Merkel berates Obama on spying, joins parade of ‘shocked’ world leaders
A new report suggests that the NSA has monitored the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. It’s not really the alleged spying that’s surprising, but the scope of it.
A new report suggests that the NSA has monitored the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. It’s not really the alleged spying that’s surprising, but the scope of it.
Obama hosts Nawaz Sharif Wednesday, and with the often-rocky US-Pakistani marriage now in kiss-and-make-up mode, the leaders are expected to emphasize issues that unite, rather than divide (drones).
Secretary Kerry is traveling to London to boost support for a Syria peace conference. Rebels view Assad’s intentions with suspicion, but the US hopes to find support among the many opposition groups.
Smiles abounded after world powers ended talks this week with Iran on its nuclear program. US officials will have to win over skeptical members of Congress and key US allies if there is to be a deal.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff canceled a state visit intended for later this month. With that, the Obama White House will almost certainly hold no state dinner this year.
President Obama is expected to announce a cut in annual military aid to Egypt, citing what he sees as anti-democratic steps. The decision could alter a decades-old alliance.
The UN Security Council on Wednesday moved to formally urge all sides in Syria’s civil war to let humanitarian aid flow freely into the country. International relief for Syria has been sparse, and Western nations say the Assad regime has deliberately blocked it.
Venezuela President Maduro, in a move from the playbook of former President Hugo Chávez, charges that US diplomats engaged in an ‘imperialist’ plot to sabotage the electric grid.
Iran is not to be trusted and sanctions should be strengthened if it strengthens its nuclear program during negotiations, Netanyahu tells Obama and Biden over lunch at the White House.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif held a brief yet historic bilateral meeting at the UN Thursday as the Security Council met to discuss Iran’s nuclear program. All sides predict future talks will be ‘substantive’ and ‘ambitious.’
Addressing the UN General Assembly, Obama defended America’s leading role in the world, including its readiness to use force, and indicated the Mideast will remain the focus of US diplomacy for the rest of his term.
President Obama’s address to the nation was nearly upstaged by a Russian plan to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles. But threat of a military strike prompted Russia and Assad to act – and is needed if diplomacy fails, he says.
A Senate hearing about potential military strikes against Syria was dominated by discussion about Iraq. Secretary of State John Kerry promised there would be no ground troops.
The US has joined other countries in demanding that a UN team investigate Wednesday’s suspected chemical weapons attack in Syria. But experts are quick to list reasons why a major US intervention is unlikely.
Yemen appeared to back away from claims it had foiled a grandiose plot, and some terror experts wondered if the US, which launched three more drone strikes, had been duped by Al Qaeda into closing its embassies.
The new Israel-Palestinian peace talks are just that, US officials insist – bilateral talks between the two parties. But the US will have an important role in prodding both sides toward compromise.
Deputy Secretary of State William Burns is holding talks with Egypt’s military-backed interim government and is also meeting with Egyptian business leaders during a two-day visit.
Israel’s settlement announcement would seem to be a slap at Kerry’s efforts to reopen peace talks. But as one Mideast veteran puts it, Netanyahu ‘takes a step backward before he takes a step forward.’
Three State Department officials, referred to as ‘whistleblowers’ by some on the House panel, testified on the Benghazi attack for hours in an intensely partisan atmosphere.
North Korea’s sentencing of a detained American to 15 years hard labor could be an attention-getting ploy. But Kenneth Bae is a devout Christian, and ‘the regime is scared to death of Christianity.’
By Howard LaFranchi
May 3, 2013