Moscow: Russia expelled a US diplomat on Tuesday after saying he had been caught red-handed with disguises, special equipment and wads of cash as he tried to recruit a Russian intelligence agent to work for the CIA. Apparently detained in an incongruous-looking blond wig, with props reminiscent of a schoolboy's spy kit, US Embassy Third Secretary Ryan Fogle hardly looked like a Cold War secret agent.
But the announcement still came at an awkward time for Washington and Moscow as they try to improve relations and bring the warring sides in Syria together for an international peace conference. Nevertheless, there was little sign that either country wanted to escalate the affair beyond a minimum response.
The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned US Ambassador Michael McFaul to discuss the case on Wednesday and released a statement ordering Fogle to leave Russia. "Such provocative actions in the spirit of the Cold War will by no means promote the strengthening of mutual trust," it said.
In Washington, US State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell suggested the episode was unlikely to affect broader US-Russian relations or plans for the Syria conference. "I'm not sure I would read too much into one incident one way or another," Ventrell said. He confirmed that an embassy officer had been briefly detained, but declined further comment....
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09:46 AM, May 15, 2013
Rio de Janeiro: Brazil's top-flight football club Botafogo have denied that their star midfielder Clarence Seedorf could return to Italian outfit AC Milan next season as coach. The 37-year-old is reportedly top on Milan president Silvio Berlusconi's list to replace under-pressure Massimiliano Allegri next season, reports Xinhua. "If he is able to be a Botafogo player and coach Milan at the same time, he can go. But I really need...
12:50 PM, Apr 28, 2013
Monte Carlo: Rafael Nadal calmly continued his bid for a ninth consecutive crown at the Monte Carlo Masters with a 6-2 6-4 third-round victory over Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany on Thursday The Spanish world number five recorded his 44th win in a row in the first big claycourt event of the season to set up a quarter-final encounter with 34th-ranked Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria. The 21st-ranked Kolschreiber did not pose...
06:12 PM, Apr 18, 2013
David Ferrer defeated Fabio Fognini 6-1, 7-5 to start the men's third round at the Sony Open. ...
04:19 AM, Mar 25, 2013
A Clarence Seedorf-inspired Botafogo overcame Vasco da Gama 1-0 to clinch the Guanabara Cup at Rio's Engenhao stadium. ...
02:33 PM, Mar 11, 2013
Novak Djokovic extended his winning streak to 19 matches with a 6-0, 5-7, 6-2 victory over Fabio Fognini in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open. ...
10:19 AM, Mar 11, 2013
As of 2012, only two companies turned profits on smartphones, Apple and Samsung. Here's how the battle is breaking down. ...
12:31 PM, Mar 06, 2013
A child was killed and three others were critically injured in a mishap on the Yamuna Expressway on Friday. The mishap occurred after vehicles piled up on the road due to thick fog. Eleven cars were involved in the pile-up. ...
03:57 PM, Feb 01, 2013
North India woke up to a thick fog on Friday morning, disrupting road, air and rail traffic across north India. The current visibility is just above 50 meters, making it difficult for traffic on the airport runway. ...
09:20 AM, Feb 01, 2013
Delhiites woke up to a foggy morning on January 23 with the visibility dropping to around 500 meters at 8.30 am. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has, however, forecast a clear day in the capital. The city also experienced a dip in temperature with the minimum temperature early January 23 settling three notches below the season's average at 4.4 degrees Celsius. ...
11:07 AM, Jan 23, 2013
Light rains and hailstorm lashed some parts of the national capital on Thursday night. The city, which received light showers during the day, started getting rains again at around 11 pm. Some parts of Delhi also witnessed hailstorms, bringing the temperature down by a few notches. ...
11:20 PM, Jan 17, 2013
After being badly hit by dense fog, flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport were today normal even as the airport witnessed shallow fog. The visibility remained good through the night. Though there was shallow fog in the morning, it had no effect on the flight operations as the visibility remained above 1,000 metres, airport sources said. ...
11:16 AM, Jan 16, 2013
Operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport were partially hit due to fog on January 15, affecting the schedule of 25 domestic and international flights. Twenty-five flights, originating from here were delayed either due to weather conditions at the airport and at the destination or due to operational reasons. Only one flight was cancelled on January 15, airport sources said. ...
11:34 AM, Jan 15, 2013
Dense fog on Monday returned to Delhi affecting the schedule of over 150 flights at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, including diversions of eight to other cities. Flight operations at the airport came to a standstill for around one-and-half hours, between 5 am and 6:30 am, as the runway visibility was less than 50 metres on both the runways, main (28/10) and third (29/11), airport sources said. ...
11:15 AM, Jan 14, 2013
Major parts of eastern and central China were shrouded under a thick layer of haze and fog on Saturday while pollution in the capital city of Beijing was at 'hazardous' levels. Several flights were cancelled and 20 highways were closed in eastern China where visibility levels dropped drastically. ...
07:26 AM, Jan 13, 2013
At least 34 more deaths have been reported from Uttar Pradesh as the unabated cold wave continued in North India, taking the death toll to 233 people. Meanwhile, the minimum temperature in New Delhi rose to 4.4 degree Celsius from its previous 3.3 degree Celsius on Wednesday, but the Met department says mercury dipped to sub-zero levels in some parts of Uttar Pradesh. ...
07:39 AM, Jan 10, 2013
Operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here remained normal even as the area witnessed shallow fog on Wednesday. No flights were delayed or cancelled due to fog at the airport. ...
10:27 AM, Jan 09, 2013
The capital continues to shiver at three degree Celsius on Wednesday as there seems no respite from the cold wave. 29 more deaths were reported across North India and the death toll is now well over 170 as temperatures dropped to sub-zero levels at many places in the region. ...
08:12 AM, Jan 09, 2013
North India is still caught in the grip of the harsh cold wave which claimed 11 more lives in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, taking this winter's death toll to 140. ...
06:34 AM, Jan 06, 2013
It was another chilly day in the capital with the mercury remaining below 5 degree Celsius in the morning hours. The minimum was recorded at 4.4 degrees as against the minimum of 4.8 degrees on January 2. ...
11:30 AM, Jan 03, 2013
