A Ukrainian flag wrapped around her shoulders, pensioner Iryna Gayeva had a simple message as she demonstrated in Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv, on Saturday, 40 kilometers from the Russian border. “We do not want Russia,” she told AFP, as she joined several thousand people for a “Unity March” called by nationalist groups. …
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Two prominent European leaders are scheduled to travel to the capitals of Russia and Ukraine in the coming days for talks with their counterparts about diplomatic measures to ease the growing tensions surrounding Moscow’s potential invasion of Ukraine. French President Emmanuel Macron is due in Moscow on Monday and Kyiv on Tuesday. The following week, …
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Western nations have threatened sanctions against Russia if it invades Ukraine. While leaders have given few details about exactly what measures they plan to take or precisely what Russian actions would trigger sanctions, they have promised to make any new sanctions more punishing than previous efforts. Here is a look at what the United States …
A giant, $500 million yacht reportedly being built for Amazon founder Jeff Bezos faces a delivery problem: It may require dismantling a beloved, historic bridge in Rotterdam that is blocking its passage to the sea. Reports this week that the Dutch city had agreed to take apart the recently renovated Koningshaven Bridge, known locally as …
Read more “Yacht Reportedly Built for Bezos Is Too Tall for Dutch Bridge “
The White House dismissed a Friday meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin where the two leaders unveiled a strategic alliance aimed at countering the United States. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report. …
With tensions between Russian and Ukraine intensifying steadily, European countries are concerned the flow of gas from Russia will be affected. Oksana Bedratenko looks at how Russia’s actions against Ukraine may affect Europe’s energy sector. Anna Rice narrates her story. …
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, NATO, the post-World War II alliance forged between a victorious America and the conflict-battered countries of Western Europe, has often been dubbed a Cold War relic. Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s favorite adjective for NATO on the campaign trial was “obsolete.” Two years ago, French President Emmanuel …
Read more “Putin Helping to Revive NATO, Say Western Officials”
Chinese President Xi Jinping has endorsed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands to end NATO expansion and get security guarantees from the West, issues that have led to Russia’s standoff with the United States and its allies over Ukraine. The two leaders met at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guesthouse Friday afternoon, according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV, …
Read more “China Endorses Russia’s Key Demands to West in Standoff Over Ukraine”
Norway’s central bank, Norges Bank, announced Friday it has appointed NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to take over as its next governor after his term leading the military alliance ends later this year. The central bank announced the appointment in a statement on its website, saying Stoltenberg had been appointed by Norway’s King Harald V. Stoltenberg …
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Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter Freedom, an 11-year National Basketball Association (NBA) veteran, is known for his activism both on and off the court. A devout Muslim, he’s a prominent critic of the government of his native Turkey and the Chinese Communist Party. Turkey revoked his passport in 2017 and jailed his father, who was released in …
Read more “NBA Star Enes Kanter Freedom: ‘What I’m Doing Is Bigger Than Basketball’ ”
A senior U.S. delegation visited Lithuania this week in a show of support for the Baltic state in its growing dispute with China involving Taiwan. Beijing effectively blocked imports of Lithuanian goods last month after Taiwan was allowed to open a representative office in the capital, Vilnius. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory. …
Read more “US Counters China’s ‘Economic Coercion’ Against Lithuania in Taiwan Dispute “
A U.S. delegation visited Lithuania this week to show support for the Baltic state in its growing dispute with China over Taiwan. Beijing has blocked imports of Lithuanian goods, and as Henry Ridgwell reports, it has escalated into a trade tussle. Producer: Mary Cieslak. Camera: Henry Ridgwell. …
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet Friday ahead of the opening ceremony for the 2022 Beijing Olympics, in what is expected to be a show of unity amid each country’s increasingly fraught relationship with the United States. Though Russia and China do not share a formal alliance, both countries have drawn …
Read more “At Beijing Olympics, Xi and Putin Strive for Unity Against US”
With tensions between Russia and Ukraine ratcheting up, some former diplomats and Kremlin watchers are debating the effectiveness of any sanctions imposed on Moscow should it invade its neighbor to the west. Britain’s former ambassador to Russia, Tony Brenton, has long doubted the efficacy of sanctions, saying they “don’t work on Russia.” …
Russia said Thursday it is shutting down the operations of Hermann broadcaster Deutsche Welle in response to Berlin’s ban on Russian broadcaster RT DE. Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement it was closing Deutsche Welle’s Russian bureau, stripping all its staff of their accreditation, and stopping the channel being broadcast on Russian territory. Germany’s …
Read more “Russia Closes Deutsche Welle’s Moscow Arm in Retaliatory Move Against Germany”
The World Health Organization’s European region director says that while COVID-19 cases on the continent continue to rise, he sees a plausible endgame for the pandemic in Europe in coming months. Speaking during his weekly virtual news briefing from his headquarters in Copenhagen, WHO Europe Region Director Hans Kluge told reporters the region recorded 12 …
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A British judge this week ordered the family of an Azerbaijani lawmaker to forfeit some $7.6 million to the National Crime Agency on the grounds that the funds were illegally brought into Britain. The judgment against the family of Javanshir Feyziyev, a member of Azerbaijan’s parliament, relates to the so-called Azerbaijani Laundromat, a complex money-laundering …
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All eyes are on Russian President Vladimir Putin, as he has amassed more than 100,000 troops near the borders of Ukraine. Experts say Putin may have placed himself in a difficult position in an effort to elevate Russia’s standing in the world. VOA’s Cindy Saine reports. Producer: Mary Cieslak …
The United States is moving forces into Eastern Europe as Russia continues its buildup near Ukraine. The Pentagon says the U.S. is responding to allies’ requests regarding a possible Russian invasion. VOA Pentagon Correspondent Carla Babb reports. Cameras: Mike Burke, Adam Greembaum, Carla Babb. …
U.S. lawmakers are nearing a deal on sanctions aimed at deterring Russian President Vladimir Putin from invading Ukraine. Several lawmakers who recently returned from a trip to Kyiv told VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson there is broad bipartisan unity on confronting Russia. Camera: Russian Service Produced by: Katherine Gypson …
Russia and China will discuss closer gas and financial ties during President Vladimir Putin’s trip to Beijing for the Winter Olympics, the Kremlin said Wednesday, and a long-held idea for a new gas pipeline to China is being examined. Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will have lunch together Friday, and could sign more …
Read more “Russia, China to Discuss Closer Gas, Financial Ties During Putin Visit, Says Kremlin”
The Kremlin is ramping up a disinformation offensive aimed at demoralizing Ukraine and Western powers, using Russian state-owned broadcasters and trolls on social media platforms to portray the West as the aggressor and the government in Kyiv as a puppet of NATO, say Western officials and information war experts. Scare stories in recent days have …
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With tens of thousands of Russian troops deployed near the Ukranian border, residents in Kyiv are anxiously watching what Russian leader Vladimir Putin will do next as he continues his campaign to pressure Ukraine and NATO. Oksana Lihostova in Kyiv spoke with residents about their hopes and fears in this story narrated by Anna Rice. …
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Speaking to VOA from his New York apartment, Dmitry Savchenko, 34, recalls the prosperous life he recently left behind. “In Belarus, we had everything. My wife had several cafes. I had two businesses myself, some real estate, an apartment, a car,” he said. Savchenko and his family had never intended to leave their home. But …
Read more “Belarus Activists Flee to US, Say Europe Not Safe”