As he enters his seventh year at the nation’s helm, President Barack Obama put forward an agenda he said will strengthen national and global security.
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As he enters his seventh year at the nation’s helm, President Barack Obama put forward an agenda he said will strengthen national and global security.
A British soldier has been charged for allegedly breaking into a local family’s home and sexually abusing their six-year-old daughter, Austrian prosecutors have said.
Russian Officials Riled by Obama's State of the Union Addressby By Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber
U.S. President Barack Obama's claim that Western sanctions have isolated Russia and left its economy "in tatters" at his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday has ruffled feathers among Russia's political elite.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said Wednesday that Russia had 9,000 troops on Ukrainian soil supporting separatist forces there and he called on Moscow to withdraw them.
Russian ministers presented President Vladimir Putin with a 1.375 trillion ruble ($21 billion) anti-crisis plan on Wednesday.
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US, Cuba Begin Historic Talks on Restoring Relationsby webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
Two days of talks between the United States and Cuba aimed at ending more than 50 years of Cold War-era hostility begin Wednesday in Havana. The meetings are taking place one month after President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced, on Dec. 17, the two countries were prepared to reestablish formal diplomatic relations. Wednesday's opening round will focus on immigration, especially Washington's long-standing policy of allowing Cubans to stay in the United States once they step foot on American soil. Thursday's session will be devoted to diplomatic issues, including the reopening of U.S. and Cuban embassies in the two nation's capitals. Both sides are expected to outline longer-term goals as well, including the U.S. economic embargo on Cuba first imposed in 1961, and Washington's designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism. A senior Cuban foreign ministry official cautioned that restoring diplomatic ties with the U.S. wouldn't immediately lead to a full relationship between the Cold War foes. "Cuba isn't normalizing relations with the United States. Cuba is re-establishing diplomatic relations with the United States. The normalization of relations is a much longer process and much more complicated process," the official told reporters, speaking on condition of anonymity. The message appeared designed to lower expectations for the two days of meetings. US delegation The U.S. delegation will be headed by Roberta Jacobson, the assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs. Jacobson's visit is the first by a senior American diplomat in Cuba in more than three decades. Cuba will be represented by Josefina Vidal, the head of the foreign ministry's U.S. affairs department. Obama defended his administration's initiative to normalize relations with Cuba during his annual State of the Union speech before Congress Tuesday, saying it had the "potential to end a legacy of mistrust in our hemisphere." But the Republican-led Congress has denounced the overture toward Cuba, and is unlikely to to lift the embargo against the Communist-led island nation. Obama has the executive authority to restore diplomatic ties but needs the Congress to lift the economic embargo. Last month's breakthrough occurred after several months of secret negotiations that also involved the Catholic Church. The talks led to Havana's release of U.S. contractor Alan Gross after five years behind bars. Last week, Cuba released 53 political prisoners, followed by the Obama administration easing some travel and trade restrictions. Some material for this report came from Reuters, AP and AFP.
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Residents lament their damaged homes after heavy shelling in and around the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk over the past few days. A rebel spokesman says on Wednesday that in the previous 24 hours five people were killed and 30 were wounded. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov says he does not want to see the start of a new cold war and says he has seen no evidence to suggest Russians are arming rebel troops or fighting in eastern Ukraine Continue reading...
Russian Lawmakers Zero In on Foreign Undesirablesby By Anna Dolgov and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber
Russia's parliament has given preliminary approval to a bill that would prohibit the activities of so-called "undesirable" foreign companies and organizations in Russia.
The spokesman for the Russian Orthodox Church harshly criticized director Andrei Zvyagintsev's award-winning film "Leviathan," suggesting it was meant "to please the West."
Заложники валютной ипотеки by Радио Свобода
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Заложники валютной ипотеки. По всей России проходят протестные акции (от одиночных пикетов до многочисленн...
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From: Радио Свобода
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Staunton, January 21 – Since Moscow’s Anschluss of Crimea almost a year ago, many in Russia, Ukraine and the West have asked not only why Vladimir Putin has chosen the path of aggression, but also why he has chosen it now rather than at some other time and what his timing says about his broader plans for the future.
Some have suggested that it reflects simply a desire to save himself by “a short victorious war.” Others have said that his moves are a reflection of his assumption that no Western leader will stand up to him. And still others that the Kremlin leader is animated by a sense of his own greatness as the latest “ingatherer of the Russian lands.”
Now that it has become clear that the Kremlin leader is stepping up the level of Russian aggression in Ukraine by sending additional men and materiel into Ukraine in an effort to end the stalemate that had been emerging between pro-Moscow and Ukrainian forces there, analysts are again asking Why now? and What does Putin’s timing presage for the future?
Today, as reported by Kseniya Kirillova, Nikolay Vorobyev, a Ukrainian analyst now living in Washington, provides six reasons for Putin’s latest moves, reasons that he says were “predictable” if not always taken seriously.
The six are:
- The Russian economy. Putin and his entourage “are beginning to understand that the economic problems” Russia faces now are fundamentally different and much worse than those of 2008. They are “serious and long-term,” and consequently, the Kremlin wants to divert Russian attention from those to a foreign enemy lest protests against itself start up.
- The European Union. It is no clear that “no one intends to lift the sanctions against the Russian Federation” anytime soon. As a result, Vorobyev says, “Putin decided to launch an asymmetrical military strike not only against Ukraine but also to ‘show his teeth’ to the entire West,” lest the West disconnect Russia from the SWIFT banking system or do something else.
- The Minsk Agreements. Neither Moscow nor its clients in the Donetsk or Luhansk is going to observe the September 5 accords. “Putin needs a new Minsk and new accords that will be even more unfavorable for Ukraine.” Therefore, his ‘force them to peace’ effort began earlier than planned.
- The Donetsk airport. The airport had become “a symbol of the steadfast nature of Ukrainian forces” and at the same time a very public indication of the weakness of the Russian side. That was too much for Putin and those around him and consequently, Vorobyev says, Moscow decided to intervene more massively and publicly than before.
- The United States. Not only is military assistance beginning to reach Ukraine, but the prospects are that there will be more of it now that the Republicans control Congress and Senator John McCain heads the defense committee. As a result, the situation for Russia in Ukraine is likely to worsen, and “the Kremlin decided to attack now.
- Financial Assistance to Ukraine. The IMF, the World Bank and the US are beginning to provide the level of assistance to Kyiv that may allow Ukraine to avoid a default. Given that “the main goal of the Kremlin today is to weaken the economy as much as possible” before that aid arrives, Putin decided to move.
Given all these factors, Vorobyev says, “Ukraine today as never before must show the maximum of firmness, patience and solidarity.” What is happening now recalls the events in the Maidan last February 18-19, he says, and “we all know the result” of that for Ukraine and for its future.
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 СЕГОДНЯ |
Россия оказывает прямую военную помощь боевикам – командующий сухопутными войсками США
СЕГОДНЯ Россия оказывает прямую военную помощь боевикам, действующим на востоке Украины. Об этом заявил командующий сухопутными войсками США в Европе генерал-лейтенант Бен Ходжес. "Абсолютно ясно наличие прямой помощи от России, и что она воюет против украинских сил", ... и другие » |
Provincial Rebel Leader Turns Yemen Power Brokerby webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
When Shi'ite Muslim fighters defeated presidential guards and tightened their grip on Sana'a this week, it cemented the role of their shrewd, practical young leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi as Yemen's predominant power broker. His Houthi movement, founded by his elder brother over a decade ago and named for the family, has controlled the capital since September after winning a series of battles with army units and Sunni tribes in its northern heartland. Yet despite the Houthis' effective dominance of Yemen in recent months, little is known of their commander, who rarely appears in public or gives press interviews, but whose few speeches reveal a gift for political opportunism. Zaydi Shi'ites The group was formed to fight for the interests of the Zaydi Shi'ites, a minority sect that ruled a 1,000-year kingdom in Yemen until 1962 but considered themselves threatened under long-serving ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh, himself a Zaydi. The fighters took on the family's name after Abdel-Malek's brother Hossein al-Houthi was killed in battle against Saleh's forces in 2004. Their senior leadership remains shrouded in obscurity, while their ultimate goals, willingness to compromise on ideology and links to Shi'ite power Iran remain a source of nervous speculation in the West and neighboring Gulf states. Abdel-Malek al-Houthi, in his early 30s, originally won his reputation as a tough, efficient battlefield commander in the group's series of six wars as a rebel movement fighting Saleh's forces. But since mass protests in 2011, he has positioned himself as a revolutionary national leader, claiming the mantle of the demonstrators who flocked Sana'a's streets four years ago demanding an end to corruption and dictatorial government. After Houthi forces and allied militias calling themselves the "popular committees" took control of Sana'a four months ago, he claimed no formal position, but forced President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to install a new government. Displayed across Sana'a, the group's slogan "Death to America, Death to Israel" was modeled on Iran's revolutionary motto, and many Yemenis drew parallels between the Houthis and another of Iran's Shi'ite proteges -- Lebanon's Hezbollah. Leaders share similarities That comparison extends to their leaders, with analysts pointing to similarities between Abdel-Malek al-Houthi and Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah in terms of how they use media and even how they structure their speeches. While Hezbollah's close relationship with Iran is firmly established, less is known about Houthi reliance on Tehran, although there is a widespread impression that it is growing. Yemeni and Iranian officials said Iran supplied military and financial support to Houthi forces both before and after their takeover of Sana'a. A senior Houthi official denied this. A senior Iranian official told Reuters last year the pace of money and arms getting to the Houthis had increased since their seizure of Sana'a. Nevertheless, Zaydi Shi'ism is very different to the version practiced in either Lebanon or Iran and the Houthi leader has shown himself highly pragmatic, rather than ideologically driven, in making political alliances. The September capture of Sana'a is widely thought to have involved a measure of cooperation with former president Saleh, a once intractable enemy of the Houthis, and a sign of the group's ideological fluidity. 'Ability as a commander' That practical approach to politics may have been learnt by Abdel-Malek during his long years as a guerrilla commander, when he won the support of his troops by promoting commanders based on results instead of their status or ideology. "His ability as a commander is what has made him popular," said Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a longtime supporter of the movement. His military experience may also have been responsible for his ultra-cautious approach to security. He is known for rarely staying long in one place, for never meeting press and for an extreme reluctance to make scheduled public appearances. Even his inner circle -- bar one or two names -- is kept a secret. That is because he "does not want them to get hurt," said Mohammed Azzem, a noted Yemeni intellectual who has known Abdel-Malek al-Houthi since the leader was a child. Only 11 years ago there was nothing to suggest the then-23-year-old would so quickly become the most powerful man in a country where experience and seniority were traditionally the main qualifications for leadership. His father, Badr al-Din al-Houthi, a Zaydi scholar, had founded a religious revivalist group to stop conservative Sunni ideas, funded from Saudi Arabia, spreading in countryside around the family's poor northern city of Saadeh. Abdel-Malek, the youngest of Badr al-Din's eight sons, was then a quiet, hardworking religious student, a "simple guy," who ran errands for his elderly father, Azzem said. Instead, it was an older brother Hossein, a member of parliament, who built the movement into a political and military force, turning to arms after Saleh's government put a price on his head and sent the army to Saadeh. Saleh accused the Houthis of trying to overturn Yemen's 1962 revolution and rebuild the Zaydi imamate that had ruled the highlands for a thousand years -- something many of the country's Sunnis still fear. When Hossein was killed in battle in 2004 the baton was passed to his father Badr al-Din and then, when he died in 2005, to Abdel-Malek.
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You Say Crimea, They Say Tauridaby noreply@rferl.org (Tom Balmforth)
For some Russian officials, annexing Crimea wasn't enough. Now some want to change its name.
Poroshenko Demands Russian Troops Leave Ukraineby noreply@rferl.org (RFE/RL)
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has accused Russia of sending more than 9,000 troops into Ukrainian territory and has demanded that they leave.
Afghan Parliament Rejects Cabinet Nominees Over Dual Citizenship by webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
Afghanistan's parliament said on Wednesday it will not confirm seven out of 25 nominees to a long-awaited cabinet because they hold dual citizenship, another obstacle to President Ashraf Ghani forming a government after nearly four months in office. Candidates in jeopardy include Nur al-Haq Ulumi, nominated for the key security post of minister of interior, as well as the nominee for foreign minister, Salahuddin Rabbani. The delay in naming new ministers has added to uncertainty after Afghanistan's destabilizing election dispute last year that threatened to deepen ethnic and regional rivalries. Lack of new security leadership also undermines the fight against Taliban insurgents, who have taken advantage of the withdrawal of most foreign troops last year. Ghani took three months to hammer out a cabinet list with his chief executive, Abdullah Abdullah, who shares control over appointments under a deal following last year's bitterly disputed election. The cabinet was introduced to parliament this week to begin confirmation proceedings, but on Wednesday the lower house sent a letter to Ghani saying seven of the nominees were ineligible, said Sediq Ahmad Usmani, deputy speaker of the house. "They have failed to drop their second nationalities," said Usmani, who chaired Wednesday's parliamentary hearings on the cabinet. Afghanistan's constitution stipulates that ministers must hold only Afghan citizenship. A member of one of the parliamentary committees vetting the cabinet, Abdul Hafiz Mansour, said that all lawmakers on the committees had signed a letter to the presidential palace saying the seven holding dual nationalities could not be put to a vote. "The palace should decide whether they introduce new faces, or these nominees can drop their second nationalities," Mansour said. A vote on the cabinet is expected in the next week. The development is a quandary for Ghani and Abdullah, who promised to fill their cabinet with educated technocrats instead of the old establishment that held sway under former president Hamid Karzai. Many Afghans with higher degrees hold second passports because they lived abroad during Afghanistan's decades of war before and during the Taliban's hardline Islamist rule that was toppled by the U.S.-led intervention in 2001. Ulumi, the prospective interior minister, holds Dutch citizenship, and Rabbani has a British passport, according to lawmaker Mansour. Neither nominee could be reached for comment. Also ineligible because of dual citizenship are the nominees for the ministries of culture and information; urban development; labor and social affairs; justice; and counter-narcotics, the lawmakers said.
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Russia Says no Proof it Sent Troops, Arms to East Ukraineby webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sought to fend off fresh accusations from Kyiv that Moscow is sending soldiers and weapons to Ukraine and said he hoped for progress at talks on the conflict on Wednesday despite renewed fighting. Kyiv accused Russian regular forces on Tuesday of attacking its troops in eastern Ukraine, one of its boldest assertions yet that Russia's military is directly involved in a conflict in which more than 4,800 people have died since last April. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday that Russia had 9,000 troops in Ukraine and demanded their withdrawal. "I say every time: if you allege this so confidently, present the facts. But nobody can present the facts, or doesn't want to," Lavrov told a news conference before heading to peace talks in Berlin with the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Germany and France. "So before demanding from us that we stop doing something, please present proof that we have done it." However, Lavrov acknowledged that the pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine were holding more territory than assigned to them under a ceasefire agreement reached last September in Minsk, capital of Belarus. Fighting in eastern Ukraine increased sharply this month, leaving the cease-fire in tatters. The leaders of Germany and France have refused to meet Russia's President Vladimir Putin to discuss the crisis until Moscow ensures progress on the truce. Lavrov said Russia had received assurances from the separatists that they would retreat to the separation lines agreed last September. He did not say when this might happen. Kiev says rebels have seized more than 500 square km (194 square miles) of land beyond the agreed lines. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday she hoped the four-way talks in Berlin could help implement the elusive cease-fire but warned against expecting too much. Lavrov said he hoped the talks would lead to a summit of the four countries' leaders. Russia has said the talks should put pressure on Kiev to engage in direct talks with the separatists and push through constitutional reforms giving eastern Ukraine more autonomy. Lavrov said Moscow believes the largely Russian-speaking eastern regions should remain within Ukraine. "We hope the contacts to be held in the foreseeable future at various levels and in various formats will help move ahead in this direction," he added.
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President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday backed the creation of a sector-spanning space corporation designed to revitalize the commercial rocket industry and advance Russia's growing cosmic ambitions.
 Вести.Ru |
МИД РФ: Сравнение ситуации на Украине с Курилами вызывает недоумение
Российская Газета Сравнение ситуации на Украине с проблемой Курильских островов вызывает недоумение. Так в МИД России отреагировали на заявление министра иностранных дел Японии Фумио Кисида, который в ходе своего визита в Бельгию провел аналогию между двумя ситуациями. "Вызывают ... МИД напомнил Японии о Второй мировойДни.Ру МИД РФ упрекнул японского министра в попытке перевернуть историю Второй мировойНТВ.ru МИД выразил недоумение сравнением Японией ситуации на Украине с проблемой КурилГазета.Ru Вести.Ru -РИА Новости -Взгляд Все похожие статьи: 35 » |
Israeli police say a Palestinian man has stabbed at least 11 people who were on or near a city bus, leaving several critically wounded, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Jan. 21, 2015.
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