BRUSSELS: The leaders of several EU countries said they are mulling whether to expel Russian diplomats or take other steps to support Britain following a nerve agent attack on a former spy.
European Union leaders returned to summit talks on Friday after uniting behind British Prime Minister Theresa May in blaming Russia for the attack in England, and agreeing to recall the bloc’s ambassador to Moscow for consultations.
Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats they said were spies, and has been pressing EU allies to follow suit despite Moscow’s warning against confrontational steps.
The leaders of former communist member states the Czech Republic and Lithuania as well as Denmark and Ireland said they were considering further unilateral steps, including expelling diplomats.
“I think national measures will be applied already starting from next week... from a lot of countries,” Lithuania’s outspoken President Dalia Grybauskaite said before joining the second and last day of the summit in Brussels.
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis told the CTK news agency that Prague may expel several Russian diplomats over the poisoining of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.
“Yes, we will probably move in this direction,” Babis said, adding he will discuss expulsions with his cabinet members on Monday.
Ireland’s Prime Minisster Leo Varadkar said his government would decide early next week whether to expel diplomats following a security assessment.
“We are not going to randomly expel people who are genuine diplomats,” Varadkar told reporters.
Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said his government heard the “strong signal” from the bloc’s leaders who agreed with Britain’s assessment that Russia was to blame for the attack.
He said he would hold consultations with members of his government.
“My government will then in the next coming days very seriously consider to take further steps,” Rasmussen said.
A French presidency source said Thursday that Paris was also ready to act.
The poisoning has heightened worries across Europe about Russian meddling — from repeated cyberattacks to what the EU has called an “orchestrated strategy” of disinformation aimed at destabilising the bloc.
During a visit to Hanoi, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned that British officials “are feverishly trying to force allies to take confrontational steps.”
Lavrov, quoted by Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, said London was trying to make the “crisis as deep as possible.”
EU nations mull expelling Russian diplomats after spy attack
EU nations mull expelling Russian diplomats after spy attack
Japan protests China’s airspace ‘violation’ near disputed islands
- The Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement released late Saturday that its vice minister lodged “a strong protest” with the Chinese ambassador to Japan
- On the same day, China’s coast guard announced it had used a helicopter to “expel” a Japanese airplane from airspace around the disputed islands
TOKYO: Tokyo has lodged a protest against Beijing after a Chinese helicopter “violated” Japan’s airspace and four vessles entered its territorial waters around disputed islands.
The islands in the East China Sea — known as the Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan — are claimed by Beijing but administered by Tokyo and are a frequent hotspot in bilateral tensions.
The Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement released late Saturday that its vice minister lodged “a strong protest” with the Chinese ambassador to Japan “over the intrusion of four China Coast Guard vessels into Japan’s territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands” on the same day.
The vice minister also protested “the violation of Japan’s territorial airspace by a helicopter launched from one of the China Coast Guard vessels, strongly urging (China) to ensure that similar acts do not recur.”
Japan’s defense ministry said the helicopter flew within Japanese airspace for about 15 minutes on Saturday near the Senkaku islands.
“The Self-Defense Forces responded by scrambling fighter jets,” the ministry said.
Public broadcaster NHK and other local media reported that this is the first time a Chinese government helicopter violated the Japanese airspace off the disputed islands.
On the same day, China’s coast guard announced it had used a helicopter to “expel” a Japanese airplane from airspace around the disputed islands.
Liu Dejun, spokesman for China’s coast guard, said a Japanese civilian aircraft “illegally entered” the airspace of the islands at 11:19 am (GMT 0219) and left five minutes later.
Beijing frequently announces it has driven Japanese vessels and aircraft away from the islands, but Japanese officials have told AFP that Chinese authorities sometimes announce expulsions when none have occurred.
Unnamed Japanese officials told local media that Beijing was possibly reacting to a small Japanese civilian aircraft flying near the islands.
Chinese and Japanese patrol vessels in the East China Sea have routinely staged dangerous face-offs around disputed islands.
Tensions between China and other claimants to parts of the East and South China Seas has driven Japan to deepen ties with the Philippines and United States.
Pakistan to hold key national security briefing for political parties today amid India tensions
- Pakistan has been preparing for possible military confrontation with India ever since Apr. 22 Kashmir attack
- Parties to be informed about preparation of armed forces and Islamabad’s diplomatic initiatives, says state media
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s information minister and military spokesperson will hold an important national security briefing today, Sunday, for representatives of various political parties amid Islamabad’s surging tensions with Delhi, according to state-run media.
Pakistan has been preparing for the possibility of a military confrontation with India ever since its tensions with its nuclear-armed neighbor skyrocketed last month. Delhi blamed Islamabad for being involved in a militant attack on Apr. 22 at a tourist resort in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 tourists.
Pakistan denied involvement and as India vowed to go after backers of the Kashmir attack, Islamabad vowed it would give a “strong” response to any military action by India.
“Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar and Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry will hold an important background briefing on the national security for representatives of all political parties on Sunday,” the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported on Saturday.
It said the briefing would primarily focus on the prevailing national security landscape, particularly concerning relations between Pakistan and India, and its broader implications.
Political parties will be informed about the preparedness of Pakistan’s armed forces while information about ongoing diplomatic initiatives and Islamabad’s official stance on the situation will also be shared, it added.
“The statement said that the briefing, in the current situation, is a prime example of national unity and consensus among all the parties,” APP said.
As tensions surge between the two neighbors, their forces have traded fire over the Line of Control frontier in Kashmir while diplomats have exchanged barbs, expelled citizens and ordered their land border shut.
Pakistani opposition parties have in recent times become more openly critical of the military, which has been accused of being heavily involved in politics and the economy. The military denies the allegations.
However, recent tensions with India have turned bitter political foes into temporary allies.
When the Senate voted on an anti-India resolution last month, jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party voted in favor, ensuring it passed unanimously.
5 arrested in UK for ‘terrorism offenses’: police
- The men aged between 29 and 46 were arrested on suspicion of “preparation of a terrorist act”
LONDON: British police on Sunday said they had arrested five men on suspicion of “terrorism offenses.”
The arrests were carried out in London, Swindon and the Greater Manchester area and were related to “a suspected plot to target specific premises,” London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
The men aged between 29 and 46 were arrested on suspicion of “preparation of a terrorist act” and remain in custody, the police said.
“This is a fast-moving investigation and we are working closely with those at the affected site to keep them updated,” said Metropolitan Police counter-terrorism chief Dominic Murphy.
“The investigation is still in its early stages and we are exploring various lines of enquiry to establish any potential motivation as well as to identify whether there may be any further risk to the public linked to this matter,” he said.
Qatar rejects Netanyahu’s ‘inflammatory’ Gaza comments: foreign ministry
- Netanyahu's office earlier urged Qatar to stop its "double game" and "decide if it’s on the side of civilization or if it’s on the side of Hamas”
- Qatar ministry spokesman said the statement "fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility”
DOHA: Gaza mediator Qatar on Sunday rejected comments from Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it needed to “stop playing both sides” in truce negotiations.
A statement released by Netanyahu's office on Saturday said Qatar needs to “decide if it’s on the side of civilization or if it’s on the side of Hamas.”
Qatar “firmly rejects the inflammatory statements... which fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari responded in a post on X.
Despite efforts by Egyptian and Qatari mediators to restore a ceasefire, neither Israel nor Hamas has shown willingness to back down on core demands, with each side blaming the other for the failure to reach a deal.
Israel, which wants the return of 59 hostages still held in Gaza, has insisted Hamas must disarm and be excluded from any role in the future governance of the enclave, a condition that Hamas rejects.
It has insisted on agreeing a lasting end to the fighting and withdrawal of Israeli forces as a condition for a deal that would see a release of the hostages.
Al-Ansari criticized the portrayal of the Gaza conflict as a defense of civilization, likening it to historical regimes that used “false narratives to justify crimes against civilians.”
In his post, Al-Ansari questioned whether the release of 138 hostages was achieved through military operations or mediation efforts, which he said are being unjustly criticized and undermined.
He also cited the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza represented by what he called a suffocating blockade, systematic starvation, denial of medicine and shelter, and the use of humanitarian aid as a tool of political coercion. On Friday, Israel’s security cabinet approved plans for an expanded operation in the Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported on Friday, adding to signs that attempts to stop the fighting and return hostages held by Hamas have made no progress.
Israel’s campaign was triggered by the devastating Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and saw 251 taken hostage. It has so far killed more than 50,000 Palestinians and devastated Gaza where aid groups have warned the Israeli blockade risks a humanitarian disaster.
Pakistan plans media visit to de facto Kashmir border to counter Indian reports of militant camps
- The trip has been organized by the information ministry and is expected to take place on Monday
- Information minister, military spokesperson will brief politicians on Pakistan-India tensions today
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan plans to take local and foreign journalists to the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border separating the two parts of the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, on Monday, following Indian media reports alleging the presence of militant camps on the Pakistani side.
According to the state-owned Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), the trip has been organized by the information ministry and was originally planned for Sunday. However, it had to be postponed due to a weather forecast predicting inclement conditions.
The media visit has been planned less than two weeks after the April 22 gun attack in Pahalgam, a tourist destination in Indian-administered Kashmir, that killed 26 people.
Security sources say the visit will allow journalists to investigate claims made in recent Indian media reports identifying several locations allegedly used as militant camps.
“Journalists will be taken to all the areas mentioned in recent reports to independently verify the claims,” a security official said on condition of anonymity. “Pakistan rejects these allegations and considers them part of a propaganda effort.”
Recent Indian news reports named various towns and villages near the LoC and claimed that militant groups had vacated camps ahead of potential Indian strikes. Pakistani authorities have dismissed the claims of militant presence and camps as baseless.
Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar and military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry are also scheduled to brief leaders of Pakistan’s political parties on Sunday, said a report in Radio Pakistan.
“The high-level background briefing will focus on the current state of national security, particularly in the context of Pakistan-India relations and the implications of recent developments,” it said.
“Participants will be briefed on the defensive preparedness of Pakistan’s armed forces, ongoing diplomatic efforts, and the official stance of the state on key issues,” the report added.
