Hundreds of elite North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) troops backed by fighter planes and warships will storm a tiny volcanic island off Africa’s Atlantic coast this week in what the Western alliance hopes will prove a potent demonstration of its ability to project power around the world.
European Union defence ministers were on Monday seeking to fill gaps in the military force they are planning to send to the Democratic Republic Congo in support of United Nations peacekeepers during key elections across the vast African nation.
European officials received a stark warning of threats posed by nuclear terrorism during an unprecedented simulation showing how al-Qaeda could kill 40 000 people and plunge the continent into chaos by exploding a crude device in Brussels.