Beijing / AFP US President Barack Obama was to meet the Dalai Lama at the White House on Wednesday, a move condemned by China which portrays the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader as a dangerous separatist. Obama has met the Dalai Lama several times before and calls the monk “a good friend,” but the pair will—as usual—talk behind closed doors ...

  Brussels / AFP NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday demanded that Russia withdraw its forces and military hardware from Ukraine and halt its support for pro-Moscow separatists battling Kiev. “Russia needs to stop supporting the militants and withdraw its forces and military equipment from Ukrainian territory,” Stoltenberg said after a meeting of NATO defence ministers with their Ukrainian counterpart ...

  Washington / AFP CIA lawyers sought guarantees the US spy agency would never be prosecuted for torturing suspects after the September 11, 2001 attacks, while other staff warned the program was an impending “train wreck,” documents showed. The correspondence provides a new glimpse into tussles within the CIA as it implemented its notorious “enhanced interrogation” techniques aimed at thwarting ...

  Seoul/ AFP North Korea may have produced an additinal six or more nuclear weapons over the past 18 months, possibly bringing its total arsenal to more than 21 bombs, a US think tank said. The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) based the estimates on the amounts of weapons-grade plutonium and highly enriched uranium the North is believed ...

  Pretoria / AFP A sobbing Oscar Pistorius walked hesitantly on his stumps around court Wednesday in a dramatic demonstration of his disability ahead of his sentencing for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Wearing shorts, the double-amputee removed his prosthetic limbs at the request of his lawyer Barry Roux as he made a final plea for Pistorius, who faces 15 ...

  Tokyo / AFP A Chinese spy ship entered Japan’s territorial waters on Wednesday, Tokyo officials said, less than a week after another of the rival’s naval vessels sailed near islands at the centre of a sovereignty dispute. Concerns over China’s rising military presence in Asian waters have sparked concerns in Japan, which administers islands in the East China Sea ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM The Mohammed Bin Rashid Centre for Government Innovation (MBRCGI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) to implement projects designed by a group of MBRCGI graduates under the Taqat energy project that employs solar energy and kinetic energy to generate electricity. The MoU, signed by Ohood bint Khalfan Al Roumi, ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM HH Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council attended a Ramadan forum organised by the General Secretariat of the Executive Council for Abu Dhabi Government entities and departments’ employees to shed light on developments of Abu Dhabi Plan. Held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, the event was ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM The Department of Economic Development – Abu Dhabi (ADDED) signed a cooperation agreement with the Abu Dhabi University (ADU) to boost mutual cooperation and joint coordination in preparing technical studies, scientific research and programmes and plans that would support the private sector. The parties will provide training and rehabilitation programmes, encourage innovation initiatives, and capitalise on ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM NIMR Automotive, the defence vehicle manufacturer in Abu Dhabi, achieved an important milestone in its history with the 1,000th vehicle completed in its production facility at Tawazun Industrial Park in Ajban, since commencing operation in 2014. NIMR’s 1,000th vehicle produced is the AJBAN 440A, a 4×4 ballistic and blast protected Light Tactical Protected Patrol Vehicle for ...