Italy’s desire to build trade ties with China isn’t a move against the US, but an effort to “maximise” its own interests, Italy’s former Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told RT, ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Rome visit. [...]

Berlin seems to be losing patience with the US ambassador who didn’t mince his words over German defense spending. A high-ranking MP demanded that the envoy be sent home because he acts “like an occupation commissioner.” [...]

One of the newest Russian airports, Platov International Airport in the city of Rostov-on-Don, has received the highest mark from the UK-based ranking organization Skytrax, becoming the first five-star Russian airport. Getting five stars from Skytrax is considered the most prestigious international award for airports and airlines. After a recent audit of the terminal, the organization added Platov [...]

Earlier this week, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for the stopping of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which the document claimed boosts the EU's dependence on Russian gas supplies and threatens the bloc's energy security. [...]

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The European Union reaffirmed its commitment to the policy of non-recognition of the results of the referendum in Crimea, after which the peninsula rejoined Russia, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement on Sunday, amid the fifth anniversary of the peninsula's reunification with Russia. [...]

Two major accidents in less than five months, which killed a total of 346 people, raised concerns about the safety of Boeing's brand-new 737 MAX aircraft. It emerged that pilots did not practice flying these planes in simulators, because the company and authorities deemed it unnecessary. [...]

Low interest rates allowed companies to borrow money at no cost. But instead of increasing productivity, the financing was used to drive up the cost of shares, setting the stage for imminent collapse, Prof. Richard Wolff told RT. [...]

Despite two deadly crashes in five months the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing insisted on the airworthiness of the 737 Max. It wasn't until the rest of the world grounded the plane that the US finally conceded. [...]

The Trump administration has made it clear to Berlin that if it did not bar Huawei Technologies Co. from building Germany's 5G next-generation mobile networks, Washington would limit the country's access to US intelligence. Speaking to Sputnik, Patrick Berger, a spokesman for Huawei's German branch, commented on the US' campaign against the firm. [...]

Marking a first during his presidency, US President Donald Trump signed his first-ever veto on Friday, rejecting a congressional resolution to overturn his decision to declare a national emergency at the US-Mexico border. [...]

Eight years after the conflict in Syria began, gloomy ‘how did it all go wrong for the West’ articles are appearing. Actually, there was no defeat for ‘the West’. The alternative to the Assad government prevailing was far worse. [...]

The US-backed ‘interim president’ of Venezuela Juan Guaido isn’t violating the 30-day constitutional limit because the legislature backing him voted to make it not apply, ‘explained’ the US special envoy Elliott Abrams. [...]

In an effort to threaten everyone into not investigating US or Israeli war crimes in the International Criminal Court, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says anyone involved in such probes will lose their visa and may be sanctioned. [...]

The Russian parliament has furthered a bill, which seeks to legalize growth of plants that can be used to produce opioids. The measure is meant to ensure that Russia has a steady supply of raw materials for producing painkillers. [...]

If anyone you know is suffering from symptoms below, offer emotional support now. 2020 may be too late. If in the presence of Alyssa Milano or CNN staff, don't mention the word “collusion,” speak no Russian, don't carry an orange. [...]

While the US has had a strategy to contain and isolate Iran, Iran continues to seek and build friendships with its regional neighbors. There are many indications that the US will not tolerate this for much longer. [...]

Washington’s threat to downgrade its intelligence-sharing with Berlin if Germany buys Chinese 5G equipment is an example of why Berlin should seek more independence in its policies, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said. [...]

Ann Coulter, the author of "In Trump We Trust: E Pluribus Awesome," responded to the president's comment that she was "off the reservation" in an interview Friday on KABC Radio in Los Angeles. President Trump mentioned Coulter in his Friday emergency declaration speech, saying he "hardly knows her," and hasn't "spoken to her in way over a year." [...]

With the US economy having only created 20,000 new jobs in February, compared to the expected 180,000 jobs, US and global economic growth are continuing to slow down due to tensions in international trade between major economies, financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey told Sputnik Tuesday. [...]

A Russian rocket engine producer has offered a sneak peek of its latest creation, the RD-171MV, which is slated to be part of Russia’s next workhorse launch vehicle and, later, a super heavy-lift rocket. [...]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has sought to recruit some of the top oil industry guns to serve as Washington's foreign policy tools to crack down on "bad actors" like Venezuela, Russia and Iran. [...]

Following the defeat of the UK government over its Brexit deal on Tuesday and ahead of the decision on a no-deal exit on Wednesday, the EU27 hold a unanimous view, according to the Austrian Chancellor. [...]