Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Nuclear Energy News .




WAR REPORT
Philippine leader seeks Norway's help in peace talks
by Staff Writers
Manila (AFP) Jan 09, 2014


Three rebels killed in Colombia fighting
Bogota (AFP) Jan 09, 2014 - Colombian military forces killed three leftist guerrillas Thursday in fighting in a central region of the country, the defense ministry said.

The ministry said the ground combat in the province of Meta was preceded by air strikes.

The three killed were part of a security ring protecting a regional commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, it said, adding that a fourth guerrilla was captured.

The FARC has been in peace talks with the government of President Juan Manuel Santos since November 2012.

But fighting has continued and the government refused to reciprocate after the rebel group declared a unilateral truce last month. It is supposed to run until January 15.

The FARC, formed in 1964, has between 7,000 and 8,000 fighters.

Philippine President Benigno Aquino Thursday sought Norway's help in reviving failed peace talks with Maoist guerrillas, a senior presidential aide said, nearly a year after peace talks hosted by Oslo fell apart.

Aquino met Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende in the Philippine capital after the visiting diplomat said Norway remained committed to mediating negotiations between Manila and the National Democratic Front in a bid to end the decades-long insurgency.

"While serious problems have confronted and continue to challenge this particular peace process, the president affirmed the government's commitment to pursue a peaceful settlement of all internal armed conflict," Teresita Deles, Aquino's principal adviser on the talks, said after the meeting.

The Maoist insurgency has claimed 30,000 lives since 1969 according to government estimates, though its armed force is down to about 4,000 guerrillas from more than 26,000 in the late 1980s.

"The government of the Philippines will continue to consult with Norway as to how the process may move forward in light of current difficulties," said Deles.

In April last year the Aquino government announced that the peace talks being brokered by Norway had collapsed, dampening hopes of a political settlement before the president's six-year term ends in mid-2016.

Speaking to reporters earlier Thursday, Brende urged the Philippine government and Maoist rebels to consider returning to the negotiating table in the coming months.

"We are looking at the opportunities to resume talks in the future... during the (Aquino) presidency," Brende said after meeting with Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario.

On Sunday Luis Jalandoni, the Netherlands-based chief rebel negotiator, said in a statement to news organisations that the Maoists held the Aquino government "responsible for stopping the peace process".

He accused the Philippine government of failing to honour agreements between the negotiators, including the release of detained communist rebels.

"Because of the Aquino government's refusal to comply... the prospects this year of the peace negotiations between the Aquino administration and the (rebels) are dim," he said.

The Aquino government has had better results in negotiations with Muslim rebels, who have waged a guerrilla war for secession in the mainly Catholic nation's south in an insurgency which has claimed 150,000 lives since the early 1970s.

Manila says it is on track to sign a peace treaty with the Muslim rebels before Aquino leaves office.

.


Related Links






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








WAR REPORT
Jordan king, Abbas discuss Mideast peace talks
Amman (AFP) Jan 08, 2014
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas briefed Jordanian King Abdullah II Wednesday on Middle East peace negotiations, after US Secretary of State John Kerry failed to find a framework deal for final talks. "The meeting with his majesty focused on exchanging views about unifying the Jordanian-Palestinian position on... Kerry's initiative," the palace quoted Abbas as saying after a meeting with t ... read more


WAR REPORT
Inexpensive technique could drive down costs of biofuel production

York scientists' significant step forward in biofuels quest

Seaweed Energy Solutions (SES) acquires wild seaweed operation in Norway

Algae to crude oil: Million-year natural process takes minutes in the lab

WAR REPORT
Australia's small-scale green energy installations reach 2 million

Solar Biz Helps Floating Doctors Bring Electricity to Indigenous Community

Canadian Solar Connects its Tumushuke 30MW Solar Power Plant to the China State Grid

Yingli Green Energy Supplies 1 MW of Solar Panels to Serbia's Second Largest Solar Project

WAR REPORT
Researchers Find Ways To Minimize Power Grid Disruptions From Wind Power

Bolivia opens China-built wind power plant

Austria's wind industry laments new zoning restrictions

Wind energy: TUV Rheinland certifies PowerWind wind turbines

WAR REPORT
US energy secretary delays India trip amid row

Suburban sprawl cancels carbon footprint savings of dense urban cores

The entropy of nations

United Nations Proclaims "International Year Of Light" In 2015

WAR REPORT
Shell New Zealand to drill in Great South Basin

Lebanon's prospects of gas bonanza slip further away

Abe to offer help in Africa tour as Ethiopia hopes for trade

India urges Asian unity for fair LNG pricing

WAR REPORT
Earth appears to be an oddity, astronomers say

NASA's Hubble Sees Cloudy Super-Worlds With Chance for More Clouds

Researchers use Hubble Telescope to reveal cloudy weather on alien world

Using an Atmosphere to Weigh a Planet

WAR REPORT
India's Soviet-era carrier arrives six years late

Qinetiq Paramarine Ship and Submersible Design Software Supports UBC Academic Program

'Satisfied' US audits Singapore institute over spy claims

Raytheon awarded contract for Ship Self Defense System support

WAR REPORT
Who Wants to Go to Mars - One Way?

More than 1,000 chosen for one-way Mars reality-TV mission

One-way trip to Mars? Sign me up, says Frenchwoman

Clues from Orbit Aiding Exploration Of Opportunity Rover




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement