Turkey starts visa-free talks with EU

Turkey starts visa-free talks with EU
Turkey is starting visa liberalisation talks with the EU, a first step in a process that could last years. "This is a historic day for the Turkish people and the EU," Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in a joint press conference with two EU commissioners in Brussels. 

EU mulls steps if Mideast peace fails
If peace talks fail, the EU will take action against West Bank settlement products and halt financial assistance to the Palestinians, the Jerusalem Post and Ynetnews.com quoted a senior European official as telling Israeli reporters in Brussels Tuesday. 

Russia’s efforts in Syria help prevent World War III - Finnish expert
“Russia’s position is higher than the UN, which did little for Syria. The situation is now normalizing in the country,” Beckman said. 

UN starts drone surveillance in DR Congo
The UN mission in Democratic Republic of Congo has started to deploy unarmed surveillance drones to monitor rebel activity along the forested borders with Rwanda and Uganda. This is the first time any UN mission has deployed drones. The first two were launched from the eastern city of Goma, which was last year briefly occupied by M23 rebels.

Europe announces disaster communication plans for nuclear emergency
A project backed by 43 organisations is preparing Europe to react and communicate effectively in case of a nuclear emergency, drawing on the lessons of the Fukushima accident.

EU blames Russia for failure of deal with Ukraine
EU leaders revived Cold War rhetoric, accusing Russia of bullying Ukraine into ditching a landmark deal so the former Soviet republic would stay locked in Moscow's orbit. 

UN Rings In 'The Year Of Palestine' By Passing Six Resolutions Condemning Israel
The UN General Assembly passed six more resolutions concerning Israel on Monday, including one that called for Israel to return the Golan Heights to Syria.