Taimur Khan
Foreign Correspondent
New York // The US secretary of state John Kerry has thanked Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the Foreign Minister, for the UAE’s support for efforts to hold Bashar Al Assad accountable for using chemical weapons in Syria, as well as its backing for peace negotiations in Geneva to end the civil war there.
During bilateral talks on Sunday, Sheikh Abdullah and Mr Kerry also affirmed the importance of Washington’s insistence on a binding, verifiable removal of Syria’s chemical weapons, a US state department official said.
Mr Kerry met officials from a number of Arab countries to discuss issues likely to be addressed by the US president Barack Obama’s speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, including Syria, Egypt and the Palestinian-Israeli peace process.
Sheikh Abdullah was also updated by his US counterpart on efforts in the UN Security Council and at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague to implement the US-Russia agreement on disarming Syria, the state department official said.
“And it was discussed that it was very important … that the US threat of military action was what brought this diplomacy about,” the official said.
Russia has so far rejected US and European demands that measures, including the threat of military force, are included in a Security Council resolution on the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons.
Mr Kerry also discussed Iran with the Saudi foreign minister Saud Al Faisal, the official said. They spoke about the necessity of concrete steps to match the newly elected Iranian president Hassan Rouhani’s recent conciliatory overtures towards the West and Iran’s Arab neighbours.
The state department official said Mr Kerry reiterated to Mr Al Faisal the dual-track US policy of economic sanctions and diplomatic engagement to stop Iran from making nuclear weapons.
The US foreign secretary’s meeting with the Egyptian foreign minister, Nabil Fahmy, centred on the need for signs of progress in Egypt’s transition back to democracy after the ousting of the elected president, Mohammed Morsi, including the lifting of the state of emergency and fair civilian trials for the hundreds of detained Muslim Brotherhood members.
Mr Kerry told Mr Fahmy that members of the US Congress were pushing for more verifiable progress while it considers whether or not to cut US aid to Egypt. Although US military aid to Egypt has reportedly not been transferred since Mr Morsi was deposed, the official added that there was no discussion of cancelling the military assistance.
tkhan@thenational.ae
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
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- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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Mubalada World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
RESULTS - ELITE MEN
1. Henri Schoeman (RSA) 57:03
2. Mario Mola (ESP) 57:09
3. Vincent Luis (FRA) 57:25
4. Leo Bergere (FRA)57:34
5. Jacob Birtwhistle (AUS) 57:40
6. Joao Silva (POR) 57:45
7. Jonathan Brownlee (GBR) 57:56
8. Adrien Briffod (SUI) 57:57
9. Gustav Iden (NOR) 57:58
10. Richard Murray (RSA) 57:59
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Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Three stars
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
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Match info
Uefa Champions League Group F
Manchester City v Hoffenheim, midnight (Wednesday, UAE)
