The U.S. and Europe have again committed to supplying weapons to Kyiv, whose gratitude has its limits in the face of the life-and-death struggle against the Russian invasion.
Category: In The News
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed the rules of diplomacy. As Russia and China show budding unity, the world’s diplomats must look at the effects of Eastern Europe on East Asia — and Taiwan specifically.
One hundred days after Vladimir Putin launched an apparent all-or-nothing invasion of Ukraine, the reality is neither all nor nothing. The Russian president is no doubt comforting himself with news that his troops are progressing in the southeastern Donbas region. President Volodymyr Zelensky reported Thursday that Russia by now controls up to 20% of Ukrainian […]
The overdose death rate among Indigenous people was the highest of all racial groups in the first year of the pandemic.
Enduring COVID restrictions are the final straw for many expats in Hong Kong. They’re leaving by the thousands, threatening the city’s reputation as a financial hub.
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Total Shutdown Of U.S.-Russia Contact
Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov confirmed the complete absence of high-level communication between Moscow and Washington, as tensions continue to rise over the U.S. delivery of long-range rocket launchers to Ukraine.
With Washington’s attention fixed on Russia, Ukraine and China, the upcoming Summit of the Americas will likely not be the “breakthrough” gathering to forge the equal ties Latin America has long sought from the United States. But Washington would be wise to invest in stronger unity in its own hemisphere.
The U.S. has ultimately decided to send MLRS weapons, which are capable of hitting Russian territory, but only with Ukraine’s promise not to launch the rockets across the border. But will this eliminate the risk of the war escalating into a direct confrontation between the U.S. and Russia?
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Kherson Getting Russian-ized
In early March, Kherson became the first major Ukrainian city to fall to Russian troops. A new report says that Russia has switched communication services to those controlled by Moscow, as an early picture emerges of what can happen to conquered territory. For that reason, perhaps, Ukraine has recently launched a surprise counterattack on Kherson.
European leaders meeting Monday and Tuesday are seeking a new package of sanctions against Russia, which could may (or may not) include an oil embargo. It comes as German Economy Minister Robert Habek said EU unity “is beginning to crumble.”
While Russia is accusing Ukraine of carrying out attacks on its territory, the U.S. is set to send rocket launchers that could fire into Russian territory. But Washington is also warning Kyiv of the high risks of escalation.
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Is Severodonetsk The Next Mariupol?
Russian troops are attempting to encircle Severodonetsk, the last key city remaining under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region, as Vladimir Putin looks to claim victory in a war that is not going Moscow’s way. But will the toll be for civilians?
Fifteen years ago, Francesco kept busy by scamming people. He was a regular visitor to the beaches of Terracina, south of Rome, where he was caught several times selling counterfeit Ray-Ban sunglasses. Then came the drugs, which fed a serious substance-induced psychosis and eventually he tested positive for HIV. It’s around that time that I […]
The two 90-something European-Americans spoke separately at the Davos summit this week, offering very different assessments of what the West should do in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The risk of the Kremlin launching a tactical nuclear weapon on Ukraine is small but not impossible. The Western response would itself set off a counter-response, which might contain or spiral to the worst-case scenario.
Vladimir Putin had planned to roll through Ukraine and splinter the West. While it has not gone according to plan, the destruction and uncertainty left in the path of the invasion has shaken the world.
Lebanon’s recent elections have shrunk the legislative block led by national power-brokers Hezbollah. But will a precarious new majority be able to rid the government of the long shadow of Tehran?
Can you believe Poles are happy to see Germans re-arming? It is just one of a series of examples of how the world has turned upside down since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, completing a shift begun during the pandemic toward less interdependence and more uncertainty.
Vadim Shishimarin had confessed to shooting an unarmed 62-year-old man in northeast Ukraine shortly after the invasion began.
When the two Nordic countries confirmed their intention to join NATO this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeated his plans to block the application. Accusing Sweden and Finland of’ “harboring” some of his worst enemies may not allow room for him to climb down.
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Putin Turns Up The Dial In Donbas
Russia may allow over-40s to enlist in military as resources are needed to step up the assault in eastern Ukraine.
U.S. Department of Defense officials report that instead of the typical battalion tactical groups in Ukraine, which number several hundred soldiers, the Russians have now shifted to attacks by smaller units.
Up to 1,000 Ukrainian troops have reportedly surrendered from the Azovstal steel plant in the port of Mariupol, with all sent to a prisoner camp in Russian-controlled territory in Donbas. Ukrainians are hoping for a prisoner exchange, though Moscow may try some for war crimes.
Not only strict rules of freedom of movement as part of Zero-COVID policy but also an increase in censorship has raised many questions for the expat population in the megacity of 26 million that had long enjoyed a kind of special status in China as a place of freedom and openness. A recent survey of foreigners in the Chinese megacity found that 48% of respondents said they would leave Shanghai within the next year.
Cafeyn, Europe’s leading news platform, and Worldcrunch, a leading international media company, have signed an unique partnership to integrate journalistic content from the world’s leading news brands into the platform and offer its customers the best in international journalism.
Turkey’s Erdogan puts up a veto, while Orban’s Hungary plays it coy. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin throws a curveball.
For four years, indigenous photographer David Díaz Gonzales has documented the lives and movements of his Shipibo-Conibo community, as many of them migrated from their native Peruvian Amazon to the city. A work of remembrance and resistance.
After reseizing Kharkiv, Ukrainian soldiers reach the border with Russia. Meanwhile, Moscow continues its assault on Donbas, and has renewed missile strikes of the port city of Odesa.
Ai-Da is touted as the first bonafide robot artist. But should we consider her paintings and poetry original or creative? Is this even art at all?
As cannabis is legalized in more places, investors are taking note. One Luxembourg-based, Uruguayan-led fund has found an innovative way to bypass banking obstacles and raise capital.
A leading Swedish daily says the government will move toward a decision over the weekend, with the formal application coming as soon as Monday evening. This follows the announcement Thursday that neighboring Finland would seek membership in the Western military alliance, which both countries had long rejected to avoid provoking Moscow.
Barbadian singer and businesswoman Rihanna has proudly celebrated her pregnant belly in fun and revealing clothes. By doing so, she is breaking away from the unspoken rule that pregnant women should hide their baby bumps.
To each mental illness, its castle.
Sharing an 800-mile border with Russia, the Nordic country has seen public support for NATO membership skyrocket following the invasion of Ukraine. Neighboring Sweden also looks set to join the military alliance later this month. Both countries had for decades avoided NATO membership for fear of provoking Russia.
Nights of Plague is the latest book by the Turkish Nobel Prize winner, a fictional rendering based on historical reality that draws parallels (political and health-wise) between the past and the present.
Lower-caste cleaners must wear GPS-enabled smartwatches, raising questions about their privacy and data protection.
Russia says it has conquered new territory in Donbas, while Ukraine says it has retaken parts of the city of Kharkiv. The competing claims come as Vladimir Putin appears to be bracing for a long “protracted” conflict.
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Is Odessa The Next Mariupol?
Other top news breaking: UN says civilian toll much higher, Moscow metro workers may be forced to fight, Lithuanian Parliament calls war “genocide”, special Pulitzer for Ukrainian journalists, and more.
It’s a grim reality from Soviet times that Vladimir Putin continues to embody: Individual horrors and monumental changes of history happen without fanfare.