Obama administration seeks extra $32 million to train Mali troops January 26, 2013 - 16:33 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Barack Obama administration is seeking an additional 32 million dollars to train African troops to fight Islamic extremists in Mali, Belfast Telegraph said. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the request had been made to Congress. The United States is not providing any direct aid to the Malian government because the democratically elected president was overthrown in a coup last year. However, it has been providing aid to the French-led mission, transporting French troops and equipment to Mali. France has some 2,400 forces in the West African nation but says it wants African nations to take the lead in fighting the extremists who rule northern Mali. The French-led operation began on January 11 after the militants surged southward from their strongholds and took the town of Konna, later recaptured by government forces. Partner news  Top stories U.S. officials say they want to advance efforts to start talks between the Syrian government and opposition leaders. The international conference, backed by Russia and the U.S., aims to find a political solution to the conflict in Syria. Nuland, a career foreign service officer who was until recently State's top spokesperson, was expected to be nominated the post. Alkhatib said Assad should respond within 20 days and that he should then be given a month to dissolve parliament.   Partner news |  Latest news Israeli security expert says Syrian hacker attack foiled  Israel refuses to comment on the strike but officials at the time said Iranian missiles set for Hezbollah were hit.Gyumri to host Europe Day celebrations The celebrations will feature a small information fair, with EU project representatives to brief the visitors on the initiatives launched.1st Armenian interactive fairy tale available for iPhone/iPod Touch The tale sparked great interest in Diaspora. Such projects, namely interactive version of “Alice in Wonderland”, are popular abroad.Expert says Russian FM’s remarks in context of Madrid Principles No decisive developments will follow the meeting between Russian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers, David Jamalyan said. |
