April, 2009

• 6 April

  U.S. Construction in Afghanistan Sign of Long Commitment

  The Army is building $1.1 billion worth of military bases and other facilities in Afghanistan and is planning to start an additional $1.3 billion in projects this year, according to Col. Thomas E. O’Donovan, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Afghanistan District. Massive construction of barracks, training areas, …

  Read More »
• 6 April

  Taliban threaten 2 attacks per week in Pakistan

  A suicide bombing at a crowded Shiite mosque south of Pakistan’s capital killed 26 people, the latest evidence of how security in the U.S.-allied nation is crumbling well beyond the Afghan border region where al-Qaida and Taliban fighters thrive. The violence came Sunday as a senior Pakistani Taliban commander said …

  Read More »
• 5 April

  Moldova votes for new parliament, president to go

  CHISINAU  – Moldovans went to the polls on Sunday to vote for a new parliament that will choose a replacement for President Vladimir Voronin, the only communist leader in Europe and the former Soviet Union. Voronin, in office since 2001, cannot stand for a third consecutive term but has made …

  Read More »
• 5 April

  Moldova votes with pro-EU Communists tipped to win

  Moldovans were voting in parliamentary elections with the dominant Communists, who tread a fine line between promoting EU integration and friendly ties with Moscow, tipped to win. The party, the first self-described Communist group to have won power in the former Soviet Union, is well ahead in opinion polls for …

  Read More »
• 5 April

  As Moldova votes, rebel region clings to Russia

  TIRASPOL: As voters in the ex-Soviet republic of Moldova go to the polls today, half a million residents of an impoverished rebel province in the east of the country won’t take part. For the people of Transdniestr, which broke from Moldova after the collapse of the Soviet Union, all roads …

  Read More »
• 5 April

  Active campaigning ends in Moldova parliament elections

  Chisinau – Active campaigning came to a halt in Moldova on Saturday, as the former Soviet republic prepared to elect a new parliament. The streets of the capital Chisinau were free of electioneering Saturday morning, as a nationwide last-day ban on election advertising went into effect. The poll-leading Communists ended …

  Read More »
• 5 April

  Voting Saturday in Slovakia, Sunday in Moldova, Macedonia

  Slovaks are voting Saturday in a presidential run-off election between the popular incumbent and a strong opposition challenger. President Ivan Gasparovic won nearly 47 percent of vote in the first round of elections last month. He now faces the top opposition candidate, sociologist and former social affairs minister Iveta Radicova, …

  Read More »
• 4 April

  Obama hails 5,000 more NATO forces for Afghanistan

  President Barack Obama hailed “strong and unanimous support” from NATO allies on Saturday for his stepped-up anti-terror strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan and welcomed their “down payment” promises of 5,000 fresh forces. The allies rebuffed U.S. appeals for more combat forces to join the war, but the backing Obama did …

  Read More »
• 4 April

  Europe’s Afghan response includes praise, limits

  European leaders enthusiastically praised President Barack Obama‘s new Afghan strategy at a NATO summit Saturday but held their ground on a central disagreement and offered only military trainers and extra security forces for upcoming elections. Violent anti-war protests that marred the alliance’s 60th anniversary celebrations were a stark reminder that …

  Read More »
• 3 April

  Obama brings Afghan plan to NATO allies

  President Barack Obama on Friday will present his new strategy for Afghanistan to NATO allies who are increasingly reluctant to commit more ground troops to the escalating war effort. The military alliance‘s annual summit this year coincides with NATO’s 60th anniversary. While NATO leaders have emphasized that the meeting Friday …

  Read More »