Page 9 - ARUBA TODAY 25

A9
WORLD NEWS Saturday 25 March 2017

Putin meets Le Pen, denies French election interference

V. ISACHENKOV meddling in the French
Associated Press election and only wants
MOSCOW (AP) Russian to have a dialogue with
President Vladimir Putin a variety of politicians. He
made his preferences in the praised Le Pen, saying she
French presidential elec- represents part of a “quick-
tion clear Friday by hosting ly developing spectrum of
far-right candidate Marine European political forces.”
Le Pen at the Kremlin, Le Pen’s anti-immigration
but analysts are skeptical and anti-EU platform ap-
about Russia’s ability to peals to the Kremlin, which
sway the outcome of the has postured as a defend-
vote. er of conservative national
Embracing Le Pen is part of values against Western glo-
Russia’s efforts to reach out balization.
to nationalist and anti-glo- She also has called for
balist forces to build up its strong security ties with
influence in the West and Moscow to jointly com-
help overcome the strains bat radical Islamic groups,
in relations with the U.S. promised to work to repeal
and the European Union. the EU sanctions on Mos-
Donald Trump’s victory in cow over its 2014 annexa-
the U.S. presidential vote tion of Ukraine’s Crimean
has emboldened the Peninsula and pledged to
Kremlin, even though the recognize Crimea as part Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, shakes hands with French far-right presidential candidate
Marine Le Pen, in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Friday, March 24, 2017. Le Pen has made multiple
ongoing U.S. Congressional of Russia if she’s elected. visits to Russia, as have her father, niece and other members of the National Front, often meeting
scrutiny of his campaign “I long have spoken for Rus- with Russian legislators.
ties with Russia has all but sia and France to restore (Mikhail Klimentyev, Sputnik, AP)
dashed Moscow’s hopes their cultural, economic
for a quick detente. U.S. in- and strategic ties, espe- earlier this week. chal-Le Pen have all made but the bank’s license was
telligence agencies have cially now, A Russia-friendly approach numerous visits to Moscow later revoked.
accused Moscow of hack- when we face a serious ter- to geopolitics runs in the Le over the years. Putin spokesman Dmitry
ing to interfere in the 2016 ror threat,” Le Pen told Pu- Pen family. Le Pen herself has repeat- Peskov dismissed the pros-
U.S. election. tin on Friday. Jean-Marie Le Pen, the Na- edly visited Russia, and her pect that Russian banks
During Friday’s meeting The meeting was a surprise tional Front’s co-founder, party borrowed 9 million could offer Le Pen more
with National Front leader addition to her meeting his daughter Marine and euros in 2014 from the small loans to help fund her cam-
Le Pen, Putin insisted that with Russian lawmakers, her niece Marion Mare- First Czech Russian Bank, paign. q
Russia has no intention of which was announced

Serbia says no to NATO on alliance’s airstrikes anniversary

DUSAN STOJANOVIC least 28 people and injuring estimates put that figure at mer, majority ethnic Alba- has lately been boosting its
Associated Press dozens. “We will never be about 800, mostly soldiers nian-populated province. military cooperation with
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) part of the alliance which and police. Kosovo declared indepen- Russia, which has agreed
— Serbia’s prime minister killed our children, nor of NATO launched the air- dence from Serbia in 2008, to deliver fighter jets, tanks
pledged on Friday that the any other alliance,” Vucic strikes in Serbia, Montene- which Serbia doesn’t rec- and anti-aircraft systems.
Balkan country will never said. “They wanted to de- gro and Kosovo after then- ognize. Kosovo Prime Min- “There will never again be
join NATO or any other stroy and humiliate small Serbian leader Slobodan ister Isa Mustafa on Friday a repeat of an aggression
military alliance as Serbia Serbia and kill its children.” Milosevic rejected a deal praised the NATO interven- against our country without
marked the 18th anniver- Anti-NATO sentiments run that would end his violent tion, expressing his “eter- a clear, strong and victori-
sary of the start of NATO high in Serbia since the crackdown against Kosovo nal gratitude to the United ous response,” said Vucic,
airstrikes that stopped its 78-day bombing in 1999 Albanian separatists and States, the United Kingdom who is campaigning for the
crackdown in Kosovo. over a bloody crackdown civilians. Some 10,000 peo- and other countries that April 2 presidential election.
Aleksandar Vucic spoke at by Serbian forces against ple died and 1,660 are still were with us in the most dif- Vucic, a former ultranation-
a ceremony near a railway Kosovo Albanian separat- missing from the 1998-1999 ficult moments.” alist now self-declared pro-
bridge in southern Serbia ists. Serbian officials claim clashes in Kosovo that end- Although it is a member EU reformer, was Milosevic’s
where the Western military that more than 2,000 peo- ed with the NATO interven- of a NATO outreach pro- close ally and the Serbian
alliance’s missiles struck a ple were killed in the air- tion and the withdrawal of gram and is formally seek- information minister during
passenger train, killing at strikes while independent Serbian troops from its for- ing EU membership, Serbia the NATO intervention.q