European union russia

LONDON: Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected on Wednesday (Jul 22) any suggestion that Britain's vote to leave the European Union had been influenced by Russian interference. A day after a report by parliament's intelligence and security committee said the government had failed to try to find out whether Russia had meddled in the Brexit vote, Johnson's government doubled down on its refusal to launch a review. Instead, the government said it had taken measures since the review, which was completed in March last year, and would bring forward legislation to counter "hostile state activity" to deal more effectively with the espionage threat. "The people of this country didn't vote to leave the EU because of pressure from Russia or Russian interference - they voted because they wanted to take back control," Johnson told parliament, describing the criticism as being led by those lawmakers who voted to stay in the EU at the 2016 referendum. "It is the UK that leads the world in … [Read more...] about PM Johnson says Britain was not influenced by Russia in Brexit vote

LONDON: Britain demanded "more realism" from the European Union on Monday (Sep 7) ahead of crucial post-Brexit trade talks, but the mood was soured by reports that London was looking to rewrite an agreement the two sides had already signed. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's chief negotiator, David Frost, said "we must make progress this week" if an agreement is to be reached by the end of a post-Brexit transition period in December. For that, "we need to see more realism from the EU about our status as an independent country", he said ahead of Tuesday's talks with the EU's Michel Barnier in London. "If they can't do that in the very limited time we have left, then we will be trading on terms like those the EU has with Australia, and we are ramping up our preparations for the end of the year." Talks have been deadlocked for months over issues such as the extent of EU access to UK fishing waters, state aid and fair competition rules. Both sides say a deal must be agreed by a … [Read more...] about UK urges ‘more realism’ in crunch EU trade talks

LONDON: Britain went into Tuesday's (Sep 8) fresh round of Brexit trade talks with a warning to the European Union that it was ramping up preparations to leave without an agreement as both sides bickered over rules governing nearly US$1 trillion in commerce. Britain left the EU on Jan 31 but talks on new trade terms have made little headway as the clock ticks down to an October deadline for a new deal and then the end of the status-quo transition arrangement in late December. As diplomats try to gauge whether Prime Minister Boris Johnson is blustering or serious about allowing a tumultuous finale to the four-year Brexit saga, his chief negotiator said yet again that Britain was not afraid of a no-deal exit. That prospect scares business and weakened the British pound on currency markets. "We have now been talking for six months and can no longer afford to go over well-trodden ground. We need to see more realism from the EU about our status as an independent country," David … [Read more...] about UK ramps up no-deal preparations as Brexit poker begins

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA - Russia’s appetite for influence and lucrative arms sales in Southeast Asia has been whetted by the latest coup in Myanmar, where isolated generals remain distrustful of China but still require allies on the United Nations Security Council. Chinese investments had flourished in Myanmar under the now-deposed civilian government effectively led by former opposition figure Aung San Suu Kyi, and the military, also known as Tatmadaw, benefitted through state owned enterprises brought under its control before Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy won historic 2015 elections. However, relations between junta leaders and Beijing have long been strained over Chinese interference across their common border – an existential threat not shared with Russia – and Beijing’s assistance to long-running ethnic insurgencies, including the sale of weapons to rebels. Bradley Murg, a senior research fellow at the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, said Russia and … [Read more...] about Russia Seeks to Strengthen Old Ties with Myanmar Junta

BERLIN: Chancellor Angela Merkel does not rule out imposing sanctions on a pipeline set to bring Russian gas to Germany in response to the suspected poisoning of a Kremlin critic with a Soviet-style nerve agent, her chief spokesman said on Monday (Sep 7). Merkel is under mounting pressure from members of her conservative party to suspend the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a huge project to double Russian gas exports to Germany that is more than 90per cent complete and due to start operating from early 2021. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in remarks published on Sunday that Russia must help clear up the circumstances around the poisoning of Alexei Navalny or face the possibility of Germany withdrawing its support for Nord Stream 2. Asked on Monday if Merkel agreed with Maas, who is from her junior coalition partner the Social Democrats (SPD), on the pipeline, her spokesman Steffen Seibert said: "The chancellor shares the remarks made by the foreign minister." It was the … [Read more...] about Merkel doesn’t rule out sanctions on Russian gas pipeline: Spokesman