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Putin Breaks Silence With Call to Obama

 

WASHINGTON — President Obama spoke with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Thursday in their first direct contact in four months as the United States and Russia try to manage their conflict over Ukraine while still working together on other issues like Syria and Iran’s nuclear program.

 

Mr. Putin initiated the call, the first between the estranged leaders since February, the White House said. He brought up the war against the Islamic State in Syria and the two leaders agreed to have Secretary of State John Kerry meet with Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov to discuss how to counter the spread of radicalism in the Middle East. They also discussed the Iran talks in advance of next week’s deadline for an agreement.

But American officials said that Mr. Obama focused on the continuing separatist war in Ukraine fomented by support from Moscow and pushed Mr. Putin to abide by a shaky diplomatic agreement known as the Minsk accord. Violence has flared in recent weeks even as Russia failed to drive a wedge among the members of the European Union who agreed to renew economic sanctions on Russia for another six months.

 

“President Obama reiterated the need for Russia to fulfill its commitments under the Minsk agreements, including the removal of all Russian troops and equipment from Ukrainian territory,” the White House said.

 

The Kremlin said Mr. Putin agreed to have his deputy foreign minister, Grigory Karasin, talk with Victoria J. Nuland, an assistant secretary of state, about the fulfillment of the Minsk accord.

 

Mr. Putin’s decision to call Mr. Obama and focus on Syria and Iran may reflect a desire to assert his continuing importance on the world stage despite Russia’s isolation and failure to break the Western consensus on sanctions.

 

The United States and Russia have been at odds over Syria. Moscow supports the government of President Bashar al-Assad, and Mr. Obama has called for his resignation. American officials hope Mr. Putin may see the rise of the Islamic State as enough of a threat to now be willing to apply pressure on Mr. Assad, but they also suspected his renewed interest in the issue may be a way of distracting from Ukraine.

 

Despite the tough talk in Moscow about retaliatory sanctions, Russia is experiencing some significant pain from the American and European measures. Gazprom, the state energy giant, is feeling the pinch of lower oil prices and Moscow seems intent on casting blame on Ukraine for the failure so far of full implementation of the Minsk agreements even as the Kiev government makes steady movement toward political concessions.

 

Moscow has also been determined to stay in the mix on the final Iran deal now being negotiated between Tehran and six world powers, including Russia and the United States.

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Originally Posted by Demerara_Guy:

PPP heavyweights go into hiding

June 26, 2015, Source

 

Once omnipresent and always eager to appear before the media, a number of PPP co-chairman’s close aides who were also part of the federal cabinet have simply gone missing from the scene in the wake of Asif Ali Zardari’s outburst against military establishment.

Well placed sources in the PPP told The Nation on Thursday that a few leaders were even asked to appear in the media and defend the party but they opted to stay away.

Qamar Zaman Kaira and Sherry Rehman have been clarifying Zardari’s speech while his two advisors, Nadeem Afzal Chan and Noor Alam Khan, have been seen on television shows defending their party.

It is believed that the major beneficiaries of the PPP government from 2008-2013 have now gone into hibernation when the party needs them the most. A few of them attend party functions occasionally just to make their presence felt in a selected circle and others have almost dissociated themselves from the party.

The sources said that former Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme Farzana Raja was no more attending PPP’s functions after the 2013 elections while Asif Ali Zardari was still in the presidency.

“Farzana Raja was hopeful that PM Sharif will continue with her as Chairperson BISP but when it did not happen she left for America never to return”, the sources in PPP maintained.

Former defense minister Chaudhary Ahmad Mukhtar also did not attend any party meeting after losing election. Political secretary to party Co-chairman Rukhsana Bangash and in-charge of PPP central secretariat had also left for USA, very next day of Zardari’s speech last week, the sources added.

Former information minister Firdous Ashiq Awan was ready to jump off the ship of PPP even before the election but the other parties were reluctant to take her. She makes occasional appearances in the party functions and is missing after Zardari’s speech to defend the party, which she has been defending as information minister

Former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar is also missing since 2013 election and she has hardly made any appearance anywhere on behalf of the party.

Former minister and PPP’s Punjab President Mian Manzoor Wattoo hesitates to make media appearances. “Manzoor Wattoo was even asked by Asif Zardari as to why he does not appear on television?” the sources in PPP added.

The sources said that Makhdoom Amin Fahim is abroad for treatment.

 

Naveed Qamar hardly makes any appearance on TV. The Arbab couple from Peshawar remained upset with the party since election 2013, the sources revealed.

They added that the Arbab couple has now launched their son in politics. Hamid Saeed Kazmi made an appearance in a function but he was mistreated during PPP tenure what to expect from him to defend the party in these times, the sources said.

The sources said that Zardari has re-established his contact with Babar Awan after a lapse for three years which has been taken in bad taste by the party leadership and workers.

Dr Asim Hussain doesn’t appear on media. Farooq Naek and Rehman Malik are with the party but now they do not appear regularly on media. The sources added that during the Central Executive Party meeting ex-PM Raja Pervaiz Ashraf only spoke about Asif Ali Zardari’s remarks saying that these were uncalled for. “During the entire episode Chairman Bilawal only spoke for a few minutes that too in the CEC meeting.

Even Bilawal was offered to choose his own team but Bilawal opted to keep mum. The sources said that the allegations on PPP are of corruption while the military has established its repute as the one who is hunting the corrupt and trouble makers and in this scenario where the public perception is against the PPP, defending corruption allegations is the most difficult job.

Talking to The Nation, media advisor to PPP Punjab President said that Manzoor Wattoo had issued a statement few days ago and appreciated the efforts of Pakistan army against terrorism and role of Army Chief General Raheel Sharif. He said, Wattoo had attended the meeting of CEC but could not participate in Zardari’s Iftar dinner because he had to go to Sialkot for offering Fataha over death of Fardous Aashaq Awan’s close relative.

He was not sure whether Wattoo had appeared before media after Zardari’s speech. Wattoo is following the lines of party Chairman and Co-chairman and he stands the party policy, he added.

Mitwah

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