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Union of South Africa

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Union Plus Benefits from Union Privilege|

As a general election neared in Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron said the country must be able to control immigration while it upholds the idea of freedom of movement within the European Union.|

African Union submits formal request to United Nations Security Council to defer, for at least one year, trials of Kenyan Pres Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto in the International Criminal Court at The Hague.|

African Union announces that it is considering an ambitious plan to stabilize Somalia that could involve thousands of Ethiopian troops opening up a new front against the Shabab militant group; African Union peacekeepers are already battling the Shabab in Mogadishu and Kenyan forces have been fighting the Shabab in southern Somalia.|

Hundreds of civilians also fled the coastal town of Barawe in fear they would be caught in crossfire as Somali and African Union troops approached.|

Russian and Ukrainian officials fail to reach solution during talks in Brussels to dispute over energy that has exacerbated tensions and led to concerns about cutoffs of natural gas to the European Union.|

African Union suspends nation of Guinea-Bissau, increasing pressure on military chiefs there who took power by coup, and who have told regional mediators that they are ready to restore control to civilians.|

African Union gives Burkina Faso's military leaders two weeks to return power to civilian-led government or face severe sanctions.|

Editorial praises European Union for plan to pump up investment in public works and increase small-business lending, but warns proposal is overly complicated and self-defeating; argues that insistence on maintaining balanced budget, even as economy weakens, risks continued economic stagnation.|

Scores of European and African leaders and officials gather in Brussels for a major summit meeting overshadowed by bloodletting in the Central African Republic and lingering postcolonial resentments.|

European Union authorities accuse Netherlands of making special deal with Starbucks that helped company lower its taxes; accusation is contained in report by EU's competition authority and is latest sign of mounting concern over scale of tax breaks for multinational companies in period of weak growth and high unemployment in many parts of Europe.|

Fighting over the contested oil-rich region of Heglig, Sudan, which has spread to a number of areas along the border and beyond, triggers a war between Sudan and South Sudan, the country that was born out of a 2011 peace agreement; African Union condemns South Sudan’s seizure of Heglig as illegal, and the United Nations Security Council demands an immediate end to the attacks from both sides.|

Long-awaited contingent of soldiers from Djibouti arrives in Mogadishu, Somalia, to join the African Union peacekeeping force there.|

Hundreds of civilians also fled the coastal town of Barawe in fear they would be caught in crossfire as Somali and African Union troops approached.|

Editorial urges European Union to stop dragging its feet on forging more unified approach to migration that would distribute financial and social costs of coping with refugees more fairly; contends that rising death toll of migrants desperately trying to reach Europe across the Mediterranean Sea is even more urgent impetus for providing legal avenues to safety.|

Floyd Norris Off The Charts column contends deflation has become reality in many European countries, at least in terms of prices of goods; notes services are less likely to experience deflation in prices, in part because it is difficult to reduce nominal wages and in part because overseas competition may be less of a factor; points out in the United States, prices for goods are rising but at a slow rate.|

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