Section: Voice of America (USA)
Russia Sends 2 Nuclear-Capable Bombers to Venezuela
Two Russian nuclear-capable strategic bombers arrived in Venezuela on Monday, a deployment that comes amid soaring Russia-U.S. tensions. Russia’s Defense Ministry said a pair Tu-160 bombers landed at Maiquetia airport outside Caracas on Monday following a 10,000-kilometer (6,200-mile) flight. It didn’t say if the bombers were carrying...
Russian Rights Activist Alexeyeva Dies at 91
Lyudmila Alexeyeva, a human rights pioneer and dissident who challenged the Soviet and Russian regimes for decades, demanding that they free political prisoners and establish democratic rights, died Saturday in a Moscow hospital, a Russian official said. She was 91. “She remained a human rights activist to the very end,” said Mikhail...
Families of Detained Ukrainian Sailors Search for Answers
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has met with the families of Ukrainian sailors who were captured by Russia. One of them, Vasyl Soroka, was wounded during the capture and his family has been unable to communicate with him. For VOA, Oksana Ligostova met with Vasyl’s family in the Odessa region of Ukraine and has this report, narrated by...
In Show of Support, US Conducts Ukraine Fly-Over
The U.S. and its allies flew a military aircraft over Ukraine Thursday as a show of support after Russia attacked Ukrainian naval vessels in the Black Sea last month. “A U.S. Air Force OC-135 observation plane flew over Ukraine today with U.S., Canadian, German, French, United Kingdom, Romanian and Ukrainian observers aboard,”...
Ukraine MPs Vote to Pull Out of Russia Friendship Treaty
The Ukrainian parliament on Thursday voted to withdraw from a wide-ranging treaty on friendship with Russia, the latest step in escalating tensions between the two neighbors. The Supreme Rada overwhelmingly supported a motion by President Petro Poroshenko not to prolong the treaty when it comes up for renewal in April. The camouflage-clad...
US Diplomat: Russia Should Release Ukrainian Sailors by Christmas
U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volkers says Russia needs to release the Ukrainian sailors taken captive in the Kerch Strait in late November by Christmas or “before the New Year.” Volkers spoke with VOA on Monday in Washington, explaining that the United States and its Western allies are considering a number of options...
US Challenges Russian Claims in Sea of Japan
A U.S. Navy destroyer on Wednesday sailed into waters claimed by Russia in the Sea of Japan in a direct challenge to Moscow. The guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell “sailed in the vicinity of Peter the Great Bay to challenge Russia’s excessive maritime claims and uphold the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea enjoyed by...
Kremlin: Putin Doesn’t Feel Snubbed by Trump Canceling Talks
The Kremlin says President Donald Trump’s refusal to have a full-fledged meeting with President Vladimir Putin hasn’t ruffled the Russian leader. The two leaders had been scheduled to have talks on the sidelines of last week’s Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires, but Trump abruptly canceled the encounter over the Russian seizure...
NATO Toils to Keep Russia Out of Ukraine, in Missile Treaty
Russia takes center-stage at NATO Tuesday as allied foreign ministers meet to debate ways to dissuade Moscow from destabilizing Ukraine and encourage it to respect a landmark Cold-war era nuclear treaty. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his NATO partners will hold talks with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin as Kyiv seeks...
Kyiv: Russia Allowing Some Ships to Enter Ukrainian Azov Sea Ports
Ukraine says Russia has begun allowing some ships to enter Ukrainian ports on the Sea of Azov, in what could be a possible sign of easing tensions in the area. A statement Tuesday attributed to Ukraine Infrastructure Minister Volodymyr Omelyan said the Berdyansk and Mariupol ports have been partially unblocked, adding that ships are coming and...
