Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)
Western sanctions, ruble crash hit Russians hard
According to Vladimir Kantorovich, vice president of Russia’s Tour Operator Association, travel abroad for the winter holidays is down 30 percent, and trips to Europe have fallen about 50 percent. According to the Federal Statistics Service, chicken costs 27 percent more than it did last year, pork 25 percent, and the beloved staple of...
Ukraine says nuclear plant fault cuts power
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s energy minister says a technical fault at a nuclear power plant in the south of country has cut power production but insists it poses no danger. The plant’s operator announced Monday that a problem had occurred with a power-generating unit, but concern was provoked Wednesday after Prime Minister Arseniy...
Russian ruble extends losses
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian ruble has extended a week of decline, fueled by low oil prices and Western sanctions against Russia over its role in Ukraine’s crisis. The ruble’s decline was compounded by falling oil price, crucial for the Russian economy. …read more Source: San Francisco...
News of the day from across the globe, Dec. 3
Mexico’s most corruption-plagued municipal police forces would be replaced by state police within two years under a bill President Enrique Peña Nieto has submitted to Congress. In September, a drug cartel-infiltrated municipal police force in the Guerrero state city of Iguala detained 43 students and turned them over to the gang, which...
Change of leadership in Crimea means property grab
[…] an Associated Press investigation throughout this peninsula the size of Massachusetts found many instances of less noble practices: legal owners strong-armed off their premises; buildings, farms and other prime real estate seized on dubious pretenses, or with no legal justification at all; non-payment of the compensation mandated by the...
NATO ministers condemn Russia, support Ukraine
In a statement, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and the other ministers said Russia’s actions “undermine the security of Ukraine and have serious implications for the stability and security of the entire Euro-Atlantic area.” Stoltenberg said the foreign ministers are expected to take key decisions in several areas, including...
Russia warns of recession next year
The forecast released by the economic development ministry on Tuesday was the first acknowledgement that the Russian economy will contract in 2015. Russia’s economy has been battered by low oil prices, the backbone of its budget and Western sanctions over its role in eastern Ukraine. …read more Source: San Francisco...
Change of leadership in Crimea means property grab
YALTA, Crimea (AP) — One day in October, a dozen armed men in masks drove up to the gates of Yalta Film Studios. […] an Associated Press investigation throughout this peninsula the size of Massachusetts found many instances of less noble practices: legal owners strong-armed off their premises; buildings, farms and other prime real estate...
Ukraine government, rebels agree on new cease-fire
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — International monitors in eastern Ukraine say government troops and Russian-backed separatist forces in the Luhansk region have agreed on a new cease-fire. …read more Source: San Francisco...
World Food Program, short on money, to suspend aid to Syrians
The cut in aid will affect refugees in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey who receive vouchers from the program to exchange for food in local shops, a mechanism that also provides an economic lifeline for communities struggling with the huge influx of Syrian refugees in the past four years. “A suspension of WFP food assistance will endanger...
