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Afghan parliament approves U.S.-Afghan security pact

Sat, 26 May 2012 07:28:21 +0100

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan's parliament approved on Saturday a strategic pact between Kabul and Washington, clearing the way for a U.S. presence in the country for at least a decade after most foreign combat troops leave in 2014. "This was done for the interest of Afghanistan," said Daoud Kalakani, an MP from Kabul. Around 180 MPs were present and only four voted against, Kalakani said. The deal, signed by U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai in Kabul on May 2, sets out a long-term U.S. role in Afghanistan, including aid and advisers. ...

Hollande makes surefooted start before assembly vote

Sat, 26 May 2012 05:55:18 +0100

PARIS (Reuters) - Socialist President Francois Hollande has defied critics who considered him an inexperienced lightweight by starting with a burst of globetrotting activity and standing up to Berlin and Washington on euro and foreign policy. Placid and slow-paced by nature, Hollande has packed in visits to Berlin, Washington, Camp David, Chicago, Brussels and Kabul in his first 10 days in office, a timetable worthy of his hyperactive conservative predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy. ...

Clinton to visit Scandinavia, Caucasus, Turkey

Sat, 26 May 2012 04:26:35 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton leaves next week on an eight-day trip to Scandinavia, the Caucasus and Turkey that will cover security issues such as Iran and Syria as well as the environment and health. The State Department said Clinton begins her May 31-June 7 trip with visits to Denmark, Norway and Sweden that will largely concentrate on the environment. ...

U.S. debates "terrorist" sanctions for Nigerian militants

Sat, 26 May 2012 00:49:18 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department is debating the wisdom of designating the Nigerian militant group Boko Haram a "foreign terrorist organization" despite entreaties from lawmakers and the Justice Department to do so. U.S. diplomats are giving serious consideration to the arguments of a group of academics who sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week urging her department not to apply the "terrorist" label to the al Qaeda-linked group. ...

Hollande makes surefooted start before assembly vote

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:40:17 +0100

US says China's yuan undervalued, not manipulated

Fri, 25 May 2012 18:26:10 +0100

The Obama administration on Friday rejected calls from Congress to brand China a currency manipulator, but said its "significantly undervalued" currency was a key brake on global growth.

Berlusconi party girl says masqueraded as Obama

Fri, 25 May 2012 15:20:59 +0100

ROME (Reuters) - One of the young women who attended Silvio Berlusconi's "bunga bunga" parties told a court on Friday that she dressed up as a burlesque version of U.S. President Barack Obama to entertain the former Italian prime minister. In testimony during a trial against the 75-year-old Berlusconi on charges of paying for sex with an underage prostitute, Marysthell Polanco said she had also dressed as prosecutor Ilda Boccassini. ...

U.S. to reaffirm commitment to Israel's security

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:32:55 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A senior State Department official will travel to Tel Aviv on Friday to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to Israel's security following just-concluded talks between world powers and Iran over its nuclear program. Wendy Sherman, undersecretary of state for political affairs, will discuss bilateral and regional issues with senior Israeli officials during her visit, the State Department said in a statement on Thursday. Sherman will also "reaffirm our unshakable commitment to Israel's security," the statement said without mentioning the just-concluded Iran talks in Baghdad. ...

US Congress To Review Facebook IPO

Thu, 24 May 2012 17:28:20 +0100

The US Congress has entered the investigation into the issues surrounding Facebook's listing, less than a week since the company's debut on the stock market.

U.S. looks forward to working with new Egyptian leader

Fri, 25 May 2012 03:34:04 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States pledged on Thursday to "stand with the Egyptian people" and said it looked forward to working with their democratically elected government. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Egypt marked "another important milestone in their transition to democracy" by holding its first free election for president in two days of balloting. "We look forward to working with Egypt's democratically elected government," she said in a statement. ...

U.S. senators penalize Pakistan for jailing CIA helper

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:25:48 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. senators scandalized by Pakistan's jailing of a doctor for helping the CIA track down Osama bin Laden voted on Thursday to cut aid to Islamabad by $33 million (21 million pounds) -- one million for each year in the doctor's sentence. "It's arbitrary, but the hope is that Pakistan will realize we are serious," said Senator Richard Durbin after the unanimous 30-0 vote by the Senate Appropriations Committee. "It's outrageous that they (the Pakistanis) would say a man who helped us find Osama bin Laden is a traitor," said Durbin, the Senate's number two Democrat. ...

What would Greek exit mean for the U.S. economy?

Fri, 25 May 2012 00:16:18 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Uncertainty over the fate of the euro currency is already dampening U.S. economic growth and any significant worsening of the crisis would deal a blow to a recovery that is gradually gathering steam. Economists estimate that volatile markets and business uncertainty over the fate of Greece and the policy course in Europe is already shaving anywhere from one tenth to one half a percentage point from U.S. 2012 gross domestic product growth. In a Reuters poll last week, U.S. GDP was forecast on average at 2.3 percent for 2012 and 2.4 percent for 2013. ...

U.N. rights chief to stay two more years; US, Syria aren't fans

Thu, 24 May 2012 23:18:56 +0100

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. General Assembly on Thursday renewed the mandate of the world body's human rights chief Navi Pillay, but she was given an abbreviated term as part of a compromise deal with the United States, which dislikes her criticism of Israel, envoys said. Syria also made clear it was not a fan of Pillay, a South African jurist whom the Syrian delegation described as "hostile" towards Damascus. Despite Washington's attempt to block a renewal of Pillay's mandate, a deal was reached after South Africa and others persuaded U.S. ...

USTR Kirk plans to go in January, upbeat on EU-US trade

Thu, 24 May 2012 22:30:27 +0100

PARIS (Reuters) - U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said on Wednesday that he expects to leave office at the end of President Barack Obama's first term, and also expressed enthusiasm about the potential for a trade agreement between the United States and the EU to boost jobs and growth on both sides of the Atlantic. ...

Clinton - US sanctions will stay as Iran talks continue

Thu, 24 May 2012 21:31:38 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will not ease sanctions on Iran before a third round of talks between major powers and Iranian officials about Tehran's nuclear program, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday. "As we lay the groundwork for these talks, we will keep up the pressure as part of our dual-track approach. All of our sanctions will remain in place and continue to move forward during this period," she told reporters in Washington hours after talks between Iran and world powers concluded in Baghdad. ...

Clinton condemns Pakistan for jailing doctor who helped CIA

Thu, 24 May 2012 21:06:31 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pakistan's jailing of a doctor for 33 years for helping the CIA find Osama bin Laden is "unjust and unwarranted," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday, vowing to continue to press the case with Islamabad. "The United States does not believe there is any basis for holding Dr (Shakil) Afridi. We regret the fact that he was convicted and the severity of his sentence," she said, calling his treatment "unjust and unwarranted." (Reporting by Paul Eckert; Editing by Anthony Boadle)

Cyber Warfare: Al Qaeda Sites Hacked By US

Thu, 24 May 2012 19:56:30 +0100

The US government says it is taking the cyber battle to its enemy by hacking al Qaeda websites.

U.S. praises Arab Spring but warns of instability

Thu, 24 May 2012 18:23:03 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday praised the "Arab Spring" popular revolutions in the Middle East but said instability and violence often precede greater respect for human rights. In its annual survey of human rights around the world, the State Department also recognized Myanmar for freeing opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and for starting to open up its political system after decades of repression. ...

U.S. lawmakers probe food contract for troops in Afghanistan

Thu, 24 May 2012 18:05:01 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers are investigating a billing dispute of at least $750 million between the main supplier of food to U.S. troops in Afghanistan and the Pentagon. The Pentagon says Supreme Foodservice GmbH overcharged it, but the Netherlands-headquartered company said the rates were properly based on the complexities and dangers of supplying food in war-ravaged Afghanistan. ...

U.S. State Dept names Abdallah Azzam Brigades terrorist group

Thu, 24 May 2012 15:35:35 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department has designated the Abdallah Azzam Brigades, a group based in Lebanon and the Arabian Peninsula and accused of indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, it said on Thursday. "AAB has repeatedly articulated its intent to carry out attacks against Western interests in the Middle East. In 2010, for instance, the group expressed an interest in kidnapping U.S. and British tourists in the Arabian Peninsula," the department said in a statement. ...

U.S. hails Arab Spring but warns of instability

Thu, 24 May 2012 15:33:59 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States hailed on Thursday last year's "Arab Spring" popular revolutions in the Middle East but said instability and violence often precede greater respect for human rights. In its annual survey of human rights around the world, the State Department praised Myanmar for having freed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and for starting to open up its political system after decades of repression. It described as "extremely poor" human rights in Belarus, China, Iran, North Korea, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, which are perennial targets of U.S. ...

Factbox - Iran's Fordow plant

Thu, 24 May 2012 11:30:09 +0100

(Reuters) - A new report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to show that Iran has installed more uranium enrichment centrifuges at its Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant - but that they are not yet being used to refine uranium. Here is a look at the Fordow plant: * Iran began building the plant in secret as early as 2006. It was publicly revealed by U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in September 2009, shortly after their three countries gave the IAEA evidence of the facility. ...

Insight - Iran's "Great Game" in Afghanistan

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:54:27 +0100

KABUL (Reuters) - With most foreign combat troops set to withdraw from Afghanistan by 2014, Iran is using the media in the war-ravaged nation to gain influence, a worrying issue for Washington. Nearly a third of Afghanistan's media is backed by Iran, either financially or through providing content, Afghan officials and media groups say. "What Iran wants, what they are striving at, is a power base in Afghanistan that can counter American influence," said a senior government official, who like others for this report, spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity. ...

U.S. drone strike kills 10 in northwest Pakistan - officials

Thu, 24 May 2012 07:36:23 +0100

MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (Reuters) - A U.S. drone strike on suspected Islamist militants in northwest Pakistan killed 10 people on Thursday, Pakistani intelligence officials said, an attack likely to raise tensions in a standoff with Washington over NATO supply routes to Afghanistan. The pilotless drone aircraft attacked a compound in a village in North Waziristan, a day after a similar attack killed four suspected militants in the same region. "The drone fired two missiles at the compound. We believe it was being used by militants," one of the Pakistani officials said. ...

'I would vote for President Obama': Castro's niece

Thu, 24 May 2012 05:47:29 +0100

Fidel Castro's niece hailed Barack Obama's support for gay marriage and the loosening of US-Cuba travel restrictions, saying: "I would vote for President Obama."

Medvedev cosies up to U.S. cowboys - in Russia

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:10:04 +0100

MOSCOW (Reuters) - He's had cheeseburgers with U.S. President Barack Obama, palled around with ex-Hollywood movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger and gushed with praise on a visit to Silicon Valley. On Wednesday, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev encountered another American phenomenon: the cowboy. He did so not in the United States but in the western Russian region of Bryansk, where some American cattle wranglers are working to help train Russians to develop the domestic beef industry. ...

Russia tests new missile, in warning over U.S. shield

Wed, 23 May 2012 21:31:28 +0100

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia tested a new long-range missile on Wednesday that should improve its ability to penetrate missile defence systems, the military said, in Moscow's latest warning to Washington over deployment of a missile shield in Europe. The Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) was successfully launched from the Plesetsk facility in north-western Russia and its dummy warhead landed on target on the Kamchatka peninsula on the Pacific coast, the Defence Ministry said. ...

U.S. general says Afghanistan will need "combat power"

Wed, 23 May 2012 21:07:39 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will require "significant firepower" in Afghanistan in 2013-14, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces there said, but decisions about further U.S. troop reductions will only be made after this fall at the earliest. "We're going to need combat power. I don't think anyone questions that," Marine General John Allen said on Wednesday. "I owe the president some real analysis on this. ...

Pakistani doctor jailed for helping CIA find bin Laden

Wed, 23 May 2012 20:56:44 +0100

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - Pakistani authorities have sentenced a doctor accused of helping the CIA find Osama bin Laden to 33 years in jail on charges of treason, officials said, a move almost certain to further strain ties between Washington and Islamabad. Shakil Afridi was accused of running a fake vaccination campaign, in which he collected DNA samples, that is believed to have helped the American intelligence agency track down bin Laden in a Pakistani town. The al Qaeda chieftain was killed in a unilateral U.S. special forces raid in the town of Abbottabad in May last year. ...

U.S. confirms powers made detailed proposal to Iran

Wed, 23 May 2012 18:22:07 +0100

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department confirmed on Wednesday major powers unveiled a detailed proposal laying out steps Iran could take to build confidence that its nuclear program is solely peaceful at talks in Baghdad. "The EU3+3 side put forward a detailed proposal which includes confidence-building measures that can pave the way for Iran to demonstrate that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters in Washington. ...