Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has overseen the signing of two nuclear agreements with China during a trip to the Asian nation. The deals were part of a host of agreements made following closed-door talks between Mr. Erdogan and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Monday. Chinese officials say the two also talked about international issues, […]
US, UN Condemn Syrian Cross-Border Attacks
Posted April 9th, 2012 at 4:55 pm (UTC-5)
The United States and the United Nations on Monday condemned a Syrian attack on a refugee camp in Turkey in which at least five people were wounded, as well as the death of a TV cameraman in Lebanon who was killed in crossfire. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Washington “strongly condemns any attack […]
Pakistan Avalanche Renews Calls for Glacier’s Demilitarization
Posted April 9th, 2012 at 3:40 pm (UTC-5)
A massive avalanche that buried more than 135 Pakistani soldiers and civilians at a military base in northern Kashmir has revived calls for the region’s demilitarization. A 20-meter wall of snow plowed into the military complex in the high-altitude Siachen Glacier region near the Indian border early Saturday. Pakistan and India both claim the glacier, […]
US Says North Korea on Path to Further Isolation
Posted April 9th, 2012 at 2:30 pm (UTC-5)
The United States says a rocket launch or future nuclear test by North Korea would only isolate its communist government further. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland made the comments Tuesday as South Korean intelligence photos, obtained by VOA, showed what appear to be preparations for a third North Korean nuclear test. Nuland said she […]
ECOWAS Lifts Sanctions Against Mali
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 7:50 pm (UTC-5)
Mali’s President Amadou Toumani Toure has officially resigned weeks after being toppled in a military coup that came just months before his term was to end. A mediator for ECOWAS — the Economic Community of West African States — said he received Mr. Toure’s resignation letter Sunday. An ECOWAS official tells VOA that the group […]
Bomb Kills 20 in Nigeria
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 6:20 pm (UTC-5)
Nigerian officials say a car bombing near a church on Easter Sunday killed at least 20 people in the country’s north. A witness said the bomb went off in a business area near the church in the northern Nigerian town of Kaduna. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Later Sunday, a blast in the […]
Syria Peace Plan in Jeopardy as Govt. Raises New Demands
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 6:10 pm (UTC-5)
A peace deal to stop bloodshed in Syria brokered by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan appeared in jeopardy Sunday, after President Bashar al-Assad’s government raised new, last-minute demands that the country’s main rebel group quickly rejected. Damascus said it wanted iron-clad “written guarantees” that insurgents would stop fighting before it withdraws troops from cities. A […]
South Korea Says Pyongyang Preparing for Third Nuclear Test
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 2:05 pm (UTC-5)
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency says North Korea appears to be preparing for a third nuclear weapons test. The report quotes an unidentified intelligence source as saying satellite images show workers digging a new tunnel at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in the northeast. The North conducted two previous nuclear tests in tunnels at the […]
Afghanistan, US to Sign Deal on Night Raids
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 6:55 am (UTC-5)
The Afghan government says it has reached an agreement with the United States, giving local authorities veto power over the controversial night raids. Night raids have been a constant source of tension between the Afghan government and the U.S. military. Afghanistan says the deal that will result in the raids being Afghan-led will be signed […]
Pakistan’s Zardari Visits India
Posted April 8th, 2012 at 4:50 am (UTC-5)
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari is in India, where he met with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi. The visit is the first to India by a Pakistani head of state since 2005. Standing next to Mr. Singh Sunday, Mr. Zardari told reporters the two discussed all important bilateral issues, and that he […]
