Author: Nataliya Vasilyeva
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Border village grids to a halt amid Ukraine-Russia tensions
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CHERTKOVO, Russia/MILOVE, Ukraine • Valentina Boldyreva stepped out of her two-story house on an overcast and snowy Sunday afternoon to say hello to her 76-year-old sister who lives on the other side of Friendship of People’s Street, a tall barbed-wire fence separating them. “You see my sister is walking up to the wire,” Boldyreva said.…
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Putin: US took ‘hostile step’ in publishing Russia list
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday the Trump administration made a “hostile step” when it published a list of Russian businessmen and politicians as part of a sanctions law against Moscow. The long-awaited U.S. publication appears to be mainly a list of people in Russian government, along with 96 “oligarchs” from a…
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Russian hackers targeted more than 200 journalists globally
PARIS — Russian television anchor Pavel Lobkov was in the studio getting ready for his show when jarring news flashed across his phone: Some of his most intimate messages had just been published to the web. Days earlier, the veteran journalist had come out live on air as HIV-positive, a taboo-breaking revelation that drew responses…
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Putin says U.S. will have to shed 755 from diplomatic staff
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday the United States would have to cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by 755 under new sanctions from Moscow. Russian’s Foreign Ministry on Friday ordered a reduction by Sept. 1 in the number of U.S. diplomats in Russia. It said it is ordering the U.S.…
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Putin sarcastically offers Comey political asylum; slams U.S. hypocrisy
MOSCOW — In a sarcastic outburst, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday scoffed at former FBI director James Comey’s disclosure of his conversations with President Donald Trump, saying the move has made Comey eligible for political asylum in Russia. Putin, speaking in a live call-in show that lasted four hours, likened Comey to NSA contractor…
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Kremlin, Russian lawmakers downplay Flynn’s resignation
MOSCOW — The Kremlin on Tuesday played down the resignation of U.S. National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, a sign that Russia is already looking ahead to talks with the U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to improve the two nations’ strained ties. Flynn was often perceived as Donald Trump’s key contact with Moscow. In 2015,…
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Russia set to move closer to decriminalize domestic violence
MOSCOW — In Russia, giving one’s spouse a slap is nothing extraordinary for many people. This week, the Russian parliament is expected to take a step closer toward decriminalizing it altogether. Battery is a criminal offense in Russia, but nearly 20 percent of Russians openly say they think it is sometimes OK to hit a…
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Moscow denies having compromising information about Trump
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save MOSCOW — The Kremlin has not collected compromising information about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman declared Wednesday, deriding the report as a “complete fabrication and utter nonsense.” “This is an evident attempt…
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2 Pussy Riot members released from prison
KRASNOYARSK, Russia — Two members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot walked free Monday, criticizing the amnesty measure that released them as a publicity stunt, with one calling for a boycott of the Winter Olympics to protest Russia’s human rights record. Maria Alekhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova were granted amnesty last week in a move…
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Russia’s Sochi busy storing snow for 2014 Olympics
SOCHI, Russia — In April, at the end of another seemingly endless winter, most Russians are eager to get rid of the piles of snow that have clogged their cities and streets and yards for months. Yet down south in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, fleets of heavy machinery and a corps of laborers…