DHAKA: Head of Nato Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Monday he had seen no proof of Russian troops withdrawing from the border with Ukraine after president Vladimir Putin announced an end to exercises and return to bases.‘Unfortunately, we have not seen any evidence at all that Russia has

DHAKA: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has initiated talks with her Tamil Nadu counterpart J Jayalalithaa, suggesting that the two should come together to form an ‘opposition block’ in Parliament.Trinamool Congress leaders in Kolkata say their party chief’s objective is

DHAKA: The European Union said on Monday it would monitor all of Egypt’s presidential election, reversing a decision to scale back its operations after authorities agreed to release a load of impounded equipment.The bloc had said two days earlier that its officials would only be able to

DHAKA: Saudi Arabia closed its embassy in Tripoli on Monday and evacuated all its diplomats over ‘security’ concerns in Libya. The SPA state news agency reported, according to The Straits Times. The Saudi ambassador to Libya Mohammed Mahmud al-Ali told SPA the kingdom’s consulate

DHAKA: The United States has filed charges against several members of China’s military for allegedly stealing American trade secrets. Media reports said on Monday, reports The Straits Times. The Washington Post and other news outlets said the charges against the People’s Liberation

DHAKA: Narendra Modi, to be India’s next prime minister, has taken to Twitter to thank fellow leaders in Japan, Russia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Australia for their good wishes.  But one man still waiting for a reply is US Secretary of State John Kerry.  While Canadian prime minister

DHAKA: Saudi Arabia has suspended beef imports from Brazil over fears of a suspected case of atypical mad cow disease detected in the country. The Gulf kingdom said on Monday, reports The Straits Times. The Saudi agriculture ministry announced the ‘temporary’ suspension in a

DHAKA: New York raised the minimum age to buy cigarettes to 21 on Sunday, in its latest initiative to encourage healthier behavior among residents. The law, signed November 19 shortly before former mayor Michael Bloomberg finished his second term, had a six-month waiting period before it

DHAKA: Congress working committee members could offer their resignation at its meeting on Monday in the wake of the party’s worst-ever performance in the Lok Sabha polls, amid indications that it could witness an attack on advisers of Rahul Gandhi while insulating him from criticism.

DHAKA: Philippine president Benigno Aquino on Monday accused China of violating the ‘Declaration of Conduct’ it signed in 2002, after it allegedly began reclaiming land on a disputed reef in the South China Sea.Manila last week publicly accused Beijing of large-scale reclamation

DHAKA: Russia’s president Vladimir Putin has ordered troops near Ukraine’s border to withdraw, the Kremlin says. Units in the Rostov, Belgorod and Bryansk regions should return to their permanent bases, a statement said.Russia has made similar statements in the past, only for Nato to

DHAKA: Former administrator and diplomat of India, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, wrote an open letter to the newly elected to-be Prime Minister Modi.The Hindu, at an article on Monday published the letter.The leeter is as following:“Dear Prime Minister-designate, this comes with my hearty

DHAKA: New Tokyo governor Yoichi Masuzoe on Monday pledged aggressive deregulation drives to lure foreign talent to his city to spur growth and take back its reputation as Asia’s business hub from rivals such as Singapore.Japan has very strict immigration policies and business has to

DHAKA: Disaster has killed at least 44 people and completely cut off some towns in Serbia and Bosnia. Thousands crammed into boats and army trucks as they fled their homes in Serbia and Bosnia, after record rainfall turned the Sava River into a deadly torrent and caused the worst floods

DHAKA: Thirty-one children and one adult were killed in Colombia on Sunday when fuel exploded on a broken-down bus returning from a church event, an emergency response coordinator said. The charred bodies of victims were being identified using dental records in Barranquilla, the nearest

DHAKA: South Korea is to break up its coastguard in the wake of the ferry disaster in which about 300 people died, says President Park Geun-hye. In a televised address, she apologised formally for the sinking. A new safety agency would handle rescue duties, with investigative functions

DHAKA: German chancellor Angela Merkel wants to celebrate her 60th birthday at a reception with hundreds of guests by inviting a scientist to give a lecture. A report said on Sunday, reports The Straits Times. Dr Merkel, a trained physical chemist, reaches the milestone in July when her

DHAKA: Heavy gunfire and clashes broke out Sunday in the south of the Libyan capital Tripoli, near the country’s interim parliament. Witnesses said, reports The Straits Times. They said the clashes erupted after a convoy of armoured vehicles entered Tripoli from the airport road and

DHAKA: Armed rebels in northern Mali have taken about 30 civil servants hostage as the prime minister visited the area. Several armed Tuareg rebels clashed with government soldiers in Kidal on Saturday and abducted the officials. Their whereabouts are unclear. In 2012 a Tuareg rebellion

DHAKA: Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has insisted that reaching a final nuclear deal with world powers is still within reach. His comments came after Iran and six world powers - Britain, China, France, Russia, the US and Germany - ended a fourth round of nuclear talks in