Section: The Epoch Times (USA)
Lack of Aid Deepens Suffering in Conflict-Hit East Ukraine
DONETSK, Ukraine—Valentina Dudareva’s voice cracks with despair as she stands in the snow, surveying the bombed-out windows of her apartment block in Donetsk, the separatist capital in eastern Ukraine. Cold, poor and hungry, Dudareva is among the masses of people trapped by fighting between the government and Russian-backed militias,...
NATO’s Rapid-Response Force Now Operational
BERLIN—NATO’s secretary-general says a core version of the alliance’s new agile expeditionary force is now operational. Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in Berlin on Wednesday that the interim force is made up of troops from Germany, Norway, the Netherlands and “some others.” He says “an interim solution is in place and we are focused...
Russia Economic Crisis Forces Budget Cuts
MOSCOW—Russian government officials appealed for calm on Wednesday after predicting budget cuts and a further surge in inflation as the country faces its worst economic downturn in 15 years. With the currency and economy wilting under the twin blows of Western sanctions and a fall in the price of oil exports, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov...
Ukraine: 12 Dead in Bus Attack That Could Doom Shaky Truce
DONETSK, Ukraine—An attack on a passenger bus in eastern Ukraine killed 12 people Tuesday, likely dealing the final blow to hopes that a short-lived and shaky cease-fire could take hold. Across Donetsk, the city that Russian-backed separatists call their capital, explosions and the sound of shells whistling overhead are again unnerving the local...
US, EU Promise More Aid for Ukraine If Reforms Continue
BRUSSELS—The United States on Tuesday reinforced Western assistance for war-torn Ukraine by promising up to $2 billion in loan guarantees if that effort is matched by economic and political reforms in Kiev. The U.S. State Department said it intends to provide $1 billion in loan guarantees in the first half of 2015 and an additional $1 billion in...
World War 3? Gorbachev Warns of Possibly Nuclear War as Russia Deals With North Korea
The potential for a World War 3 is almost always present, but former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has warned that the current situation in Ukraine could spark it sooner rather than later. Russia and most European countries are facing off over Ukraine, with tensions growing steadily. The situation is one that the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize winner...
Rally for Unity Against Terrorism Is France’s Largest Ever
PARIS—Masses of people joined with world leaders to fill Paris streets Sunday in a rally for unity that officials said was the largest demonstration in French history. Hundreds of thousands more marched in cities around the country and the world to repudiate a three-day terror spree around the French capital that killed 17 people and left the...
World Leaders Head Paris March to Honor Terror Victims
PARIS—More than 40 world leaders, their arms linked, marched through Paris Sunday to rally for unity and freedom of expression and to honor 17 victims of three days of terrorist attacks. The leaders were heading a demonstration of at least tens of thousands of people who converged on the capital after three gunmen attacked a newspaper office,...
Merkel Urges Putin, Poroshenko to Implement Peace Plan
BERLIN— German Chancellor Angela Merkel has told Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko she’s ready to take part in four-way summit over the Ukraine conflict only if there’s a chance of real progress. The leaders of Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France are working on setting up a possible meeting in...
EU Offers Ukraine More Loans in Exchange for Reforms
BRUSSELS—The European Union has offered to give extra rescue loans to Ukraine, which is struggling with recession and a costly war, but only if it makes its promised economic and political reforms. The EU says it can give another 1.8 billion euros ($2.12 billion) in loans — on top of the 11 billion euros already pledged — if Kiev respects the...
