Belarusian Leader Calls On Turkey, Russia To Compromis
Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka on December 12 called on Russia and Turkey to compromise and overcome the crisis in their relations.
"Mistakes in this turbulent world are inevitable, and they should be not inflated but settled," he said at a gathering of regional leaders, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan.
"If you make a mistake, you should acknowledge it and find the strength to make concessions and compromises to smooth over the situation," he said.
Moscow and Ankara are in the midst of a major spat caused by Turkey's November 24 downing of a Russian bomber along the Syrian border.
Russia has introduced a slew of economic sanctions to punish Turkey.
Lukashenka said the two nations should "stop inflaming passions and find an opportunity to make at least half a step in each other's direction."
His remarks were seconded by Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev, who was also present at the gathering.
Erdogan addressed the group on December 12, but made no reference to relations with Russia.
Based on reporting by AP and Interfax
Libyan Unity Deal Expected To Be Endorsed
A UN-brokered national unity plan for Libya is due to be endorsed at a conference in Rome on December 13.
Libya slid into chaos following the toppling and killing of dictator Muammar Qadafi.
Since then, it has been torn between an internationally recognized government in eastern Tobruk and an Islamist-backed government in the capital, Tripoli, and now faces threats from Islamic State (IS) extremists.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will host the meeting in Rome with Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni that was drawing representatives from Libya's neighbors and other countries.
The plan calls for the creation within 40 days of a national unity government that would then seek security assistance from outside parties to ease the conflict and concentrate on IS.
Based on reporting by AFP and AP
Islamic State-linked group claims deadly Pakistan market bombing
Islamabad (dpa) -- A hard-line Sunni group linked to Islamic State claims responsibility for a bombing that killed 17 members of the Shiite community in northwestern Pakistan.
The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi al-Alami group says the attack was to punish the Shiite community for sending its members to Syria to fight with forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.
"This is our revenge for joining Iran in war in Syria," Ali bin
Sufian, a man calling himself spokesman of the group, wrote to dpa.
Russia Says Fire Warning Shots At Turkish Vessel
The Russian Defense Ministry says one of its warships was forced to fire warning shots to avoid a collision with a Turkish ship in the Aegean Sea.
The Defense Ministry said that it had summoned the Turkish military attache over the incident earlier on December 13.
The Interfax news agency said that the Turkish vessel, which the ministry did not name, had failed to respond to earlier warnings but had sharply changed course after shots were fired before passing within 500 meters of the Russian warship.
Relations between Russia and Turkey have plunged since November 24 when a Russian warplane was downed by a Turkish F-16 near the border with Syria, killing one of the pilots.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP
That concludes our live-blogging of the crisis surrounding Islamic State for Sunday, December 13. Check back here tomorrow for more of our continuing coverage.
Turkey's foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said that Ankara's patience with Russia "has a limit" after Moscow's "exaggerated" reaction to a weekend naval incident between the two countries, Italian daily Corriere della Sera reported this morning.
A Russian destroyer fired warning shots at a Turkish vessel in the Aegean on Sunday to avoid a collision and summoned the Turkish military attache over the incident..
"Ours was only a fishing boat, it seems to me that the reaction of the Russian naval ship was exaggerated," Mevlut Cavusoglu said.
Tensions between Russia and Turkey have soared since the Turkish air force downed a Russian warplane near the Syrian border on November 24.
A detachment of the Turkish troops deployed in northern Iraq are today leaving the Bashiqa camp close to the Islamic State-held city of Mosul and moving north, a Turkish military source told Reuters this morning.
The move comes after Baghdad said it would ask the U.N. Security Council to order the Turkish troops out of Iraq.