• German Foreign Minister: Ukraine needs a zero tolerance policy on corruption

    On the 23rd of February, at the talks in Kiev, the Foreign Ministers of Germany and France called on the Ukrainian authorities to uproot corruption and to adopt electoral law in the regions of the Donbas controlled by separatists as soon as possible.

    “It is necessary to push ahead with the implementation of economic reforms. However, it is extremely important that this policy is based on a zero tolerance for corruption,” the Foreign Minister of France, Frank-Walter Steinmeier stated during the …

  • Klimkin: There has been no progress in freeing Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia and Crimea

    At a joint briefing with the Foreign Ministers of France and Germany in Kiev on Tuesday, February 23rd, Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klimkin spoke of the lack of progress in the liberation of Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia and Crimea.

    "We are pleased that a few days ago we managed to exchange hostages and that our men have already been in Kiev for the past few days - this is very good news. However, we haven’t seen any positive changes and don't have any progress with …

  • Russia issues appeal to Ukraine to bilaterally lift restrictions on transit

    The head of the Association of International Road Carriers of Ukraine (AIRCU), Leonid Kostyuchenko, commenting on the statement of the Ministry of Transport, reported to UNIAN that Ukraine has received an official appeal from the Russian Federation concerning the bilateral lifting of restrictions on transit through both countries.

    “We hope that Ukraine and Russia will reach an agreement on the bilateral lifting of restrictions on transit tomorrow. Russia has already sent a letter offering to …

  • According to Gallup poll, 15% of Americans think Russia is the US's 'main enemy'

    According to a Gallup poll, North Korea has topped the list of countries that US citizens have called their main enemy, accounting for 16% of the votes cast by American participants.  Russia took second place on this list.  

    The reason for North Korea taking the top spot is the Pyongyang's statements about the testing of a hydrogen bomb, and the launch of a ballistic rocket with a satellite.

    According to the results, 15% of the respondents thought that Russia was the country’s main enemy.  …

  • Ukraine and NATO to implement regional airspace security program

    Experts from NATO Regional Airspace Safety Program (RASP) and officials of Ukrainian Air Forces met on the 23rd of February under the guidance of Rene van der Heiden.  This was reported by the Press Service of the Defense Ministry of Ukraine.

    Thr key issue discussed was the technical-operational study of the implementation of the RASP project with regard to the security of the airspace in Ukraine.

    "The implementation of the RASP project will provide Ukraine with the possibility of cross- …

  • Ukrainian Intelligence suggests Putin may attend Russian military exercise in Crimea

    According to a representative of the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU), Russian President Vladimir Putin may visit the Crimea to attend the Caucasus 2016 military exercise, as reported by Glavnoe.

    The SBU’s representative said that Putin may even participate in certain activities during the military drills.

    Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu is also expected to travel to the occupied Peninsula for Caucasus 2016.

    As stated by Shoygu last month, “allow me to focus on preparations for the …

  • EU court considers claim filed by Rosneft against British authorities

    On Tuesday, February 23rd, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg began to consider a claim by Rosneft against the British authorities. The Russian state company claims that London has interpreted the EU sanctions too broadly, as reported by Deutsche Welle.

    The Court of Justice will consider the legality of the sanctions imposed against Russia in 2014. The Court will clarify the meaning of certain concepts contained in the EU sanctions regulations. According to Rosneft,  the United …

  • Amnesty International: Freedom of press in Russia is 'severely restricted'

    The freedom of the Russian media “was severely restricted” in 2015, according to an Amnesty International human rights report entitled “Human Rights in the Contemporary World”.  The Russian presentation of the report was held in Moscow in the Rosbalt Media Center.

    According to Sergey Nikitin, the Director of the organization in Russia, the number of independent media sources in Russia “can probably be counted on one hand”.

    “With regard to the freedom of the media, it is no secret that it has …

  • Russia to ask permission to conduct observation flights over US

    Russia intends to request US permission to conduct observation flights over the United States.  They hope to do this with the use of aircraft which will be equipped with powerful digital cameras.  American intelligence and military sources have warned that such flights will help Moscow gather intelligence about the United States.

    Russia and the US have both signed the Treaty on Open Skies, which allows making observation flights with aircraft with no weapons over the territories of all 34 …

  • Russian public figures call on PARNAS and Yabloko to unite in September’s Duma elections

    In an open letter to the leaders of PARNAS and the Yabloko Party, prominent Russian public figures, human rights activists, and scholars called on the two parties to unite in the forthcoming State Duma elections. The activists published a second appeal to the general public, calling on them to support such cooperation. Both were published together in Novaya Gazeta on Tuesday, February 23rd.

    The authors expressed alarm over the impending chaos in Russia due to the current political …