East-West tug of war

December 18, 2013 - Daily News Briefing

The great tug of war over Ukraine took a lurch to the East yesterday.

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The arrest and alleged strip search of an Indian diplomat in New York City escalated into a major diplomatic furor Tuesday as India’s national security adviser called the woman’s treatment “despicable and barbaric.” Devyani Khobragade, India’s deputy consul general in New York, is accused of submitting false documents to obtain a work visa for her Manhattan housekeeper. Indian officials said she was arrested and handcuffed Thursday as she dropped off her daughter at school, and was kept in a cell with drug addicts before posting $250,000 bail.

The European Union said Tuesday it has warned Israel against any new West Bank settlement construction following an upcoming Palestinian prisoner release, saying it will be held responsible for any resulting failure of the ongoing peace talks. The warning is another sign of displeasure in Europe over Israel’s settlement building and its effect on the negotiations, which have yielded no tangible results months after they started.

It has been standing for thousands of years, so Britain’s ancient Stonehenge monument was due a makeover. New visitor facilities and landscaping are designed to “restore the dignity” of the mysterious stone circle, and transform the way more than 1 million visitors a year see it. The $44 million renovation, which was previewed Tuesday, includes a new building 1-1/2 miles from the stones where visitors can watch an exhibition about Neolithic life.

The Russian parliament on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to an amnesty that could pardon jailed members of the punk band Pussy Riot, in what appeared to be legislation carefully tailored to send a symbolic message to the West before the showcase Winter Olympics in Sochi. In the first of three votes, parliament voted unanimously in favor of the bill, a complicated piece of legislation that applied to the band members and some other political prisoners but that may actually pass only after the scheduled March release of the two band members still in jail.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said Tuesday that Supreme Court justices should work as long as they can and shouldn’t manipulate their retirement so a like-minded president can appoint their successor. Some liberals have recently called on the 80-year-old Ginsburg to retire so President Obama can choose her replacement. If she stays beyond his term, it would leave open the possibility that a Republican would name the liberal justice’s successor.

President Obama on Tuesday huddled with executives from leading technology companies, including Google, Twitter, and Apple. The White House says the meeting was focused on efforts to repair the Obama administration’s HealthCare.gov website and reform government information technology. The National Security Agency’s surveillance programs were also on the agenda.

Rep. Jim Matheson (D) of Utah will not run for an eighth term in Congress next year, the congressman announced Tuesday.Matheson was expected to face a tough repeat challenge in 2014 from Saratoga Springs Mayor Mia Love, a Republican who he narrowly defeated in 2012. During his seven terms in Congress, Matheson, the only Democratic member of Utah’s congressional delegation, has staked himself out as a member of the fiscally conservative “Blue Dog” Democrats.

The Afghan ambassador to the United Nations said Tuesday he’s certain a security agreement with the United States for a training and counterterrorism mission there after 2014 will be signed “in a timely manner,” while the US again pressed for the delayed signing to happen “promptly.” The United States wants the Bilateral Security Agreement to be signed by the end of this year. The NATO mandate expires next year, and foreign forces must depart Afghanistan, leaving Afghan forces in charge.

Six US service members were killed Tuesday when a helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan, US and NATO officials said. One person on board the Black Hawk UH-60 was injured and survived, according to The Associated Press. A statement issued by the NATO international military coalition said there was no insurgent activity in the area at the time of the crash, which is under investigation.

The United States imposed sanctions Tuesday on a Myanmar military officer and three companies it accuses of involvement in the continuing, illicit arms trade with North Korea.The designations do not directly target the government of Myanmar (Burma), but will deepen doubts over the nation’s compliance with UN Security Council resolutions. Cutting Myanmar’s military ties with North Korea has been a key goal of the US policy to end Myanmar’s long international isolation after its democratic reforms.

Compiled from wire service reports

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

Compiled from wire service reports

“The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” – Mary Baker Eddy

The Daily News Briefing is published Monday through Friday by The Christian Science Publishing Society in Boston, Massachusetts.

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