Eurasia

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistani security forces have killed 20 militants near the Afghan border, a security official said on Thursday, as tensions over how to tackle the Taliban and al Qaeda surfaced with the United States.

Russia has urged the United Nations’ highest court to dismiss a case brought by Georgia, accusing Moscow of human rights violations in South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Serbia overwhelmingly backed a European Union pre-membership pact on Tuesday as well as an energy pact with Russia, in what the prime minister called a bid to build a bridge between the East and West.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union must offer further political and financial support to Bosnia during a difficult reform period to come, Bosnia’s top peace envoy said on Tuesday, warning of “unfinished business.”

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s military plans to station a total of 7,600 servicemen at bases in Georgia’s South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions, Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said on Tuesday.

WARSAW (Reuters) – Russia’s relations with Poland have rarely been easy but Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visits Warsaw on Thursday amid particularly sharp disputes over missile defense and Moscow’s army offensive in Georgia.

Ukraine has been given a morale-boost at talks with senior European Union officials in Paris, but no pledge was offered for membership of the bloc.

The fight against terrorism and militant violence has come under the spotlight at the swearing-in of Pakistan’s new president.

Moscow says its soldiers are likely to stay in South Ossetia and Abkhazia for a long time, a day after agreeing to a deal to pull troops out of Georgia proper. 

TEHRAN (FNA)- Russia’s Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of energy giant Gazprom, has agreed to develop Iran’s North Azadegan oilfield and produce oil at three other fields.