Putin expels 150 Western diplomats; Trump announces troop withdrawal from Syria

1. "Tit for tat", Putin expels 150 Western diplomats

Mr. Putin expelled a total of more than 150 Western diplomats. Photo: Daily Star

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the expulsion of 150 Western diplomats, causing relations between the two sides to deteriorate to an unprecedented level.

The Trump administration and allies around the world have expelled hundreds of Russian diplomats in the past week, accusing the Kremlin of being behind the poisoning of a former Russian spy on British soil.

And now it is Russia’s turn to respond. Moscow announced that it would expel 150 Western diplomats, including 60 American officials, and close the US consulate in St. Petersburg.

"This is not surprising and has been expected for a long time. However, the most worrying aspect of this action is that it makes clear the reality that Russia-US relations are going downhill," Vox magazine quoted Rachel Rizzo, a European security expert at the Center for a New American Security, as saying.

2. Mr. Trump announced the complete withdrawal of troops from the Syrian battlefield.

US President Donald Trump announced on March 29 that the US military will withdraw from Syria “very quickly”. Photo: Yournewswire

US President Donald Trump announced that the US will soon withdraw its troops from Syria, leaving the battlefield to other forces. Speaking when arriving in Ohio, Mr. Trump said: “We have sent IS back to hell. We will be leaving Syria very soon. Very soon, the US military will be out of Syria. We have liberated 100% of this land from IS.”

According to the US Department of Defense, the country has deployed about 2,000 soldiers on the Syrian battlefield. And President Trump's declaration of "reclaiming Syrian territory" seems to have little meaning, when the Syrian government and Russia consider the US military presence in this Middle Eastern country illegal.

Meanwhile, when asked about the US plan to withdraw troops from Syria, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert simply replied: "I don't know." It is unclear whether President Trump's announcement of a complete withdrawal from Syria is really a change in US policy in Syria?

3. Türkiye: Bus carrying migrants catches fire, 17 dead

Source: Trend.az

At least 17 people were killed and 36 others injured after a bus carrying illegal immigrants crashed into a street lamppost in eastern Turkey and caught fire, Turkish media reported on March 30.

According to state news agency Anadolu, the accident occurred on the night of March 29 on the Igdir-Kars highway in Igdir province.

The bus was overloaded with more than 50 undocumented illegal immigrants from Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In reality, the bus was only designed to hold 14 people. Images from the scene showed the bus burned to the frame after the tragedy. 17 people died at the scene.

4. Japanese Defense Minister to Visit US in April

Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera. Source: AFP/VNA

Kyodo reported that a Japanese government source said on March 30 that Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera plans to visit Washington on April 20 and hopes to meet with his US counterpart Jim Mattis to reaffirm cooperation between the two countries in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile programs.

The visit is scheduled to take place ahead of inter-Korean and North Korea-US summits that could decide the fate of the Korean peninsula.

During the meeting between Mr. Onodera and the US Secretary of Defense, the two sides are expected to reaffirm the importance of continuing to exert maximum pressure on North Korea until Pyongyang takes concrete actions toward denuclearization.

5.Former President Sarkozy to stand trial for new crime

Former President Sarkozy is facing a series of criminal charges related to irregularities in his 2007 election campaign.

Bad luck seems to have not let up for former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. In addition to being investigated for irregularities in his 2007 presidential campaign, he is also preparing to stand trial for corruption and abuse of justice.

The latest scandal revolves around phone calls between Mr Sarkozy and Gilbert Azibert, a senior judge at France's Court of Cassation, in 2014, two years after he left the Élysée Palace.

At the time, Mr Azibert was investigating illegal fundraising during Mr Sarkozy's 2007 presidential campaign. The former president was accused of receiving illegal envelopes of money from Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to the L'Oréal empire.

6.Trump confident America will win an arms race with Russia

US President Donald Trump.

A US official revealed that President Donald Trump confidently affirmed to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that Washington is ready for an arms race and will win.

However, several sources in the White House revealed to NBC News that in a phone call with Mr. Putin last week, US President Donald Trump affirmed that the US would win over Russia if an arms race took place. “If you want to have an arms race, we can have it, but I will be the one who wins,” Mr. Trump said.

NBC News also added that Mr. Trump’s security advisers tried to “encourage” the US President to be tougher on Mr. Putin but were unsuccessful. “He is very stubborn. He thinks a better relationship with Russia is good for the United States and he really believes he can bring it about,” said an unnamed official.

7.Syrian army discovers explosives factory, foils bombing plot in Eastern Ghouta

Smoke rises after clashes in Syria's Eastern Ghouta.

The explosives factory in Harasta, one of the largest in Eastern Ghouta, was discovered by the Syrian army during a sweep of the city after rebels and their families agreed to evacuate the area to Idlib province, SANA news agency reported. In addition to explosives, the factory also produced mortars and rockets used to attack the capital Damascus.

Notably, the Syrian army also discovered field hospitals, command centers and a network of underground tunnels of rebel forces in Harasta.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova announced that the campaign to attack and destroy terrorists in Eastern Ghouta was entering its final phase. According to Ms. Zakharova, Douma is currently the only town in Eastern Ghouta still occupied by rebel groups while most civilians have been evacuated through humanitarian corridors.