The founder of Russia’s most popular social network site says he has been fired and that allies of President Putin have taken over his site. Pavel Durov who ran VKontakte had previously announced he was leaving the company but said he had withdrawn his resignation. The company denied it had been withdrawn. Mr Durov had previously refused requests from the Russian government to censor posts on his site. In a […]
Editor’s note: Howard Hall is director of the University of Tennessee’s Institute for Nuclear Security and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chair in Nuclear Security. Natalie Manayeva is research assistant at the University of Tennessee’s Institute for Nuclear Security. Dean Rice is adjunct faculty at the University of Tennessee and former congressional policy/legislative aide on energy and national defense. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the authors. […]
An “anti-terrorist operation” is under way in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region against pro-Russia protesters, Kiev declared on Tuesday, with armored personnel carriers seen on the road in the restive area. Twenty-four hours after a Ukrainian ultimatum expired for the protesters to lay down their arms, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov told Parliament the operation would be “conducted step by step, responsibly, cautiously.” “The aim of these actions is to protect the […]
A Ukrainian government deadline for pro-Russian protesters to lay down their arms and leave occupied buildings passed Monday with no sign of it being heeded in the eastern cities of Donetsk or Slaviansk. Acting President Oleksandr Turchynov had given the protesters until 2 a.m. ET to disarm or face a “full-scale anti-terrorist operation” by its armed forces. But the deadline passed with no movement at the regional government building in […]
The face-off between the West and Russia over its annexation of Crimea and threat to invade eastern Ukraine has raised calls for the expansion of shale gas production and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas. While the Obama administration is pushing to begin exporting natural gas to Europe, the call for Europe to start fracking operations of its own is being spearheaded in Europe by […]
Russia warned Tuesday that any use of force inUkraine‘s eastern region could lead to civil war, as Kiev seeks to regain control after pro-Moscow uprisings in three cities. Pro-Russian protesters seized government buildings in the cities of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv on Sunday. Rebels occupying Donetsk’s regional government building Monday declared a “people’s republic” and called for a referendum on secession from Ukraine to be held by May 11. There […]
Washington (AFP) – Nearly 100,000 Russian forces have massed on Ukraine’s border, a top Ukrainian defense official told an American audience Thursday, giving a number far higher than US military estimates. “Almost 100,000 soldiers are stationed on the borders of Ukraine and in the direction … of Kharkiv, Donetsk, ” Andriy Parubiy, chairman of Ukraine’s national security council, said via a webcast from Kiev. “Russian troops are not in Crimea […]
With tensions rising between Russia and Western powers, the U.S. held submarine exercises in the Arctic Ocean – the body of water where the Russian and U.S. subs are likeliest to encounter each other. Via The Foreign Bureau, WSJ’s global news update. BENEATH THE ARCTIC OCEAN—Five hundred feet below the Arctic ice cap, the USS New Mexico’s crew filled two torpedo tubes. “Match sonar bearings and shoot,” ordered the […]
Topless women protesters in Germany have shouted at Russian president Vladimir Putin as he toured a trade fair in Germany. Three women bared their breasts and shouted “dictator” before being quickly bundled away by security officers. Mr Putin, who was at the event in Hannover with German Chancellor Angel Merkel, spoke about the incident at news conference: “As regards the stunt – I liked it. By and large, we knew […]
MOSCOW—A meteor flew across the skies above Russia’s Ural Mountains Friday morning, causing sharp explosions and injuring about 100 people, including many who were hurt by broken glass. Fragments of the meteor fell in a thinly populated area of the Chelyabinsk region, the Emergency Ministry said in a statement. Interior Ministry spokesman Vadim Kolesnikov said 102 people had called for medical assistance following the incident, mostly for treatment of injuries […]
