![](https://fournews-assets-prod-s3-ew1-nmprod.s3.amazonaws.com/media/2017/05/Jon-Snow.jpg)
Syria: a powder keg with echoes of Sarajevo 1914
Who could have predicted that the assassination of Austria’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand would be the spark to ignite world war one? Does Syria carry the same carry potential?
889 items found
The Syrian government welcomes the agreement to disarm their chemical weapons but the US warns Syria that it will take action if it fails to live up to its promises.
But Syrian rebels say the US and Russian plan for decommissioning Assad’s chemical weapons ‘can go to hell’, won’t work and sets back the opposition cause.
Who could have predicted that the assassination of Austria’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand would be the spark to ignite world war one? Does Syria carry the same carry potential?
President Vladimir Putin has a number of guises – from ace fisherman to chopper pilot. His moves on Syria this week have only bolstered that fearsome self-image – and his ambitions for Russia.
President Assad tells Russian TV that the threat of a US missile strike hasn’t influenced him at all, while the UN says it has received documentation on Syria joining the chemical weapons convention.
Why have all the powers involved in trying to resolve the Syria crisis – the US, Russia, France and Britain – so singularly failed to exhaust diplomatic avenues to avoid conflict?
A newly bespectacled David Cameron claims US Secretary of State John Kerry’s comments that Syria could turn over its arsenal of chemical weapons to international control was discussed at the G20.
Russia says it is working on a “concrete plan” that would see Syria’s chemical weapons dismantled. How might this be achieved and what are the obstacles?
The Russians hit some nerves this week when dismissing Britain at the G20 summit as “a small island no one pays any attention to”. But did they have a point?
Yes, Britain is smaller than Russia. By land mass at least. We look at some other indicators of Britain’s influence.
After arriving late for last night’s G20 dinner, President Obama may have been cheered by some of what followed – apart from Argentinian President Kirchner’s 25-minute speech on her country’s past conflicts with the US.
The world’s richest nations are divided over military action in Syria, with US President Obama and Russia’s Vladimir Putin in disagreement over whether the Assad regime has used chemical weapons.
The G20 leaders are now in their first session. The sun is blazing outside and the temperature should rise inside over dinner later as Russia’s President Putin has put Syria on the menu.
As charities urge G20 leaders to come good on pledges to fix a “broken” global tax system that hurts developing countries, the economic agenda risks being overshadowed by the war in Syria.
As the US Senate draft a resolution imposing a 90-day deadline on Syria, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin warns the west against taking one-sided action.