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REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Russian President Vladimir Putin walks past U.S. President Barack Obama during a group photo at the G20 Summit in St. Petersburg, Sept. 6, 2013.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of attempting to "re-establish Russian greatness," warning world leaders they are perhaps not dealing with a rational foreign-policy thinker.

"Putin wants to re-establish Russian greatness, not in Cold War terms — i n 19th-century-empire terms," Clinton said during a question-and-answer session at the Peter G. Peterson Foundation's annual Fiscal Summit on Wednesday.

Some of Putin's recent comments have stirred concern within foreign-policy circles. Over the past few weeks, he has repeatedly referred to regions making up southeast Ukraine as "Novorussia," or "New Russia," and he has said Russia has a right to intervene on behalf of ethnic Russians living in those areas.

In a Washington Post op-ed last week , Russian-American journalist Masha Gessen referenced a March 18 speech in which Putin " clearly indicated he believes that borders drawn even earlier — right after the revolution of 1917 — can and should be redrawn."

" In other words, he positions contemporary Russia as the heir to the Russian Empire as it was constituted under the czars," she wrote.

Gessen notes that Putin does not see Ukraine as an independent country. He sees part of Ukraine as rightfully part of Russia and part of it that is ripe for the taking by western European countries.

" Parts of today’s territories were in Czechoslovakia, parts in Hungary, parts in Austria, parts in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, parts in Poland," he said during an annual televised address to the nation in April.

Since Russia's move to annex the Ukrainian region of Crimea in March, the Obama administration has also accused Putin of acting according to terms of a different century.

"You just don't, in the 21st century, behave in 19th-century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped-up pretext," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in early March.

President Obama said after the annexation was complete that sending troops in and taking a piece of land is " not how interna tional law and international norms are observ ed in the 21st century."

Less than two months after Russia's annexation of Crimea, separatists from the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk held referendums in which they said citizens voted to secede from Ukraine. Separatist leaders from both regions now want to join Russia.

Clinton's and Putin's presidencies did not overlap extensively; however, the pair did meet while both were in office. Putin became Russia's president in 2000, the last year Clinton was in office in the U.S. And former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Bill's wife, led the so-called Russian reset policy in 2009, when Putin was briefly out of power at the start of the Obama administration.

Hillary Clinton said in March that Putin believes his mission is to "restore Russian greatness."

CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP) — Nine wildfires covering more than 14 square miles scorched San Diego County on Wednesday, forcing thousands to flee their homes and prompting the closures of a college campus and Legoland California. No major injuries were reported.

Firefighters contended with temperatures approaching 100 degrees and gusty winds as they tried to contain flames fueled by brush and trees left brittle by drought. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries — one heat-related and one from smoke inhalation.

The biggest concern late Wednesday was in San Marcos north of San Diego, where a new blaze broke out in the late afternoon, some 21,000 evacuation notices were sent to residents and a California State University campus with nearly 10,000 students was evacuated.

The most destructive of the fires was in the coastal city of Carlsbad, about 30 miles north of San Diego and home to Legoland. The park was closed because of a power outage caused by the fire.

The city's schools also were closed, as most of the county's would be on Thursday, and officials expected they wouldn't reopen until next week.

Carlsbad Mayor Matt Hall said the blaze consumed an eight-unit condominium complex, as well as damaged eight homes and two businesses. Thousands were asked to evacuate their homes.

Raw: Fires Scare San Diego but Grow CalmPlay Video

As the flames surged, a steady stream of residents stopped at a roadblock on a four-lane thoroughfare as they tried to return home to collect valuables.

Richard Sanchez watched nervously as a plume of black smoke rose near his home. He had left his house an hour earlier to run an errand.

"All I want to do is get there and evacuate," Sanchez said. "We have a plan, but I can't execute it."

As authorities yelled "Please evacuate!" in Joe Post's neighborhood, he grabbed a garden hose and doused a palm tree in flames between his home and his neighbor's. He debated about leaving his home, but he was worried what he might find upon returning.

"Work water, work!" he shouted, spraying down charred landscaping.

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A wildfire climbs a canyon toward homes Wednesday, May 14, 2014, in Carlsbad, Calif. More wildfires …

As the afternoon wore on, firefighters made progress in stopping the blaze's spread, and 10 percent of it was contained by early evening.

Other areas in the county also flared up, then calmed down by nightfall.

A fire on the edge of San Diego in the community of Lakeside prompted brief evacuations in the early evening Wednesday that were called off a few hours later.

Yet another fire blackened 6,000 acres on the Camp Pendleton Marine base, but a handful of evacuations were over by evening.

Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for San Diego County, which would free up special resources and funding for the firefight, and state fire officials were creating a central command center for the blazes.

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Wildfire climbs a canyon toward homes Wednesday, May 14, 2014, in Carlsbad, Calif. More wildfires br …

Drought conditions have made fire danger extremely high throughout much of California. Officials have encouraged residents in fire-prone areas to prepare evacuation plans and clear brush from near their homes.

The Carlsbad fire broke out around 10:30 a.m. and spread through heavy brush before jumping into residential areas.

The wind-driven wildfire tossed embers onto roofs and trees, igniting them. Firefighters found themselves evacuating people and battling the blaze at the same time.

The city's fire chief said the blazes were unprecedented in his 27-year firefighting career because they are so early in the year.

"This is May, this is unbelievable. This is something we should see in October," Chief Michael Davis said. "I haven't seen it this hot, this dry, this long in May."

Meantime, firefighters gained ground on another San Diego County fire that broke out Tuesday and forced the evacuation of 20,000 homes. Authorities reported 50 percent containment of the 2.42-square-mile fire that broke out in the Rancho Bernardo area of San Diego.

The causes of the various fires were under investigation.

One blaze spread from a burning vehicle on coastal Interstate 5 to roadside brush near the northwest corner of Camp Pendleton.

Homes and businesses in San Diego County are ordered to evacuate as fires rage out of control. Residences burned, injuries

By Isaac Abrak

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) - Nigeria's president has rejected an offer from Islamist rebel group Boko Haram to exchange schoolgirls it abducted for imprisoned militants, but the government is open to broader talks with the rebels, a visiting British minister said.

President Goodluck Jonathan is under pressure to crush the rebels who have killed thousands in their campaign for an Islamist state and to free the girls whose abduction a month ago has sparked global outrage.

Government officials initially said they were exploring all options with respect to the swap proposal and later said they were willing to negotiate with Boko Haram without specifying whether any putative talks might include an exchange for the girls.

Jonathan further refined that position on Wednesday during talks with Britain's Minister for Africa Mark Simmonds.

"He (Jonathan) made it very clear that there would be no negotiations with Boko Haram that involved a swap of abducted schoolgirls for prisoners," Simmonds told reporters after meeting Jonathan.

Vigil for abducted Nigerian girlsPlay Video

"What he also made very clear to me was that he wanted his government to continue a dialogue to make sure a solution could be found and that security and stability could return to northern Nigeria for the medium and the long term," he added.

Rebels stormed a school in the northeastern village of Chibok a month ago and seized 276 girls who were taking exams. Some have escaped, but about 200 remain missing. On Monday, Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau released a video showing some of the girls in captivity and offered the swap.

The abductions have triggered a social media campaign under the Twitter hashtag #BringBackOurGirls and the United States, Britain, France and Israel have offered help or sent experts to Nigeria to assist the effort.

Britain has offered a Sentinel surveillance plane, a team embedded at Nigerian military headquarters, a team embedded with international groups analyzing intelligence from the hunt and more funding for a Safe Schools Initiative, Simmonds said.

"The offer has been accepted by President Jonathan ... so we are working on the detail of that and how we might facilitate a quick implementation," Simmonds said.

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People hold candles during an interfaith vigil in Lagos, praying for the release of abducted Nigeria …

SHOTS FIRED

Boko Haram killed at least four soldiers in an ambush on Tuesday near the village where the girls were abducted. The clash highlights the obstacles facing an international hunt for the girls that is gathering pace as well as the willingness of the rebels to confront the Nigerian army.

The soldiers were killed in a night ambush outside the northeastern city of Maiduguri and several insurgents also died in the firefight, according to a statement on Wednesday from Defence Headquarters.

"Troops on patrol around Chibok were ambushed by insurgents yesterday. Troops engaged the insurgents in a fierce combat and extricated themselves from the ambush killing several insurgents. Four soldiers, however, lost their lives during the ambush," said a statement from Defence Headquarters.

"On evacuation of the remains of the fallen troops, the General Officer Commanding addressed the troops who registered their anger about the incident by firing into the air. The situation has since been brought under control," it said.

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People hold placards calling for the release of secondary school girls abducted in the remote villag …

Soldiers interviewed by Reuters said the ambush happened after a commanding officer instructed his unit to return to Maiduguri in the evening, something the troops were unwilling to do on the grounds it might expose them to attack.

In interviews, they gave differing numbers of those killed, but all exceeded the four stated by Defence Headquarters. One account said six died while another said 12 had been killed.

Publicity over the abductions has cast a harsh spotlight on Nigerian military efforts to secure the girls' release and quash the insurgency and also opened an avenue for diplomatic and security cooperation.

France is due to hold a security summit in Paris on Saturday with Jonathan, leaders from neighbors Benin, Cameroon, Chad and Niger and other African countries, as well as representatives from the United States and Britain.

Jonathan said he welcomed the summit, which will discuss how to intensify collaboration against Boko Haram and other radical groups.

"If we all collaborate more, it will easier to eradicate Boko Haram and terrorism," he said in a statement.

Defence chiefs from the Economic Community of West African States also met in the Ghanaian capital Accra on Wednesday to discuss regional action on Boko Haram.

(Additional reporting by Lanre Ola in Maiduguri, Kwasi Kpodo in Accra and Felix Onuah in Abuja, writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; editing by Bate Felix and G Crosse)

Nigeria's president has rejected an offer to trade the abducted girls for jailed militants, a British official says.
Rebels kill 4 soldiers

Associated Press Videos

Raw: Police, Protesters Clash Over Mine Accident

SOMA, Turkey (AP) — Rescue teams recovered eight more victims of Turkey's worst mining accident on Thursday, raising the death toll to 282 in a disaster that has thrown Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's presidential ambitions off stride.

Hundreds of people were attending funerals for the victims; dozens and dozens of graves have been dug, ready to receive the bodies.

Although 363 miners were rescued in the western mining town of Soma, some 150 more have not been accounted for. No miner has been brought out alive since early Wednesday.

Erdogan, who is expected to soon announce his candidacy for presidential elections in August, was forced to take refuge at a supermarket during his visit to the area Wednesday after angry crowds called him a murderer and thief and clashed with police. Turkish newspapers Cumhuriyet, Milliyet and others on Thursday printed photographs they said were of an Erdogan aide kicking a protester who was on the ground and being held by paramilitary police during the scuffles. The papers identified the aide as Yusuf Yerel.

Erdogan had earlier downplayed the disaster, calling mining accidents "ordinary things" that also occur in many other countries, after giving examples of 19th-century mine accidents in Britain.

Erdogan has made no secret of his desire to become Turkey's first popularly elected president. His party swept local elections in March despite a corruption scandal that forced him to dismiss four government ministers in December and later also implicated him and family members. Erdogan denies corruption, calling the allegations part of a plot to bring his government down.

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A man prays beside a grave of a dead miner while workers dig graves and locals accompany the praying …

Protests broke out in Istanbul, Ankara and other cities over the deaths and poor safety conditions at mines around the country. Turk-Is, Turkey's largest trade union confederation representing some 800,000 workers, joined a one-day strike by other unions to demand better conditions for workers.

Workers in the mining region of Zonguldak, obeying the strike, gathering in front of a pit but did not enter it. In Istanbul, a group chanted anti-government slogans and carried a large banner that read: "It's not an accident, it's murder."

With hopes for the missing miners fading, Energy Minister Taner Yildiz told reporters that rescue efforts were focusing on two areas inside the mine.

Rescue operations have been suspended several times as burning coal inside created toxic fumes and too-risky conditions for the rescue teams.

"We believe that we still have brothers in two areas that we still have not been able to reach," Yildiz said. He did not say whether authorities believed they were dead.

Raw: Turkish PM Heckled Near Mine CollapsePlay Video

The government has said 787 people were inside the coal mine at the time of Tuesday's explosion. Scores of those rescued suffered injuries.

The death toll has topped a 1992 gas explosion that killed 263 workers near Turkey's Black Sea port of Zonguldak.

Authorities said this week's disaster followed an explosion and fire at a power distribution unit, and most deaths were caused by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Erdogan promised the tragedy would be investigated to its "smallest detail" and that "no negligence will be ignored." Hurriyet newspaper reported Thursday that a group of 15 prosecutors has been assigned to investigate the accident.

Mining accidents are common in Turkey, which is plagued by poor safety conditions. Tuesday's explosion tore through the mine as workers were preparing for a shift change, which likely raised the casualty toll.

Turkey's Labor and Social Security Ministry said the mine had been inspected five times since 2012, most recently in March, when no safety violations were detected. But the country's main opposition party said Erdogan's ruling party had recently voted down a proposal to hold a parliamentary inquiry into a series of small-scale accidents at the mines around Soma.

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Suzan Fraser reported from Ankara.

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Death toll rises in Turkish mine disaster

More than 280 miners are confirmed dead as hopes fade for 150 others still trapped underground.
Angry anti-government protests

By Greg Torode

Hong Kong (Reuters) - The U.S. navy renewed calls on Thursday for more ship visits to Vietnam against the backdrop of a dramatic breakdown in relations between Vietnam and its giant neighbor, China.

The Seventh Fleet, which guards U.S. interests in the Pacific, restated its desire for stronger naval ties with Vietnam in a statement sent to Reuters, just as Hanoi looked to be running out of options in its territorial row with Beijing.

Anti-China riots broke out this week in Vietnam, killing more than 20 people and setting fire to factories perceived to have been Chinese-owned, after China towed a giant oil rig into waters claimed by both nations in the South China Sea.

"We are interested in engaging with all our partners in the South China Sea and would welcome increased port visits with Vietnam," fleet spokesman Commander William Marks said in an emailed response to questions about U.S. naval relations with Vietnam.

The United States and Vietnam have been gradually deepening military ties in the face of what they perceive as Chinese expansion in the South China Sea, but Hanoi has so far limited U.S. port calls to one visit of up to three ships each year.

Vietnamese military officials say they are intensifying talks with U.S. counterparts over deeper naval engagement, but are sensitive to China's reaction to this development.

"We're talking to U.S. but it is too early to say how the tensions now will change our approach," one Vietnamese military source said. "We have a lot to consider."

Alarmed at China's military rise and territorial assertiveness, Vietnam has broadened a host of military relationships in recent years, most notably with its Cold War-era patron, Russia, and India.

Vietnamese military officials also keep close ties with the Philippines, which is also locked in a worsening territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea.

China and Vietnam fought a brief but bloody border war in 1979, and clashed at sea in 1988, when China occupied its first holdings in the strategic Spratly islands.

The U.S. navy is also keen for more extensive exercises with Vietnam's expanding navy, which now includes state-of-the-art Russian-built ships and Kilo-class submarines.

A search-and-rescue exercise off Vietnam's central coast last year marked the first time ships from the two navies had maneuvered together.

"Any time we can increase the complexity of an exercise, it improves the communication and interoperability between our navies," Marks said.

"The overall goal is improved security and stability in the region, and working together is a big part of that."

U.S. military officials said the U.S. navy had not changed deployments due to the Sino-Vietnamese crisis but was conducting daily surveillance flights over the South China Sea.

The Seventh Fleet's command ship, the USS Blue Ridge, and a destroyer are also currently in the South China Sea.

Carl Thayer, an expert on the Vietnamese military at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra, said he believed Hanoi should seize any opportunity to expand military engagement with the United States, including intelligence sharing.

"At this point, kissing up to the U.S. has got to be in Vietnam's long-term interests, as well as being a vital tactic in the short-term," he said.

"It is one of the only options Vietnam's got right now."

(Reporting By Greg Torode; Editing by Mark Bendeich)