US warns Russia of ‘additional consequences’ over Ukraine

SLAVYANSK, Ukraine: US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Russia of “additional consequences” if it fails to pull its troops back from the Ukraine border, as Kiev accused Moscow of aggression in its restive east.

 

During a telephone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Kerry “made clear that if Russia did not take steps to de-escalate in eastern Ukraine and move its troops back from Ukraine’s border, there would be additional consequences”, a senior State Department official said.

A first wave of US sanctions unveiled in March blacklisted officials and businesspeople close to Russian President Vladimir Putin to protest at Moscow’s takeover of Crimea.

US Vice President Joe Biden will travel to Ukraine on April 22 to stress support for Kiev and steps to improve its energy security, the White House said in a statement.

Ukraine accused Moscow of aggression after Kalashnikov-wielding gunmen seized two security buildings in its restive eastern rust belt on Saturday amid spreading protests demanding the Russified region join Kremlin rule.

An Uncontralable wildfire in the CHILEAN Port City Of Valparaiso.

SANTIAGO: A very wild and uncontrolable fire in the Chilean port city of Valparaiso destoryed 500 homes and forced the evacuation of 3000 people as the conflagration burned into the night.

Huge tongues of fire engulfing one home after another led President Michelle Bachelet to declare the zone a disaster area late Saturday.

Thousands of people, meanwhile, watched from distant vantage points as the hills burned bright red.

A dense column of smoke advanced towards Valparaiso’s port, one of Chile’s largest.

The city of 270,000, whose historic quarter was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2004, draws thousands of foreign and local visitors each year.

The fire, whose cause is still under investigation, led to the suspension of drinking water and power outages in several neighborhoods.

Mohammad Amir will not be playing WorldCup 2015.

 

LAHORE: Mohammad Amir will not be eligible to play in next year's Wold Cup even if he returns early to domestic cricket, said by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

Aamer was 18 when the spot-fixing scandal broke out while Pakistan was touring England in August, 2010 which eventually led to the imposition of bans on Amir and his senior teammates — Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif.

PCB has pleaded with the ICC to review the five year ban on the pacer on the basis of his age factor.

Chief operating officer, Subhan Ahmed told media  that PCB was not hopeful about the International Cricket Council (ICC) clearing the pacer to play international cricket until he completed his five-year ban, which would end around August 2015.

“What we have tried to convince the ICC to do is to allow him to be back into domestic cricket by reviewing his ban period so that he is ready when the times comes for him to play international cricket,” Ahmad said.