Ukrainian officials are pushing back against growing pressure to enter negotiations with Moscow even as relentless Russian airstrikes take a mounting toll on Ukrainian lives, wealth and infrastructure. Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine, dismissed Russian signals of a readiness for talks as simply part of an influence campaign to …
Turkey’s president says his nation’s military will begin a land operation against Kurdish militants in northern Syria ‘at the most convenient time.’ Kurdish separatists have been fighting a decades-long insurgency. There have been global calls for restraint, as Henry Ridgwell reports. …
Turkey’s offensive against Syrian Kurdish fighters is quickly ratcheting up tensions with Washington, with new information suggesting some Turkish airstrikes have put U.S. personnel in harm’s way. U.S. Central Command, which oversees the approximately 900 U.S. troops in Syria tasked with countering the Islamic State terror group, said Wednesday that at least one of the …
Read more “US Warns Turkish Offensive Endangering US Troops in Syria”
Renewed hostilities between Turkey and Syrian Kurdish fighters are not sitting well with the United States, which warned repeatedly Tuesday that the fighting will only serve to benefit the Islamic State terror group. Senior U.S. officials acknowledge Turkey has the right to defend itself from terrorist attacks but cautioned that recent Turkish airstrikes, and rocket …
Read more “US Calls for De-Escalation as Fighting Between Turkey, Syrian Kurds Escalates”
Britain’s economy is forecast to shrink by 0.4% in 2023, more than any other in the Group of Seven richest nations, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Britain is the only G-7 member whose economy has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. In the Group of 20, or G-20, largest economies, …
Read more “British Economy Worst Hit in G7 as Brexit, Political Chaos Bite”
Britain’s economy will shrink by 0.4 per cent in 2023, more than any other in the G-7 group of the world’s richest nations, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). As Henry Ridgwell reports from London, analysts say global economic pressures have been compounded by recent political chaos. …
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday met with his Cuban counterpart in Moscow, where the two unveiled a monument to Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and hailed the “traditional friendship” between their sanctions-hit nations. A video published on the Kremlin’s website showed Putin and the Cuban head of state, Miguel Díaz-Canel y Bermúdez, deliver speeches …
Read more “Russia, Cuba Leaders Meet in Moscow, Honor Rebel Icon Castro”
A senior U.S. diplomat this week accused the Russian forces invading Ukraine of “systemic” war crimes, saying that abuses are taking place at a scale that suggests leaders in the highest levels of the Kremlin know about and support them. Russia claimed the allegation was not supported with evidence and that reports of Ukrainian atrocities …
Russian energy giant Gazprom has threatened to reduce natural gas supplies through the last pipeline heading to Europe via Ukraine, saying the amount it’s supplying for Moldova is not ending up in the former Soviet republic. Gazprom says the gas company of Europe’s poorest country, Moldovagaz, paid for part of its November flows of gas …
Read more “Russia’s Gazprom Threatens to Cut Gas Supplies to Europe via Ukraine”
Ukrainians could face rolling blackouts from now through March amid frigid, snowy weather because Russian airstrikes have caused “colossal” damage to Ukraine’s power grid, officials said. To cope, authorities are urging people to stock up on supplies and evacuate hard-hit areas. Sergey Kovalenko, CEO of private energy provider DTEK Yasno, said the company is under …
Read more “‘Stock Up on Blankets’: Ukrainians Brace for Horrific Winter”
Turkey says it will continue its military operations against U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish forces, after blaming Kurdish separatists for a recent bombing in Istanbul. Ankara says it’s ready to launch a Syrian cross-border operation but faces growing international calls for restraint International pressure is growing on Ankara as Moscow joins calls for restraint as Turkish forces …
Istanbul’s historic and popular Istiklal Avenue is still recovering from a bomb attack on November 13. VOA’s Turkish service reports from Istanbul in this story narrated by Bezhan Hamdard. …
The European Union on Monday warned of “escalation and violence” after emergency talks between Kosovo and Serbia failed to resolve their long-running dispute over car license plates used by the ethnic Serb minority in Kosovo. “After many hours of discussion … the two parties did not agree to a solution today,” EU foreign policy chief …
Read more “EU Warns of Escalating Serbia, Kosovo Car Plates Dispute”
Turkey said a Kurdish militia killed two people in mortar attacks from northern Syria on Monday, in an escalation of cross-border retaliation following Turkish air operations over the weekend and a deadly bomb attack in Istanbul a week ago. Turkey’s armed forces said it was responding, and a senior security official told Reuters that Turkish …
Read more “Turkey Vows More Retaliation After 2 Killed in Cross-Border Kurdish Strikes”
The U.S.-based Human Rights Watch accuses Turkish authorities of carrying out mass deportations of Afghan refugees, including those most at risk. For VOA, Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …
A British-born woman who went to Syria as a schoolgirl to join Islamic State (IS) is challenging the U.K. government’s decision to take away her citizenship, with her lawyers telling a London court that she was likely “a child victim of trafficking.” Shamima Begum left London in 2015 aged 15 and traveled with two school …
Read more “British Teenager Who Joined IS Likely Trafficking Victim, Court Told”
Spain has decided to repatriate several Spanish wives and children of Islamic State fighters from jihadist detention camps in Syria, the government said Monday. The return of relatives of captured or killed jihadist fighters from Syria and Iraq has been a thorny issue for European countries since the fall of the Islamic State group’s so-called …
Read more “Spain to Repatriate Wives, Children of IS Fighters From Syria”
Russia and Myanmar are the only two countries to have used antipersonnel mines this year, according to the latest annual report from the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL). Neither country is among the 164 states that are party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty. The ICBL is a global coalition of nongovernmental organizations chaired …
Read more “Russia, Myanmar Only States to Use Landmines in 2022, Report Says”
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg asked NATO members to step up military support to Ukraine, to ensure the best outcome for the country as “a sovereign, independent, democratic nation in Europe.” “We need to realize that this war most likely, will end at some stage at the negotiating table. But we also know that the outcome …
“Mariupol,” a November photo exhibit in New York City captured scenes of Russia’s war on Ukraine. The show included award-winning images and videos captured by the last journalists to leave the besieged city. Nina Vishneva has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. Camera – Vladimir Badikov. Video editing – Dmitrii Vershinin. …
Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford put last year’s European Championship loss behind them, combining to score three goals in England’s 6-2 rout of Iran on Monday at the World Cup. Both players missed penalties in the shootout loss to Italy in the Euro 2020 final and were then subjected to racist abuse. A year later, …
A landmark new Spanish law on sexual violence is the target of protests after at least 15 convicted offenders used the legislation to secure reductions to their jail terms while others were released. Known as the “only yes means yes” law in Spain, it reformed the criminal code to define all non-consensual sex as rape. …
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it planned to carry out inspections Monday at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant after two days of shelling in the area renewed concerns about the potential disaster at the site. The latest round of attacks near Europe’s largest nuclear power plant included what the IAEA said were more than …
Read more “Shelling Renews Safety Concerns at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant”
Russian tanks lumbered into Kherson on the first day of the war last February. Its liberation this week was a significant victory for Ukrainian forces. But nearly nine months of war have had a devastating effect on this region. Yelyzaveta Krotyk has more in this report narrated by Anna Rice. …