
Washington: The US has slapped sanctions on two individuals linked with the Taliban and the Haqqani network based along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, barring American citizens from any dealings with them. Bakht Gul, a Haqqani Network communications official, has been designated for acting for or on behalf of Badruddin Haqqani. Abdul Baqi Bari, a Taliban financier, is being designated for providing financial support for or financial services to, the Taliban, Adam...

12:21 PM, May 18, 2012

Washington: The United States will suspend sanctions barring American investment in Myanmar in response to political reforms there, but will keep those laws on its books to discourage backsliding, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday. "Today we say to American business: invest in Burma and do it responsibly," Hillary said during an appearance with Myanmar's Foreign Minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, on the Southeast Asian nation's first official visit...

02:22 AM, May 18, 2012

Naypyitaw: Myanmar's reformist rulers are looking forward to an eagerly awaited easing of European Union sanctions on Monday but celebrations will be muted over a political stalemate delaying Aung San Suu Kyi's historic parliamentary debut. A protest by Suu Kyi's party over a swearing-in vow for its would-be parliamentarians will dent an image of transformation the government wanted to show off on Monday, when the European Union is all but...

09:58 AM, Apr 23, 2012

Pyongyang: Isolated and impoverished North Korea said on Tuesday it was ready to go ahead with its proposed long-range rocket launch, an announcement that sparked immediate condemnation from South Korea and Russia and a plea from China, its main ally, for calm. The launch of the Unha-3 rocket, which North Korea says will merely put a weather satellite into space, breaches UN sanctions imposed to prevent Pyongyang from developing a...

05:36 PM, Apr 10, 2012

Washington: The winner of the 2012 US presidential elections must be prepared to deal with a potential re-emerging crisis between India and Pakistan and engage with New Delhi over its ties with Iran and interests in Afghanistan, an American expert on South Asia has said. Daniel Markey, Senior Fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia, at Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) a Washington-based think-tank said on Friday that the winner...

09:53 AM, Mar 31, 2012

Washington: The US is in touch with several countries including India and Turkey to how to "significantly reduce" their dependence on Iranian oil to avoid American sanctions in this regard, a State Department official said. "We are working hard with India to see if we can help with regard to reducing the country's dependence and the dependence of any of the other countries on Iranian crude, and looking at alternative...

08:26 AM, Mar 23, 2012

New Delhi: The international nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, will be meeting on Monday in Vienna in order to discuss Iran and its continued defiance of the West sanctions in promoting its nuclear programme. An IAEA team was recently denied access to specific nuclear areas in Iran. The resolution on Monday is likely to ask Iran to stop stonewalling investigation into possible military dimensions to its nuclear programme. There is already...

10:38 AM, Mar 05, 2012

Tehran: Iranians wrapped up a parliamentary election likely to reinforce Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's power over rival hardliners led by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Iranian leaders were looking for a high turnout at Friday's poll to ease a crisis of legitimacy caused by Ahmadinejad's re-election in 2009, when widespread accusations of fraud plunged the Islamic Republic into the worst unrest of its 33-year history. Iran also faces economic turmoil compounded...

08:15 AM, Mar 03, 2012

Tehran: Iran's ruling political and religious hardliners will face off in a parliamentary election on Friday, echoing a deepening rift in a conservative establishment grappling with economic sanctions over the country's disputed nuclear programme. The election will by the first since the country's disputed presidential election in 2009, when bloody opposition and pro-democracy protests were stamped out by security forces. This time round, reformist groups have said they will boycott...

07:48 AM, Mar 02, 2012

Washington: A congressional deadline for the Obama administration to begin enforcing new financial penalties on foreign firms that do business with Iran passed with no fresh action from Washington. While some congressional authors of a bill President Barack Obama signed December 31 expected the administration to announce new punishments on foreign banks, the Treasury Department said it did not have the authority to take that step now. Top administration officials...

05:30 PM, Mar 01, 2012

Brussels: European foreign ministers on Monday increased pressure on Syria's regime to stop its crackdown on opponents, freezing the assets of several Syrian government officials and imposing sanctions on the country's central bank. They also banned the purchase of gold, precious metals and diamonds from the country, and banned Syrian cargo flights from the European Union. The EU had previously imposed several rounds of sanctions on Syria, freezing the assets...

07:38 PM, Feb 27, 2012

New Delhi: India has not asked its refiners to cut crude oil purchases from Iran, which is facing tough US and European sanctions over its nuclear programme, a top Oil Ministry official said on Tuesday. "There is no change in imports from Iran. We are not asking our companies to reduce imports from Iran," the official said amid reports that the Persian Gulf nation is offering extra crude supplies to...

11:26 PM, Feb 21, 2012

Iran revealed its new 4th generation uranium enrichment centrifuges and domestically made nuclear fuel rods on Wednesday. ...

10:16 PM, Feb 15, 2012

Washington: US-Iran ties hit a new low on Monday as the Obama administration ordered blocking of Iranian government properties and financial institutions in America. Obama said that additional sanctions are needed due to the "deceptive practices" by Iran's banks including the Central Bank to conceal transactions. The US has accused Iran of pursuing a nuclear weapons programme against stiff world opposition. Meanwhile, US banks have been given new powers to...

07:06 AM, Feb 07, 2012

Washington: US President Barack Obama has said that Israel has not made a decision yet on attacking Iran's nuclear installations, noting that he still prefers to use diplomacy. "I do not think Israel has taken a decision on what they need to do," Obama told the NBC news in an interview aired during the Super Bowl event Sunday. Full portion of the interview would telecast on Tuesday. Obama said he...

10:55 AM, Feb 06, 2012