Section: Voice of America (USA)
Putin to Mark 5 years of Annexation in Crimea
Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Crimea on Monday to mark the fifth anniversary of Moscow’s annexation of the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine, condemned by the West but celebrated by most Russians. A Kremlin statement on Sunday said Putin would visit the peninsula and its largest city Sevastopol to attend celebrations...
Russia Slams ‘Hypocrisy’ of New Western Sanctions
Russia on Saturday slammed the “hypocrisy” of new Western sanctions against its officials over their role in a naval confrontation with Ukraine last year, and vowed to respond to the “unfriendly” move. The United States, Canada and the European Union Friday slapped new sanctions on more than a dozen Russian officials and...
Slovakia Could Get Its First Woman President in Ballot
Slovakia could get its first woman president as voters elect a new head of state on Saturday. The leading contenders are Zuzana Caputova, an environmental activist who is in favor of gay rights and opposes a ban on abortion in this conservative Roman Catholic country, and Maros Sefcovic, an establishment figure who is the European Commission...
US, EU Slap New Sanctions on Russia Over Ukraine
The United States, in coordination with the European Union and Canada, Friday slapped new sanctions on more than a dozen officials and businesses in response to Russia’s “continued aggression in Ukraine.” Six Russian officials, six defense firms and two energy and construction firms were targeted, either over the seizure of...
Estonian President Urges Unity Among Allies Against Russia
Estonia’s president called for continued unity among democratic allies in the face of Russian aggression on Wednesday and expressed a wish for even greater U.S. involvement in the Baltics. Kersti Kaljulaid, on her second visit to the United States in less than a year, told an audience at the Brookings Institution that membership in the...
Russian Defense Ministry Boasts About Revived Military Power
The Russian military has commissioned more than 1,000 new aircraft and thousands of tanks in the past few years in a massive modernization effort amid tensions with the West, the nation’s defense minister said Monday. Sergei Shoigu boasted of the military’s achievements in his six years on the job, saying in a speech to lawmakers that...
3 Ukrainian Police Hurt in Clash With Demonstrators
Three police officers in Ukraine have been injured in a clash with far-right demonstrators in the capital. The violence occurred outside the presidential administration building in Kiev where several hundred demonstrators had gathered Saturday to call for arrests of top figures in an alleged military corruption scandal. A media investigation last...
Female Naval Cadets Say Russia Not Ready for Women in Combat Roles
Alina Politika is one of 42 female cadets attending the naval academy in Russia’s Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad, but she knows she is unlikely to ever step onto the captain’s bridge of a battleship. Politka’s diploma and military rank after graduation won’t differ from those of male cadets, but the Russian navy does not...
US Officials Issue Sanctions Warnings to Europe Over Russian Gas
U.S. officials have warned at an energy conference in Brussels that the Trump administration will take punitive action against European companies that are building the Kremlin-favored Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, which will deliver energy from Russia to Germany while bypassing Ukraine. Nord Stream 2 (NS2) will largely replace an older...
US Ambassador Slams Ukraine Over Corruption
The U.S. ambassador to Kyiv directed unusually scathing criticism at the Ukrainian government in remarks released Wednesday, urging authorities to replace a senior anti-corruption official and tackle the country’s corruption problem. In a speech Tuesday, Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch said the government’s efforts have “not yet...
