: :inin Kyiv (EET)

Section: USA

    DC Exports Corruption
    Dec09

    DC Exports Corruption

    Vice President Joseph Biden is in Ukraine this week, encouraging the government in Kyiv to reform and root out corruption. But there’s a complication, according to the New York Times: The credibility of the vice president’s anticorruption message may have been undermined by the association of his son, Hunter Biden, with one of...

    Stolen Art Hampers Ukraine’s EU Progress
    Dec09

    Stolen Art Hampers Ukraine’s EU Progress

    Could a few dozen Dutch paintings derail trade talks? …read more Source:...

    EU Russia Sanctions Extended? Italy Blocks European Union’s Proposal To Renew Legislation Amid Disagreements
    Dec09

    EU Russia Sanctions Extended? Italy Blocks European Union’s Proposal To Renew Legislation Amid Disagreements

    The Italian government blocked European Union attempts Wednesday to extend sanctions against Russia, calling on the 28-country bloc to discuss the matter in full first. The EU envoy had hoped to pass the economic sanctions, which were imposed on Moscow last year over its involvement in Ukraine, without delay after an informal agreement was...

    AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel
    Dec09

    AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel

    BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been named Time magazine’s Person of the Year, just a few weeks after she marked 10 years at the helm of Europe’s biggest economic power. Merkel, 61, is the European Union’s longest-serving head of government and has been a serial winner of Forbes magazine’s title of...

    AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel
    Dec09

    AP EXPLAINS: The rise of German Chancellor Angela Merkel

    Merkel, 61, is the European Union’s longest-serving head of government and has been a serial winner of Forbes magazine’s title of world’s most powerful woman. Merkel helped negotiate the Kyoto accord to curb greenhouse gas emissions as environment minister in the 1990s. In the crisis over Ukraine, she has stuck doggedly to...

    Russia-Ukraine Conflict Update: Putin Threatens Lawsuit Against Kiev If $3B Debt Not Paid
    Dec09

    Russia-Ukraine Conflict Update: Putin Threatens Lawsuit Against Kiev If $3B Debt Not Paid

    The economic battle between Russia and Ukraine could enter the courtroom soon with Russian authorities calling Ukrainian officials “crooks.” Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday if Ukraine does not repay $3 billion worth of debt by the Dec. 20 deadline a lawsuit would be filed, Reuters reported. …read more Source: International...

    German leader Angela Merkel named Time magazine’s Person of the Year
    Dec09

    German leader Angela Merkel named Time magazine’s Person of the Year

    German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been named Time’s Person of the Year, praised Wednesday by the magazine for her leadership on everything from Syrian refugees to the Greek debt crisis. Time also cited Merkel’s strong response to “Vladimir Putin’s creeping theft of Ukraine” and on its cover called…...

    UN: As Ukraine Fighting Dwindles, Rights Abuses Rise
    Dec09

    UN: As Ukraine Fighting Dwindles, Rights Abuses Rise

    While the United Nations has found a marked decrease in fighting between Ukraine’s forces and Russian-backed rebels in the country’s east, it also reports an increase in abuses of civilians in the insurgent-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk. Monitors for the U.N.’s Human Rights Office in Ukraine reported Wednesday that the...

    Syrian refugees participate in Berlin public menorah lighting
    Dec09

    Syrian refugees participate in Berlin public menorah lighting

    BERLIN (JTA) — A group of Syrian refugee children — along with other Muslim groups in Berlin — joined with Jewish groups for a public Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremony in the German city. On Sunday, the Syrian children joined with local Jewish kids to light the giant Chabad menorah at the Brandenburg Gate. Aiman Mazyek, head of the Central...

    Ukrainian militia accused of holding Dutch paintings for $55M ransom
    Dec09

    Ukrainian militia accused of holding Dutch paintings for $55M ransom

    Ed AdamczykHOORN , Netherlands, Dec. 9 (UPI) — Artwork stolen from a Netherlands museum is being ransomed for nearly $55 million by Ukrainian ultra-nationalists, the museum said. …read more Source: United Press...