Year: 2022

Germany arrested a foreign intelligence service agent on Wednesday on suspicion of sharing state secrets with Russia this year, raiding his home and workplace as well as that of another person. “The accused is suspected of state treason,” the federal prosecutors’ office said in a statement. “In 2022, he shared information that he came by …

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Following recent Russian missile and drone attacks on energy infrastructure, Ukraine’s energy operator Ukrenergo has been conducting emergency shutdowns in the Kyiv area. Russia has repeatedly hit the Ukraine’s capital and other cities, often targeting critical power and water facilities. Last week, VOA Eastern Europe Bureau chief Myroslava Gongadze visited key energy facilities that supply electricity …

Read more “Ukraine Forced to Conduct Power Cuts in Wake of Russian Attacks”

The Senate voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to confirm the new U.S. ambassador to Russia. Hours before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington for a historic visit, senators voted to 93-2 to confirm veteran diplomat Lynne M. Tracy as the new ambassador to Russia. Some viewed it as a signal of the American commitment to war-torn …

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Spain was plunged into an unprecedented constitutional crisis this month after judges blocked a law for the first time since the return of democracy.   This young democracy was facing its first major upheaval since the illegal Catalan independence referendum in 2017 caused the deepest political crisis in decades.   Growing political polarization ahead of elections next …

Read more “Spain’s Constitutional Crisis Raises Concerns Over Polarization”

Russia’s ambassador to the United States said a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington showed that neither Ukraine nor the United States is ready for peace.  In comments to reporters cited by Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency, Anatoly Antonov said the focus of Zelenskyy’s visit was on “further tying the Ukrainian regime to …

Read more “Russia Criticizes Zelenskky’s US Visit”

The alleged boss of Asia’s biggest crime syndicate and one of the world’s most wanted men has been extradited to Australia and arrested on drug trafficking charges, police said Thursday.     Chinese-born Canadian Tse Chi Lop, 59, is suspected of being the leader of an Asian mega-cartel known as Sam Gor, a major global producer and …

Read more “Alleged Kingpin Dubbed ‘Asia’s El Chapo’ Extradited to Australia”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday addressed the U.S. Congress as a wartime leader appealing for American support, as British Prime Minister Winston Churchill did more than 80 years before.  Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington, much like Churchill’s in December 1941, came with his country under relentless attack and international aid essential to its ability to …

Read more “Zelenskyy Follows in Churchill’s Footsteps — to a Point”

U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the White House Wednesday, marking Zelenskyy’s first known visit outside Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion of the country in February. “Ukrainian people continue to inspire the world,” Biden said. “Not just inspire us, but inspire the world, with their courage and how they chose …

Read more “Americans ‘Have Stood Proudly’ With Ukrainians, Biden Tells Zelenskyy”

Nepal’s Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the release, due to his age, of Charles Sobhraj, a French national known as “the serpent” who police say is responsible for a string of murders in the 1970s and 1980s. Sobhraj, 78, has been linked to the murders of over 20 young Western backpackers across Asia, usually by …

Read more “Nepal Court to Release Serial Killer Charles ‘The Serpent’ Sobhraj”

With shootings and threats against a princess and the prime minister it sounds like a crime drama, but for the Dutch the growing menace from drug cartels is all too real. The top-security trial of one alleged cocaine cartel leader, Ridouan Taghi, has captivated the Netherlands in recent months and shone a light on the …

Read more “Drug Kingpin Trial ‘Ultimate Test’ for Dutch Rule of Law”

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Belarus Monday in what some see as an attempt to pressure dictator Alexander Lukashenko into joining a ground offensive. VOA Eastern Europe Bureau Chief Myroslava Gongadze reports from the Ukrainian-Belarusian border with videographer Eugene Shynkar. …

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, praised the courage of their respective troops Tuesday as Putin’s destructive war against his neighboring country neared the 10-month mark. Zelenskyy visited the eastern city of Bakhmut, where the two countries’ forces have engaged in some of the most intense fighting. Meeting with military personnel …

Read more “Zelenskyy, Putin Praise Courage of Their Troops as Fighting Rages On”

Russia’s government is trying to shut the Moscow Helsinki Group, one of the country’s oldest human rights organizations, according to a notice on a Moscow court website seen on Tuesday.  The group, which traces its roots to the Soviet era, produces an annual report on Russia’s human rights situation.  Valery Borshov, co-chair of the Moscow …

Read more “Moscow Tries to Close One of Russia’s Oldest Human Rights Groups”

Nurses in Britain went on strike Tuesday for the second time in a week as they seek better pay to keep up with soaring living costs. The strike involves up to 100,000 nurses from the Royal College of Nursing Union, which said it would give the government 48 hours after Tuesday to respond to its …

Read more “British Nurses Strike Again Amid Pay Dispute”

A court in Germany convicted a 97-year-old woman Tuesday for her role in the murder of more than 10,000 people at the Stutthof Nazi concentration camp during World War II. The Itzehoe state court sentenced Irmgard Furchner to a two-year suspended sentence, according to German media. She was accused of aiding and abetting leaders of …

Read more “German Court Convicts Former Nazi Camp Secretary”

Despite pressure from Western countries, India has remained steadfast in its partnership with Russia, refusing to condemn the war in Ukraine and not joining Western sanctions against Moscow. However, analysts say, this has not affected, nor is it likely to affect, India’s growing ties with the United States.  On a visit to Moscow last month, …

Read more “India Remains Steadfast in Partnership with Russia”

Despite pressure from Western countries, India has remained steadfast in its partnership with Russia, refusing to condemn the war in Ukraine and not joining Western sanctions against Moscow. However, as Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi, this has not affected its growing ties with the United States. Videographer: Darshan Singh …

Vast undersea natural gas resources and the right to drill in waters off the coast of Egypt and Libya are prompting recriminations between regional governments after economic interests led Egypt to unilaterally delineate its maritime border with Libya last week. A decision by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to draw his country’s maritime border with …

Read more “Egypt Draws Maritime Border, Ignites Tensions Among Regional Gas Alliances”

A second person has died after a crush at a London concert venue last week, British police said Monday. Gaby Hutchinson, 23, was working as a security guard at the O2 Brixton Academy, where Nigerian singer Asake was due to perform Thursday. Hutchinson was one of eight people hospitalized after being caught in mayhem at …

Read more “2nd Person Dies After Crush at London Venue During Asake Gig”

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte apologized Monday on behalf of his government for the Netherlands’ historical role in slavery and the slave trade, despite calls for him to delay the long-awaited statement. “Today I apologize,” Rutte said in a 20-minute speech that was greeted with silence by an invited audience at the National Archive. Rutte …

Read more “Dutch Leader Apologizes for Netherlands’ Role in Slave Trade”

The Netherlands’ prime minister, Mark Rutte, is set to make a speech Monday in which he is expected to apologize for the country’s role in the slave trade and the lasting impact of slavery. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle reports that Dutch ministers have traveled to former Dutch colonies for the event. Not all the former …

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Britain’s High Court ruled Monday that the government’s controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is legal. The British government has reached an agreement with Rwanda that would deport migrants who arrived in Britain illegally on a one-way trip to Rwanda, a country with a questionable human rights record, to have their asylum claims …

Read more “British High Court Rules Britain’s Plan to Send Asylum Seekers to Rwanda is Legal  “

Amid the biggest regional security crisis in decades, as Finland waits to join NATO, the defense minister has chosen to claim nearly two months of parental leave from his job.   And Finns aren’t batting an eyelid. Ditto their Nordic neighbors, who are used to family-oriented social policies and work-life balance.  Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen, a …

Read more “No Big Deal for Finns as Defense Chief Takes Paternity Leave”

Kyiv’s military administration said Monday the Ukrainian capital came under Russian drone attacks, hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy renewed his calls for allies to help boost Ukraine’s air defenses in its battle against Russia’s invasion. Ukrainian forces shot down nine Iran-made Shahed drones Monday, Kyiv’s military administration said in a Telegram post. Russia has repeatedly …

Read more “Kyiv: Drones Shot Down Amid Russian Attack”