Section: US & Canada
France Postpones Warship Sale to Russia, Citing Ukraine Conflict
France agreed in 2011 sell two ships in a deal worth $1.6 billion, but the deal became a source of concern after Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula. …read more Source: The New York...
France halts delivery of first Mistral warship to Russia
JC FinleyPARIS, Nov. 25 (UPI) — France has again expressed reticence to deliver Mistral-class warships to Russia, citing Russia’s role in “the situation in Ukraine.” …read more Source: United Press...
Merkel’s Attempt to Negotiate with Putin One-on-One Did Not Go Well
(Reuters) – After nine months of non-stop German diplomacy to defuse the crisis in Ukraine, Chancellor Angela Merkel decided in mid-November that a change of tack was needed. Ahead of a summit of G20 leaders in Australia, Merkel resolved to confront Vladimir Putin alone, without the usual pack of interpreters and aides. Instead of...
France’s Front National Accepts €9m Loan From Russian Bank
France’s nationalist Front National took out a €9 million loan from a Moscow-based First Czech Russian Bank, the party’s treasurer told French radio on Monday. Front National, which has surged in the polls, with leader Marine Le Pen now a serious contender for president, explained they took out the loan from a bank owned by Kremlin...
Political Pressure Mounts on Ukraine’s Poroshenko
Political pressure is mounting both at home and abroad on Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko, with critics arguing he lacks direction in combating a pro-Moscow insurgency in the east and not moving fast enough on reform. A month after Ukraine held its first parliamentary polls since the ouster of pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych,...
That Time Angela Merkel Destroyed Putin’s Machismo
Over the past 14 years, German chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin have shared an understanding. After all, Putin served as a KGB officer in Germany from 1985 to 1990. So they work together often — although not always smoothly. “When Putin and Merkel meet, they sometimes speak in German (he’s better in her...
France Suspends Delivery Of Warship To Russia
PARIS (AP) — France suspended the delivery of a warship to Russia on Tuesday, after months of speculation about what would be the biggest arms sale ever by a NATO country to the Kremlin. The French president’s office announced the suspension “until further notice” after growing pressure from allies due to tensions over...
Russians Invade Afghanistan (Again!), Chinese Fight Iraq War (Again!)
What If It Weren’t Us?Cross-posted with TomDispatch.comLet’s play a game, the kind that makes no sense on this single-superpower planet of ours. For a moment, do your best to suspend disbelief and imagine that there’s another superpower, great power, or even regional power somewhere that, between 2001 and 2003, launched two...
Serbia’s Future- EU Accession or A Closer Alliance with Russia
On November 6, 2014, the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) provisionally released Serbian ultranationalist and alleged war criminal Vojislav Seselj from prison. Despite suffering from metastasized colon cancer and the pressures of an inconclusive eleven-year long trial, Seselj’s return to Serbia has been dramatic...
Ukraine tries risky new tactic against rebels
With military offensive proving ineffective Kiev turns off the cash flow, but the financial assault could backfire …read more Source:...
