Reuters, Kyrgyzstan
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday she had invited Britain’s new prime minister Theresa May for talks in Berlin and that she was looking forward to working with her.
“It’s our task to work very closely with governments of ally countries,” Merkel told a news conference after talks in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, adding there were many problems in the world that made such close cooperation necessary.
China likely hacked US bank regulator
AFP, Washington
The Chinese government is believed to have infiltrated computers belonging to a US banking regulator, which employees then tried to cover up, a Congressional report released Wednesday said.
The computer system at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which guarantees US banking deposits, was “hacked by a foreign government, likely the Chinese” the document said.
France shuts missions in Turkey
AFP, Ankara
France on Wednesday said it had closed its embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul until further notice for security reasons, after cancelling events to mark the July 14 Bastille Day holiday.
“The Embassy of France in Ankara, as well as the Consulate General in Istanbul will be closed from Wednesday July 13, 1:00 pm (1000 GMT), until further notice,” the embassy said in a statement after scrapping the July 14 receptions at the missions on security grounds.
Kabul has no plan to revive peace talks with Taliban
AP, Kabul
Kabul has no plans to revive a peace process aimed at bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table after a four-nation effort earlier this year produced no results, the spokesman of the Afghan president said Thursday. Foreign Office Spokesman Nafees Zakaria, responding to the remarks, reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to the four-nation group – comprising Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States – for revival of the Afghan peace process.
Haroon Chakhansuri, President Ashraf Ghani’s spokesman, said the four-nation group has no plans to meet again anytime soon.
