MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia’s FSB security force said Wednesday that it had killed two men from Central Asia suspected of preparing attacks, while trying to arrest them in the Vladimir region east of Moscow. “As a result of clashes during attempted detention, two citizens of a Central Asian state were neutralized by FSB officers,” the agency said in a statement. The men, born in 1987 and 1991, “were in contact with recruiters from international […]
Europe
EU says Brexit negotiations will start after British election
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — The European Union’s “real political” negotiations on Britain’s exit from the bloc will start after the snap British election in June, an EU spokesperson said Wednesday. “The real political negotiations on article 50 with the (United Kingdom) will start after the elections foreseen for the 8th of June,” European Commission spokesperson Margaritis Schinas told a press conference.
May calls for June 8 election before Brexit talks
by Dario Thuburn and Alice Ritchie Agence France Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May called Tuesday for a snap election on June 8, in a shock move as she seeks to bolster her position before tough talks on leaving the European Union. May is apparently aiming to cash in on her 20-point lead over the main opposition Labour party to increase her majority and give her a stronger hand in […]
French candidates ‘warned of election attack plot’
(Agence France Presse) — Photos of two men arrested Tuesday on suspicion of plotting a terror attack in France were distributed to the security teams of candidates in the upcoming French presidential election, campaign sources told AFP. “The photos were passed to my security service from Thursday,” far-right candidate Marine Le Pen told AFP, while an aide to centrist Emmanuel Macron also confirmed receiving pictures. Conservative Francois Fillon was warned about the danger on Friday, […]
Russia warns US against unilateral strike on N. Korea
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia on Monday warned Washington against launching a unilateral strike on North Korea, after United States Vice President Mike Pence said the era of “strategic patience” with Pyongyang was over. “This is a very risky path,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a news conference in Moscow. “We do not accept the reckless nuclear missile actions of Pyongyang that breach (United Nations) resolutions, but that does not mean that you […]
12 injured in suspected acid attack in London club
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Twelve people were injured when a corrosive substance was thrown inside a packed London nightclub on Monday, police and fire services said, amid a sharp rise in acid attacks in the British capital. A London Fire Brigade spokesperson told AFP an “unknown corrosive substance” was thrown in Mangle, a club in east London, in the early hours of Monday. It was identified as “an acidic substance” from testing, he said, […]
Mother, daughter die in grisly Czech sauna accident
PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AFP) — Two women died in a sauna in the northern Czech Republic after the door handle came off, trapping them inside, police said Sunday. “The mother and daughter aged 65 and 45 were taking a sauna at their friends’ place in a garden colony,” police spokesperson Iva Kormosova said in a statement. “The owner thought they were taking too long to come out so she went to check and found them […]
US wants to get past rift with Russia amid Syria impasse
By Andrew Beatty, with Dave Clark in Moscow Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States — The United States wants to improve ties with Russia from their current “all-time low” over Syria, President Donald Trump said Wednesday, as Moscow dug in to defend its ally in Damascus. Standing side-by-side with North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House, Trump said: “It would be wonderful… if NATO and our country could get along […]
Tillerson wants “very open, candid and frank” talks with Lavrov
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Wednesday that he wanted a frank exchange on the countries’ relations. “I look forward to a very open, candid and frank exchange so we can better define the US-Russian relationship from this point forward,” Tillerson said as he met Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for talks in Moscow. Tillerson’s visit was the first visit to Russia by a senior member of United States President Donald […]
Syrian, Iranian FMs to meet Lavrov in Moscow this week: Russia
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia’s foreign minister will host three-way talks with his counterparts from Syria and Iran this week, Moscow said Tuesday, after the US launched strikes against Syrian forces. “A trilateral meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Syrian minister Walid Muallem and Iranian minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is planned for the end of this week,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
No G7 consensus on fresh Syria sanctions: Italy’s Alfano
LUCCA, Italy (AFP) — G7 foreign ministers have failed to agree on whether fresh sanctions should be imposed on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad or his ally Russia, Italy’s Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said Tuesday. “At the moment there is no consensus on new sanctions as an effective instrument,” he said at the close of a two-day meeting in Italy, after his British counterpart Boris Johnson raised the issue with the Group of Seven. “There are […]
Stockholm attack suspect admits to ‘terror crime’
by Ilgin Karlidag Agence France Presse Suspected Stockholm truck attacker Rakhmat Akilov, a 39-year-old Uzbek and jihadist sympathizer, admitted Tuesday to committing a “terrorist crime” by mowing down pedestrians on a busy street, killing four people and injuring 15 others. “Akilov confesses to a terrorist crime and accepts his custody detention,” his lawyer Johan Eriksson told a custody hearing in a Stockholm district court. Akilov, who was arrested in a Stockholm suburb just hours after Friday’s […]