A deal to jointly build an extension of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline across Greece will help Athens to settle its multibillion euro debt to international creditors, President Vladimir Putin said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

Talking to the representatives of international media at the Forum, Putin said he didn’t see any support for Greece from the EU, RIA Novosti reports.

“If the EU wants Greece to pay its debt then it should be interested in the Greek economy growing,” Putin said. “The EU should be applauding us. What’s bad about creating new jobs in Greece?” he said, commenting on Russia’s preliminary gas deal with Greece.

N.R.A. Board Member Deletes Criticism of Victim in Church Massacre

The targeting of the ex-wife of a national political leader by a $61 million royal commission will add weight to Labor claims that the inquiry is part of a "political witch-hunt"

It comes as one of the elders of the labour movement, Bill Kelty, offered a strong defence of Mr Shorten's record as a unionist.

To date the commission's focus on Mr Shorten - at least publicly - has been limited to industrial and political issues from his time as AWU leader. 

If governments are to maintain public support for their military ventures, war narratives must be kept simple and consistent. The underlying message must not change: the West is always the innocent victim of terrorism, never its perpetrator.

Asylum seekers from a boat whose crew was allegedly paid thousands of dollars by Australian authorities to return to Indonesia have questioned why they were intercepted in international waters.

The claims came as the ABC obtained images showing the moment Australian authorities intercepted the boat.

from John Passant ….

The Obama administration said on Wednesday that it would take the first step toward regulating greenhouse gas emissions from airplanes, but it acknowledged it would most likely take years before stringent standards are enacted.