Section: Mashable (USA)
Pope’s Christmas message focuses on the pain and suffering in the world
Pope Francis focused on the world’s pain and suffering in his annual Urbi et Orbi — Latin for “to the City and to the World” — message this year. “Truly there are so many tears this Christmas,” Francis said, to the tens of thousands of Romans and tourists who came to St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on...
Ukraine votes to move toward NATO, infuriating Russia
Ukraine’s parliament on Tuesday voted to drop the country’s non-aligned status, allowing it to work towards NATO membership. While Kiev hailed the move as historic, Russia did not mince words in voicing its opposition to Ukraine’s pivot towards NATO and the West. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the move...
With Russia’s economy in tatters, Putin faces tough questions at annual press conference
KIEV, Ukraine — Russian President Vladimir Putin faced difficult questions from the media at his annual marathon press conference Thursday in Moscow amid the country’s worst economic crisis since the 1998 default. European and U.S. sanctions against Russia over Putin’s invasion and annexation of Crimea, and his political and military...
Russians react to ruble freefall
MOSCOW— Vladimir Putin woke up this morning to a piece of good news and a piece of bad news The good news? Russians had named their president Man of the Year for the fifteenth year in a row. The bad news? The country’s currency, the ruble, had continued its downward spiral, hitting its lowest level since the beginning of the year. At 3:13...
The most Googled recipe in Ukraine this year was for Molotov cocktails
The most-Googled “recipe” in Ukraine this year, according to Google’s end-of-year statistics, was for instructions to make a molotov cocktail See also: Robin Williams, World Cup and Ebola top Google search in 2014 “In 2014 we searched trillions of times,” Google says in its 2014 report, which is available for dozens...
Reporters Without Borders: 66 journalists killed in 2014 as attacks grow more ‘barbaric’
KIEV, Ukraine – Reporters Without Borders said Tuesday that at least 66 journalists were killed over the course of the year as the number of reporters’ kidnappings soared in 2014. While the number of journalists’ deaths dropped slightly from 71 in 2013, the high-profile beheadings of Western reporters at the hands of Islamic State...
Ukraine: ‘Real cease-fire’ in place after 24 hours without casualty
KIEV, Ukraine— President Petro Poroshenko said on Friday that a “real cease-fire” was now in place in eastern Ukraine after the country saw one full day pass without a military casualty since the conflict began in mid-April. “I have positive news. Today is the first 24 hours for seven months… when we have a real cease-fire in...
Russian site invites you to meditate to the sound of the falling ruble
KIEV, Ukraine — If there is one thing Russians do well, it is dark humor. Their ruble has collapsed to all-time lows, thanks in large part to sinking oil prices and Western sanctions, which have hampered the country’s once-booming economy. Inflation is setting in, with prices of goods shooting through the roof, and entering a recession next...
Ukraine ‘day of silence’: A test of peace in war-torn east
KIEV, Ukraine — President Petro Poroshenko declared a “day of silence” Tuesday, suspending military operations in Ukraine’s war-torn east in hopes of restoring a September cease-fire deal with Russian-backed rebels that has been broken almost daily with deaths among fighters and civilians. More than 4,300 people have been killed...
Hawkish Putin says West has tried to destabilize Russia for years
KIEV, Ukraine – A hawkish Vladimir Putin capped off a tumultuous year in Moscow on Thursday with his annual state of the nation address, during which he defended Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the country’s bullish foreign policy, saying it is needed to ensure its survival. Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula in March...
