How does the latest US decision to impose sanctions against eight more Russian companies play into the Trump administration’s promise to improve relations with Moscow? RT spoke with experts. The restrictive measures were introduced against such companies as Russia’s main weapons exporter Rosobornexport and Aviaexport over their alleged violation of US non-proliferation law concerning Iran, [...]

A recent deadly airstrike on a boat in the Red Sea carrying Somali refugees was likely a war crime, Human Rights Watch said. The strike off the Yemeni coast is believed to have been carried out by the Saudi-led coalition. [...]

Wheelchair-bound Russian singer Yulia Samoylova said she can’t comprehend what scared the Ukrainian authorities so much that they slapped her with a three-year ban. Samoylova said she still hopes to perform at Eurovision in Kiev. [...]

On Thursday, Crimea marked the anniversary of the 2014 referendum which saw the peninsula break off from Ukraine and rejoin Russia. In an exclusive interview for Sputnik, Natalya Poklonskaya, the lawmaker who bravely served as Crimea's prosecutor during the Crimean Spring, offered Kiev and Western officials some advice about Crimea's status. [...]

The months leading up to the war in Iraq, unleashed on 20 March 2003, saw the very best of humanity engaged in a struggle with the very worst for the right to shape the future. When it comes to the very best of humanity, we are talking an anti-war movement that for a brief moment grew so large, powerful and determined that the New York Times described it as a second superpower on its front page [...]

The Western-sponsored project of Kosovo has failed to build its own sovereignty and national identity. According to journalist and publicist Zivojin Rakovevic, Kosovo was never an autonomous state and now its dependence is unprecedented. [...]

A study of hundreds of human genomes has revealed humans in different regions of the world have evolved for diets with differing amounts of meat and vegetables - Europeans, particularly southerners, are optimized for a high-plant diet, while Greenland's Inuits are better able to process fatty meats. [...]

The cyber firm investigating allegations of a Moscow-sponsored attack on US Democratic Party servers has a history of linking "Russian hacking" with imaginary events. But just days ago, FBI Director James Comey heralded CrowdStrike as a "highly respected private company" before the Senate. [...]

People in Europe won’t be able to “walk safely” and freely on the streets if they don’t change their current attitudes, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has warned, amid a deepening diplomatic row over the cancellation of Turkish rallies in the EU. [...]

Exact motivations behind the vehicle and knife attacks outside Parliament in London remain unclear, but observers have noted that the incident occurred on the anniversary of the multiple Islamist attacks on the Belgian capital on March 22, 2016. [...]

The Pentagon is asking Congress for an extra $30 billion for 2017, mostly to address pressing readiness issues and the fight against Islamic State – yet Russia and President Trump’s budget proposal dominated the Senate appropriations hearing. [...]

Citing her "duty not to conceal a clear crime," the head of a Beirut-based U.N. agency has resigned after the withdrawal of a scathing UN-commissioned report that for the first time charges Israel is "a racist state that has established an apartheid system that persecutes the Palestinian people." While furious Israeli leaders likened the report to Nazi propaganda, Rima Khalaf said she rejected the [...]

But in U.S., happiness is falling and Republican priorities stand to make it worse. Norway now holds the title of the world's happiest country, according to a new report that also outlines how Republican proposals to gut safety nets, enact tax windfalls for the rich, and attack public education—as well as bipartisan failures in terms of the global war on terror and campaign finance—are making [...]

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko blamed Ukrainian radicals for Kiev having lost control over the situation in the eastern regions of Donbass. According to the Ukrainian leader, the blockade of Donbass by radicals risks plunging Ukraine into "anarchy" and violence. [...]

The dream fueling the Russia frenzy is that it will eventually create a dark enough cloud of suspicion around Trump that Congress will find the will and the grounds to impeach him. More likely, the Russia allegations will not bring down Trump. Meanwhile, while Russia continues to dominate the front pages, Trump will continue waging war on immigrants, cutting funding for everything that’s not the [...]

According to Mexican Secretary of Agriculture Jose Calzada Rovirosa, Mexico plans to strengthen trade ties with Russia and the EU. Mexico plans to strengthen trade ties with Russia and the European Union against the backdrop of bilateral relation issues with the United States, Secretary of Agriculture Jose Calzada Rovirosa said on Tuesday. [...]

Ahead of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community, calls within the EU for a so-called "two-speed Europe" are becoming more vocal. Sputnik Italy spoke with Italian economist Pasquale Lucio Scandizzo about who stands to benefit from such a model. [...]

As the European project seems to be finding itself in havoc, many countries from the former Eastern bloc have started to realize that they were too hasty in deciding to join the "European family," which was never a "fair game" and where they were "left to stagnate," thus they are now looking to Russia, according to political scientist Phil Butler. [...]

The Russian military has launched a large-scale exercise at the Opuk training range, in Crimea. The drills involved the Russian Airborne Forces, the Black Sea Fleet and the Aerospace Forces. Airborne Forces commander Col. Gen. Andrei Serdyukov told reporters that the drills involved over 2,500 airborne personnel and some 600 units of military hardware. [...]

Russia, unlike other countries in Europe, undertakes a great number of efforts toward the achievement of peace Syria amid the Middle Eastern country's military conflict, a member of the Serbian parliament, Bozidar Delic, said Tuesday. During the visit, the delegation observed the operation of the Russian center for reconciliation of opposing sides in Syria, and looked at the militants weap [...]

The Russian peninsula of Crimea is a true jewel of the Black Sea, and has plenty of magnificent sights to offer even the most discerning of travelers. Palaces, mountains and ancient ruins – which sight appeals to you the most? [...]

The Syrian Army says its air defenses have shot down one Israeli warplane and hit a second after four planes breached Syrian airspace and attacked government troops near Palmyra Friday morning. The Israeli military has denied the claims. Syrian military officials and observers told Sputnik that the incident sends an important message to Israel. [...]