Section: The Huffington Post (USA)
Putin Pumps Iron In New Pictures Aimed To Prop Up Image
MOSCOW, Aug 30 (Reuters) – The Kremlin has released pictures of Russian President Vladimir Putin working out at the gym with Prime Minister Dmitrty Medvedev, images apparently aimed at shoring up Putin’s rugged, masculine image as his popularity dips.Wearing a white T-shirt, track suit trousers and running shoes, Putin is shown on...
Restoring Russian Influence in the Middle East
Among the things both Russia and the high-level Arab leaders visiting Moscow want is developing Arab-Russian relations to overcome the barriers erected by Russian-Iranian relations and the doubts and mistrust they caused; and second, filling the void left behind by US President Barack Obama’s policies on the Arab Gulf and Egypt, which have...
Reflecting On U.S. Power and Leadership During Hard Times
Expressions of populist anger, resentment toward unresponsive government institutions, and deep-seated frustration with “politics as usual” have dominated the rhetoric surrounding the Republican Party’s ongoing presidential primary campaign. The underlying theme is that the United States is declining (in both material and moral...
Final Report On MH17 Crash To Be Published In October
AMSTERDAM, Aug 27 (Reuters) – The final report into the crash last July of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine will be published on Oct 13, the Dutch Safety Board said on Thursday.The crash, attributed in a preliminary report last year to “high energy objects” striking the aircraft, is widely believed to have been caused...
Ukraine: The Consequences of Far Right World War II Revisionism
Beset with military conflict in the form of Russian-backed separatists, Ukraine has sought to cultivate crucial foreign and diplomatic support for its cause. To be sure, Kiev seeks tactical military advantage over its adversaries though a no less significant public relations war has also assumed key importance. Within the high stakes propaganda...
The Case for Diplomacy
We’re still several weeks away from finding out whether Congress will formally approve or reject the White House-backed nuclear agreement with Iran. Nevertheless, the political fight is already raging, and thus far the rancorous debate taking place in the nation’s capital and on the presidential campaign trail has had less to do with...
Ukrainian Statue Portrays Putin As Dobby The House-Elf
A pair of political artists in Ukraine unveiled a monument to the “Russian world” on Monday, according to Crimean news agency QHA, but the statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin looks less like the shirtless/black-belt/cowboy stud he’d probably like you to imagine, and more like Dobby the House-Elf from the Harry Potter...
Russian Court Sentences Ukrainian Film Director To 20 Years In Jail
MOSCOW, Aug 25 (Reuters) – A Russian court on Tuesday sentenced Ukrainian film director Oleg Sentsov to 20 years in a high-security penal colony for “terrorist attacks” in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in April 2014, RIA news agency said.The Crimea-born Sentsov pleaded not guilty and denounced...
Ukraine’s Push for Independence
Note: Our accounts contain the personal recollections and opinions of the individual interviewed. The views expressed should not be considered official statements of the U.S. government or the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. ADST conducts oral history interviews with retired U.S. diplomats, and uses their accounts to form...
The Kadyrov Factor: Why Putin Must Keep a Close Eye on His Chechen Strongman
In April 2015, Chechnya’s leader Ramzan Kadyrov announced that Chechen security forces had the right to fire on any Russian military units operating in Chechnya without his permission. Kadyrov’s assertive declaration grabbed the attention of the Kremlin and fuelled speculation that Putin’s relationship with Kadyrov was souring....
