Afghan Taliban order fighters to disrupt vote

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban on Monday warned Afghans against taking part in the upcoming presidential election and ordered their fighters to "use all force" possible to disrupt the polling in the militant group's first formal threat of violence over the April 5 vote.

Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement emailed to media that the Taliban are also telling clerics across to country to spread the word that the election is "an American conspiracy."

The April vote is seen as key to Afghanistan's stability ahead of the final withdrawal of international combat troops at the end of December. Previous elections have been fraught with allegations of widespread fraud and some surveys have shown a deep mistrust among most Afghans toward the polling and candidates. President Hamid Karzai is not in the race since he cannot run for a third term.

Monday's Taliban statement told Afghans they should "reject completely" the election and not put themselves in danger by going to the polls.

Mujahid did not specify what kind of attacks the Taliban planned but in the 2009 presidential election, the militants assaulted and killed election workers, targeted candidates and also attacked voters, in some cases cutting people's fingers off.

"We have given orders to all our mujahedeen (holy warriors) to use all force at their disposal to disrupt these upcoming sham election to target all its workers, activists, callers, security apparatus and offices," the statement said.

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Supporters of Afghan Vice President Mohammad Qasim Fahim attach poster with his image on a wall in K …

It also warned the government against using public buildings, such as mosques and schools, for polling.

The Taliban statement was expected and it followed several election-related attacks since the start of the election campaign.

Last month, a campaign worker of a presidential front-runner, candidate Abdullah Abdullah, was shot and killed in Afghanistan's western Herat province. Also in Herat, a suicide bomber recently attacked Ismail Khan, who is running on the ticket as first vice-president to presidential candidate and powerful warlord Abdul Rasoul Sayyaf.

And in northern Kunduz province, a member of the Independent Election Commission was also shot and killed. The Taliban have taken responsibility for all the election campaign-related attacks, which occurred over the past month.

The interior ministry previously said there may be some polling stations in the restive south of Afghanistan that might not open because of security concerns. No numbers were given.

The Debate Over Post-war AfghanistanPlay video

Meanwhile, a bomb hidden in a motorcycle was remotely detonated on Monday, killing two local policemen in the western Herat province, said Raouf Ahmadi, the provincial police spokesman. Another two policemen were wounded in the bombing, he said.

No one immediately took responsibility for the attack but Ahmadi said police suspect the Taliban, who routinely attack the security forces, were behind the bombing.

Karzai became president after the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. His former foreign minister, Zalmai Rassoul, is considered to be a front runner inthe presidential race. A soft-spoken ethnic Pashtun, Rassoul is known as a loyalist to former King Zahir Shah, who ruled the country for 40 years.

A 1973 coup toppled Shah and in later years, the Soviet Union would invade the country, sparking a bloody insurgency. Warlords then took over parts of Afghanistan until the rise of the Taliban in 1996.

Rassoul has come out in favor of Afghanistan signing a Bilateral Security Agreement with the United States, which would allow for a residual U.S. and NATO force of up to 15,000 soldiers to remain behind after the final withdrawal of foreign combat troops.

Karzai has so far refused to sign the agreement.

The militant group's fighters are ordered to "use all force" possible to disrupt the April 5 polling.
'American conspiracy'

Eilat (Israel) (AFP) - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the world of "hypocrisy" over Iran on Monday as he unveiled a shipment of arms allegedly dispatched to Gaza by Tehran.

Standing in front of a vast display of weapons seized last week from a vessel in the Red Sea, Netanyahu launched a blistering attack on the West over its apparent disregard for Iran's alleged attempts to supply longer-range rockets to Palestinian militants.

In a highly-publicised speech from Eilat port, where the weapons had been unloaded, Netanyahu said he had only heard a handful of "softly-worded condemnations of Iran" over its "murderous delivery" which came to light just days before EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton made a landmark visit to Tehran.

"We have been witness to the smiles and the handshakes between representatives of the West and the heads of the Iranian regime in Tehran, even as these missiles were being unloaded here in Eilat," he said.

There were some in the international community who did not want Israel to expose "the truth behind the false smiles of Iran," he said, dismissing President Hassan Rouhani, who has spearheaded Iran's opening to the West, as nothing more than "a PR man."

"They want to continue perpetuating the illusion that Iran has changed direction. The facts that we are showing here, on this platform show the complete opposite," he said.

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Forty rockets (type M-302), 181 122mm mortar shells and approximately 400,000 7.62-calibre rounds pu …

Ahead of the speech, hordes of journalists and foreign military attaches were shown the weapons found on board the Panamanian-flagged Klos-C, including 40 longer-range M-302 rockets, 181 mortar rounds and approximately 400,000 rifle cartridges.

Also on display were sacks of cement under which the weapons had been hidden. On the sacks, written in English, were the names "Fars and Khozestan Cement Co" and "Hormozgan Cement Company" - both names of Iranian firms.

M-302 rockets have a range of 160 kilometres (100 miles), and if fired from Gaza could easily reach Tel Aviv, which lies just 60 kilometres to the north.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said Gaza militants have around 8,000 rockets, including 200 M75s, named for their 75-kilometre range.

The Islamist Hamas movement ruling Gaza unveiled a statue of the M75 Monday to showcase its ability to strike deep within Israel. M75 rockets fired during the last conflict with Israel in November 2012 struck near Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

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Some of the 181 122mm mortar shells are displayed by the Israeli military at the southern port of Ei …

- 'Verified by US intelligence' -

Analysts have said the discovery of the ship was unlikely to change the West's limited rapprochement with Iran or its willingness to negotiate over Tehran's controversial nuclear programme.

Netanyahu compared the international community's silence on the Iranian ship with its haste to condemn Israel over its construction of settlements on land seized during the 1967 Six Day War.

"If we build a balcony in a neighbourhood of Jerusalem, we hear a chorus of vociferous condemnation of the state of Israel from the international community," he said.

Israel has said it has "solid and incriminating evidence" that Iran planned and executed the weapons shipment, but so far it has not made such evidence public.

"Our intelligence services exposed the ship's wayward route and Iran's efforts to disguise it. They exposed the ship's deadly cargo and its intended destination," he said, noting that US intelligence services had "verified all these facts."

Iran has flatly denied any involvement with the shipment, which Israel believes was destined for the radical Islamic Jihad, which operates out of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

World powers are currently engaged in talks with Iran to roll back its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Tehran has long insisted its nuclear activities are entirely peaceful.

But Israel, which believes Iran is still trying to build a nuclear weapons capability, has repeatedly insisted that the only thing Tehran has changed is its tactics.

"Just as Iran hid its deadly missiles in the belly of this ship, Iran is hiding its actions and its intentions in many of its key installations for developing nuclear weapons," Netanyahu said.

Israel, the region's sole if undeclared nuclear-armed state, has refused to rule out the option of a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.

Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza have denied any knowledge of the ship.

Snowden Warns Us of the Dark Path Ahead

Posted: 03/10/2014 12:10 pm EDT Updated: 03/10/2014 4:59 pm EDT

By Luke Baker

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In its effort to show Russia it means business over Ukraine, the European Union may have created extra problems for itself in committing to a quick political deal with Kiev while leaving closer economic ties for later.

Complicating matters, the EU is standing by a promise to consult Russia on the economic consequences of any agreement with Ukraine, while threatening to call off the forum where it would raise such issues with Moscow.

At an emergency summit last week to discuss how to respond to Russia's seizure of Crimea, the EU decided to split its original plan for a far-reaching free trade and association agreement with Ukraine's new rulers into two parts.

The political aspects would be signed "very shortly", with officials indicating that a ceremony could be held with Ukraine's interim prime minister, Arseny Yatseniuk, as soon as March 20-21, when EU leaders next meet in Brussels.

But the more important economic and trade aspects, which have far more potential to reinvigorate Ukraine's economy, would wait until after presidential elections have been held on May 25 and a new, permanent government installed in Kiev.

From the EU's point of view, it looked like a clever way of reconstituting its long-negotiated plans for closer ties with Ukraine, which were rejected by former president Viktor Yanukovich last November under intense pressure from Russia.

But in its desire to reassure Ukraine it is not being abandoned, while making clear to Russia it will not be intimidated, the EU may be complicating what is already an the greatest period of East-West tension since the Cold War.

In creating a two-step process with Ukraine, the EU risks making the interim government in Kiev feel like a second-class administration: one that is fine for a symbolic political agreement, but not good enough for a trade deal.

What's more, at an EU-Russia summit held in January, the EU promised to hold consultations at "expert level" with Moscow on ties with Ukraine and any "possible economic consequences".

As a result, just as Brussels is trying to cold-shoulder Russia over Crimea, including threatening asset freezes, travel bans and other sanctions, it is obliged to consult with Moscow on any steps it takes towards stronger economic ties with Kiev.

Kiev wants the whole deal even if this means Brussels dropping the promise to consult Moscow.

Speaking last month, Ukraine's ambassador to the EU, Kostiantyn Yelisieiev, said all aspects of the association agreement needed to be put in place in one go, suggesting March 20-21 as the best date.

"Any formulation like let's wait until the May 25 elections would be unfounded," he told Euractiv, a Brussels news website.

Some EU diplomats, notably those from former east bloc countries, are worried about Russia retaining leverage.

"By dividing the agreement we are giving Moscow a chance to block the signing of the economic part of the association agreement," said a diplomat from an east European member state.

COMPLEX TIES

Asked about the conflicting priorities, EU officials said on Monday they intended to stick to the agreement reached with Russia in January - to consult on the next steps.

The officials added that there was no reason for Moscow to kick up a fuss because the economic and trade aspects of the deal with Ukraine were positive for Russia too. But given tensions between the EU and Russia, cooperation is unlikely.

What's more, the next step in the EU's stated plans to apply pressure on Moscow over its seizure of Crimea would involve cancelling EU-Russia summits.

In their statement last week, EU leaders said Russia must start negotiating with Ukraine's interim leaders on a solution to the crisis immediately, demanding progress in "the next few days" or else the following consequences:

"The European Union will decide on additional measures, such as travel bans, assets freezes and the cancellation of the EU-Russia summit."

With no signs that Russia is "de-escalating" in Crimea, EU officials said they would begin the process of implementing the sanctions shortly, including cancelling summits with Moscow.

But if the next summit is canceled, there will be no forum for the EU to consult Moscow on the closer economic ties it is planning with Ukraine after May 25. In its effort to act tough, the EU may have boxed itself into a corner.

(Writing by Luke Baker; editing by David Stamp)

Moscow (AFP) - Russia vowed on Monday to unveil its own solution to the Ukrainian crisis that would run counter to US efforts and would appear to leave room for Crimea to switch over to Kremlin rule.

The unexpected announcement came as Ukraine's new pro-European leaders raced to rally Western support in the face of the seizure by Kremlin-backed forces of the strategic Black Sea peninsula and plans to hold a Sunday referendum on switching Crimea's allegiance from Kiev to Moscow.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's threat to invade Ukraine after a wave of deadly protests toppled a pro-Kremlin regime last month has set off the most explosive crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War.

US President Barack Obama and his European allies are urging Russia to call its troops in Crimea back to their barracks and launch immediate negotiations with the new Ukrainian leadership, which Putin claims rose to power thanks to an "unconstitutional coup".

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Putin in a televised meeting Monday that proposals he had received from US Secretary of State John Kerry on resolving the standoff "do not suit us very much" and were "framed as if there exists a conflict between Russia and Ukraine."

He said Russia had prepared a series of counter-proposals that would "take into account the interests of all Ukrainians".

Lavrov said Washington was basing its solution on a recognition of Kiev's new leaders while Russia still considered the ousted Viktor Yanukovych as the legitimate president of Ukraine.

But Lavrov gave no indication about when or where Russia's proposals would be made public.

- Putin backs Crimea referendum -

Putin added new urgency to the standoff on Sunday by telling German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron that he fully backed the actions being taken by the self-declared rulers of Crimea -- in power since an end-of-February seizure of the government by pro-Kremlin gunmen.

The Kremlin said Putin stressed "the steps undertaken by the legitimate authorities of Crimea are based on the norms of international law" -- a comment strongly hinting that Moscow was ready to annex Crimea after handing the peninsula to Ukraine as a "gift" when it was a part of the Soviet empire in 1954.

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A girl holds a drawing during an anti-war rally in the Crimean village of Eskisaray, outside Simfero …

Merkel -- whose cautious approach to imposing sanctions on Moscow has clashed with the more hawkish positions of eastern European nations and Washington -- bluntly responded that the Crimean referendum was "illegal."

US ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt told reporters in Kiev on Monday that Washington "is not prepared to recognise any result of the so-called referendum".

The public vote will ask the predominantly ethnic Russian population to choose between swearing allegiance to Moscow and declaring greater autonomy from Kiev while remaining a part of Ukraine.

Ukraine's interim Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya said that if Crimea's leaders "want more rights and authority, then we are ready to do this."

The country's interim Defence Minister Igor Tenyukh meanwhile said the nation's army -- already on full combat alert -- had launched training exercises aimed at evaluating how the heavily outnumbered force could resist an offensive from its nuclear-armed neighbour.

The diplomatic wrangling continued as Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk prepared to fly to the United States to meet Obama and address the UN Security Council.

His first meeting with the US leader on Wednesday should add credibility to Yatsenyuk's untested government and provide Ukraine with a chance to iron out the details of crucial economic relief for its struggling economy.

The White House said Obama will discuss an economic support package that has already seen Washington pledge a quick infusion of more than $1 billion and the European Union promise to issue 11 billion euros ($15 billion) over two years.

Kiev says it needs about 25 billion euros ($35 billion) through 2015 to keep the country running after Russia froze a $15-billion bailout it promised Yanukovych as his reward for rejecting an EU trade deal in November that initially sparked the protests.

- Split between Russia and China -

The escalating crisis has seen Obama vow to impose travel bans and asset freezes on Russian officials held responsible for endangering the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

US officials have stressed that Putin himself is not on that list but have also warned that Washington could pull out of a G8 summit the Russian leader is hosting in Sochi in June.

The European Union for its part has halted visa talks and threatened to impose tough economic sanctions unless Putin quickly opens talks with Kiev.

The UN Security Council later on Monday will hold another meeting on Ukraine amid a rare but potentially significant split between allies China and Russia.

Beijing on Sunday affirmed its support for the "sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Ukraine -- a stance that appears to signal that its own concerns about separatist movements in China outweigh the importance of preserving a united front with Russia on foreign affairs.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Monday warned against "provocative rhetoric and hasty actions" as he appealed for dialogue on Ukraine.

In a separate development, NATO announced it would deploy reconnaissance flights over Poland and Romania to monitor the crisis in Ukraine.

Crimea's separatist government said on Monday it had invited the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to monitor the referendum even while keeping the group's military observers from entering the region at gunpoint.

The European security body said it did not recognise the invitation as valid because it had not come from an OSCE members state but only an autonomous region of Ukraine.

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