Russia

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Russian Chess Player Accused of Poisoning Rival

Surveillance video allegedly catches Amina Abakarova in the act

(Newser) - The world of chess has had some bizarro controversies of late. This one tops them all. A 40-year-old Russian player has been accused of poisoning a rival by smearing mercury on her chess board, reports NBC News . Surveillance video purports to show Amina Abakarova wandering into a mostly empty room...

It May Be a Novel Move in Russia-Ukraine War

Russia says Ukrainian troops have attacked within its borders

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin is calling it a "major provocation." NBC News refers to it as an "unprecedented cross-border incursion." Russia on Tuesday said as many as 300 Ukrainian troops had attacked the Kursk region in southern Russia with support from tanks and armored vehicles. The details remain...

Freed Dissidents Aren't Thrilled With All Terms of Their Release

Ilya Yashin, Andrei Pivovarov say they want to return home to Russia, probably can't

(Newser) - With last week's historic prisoner swap, Russian President Vladimir Putin did more than secure the release of his assassin friend . He also appears to have conveniently "rid himself of some of his most persistent critics," Politico reports, noting several Russian dissidents whisked from prisons inside Russia have...

Russia: Ukraine Slammed Us With 'Drone Barrage'

Nation's Defense Ministry says it destroyed 75 drones in various regions near border with Ukraine

(Newser) - Russian officials on Saturday said Ukrainian forces overnight targeted multiple Russian regions with a massive drone barrage. Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement that its air defense systems "intercepted and destroyed" a total of 75 drones over a number of regions that lie on the border with...

Neutral Athlete Wins Group's First Gold

Russia, Belarus competitors will not hear their national anthems at Games

(Newser) - The neutral collective of athletes won its first gold medal at the Paris Olympics on Friday. Ivan Litvinovich was not allowed to float down the River Seine on a boat during the Games' opening ceremony a week ago—just like all 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus whose Olympic team...

Ex-Iran Captive Speaks on Gershkovich, Others
Ex-Iran Captive
Speaks on
Gershkovich,
Others
OPINION
Aug 2, 2024 5:05 PM CDT

Ex-Iran Captive Speaks on Gershkovich, Others

Journalist Jason Rezaian says US government should help Americans set free by Russia to readjust

(Newser) - It's been more than eight years since Iran released Jason Rezaian in a prisoner swap with the United States, but if anyone understands what Evan Gershkovich , Paul Whelan , and Alsu Kurmasheva have ahead of them after arriving back in the US , it's the Washington Post columnist. In his...

At Olympics, Griner 'Head Over Heels' About Prisoner Swap

'It's a great day,' WNBA star says of Gershkovich, Whelan

(Newser) - It's been more than a year since Brittney Griner was released from a Russian prison, but Russia was definitely on her mind Thursday as news trickled in about the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, ex-Marine Paul Whelan, and US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva. "It's a...

&#39;There Was No Deal to Be Had&#39; Without Vadim Krasikov
'There Was No Deal to Be
Had' Without Vadim Krasikov
the rundown
Aug 2, 2024 7:31 AM CDT

'There Was No Deal to Be Had' Without Vadim Krasikov

A look inside the unprecedented prisoner swap that was months in the making

(Newser) - It was the biggest prisoner swap in recent history , involving 24 people and seven countries. Sixteen journalists, pro-democracy activists, and others held by Russia and Belarus were exchanged Thursday for eight Russians jailed for espionage, murder, hacking, and other crimes in the US, Norway, Germany, Slovenia, and Poland. Here's...

Gershkovich, Whelan Are Back on US Soil

They arrive, along with 3rd freed American, after massive prisoner swap

(Newser) - The United States and Russia completed their biggest prisoner swap in post-Soviet history on Thursday, with Moscow releasing journalist Evan Gershkovich and fellow American Paul Whelan, along with dissidents including Vladimir Kara-Murza, in a multinational deal that set two dozen people free. Gershkovich, Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva, a journalist with...

Putin's Flouting of Norms Brings Biggest Payoff Yet

Robyn Dixon writes in the Washington Post that Russia's long-term strategy works

(Newser) - US officials and families led by President Biden celebrated the prisoner exchange that was bringing three Americans home, but Russia's leader had a victory to savor as well. President Vladimir Putin secured the release of spies, hackers, and an assassin, while seeing his long-pursued strategy succeed. "It was...

It&#39;s the Biggest Prisoner Swap Since the Cold War
It's the Biggest Prisoner
Swap Since the Cold War
the rundown
Aug 1, 2024 1:41 PM CDT

It's the Biggest Prisoner Swap Since the Cold War

3 US citizens freed by Russia, while a Russian hit man gets his freedom, too

(Newser) - The deal that resulted in the biggest and most complex prisoner swap since the end of the Cold War took more than a year of secret negotiations, reports Reuters . The most well-known names involved are Americans Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, but 22 other prisoners also were in the mix,...

Russia Frees Americans Gershkovich, Whelan in Swap

About 2 dozen prisoners on both sides are involved in the deal

(Newser) - Russia has freed Americans Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan as part of a large prisoner swap with the West, reports the AP . Turkish officials confirmed the swap on Thursday after reports emerged at Bloomberg and the Daily Beast , among other outlets. Details were still emerging.
  • Two big names: Gershkovich, a
...

Iran Trying to Undermine Trump Ahead of Election

US spy agencies suggest Iran thinks a Trump win would be worse for US-Iran relations

(Newser) - Iran is using a covert influence campaign in an attempt to undermine Donald Trump's candidacy ahead of the US presidential election in November, according to intel from US spy agencies. Tehran reportedly believes a Trump win would be worse for US-Iran relations than the alternative, the Wall Street Journal...

More Russian Warships Dock in Port of Havana

Cuban officials and onlookers call the visit a sign of friendship

(Newser) - Fishermen watched and authorities fired shots into the air as Russian warships again sailed into the Port of Havana on Saturday—the second such deployment in two months. The Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces described the arrival of the patrol ship Neustrahimiy, training vessel Smolniy, and support vessels from the Baltic...

Russian, Chinese Bombers Intercepted Near Alaska

It's the first time they've been intercepted while operating together

(Newser) - Russian and Chinese military aircraft flying near Alaska on Wednesday were intercepted by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the first time those countries have been intercepted while working together, according to a US defense official who spoke to CNN . Two Russian and two Chinese bombers were spotted in...

Russia Sentences Another US Journalist

RFE/RL chief calls Alsu Kurmasheva conviction a 'mockery of justice'

(Newser) - A court has convicted Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian American journalist for the US government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, of spreading false information about the Russian army and sentenced her to 6.5 years in prison after a secret trial, court records and officials said Monday.
  • RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen
...

Russia Sentences American Journalist to 16 Years

Evan Gershkovich is convicted of spying, a charge the US calls a sham

(Newser) - A Russian court handed down a 16-year sentence to American journalist Evan Gershkovich on Friday, reports the Washington Post . The 32-year-old reporter for the Wall Street Journal was convicted of spying for the CIA, a charge the US and his newspaper employer say is a sham. (Prosecutors sought 18 years...

Russian Prosecutors Seek 18 Years for US Reporter

US, Wall Street Journal have denounced Gershkovich espionage trial as a sham

(Newser) - Russian prosecutors sought a prison sentence of 18 years on Friday for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is on trial on espionage charges that his employer and the US have denounced as fabricated . Gershkovich, 32, was arrested March 29, 2023, while on a reporting trip to the Ural...

As China and Russia Move In, Canada Bolsters Arctic Defense

US, NATO nations back plans for submarines, icebreakers

(Newser) - Global warming is causing sea ice in the Arctic Ocean to melt faster, which opens new shipping routes. That has Canada concerned that Russia and China, which already have stepped up activity in the region, could use the routes for military purposes, as well as trade. NATO allies share the...

Ukraine Loses Another Front-Line Position

Russia also recaptures a southern position on a key river

(Newser) - The world's attention may be elsewhere, but the Russia-Ukraine war goes on, and it appears to be trending in Vladimir Putin's favor:
  • Front-line position lost: Ukraine's army has pulled out from the village of Urozhaine in the eastern Donetsk region, surrendering another front-line position under a relentless
...

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