Mike Pompeo will probably be a more effective diplomat than Tillerson. He’ll also be more hawkish. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson held on to his job for 13 tense months despite repeatedly breaking with President Trump — and once reportedly calling him “a fucking moron.” [...]

Former NSA employee and whistleblower Edward Snowden speculated on Twitter that the nominee for CIA director, Gina Haspel, could face arrest if she sets foot in the European Union because she allegedly was involved in a torture program at a secret CIA prison. "Interesting: The new CIA Director Haspel, who ‘tortured some folks,' probably can't travel to the EU to meet other spy chiefs without fac [...]

To cries of condemnation from the House of Commons, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn demanded concrete evidence of Russian involvement in the poisoning of Skripal before taking action against Moscow, calling for cooperation and diplomacy instead. His views are supported by the Russian Embassy - and academics with expertise in chemical weapons. [...]

The coverage of a gang rape case, in which a woman was subjected to sexual abuse for 10 hours, has triggered a scandal in the Nordic nation, after the alleged perpetrators were portrayed as "victims" by national broadcaster SVT. A woman in the Malmö district of Lindängen was drugged and gang raped for several hours in early February. [...]

Almost twenty years ago, the US Department of Defense was involved in dismantling a chemical research institute in the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan, where the Novichok nerve agent was tested, according to the New York Times. A New York Times article published back in 1999 has revealed that the US closely cooperated with the former Soviet republic of Uzbekistan to decontaminate the Chem [...]

Speaking at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, commander of US Central Command Joseph Votel has specifically touched upon the situation in Syria and Russia's role there. Army general Joseph Votel, head of the US Central Command has admitted that Syrian President Bashar Assad's government forces are prevailing in the war in Syria. [...]

Globally-renown physicist Stephen Hawking passed away, leaving a breakthrough legacy behind. One of the greatest minds of our time, he taught people a lot about both space and humanity. Sputnik has collected pearls of his wisdom. [...]

Following allegations by UK authorities that Russia was responsible for the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal in the British city of Salisbury, the UK Foreign Office is preparing a smear campaign against the country. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Tuesday took to Twitter to comment on the UK Foreign Office's video about Russia, saying it is waging a "propaganda" war against Moscow. [...]

Prime Minister Theresa May has announced the largest expulsion of Russian diplomats from the UK since the Cold War over the alleged attack on a former spy. Moscow has denounced May's claims as baseless. The Russian Embassy in London called the expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats announced by UK Prime Minister Theresa May over the poisoning of former intelligence officer Sergei Skripal "unacceptable, [...]

Russia has nothing to do with the alleged poisoning of Russian ex-double agent Sergei Skripal, the Kremlin said. Moscow will not accept any groundless threats or ultimatums, it added. “Moscow’s position [on the Skripal case] is well known… Moscow had nothing to do with the incident that took place in the UK,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday. [...]

The speaker of the Russian lower house has said the West’s sanctions policy has been a response to Moscow's increased competitiveness, and had crashed Western plans to put a “tame and obedient” president in the Kremlin. “It is completely obvious that Russia is a very inconvenient competitor for them in many spheres, and they try to remove it from the field, often using unfair moves,” Vya [...]

Arnold Schwarzenegger has announced that he is taking oil companies to court “for knowingly killing people all over the world.” “This is no different from the smoking issue. The tobacco industry knew for years and years and years and decades, that smoking would kill people, would harm people and create cancer, and were hiding that fact from the people and denied it. [...]

President Donald Trump ousted Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, replacing him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo, appointing Gina Haspel instead of him. This is a major shake-up of Trump's cabinet. Tillerson was made to cut short his trip to Africa and return to Washington the day before the announcement, as preparations were underway for a meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong-un. Haspel was th [...]

The recent boost in Russian agriculture has made food sales abroad much more profitable for the country than exports of military weapons, according to President Vladimir Putin. “Today, agriculture exports exceed arms sales by more than a third. $28.8 billion from agricultural sector, $15.6 billion from the defense industry," Putin told farmers in Krasnodar on Monday. [...]

The EU's top trade official has employed strong rhetoric as the row with US President Donald Trump over steel and aluminum tariffs heats up following fruitless talks. European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem has promised that Europe would fight back against those who intimidate its trade after joint talks with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Minister of Economy, Trade and I [...]

Russia will speed up the delivery of its S-400 air defense systems to Turkey at the latter’s request, says Russian presidential aide Vladimir Kozhin. Talking to TV channel Rossiya 24, Kozhin, aide on military and technical cooperation to the president of Russia, said that Russia plans to start shipping the systems in early 2020. [...]

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has thrown his support behind UK allegations that Russia is responsible for the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal in the UK, whether directly or through negligence. The poisoning is "a really egregious act" and will "certainly trigger a response," Tillerson told reporters on board an aircraft as he was returning to Washington DC from Nigeria. [...]

The bold accusation of Russia by UK PM Theresa May could have grave consequences for bilateral relations, even the severance of diplomatic ties, top officials warned, vowing Moscow will respond to any hostile actions. Earlier on Monday, British PM Theresa May claimed, while addressing the British parliament, the “attempted murder” of former double agent Sergei Skripal was either “a direct ac [...]

One week ahead of the Russian presidential election, President Vladimir Putin appeared in a feature-length promotional film, where he shared some of his core beliefs. In the movie, released today, Vladimir Putin answered how he manages self-control in different situations, saying “When somebody loses his temper, he shows weakness. [...]

Tourists from China accounted for the highest number of foreign visitors to Russia last year, according to Chinese Ambassador Li Hui. “The number of Chinese tourists in Russia reached 1.5 million in 2017. [...]

In startling reversal, president now says that children and schools matter more than a Mexican border wall of questionable value. Donald Trump has seen the folly of his proposal to spend $25 billion on a wall that no one wants — not the residents of the U.S. states that border Mexico, not Republican leaders in his own party, certainly no Democrats and, of course, not America’s ally and tra [...]

Russia, Turkey, Iran, and Syria need to team up in order to clear terrorists from Syria, Turkish political analyst Bora Bayraktar told Sputnik, adding that the US military buildup in the region, as well as the threat of the creation of independent Kurdish entities, allow for new regional alliances to blossom. [...]