independence

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Iraqi Troops: 'We're Not Ready to Go It Alone'

Officers decry lack of equipment; US pushes independence

(Newser) - Iraq’s army has taken strides toward independence—but it still needs the help of American forces, say Iraqi troops and officers interviewed by the New York Times. “We are too many years behind other countries. We need the coalition forces until 2015,” said one officer. But American...

A Weekend for 2 Nations to Celebrate
 A Weekend for 2
 Nations to Celebrate 
OPINION

A Weekend for 2 Nations to Celebrate

400th anniversary of Quebec City offers chance to reflect: historian

(Newser) - Tomorrow is Independence Day, but north of the border today marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City, the first settlement of New France and one of the oldest cities in Canada. David Hackett Fischer, a historian writing in the New York Times, uses the occasion to explore...

Post-Soviet States May Be Hot Zone in New Cold War

As NATO creeps eastward, imperial ambition ties Russia to breakaway regions

(Newser) - Unsettled ex-Soviet republics could become the scenes of proxy battles in a new cold war, the Christian Science Monitor reports, with the breakaway Georgia region of Abkhazia a case in point. The US and NATO are backing Georgia, with Russia supporting the separatists. "Tensions are growing very fast, and...

This Is 'Playing.' This Is 'Outside.'
This Is 'Playing.' This Is 'Outside.'
OPINION

This Is 'Playing.' This Is 'Outside.'

Backlash against oversheltering kids gains some traction

(Newser) - Using the flap over a New York 9-year-old allowed to find his own way home from Bloomingdale's as an example of a sea change, Rosa Brooks, writing in the Los Angeles Times, reminds us that allowing children to be outside on their own used to be the norm. "'Play,...

Israel Celebrates, Reflects at 60

'Yes, there are flaws ... but behind the flaws a wonderful country is hidden,' speaker says

(Newser) - Thousands gathered across Israel today for the nation’s 60th Independence Day celebration, the Jerusalem Post reports. At one ceremony, lawmaker Dalia Itzik first remembered the 22,437 Israelis killed in conflict since 1860. "Friends, you are not, and you will never be alone. We will never be able...

Ex-Soviet Monkeys Survive 15-Year Limbo

Breakaway republic can barely support survivors from better times

(Newser) - Traumatized monkeys once the subjects of Soviet experiments are odd remnants of a more prosperous time in Abkhazia, an area of Georgia that calls itself independent, the Los Angeles Times reports. The area was crippled in its effort to break away from Georgia, but the 286 primates living in a...

Kosovo Eager for Freedom's Ring
Kosovo
Eager for
Freedom's Ring

Kosovo Eager for Freedom's Ring

New nation resents being stuck with Serbian dialing code

(Newser) - Kosovo has won recognition as an independent state from three dozen countries, but a call to the world's newest nation is a reminder of its history. Telephone numbers in Kosovo still begin with the old Serbian dialing code, and the breakaway republic now wants its own international prefix. It's not...

Taiwan Moves Toward Closer Ties With China

Prez candidates favor warmer relations, despite Tibet violence

(Newser) - Both candidates in Taiwan's presidential election Saturday favor mending fences with China, the Wall Street Journal reports. Beijing has recently eased its once-blustery rhetoric over the breakaway island, and both Taiwanese parties are betting that closer ties with the mainland's booming economy could help pull theirs out of a slump.

US, EU States Recognize Independent Kosovo
US, EU States Recognize Independent Kosovo
UPDATED

US, EU States Recognize Independent Kosovo

Spain withholds nod; prez gets ahead of US State Dept.

(Newser) - The US and major European states recognized Kosovo as an independent state today, reports Reuters. Condoleezza Rice issued an official statement several hours after President Bush jumped the gun by saying in a speech in Africa that Kosovo is "now independent." His Secretary of State said later: "...

Taiwanese Nationalists Win Big
Taiwanese Nationalists Win Big

Taiwanese Nationalists Win Big

Party seeks reunification, while independence-seeking president reels from results

(Newser) - Taiwan’s China-friendly opposition party dominated parliamentary elections today, the BBC reports, dealing a blow to the hard-line president 2 months before his own poll. The KMT, which supports closer ties with Beijing, trounced the ruling DPP, winning 72% of the seats in the 113-seat chamber. President Chen Shui-bian, resigning...

Rhodesian PM Ian Smith Dies at 88
Rhodesian
PM Ian Smith
Dies at 88

Rhodesian PM Ian Smith Dies at 88

Broke from Britain and defended white minority rule for 15 years

(Newser) - Ian Smith, the Rhodesian leader who unilaterally declared independence from Britain in 1965 and defended white rule for 15 tumultuous years, died today at 88. Seen as a symbol of  African colonial-era racism, Smith was unrepentant during his lifetime, arguing that what is now Zimbabwe suffered more under the tenure...

Taiwan Leader Pans Chinese Peace Proposal

Chen eschews 'one China,' maintains nation's independence

(Newser) - Taiwan's Chen Shui-bian panned a Chinese peace overture, criticizing the adherence to what he calls "the framework of the 'one China' principle." "I think this would mean, for the 23 million people of Taiwan, a treaty of surrender," said the president, referring to China's refusal to...

Resource-Rich Greenland Looks to Break Free

Another consequence of climate change may be independence

(Newser) - Global warming has put Greenland’s mineral and oil deposits within reach, raising the volume on long-simmering chatter about independence. Denmark supplies much of the island's budget—including a substantial welfare system—but the self-sufficiency offered by melting ice means Greenlanders may no longer need the Danes at all, reports...

Puerto Rican Pacifists Say No To Pentagon

Activists undermine recruitment push with opt-out forms

(Newser) - Anti-war sentiment is pulsing through Puerto Rico, the Washington Post reports, even rattling dormant talk of independence. Pacifists have been giving high schoolers leaflets with instructions for avoiding Pentagon recruiters who have been ravenous in the poor island territory; an independence activist said the forms helped prevent young Puerto Ricans...

Scot Separatists Publish Plans for Independence

In challenge to Brown, seek army, taxation, control of oil reserves

(Newser) - The August lull in British politics has given way to a national debate on an unexpected topic: Scottish independence. The separatist leader of Scotland's regional parliament has published a white paper outlining plans for a referendum and suggesting features of an independent Scotland: its own army, its own EU membership,...

In Pakistan, a Birthday Marred by Violence

Nation turns 60 amid bomb attacks and political upheaval

(Newser) - Pakistan celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence today at a moment plagued by violence and shadowed by political uncertainty, the Independent writes. A roadside bomb killed four civilians yesterday near the border with Afghanistan, where the Taliban is allegedly regrouping. Attacks have multiplied since July from tribal areas to...

US and Russia Lock Horns over Kosovo, Missile Shield

Cold War fault lines rumble at prelim G-8 summit

(Newser) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US counterpart Condi Rice butted heads during a sit-down with G-8 foreign ministers yesterday, over US plans to grant Kosovo independence and build a missile defense shield in the region. The entire group endorsed freeing Kosovo from Serbian control, the Washington Post reports, except...

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