Section: Newsweek (USA)
Ceasefire Agreed For Eastern Ukraine After Minsk Summit
The leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine have agreed a deal to end fighting in eastern Ukraine, participants at the summit talks said on Thursday. The deal reached after all-night negotiations in the Belarussian capital Minsk included a ceasefire that would come into effect on Feb. 15, followed by the withdrawal of heavy weapons. The...
Ukraine Peace Talks Begin, Overshadowed by Fighting
The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine began peace talks in Belarus on Wednesday, while in Ukraine pro-Moscow separatists tightened the pressure on Kiev by launching some of the war’s worst fighting. The Kiev army said 19 of its soldiers were killed in a day of pro-Russian separatist assaults near the railway town of Debaltseve,...
Germany Ranks Third Highest For Censorship on Twitter
Germany filed the third highest number of requests to Twitter for content to be removed from the platform, with only Turkey and Russia ranked higher, a new report has revealed. Twitter’s biannual transparency report showed that between July-December 2014, Twitter received an 84% increase in global government and government-sanctioned...
Pilot Warns of ‘Great Danger’ As ISIS Fire on Baghdad Flights
A former Iraqi Airways captain has resigned due to the threat of Islamic State (ISIS) militants shooting at flights arriving and departing from Baghdad International Airport, it has been revealed. The pilot, speaking on condition of anonymity and who is now working for a rival airline, explained the reasons for his resignation in an email seen by...
“Grave” repercussions for NATO if Greece turn to Russia
Experts have warned that there could be serious repercussions if Greece fails to reach an agreement on their debt with the eurozone, and turns to Russia instead. The Greek defence minister Panos Kammenos today said his country may be forced to carry out a “plan B” if a new bailout deal can’t be negotiated with the rest of the eurozone....
A Ukrainian Father’s Desperate Search for His Son, Trapped in Donetsk Airport
Once the green van screeched to a halt, doors swung open and the blindfold was removed. Words were irrelevant. Teary eyed, Slavik clutched his mother tightly, before reaching for his father, the chief architect of his extraordinary release. His first words, when they eventually came, were simple: “You don’t understand how much I’ve...
Obama Weighing Decision on Arming Ukraine Forces
WASHINGTON/DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama made clear he was some way from a decision on whether to arm Ukraine in its conflict against Russian-backed rebels, saying on Monday he still hoped for a diplomatic solution. ”The measure by which I make these decisions is: ‘Is it more likely to be effective than...
Russian Army Set to Agree Deal to Use Cyprus Ports and Airstrips
The president of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, has said he is in talks with the Russian government to let its military use the island nation’s sea and airports. He made the announcement in an interview with Russia’s state owned news agency Itar-Tass today, having previously denied earlier reports that Cyprus had agreed a deal to lease...
Merkel to Urge Caution in U.S. as Pressure Builds to Arm Ukraine Forces
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to argue in Washington on Monday against arming Ukraine in its conflict against Russian-backed rebels, while in Brussels EU ministers held off tightening sanctions to give peace talks a chance. Merkel’s message that sending Western weapons to Kiev risks escalating the conflict is likely to get a...
Israeli Parties Hunt ‘Caviar Vote’ Before March Election
In this seaside city once ruled by the Greeks and Phoenicians but now largely populated by Russians, the talk in the caviar-stocked delis and jewelry stores is of upcoming elections and Israel’s powerful Russian vote. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, more than one million Russian speakers moved to Israel, many of them...
