Section: Newsweek (USA)
Britain, France Push U.N. Syria Ban, Sanctions Over Gas Attacks
Britain and France want the United Nations Security Council to ban the sale or supply of helicopters to the Syrian government and to blacklist 11 Syrian military commanders and officials over chemical weapons attacks during the nearly six-year war. The pair have drafted a resolution, seen by Reuters on Wednesday, that also seeks to blacklist 10...
U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Companies, People Over Russia Actions in Ukraine
The United States on Tuesday blacklisted seven Russian businessmen and eight companies and government enterprises over Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the conflict in Ukraine, the U.S. Treasury said in a statement, moves Moscow called “hostile acts.” The sanctions come a month before U.S. President Barack Obama hands over...
Why the North Korea Threat Is Greatly Exaggerated
Close As President Barack Obama prepares to leave office, consider the world he has left us. In Syria, Bashar al-Assad’s regime—backed by Iran and Russia—is finishing a savage bombing campaign to retake Aleppo. Tens of thousands have been killed, hundreds of thousands have been exiled and an entire generation of Sunni Arabs in the country...
Rex Tillerson’s Warm Relationship With Putin Chills Kremlin Critics’ Hopes
In Russia, supporters and opponents of President Vladimir Putin agree on very little. Yet as Donald Trump, the U.S. president-elect, prepares to enter the White House, there is one thing they are in full accordance on: For the next four years at least, the United States will stop promoting human rights and democracy in Russia. “Putin had an...
The Foreign Stories To Watch in 2017: Newsweek’s Staff Picks
A lot of people are hoping for good news in 2017. We didn’t have to look far this year to find gloom, and lots of it. The worst mass shooting in U.S. history; Brussels, the epicenter of the European Union, struck by three suicide bombings ; revelers in Nice mowed down ; failed ceasefires in Syria; Philippine President Rodrigo...
Russia Aims To Lure 10 Million Tourists to Crimea by 2019
Russia is hoping to attract 10 million tourists to Crimea in 2019, only five years after annexing the peninsula from Ukraine. Since taking control of Crimea in 2014, the Russian government has sought to promote it as a tourist destination, billing it as an ideal getaway for the whole family on Russian television and sending numerous high profile...
Kremlin Not Banking on ‘Overnight Change’ in U.S.-Russia Relations After Trump’s Tillerson Pick
The Kremlin claims it is treating Donald Trump’s decision to appoint Rex Tillerson as U.S. secretary of state with caution, despite his long-standing ties to the Russian government. The Exxon Mobil chief executive, whose appointment still needs to be approved by Senate, has worked closely with Putin’s friend and ally, state oil chief...
Kremlin: Blaming Russia for Brexit “Unprofessional” and “Primitive”
The Kremlin has said that attempts to blame Brexit on the Russian government indicate that U.K. politicians “lack professionalism and are not very successful”, following the remarks of a British former cabinet minister. Ben Bradshaw, an MP for the Labour party, said Tuesday that Russian hackers “probably” swayed the Brexit vote. “We...
Meet Rex Tillerson, Vladimir Putin’s Pal and Donald Trump’s Nominee for Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state, personifies two major concerns about the incoming Trump administration: conflicts of interest and ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. As the long-serving CEO of U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil, Tillerson has a close personal relationship with Putin, according to the...
Dutch PM Rutte Could Scupper EU-Ukraine Trade Deal
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte could scupper an EU-Ukraine agreement if he does not secure key concessions following battles with Euroskeptics at home. Rutte told the Financial Times that he would only ratify the EU-Ukraine association agreement, which aims to improve trade and security co-operation between the country and the bloc, if EU heads...
