U.N. halts Syria talks as government closes in on Aleppo
A United Nations envoy halted his attempts to launch Syrian peace talks on Wednesday after the army, backed by Russian air strikes, made a major advance against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city.
Iraqi Kurdish leader calls for non-binding independence referendum
Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region should hold a non-binding referendum on independence, its president said on Tuesday, despite the numerous crises it is facing.
EU draft deal on Britain not a euro zone veto: Tusk letter
Proposals to protect Britain and other non-euro zone countries from deeper euro zone integration do not grant London the right of veto over decisions, European Council President Donald Tusk told EU leaders in a letter on Tuesday.
Syrian government approves 'in principle' U.N. aid request for besieged towns
The United Nations said on Monday the Syrian government has approved "in principle" a U.N. request for an aid delivery to the besieged Syrian towns of Madaya, al-Foua and Kefraya.
U.N. announces start of Syria peace talks as government troops advance
The United Nations announced on Monday peace talks for Syria had begun and called on world powers to push for a ceasefire, even as government forces, backed by Russian air strikes, launched their biggest offensive near Aleppo in a year.
Egypt says made no arrests in connection to Russian plane crash
Egypt's interior ministry denied on Saturday making any arrests in connection with the crash of a Russian passenger plane in Sinai last October that killed all 224 people on board.
Turkey says Russian jet violated its airspace again, warns of consequences
Turkey warned of consequences on Saturday after saying a Russian SU-34 jet had violated its airspace despite warnings, once more stoking tensions between two countries involved in Syria's war, but Russia denied that there had been any incursion.
Fearful of Russia, Europe's defense cuts slow: NATO data
NATO defense cuts slowed sharply in 2015, alliance data showed on Thursday, also revealing a split between big-spending eastern European nations fearful of Russia and others such as Italy that are still reducing their budgets.
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