After paying billions in fines over an emissions-cheating scandal in the US, Volkswagen now has to park thousands of bought-back diesel automobiles at nearly 40 facilities across America. The German automaker has paid over $7.4 billion to buy back nearly 350,000 diesel vehicles in the US as of February, according to the court filing, seen by Reuters. [...]

The price of the traditional safe haven gold increased on Monday after Beijing introduced retaliatory measures against American goods coming to China. After falling in the past three trading sessions, the yellow metal surged over $8 per troy ounce to $1,335. [...]

With secrecy surrounding the condition of poisoned double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Russian bloggers noticed that somebody logged in to Yulia Skripal's social media page when she was reportedly in critical condition. [...]

President Donald Trump’s appointment of John Bolton as his national security adviser is his most dangerous move yet, argues Marjorie Cohn. Nothing Donald Trump has done since his inauguration 14 months ago is more dangerous – to the United States, and indeed, to the world – than his selection of John Bolton for National Security Adviser. It is not surprising the president would feel most co [...]

The current state of anti-Russia hysteria is reminiscent of earlier dark chapters of American history, including the rush to war in Iraq of the early 2000s and McCarthyism of the 1950s, Patrick Henningsen observes. If there’s one thing to be gleaned from the current atmosphere of anti-Russian hysteria in the West, it’s that the US-led sustained propaganda campaign is starting to pay dividends [...]

Moscow and Beijing will team up to create an integrated navigation system based on Russia’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) and the Chinese BeiDou. The satellite system will cover most of Eurasia. The countries will reportedly negotiate the merger in May at the International Conference on Advanced Technologies in Manufacturing and Materials Engineering in the Chinese city of Harbin, [...]

Muammar Gaddafi wanted to shatter the dominance of the greenback in the Middle East by introducing gold-backed dinar, but failed. China has a chance to finish what he started, one industry expert has told RT. “Ideas related to oil trade in currencies other than the dollar arose more than once.  [...]

Thousands of people in one of America’s richest cities live on sidewalks infested with flesh-eating bacteria and tuberculosis. A Redfish Media report looks at the chronic homelessness crisis in Los Angeles. Homelessness in Los Angeles has increased 43 percent in just four years. [...]

Russia’s Embassy in London has sent a list of 14 questions to the UK Foreign Ministry, demanding that it reveals details of the investigation into the nerve-agent poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter. The questions, provided in full below, include a demand to clarify whether samples of the nerve agent А-234 (also known as “Novichok”) have ever been developed in [...]

Beijing is hiking up tariffs on more than 128 US imports, including fruit and pork, as part of a tit-for-tat response to US President Donald Trump’s $60 billion package of tariffs imposed against China. The additional fares, which range from 15 to 25 percent, will take effect on Monday, the Chinese Finance Ministry said on their website. [...]

Trump's appointment of well-known neocons Mike Pompeo and John Bolton as the next Secretary of State and National Security Advisor respectively proves that he's decisively embraced the neoconservative faction of the "deep state". The President used to rail against people like Pompeo and Bolton, especially the latter because of his hawkish views towards Iraq, but now he's depending on both o [...]

The looming April 9 first day on the job for Republican superhawk John Bolton as US President Donald Trump’s hand-picked national security advisor - replacing three-star General H.R. McMaster - has the Pentagon bracing for trouble. [...]

Although German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas positively assessed the decision of European countries to expel Russian diplomats, he still expressed hope that Moscow and Berlin will remain partners. The expulsion of Russian diplomats from Germany should be taken merely as a sign of solidarity with the UK and other EU member states, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said. [...]

During his annual Good Friday prayer address to the faithful, Catholic Pope Francis stated that he is 'ashamed' of our planet, as it is "fractured by divisions and wars." Under tight security, the Pontiff presided over the ritual — attended by about 20,000 — at Rome's ancient Colosseum that commemorates the death of Jesus of Nazareth, the religion's most prominent avatar. [...]

The Wall Street Journal is accused by its employees of attempting to suppress its own story after a senior editor allegedly tried to bury a deep dive into the 2008 global financial crisis and its aftermath. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published on Tuesday a graphics-heavy in-depth study on the aftermath of the world-shaking 2008 financial crisis, particularly noting that banking and investmen [...]

Russia has completed the development of small-caliber ammunition for its fifth generation fighter Su-57 (PAK FA). Russia’s fifth generation Su-57 fighter jets will be armed with the newly-designed Drel air bomb, the deputy head of the Techmash Concern, Alexander Kochkin said. [...]

The Russian Embassy has warned of the growing anti-Russian sentiments in Britain in the wake of the increasing tensions surrounding the Skripal case. The Russian Embassy has called on its citizens to reconsider their plans of traveling to the UK as well as sending their children to study English in the UK. [...]

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - UK Home Office explanations aggravate doubts about real reasons behind the search on board the Russian passenger aircraft in London, the Russian embassy in the United Kingdom said in a Saturday statement. "This is a clear attempt by the Minister to divert attention from the provocative actions by British law enforcement officers who have tried to search the aircraft without [...]

More and more people in Italy are asking plastic surgeons to make them look like Barbie or Ken. Carlo Gasperoni, an associate professor in aesthetic surgery at the University of Rome Tor Vergata commented on the issue in an interview with Sputnik. [...]

Israeli officials have rallied behind the IDF after calls at home and abroad for an independent probe into its use of force against Palestinian protesters at the border of the Gaza Strip on Friday. Violence erupted during demonstrations on ‘Land Day,’ an annual Palestinian protest against Israeli settlements. [...]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has launched a blistering attack on Benjamin Netanyahu, calling his Israeli counterpart the “leader of a terrorist state” following the deadly shooting of protesters in Gaza. Erdogan made the comments at his party’s congress in southern Turkey. Addressing the event, the president slammed Netanyahu’s criticism of Turkey’s military operation in Syria. [...]

Fashion icon Vivienne Westwood sent a message of support on RT to her friend Julian Assange, whose Internet access was cut off by the Ecuadorian Embassy in the UK, calling him a “hero” and a “brilliant” man. Westwood hailed Julian Assange on RT after being asked why she decided to come to the Ecuadorian Embassy. Holding what appears to be a UK passport, Westwood said she wanted to make a s [...]