My Way News – Russia, China veto UN resolution on Syria
My Way News reports: “Russia and China vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution aimed at ending Syria’s bloodshed, despite international outrage Saturday over a devastating bombardment of the city of Homs by President Bashar Assad’s forces. Activists said more than 200 were killed in the bloodiest episode of the nearly 11-month uprising.”
Comment: Shame. The vote reveals in very stark terms where Russia and China stand, and it’s not with the people, but with the dictatorship.
My Way News – Tens of thousands rally against Putin’s rule
My Way News reports: “Their frozen breath rising in the brutally frigid air, tens of thousands of protesters marched through downtown Moscow on Saturday to keep up the pressure on Prime Minister Vladimir Putin one month before a presidential election that could extend his rule for six more years.”
My Way News – Iran launches new military exercises
My Way News reports: “Iran began ground military exercises Saturday and defiantly warned that it could cut off oil exports to ‘hostile’ European nations as tensions rise over suggestions that military strikes are an increasing possibility if sanctions fail to rein in the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.”
My Way News – Iranian leader warns US, Israel against strikes
My Way News reports: “Iran’s supreme leader pledged Friday to aid any nation or group that challenges Israel and said any military strikes over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program would damage U.S. interests in the Middle East ‘10 times over’ [...] Khamenei affirmed that Iran had assisted groups such as Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas – a well-known policy rarely stated explicitly by Iranian leaders [...] Khamenei called Israel a ‘cancerous tumor that should be cut and will be cut’ – a remark he has made previously.”
My Way News – Iran reports launch of small satellite into orbit
My Way News reports: “Iran successfully launched a new small satellite into orbit early Friday, state media reported, the latest in the country’s ambitious space program that has raised concerns in the West because of its possible military applications.”
My Way News – Greek debt talks to stretch into weekend
My Way News reports: “Greece desperately needs to secure the second bailout and the bond swap deal that seeks to halve its debt load in order to avoid a catastrophic default within weeks [...] Greece has been surviving since May 2010 on rescue loans from a euro110 billion bailout package from other eurozone countries and the IMF.”
My Way News – Top security and defense officials meet in Munich
My Way News reports: “The world’s top security and defense officials are gathering in Munich, with uncertainty over the future of the Middle East and the implications of the financial crisis in Europe looming large. The Munich Security Conference begins Friday with officials from more than 70 countries expected to include U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.”
Reuters – Panetta believes Israel may strike Iran this spring: report
Reuters reports: “Defense Secretary Leon Panetta believes there is a growing possibility Israel will attack Iran as early as April to stop Tehran from building a nuclear bomb, U.S. media reported on Thursday.”
My Way News – Turkey and Hamas grow close
My Way News reports: “Ties between Turkey, NATO’s biggest Muslim member, and Hamas, the Islamic militant group that says Israel should not exist, are blossoming. Last month, the Hamas premier visited the Turkish prime minister at his Istanbul home. Today, Turkish and Palestinian flags fly side by side at a building site in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.”
Yahoo! News – Russian EU envoy sees no chance for Syria resolution
Yahoo! News reports: “A senior Russian official said on Wednesday there was no chance a Western-Arab draft U.N. Security Council resolution could pass without language clearly ruling out potential military intervention, the Interfax news agency reported.”
Yahoo! News – Panetta: US combat in Afghanistan to end next year
My Way News reports: “Defense Secretary Leon Panetta laid out the administration’s most explicit portrayal of the U.S. drawdown in Afghanistan, saying Wednesday that U.S. and other international forces in Afghanistan expect to end their combat role in 2013 and continue a training and advisory role with Afghan forces through 2014.”
Yahoo! News – Taliban vows to retake Afghanistan: report
Yahoo! News reports: The Taliban, backed by Pakistan, remains confident despite a decade of NATO efforts that it will retake control of Afghanistan, NATO said in a new classified report that raises more questions about Afghanistan’s future as foreign forces withdraw.
