Iran has moved all its machines that make centrifuge parts from its mothballed workshop at Karaj to its sprawling Natanz site just six weeks after it set up another site at Isfahan to make the same parts, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Wednesday. Iran granted International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors access to Karaj in …
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An international agreement under negotiation at the United Nations this week seeks to reduce harm to civilians by curbing the use of heavy explosive weapons in cities, towns and villages. The Ukrainian city of Mariupol is one of the latest examples of a populated area that has been turned to rubble by the relentless use …
Read more “Agreement Would Curb Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas “
After a sharp plunge in value at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the Russian ruble has recovered much of its value against other world currencies, a change made possible by aggressive capital controls put in place by the government in Moscow and a continual stream of payments for the country’s oil and gas …
Read more “Ruble’s Strength in Face of Sanctions May Be Illusory”
The U.N. General Assembly is set to vote Thursday on whether to remove Russia from the Human Rights Council because of its action in Ukraine. Two-thirds of the 193 member states would have to vote in favor of removing Russia. The council, which is based in Geneva, is largely symbolic, but it can authorize investigations …
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As gruesome videos and photos of bodies emerge from the Kyiv suburb of Bucha, Kremlin-backed media are denouncing them as an elaborate hoax — a narrative that journalists in Ukraine have shown to be false. Denouncing news as fake or spreading false reports to sow confusion and undermine its adversaries are tactics that Moscow has …
Read more “Russian Media Campaign Falsely Claims Bucha Deaths Are Fakes”
The World Health Organization ((WHO)) says, following a surge of new cases in early March, the number of new worldwide COVID-19 cases and deaths has fallen for a second consecutive week. In its weekly update released late Tuesday, the WHO reports the number of new cases overall fell by 16 percent during the week ending …
Read more “WHO: After March Surge, Global COVID-19 Cases Continue To Drop”
Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the rabid Russian nationalist lawmaker whose political rise in the early 1990s frightened the West and underscored the fragility of democracy in the immediate post-Soviet period, has died. He was 75. Russian State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said Zhirinovsky died after a long and serious illness. No more details were given. Zhirinovsky had …
India has condemned the killing of civilians in Ukraine, marking the first time New Delhi has publicly criticized actions blamed on Russia but also said that Moscow continues to be a critical economic partner. So far Delhi has refrained from censuring its long-time ally Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, despite mounting pressure from the …
The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) is holding talks with the British government on the participation of players from Russia and Belarus at this year’s Wimbledon, saying on Tuesday that it hopes to announce a decision in mid-May. Russian and Belarusian players have been allowed to compete on the regular ATP and WTA Tours …
Read more “Wimbledon Organizers Holding Talks with UK Govt on Russian, Belarusian Players”
The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights says it is gathering evidence of possible war crimes committed by Russian forces in the Ukrainian town of Bucha. U.N. rights chief Michelle Bachelet has expressed horror at the images of civilians lying dead on the streets of Bucha, a town on the outskirts of …
Read more “UN Rights Office Gathering Evidence of Possible War Crimes in Bucha, Ukraine”
An alleged former militia leader in Sudan’s Darfur region has pleaded not guilty to 31 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The trial of the militia leader known as Ali Kushayb is the first at the International Criminal Court to deal with the Darfur conflict. Wearing a blue suit, Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman …
The British government faced a backlash from opponents and the television industry on Tuesday over plans to sell publicly-owned broadcaster Channel 4. The Conservative government said privatizing the channel would help it compete with streaming services and “thrive in the face of a rapidly-changing media landscape.” Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said on Twitter that government …
Read more “UK Government Plan to Sell TV’s Channel 4 Draws Criticism”
Spain will expel some 25 Russian diplomats and embassy staff from Madrid, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said on Tuesday, joining other European Union countries in its response to alleged war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine. “We have decided to expel Russian diplomats and staff from the Russian embassy in Spain who represent …
Read more “Spain to Expel Around 25 Russian Diplomats, Foreign Minister Says”
At the urging of the United States, Spain on Monday seized the yacht of Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg at a shipyard on the Spanish island of Mallorca. The 78-meter-long boat named Tango is valued at more than $99 million. It is the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that the U.S. has been involved …
Read more “At US Urging, Spain Seizes Russian Oligarch’s Yacht”
The United States said Monday it wants the U.N. General Assembly to remove Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council, citing allegations of war crimes committed in Ukraine. “Russia’s participation on the Human Rights Council is a farce,” said Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. “And it is wrong, which is why we believe it is time the …
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Medyka, Poland, is one of the busiest border crossings for people fleeing the war. Everyday refugees stream across the border form Ukraine, and at the same time volunteers are arriving to help. For VOA News, Julia Riera has the story. …
The European Union said Monday it will hold discussions about a new round of sanctions on Russia, following the reported atrocities in Ukrainian towns that have been occupied by Russian forces. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement that the EU “will advance, as a matter of urgency, work on further sanctions …
Read more “ EU to Hold Urgent Discussions on More Russian Sanctions “
An early official count of Serbia’s national election on Monday confirmed the landslide victory of President Aleksandar Vucic and his populist party – important allies of Russia in the volatile Balkans and in Europe. Vucic scored an outright victory in Sunday’s presidential vote with the backing of some 60% of the voters, while his Serbian …
Read more “Early Official Tally Confirms Win for Serbia Populist Leader “
Four million people have fled Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion, according to U.N. data. The vast majority are women and children – populations that are especially vulnerable to human trafficking. Lesia Bakalets has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. VOA footage by Andrey Degtyarev. …
Grandmothers, mothers and children account for most of those fleeing Russia’s war on Ukraine. Each refugee has a story as well as hopes for the future. VOA’s Celia Mendoza reports from Medyka, Poland. Julia Riera contributed. …
Ukraine’s president has called Russia’s ongoing and unprovoked war a “genocide” while Western officials have condemned what they call atrocities committed by Russian forces in a Kyiv suburb. The U.S. secretary of state travels to Europe this week to meet with NATO allies. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more. GRAPHIC CONTENT WARNING: The following video contains …
Read more “Ukraine’s President Calls Russian Assault ‘Genocide’”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken sharply condemned Russia on Sunday, accusing it of committing war atrocities in Ukraine as the world saw its first glimpse of the bodies of dead Ukrainians left behind like trash in the streets of the Kyiv suburb of Bucha after Russian troops departed the area. “You can’t help but …
Read more “Blinken Condemns Russian War Atrocities as Bodies of Ukrainians Left in Streets “
Media watchdog groups are expressing concern over the fate of journalists who have disappeared in Ukraine after a Ukrainian photojournalist was found dead Saturday. Maks Levin, a Ukrainian photographer who had been missing for more than two weeks, was found dead near the capital, Kyiv. “He went missing in the conflict area on March 13 …
Read more “After Levin’s Death, Concerns Grow Over Missing Journalists in Ukraine”
Lithuanian filmmaker Mantas Kvedaravicius, 45, was killed trying to flee Ukraine’s city of Mariupol besieged by the Russians, the Ukrainian military said Sunday. “While trying to leave #Mariupol, the occupiers killed Lithuanian director Mantas Kvedaravicius, who is the author of the documentary Mariupolis,” the defense ministry’s information agency wrote on Twitter. Russian filmmaker Vitali Manski, …
Read more “Lithuanian Filmmaker Killed in Ukraine’s Mariupol “