Year: 2022

The U.S. and Russia have launched “frank and forthright” discussions aimed at de-escalating tensions between the two powers as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to station an estimated 100,000 troops along the Ukrainian border, the White House said Monday. “There are two paths for Russia to take at this point, for President Putin to take,” …

Read more “US, Russia Hold ‘Frank and Forthright’ First Day of Talks Amid Ukraine Tensions”

European Parliament President David Sassoli has died, his spokesperson Roberto Cuillo said in a tweet on Tuesday.  Sassoli, 65, passed away at 1.15 am on Jan. 11 in Italy, where he was hospitalized, Cuillo added.  Sassoli has been hospitalized in Italy since Dec. 26 due to a “serious complication” related to his immune system, his …

Read more “EU Parliament President Sassoli has Died – Spokesperson”

Undocumented Afghan migrants who fled to Turkey to escape the Taliban say they are unable to get treatment and vaccines for the coronavirus. While officially registered refugees qualify for health care in Turkey, it is believed that thousands of undocumented Afghan migrants are in the country. The fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban in August …

Read more “Undocumented Afghan Refugees in Turkey Struggle to Access COVID Treatments, Vaccines”

Undocumented Afghan migrants who have fled to Turkey to escape the Taliban say they are unable to access treatment and vaccines for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. While officially registered refugees do quality for health care in Turkey, it’s believed there are thousands of unregistered Afghan migrants in the country. Henry Ridgwell reports. …

Read more “Undocumented Afghan Refugees in Turkey Struggle to Access COVID-19 Treatments, Vaccines”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday he will not allow governments allied with Moscow to be toppled in so-called “color revolutions,” a reference to the series of popular uprisings that have shaken former Soviet republics.  “We will not allow the boat to be rocked,” Putin said. During an online meeting with leaders of a Russian-led …

Read more “Putin: No More Color Revolutions”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Monday he plans to ask European officials to consider treating COVID-19 more like an endemic illness — a regularly occurring milder disease like the flu — and move away from the detailed tracking system that the pandemic has required. In an interview with Spain’s Cadena SER radio, Sanchez said …

Read more “Spain PM Urges Europe to Treat COVID as More ‘Endemic’ Illness”

Western policy makers remain as puzzled now as their counterparts were on the eve of the Cold War forty years ago about Russia’s geopolitical intentions.  Is the Kremlin preparing to launch an invasion of its neighbor Ukraine, which increasingly sees itself as part of the West, if sweeping security guarantees Russia has demanded are rebuffed? …

Read more “What Will Russia’s Putin Settle For in Ukraine Talks?”

Pope Francis Monday said getting vaccinated against COVID-19 is a “moral obligation” as part of caring for the health of oneself and others and urged on international efforts to vaccinate the world’s population. In a speech to diplomats assigned to the Vatican, the pope said the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause social isolation and to …

Read more “Pope Francis Calls COVID-19 Vaccination Moral Obligation”

Diplomats from the United States and Russia met Monday in Geneva, beginning a series of high-level talks this week regarding Moscow’s massive troop buildup along its Ukraine border, and Russian demands for Western security guarantees.  A U.S. State Department spokesperson said the meeting began just before 9 a.m. local time, while stressing that the U.S. …

Read more “US, Russia Begin Talks Amid Ukraine Tensions”

U.S. and Russian officials are meeting this week to address the tensions along the Russian-Ukrainian border. Michelle Quinn reports. Video editor – Mary Cieslak. …

Top U.S. and Russian diplomats expressed little optimism Sunday that tensions between their countries would be eased at high-level discussions this week in Europe over Moscow’s massive troop buildup along its Ukraine border and Russian demands for Western security guarantees.  “It’s hard to see we’re going to make any progress with a gun to Ukraine’s …

Read more “US, Russia Express Little Optimism About Talks This Week “

Greece this week takes delivery of an ancient fragment that once adorned the Parthenon temple, the country’s most important archeological site. The return from a museum in Italy is being seen as the strongest nudge yet to the British Museum, which holds the largest collection of Parthenon Sculptures and has refused for centuries to return …

Read more “Italy Sends Back Parthenon Fragment in Landmark Loan to Greece”

Geneva, dubbed the capital of peace, is a favored spot for meetings between the two great post-World War II powers and once again hosts talks between Russia and the United States on Monday. The tranquil Swiss city held the 1985 summit between US president Ronald Reagan and his Soviet counterpart Mikhail Gorbachev. Geneva also staged …

Read more “Russia, US on Familiar Ground in Peace Capital Geneva”

With the fate of Ukraine and potentially broader post-Cold War European stability at stake, the United States and Russia are holding critical strategic talks that could shape the future of not only their relationship but the relationship between the U.S. and its NATO allies. Prospects are bleak. Though the immediacy of the threat of a …

Read more “Prospects Dim as US, Russia Prepare to Meet Over Ukraine”

The European Union is under increasing pressure to further ease rules on airport take-off and landing slots to cut the number of “ghost flights” airlines are running to retain them. Carriers say the requirement for them to use 50% of their slots — down from 80% in pre-pandemic days — or lose them is forcing …

Read more “EU Under Pressure on ‘Ghost Flights’”

The United States and allies are prepared to discuss with Russia the possibility of each side restricting military exercises and missile deployments in the region, a senior U.S. administration official said on Saturday.  With crucial talks about Ukraine set to start on Monday in Geneva, the senior Biden administration official said the United States is …

Read more “US, Allies Open to Talk Exercises, Missile Deployments with Russia, Official Says”

Novak Djokovic’s legal challenge to the Australian government’s decision to cancel his visa on arrival this week says a certified COVID-19 infection in December meant he qualified for a medical exemption to the county’s vaccination requirements. A 35-page document lodged in the Federal Circuit and Family Court by his legal team Saturday outlines the Serbian’s …

Read more “Djokovic Challenged Officials on Visa Cancellation, Court Filing Says”

Ukraine is sharpening its accusation that Iran played a sinister role in the 2020 shootdown of a Ukrainian passenger plane over Tehran as the world marks the second anniversary of the tragedy. “What happened on January 8th, 2020, was a terrorist act committed against a civilian aircraft,” Oleksiy Danilov, Ukraine’s National Defense and Security Council secretary, …

Read more “VOA Exclusive: Ukraine Accuses Iran of Premediated Terrorist Act in 2020 Plane Shootdown”

The top men’s tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, spent Orthodox Christmas in an immigration detention hotel in Australia on Friday as he sought to fend off deportation over the country’s COVID-19 rules and compete in the Australian Open. Djokovic received calls from his native Serbia, including from his parents and the president, who …

Read more “Djokovic Spends Holiday in Detention, Sends Thanks to Supporters”

The Biden administration on Friday again signaled U.S. support for the European Union and Lithuania against China, which is accused of blocking Lithuanian exports in protest of the Baltic country’s diplomatic ties with Taiwan. U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai today spoke with European Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis “and expressed the United States’ strong …

Read more “Washington Reaffirms Support for Lithuania Against China”

Talks between U.S. and Russian diplomats will begin Monday in Geneva after a weekslong standoff over Russian troop deployments near its border with Ukraine. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this preview. …

The United States is accusing Russia of trying to “gaslight” the world regarding tensions with Ukraine, continually seeking to portray Kyiv as the aggressor even as Moscow plans to mobilize as many as 300,000 troops for a potential invasion. The accusation came Friday from U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, following a virtual meeting of …

Read more “US, NATO Warn Russia Against More ‘Gaslighting’ on Ukraine”

The speed with which Russia dispatched troops this week to help quell violent demonstrations in neighboring Kazakhstan is testimony to the Kremlin’s recurring fear of “color revolutions,” say Western diplomats and analysts. Moscow must have been horrified by how quickly the protests spread in Kazakhstan, long seen as one of the most stable of the …

Read more “Kremlin Fears ‘Color Revolution’ in Kazakhstan”

The Turkish lira had a very bad year in 2021 and lost a significant amount of its value against the U.S. dollar. That’s led to a cross-border shopping spree from neighboring Bulgaria. VOA’s Umut Colak filed this report from Edirne, Turkey, narrated by Ezel Sahinkaya. …