If you thought 2016 was the year of controversial referendums—Brexit, anyone?—strap in, because 2017 is going to be a bumpy ride. While the year will see some relatively straightforward votes, as on Turkey’s proposed consolidation of power in the presidency, another series of pending plebiscites will push the borders of politics, legality,...

Mar24

Lion cub discovered smuggled in van full of parrots

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 17:15 (EEST) Section: Miami Herald (USA)

Hidden in a van with 2,245 parrots and four cats, a lion cub was discovered during a baggage inspection in the Ukrainian port of Odessa on Wednesday. The Turkish citizens did have export permits for the other animals, but not the lion. … Click to Continue » …read more Source: Miami...

Mar24

A new face in Belarus’ anti-government protests: The poor

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 17:15 (EEST) Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)

MALADZYECHNA, Belarus (AP) — The half-million Belarusians who can’t find work in their country’s stumbling Soviet-style economy face an array of hard choices: register with the state employment exchange, which will force them to “public work” for a pittance; pay $250 for failure to register; or risk being jailed for taking...

Mar24

Vladimir Putin Met With Marine Le Pen. He Denied Interfering in France’s Election

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 17:15 (EEST) Section: Time (USA)

(MOSCOW) — Russian President Vladimir Putin held a surprise meeting Friday with France’s far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, yet dismissed suggestions that Russia aims to influence the election in her favor. Le Pen met Putin hours after a previously announced visit to the lower house of the Russian parliament. In the meeting...

Mar24

Ukraine: Russian agent killed Kremlin critic Voronenkov

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 17:00 (EEST) Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)

MOSCOW (AP) — A senior Ukrainian official says the killer of Kremlin critic Denis Voronenkov, who was gunned down in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, was a Russian agent. Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, identified the man who shot Voronenkov on Thursday as 28-year-old Pavel Parshov and said he had been trained...

Mar24

Denis Voronenkov, Kremlin critic, killed by Russian agent, Ukraine says

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 17:00 (EEST) Section: The Washington Times (USA)

Mar24

EU Prolongs Satellite Support to Ukraine Monitors

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 16:45 (EEST) Section: NewsmaxWorld (USA)

The European Union is prolonging its satellite imagery support to help observers monitor the conflict in eastern Ukraine.EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement Friday that satellite imagery “allows for more in-depth monitoring of the situation in… …read more Source:...

Mar24

Rival fighters in Ukraine are ‘within shouting distance’ in some places — risking renewed violence

Friday, March 24 , 2017 - 16:45 (EEST) Section: Business Insider (USA)

Monitors say the risks of violence are increased because Ukrainian government fighters and rebels are in close proximity to each other. …read more Source: Business...