India’s population is expected to surpass China’s in about seven years and Nigeria is projected to overtake the United States and become the third most populous country in the world shortly before 2050, a U.N. report said Wednesday. The report by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs’ Population Division forecasts that the current world […]
Macron: Assad is the enemy of the Syrian people, but not of France
President Emmanuel Macron said in remarks published on Wednesday that he saw no legitimate successor to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and that France no longer considered his departure a pre-condition to resolving the six-year conflict. “The new perspective that I have had on this subject is that I have not stated that Bashar al-Assad’s departure […]
PM May hopes to reassure EU leaders at Brussels summit despite being badly weakened
Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May will try Thursday to convince European leaders she can still push through Brexit despite being badly weakened by an election bet that turned sour. The two-day Brussels summit marks the debut of French President Emmanuel Macron, the figurehead of a renewed confidence among the remaining 27 states that Britain’s […]
Israel would use all its strength from the start in a new Lebanon war with Hezbollah, says Eshel
Israel would use all its strength from the start in any new war with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, the chief of the Israeli air force said on Wednesday, sending a firm warning a decade after their last conflict. At the annual Herzliya security conference near Tel Aviv, Major-General Amir Eshel said qualitative and quantitative […]
Kushner begins shuttle diplomacy in Israel and West Bank in search of a peace deal
By Joshua Mitnick Presidential advisor Jared Kushner waded into the nitty-gritty of Middle East peace mediation for the first time on Wednesday, as the Trump administration seemed to lower expectations for a swift breakthrough by emphasizing that “peace will take time.’’ The son-in-law of President Trump, who has been tasked with overseeing the diplomacy to […]
Russia cancels US meeting over Crimea, Ukraine sanctions
Russia has canceled a meeting with senior US diplomats in the wake of Washington’s decision to reinforce sanctions imposed over its interference in Ukraine and occupation of Crimea. US Under Secretary of State Tom Shannon had been due in St Petersburg on Friday to mend diplomatic fences with Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. But […]
Too close: Russian jet ‘flies 5ft from US spy plane’ over Baltic Sea
A Russian jet flew within 5ft (1.5m) of a US reconnaissance plane’s wing tip over the Baltic Sea on Monday, US officials say. The encounter was deemed “unsafe” due to the Russian pilot’s “high rate of closure speed and poor control of the aircraft”, officials said. But Russia disputes this, saying the US plane made […]
U.S. issues unusual public warning to Saudi Arabia and UAE over Qatar rift
By Anne Gearan and Karen DeYoung The U.S. State Department issued an unusual public warning to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday over a diplomatic rift with fellow U.S. ally Qatar, and suggested that the Saudis may have provoked a crisis and drawn in the United States on false pretenses. Department spokeswoman […]
The scandals that drove Travis Kalanick, Uber’s billionaire founder and CEO out
Uber’s embattled chief executive Travis Kalanick has resigned from the firm, following pressure from shareholders. His resignation comes after a chaotic few months at the firm, including a series of scandals about sexual harassment, macho culture and the departure of senior executives. Mr Kalanick had already said that he was taking an indefinite leave of […]
Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman ( MBS) is the new Crown Prince
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman made his son his successor on Wednesday, removing his nephew as crown prince and giving the 31-year old almost unprecedented powers as the world’s leading oil exporter implements transformational reforms. A royal decree appointed Mohammed bin Salman crown prince and deputy prime minister. He retains defense, oil and other portfolios. It […]