Contents tagged with USA

  • Poll: Russians prefer Trump over Clinton

    Interfax announced on Tuesday, June 7th, that according to the Public Opinion Foundation, more Russians are in favor of Donald Trump becoming U.S. President than former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

    28% of Russians considered Trump's victory in the U.S. Presidential Elections more important for Russia than that of a Clinton victory (9%). 14% of the respondents believe that the relationships between the United States and Russia can improve with Trump while 6% of the respondents believe …

  • Nuland: Sanctions against Russia are a powerful tool

    US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland said that economic sanctions continue to be a powerful tool against Russia. According to her, these measures have disrupted Russia’s attempts to take more territory in eastern Ukraine, Radio Svoboda reported.

    "We have deterred further land grabs in Ukraine, and that was a real risk when we first started with sanctions - that they would try to run all the way to Kiev and Kharkov," Nuland said.

    "I will tell you …

  • McCain concerned that US sanctions against Russia are 'selective'

    The senator is concerned that the United States buys rocket engines from Russian Energomash.

    US Republican Senator John McCain thinks that the Obama administration selectively enforces sanctions imposed against Russia for the invasion of Crimea.

    In a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, McCain writes about the special relations of the Obama administration with NPO Energomash, a Russian rocket manufacturer from whom the USA buys RD-180 rocket engines.

    "I write to express my concern …

  • Kerry: Russia should focus on its economy, not on demonstrating its military power

    The United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, stated during a working visit to Mongolia on June 5th that the Russian Federation needs to focus on the retention of country’s economy, the press service of the U.S. agency reported. In addition, Kerry noted that Russia’s economy has slowed down because of its policy in relation to Ukraine.

    “In Russia, for example, there are no significant investments into the energy sector and the area of new technologies. The real slowdown of the economy has …

  • US State Deparment calls for ending human rights violations in eastern Ukraine

    The US State Department has called on Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine to stop human rights abuses, while at the same time appealing to the Ukrainian Government to investigate cases of human rights violations that were referred to in a recent UN report.

    This was stated by Deputy Spokesman of the State Department Mark Toner during a daily briefing on Friday.

    "We once again call on the so-called authorities in the separatist-controlled areas to cease their human rights abuses, …

  • Ukraine offers joint production of rocket engines with US to replace Russian models

    Ukraine has proposed a joint development and production of a rocket engine designed to replace Russian models that are currently used for the launch of U.S. military satellites, Radio Svoboda reported.

    On the 31st of May, the Head of the State Space Agency of Ukraine, Luybomyr Sabadosh stated that he proposed a plan to replace Russian RD-180 rocket engines during his visit to the U.S.A. Congress decided to stop using RD-180 engines until 2019.

    “This is a challenging task but we can handle it,” …

  • Biden calls for the release of all Ukrainians held in Russian prisons

    During a phone call with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, US Vice President Joe Biden called for the release of all Ukrainian prisoners being held in Russia, according to a statement on the White House’s website.

    “The Vice President congratulated President Poroshenko on the release of Ukrainian pilot and Rada member Nadiya Savchenko and called for the release of all Ukrainians unlawfully detained in Russia,” the statement read.

    Nadiya Savchenko was released on Wednesday as part of a …

  • The US will not recognize a referendum in South Ossetia to join Russia

    The US does not support the possibility of holding a referendum to allow the state of South Ossetia to join the Russian Federation. This was said by the State Department spokesman, Mark Toner, and was reported on the department’s website.

    “We support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia, which includes South Ossetia. This means that we do not accept any attempts by South Ossetia to break away or declare its sovereignty,” Toner said.

    South Ossetia has changed the date for …

  • Inhabitants of Russian villages asked Obama to help them with gas supplies

    Valery Slesarev, an activist and resident of the town of Yegoryevsk, has visited the US Embassy in Moscow to ask US President Barack Obama to provide gas to several Russian villages.

    According to MK, Slesarev has been asking local authorities for nearly 10 years to provide several large villages in the area with gas. The majority of the residents are weak pensioners and war veterans who are forced to chop fallen trees for firewood.

    “What is happening in the city of Yegoryevsk is an outrage! …

  • Russian citizen sentenced in US for economic espionage

    On the 25th of May, the deputy representative of the Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs, Evgeny Buryakov, received a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence for economic espionage while in the US. He was also fined $10,000 for the crime.

    According to AP news agency, the Russian received sensitive information concerning possible US sanctions against Russian banks between 2012 and 2015. Buryakov also received information on the development of alternative energy programs.

    Buryakov had …