The United States is deeply concerned about American Paul Whelan, who is in a Russian jail, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said on Wednesday after Whelan’s family said they had not heard from him for a week. U.S. diplomats have been trying to get more information about Whelan’s condition and his whereabouts, Kirby …
Read more “US Concerned Over American Jailed in Russia and Not Heard From”
Australia upset Denmark 1-0 on Wednesday to qualify for the World Cup knockout phase for the first time in 16 years thanks to a fine solo goal from Mathew Leckie. Australia contained Denmark at the Al Janoub Stadium before stinging the Scandinavians on a counter-attack in the 60th minute when Leckie burst into space, wrong-footed …
Read more “Australia Shocks Denmark 1-0 to Move Into World Cup Last 16”
Ukraine on Wednesday ramped up security at its embassies abroad after Spanish police and government said an employee at the Ukrainian embassy in Madrid was injured opening a letter bomb. The staff member suffered light injuries and went to hospital under his own steam, police said in a statement. Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba …
Read more “Ukraine Ramps Up Security at Diplomatic Missions After Blast at Embassy in Spain”
The humble baguette — the crunchy ambassador for French baking around the world — is being added to the U.N.’s list of intangible cultural heritage as a cherished tradition to be preserved by humanity. UNESCO experts gathering in Morocco this week decided that the simple French flute — made only of flour, water, salt, and …
Democracy is being degraded around the world because people are losing faith in the legitimacy of elections and see freedom of expression being stymied, among a range of other problems, according to a global body founded to promote democracy worldwide. The 34 member-country International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, or International IDEA, said in …
Read more “Report: Authoritarianism on the Rise as Democracy Weakens”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called Wednesday for a special court to prosecute Russian crimes against Ukraine. Von der Leyen proposed a court backed by the United Nations “to investigate and prosecute Russia’s crime of aggression.” She also said Russia and Russian oligarchs need to pay for costs to rebuild Ukraine from the …
Read more “EU Seeks Special Court for Russian Crimes Against Ukraine”
From the evacuation of Ukrainian journalists in occupied cities to legal support for independent reporters from Russia, a community of organizations is working to keep media safe. In Ukraine, the February 24 invasion led to an unprecedented level of requests for assistance from the country’s National Union of Journalists of Ukraine. Before then, the union …
Read more “With Media Under Fire, Organizations Rally to Offer Support”
As anti-government protests continue in Iran, Tehran is escalating tensions with its neighbors, accusing them of interfering in its domestic affairs. One of those neighbors, Azerbaijan, has Turkey’s support and is pushing back. Iran has recently carried out military exercises on Azerbaijan’s border and warned Baku not to incite Iran’s significant Azeri minority. Iran’s Revolutionary …
Read more “Azerbaijan Stands Up to Iran, with Turkey’s Support”
Russia has donated 260,000 metric tons of fertilizer it produced that was sitting in European ports and warehouses for use by farmers in Africa, the United Nations said Tuesday. “This will serve to alleviate humanitarian needs and prevent catastrophic crop loss in Africa, where it is currently planting season,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters, …
Read more “Russia Donates 260,000 Tons of Fertilizer to Africa”
Turkish forces have launched a barrage of airstrikes on suspected militants in northeastern Syria and Iraq in recent days, after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed Kurdish groups for last week’s bombing in Istanbul. Kurdish groups have denied responsibility for that attack and say Turkish military assaults have killed civilians and imperiled the international fight …
Read more “US-Backed Kurdish Commander: US Needs Stronger Position on Turkish Threat”
The World Food Program’s chief economist tells VOA that developed and developing countries depend on fertilizer for half of their food production …
Squelching through thick mud on Tuesday, Petro, a Ukrainian soldier named dug in not far from Russian positions in the Donbas, recounted matter-of-factly how his unit had to use buckets to clear out water-logged trenches. “We’re more or less OK, but it’s bit harder now because of the rain and a light frost. It’s a …
Read more “Ukrainian Soldiers Face New Adversary: Muddy Trenches”
Journalists at Slovenia’s public broadcaster RTV have expressed relief at the results of a referendum aimed at protecting them from political interference. The results show “citizens support us and want a professional, independent and quality public (broadcaster),” Helena Milinkovic, head of the coordination of trade unions of journalists of RTV, told VOA. Marko Milosavljevic, journalism …
Read more “Referendum Shows Slovenian Support for RTV’s Independence, Journalists Say”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Italy’s newly elected far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni appear to be finding unlikely common ground on issues relating to Africa and migration. The relationship with Meloni is the latest in a list of strong partnerships that Erdogan has been working to build with European far-right leaders. Dorian Jones reports …
Read more “Despite Odds, Italian and Turkish Leaders Find Common Ground”
Belgium’s worst peacetime massacre left 32 dead and hundreds marked for life. Now, six and a half years later, Brussels will host its biggest ever criminal trial. Jury selection begins on Wednesday ahead of hearings into the charges against the nine alleged jihadists accused of taking part in the March 2016 suicide bombings. The case …
Read more “Six Years After Bombings, Belgium Readies for Biggest Trial”
NATO foreign ministers are to meet for two days in Romania’s capital, Bucharest, starting Tuesday to pledge their continuing support of Ukraine against Russia’s invasion. At a news conference Monday, after a meeting with Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg asked the alliance to step up its support in the region. “Investing in …
Read more “NATO to Discuss Beefing Up Defenses Across Europe”
NATO foreign ministers are to meet for two days in Romania’s capital Bucharest starting Tuesday to pledge their continuing support of Ukraine against Russia’s invasion. At a news conference Monday, after a meeting with Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg asked the alliance to step up its support in the region. “Investing in …
British health authorities have recorded 50 cases of diphtheria this year among recently arrived asylum seekers, including one man who died after falling sick at a crowded migrant center. The U.K. Health Protection Agency said Monday that the infected people likely caught the disease in their countries of origin or during their journeys to the …
Read more “UK Says 50 Recently Arrived Migrants Found with Diphtheria”
An exhibition in Turkey’s southeastern city of Diyarbakir gives viewers an in-depth look at local periodicals and other publications that are more than a century old. VOA’s Mahmut Bozarslan has the story, narrated by Bezhan Hamdard. Videographer: Mahmut Bozarslan …
Russia postponed nuclear weapons talks with the United States set to take place this week in Cairo, the U.S. State Department said on Monday, with neither side giving a reason for the postponement. Officials from the two countries were scheduled to meet in the Egyptian capital from Nov. 29 to Dec. 6 to discuss resuming …
Read more “Russia Postpones Cairo Talks With US Under New START Nuclear Treaty”
Cameroon and Serbia battled to a 3-3 draw Monday in a goal-filled match at the men’s World Cup in Qatar as they tried to keep alive hopes of advancing past the group stage. The scoring outburst came after neither side netted a goal in its first game of the tournament, with Serbia falling 2-0 to …
Austrian railway workers are staging a one-day strike Monday. All train traffic has ground to a halt in what the railway workers’ union says in a warning strike called because of a pay dispute. Reports say a million passengers have been impacted by the stoppage. The strike is also affecting freight lines, regional lines, and …
Read more “Austria’s Railway Workers Launch ‘Warning’ Strike Over Pay Dispute”
Thousands of Kurds protested on Sunday in the Syrian city of Qamishli against days of deadly Turkish cross-border strikes targeting Kurdish groups in the country’s northeast. Turkey announced last Sunday it had carried out airstrikes against semi-autonomous Kurdish zones in north and northeastern Syria, and across the border in Iraq. It has also threatened a …
Read more “Thousands Protest Turkish Strikes on Kurdish Groups in Syria”
Britain’s government intends to make $1.2 billion of public funding available for home insulation projects from early next year, widening access to assistance that was previously only available to poorer households. The government said the proposed scheme would run from early 2023 until March 2026 and would help meet a recent target to reduce energy …
Read more “UK to Launch New $1.2 Billion Home Insulation Program”