Eurasia

KIEV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s defense sector has called for a big rise in funding for the military after Russia’s war with Georgia but its reliance on Russian supplies of weapons and parts poses a dilemma.

SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) – Russia hopes the crisis in Georgia will not disrupt strategically important relations between the United States and Russia, a top Kremlin aide said on Tuesday.

NAZRAN, Russia (Reuters) – Masked police in the southern Russian region of Ingushetia used batons to break up an anti-government protest on Tuesday, two days after an opposition leader died in police custody.

LANDIKOTAL, Pakistan (Reuters) – Ethnic Pashtun tribal elders in Pakistan have promised to ensure security for supplies trucked through the Khyber Pass bound for foreign forces in Afghanistan, a government official said on Tuesday.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistani Taliban said on Tuesday they had kidnapped two Chinese telecommunications engineers and two Pakistanis and that abductions would continue until the government stopped attacking militants.

It has been described as a diplomatic slap on the wrist.The European Union has decided to freeze talks with Moscow on closer ties until Russian troops withdraw from Georgia. The extraordinary summit in Brussels was the first to be called since the outbreak of the war in Iraq in 2003.

Russia’s Ambassador to the EU has warned that the bloc will lose out by suspending long-delayed talks on a framework for new relations as retaliation for the military campaign in Georgia.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Afghan Foreign Minister Rangin Spanta stressed that his country would continue economic, cultural, political and regional cooperation with Iran and Tajikistan.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Oil-rich Persian Gulf monarchies will sign an accord with Turkey aimed at boosting ties between the Arab bloc and Ankara, the chief of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) said on Sunday.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union will warn Russia on Monday that relations could suffer in future if Moscow does not uphold accords to end the Georgia conflict, according to a draft summit statement that shied away from sanctions.