Some of Europe's biggest companies like UK's BP and Germany's BASF have told their governments economic sanctions against Russia would hurt them badly. The warning comes as Russia, the US, Ukraine and the EU are discussing the crisis in Geneva Thursday. [...]
United States President Barack Obama said Thursday afternoon that his administration is prepared to take further action against Russia if an agreement reached earlier in the day in Geneva concerning the crisis in Ukraine fails to materialize. [...]
WORLDbytes, a citizen TV channel, hit the streets of London to gather residents' views on the situation in Ukraine. 'View on the Streets: Ukraine' found that the majority of those asked don't believe the version of events reported by mainstream UK media. [...]
Russia, the US, the EU and Ukraine have adopted a joint document on the de-escalation of the Ukraine crisis, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, after talks in Geneva. It calls for all illegal armed groups to lay down arms and a wide amnesty. [...]
Russia has "no mass surveillance in our country," according to President Vladimir Putin, after he was asked a surprise question by whistle blower Edward Snowden at his Q&A session, adding "our surveillance activities are strictly controlled by the law." [...]
Putin has criticized Ukraine's coup-appointed government for using tanks and jets against its own people, during a live Q&A session. Branding Kiev's approach as a "crime," Putin said they must open dialogue with eastern Ukraine. [...]
The interim president of Ukraine Turchinov wants to beat the Russians into intervening and provoke war between NATO and Russia, as it's the only reason he can hold power, foreign affairs analyst Daniel Patrick Welch told RT. Russia has called Kiev's action irresponsible and warned that it could trigger a full-blown civil war. How far do you see the situation going? [...]
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged his American counterpart on Monday to use the White House's influence on the Ukrainian government to prevent further "bloodshed" from occurring in the country. United States President Barack Obama placed a phone call to Mr. Putin on Monday afternoon (EST) to discuss the ongoing and increasingly tense situation in eastern Ukraine amid growing concerns [...]
A majority party MP is suggesting amendments to the Russian law on mass media, making it obligatory for civil servants and all politicians to reply to journalists' queries under threat of fines. Ilya Kostunov of United Russia submitted a draft detailing his proposal to the State Duma on Monday. He suggests new norms for the Russian Administrative Code, [...]
French far-right leader Marine le Pen has spoken out in support of Russia and expressed her dismay at Paris's refusal to allow MPs to meet State Duma speaker Sergey Naryshkin, simply because of his inclusion in the US sanctions list. Speaking at a meeting with Naryshkin in Moscow, the leader of the National Front party, [...]
Europe should switch from promises to real action to help Ukraine out of the economic chaos, says Russia's President Putin. “What’s the problem for the near future? It’s that Russia can’t bear the brunt [of helping Ukraine] in a one-way fashion,” Vladimir Putin told the Security Council meeting on Friday. [...]
President Vladimir Putin says it was "strange" to learn of the US reaction on a Russian letter to the leaders of EU's top gas-consuming nations, as it was in no way designed for Washington's eyes. US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki has accused Russia of reneging on an agreement that offered reduced gas prices to Kiev and using “energy as a tool of coercion against Ukraine. [...]
The EU is taking seriously President Vladimir Putin's letter to 18 European countries, in which he warned that Ukraine's debt crisis could affect gas transit from Russia, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said. "There are many reasons to seriously take into account this message... and for Europe to deliver a joint European response,” Itar-Tass reported Merkel as saying. [...]
It is ridiculous of Ukraine to accuse Russia of using the gas weapon because the Russians are simply charging normal market prices, Srdja Trifkovic, Foreign Affairs editor at 'Chronicles' magazine, told RT. Ukraine's economy is in a shambles and its people are suffering. Is it morally justified to turn the taps off? [...]
Vladimir Putin addressed a letter to the leaders of several European countries, to which Russian natural gas is supplied via Ukraine's territory. Ukraine’s economy in the past several months has been plummeting. Its industrial and construction sectors have also been declining sharply. Its budget deficit is mounting. [...]
The Kiev government is having trouble holding power even in western Ukraine, where it should have firm control. Meanwhile it's bringing in mercenaries to retake eastern areas, anti-war activist Daniel Patrick Welch told RT. RT: With those latest events in Lvov, could it be that the interim government is losing support there? [...]
Russia says it will not reconsider its principles and foreign policy after the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) passed a resolution that puts all the blame for the Ukrainian crisis on Moscow. The newly-adopted resolution “does not mean that Russia will rush to reconsider its foreign policy and principles,” MP Aleksey Pushkov, the head of the Russian delegation to PACE, to [...]
According to a new report, more than $2 trillion worth of profit generated by some of the biggest United States-baseds corporation is being held overseas where it's not subject to US income tax law. The report — published earlier this month by the Audit Analytics online intelligence service — has even this week managed to capture the attention of the head of the US Senate’s Finance Committee [...]
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has slammed the West for "aggravating internal differences" in Ukraine. His ministry says Kiev should stop "blaming Moscow for all of your problems." Writing in the UK’s Guardian newspaper, the Russian official said that Western powers “have been trying to compel Ukraine to make a painful choice between east and west, further aggravating inter [...]
Many Germans feel a special bond to Russia. This makes the Ukraine crisis particularly dangerous for Berlin because it raises important questions about the very nature of German identity. Are we as deeply rooted in the West as most believe? [...]
Russia can't continue to prop up Ukraine's faltering economy, and this responsibility should fall on the US and EU, which have recognized the authorities in Kiev but not yet given one dollar to support the economy, President Putin has said. “The situation is - to put it kindly, strange. It’s known our partners in Europe have recognized the legitimacy of the government in Kiev, yet have don [...]
Sergei Lavrov: The west has been needlessly whipping up tension - if we don't co-operate soon, chaos may take hold, The profound and pervasive crisis in Ukraine is a matter of grave concern for Russia. [...]