Section: San Francisco Chronicle (USA)
Ukraine leaders seeks peacekeeping mission for eastern regions
KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s president signed a decree Monday opening the way to a formal request for international peacekeepers to be stationed in eastern regions where government forces are battling Russia-backed separatists. The U.N. human rights office has raised its toll for the fighting, saying more than 6,000 people have died since the...
Putin critic Nemtsov’s date says she did not see his killer
MOSCOW (AP) — The Ukrainian woman with Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov when he was gunned down told Russia media on Monday that she did not see his killer, as conflicting reports emerged about the availability of surveillance footage showing the slaying. According to Russian investigators, he was walking home on a Moscow bridge near the Kremlin with...
China state media seen stepping-up anti-Western rhetoric
BEIJING (AP) — Western values are a “ticket to hell,” a newspaper published by China’s Communist Party said in a recent editorial that held up Ukraine and some Arab countries as examples of outside ideas causing turmoil. Last week, the party tabloid Global Times laid into well-known blogger Ren Zhiqiang for questioning official...
Ukraine’s leader urges peacekeeping mission for the east
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s president has a signed a decree opening the way to a formal request for international peacekeepers to be stationed in eastern regions where government forces are battling Russian-backed separatists. …read more Source: San Francisco...
Fighting in eastern Ukraine displaces Donetsk’s soccer team
LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — The sleek stadium, built six years ago and host to some of Europe’s biggest soccer matches, is silent. The $425 million Donbass Arena now serves as a depot and distribution point for supplies of humanitarian aid, stacked in corridors beneath its 52,000 orange-and-black seats. Players like Ivan Ordets originally packed...
UN rights office: Death toll in eastern Ukraine passes 6,000
U.N. rights chief Zeid Raad al-Hussein said in a statement Monday that investigators from his office had found a “merciless devastation of civilian lives and infrastructure” in the embattled region, where separatists backed by Russia are fighting Ukrainian government forces. …read more Source: San Francisco...
Thousands rally in Moscow to mourn Putin critic Boris Nemtsov
Tens of thousands of people from a range of political movements turned out in central Moscow on Sunday to honor opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead Friday near Red Square. The crowd was roughly the size of some of the larger rallies held in the Russian capital three years ago during the “white ribbon” protests, a movement Nemtsov...
Estonians vote in parliamentary election amid security fears
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Early results showed Estonia’s center-right ruling coalition leading Sunday in the country’s parliamentary election, which has been dominated by economic issues and security concerns due to Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Polls had indicated a close race between Prime Minister Taavi Roivas’ Reform...
Russia detains Ukrainian parliament member over Odessa fire
MOSCOW (AP) — Moscow police have detained a member of Ukraine’s parliament as he was taking part in a march mourning a slain Russian opposition figure. The speaker of Ukraine’s parliament, Volodymyr Groisman, said the detention was a violation of international law because Goncharenko has diplomatic immunity. …read more Source:...
Thousands march in Russia to mourn Putin critic Nemtsov
Russian President Vladimir Putin has marginalized and intimidated his political opponents, jailing some and driving others into exile, since mass anti-Putin protests swept Moscow in 2011 and 2012. The first possibility, the Investigative Committee said, was that the killing was aimed at destabilizing the political situation in Russia and Nemtsov...
