecutive term under the constitution. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Iranians to vote in presidential elections
By , on June 14th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> President Barack Obama has authorised sending US weapons to Syrian rebels for the first time, a US official said on Thursday after the White House said it has proof that the Syrian government had used chemical weapons against opposition forces fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading US to increase military support to Syria rebels
By , on June 12th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Japan’s human rights envoy to the United Nations was yesterday facing calls to quit over a video which showed him shouting at fellow diplomats to “shut up”. YouTube footage of the incident at the UN torture committee in Geneva has provoked a storm of criticism on the Internet, with demands that ambassador Hideaki Ueda be recalled to Japan. Blogging Japanese lawyer Shinichiro Koike, who said he was at the session, explained that a representative from Mauritius had criticised Japan’s justice system that does not allow lawyers to be present at interrogations. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Calls for Japanese UN human rights envoy Hideaki Ueda to step down after outburst
By Gil Troy, on June 11th, 2013 Gil Troy on how Obama’s pick for U.N. ambassador must explain her past views
Continue reading Samantha Power Is No Daniel Moynihan
By , on June 10th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> For a journalist, there is nothing more satisfying than a scoop that sets the news agenda for days on end and simultaneously leaves the opposition racing to catch up. On Monday morning, Alan Rusbridger, the editor of The Guardian, sent out a herogram to all his staff praising them for breaking the story of Edward Snowden. The 29-year-old is a former technical assistant for the CIA and, for the last four years, had been working at the National Security Agency. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading How The Guardian has become the go-to newspaper for whistleblowers
By , on June 10th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> As Hong Kong authorities remain silent on the whereabouts and potential fate of US whistle-blower Edward Snowden, legal and political experts are weighing in on what could happen and the choices available to 29-year-old former intelligence contractor. If Snowden wanted to stay in Hong Kong, his best chance would be to apply for refugee status, under the claim that he could be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (CIDTP) or punishment if extradited back to the United States, said Patricia Ho, counsel with local human rights law firm Barnes and Daly. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Speculation rife in Hong Kong over Edward Snowden’s fate
By , on June 10th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Iceland cannot grant US whisteblower Edward Snowden asylum as long as he is in Hong Kong, the country’s ambassador to China has said. “According to Icelandic law a person can only submit such an applications once he/she is in Iceland,” Kristín Árnadóttir, the Icelandic ambassador in Beijing, told the South China Morning Post in an e-mailed statement. “The Ministry of the Interior in Iceland deals with issues of this nature and handles applications for asylum,” she wrote. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Iceland cannot grant asylum to Snowden unless he’s there, ambassador says
By , on June 10th, 2013 <!– google_ad_section_start –> Hong Kong could refuse to extradite US whistleblower Edward Snowden if Beijng wanted to keep him, according to a treaty signed between the United States and Hong Kong almost two decades ago. Hong Kong has the “right of refusal when surrender implicates the ‘defense, foreign affairs or essential public interest or policy’” of the People’s Republic of China, according to the US-Hong Kong Extradition Treaty signed in 1997. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading Treaty gives Hong Kong option to reject Snowden extradition to the US
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War games in Jordan send a signal to Syria
<!– google_ad_section_start –> Under the watchful eye of stern-faced American advisers, hundreds of US-trained Jordanian commandos fanned across the dusty desert plain, holding war games that could eventually form the basis of an assault in Syria. With the recent deployment of Patriot missiles near the Syrian border, and the mock Syrian accents of those playing the enemy, the message was clear: there is fear of spillover from the Syrian war in this US-allied kingdom, and the potential for a Jordanian role in securing Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles should Bashar al-Assad’s regime lose control. <!– google_ad_section_end –>
Continue reading War games in Jordan send a signal to Syria
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