Putin slams Obama as he meets Poroshenko

PRESIDENT Barack Obama has met Ukraine's president-elect Petro Poroshenko, in a show of US support for Ukraine's right to chart its own future, before an encounter with Russia's Vladimir Putin.

Obama sat down with Poroshenko on Wednesday in Warsaw, during a trip designed to assuage security concerns in eastern Europe following Russia's annexation of Crimea and what Washington says is an effort to destabilise Ukraine.

Obama said he had "been deeply impressed" by Poroshenko's vision for his troubled country.

"The United States is absolutely committed to standing behind the Ukrainian people not just in the coming days, weeks, but in the coming years," Obama told reporters.

The talks on day two of Obama's European tour come after the president met central and eastern European leaders in Warsaw and before he heads to a G7 summit in Belgium.

The summit takes place against a backdrop of signs that Western unity over how to handle Russia is fracturing.

Obama will come face to face with Putin during 70th anniversary commemorations of the D-Day landings in Normandy, France on Friday, but officials in Washington and Moscow say there are no plans for a formal meeting.

In contrast, the leaders of Britain, France and Germany will hold one-on-one talks with Putin, who said Wednesday he could not understand Obama's stance.

"It is his choice, I am ready for dialogue," Putin said in an interview with French broadcasters Europe1 and TF1 conducted at his dacha in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Putin went on to accuse the US administration of hypocrisy in its "aggressive" attempts to isolate Russia over its conduct in Ukraine.

"We have almost no military forces abroad yet look: everywhere in the world there are American military bases, American troops thousands of kilometres from their borders. They interfere in the interior affairs of this or that country. So it is difficult to accuse us of abuses."

The accelerating diplomacy over Ukraine comes as a seven-week pro-Russian insurgency in Ukraine's eastern rust belt grows only more violent after Poroshenko swept to power in a May 25 presidential ballot.

Hundreds of separatist gunmen on Monday attacked a Ukrainian border guard service camp in the region of Lugansk on the border with Russia.

Obama said Tuesday that US commitment to eastern European security was absolute.

"Our commitment to Poland's security as well as the security of our allies in central and eastern Europe is a cornerstone of our own security and it is sacrosanct," Obama said after inspecting a joint unit of Polish and US F-16 pilots.

He proposed a "European Reassurance Initiative" of up to $1 billion (730 million euros) to finance extra US troop and military deployments to "new allies" in Europe.

NATO defence ministers also agreed Tuesday a series of steps to bolster protection in eastern Europe after the Ukraine crisis, but insisted they were acting within the limits of a key post-Cold War treaty with Moscow.

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20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

PM vows to resolve Indon spy row

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has arrived in Indonesia for long-awaited talks with the president. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott has pledged to resolve the spying row with Indonesia to the mutual benefit of both nations, and has told the outgoing president that his policy on asylum-seeker boats means they shouldn't be a problem for much longer.

Mr Abbott on Wednesday met President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for the first time since the president last year learned Australia had tapped the phones of his wife and other confidants under the previous Labor government.

The president wants to mend severed ties before he leaves office in October, and Mr Abbott is keen to seize the opportunity before a new administration takes over.

Following their brief meeting in Batam, Indonesia, Dr Yudhoyono told reporters he believed the partnership could be stronger in future, with "mutual benefit and mutual respect".

"We have always thought in Indonesia that in time, cooperation between our two great countries can truly be implemented, and even better," the president told reporters.

Foreign ministers Marty Natalegawa and Julie Bishop are expected to complete a code of conduct within weeks, with Mr Abbott confident of a resolution to the "mutual benefit" of both parties.

"Intelligence sharing in dealing with common problems is the way forward for both of us," he said.

On the other thorny issue in the relationship - turning asylum-seeker boats back to Indonesian territory, Mr Abbott said there were now so few boats: "I believe this is an issue which will not substantially further trouble us".

Before they met for dinner, the prime minister praised SBY as the leading statesman of the ASEAN region.

"I believe when the history of Indonesia is written, the Yudhoyono presidency will be a watershed," Mr Abbott said.

"Marked by peace abroad, prosperity at home, the consolidation of democracy and the strengthening of national unity.

"This is a marvellous legacy that you, Bapak President, leave your country and I have to say I have been proud and thrilled and honoured to get to know you over the last few years and I will be very pleased and proud and honoured to call you a friend in the months and years and decades ahead."

Dr Natalegawa has been dampening expectations of a quick fix, pointing out that Australia's "unilateral" approach on asylum seeker boats would continue to be a problem.

He wouldn't comment on Mr Abbott's view following the meeting, but said he was keen to finish the code of conduct because, "addressing one issue will no doubt help the other one".

The reunion has been months coming and the pair were forced to wait a little longer than planned on Wednesday, when a technical problem on Mr Abbott's RAAF jet delayed him by more than two hours.

From Indonesia, he will travel to France, Canada and the US, for talks with President Barack Obama.

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Brown wooed as face of Tasmanian tourism

Greens patriarch Bob Brown is being courted as the face of Tasmania's tourism campaigns. Source: AAP

BOB Brown is being wooed as the face of Tasmanian wilderness tourism.

The former Greens leader has been sounded out by the state's tourism industry to promote Tasmania's World Heritage Area.

The idea builds on the recent Go Behind the Scenery campaign, which sought to make the state's environmental battles a point of interest for tourists.

Tourism Industry Council boss Luke Martin has said Dr Brown defines the state's recent history.

But the Greens' patriarch may not be easily wooed.

Tasmania's new Liberal state government wants to open up national parks to eco-tourism development, a move Dr Brown has called "stupid" and "greedy".

Premier Will Hodgman is also backing a federal government move to cut 74,000 hectares from the World Heritage Area.

Dr Brown says he already pushes destination Tasmania but there would be conditions to him fronting a tourism campaign.

"I'm very woo-able but not unless they get the (balance) right," he has told the Hobart Mercury.

"Private development should be outside World Heritage and outside national parks, and developments inside national parks should be public and they should be well funded."

The Hodgman government has called for potential investors to pitch "sensitive and appropriate" eco-tourism ideas.

Mr Martin says they are the norm in countries such as New Zealand and Canada, where green groups support them.

Greens leader Christine Milne said the tourism industry should oppose the federal government's World Heritage wind-back.

"It's a bit rich for the Tourism Industry Council to be appealing to Bob Brown to help it sell tourism in World Heritage Areas while the Abbott government is trying to destroy them," she said in a statement.

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Lucy rejects Malcolm leadership talk

Malcolm Turnbull says claims he might mount a leadership challenge are 'demented' and 'unhinged'. Source: AAP

MALCOLM Turnbull's fluey quest for spicy soup has been miscast as a leadership challenge, the cabinet minister's wife and former Sydney lord mayor Lucy Turnbull says.

Lucy Turnbull told the ABC's Q&A on Monday there was no conspiracy when her husband met Mr Palmer, the leader of the Palmer United Party, for dinner last Wednesday night.

Mr Turnbull sent a text message at 6pm on Wednesday saying he had the flu and needed some spicy soup.

"He sent me a message at 6.30 in the morning saying 'guess what, having dinner and then Clive came along.'"

"It was completely spontaneous.

"It has been completely miscast."

Mr Turnbull on Monday labelled conservative political commentator Andrew Bolt "demented" and "unhinged" for suggesting he's trying to take back the Liberal leadership.

Liberal senator Cory Bernardi, also a guest on the program, said he thought Mr Turnbull went too far in criticising Mr Bolt.

"It was inappropriate, it was unwise to do," he said.

It kicked the whole thing along.

"Malcolm I just think went a bit too heavy today."

On Sunday Mr Bolt asked Prime Minister Tony Abbott at the weekend whether Mr Turnbull's recent dinner with Mr Palmer was an indication Mr Turnbull has designs on the party's top job.

Mr Abbott on Sunday played down Mr Turnbull's actions, saying it was "perfectly reasonable" for senior members of the coalition to talk with crossbenchers to help get the budget passed.

Mr Bolt has written on his popular blog that he is sure Mr Turnbull is not contemplating any imminent challenge.

20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

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20.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iraq violence killed 799 in May: UN

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Shotgun fired at Hobart house

A SHOTGUN has been fired at a house in Hobart.

The occupants were home when the shot was fired on Saturday evening, police said.

Neighbours heard the blast but the occupants of the Bridgewater residence did not report the incident until the following morning.

Police said damage consistent with shotgun pellets was visible at the scene.

No one was injured.

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Bali flights under cloud but Darwin clear

Flights in Darwin are expected to resume later today as plumes from an Indonesian volcano dissipate. Source: AAP

FLIGHTS to and from Darwin have resumed after they were grounded by an ash cloud from an Indonesian volcano, as Jetstar grounds flights to Bali.

Darwin was cut off to all air services on Saturday as ash plumes billowed from the Sangeang Api volcano off the Indonesian island of Sumbawa. It erupted continuously after an initial blast on Friday afternoon.

The major plume affecting Australian aviation swept southeast over the west side of the Northern Territory and as far south as Alice Springs.

Cyndee Seals of the Bureau of Meteorology's Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in Darwin said Australia was now clear but airlines were meeting to discuss an ash cloud near Bali.

"I can advise that the ash cloud across Australia is dissipating but there are still ash clouds southwest of the volcano and another to the east east-northeast from an earlier high eruption," she said.

The southwesterly ash cloud was nearing Bali but its effects on flights to Denpasar were not yet clear, Ms Seals said.

"Right now, unless the winds change - and they are a little variable - it will take the ash south of Denpasar, away from Bali," she said.

"The airlines are meeting about it."

On Sunday night Jetstar cancelled 12 flights in and out of Bali as the Sangeang Api cloud drifted towards Denpasar International Airport.

Qantas announced it had resumed its flights, while Virgin, Air Asia and Jetstar also resumed operations in and out of Darwin, Darwin International Airport spokeswoman Virginia Sanders told AAP.

But she urged travellers to stay in touch with their airline for updates on flights as some changes might be made.

"Flights are coming back on line but there are some scheduled changes so people still need to check with the airline with regards to what's happening with their particular flight," she told AAP.

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One dead and six injured in NSW crash

A MAN is dead and six people, including two children, have been injured in a head-on collision at Coffs Harbour on NSW's north coast.

The 58-year-old was killed when a Nissan Pulsar and Ford Falcon collided on Hogbin Drive just before 1pm on Saturday, police say.

The man, a rear passenger in the Falcon, was taken to Coffs Harbour Health Campus but died a short time later.

The driver of the Pulsar - a 31-year-old woman - was taken to hospital with leg and wrist injuries.

Among her passengers, a nine-year-old girl and five-year-old boy were also hospitalised with serious injuries.

The 59-year-old female driver of the Falcon suffered multiple fractures to her arms and legs.

And a 19-year-old man, a passenger in the Falcon, was taken to hospital with internal injuries.

An investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash is underway with police urging witnesses to come forward.

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