Section: Voice of America (USA)
US to Lead Multinational Exercises in Ukraine
The U.S. Defense Department has announced upcoming multinational military exercises inside Ukraine. The U.S.-led drill later this month in western Ukraine marks the first deployment of American ground troops to the nation since Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea in March and subsequent hostilities between Ukrainian troops and...
Russia Accuses Ukraine Forces in Journalist’s Death
Russian officials say Ukrainian forces are responsible for the “barbarous” killing of a Russian photojournalist and are demanding an investigation. Russia’s Investigative Committee on Wednesday confirmed the death of Andrei Stenin, 33. The committee said it believed Stenin was killed August 6 while covering the armed conflict in...
Eurozone Business Grew at Slowest Rate in August
Eurozone business grew at the slowest rate this year in August and retail sales declined in July, surveys showed on Wednesday. In its monthly survey, the closely watched financial information company Markit highlighted escalating tension between Russia and Ukraine as the main factor in declining business activity across the 18-country Eurozone....
Putin Hails Soviet Victory Over Japan, Courts Mongolia
Russian President Vladimir Putin cited a 1939 Soviet victory over the Japanese army as a foundation of relations with Mongolia during a visit to Ulan Bator on Wednesday, despite a risk of upsetting Tokyo. Putin’s reference to the battles of Khalkhin Gol could be seen in Tokyo as a jibe following Japan’s sanctions on Russia over the...
NATO Leaders Meet Amid Array of Crises
The 28 NATO leaders are gathering in Wales, in western Britain, for their first summit in two years, amid a new and challenging array of crises. In 2012 in Chicago, they focused on Afghanistan, and continued the decades-long process of redefining the alliance for the post-Cold War world. They discussed issues like nuclear weapons proliferation,...
Switzerland Tops Economic Competitiveness Survey
A new report by the World Economic Forum ranks Switzerland as the most competitive country in the world, followed by Singapore and the United States. As in previous years, countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Chad, Guinea and Burundi hold up the bottom of the 144 countries surveyed in this latest edition of The Global Competitiveness, which...
Obama Stresses NATO Commitment to Baltics
President Barack Obama condemned Russia’s intervention in Ukraine Wednesday as a “brazen assault” on the country’s integrity and assured three former Soviet satellite states that NATO would defend them against any aggression by Moscow. Obama said that Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia had lost their independence before to...
Putin, Poroshenko Find Common Ground on Ukraine Crisis
A Russian official said President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, largely agree on what needs to be done to resolve the Ukraine crisis. Russian news agencies quote presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying the two leaders exchanged views in a phone conversation on ways to stop the “bloodshed” in...
Obama Arrives in Estonia to Reassure Baltic States
President Barack Obama is in Estonia to reassure it and the other Baltic states that the United States will help defend them against any Russian aggression. Obama arrived early Wednesday for a full day of meetings, first with Estonia’s president and later with leaders of the other Baltic republics, Latvia and Lithuania. Obama stopped here...
NATO to Prepare for Russia’s Next Move
NATO is preparing for what many are calling one of the alliance’s most important summits in many years. When member leaders meet later this week in Wales, they are expected to take strong actions to form a new force that can act swiftly to handle what many see as Russian aggression. The charred remains of a Ukrainian military convoy –...
