Mideast News Headlines

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's determination to pursue trade with Iran despite Western sanctions could be undermined as wary exporters back away from fresh deals following a bomb attack in New Delhi blamed on Tehran, a trade association chief said on Tuesday. India has struck a defiant tone over new financial sanctions imposed …

LONDON (Reuters) - Western states hope new oil sanctions will deter Tehran from pursuing its disputed nuclear programme but ultimately it will be China, India and other Asian powers that determine their effectiveness impact on already volatile Iranian politics. Both the United States and European Union have introduced tough …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The 2013 U.S. defense budget that President Barack Obama sent to Congress on Monday includes funding for a shift in strategic focus to the Asia-Pacific even as it slashes spending on weapons and personnel in a bid to reduce costs by $487 billion over the next decade. The president's spending plan …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama unveiled a 2013 defense budget on Monday that proposes cuts in Pentagon spending for the first time since 1998, slashing military personnel costs and weapons purchases as it trims $487 billion in projected outlays over the next decade. The president's spending plan calls …

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai investigators believe they have found a link between this week's bomb blasts in Bangkok and New Delhi, a senior security official said on Wednesday, two of three attacks Israel has blamed on Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing Iran of targeting diplomats, said if the world …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House announced plans on Monday to help "Arab Spring" countries swept by revolutions with more than $800 million in economic aid, while maintaining U.S. military aid to Egypt. In his annual budget message to Congress, President Barack Obama asked that military aid to Egypt be kept at the …

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Trade between New Delhi and Tehran is unlikely to be affected by a recent bomb attack on Israeli targets in the Indian capital, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said on Wednesday, despite Israel's accusations and Western sanctions against Iran. Sharma was in Islamabad heading the first ministerial-level …

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai sought Pakistan's support on Thursday for advancing the reconciliation process in Afghanistan ahead of a trilateral summit on regional security involving Iran's president. But the meeting in Islamabad between Karzai, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Iranian President …

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Thursday Iran's announcement of new nuclear achievements was exaggerated and meant to fend off action against the Islamic republic. "They are describing a situation that is better and more advanced than the one they are in, in order to create a feeling among …

ALGIERS (Reuters) - When Moncef Marzouki, a former dissident transformed by the "Arab Spring" into Tunisia's president, paid an official visit to Algeria on Sunday, red and white Tunisian flags flew from lamp-posts in his honour. Just two days earlier, another former dissident and leading figure of Tunisia's revolution …

VIENNA (Reuters) - The United Nations chief urged Iran on Friday to implement Security Council resolutions under which Tehran should curb sensitive nuclear activity, but the Islamic state once again signalled it has no intention of doing so. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also said Iran must cooperate fully with the U.N. …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama hopes the toughest sanctions ever imposed on Iran will squeeze its oil exports - all without scaring markets, crimping growth, impoverishing ordinary Iranians or antagonizing allies. The geopolitical equivalent of threading a needle is made even more difficult by elections …

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top U.S. military officer forcefully argued against a cut-off in aid to Egypt on Thursday but acknowledged there needed to be "consequences" after a crackdown on U.S. pro-democracy activists that has strained ties between Cairo and Washington. Washington has said $1.3 billion in U.S. military …

LONDON (Reuters) - Iran is clearly trying to develop a nuclear weapons capability, and if it succeeds it will set off a dangerous round of nuclear proliferation across the Middle East, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said in an interview published on Saturday. Iran says its uranium enrichment programme is purely …

TOKYO (Reuters) - Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Saturday a nuclear-armed Iran would trigger an arms race in the Middle East and nations should impose "crippling" sanctions on Tehran to force it to give up its atomic programme. "A nuclear Iran is a threat to the whole world, not just to Israel ... Other major …

SANAA (Reuters) - After a year of protests, diplomatic wrangling and an assassination attempt, Yemenis will draw a line under Ali Abdullah Saleh's three-decade rule on Tuesday by voting in an uncontested election to install his deputy as president. In the capital Sanaa, new posters of the sole candidate, Vice President …

A fruitless visit to Iran by UN nuclear inspectors raised tensions on Wednesday, with Russia warning of "catastrophic" consequences if it leads to a military attack on its Middle East ally.

Chinese automaker Geely said Wednesday it will begin assembling cars in Egypt this year with a local partner, marking its latest push overseas as domestic demand hits the brakes.

Iran is to host a high-level team from the UN nuclear watchdog on Monday as part of efforts to defuse dire international tensions over its atomic activities through dialogue.