Sport Arbitration Court Says 42 Russians Appeal Olympic Doping Bans
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) says it has registered 42 appeals by Russian athletes seeking to overturn lifetime bans from the Olympics linked to doping violations. …
North, South Korea Start First Formal Talks In Two Years With Olympics Looming
North and South Korea started their first formal talks in more than two years on January 9, with both sides expressing optimism about the possibility the North’s athletes will be able to attend the Winter Olympics in the South next month. …
South Korea Says North Korea Agrees to Take Part in Winter Olympics
A South Korean official says North Korea has offered to send a high-level delegation to next month’s Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. The proposal was made Tuesday during the first face-to-face talks between the bitter rivals in two years. Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung told journalists in Seoul the North has offered to send a delegation …
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U.S. Special Counsel Reported Likely To Interview Trump In Russia Probe
U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has informed the White House that he probably will seek to interview President Donald Trump as part of his probe into possible coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign, U.S. media are reporting. …
AP Interview: Tillerson Says No Diplomats Return to Cuba Yet
The United States would be “putting people intentionally in harm’s way” if it sent diplomats back to Cuba, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says in an Associated Press interview , even as a new FBI report casts doubt on the initial theory that Americans there have been hit by “sonic attacks.” Following months of …
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Vietnam Sets Up Command Center for Cyberspace Defense
Vietnam announced on Monday the creation of a cyberspace operations command to protect its sovereignty on the Internet, with prime minister citing risks related to the disputed South China Sea and complex regional and global situations. The new unit would “research and predict online wars,” the defense ministry said in report on the government website, …
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EU, Iranian Ministers Say Preserving Nuclear Deal On Agenda At Meeting This Week
The foreign ministers of the European Union and Iran have said their scheduled talks in Brussels on January 11 will focus on preserving Iran’s 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers, which is seen as under threat from the United States. …
Fire Reported on Top Floor of Trump Tower NY
The Fire Department of New York says it’s at the scene of a fire at Trump Tower in Manhattan. The department says it was called around 7:00 a.m. Monday for a report of a fire on the top floor. Aerial views showed firefighters on the roof, with smoke billowing from one corner of …
Oprah for President? Twitter Fans Make The Case
Oprah Winfrey’s moving speech at the Golden Globes has some fans and fellow celebrities calling for her presidential run. The actress accepted the Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award at Sunday’s ceremony, and it didn’t take long for Twitter to start lighting up with the hashtag #Oprah2020. Comedian Sarah Silverman tweeted “Oprah/Michelle 2020.” …
Pope Urges Efforts to Rebuild Trust in North Korea, Syria
Pope Francis urged concerted international efforts Monday to rebuild trust on the Korean peninsula and in Syria, using his annual foreign policy address to demand that political leaders put the dignity of their people before war, profit or power. In a wide-ranging speech to ambassadors from some 185 nations, Francis reaffirmed the need to respect …
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Bishkek Questions Chinese Firm’s Decision To Fire Hundreds Of Miners
The Kyrgyz government wants to know more about the decision by the Chinese company Full Gold Mining to fire 370 miners in southern Kyrgyzstan. …
Russian Soccer Star’s Wife Removed From Aeroflot Flight For ‘Obstructive’ Behavior
Aeroflot says the wife of Russian soccer star Andrei Arshavin was removed from an international flight due to what the airline said was her “obstructive behavior” and refusal to comply with the crew’s requests. …
The Daily Vertical: Election-Interference, Western-Style
The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL. …
Transgender Woman Says Jail Awaits In Uzbekistan, Seeks Asylum In Belarus
Persecuted at home, a transgender woman from Uzbekistan is seeking asylum in Belarus — a country that is not exactly known as a haven of tolerance when it comes to sexual orientation. …
Wolf-Dogs Help Veterans Cope With PTSD
The unpredictable and aggressive nature of wolf-dog hybrids makes them difficult to keep as household pets. But the founders of the Lockwood Animal Rescue Center in California say the dual nature of these animals makes them ideal therapists for combat veterans who suffer from PTSD. VOA’s Genia Dulot has more on the “Wolves and Warriors” …
January 7, 2018
A look at the best news photos from around the world. …
Trump, Aides Scorn Book Depicting Chaotic White House
U.S. President Donald Trump and aides on Sunday heaped scorn on a new book detailing his chaotic first year in the White House and suggestions that he is not mentally fit to be the U.S. leader. Trump, in a Twitter comment, said, “I’ve had to put up with the Fake News from the first day …
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Putin, Medvedev Attend Orthodox Christmas Services
Russia’s political leaders attended Christmas services as the country marked the holiday according to the Eastern Orthodox calendar. President Vladimir Putin came to the Church of Saints Simeon and Ann in St. Petersburg on the night of January 6 to 7 while Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and his wife Svetlana chose the Cathedral of Christ …
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‘Youngest Soviet Defector’ Tells His Tale Nearly 40 Years Later
He lives the life of an average American today, but nearly four decades ago as a child Volodymyr Polovchak whipped up a Cold War storm by refusing to return from the United States to the Soviet Union. …
No Evidence of ‘Sonic Attacks’ in Cuba, US Senator Says
The United States has found no evidence that American diplomats in Havana were the victims of attacks with an unknown weapon, U.S. Senator Jeff Flake said Saturday. Flake, an Arizona Republican who sits on the Foreign Relations Committee and has been a longtime advocate of detente with Cuba, met Friday with high-ranking Cuban officials, including Foreign …
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‘Coach’ Co-star Jerry Van Dyke Dies at 86
Jerry Van Dyke, the younger brother of actor Dick Van Dyke who struggled for decades to achieve his own stardom before clicking as the dimwitted sidekick in television’s Coach, has died at age 86, his manager said. John Castonia said Van Dyke died Friday at his ranch in Hot Spring County, Arkansas. His wife, Shirley Ann …
11 Saudi Princes Detained Following Protest Over Utility Bills
Saudi Arabian authorities have detained 11 princes after they gathered at a royal palace in Riyadh in a rare protest against the government suspending payment of their utility bills, the public prosecutor said Saturday. Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, has introduced reforms that include reducing energy subsidies, introducing value-added taxes and cutting some …
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Putin Attends Services In St. Petersburg As Orthodox Churches Worldwide Celebrate Christmas
Russian President Vladimir Putin helped usher in the Orthodox Christmas at services at the Church of Saints Simeon and Anna in St. Petersburg. …
Earthquake Rocks Western Iranian Region
A 5.1-magnitude earthquake jolted Iran’s western province of Kermanshah on January 6. …