Section: Voice of America (USA)
Russia Threatens to Cut Off Gas, Coal to Ukraine
Russia threatened Tuesday to cut off natural gas and to halt coal deliveries to Ukraine, worsening a dispute over a power blackout in Crimea. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak accused Kyiv of deliberately refusing to help rebuild electricity pylons which were blown up by unidentified, pro-Ukrainian attackers over the weekend, causing the...
Main French Opposition: End EU Embargo on Russia
France’s main opposition party, The Republicans, on Tuesday called on President Francois Hollande to push for an end to the European Union sanctions on Russia over its activities in Ukraine. “That’s the sensible position,” said Christian Jacob, president of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s The Republicans...
Biden to Discuss Migrants, Terrorism in Croatia Visit
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is traveling Wednesday to Croatia to discuss the influx of migrants, energy issues and the fight against terrorism with Croatian officials and European Council President Donald Tusk. Those meetings will happen on the sidelines of a summit of Southeastern European leaders in Zagreb hosted by Croatian President Kolinda...
Pro-Ukraine Activists Block Repair of Sabotaged Power Lines to Crimea
Pro-Ukrainian activists prevented repairs to sabotaged power lines leading to Crimea on Monday, keeping the Russian-annexed peninsula starved of electricity for a second day and tensions between Moscow and Kyiv high. Ethnic Tatars and members of Ukrainian nationalist battalions largely blocked access for engineers to four pylons in Kherson, a...
State of Emergency in Crimea After Power Lines Blown Up
Crimea has declared a state of emergency after its main electricity lines from Ukraine were blown up, leaving more than 1.6 million people on the disputed Russian-annexed peninsula in darkness after the second such attack in as many days. It was not immediately clear who had blown up the pylons, but a Russian lawmaker said it was an “act of...
Blackout Hits Crimea After Power Line Blasts, Russia Says
Russia says the Crimean Peninsula has been plunged into darkness, following reports of explosions at four main power lines supplying electricity from Ukraine to the disputed territory. It wasn’t clear early Sunday whether the blasts occurred in Ukrainian territory or in Crimea, which Russia annexed last year despite international outrage...
Kremlin Shifts Gears Toward War in Syria, Detente With West
With Russia now ruling the downing of Metrojet flight 9268 an act of terrorism following the attacks in Paris, the Kremlin is expanding its air campaign in Syria and calling for a grand global alliance against Islamic State. Yet Kremlin critics argue this “window of opportunity” to end Russia’s isolation depends on whether the...
East Europeans Fear Russia Diplomatic Thaw After Paris Attacks
With signs growing of a thaw between Moscow and Western capitals after the Paris attacks, some of Russia’s neighbors fear that European resolve to keep up economic sanctions and military pressure over the Ukraine crisis may be waning. Alarmed by Russia’s seizure of Crimea last year and support for pro-Kremlin rebels in eastern...
In Paris Attacks, Echoes of Russian Tragedies Past
The attacks in Paris have forced Russian officials to acknowledge what many in the West have long suspected: the downing of a Russian Metrojet airliner over the Sinai peninsula — killing all 224 people on board — was an act of terror. In a televised meeting at the Kremlin, the head of Russia’s Federal Security Service, Alexander Bortnikov,...
Hollande Pressed to Amend Foreign Policy After Paris Attacks
French President Francois Hollande is under pressure to change policy in Syria’s civil war and work more closely with Russia after a wave of deadly attacks in Paris but he seems determined to stick to his guns and escalate military action. France has become arguably the most exposed Western nation to Islamist militants because of its...
