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From Washington, this is VOA news. Vincent Bruce reporting. Potential Ukraine peace discussions end with no agreement.
Russia says crisis talks between President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of France and Germany on a peace proposal for Ukraine have ended. A spokesman for Mr. Putin, speaking early Saturday, described the late-night talks as constructive, but did not provide details. Meanwhile, pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian officials agreed to a temporary truce to evacuate civilians from battle-scarred areas in eastern Ukraine. Convoys of buses converged Friday on the town of Debaltseve, where the population has been trapped in the crossfire of fierce fighting. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg NATO is hoping for a political solution: "Now our focus is on supporting the initiative that has been taken to try and find a political solution and it has to be, of course, based on a cease-fire to stop the fighting." Islamic State militants have claimed a Jordanian airstrike killed an American aid worker the insurgent group had been holding. The claim was made Friday by the SITE intelligence group. A U.S. State Department spokeswoman said the U.S. is concerned about the reports but has seen no evidence that will confirm them. "There are a number of Americans being held overseas including still by the Islamic state, I'm not going to get into further details than that." -- U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf. Yemen's powerful Shiite rebels finalized their takeover of the country Friday, announcing they have dissolved parliament and are establishing a new presidential council to run Yemeni affairs. In a televised statement, the Houthi militia said the five-member council will manage the majority Sunni country for up to two years. The U.S. State Department rejected the announcement, saying that Houthi's unilateral decision does not meet the standard of a consensus-based solution to Yemen's political crisis. This is VOA news. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has urged Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to meet a March deadline for a framework deal to rein in Iran's nuclear program. A senior U.S. State Department official said Kerry pressed his Iranian counterpart during a two-hour meeting in Munich Friday on the Obama administration's desire to reach an outline agreement. For only the second time in his presidency, Barack Obama has released his national security strategy, saying the United States should not "overreach" or "rely solely on military power" to confront global challenges. White House national security adviser Susan Rice outlined the strategy in a speech in Washington Friday. VOA correspondent Aru Ponde has more from the White House. In his latest national security strategy, Mr. Obama makes clear that while the United States leads from a position of strength, "we are stronger when we mobilize collective action." This collective action, White House national security adviser Susan Rice said Friday, is seen in the fight to degrade and destroy the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria. "Together we've taken out thousands of ISIL's fighters. Just last week, ISIL conceded defeat in their months-long siege of Kobani." Aru Ponde, VOA news, at the White House. Afghanistan has sent a group of six Afghan army cadets to neighboring Pakistan for military training -- a sign of increasing cooperation between the countries. Ayaz Gul has details from Islamabad. The group of young Afghan cadets will attend an 18-month-long course at the Pakistan Military Academy in the northern city of Abbottabad. Though small, it is the first ever induction of security personnel from Afghanistan at the prestigious army institution. Officials in both countries are hailing the move as an important step toward linking the two armies, which have been suspicious of each other for decades. Ayaz Gul, Islamabad. The U.S. economy had a net gain of 257,000 jobs in January, making it more likely that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates by mid-year. Friday's report from the Labor Department also says the unemployment rate rose a slight one-tenth of a percentage point to 5.7 percent. The International Monetary Fund has announced a $330 million financing package for the countries hardest hit by the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. That's Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Witnesses say Boko Haram militants from Nigeria attacked a town in neighboring Niger on Friday, but were driven back by forces from Niger and Chad. The attack on Bosso, a town of 50,000 in southeastern Niger, marked the second time this week the Islamic extremist group launched a cross-border attack. I'm Vincent Bruce reporting from Washington. That's the latest world news from VOA. |