Trump alarms Venezuela with talk of 'military option' to quell chaos

President Donald Trump said Friday that he wouldn't rule out military action against Venezuela in response to the country's descent into political chaos following President Nicolas Maduro's power grab.

Trump's comment mark a serious escalation in rhetoric for the US, which has up until now stressed a regional approach that encourages Latin American allies to escalate pressure on the Maduro regime. Hours before Trump's comments, a senior administration official speaking on condition of anonymity stressed that approach while briefing reporters on Vice President Mike Pence's upcoming trip to the region later this week.

Trump alarms Venezuela with talk of 'military option' to quell chaos - France 24

Baltic: Poland says Russian maneuvers in Baltic unprecedented

Russia's military is engaging in an unprecedented amount of activity around the Baltic Sea, Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said on Thursday.

The minister said that Poland, a member of the NATO defense alliance, was not under threat of attack and the Russian maneuvers were most likely designed to test how NATO forces in the region reacted.

NATO says its patrols in the region have seen heightened activity by Russia's military, especially its aircraft, since the beginning of the standoff between Moscow and the West over Ukraine.

Since Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula earlier this year, NATO has also beefed up air patrols of the Baltic region and moved soldiers and equipment to eastern Europe for exercises.

Moscow says by stepping up its presence on Russia's borders, the alliance is further fuelling tensions. The alliance says those measures are to reassure its eastern European members, who fear they could be Russia's next target.

Read more: Poland says Russian maneuvers in Baltic unprecedented | Reuters

Russia: Don't turn Syria into another Iraq

The Russian Foreign Ministry today drew a parallel between reports that Syrian government forces has used chemical weapons and claims by the administration of President George W. Bush that Saddam Hussein was in possession of weapons of mass destruction - claims which lead to a U.S.-led invasion of Iraq a decade ago.

In a statement reported by Reuters, Moscow warned against assigning blame without a full investigation by U.N. inspectors of Wednesday's alleged toxic gas attack on the eastern suburbs of the Syrian capital. Moscow's warning came after a U.S. officials said the Obama administration has "very little doubt" the Assad regime in Syria is guilty of deadly chemical weapon use.

Russia also warned the U.S. against taking unilateral military actions toward the Assad regime.
"We once again decisively urge (the United States) not to repeat the mistakes of the past and not to allow actions that go against international law," the foreign ministry said.

"Any unilateral military action bypassing the United Nations," the statement continued, would lead to further escalation, "and will affect the already explosive situation in the Middle East in the most devastating way."
Anti-government activists and Doctors Without Borders say that more than 300 people were killed in the attack on August 21.

CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reported Friday that the Pentagon is making initial preparations for a cruise-missile attack on Syrian government forces, but to date the United States has had measured involvement in the conflict which has claimed an estimated 100,000 Syrian lives.
Read now: Russia: Don't turn Syria into another Iraq - CBS News

Germany: EU mulls new powers for piracy mission

German officials say the European Union is considering expanding the scope of its anti-piracy mission off the Horn of Africa to allow the destruction of pirates' equipment on the beaches of Somalia.

The EU's anti-piracy force patrols the seas off the coast of the country. Somalia has been mired in violence since 1991 -- plunging it into a chaos that sprouted militants and piracy.

German Foreign Ministry spokesman Andreas Peschke said Friday that the "limited destruction of piracy logistics on the beach" is under discussion but "no deployment on land." He stressed that discussions are ongoing and no decision has been made.

For more: Germany: EU mulls new powers for piracy mission - Boston.com

Two Somali pirates killed in Dutch military action to free Iranian fishing boat

Two Somali pirates have been shot dead and 16 arrested in Dutch military action to rescue an Iranian fishing ship, the defence ministry said on Sunday.

The action was carried out by the frigate HMS Tromp, which is part of the Nato fleet patrolling the waters of eastern Africa. The Dutch defense ministry said in a statement that the pirates first opened fire on the frigate as it approached the fishing dhow.


For more: DutchNews.nl - Two Somali pirates killed in Dutch military action to free fishing boat