On a visit to Kyiv, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reassured the people of Ukraine that the United States stands with them in the face of a potentially imminent Russian invasion. After meeting with Ukraine’s foreign minister Wednesday, Blinken spoke with VOA in Kyiv about the U.S. diplomatic effort to calm the situation. VOA’s Senior …
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A 19-year-old British-Belgian pilot landed her plane on Wednesday at an airstrip near Frankfurt, Germany, one stop away from becoming the youngest woman to fly around the world solo. Zara Rutherford told reporters she wanted to “sleep for a week” after she climbed out of the single-seat Shark ultralight aircraft at Egelsbach airfield a few …
Read more “Teen Pilot One Stop From Finishing Round-the-World Solo Flight”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke in Kyiv Wednesday with VOA’s Eastern Europe bureau chief Myroslava Gongadze about his talks with Ukrainian leaders and the prospects for heading off a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine. The following is a transcript of that interview. It has been edited for clarity. Watch the video here. …
Read more “Blinken to VOA: Russia Has a Clear Choice to Make”
Britain is ending COVID-19 restrictions, including mask mandates, working from home and vaccine passports, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Wednesday. The measures had been introduced to slow the spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant of the virus. “Many nations across Europe have endured further winter lockdowns … but this government took a different path,” …
French actor Gaspard Ulliel, known for appearing in Chanel perfume ads as well as film and television roles, died Wednesday after a skiing accident in the Alps, according to his agent’s office. He was 37. Ulliel portrayed the young Hannibal Lecter in 2007’s “Hannibal Rising” and fashion mogul Yves Saint Laurent in the 2014 biopic …
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Germany is under mounting pressure from European allies to drop its long-standing refusal to supply weapons to Ukraine to help the country to defend itself from a Russian attack. Britain flew short-range anti-tank missiles to Ukraine on Monday, avoiding German airspace. British Defense Minister Ben Wallace indicated to lawmakers that more military aid and extra …
Read more “NATO Countries Urged to Supply More Weapons to Ukraine”
VOA Eastern Europe Chief Myroslava Gongadze asked Sec. Blinken about the conflict along the Russia-Ukraine border and how the US may respond to a Russian incursion into Ukraine. They spoke in Kyiv, where Blinken was meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. …
Fire officials in Spain say six nursing home residents died and at least 17 were injured in a fire at a retirement home in a suburb of Valencia early Wednesday. The Valencia regional fire department said the fire started late Tuesday at a publicly-owned senior residence in the town of Moncada, about 12 kilometers north …
Russia’s buildup of an estimated 100,000 troops along its border with Ukraine, along with military exercises in Belarus, has raised concern that Russia could be planning an invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s positions include troops, tanks and artillery to Ukraine’s north, south and east. Until 1991, Ukraine was part of the Russia-led Soviet Union. Current tensions …
A group of Republican U.S. senators is due to speak to reporters Wednesday in Washington about U.S. concerns of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine. The group includes Republicans from the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees. Three of those members — Senators Kevin Cramer, Roger Wicker and Rob Portman — were part of …
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Kyiv for talks Wednesday with Ukrainian leaders as part of what he called a “diplomatic effort to de-escalate tensions surrounding unprovoked Russian military build-up on Ukraine’s borders.” The stop in Kyiv includes meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, as well as visiting …
Read more “Blinken Visits Ukraine as He Urges Russia to De-escalate Border Tensions”
To quell widespread protests, Kazakhstan sought military help from Russia. Why did it turn to Moscow? …
Russia is a sending an unspecified number of troops from the country’s far east to Belarus for major war games, officials said Tuesday, a deployment that will further beef up Russian military assets near Ukraine amid Western fears of a planned invasion. Amid the soaring tensions, the White House warned that Russia could attack its …
Read more “Russia Moves More Troops Westward Amid Ukraine Tensions”
Observers say they see signs of progress in efforts to reopen Turkey’s borders with Armenia, following talks in Moscow on normalizing relations. Ties have been cut since 1993 and analysts say renewing them could re-shape the region. As Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, both sides still need to overcome some obstacles. …
Germany has said it is prepared to pay “a high economic price” to defend its values, as NATO members engage in another week of intense diplomacy amid a Russian troop buildup close to the Ukrainian border. Western nations have threatened Russia with crippling sanctions if it invades Ukraine. Russian troops Over 100,000 troops have been …
Read more “Germany Prepared to Pay ‘High Economic Price’ to Defend Ukraine”
Germany says it is prepared to pay “a high economic price” in order to defend its values. Tuesday’s remark by Germany’s foreign minister came as Western nations threaten Russia with crippling sanctions if it invades Ukraine. Henry Ridgwell reports. …
A Turkish court on Monday acquitted German journalist Mesale Tolu of terrorism charges, she said on Twitter, in a case that lasted nearly five years and added to strains between Ankara and Berlin at the time of her detention. Tolu was detained in April 2017 as part of a crackdown following a coup attempt in …
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading to Ukraine for talks with the country’s president, amid continued fears that Russia is planning to invade its neighbor. The State Department said Tuesday the quicky arranged trip has Blinken scheduled to meet Wednesday in Kyiv with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. It said …
Read more “Blinken to Visit Ukraine, Germany to Discuss Russian Military Buildup”
As winter bites, Europe is facing a gas shortage – with lower volumes of gas exports from Russia forcing a big spike in prices. But the volatility of Russia’s gas supply could be about to get worse – as Moscow plans to build a new pipeline to China, which could give Russia the power to …
Read more “‘Power of Siberia 2’ Pipeline Could See Europe, China Compete for Russian Gas”
Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is due back in a Kyiv court Wednesday as a judge considers whether to grant him bail or order his arrest in a treason case he says is politically motivated. Poroshenko, who led Ukraine from 2014-19, returned to the country Monday to face the charges, and told supporters at the …
Read more “Ex-Ukrainian Leader Poroshenko Returns to Face Treason Charges”
Novak Djokovic risks being frozen out of tennis as he chases a record 21st Grand Slam title, with rules on travelers who are unvaccinated against COVID-19 tightening in the third year of the pandemic and some tournaments reconsidering exemptions. The Serbian, who has not been vaccinated, was deported from Australia on Sunday ahead of the …
Read more “No Vaccine, No French Open for Djokovic as Rules Tighten”
A French court found far-right French presidential candidate and political commentator Éric Zemmour guilty Monday of inciting racial hatred and ordered him to pay more than $11,000 in fines. Zemmour told a group of foreign correspondents that he stood by his controversial words, insisting he could not have been inciting racial hatred “insofar as unaccompanied …
Read more “French Court Finds Far-Right Politician Guilty of Hate Speech”
Britain’s rebellious Prime Minister Boris Johnson has seldom come across a rule he hasn’t wanted to break — and in many ways his political ascendancy has been because of his flouting of ordinances with voters thrilling to his audacity and readiness to defy conventions and norms. His rule-breaking, though, is turning into a liability rather …
Read more “UK’s Johnson Fights to Salvage His Premiership From ‘Partygate’ “
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged international business leaders and economists on Monday to do their part to make post-COVID19 economic recovery equitable across the globe. “At this critical moment, we are setting in stone a lopsided recovery,” he told the World Economic Forum, which normally meets in Davos, Switzerland, but is virtual this year due …