October, 2014

• 8 October

  France condemns attacks against UN troops in Mali

  France on Wednesday condemned a fresh attack a day earlier against the UN stabilisation force in Mali in which a Senegalese was killed. Since September, several African volunteer forces in the UN mission have been killed and a number wounded. Soldiers from Chad and Nigeria have been among earlier victims …

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• 8 October

  Syria buffer zone not yet to be considered by Pentagon

  The idea of a buffer zone along the Syrian border to protect displaced people “is not something that is under consideration right now,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said on Wednesday, while a Pentagon spokesman said the idea was not under active consideration “as a military option.” The remark …

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• 8 October

  Egypt, Libya to increase security co-operation

  Egypt will train Libyan forces to fight terrorism and help secure a shared border, the prime ministers of the two states announced in Cairo on Wednesday, stepping up efforts against Islamist insurgents in both countries. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has expressed concerns over militants who have capitalised on the …

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• 8 October

  Turkey holds security summit on IS

  Turkey held a security summit on Wednesday as Islamic State (IS) militants were approaching the center of the Syrian border town of Kobane, a crisis that triggered violent protests across Turkey in which 19 people have been killed. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu convened the meeting in an effort to combat IS …

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• 8 October

  Armenian, French FMs discuss Karabakh solution

  On October 7 Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with his French counterpart Laurent Fabius. The issue of settlement of the Karabakh issue was on the agenda. Hailing the constructive involvement of France and the other Minsk Group co-chairing countries in the process, Minister Nalbandian emphasized the

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• 8 October

  Hundreds killed during Ukraine cease-fire deal

  At least 331 deaths have been reported in eastern Ukraine since last month’s ceasefire deal between Russian-backed separatists and government troops, the United Nations said Wednesday. Donetsk airport, the focus of much of the fighting, has no immediate tactical significance for separatist forces devoid of any air power. However, the …

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• 8 October

  Syria unveils four chemical facilities

  Syria has declared four chemical weapons facilities it hadn’t mentioned before, a special representative of the UN secretary-general has told the Security Council. The news heightened concerns that the Syrian government hasn’t been fully open about its chemical weapons program. Diplomats said Sigrid Kaag told them during closed consultations that …

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• 6 October

  NATO chief says the alliance can deploy its forces wherever it wants

  New NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said on Sunday that the Western alliance could deploy its forces wherever it wants, apparently calling into question post-Cold War agreements that have been shaken by Russia’s actions in Crimea and Ukraine. Stoltenberg was visiting NATO member Poland to reassure it that NATO would provide the protection it sought against its former communist …

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• 6 October

  Erdogan says IS, PKK are the same

  The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorist group is not different from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Saturday. “For us, the PKK is the same as ISIL. It is wrong to consider them as different from each other,” Erdoğan told reporters …

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• 6 October

  Turkey to send troops on ground in Syria only to target Assad regime

  Ground troops can be used in the operation targeting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) as part of a comprehensive strategy also targeting the Bashar al-Assad regime, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has reportedly said. Davutoğlu also reportedly said Turkey will join the coalition against ISIL “only with a …

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