Financial experts are concluding that Greece may need another $20-billion cash infusion even if it eventually completes contentious negotiations with its private creditors to cut in half the money it owes them. For weeks now, the Athens government has been attempting to finish talks with 32 large financial institutions to trim $130 billion of its […]
Russia Criticizes EU’s Foreign Policy Chief for “Interfering”
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 3:15 pm (UTC-5)
Russia has accused the European Union foreign policy chief of interfering in its internal affairs by making statements about the Russian election. A spokesman for the Russian foreign ministry, Alexander Lukashevich, said Thursday that Catherine Ashton’s comments on Russia made February 1st in the European Parliament are bewildering. In her speech, Ashton urged the Russian […]
Report: Kosovo Conflict Hinders Serbia’s EU Candidacy
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 2:45 pm (UTC-5)
The International Crisis Group says the ongoing conflict between Kosovo and Serbia is threatening Kosovo’s internal stability and Serbia’s efforts to join the European Union. In a report released Thursday, the Brussels-based research institution says the Kosovo government’s push to establish control of its entire territory, especially its borders with Serbia, and northern Kosovo Serbs’ […]
US Attorney General Faces Renewed Criticism Over Gun Operation
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has faced a new round of Republican criticism over a controversial tactic in which U.S. authorities allowed gun buyers to move arms into Mexico, destined for drug cartels. In testimony to Congress Thursday, Holder said “Operation Fast and Furious” was flawed. Holder said he never authorized the operation, and ordered […]
US Envoy to Visit Africa on Energy Trade Mission
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 1:10 pm (UTC-5)
The top U.S. envoy to Africa will lead a two-week mission to the continent to promote U.S. investment in large-scale energy projects. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson will travel with executives from U.S. companies to five African countries beginning Monday. The group will visit Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana during […]
Burma’s Aung San Suu Kyi Postpones Political Rally
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 1:10 pm (UTC-5)
Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has postponed a political trip to the central city of Mandalay, because she could not get permission to hold a campaign rally at a local football stadium. A spokesman for the Nobel laureate’s National League for Democracy party tells VOA’s Burmese service that party organizers followed instructions from […]
Egyptian Protesters Denounce Military, Security Forces After Soccer Disaster
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 1:00 pm (UTC-5)
Thousands of Egyptians in Cairo have protested to denounce the country’s military rulers and security forces for failing to prevent a soccer riot that killed 74 people and injured hundreds more in the northern city of Port Said. Some protesters gathered Thursday in central Cairo’s Tahrir Square while others marched to the nearby Interior Ministry, […]
NATO Ministers Look to Speed Up Afghan Transition
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 12:40 pm (UTC-5)
NATO’s top official is backing a plan to hand over lead security responsibilities in Afghanistan to Afghan forces sooner than originally envisioned. But he cautioned there are no plans to leave Afghanistan early. NATO Secretary-General Anders-Fogh Rasmussen spoke Thursday, before entering a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels. He said starting in mid-2013, Afghan […]
Rich Chinese Drop $7.2 Billion Abroad in Holiday Spending
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 12:25 pm (UTC-5)
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A leading research group says Chinese consumers spent a record $7.2 billion abroad on luxury goods during the Chinese New Year’s holidays, which ended last week. The World Luxury Association figures, reported in Chinese media, says luxury consumption jumped nearly 30 percent from 2011 and far surpassed spending projections formulated last year. The People’s Daily […]
Legendary US Boxing Trainer Dies
Posted February 2nd, 2012 at 12:20 pm (UTC-5)
Legendary U.S. boxing trainer Angelo Dundee, who worked the corner of the ring for Muhammad Ali in his greatest fights, has died at age 90. Dundee died Wednesday at his home in Florida. Dundee trained 15 world champion boxers, including Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, George Foreman and Jimmy Ellis. But in a career that spanned […]
