Countries

Google Cancels Plans for Berlin Campus Over Local Protests
In a surprising victory, local protesters won a battle against the US tech giant, which wanted to revamp a local building into a technology campus. The residents of Kreuzberg, a part of Berlin, have succeeded in repelling Google from developing a campus in their neighborhood. [...]
Save
Russian Defense Ministry Explains Why S-400 is Better Than Patriots
Despite Washington's threats to impose sanctions on states buying military equipment from Moscow, many of them, such as Turkey, India and Indonesia, still stick with Russian weaponry, citing its outstanding quality. Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin explained in an interview with Sputnik why many states around the world prefer to buy Russian S-300 and S-400 air defense systems over U [...]
Save
Sino-Japanese Currency Swap Deal to Boost Economic Activity in Far East
Kristian Rouz – China and Japan have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral economic and financial ties at an economic forum in Beijing, reaching several potentially far-reaching deals and trade and investment. Economists say the results of this forum could produce longer-term positive consequences for the entire region. [...]
Save
Washington ‘Unwilling to Accept Any Constraints on Its Unilateralism’ – Scholar
The United States will pursue the development of a nuclear weapon stockpile until Russia and China come to their senses. This is what US President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday. President Trump complained that Moscow has not done enough to adhere to the INF treaty. Sputnik discussed Washington's intentions behind the tentative INF withdrawal with Paul Craig Roberts, a prominent American ec [...]
Save
‘Russia Has Emerged as an International Conservative Leader’ – Academic
The new European Right are likely to bring an end to EU expansionism towards Russia's borders and finally seal a post-Cold War settlement between Moscow and the West, Glenn Diesen, professor at the Higher School of Economics, has told Sputnik. The Bavarian 2018 landtag vote has yet again confirmed that right-wing conservatives and patriots are increasingly commanding support among the European pu [...]
Save
Is Joint German-French Combat Jet Project on Verge of Collapse?
The joint Future Combat Air System project was intended to replace European countries’ ageing warplanes with new EU-made jets. However, Belgium recently decided to switch to the US-made F-35 instead of buying European fighters. Recent talks between France and Germany pertaining to the joint project of a new jet, also known as the "Future Combat Air System (FCAS)," have resulted in a deadloc [...]
Save
Merkel’s party suffers losses in Hesse elections as right-wing AfD enters parliament – exit polls
The Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has gained seats in Hesse and now holds parliamentary seats in every single German state, according to exit polls. Meanwhile, Merkel's CDU has seen party support plummet. [...]
Save
Spread of Wahhabism was done at request of West during Cold War – Saudi crown prince
The Saudi-funded spread of Wahhabism began as a result of Western countries asking Riyadh to help counter the Soviet Union during the Cold War, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Washington Post. [...]
Save
Trump Claims Russia Seeking Economic Aid From United States
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump claimed on Sunday that Russia has expressed a desire to receive economic assistance from the United States and also commended his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I had a great meeting with Vladimir Putin, great meeting. [...]
Save
Russia to Provide Cuba With Weapons Worth Over $50 Mln – Reports
The latest loan agreement between the two countries dates back to 2009 and has been twice prolonged since then. Russia will lend Cuba over $50 million for purchases of Russian military equipment, Russian newspaper Kommersant reported, citing two sources in the sphere of technical and military cooperation. [...]
Save
Israel Sells $250Mln Worth of Cutting Edge Spy Systems to Saudi Arabia – Reports
Tel Aviv hasn’t confirmed the reports, nor has the Gulf kingdom, which doesn’t have official diplomatic ties with the Jewish state. Saudi Arabia and Israel held covert meetings “in Washington and London,” which resulted in an estimated $250 million deal, including the transfer of Israeli espionage technologies to the kingdom, Israeli media reported on Sunday, citing an exclusive report by [...]
Save
‘Germans Are Completely Fed Up, Want Change’ – Ex-Diplomat on Elections
Germany's governing parties are bracing for elections in the state of Hesse on October 28, as polls suggest that the Christian and Social Democratic coalition could see a drop in support. Sputnik discussed the regional elections in Germany with Alastair Newton, a former career diplomat with the British Diplomatic Service. [...]
Save
Mattis Attempts to Sell US Exit From INF Treaty to EU Allies
US President Donald Trump earlier announced that Washington would be withdrawing from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, citing alleged violations by Moscow. Russia has firmly denied the accusations and expressed regret at the decision. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that the US is currently in talks with its EU partners over Washington's decision to withdraw from the INF Treat [...]
Save
This landmark LNG deal will change energy geopolitics forever
China’s LNG demand grew by a record 8 mt in 2017 and is set to expand by another record 12 mt this year, making up 50 percent of all global LNG demand growth, energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie said in a new report last week. The country’s spike in LNG usage comes as Beijing pushes forward with its plan to offset coal usage of both industrial and residential end users in an effort to curb rampa [...]
Save
‘Brutally honest’: Public outcry forces Facebook to stop banning pics of starving Yemeni girl
A backlash prompted Facebook to stop removing posts featuring a photo of an emaciated seven-year-old Yemeni girl, which accompanied a harrowing New York Times report from the war-torn country. The atrocities in Yemen don’t make poignant headlines in Western mainstream media as often as stories about chemical weapons in Syria or ‘Russian meddling,’ as the conflict usually gets sidelined in th [...]
Save
US quitting landmark INF treaty is ‘fact’, Moscow prepares response to ‘questions’ – Lavrov
Moscow sees the US decision to quit the historic INF accord as an “objective fact” and has started working on responses to claims of pact violations, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. [...]
Save
‘Russian, Chinese Challenge Is Not to Respond to US in Kind’ – Ex Diplomat
Russia is preparing to defend itself against aggression while Washington’s unilateral withdrawal from the INF Treaty signals that the US is readying for a war, according to Andrei Belousov, a top Russian Foreign Ministry official. Sputnik talked this over with Tony Kevin, a former Australian diplomat and author of the book "Return to Moscow." [...]
Save
‘Criminal negligence’ or disregard to Russia-Israel ties: MoD details chronology of Il-20 downing
A minute-by-minute account of the Il-20 downing shows Israel's culpability and either its military bosses' lack of appreciation of relations with Moscow, or their control of commanding officers, the Russian defense ministry said. [...]
Save
India Sells Off Over 15 Bln in US Dollar Bonds, Following in China’s Footsteps
The developments came after China sold $3 billion in US Treasury bonds amid the ongoing trade row with the US, making it the third such sale in the last 14 years. [...]
Save
Just imagine… The response if Jamal Khashoggi had been Russian
All we have to do to highlight the enormous hypocrisy and double standards which are the hallmark of domestic and international politics is to switch the names around. Here are just a few examples: Horror Consulate – but damn, it’s our ally’s! Just imagine…If a Russian journalist, a vocal critic of President Putin and the Russian government, had walked into a Russian consulate in a NATO me [...]
Save
Dollar demise? China & Japan ink bilateral currency swap deal worth up to $30bn
Beijing and Tokyo sealed a multi-billion dollar currency swap arrangement on Friday, aimed at enhancing financial stability and spurring business activity in both countries. According to the Bank of Japan (BOJ), the arrangement which will last until October 25, 2021, will allow the exchange of local currencies between the two central banks for up to 200 billion yuan or 3.4 trillion yen ($30 billio [...]
Save
Illegal migrants in Europe ‘need to go home’ – Czech PM
The Czech prime minister has called for the return to their home countries of hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants currently in Europe, suggesting funds could be spent on a Marshall Plan to help improve African economies. [...]
Save