Kremlin Official: US Using Ukraine to Weaken Russia
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Kremlin Official: US Using Ukraine to Weaken Russia by webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
A ranking Kremlin official has accused the United States of attempting to drag Russia into the Ukraine conflict with the aim of weakening Moscow and effecting regime change, according to excerpts of an interview published Tuesday by a Russian government daily. “For the U.S., Ukraine in and of itself is not a matter of interest. Their aim is to weaken our positions. The Americans are trying to drag the Russian Federation into an international military conflict, and with the help of events in Ukraine, bring about regime change [in Moscow] and ultimately dismember our country,” Rossiyskaya Gazeta quoted Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Kremlin's Security Council, as saying. Citing a Russian mantra which sees the United States as envying Russia for its territories, Patrushev also said Washington was eyeing the country’s energy resources. “American experts… believe that Moscow has too many vast territories under its control. They see such a distribution of natural resources as unfair and believe that steps should be taken which would provide other states with free access to them,” Patrushev said. Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin said that, despite current challenges, Russia will continue to pursue a foreign policy defending its own interests. “The Russian Federation, no matter how much [external] pressure it faces, will continue to pursue an independent foreign policy, one that represents the fundamental interests of our people and is in line with global security and stability,” said Putin in a message Tuesday to diplomats and Foreign Ministry employees published by the Kremlin on what in Russia is observed as Foreign Service Day. The statements come a day after President Barack Obama, at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said that the U.S., along with its European allies, was giving diplomacy another chance to settle the conflict in eastern Ukraine. However, he did not rule out the option of providing defensive weapons for Ukraine in its conflict with pro-Russia separatist rebels in the country’s east, should diplomatic efforts fail. The idea of providing lethal aid to Kyiv is currently being debated in Washington. Another round of peace talks between the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France is scheduled for Wednesday in Minsk, Belarus. Kyiv and the West accuse Russia of having instigated the conflict as part of efforts to destabilize Ukraine in retribution for its toppling of a Moscow-backed president and for its new pro-Europe course. Russia denies the charge.
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A U.S. Senate committee has backed President Barack Obama's pick to run the Pentagon.
Journalist Ruslan Kotsaba, arrested after refusing to fight in video addressed to Petro Poroshenko, is among many weary of conflict that has killed 5,000
Ruslan Kotsaba posted a video addressed to the Ukrainian president, Petro Poroshenko, last week in which he said he would rather go to prison for five years for draft-dodging than fight pro-Russia rebels in the country’s east. Now he faces 15 years in jail after being arrested for treason and obstructing the military.
His case is symptomatic of Kiev’s difficulties in mobilising a war-weary society to continue the fight against the rebels, who appear to have an unlimited supply of weapons and training from Russia. As the country nears bankruptcy and the reform programme demanded by the Maidan revolution last year is sidelined by the war effort, the drive to call up new recruits is floundering.
Why are ordinary people being called up to fight against terrorists?
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Russian and Egyptian leaders find much to admire in each other, especially hostility to Islamism
Shifting Focus in Ebola Countriesby webdesk@voanews.com (Joe DeCapua)
An organization providing medical assistance to Ebola-affected countries is expanding its operations to include other health needs. Direct Relief is taking the action as fewer new Ebola cases are reported. From the early days of the West Africa Ebola outbreak, Direct Relief has been sending emergency medical supplies to the region. So far, it’s sent 40 shipments of medical aid worth $25 million dollars. The organization gets its supplies directly from pharmaceutical companies for use in poor countries. Andrew MacCalla, Direct Relief’s director of international programs and emergency response, said, “Direct Relief has been one of the largest, if not the largest, and one of the earliest providers of medical assistance into West Africa since the outbreak came about.” Direct Relief has delivered most of the supplies to Liberia and Sierra Leone, where they were distributed to about 1,000 hospitals and clinics. The organization works with the governments, as well as many NGOs in the affected countries. “The first planeload was mostly the basic personal protective gear for folks treating Ebola patients. And then as it’s dwindling a bit over there we’re now kind of shifting our focus more towards the essential health care commodities, the essential medications for just restoring the health system that’s been so devastated by Ebola,” he said. There had been many calls prior to the Ebola outbreak to upgrade healthcare systems in Africa. It most places it did not happen. The epidemic showed just how fragile the health systems were. MacCalla said, “As we know, this was an area that already had some major struggles in its health delivery system after coming off civil wars and very low doctor-to-patient ratios and extremely high maternal mortality rates. So, when Ebola came about and came to be such a big issue so much of the already lacking health supplies and doctors were diverted towards Ebola. So then what you had was normal, everyday medical things became a much lower priority.” He said there have been higher rates of malaria and tuberculosis, as well as other health concerns. “We’re keeping an eye on the Ebola outbreak and know that it needs to get to zero, but really wanting to focus back on things that have been almost forgotten about -- the moms that are pregnant that need to deliver babies safely will a skilled birth attendant. So we’re providing 250 midwife kits for midwives around the country.” There’s still a shortage of basic medical supplies. “In this most recent plane that just landed last week, we sent things specifically requested by the ministries of health and the CDC to go into medical clinics in Liberia and Sierra Leone essentially just to be able to reopen them. They’ve had such a drain out of basic supplies like gloves and masks and gowns and bleach and basic medications that we pre-packaged a hundred facility kits – that’s about 50 tons of stuff – to essentially reopen a hundred clinics,” he said. The goal, MacCalla said, is to support the people who live and work in Liberia and Sierra Leone. “We’re committed there. The ministries of health have asked us to remain there and we will do so. We’re there for the long run.” The Direct Relief official said Liberia and Sierra Leone can be rebuilt after the Ebola crisis. He says it will take focus, funding, awareness, medical training and upgraded health facilities.
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The Foreign Secretary strongly suggests that the UK could be prepared to assist the Ukrainian government in its fight against pro-Russian forces
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Трагедия в Краматорске by Радио Свобода
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Главная военная прокуратура Украины возбудила уголовное дело по статье «теракт» по факту обстрела города...
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From: Радио Свобода
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| Time: 03:06 | More in News & Politics |
Leaders set for Minsk talks on Ukraine ceasefireby Ian Traynor in Brussels and Shaun Walker in Moscow
Fighting continues in Kramatorsk and Mariupol before summit billed as last chance to prevent conflict from spiralling out of control
Russian, Ukrainian, German and French officials as well as separatist leaders and officials from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe are locked in talks in Minsk trying to smooth the way for a summit deal leading to the demilitarisation of eastern Ukraine.
The leaders of the four countries are expected to meet in the Belarusian capital on Wednesday in an attempt to secure a ceasefire in the region, where pro-Russia separatists have been expanding the territory under their control in recent weeks.
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As the Paris attacks and anti-Islam Pegida marches in Germany have spread division and fear among followers of different faiths in Europe, a revolutionary project in Switzerland is uniting eight religions.
Amateur footage purports to show a rocket strike on the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk. The video, shot from the window of a nearby house, shows a series of explosions in the distance. Rocket strikes hit Ukraine's military headquarters and a nearby residential area in Kramatorsk on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko. Regional police said at least three civilians were killed in the strike Continue reading...
Source: French Rafale Fighter Jet Sale to Egypt ‘Imminent’by webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
The sale of 24 Dassault Aviation-built Rafale fighter jets to Egypt is “imminent,” a French source said, adding that the French and Egyptian defense ministries, and Dassault were holding technical talks on Tuesday. Two industrial sources have told Reuters that Cairo is looking to buy 24 Rafale jets, a Fremm naval frigate and MBDA missiles in a deal worth 5 billion to 6 billion euros ($5.65-$6.78 billion). “It will happen. It's imminent. For me the signature is certain,” the source close to the matter said, adding that it was not clear if the deal would be sealed “this week or next week.” Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has approved the deal, Le Monde newspaper reported on Tuesday. Despite exclusive negotiations with India for the last three years, Dassault has until now not found a foreign buyer for its multi-role Rafale, billed to be one of the most effective and sophisticated fighter jets in the world, but also one of the most expensive. A second source, close to French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, said talks were due to conclude in “several days,” but said that Paris had not received any official confirmation from the Egyptian presidency. Officials from Egypt's army and the presidency could not immediately be reached for comment. Dassault declined to comment, but its chief executive, Eric Trappier, told Le Figaro in comments published on Saturday that its first export deal was close to being agreed. The Fremm frigate is built by state-controlled DCNS, which is 35 percent owned by defense electronics group Thales . MBDA is a joint venture of Airbus Group, the UK's BAE Systems and Italy's Finmeccanica. ($1 = 0.8864 euros)
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Депутаты фракции Ляшко предложили Раде дать добро на разрыв дипотношений с Россией
УНИАН В Верховной Раде зарегистрирован проект постановления о временном прекращении дипломатических отношений Украины с Российской Федерацией. REUTERS. Как отмечается на сайте парламента, проект подали народные депутаты от Радикальной партии Дмитрий Линько и ... Украина угрожает разорвать дипломатические отношения с РоссиейПравда.Ру Ляшко: Президент нарушил коалиционное соглашение, вынеся кандидатуру ШокинаСЕГОДНЯ Ляшко обвинил Порошенко в попытках развалить правящую коалициюНТВ.ru Аргументы и факты -Интерфакс - Украина -Полит.ру Все похожие статьи: 96 » |
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Hearing told Dmitry Kovtun’s first marriage collapsed due to alcohol abuse and hanging around Hamburg’s red-light district looking to work in sex industry
One of the two Russians who allegedly murdered Alexander Litvinenko was a heavy drinker who drifted between badly paid jobs and dreamed of being a porn star, the inquiry into Litvinenko’s death has heard.
Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoi – who allegedly poisoned Litvinenko in November 2006 – were childhood friends who attended the same military academy, the inquiry was told. Both came from army families. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Kovtun was serving at Parchim in communist east Germany.
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Foreign secretary Philip Hammond says Germany is best placed to hold peace negotiations with Kremlin
The British foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, has defended the government against accusations that it has taken a back seat in negotiations with Russia to find a solution to the crisis in Ukraine.
He told MPs in the Commons the government’s policy was to provide non-lethal assistance to Ukraine and that the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, was best placed to engage in negotiations with the Kremlin.
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 ValueWalk |
Russia To Help Iran Attack Saudi Arabia If U.S. Arms Ukraine [REPORT]
ValueWalk President Barack Obama confirmed Monday that the U.S. was weighing the possibility of providing lethal arms to Ukraine if peace talks with Russia fail. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will hold a meeting with ... Obama confirms arming Ukraine on the table if diplomacy with Russia failsFox News After Merkel Meet, Obama Not Sold On 'Proxy War' With RussiaForbes Obama: Russia cannot be allowed to redraw borders 'at the barrel of a gun'MSNBC New York Times -The Guardian all 7,608 news articles » |
 РИА Новости |
Туск пригласил Порошенко обсудить ситуацию в Донбассе на заседании ЕС
РИА Новости Туск и Порошенко обсудили ситуацию на востоке страны. Порошенко выразил надежду на урегулирование ситуации путем дипломатических переговоров на встрече в Минске в среду. Дональд Туск. Архивное фото. © AP Photo/ Alik Keplicz. КИЕВ, 10 фев — РИА Новости. Председатель ... Дональд Туск пригласил президента Украины к участию в заседании Европейского СоветаГазета.Ru Туск пригласил Порошенко на заседание Европейского Совета в средуУНИАН Порошенко пригласили на заседание Европейского СоветаMail.Ru ЛІГА.net -РБК Украина -Корреспондент.net Все похожие статьи: 44 » |
President Barack Obama and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany participate in a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House, Feb. 9, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
President Obama hosted German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House earlier today, holding a bilateral meeting and a working lunch to discuss some of our countries' most pressing issues.
"Germany is one of our strongest allies, so whenever we meet, it's an opportunity to coordinate closely on a whole range of issues critical to our shared security and prosperity," President Obama said in a joint press conference. "As Angela and our German friends prepare to host the G7 this spring, it's also important for us to be able to coordinate on a set of shared goals."
And I just want to emphasize here once again for the benefit not just of the American people but for the German people, we are not looking for Russia to fail. We are not looking for Russia to be surrounded and contained and weakened. Our preference is for a strong, prosperous, vibrant, confident Russia that can be a partner with us on a whole host of global challenges. And that’s how I operated throughout my first term in office.
Unfortunately, Russia has made a decision that I think is bad for them strategically, bad for Europe, bad for the world. And in the face of this aggression and these bad decisions, we can’t simply try to talk them out of it. We have to show them that the world is unified in imposing a cost for this aggression. And that’s what we’re going to continue to do.
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Fighting has continued in eastern Ukraine as both sides try to make gains before a possible deal in Minsk, Belarus, which is being billed as a last chance to prevent further escalation of the conflict. Kramatorsk, well inside Kiev-controlled territory, was hit with rockets as Ukrainian forces staged an offensive around the key port city of Mariupol and rebels attempted to encircle several thousand Ukrainian troops in Debaltseve
Continue reading... Российская Газета |
Николай Патрушев: США пытаются втянуть Россию в военный конфликт
Российская Газета Николай Патрушев: Для США Украина сама по себе не интересна, их цель - ослабить наши позиции. Фото: Алексей Никольский/ РИА Новости www.ria.ru. Накануне минской встречи на высшем уровне по урегулированию ситуации на Украине секретарь Совета безопасности России ... Патрушев: ИГИЛ разросся при попустительстве СШАНТВ.ru Патрушев назвал ИГ результатом политики СШАLenta.ru Патрушев: финпомощь Запада Украине не даст результатовГазета.Ru Полит.ру -ИА REGNUM -РИА Новости Все похожие статьи: 168 » |
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На совместной пресс-конференции руководители обеих стран подчеркнули, что у конфликта в Украине может...
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From: Голос Америки
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| Time: 03:16 | More in News & Politics |
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