
Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted this week that Western sanctions placed on Russia’s banks and oligarchs have damaged the nation’s economy, but he is confident Russia will remain strong and continue to grow.
by Mary Chastain28 Apr 2015, 10:19 AM PST0

Russian authorities arrested three women for dancing suggestively in front of a World War II memorial and posting the video on YouTube.
by Mary Chastain27 Apr 2015, 10:39 AM PST0

Ukraine and Turkey have jointly proposed elevating the level of defense cooperation between the two. A Ukrainian delegation recently traveled to Ankara to put plans together.
by Mary Chastain27 Apr 2015, 9:26 AM PST0

A Buzzfeed report claims Russian President Vladimir Putin once recommended action movie star Steven Seagal as an official intermediary between himself and President Obama, following years of public friendship between Seagal and the Russian head of state.
by Mary Chastain24 Apr 2015, 6:15 AM PST0

A Russian biker gang with close ties to President Vladimir Putin, the Night Wolves, announced a victory ride from Moscow to Berlin to celebrate VE Day. The trip is almost 3,750 miles and will pass through Poland, Czech Republic, and Austria. Polish authorities lashed out at the journey, which celebrates the Soviet military.
by Mary Chastain15 Apr 2015, 4:51 PM PST0

The Russian government has added questions on the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea and the legacy of Josef Stalin to its already rigorous exam for any migrant seeking residency permits. The exam includes questions on “Russian history, language, and civics.”
by Mary Chastain7 Apr 2015, 10:41 AM PST0

Anonymous International released over 40,000 text messages allegedly hacked from a Russian official showing Russia offering money to France’s National Front (FN) party if the party’s leader, Marine Le Pen, endorsed the annexation of Crimea.
by Mary Chastain6 Apr 2015, 9:17 AM PST0

China to sell eight advanced submarines to Pakistan, encircling India; As Russia-Saudi relations deteriorate, Egypt tries a middle road; Greece turns to Russia and China, amid reports of imminent default
by John J. Xenakis4 Apr 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

A report surfacing after Russia’s celebration of the one-year annexation of Crimea claims Russian officials warned that any Western attempt to reclaim Crimea “would trigger a Russian response, possibly involving nuclear force.”
by Mary Chastain2 Apr 2015, 6:58 PM PST0

North Korea suggested Russian schoolchildren vacation at North Korean youth camps. This is the latest attempt between the two countries to build a strong relationship.
by Mary Chastain1 Apr 2015, 1:07 PM PST0

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty with South Ossetia, a breakaway region of Georgia, that allows Russia to fully control the region. The pact with South Ossetian President Leonid Tibilov, a former KGB agent, came on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
by Mary Chastain19 Mar 2015, 10:50 AM PST0

One year ago today, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the decree that officially acknowledged Crimea’s independence and claimed the peninsula as Russian territory. To commemorate the conquest of Crimea, the State Museum of Contemporary Russian History chose to display the pen Russian President Vladimir Putin used to sign the annexation bill.
by Mary Chastain18 Mar 2015, 11:12 AM PST0

U.S. Army soldiers will soon embark on a 1,100-mile convoy through six European countries near Russia to show support for allies in the region, according to Army officials.
by Edwin Mora17 Mar 2015, 4:04 PM PST0

Putin’s return leaves more questions than answers for Russia; The talking points of the Russian and Chinese internet trolls; Oil prices continue to crash
by John J. Xenakis17 Mar 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

Fears grow of Shia revenge killings in Iraq; Russia plans military development, including nuclear weapons, in Crimea
by John J. Xenakis12 Mar 2015, 6:08 AM PST0

(Reuters) – Russia has the right to deploy nuclear arms in the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine last year, a Foreign Ministry official said on Wednesday, adding he knew of no plans to do so.
by Reuters11 Mar 2015, 6:36 AM PST0

Vladimir Putin brags about how he lied about Russia’s invasion of Crimea; Europe to Greece: Stop wasting time and get serious about reforms
by John J. Xenakis10 Mar 2015, 6:06 AM PST0

For the first time in the year since the conquest, Russian President Vladimir Putin explained in the documentary “Homeward Bound” the exact plan he concocted to capture Crimea out of Ukrainian possession. He also went into detail regarding how Russian soldiers prepared to rescue ousted pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.
by Mary Chastain9 Mar 2015, 2:02 PM PST0

(Reuters) – The U.S. military estimates around 12,000 Russian soldiers are supporting pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine, U.S. Army Europe Commander Ben Hodges said on Tuesday.
by Reuters4 Mar 2015, 6:23 AM PST0

Asked while providing congressional testimony whether Russia had lied to the public and the United States regarding whether its troops were present in Eastern Ukraine, Secretary of State John Kerry answered for the first time in the affirmative, implying that he had previously believed Moscow even though journalists provided evidence of Russians on the ground in almost every month of 2014.
by Mary Chastain24 Feb 2015, 5:49 PM PST0

Anthem health insurance data breach puts millions of children at risk; Putin gloats over humiliating Russian victory over Ukraine; China, Russia, Syria: The ‘Salami Slicing Strategy’
by John J. Xenakis19 Feb 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

Taliban claims responsibility for bombing in Lahore, Pakistan; Russians ignore Ukraine ‘ceasefire’ as 5,000 Ukrainian troops are trapped; New Zealand debating military help for Iraq against ISIS
by John J. Xenakis18 Feb 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

According to Bishop Jacek Pyl, the Vatican does not officially recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea, and still considers his diocese as part of the Catholic Church in Ukraine.
by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.13 Feb 2015, 11:11 AM PST0

On February 4, Norwegian’s Police Security Service (PST) confirmed that Chinese and Russian spies were “actively spying within Norwegian borders.”
by AWR Hawkins6 Feb 2015, 12:15 PM PST0

ISIS-linked terrorists kill dozens in Egypt’s northern Sinai; Russia looks to Greece as an ally against EU sanctions; Greece forces compromise in planned new EU sanctions against Russia
by John J. Xenakis30 Jan 2015, 6:26 AM PST0