G8 stellen Russland aufs Abstellgleis

Klare Worte Richtung Moskau: Merkel sieht Russland gegenwärtig nicht mehr im Kreis der Top-Wirtschaftsnationen. Die sieben westlichen Industriestaaten dürften bald über einen Ausschluss entscheiden.

Nur eine einzige Stimme gegen Krim-Annexion

TAGES ANZEIGER: Das Parlament in Moskau hat mit überwältigender Mehrheit den Weg für die Aufnahme der Krim in die Russische Föderation freigemacht. Die Ukraine hat die Halbinsel aber noch nicht aufgegeben.

Das Unterhaus des russischen Parlaments hat heute erwartungsgemäss den Vertrag über die Aufnahme der Krim in die Russische Föderation ratifiziert. Das Abkommen wurde mit 443 Ja- und einer einzigen Nein-Stimme angenommen. Um wen es sich beim Nein-Sager handelte, ist gegenwärtig noch unklar. » | Donnerstag, 20. März 2014

Jihad: British Fighters in Syria Urge Others to Join Them

THE INDEPENDENT: Rebel group Isis have released a video urging British citizens' participation

A British citizen fighting with an extremist rebel group in Syria has issued a call for others to join the country’s civil war.

In a video posted online, a masked man speaking in a London accent says that “the doors of jihad are still open,” and claims that he has helped three other Brits make the journey to Syria.

The man is believed to be a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) – an extremist Islamist rebel group formerly affiliated with al-Qa’ida and similar in ideology. He has appeared in several other videos uploaded by a group called Rayat al-Tawheed, which claims to be the distributor of English-language materials for Isis.

The plea from the rebel fighter comes as UK authorities are becoming increasingly concerned at the number of British citizens travelling to Syria to join extremist groups in the three year old civil war. British and other non-Syrians travelling to Syria tend to gravitate towards al-Qa’ida-type groups that espouse global jihad. » | Richard Hall | Thursday, March 20, 2014

Angela Merkel: EU Prepared to Punish Russia with Sanctions over Ukraine

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, tells German MPs that members of G7 will take economic sanctions against Russia during the EU summit which starts on Thursday. Leaders will discuss imposing travel restrictions on Moscow as well as the future of its relationship with Europe

Václav Klaus on Barack Obama, America

Václav Klaus, former Premier of the Czech Republic

"The danger to America is not Barack Obama, but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America. Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president." – Václav Klaus, the former Premier of the Czech Republic [Source: Snopes.com] 2012

Russia Warns West It May Change Stance on Iran, in Retaliation over Sanctions

FOX NEWS: Russia reportedly is prepared to change its stand on Iran nuclear talks in a high-stakes gamble to counter expanded sanctions by the United States and the European Union over Crimea.

After the Obama administration on Monday hit 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials with sanctions -- a move criticized by Republican lawmakers as too timid -- Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted Wednesday by the Interfax news agency as saying the country may have to alter its position on the negotiations over Iran's nuclear program.

The statement is the most serious threat of retaliation by Moscow since the disputed Crimea region voted to join Russia over the weekend, and Vladimir Putin's government moved to annex the peninsula.

NATO and U.S. leaders say they're prepared to do more. (+ FoxNews video) » | FoxNews with contributions from the Associated Press | Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Yves Saint Laurent: Fashion on Film

Yves St Laurent was the original superstar designer

BBC: Yves Saint Laurent became head of one of the world's great fashion houses aged 21. Until his death half a century later in 2008, he was one of fashion's dominant figures. This year sees the release of two feature films about his tumultuous professional and private life. The first opens this week in the UK.

Earlier masters of Parisian couture such as Christian Dior or Cristobal Balenciaga shaped fashion around the world. But until Yves Saint Laurent, no designer found such personal fame with the public.

In the 1960s and 1970s he was a regular in gossip columns, photographed endlessly with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Andy Warhol and the most gorgeous models of the day.

Born in colonial Algeria in 1936, Saint Laurent became an extraordinary prodigy.

Always obsessed with fashion, as a painfully shy teenager he moved to Paris to work for Dior. Three years later, Christian Dior died and Saint Laurent took over as artistic director at just 21. Many in the fashion world were astounded but it was clear a star had arrived. » | Vincent Dowd | Arts Correspondent | BBC World Service | Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Putin führt uns die Schwäche Europas vor Augen

DIE WELT: Die Machtpolitik Russlands trifft auf einen schwachen Westen, der unfähig ist, in Traditionen der Realpolitik zu denken. Auch die Geheimdienste haben Moskaus Griff nach der Krim nicht vorhergesehen.

Europa hat auf Russlands Krim-Coup so ungläubig reagiert, als hätte es eine simple Tatsache schlicht vergessen: die Tatsache, dass Verträge nur solange wirksam sind, wie beide Seiten das Recht anerkennen. Diese Übereinkunft hatte das Kräftespiel der Staaten schon immer bestimmt, zumindest aber mitgeprägt. Kants Idee vom ewigen Frieden ist ein Licht, das von weiter, weiter Ferne her leuchtet. Und so schön und zivilisierend rule of law, die Herrschaft des Gesetzes, auch ist – sie endet da, wo ein Mitspieler sich nicht mehr an sie gebunden fühlt. Europas Stärke ist zugleich seine Schwäche – die vergangenen Wochen haben das auf blamable Weise offenbart. » | Von Thomas Schmid | Mittwoch, 19. März 2014

Has President Obama Weakened US Standing in the World?

Mar. 19, 2014 - 3:53 - Rep. Louis Gohmert weighs in

Ticking Timebomb: Moscow Moves to Destabilize Eastern Ukraine

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: It's not only in Crimea where Russian President Vladimir Putin is playing with fire, but also in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the people in the economically powerful region speak Russian and reject the new government in Kiev.

The pensioner Oxana Kremenyuk limps as she passes by the House of Culture in a small village in eastern Ukraine. As a young woman, she used to dance here. Today the stucco is crumbling and the windows are broken. "The people in Kiev are driving our country into civil war," she says. "These good-for-nothings should be slaving away the way we do here." Kremenyuk receives a pension of about €90 ($125) a month. In order to ensure there is food on the table, she keeps 10 chickens and a pig.

Kremenyuk's village of Maidan, with its three dozen homes, is a peaceful place in a gentle, hilly landscape. The village is 378 kilometers (235 miles) -- but also worlds apart -- from the Maidan in the capital city of Kiev, the Independence Square that has become known around the world since the start of the revolution. Most of the village's homes have fallen into a state of disrepair and young families moved away long ago. The people living here don't think much of the revolution taking place in the western part of the country. Read on and comment » | Uwe Klussmann and Matthias Schepp | Translated from the German by Daryl Lindsey | Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Whose Side Is This Codger On? 'US Thinks It's Superior, Rules Only Apply to Inferior Nations' – Ex-Australian PM

The US has been accused of double standards for supporting Kosovo's secession while calling Crimea's illegal. We talked to former Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, to clarify the contradiction in the US/EU positions on secession.

Pro-Russia Forces Enter Ukraine Naval Base

Crimean "self-defence" forces overtake Sevastopol base without using violence and raise Russian flags at the gates.

America Is in Danger

Mar. 18, 2014 - 8:23 - Talking Points 3/18

US Power Failure: A Price of Obama's Failed Leadership?

Mar. 18, 2014 - 3:11 - Karl Rove on Mitt Romney's op-ed on the consequences of alleged Obama's missteps in handling of Putin and the Ukraine and other world crises

U.S. Warns Russia: More Sanctions Coming due to Ukraine Crisis

Read the CNN article here

Inside Story: Reclaiming Crimea: Is It Legal?

President Vladimir Putin signs a treaty making the Ukrainian region part of the Russian Federation.

David Cameron Sends Shivers Down Putin’s Spine: “There Will Be Consequences”

Russian Officials Mock US Sanctions

Mar. 18, 2014 - 4:56 - President Obama making US look weak?

Putin Has Stuck Two Fingers Up to the West by Annexing Crimea, Says Sir Malcolm Rifkind

Sir Malcolm Rifkind

DAILY EXPRESS: VLADIMIR Putin has given the West “two fingers” by his annexing of Crimea and needs to be hit with punitive economic sanctions, former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind has argued.

The Conservative grandee, who is chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, said Russia was now treating the West with contempt and warned the situation is “the most dangerous we have faced.”

Today Foreign Secretary William Hague announced in the Commons that the EU was was ready to pursue trade and economic sanctions against Russia.

Sanctions announced by the EU and US so far have just focused on the assets and travel movements of a handful of Russian and Ukrainian officials – but this goes much further.

Speaking exclusively to Express Online, Sir Malcolm – who served as Foreign Secretary from 1995 to 1997 – welcomed the move after earlier arguing that the international community had so far been “pathetic in its response.”

He said: “The measures that have been announced by both the US and the EU have been treated, understandably in my view, with contempt by Russia.

"What is needed is financial economic sanctions. » | Owen Bennett | Political Editor | Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Saudi Cleric ‘Issues Religious Edict Banning against All-you-can-eat Buffets’

THE INDEPENDENT: Sheikh Saleh al-Fawzan says open buffets involve paying lump sum for ‘unknown’ quality and quantity of goods – which goes against Sharia law

A senior cleric in Saudi Arabia has reportedly issued a religious edict, or fatwa, banning all-you-can-eat style buffets.

According to Sheik Saleh al-Fawzan, such restaurants breach Sharia law by requiring customers to pay a set price for a product that is unknown and unquantified in advance.

The cleric, who is a member of the country’s highest religious body, the Council of Senior Scholars, announced the fatwa while appearing on the Saudi Arabia-based Quranic TV station, according to Al Arabiya news.

“Whoever enters the buffet and eats for 10 or 50 riyals without deciding the quantity they will eat is violating Sharia (Islamic) law,” Fawzan said. » | Adam Withnall | Tuesday, March 18, 2014