TheRepublic.com - Diplomacy News

Clashes in Lebanon feed fear of Syria spillover

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:19:50 -0400

BEIRUT - Lebanese supporters and opponents of Syrian President Bashar Assad fired heavy machine guns and lobbed mortar shells at each other Thursday in some of the worst fighting in the port city of Tripoli in years.

Obama cites need to support emerging democracies

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:40:15 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama says supporting transitions to democracy in unstable regions like the Middle East will remain a key part of his strategy for fighting terrorism.

US, Israel raise hopes for Mideast peace restart

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:15:09 -0400

JERUSALEM - The United States and Israel raised hopes Thursday for a restart of the Middle East peace process, despite little tangible progress so far from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's two-month-old effort to get Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.

26 killed in 2 simultaneous car bombs in Niger

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:00:07 -0400

NIAMEY, Niger - Suicide bombers in Niger detonated two car bombs simultaneously on Thursday, one inside a military camp in the city of Agadez and another in the remote town of Arlit at a French-operated uranium mine, killing a total of 26 people and injuring 30, according to officials in Niger and France.

UN chief visits Goma, Congo

Thu, 23 May 2013 12:55:30 -0400

GOMA, Congo - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed Thursday that security must go hand-in-hand with development in Congo's troubled eastern city of Goma, arriving just hours after a rebel group halted fighting to allow the visit to proceed.

Violence in Somalia scares investors, aid workers

Thu, 23 May 2013 11:40:50 -0400

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A spate of attacks by Islamic insurgents in Somalia's capital is forcing investors, businessmen and aid workers to have second thoughts about expanding operations in Mogadishu.

Nixon library hosts 40th reunion for Vietnam POWs

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:22:27 -0400

YORBA LINDA, California - U.S. Navy Lt. Mike McGrath was just 27 years old, with a wife and two toddler sons in the U.S., when he was shot down and taken prisoner on his 179th bombing mission during the Vietnam War.

Kerry: US, allies ready to step up aid to rebels

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:04:42 -0400

AMMAN, Jordan - The U.S. and several key allies looked again Wednesday for a strategy to end Syria's civil war, their united efforts unable at the moment to stem the Assad regime's military gains and Washington still unwilling to join those providing the rebels with lethal military aid.

IAEA report: Iran expands nuclear technology

Wed, 22 May 2013 17:28:36 -0400

VIENNA - The U.N. atomic agency on Wednesday detailed rapid Iranian progress in two programs that the West fears are geared toward making nuclear weapons, saying Tehran has upgraded its uranium enrichment facilities and advanced in building a plutonium-producing reactor.

Amid signs of turmoil, S Sudan says oil will flow

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:39:23 -0400

JUBA, South Sudan - Following a lengthy Cabinet meeting, South Sudan's government spokesman said Wednesday that the country will continue to export oil through Sudan and that there had been only a temporary slowdown in production.

Palestinians have little faith in Kerry effort

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:08:29 -0400

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Palestinians believe the U.S. effort to restart peace talks is doomed, and they're preparing instead to resume their campaign of seeking membership in key international organizations as soon as next month, officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Irishman charged with 1982 IRA Hyde Park bombing

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:06:54 -0400

DUBLIN - British prosecutors have charged a 61-year-old Irishman with the 1982 IRA attack on the queen's cavalry in Hyde Park, a nail-bombing at a top London tourist attraction that left four soldiers and seven horses dead.

EU bid to label Hezbollah wing terror group

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:44:55 -0400

BRUSSELS - The European Union is reassessing whether to declare the Lebanese party Hezbollah's military wing a terrorist organization, a move it has long shied from despite pressure from the U.S., officials said Wednesday.

Officials say Benghazi suspects under surveillance

Wed, 22 May 2013 03:20:28 -0400

WASHINGTON - Five men are under round-the-clock U.S. surveillance in Libya, wanted for questioning in the attack last year on the diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. The White House believes there is enough proof for a military force to seize them as terrorist suspects, officials say, but prefers to wait until investigators have enough evidence to try them in a U.S. civilian courtroom.

US envoy in Cuba engages critics on and offline

Tue, 21 May 2013 14:23:05 -0400

HAVANA - The meeting on a sunny Havana square was a little bit revolutionary for Cuba's revolution. And for U.S. diplomacy as well.

Israeli peace negotiator: Stalemate bad for Israel

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:49:17 -0400

JERUSALEM - Israel's chief peace negotiator said Tuesday that the current stalemate with the Palestinians is harmful for Israel, days before U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to arrive in Israel for his latest push to restart long-dormant talks.

Fighting for 2nd day between army, rebels in Congo

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:38:48 -0400

GOMA, Congo - Fighting between the M23 rebels and the army continued for a second day Tuesday near Congo's eastern provincial capital of Goma, in clashes that have so far killed 19 people, all of them either soldiers or rebels, officials said.

Death in Zimbabwe results in unusual US charge

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:20:09 -0400

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia - The facts laid out by prosecutors are plain: In 2008, a U.S. government employee on assignment in Zimbabwe drove through the capital of Harare in his government-issued Toyota Land Cruiser and struck and killed a 34-year-old Zimbabwe man.

China's Li seeks stronger economic ties with India

Tue, 21 May 2013 05:17:18 -0400

NEW DELHI - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told Indian business leaders Tuesday that developing stronger economic ties between their two nations would have huge benefits for both sides.

Palestinians hold off on UN agency membership

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:36:03 -0400

UNITED NATIONS - The Palestinians have done all the legal work necessary to join 63 U.N. agencies, conventions and treaties but haven't applied yet mainly to give the latest U.S. peace effort a chance to succeed, the chief Palestinian negotiator said Monday.

Man charged with threatening ambassador, family

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:02:19 -0400

CHICAGO - A Chicago-area man has been charged with threatening to kill the U.S. ambassador in Serbia and others in a dispute over a visa for his Serbian wife.

State Dept: Reports of anti-Semitism increase

Mon, 20 May 2013 14:02:41 -0400

WASHINGTON - The State Department appointed a special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism Monday as a new report documents a global increase in incidents of anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.

Kerry challenges Congress on diplomats' security

Mon, 20 May 2013 12:14:15 -0400

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State John Kerry challenged Congress on Monday to go beyond its investigations of embassy security and help ensure that U.S. embassies and consulates abroad have the resources they need for appropriate security. His comments come as the Republicans continue to press for answers about the Obama administration's handling of last year's deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya.

Myanmar leader frees prisoners ahead of US visit

Sat, 18 May 2013 00:58:14 -0400

YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's president has pardoned at least 20 political prisoners just ahead of a historic visit to the United States that will highlight the two sides' improved relations brought about by the former pariah nation's democratic reforms.

Even after Cold War, US-Russia spy game continues

Fri, 17 May 2013 12:38:55 -0400

WASHINGTON - The embarrassing arrest of a suspected CIA officer in Moscow is the latest reminder that even after the Cold War, the U.S. and Russia are in an espionage battle with secret tactics, spying devices and training that sometimes can't prevent capture.