Rome has warned of retaliatory measures unless the EU changes its asylum policies to make them more in "solidarity" with Italy, which continues to struggle with an enormous inflow of mostly North African migrants. “If the European Council chooses solidarity, then good. If it doesn’t, we have a Plan B ready but that would be a wound inflicted on Europe,” Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said, w [...]

The crisis and chaos engulfing the Middle East and Ukraine is evidence of US imperial decline, as Washington learns the harsh lesson that no empire lasts forever. In the wake of the Vietnam War - the end of which was marked by news footage of US personnel and a select few Vietnamese collaborators being evacuated from the roof of the US Embassy in Saigon in 1975 - the United States entered a pro [...]

International Monetary Fund representatives have cut short negotiations with Greek officials in Brussels, after they failed to present a viable reform plan. The move has left Athens, due to repay €1.6 billion by the end June, on the edge of default. “The ball is very much in Greece’s court,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told the media during a specially scheduled announcement, before his te [...]

Vladimir Putin and Pope Francis are popular figures who impact people's thoughts, and their meeting in the Vatican represented a reunification of Western and Eastern worlds, Ukrainian journalist Halyna Mokrushyna told RT's In the Now. Why did the US ambassador to the Holy See Kenneth Hackett call on the Vatican for a tougher stance on Russia ahead of Vladimir Putin’s meeting with Pope Francis [...]

Artillery shells have hit a local market in the north-western district of Donetsk, a city in eastern Ukraine. At least one person has been wounded, according to the head of the district's administration aligned with Donbass rebels. RT's Ilya Petrenko was on the scene at the spot which came under attack. [...]

The US-assembled coalition of the willing that – supposedly – is fighting ISIS/ISIL/Daesh across “Syraq” met in Paris this week. In theory, they’d examine what to do next after the loss of Ramadi in Iraq and Palmyra in Syria. The script, though, came straight from the Surrealist Manifesto. [...]

Iran hopes to start implementing an "oil-for-goods" barter deal with Russia after June 7, said Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh. It will supply Iranian crude oil to Russia in exchange for grain, equipment and construction materials. “We hope that next week” Russia will take its first imports, said Zanganeh, quoted by Bloomberg on Friday after attending an OPEC meeting. [...]

Germany allegedly sent arms to Saudi Arabia in return for the Arab nation giving its support to Germany's successful bid to host the 2006 World Cup. The claims made by the Die Zeit newspaper are the latest revelations to rock scandal-ridden FIFA. The newspaper claims that the German government under then-Chancellor Gerhard Schroder arranged for the lifting of an embargo of arms sales to Saudi A [...]

A massive march took place in the streets of Kiev to protest against the policies of the current Ukrainian government, calling for its resignation and economic reforms. According to TASS news agency, up to 3,000 people took to the streets in Kiev on Saturday to protest against lack of reform and economic instability. [...]

Pope Francis has attacked what he called "the atmosphere of war," which he believes is hampering the world. He also attacked those profiteering from war and those engaging in arms sales, as he led a mass in Bosnia on Saturday. Francis received a joyous welcome from around 100,000 people who lined the streets of Sarajevo, Bosnia’s capital, as his motorcade made its way to the national stadium, [...]

A fundamental problem for Greece is that at the end of the day it wants to be in Europe but doesn’t want to have austerity policies, Mark Blyth, professor of political economy at Brown University, told RT’s “In the Now.” Greece has delayed its IMF debt payment until the end of June. [...]

A senior Russian diplomat has expressed bewilderment over the decision to limit Russian officials' access to the European Parliament, adding that such unexplained and unmotivated actions were reminiscent of medieval witch hunts. “I have an impression that the European bureaucracy is partially returning into the times of the Holy Inquisition. [...]

As Yemen sinks further into the pyre of war, Saudi Arabia has used its billions to whitewash intolerable war crimes and human rights abuses against civilian populations. From cluster bombs to chemical attacks, is there an end to Al Saud's spiral? As Saudi Arabia continues to make the headlines, might it be the kingdom's alleged ambition to preside over the UN Human Rights Council coming in Janu [...]

US President Barack Obama will urge EU leaders to keep sanctions in place against Russia at the G7 summit in Germany, US officials said. The US says it needs to "maintain the pressure" on Moscow. The G7 nations will meet in Bavaria, Germany for a two-day summit beginning Sunday. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said that the sanctions imposed on Russia will be on the agenda. [...]

It's unlikely that Snowden will ever be removed from the US wanted list, as he told the truth about the "bastion of freedom" that lectures other states while spying on its own citizens, said Matteo Bergamini, director of Shout Out UK. It’s been two years since the publications of the NSA documents by Edward Snowden. What is the biggest achievement that came out of the revelations? [...]

Sberbank has issued its first yuan-denominated letters of credit that involve funding from the Export-Import Bank of China to Russia’s largest pharmaceutical company. Pharmasyntez, Russia’s leading drug manufacturer, appealed to Sberbank with a request for funding credit guarantees in Chinese national currency as part of contracts for the supply of imported pharmaceutical products worth ove [...]

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in a speech to parliament on Friday that his country cannot accept the "unrealistic" proposals set by its lenders that did not include a promise of debt relief. Tsipras said that the only offer worth considering and which held the basis of a deal with creditors was the one made by Athens earlier in the week and that other proposals set by Greece’s lend [...]

There is frustration among Western leaders with Kiev's failure to make peace efforts and implement the Minsk agreements, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin told the UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine on Friday. The Security Council gathered on Friday to call for the full implementation of the agreements reached in Minsk on February 12 amid escalating tensions between the conflictin [...]

A lot has changed in the two years since Edward Snowden decided to let the world know about the NSA's illegal activities, ranging from the mass collection of surveillance data, to tapping German Chancellor Angela Merkel's mobile phones. Despite having his world turned upside down, Snowden says he has no regrets about the life changing decision he made on June 5, 2013. [...]

Two police officers who shot and killed 17-year-old Jessica Hernandez in January, were "legally justified," Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey found. There will be no criminal charges in the case, ruled a defensive shooting. Hernandez was killed on January 26, while attempting to drive away from an alley in a green Honda Civic that was reported stolen the night before. [...]

The US has created a loophole in the sanctions that it implemented against Russia to allow communications software to be sent to Crimea. Washington wants to increase its influence in the area, but critics say the move is a waste of money. A Commerce Department spokesperson, who asked not to be named, told Reuters, "The general license allows personal Internet-based communications – such as so [...]

The Russia-led Shanghai Cooperation Organization is gaining more weight with a dozen new nations showing interest in cooperation, President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with foreign ministers of the bloc. “Other countries would like to strengthen their contacts with our organization. [...]