WASHINGTON — President Obama on Wednesday urged lawmakers to support the nuclear deal reached with Iran, saying that failure to put it into effect would increase the likelihood of war in the Middle East and accelerate a nuclear arms race in the region that would threaten the safety of the United States. “That’s the choice that we face,” Mr. Obama said in opening comments at a news […]
INTERNATIONAL. A desperate battle was fought last week. It pitted Germany and Greece against each other. Each country had everything at stake. Based on the deal that was agreed to, Germany forced a Greek capitulation. But it is far from clear that Greece can allow the agreement reached to be implemented, or that it has the national political will to do so. It is also not clear […]
Video | Accord is ‘Bad Mistake,’ Netanyahu Says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said the nuclear agreement would enable Iran to continue its “aggression and terror” throughout the region. By ISABEL KERSHNER July 14, 2015 JERUSALEM — Furiously denouncing the accord to limit Iran’s nuclear program on Tuesday as “a historic mistake,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel would not be bound by the agreement and warned […]
Video | Iranians Celebrate Nuclear Deal Iranians took to the streets on Tuesday night to celebrate the nuclear accord between the United States and Iran. By THOMAS ERDBRINK July 14, 2015 TEHRAN — Weary of sanctions and isolation, many ordinary Iranians rejoiced on Tuesday over a historic nuclear agreement with world powers led by the United States, the main enemy for nearly four decades. But their excitement was tempered […]
VIENNA — One of the last major obstacles to concluding a historic nuclear deal with Iran is a dispute over a set of United Nations sanctions that appeared to be resolved months ago and only peripherally has to do with nuclear weapons. The sanctions, passed in a series of resolutions by the United Nations Security Council beginning nine years ago, ban the shipment of conventional arms into […]
Ellen Pao speaks to the media after losing her high profile gender discrimination lawsuit against venture capital firm Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield and Byers in San Francisco, California March 27, 2015. Reuters/Beck Diefenbach SAN FRANCISCO Ellen Pao resigned as acting chief executive of Reddit Friday in the latest sign of turmoil at the site, recently roiled by the firing of a popular employee and ongoing tensions over the […]
UAE. Core Savills, the largest commercial lease transaction and one of the leading international real estate companies in the UAE, is optimistic on the outlook for the Dubai real estate market. Research released today by the firm has suggested declining apartment and villas prices in the emirate since the market peaked late last year will stabilize during 2016 and return to growth later in the year or […]
VIENNA — One of the last major obstacles to concluding a historic nuclear deal with Iran is a dispute over a set of United Nations sanctions that appeared to be resolved months ago and only peripherally have to do with nuclear weapons. The sanctions, passed in a series of resolutions by the United Nations Security Council beginning nine years ago, ban the shipment of conventional arms into […]
TEHRAN — As nuclear negotiations in Vienna grind on through deadline after deadline, Iranian officials have begun a public campaign to blame the United States in the event that the talks fail. Iran’s public diplomacy has long been geared toward selling a possible deal to hard-liners at home. But as an interim agreement between Iran and the West was extended on Friday to give negotiators more time, […]
Video | Kerry Says He Will Not Rush Iran Talks Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday that he was not willing to rush nuclear talks with Iran, but that they could not go on forever without an agreement. By MICHAEL R. GORDON and DAVID E. SANGER July 9, 2015 VIENNA — Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday that the United States would continue to negotiate on a nuclear agreement […]
TEHRAN — The chants of “Death to America” and the burning of American flags in the streets are as familiar a part of life here as air pollution and traffic jams. With the United States and Iran on the verge of a potentially historic nuclear accord, however, there has been a distinct change in tone: the anti-Americanism is getting even more strident. The rising levels of vitriol […]
VIENNA — The talks to complete a landmark accord limiting Iran’s nuclear program have been extended for several days after negotiators acknowledged that they would be unable to meet a Tuesday deadline. To give negotiators more time to pursue a final accord, the diplomats agreed to extend through Friday an interim nuclear accord called the Joint Plan of Action. That interim agreement, which had been set to […]
SAN FRANCISCO When it comes to dashboard displays that are more like smart phones, two things are clear: Customers want them, and automakers are intent on supplying them. But are they really a good idea? Car companies answer with an emphatic yes. They say outsized dashboard displays that behave more like smart phones will boost revenue and attract buyers. And they also insist the new screens will […]
Mohammad Javad Zarif, center, the foreign minister of Iran, sat next to Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s foreign policy chief as they meet with other foreign ministers in Vienna on Tuesday. By DAVID E. SANGER and THOMAS ERDBRINK July 6, 2015 VIENNA — With foreign ministers from around the world arriving here in hopes that the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program are entering their final hours, a senior Iranian official said on […]
By ANNE BARNARD July 5, 2015 BEIRUT, Lebanon — Syrian government troops and Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon pushed into the Syrian border town of Zabadani on Sunday amid heavy airstrikes, continuing an offensive aimed at strengthening their control of routes between Lebanon and Syria. Pushing insurgents out of the mountain town would continue advances aimed at cutting insurgent supply lines to Lebanon, and would also be a symbolic victory. […]
Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, during a meeting with Secretary of State John Kerry as part of nuclear negotiations in Vienna on Friday. By MICHAEL R. GORDON and DAVID E. SANGER July 4, 2015 VIENNA — The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Saturday that, with Iranian cooperation, his agency could complete an assessment on Iran’s suspected past nuclear work by December, potentially removing a major obstacle to a […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon — A Saudi prince pledged on Wednesday to give away his entire $32 billion fortune to charitable causes in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the world. The prince, Alwaleed bin Talal, said the funds would go to his charity, Alwaleed Philanthropies, for causes like disease eradication, intercultural understanding, women’s empowerment, disaster relief and the electrification of isolated areas. The new pledge by one of the […]
UAE. A new report by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a global management consulting firm and the world’s leading advisor on business strategy, delves into the challenges faced by Exploration & Production (E&P) companies here in the GCC region. The fact is, these are trying times for E&P companies globally. Following more than a decade of strong financial returns, the industry has experienced several difficult years caused […]
VIENNA — Iran’s top nuclear negotiator was heading back to Tehran on Sunday to consult with his nation’s top leadership, as negotiators remained divided over how to limit and monitor Tehran’s nuclear program and even on how to interpret the preliminary agreement they reached two months ago. With all sides now acknowledging the talks would need to continue beyond what was once considered the absolute deadline for […]
TEHRAN — Persian carpets were rolled out in the Beit-e Rahbar, the downtown Tehran offices of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Tuesday, a sign that important guests were on their way. One by one, members of Iran’s establishment, politicians, clerics and commanders filed in, many exchanging the perfunctory greetings of committed rivals. They sat cross-legged and waited anxiously, knowing a crucial week of nuclear negotiations […]
VIENNA — Secretary of State John Kerry began on Saturday what the Obama administration hopes will be the final push for a nuclear accord with Iran, just three days before a deadline for concluding an agreement. However, American officials have almost discounted the notion that a deal will be made by Tuesday’s deadline. Their goal is to bridge a number of technical and political divides over the […]
DUBAI // Mahra Mustafa has been surprised and delighted by the reaction from visitors to the UAE Pavilion at the Milan Expo. The Emirati actor, 9, who stars as Sara in The Family Tree – a short film on the UAE’s heritage being screened at the pavilion – has become an instantly recognisable face at the Expo. “At first I was scared because I didn’t know if […]
JERUSALEM — A United Nations investigation found “serious violations of international humanitarian law” that “may amount to war crimes” by both Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip during their bloody battle last summer, according to a report released on Monday in Geneva. The report, written by a two-member independent commission of inquiry and submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council, said that “impunity prevails […]
Guards stand near an entrance to Alibaba’s headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China, May 18, 2015. Reuters/John Ruwitch/Files BEIJING China will increase support for cross-border e-commerce as the world’s second-largest economy shifts from manufacturing to higher-value services, the government said. China’s e-commerce industry has been booming in recent years, with companies like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and JD.com Inc benefiting from a rising middle class with more […]
