An envoy to the US for Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó has said the country’s oil reserves would be opened to foreign investors, bolstering suspicions that Washington’s support of Guaidó is oil-dependent. [...]

The global economy is facing a threat of a spiraling protectionist measures that can lead to a devastating crisis, Vladimir Putin warned. Nations must find a way to prevent this and establish rules on how the economy should work. The Russian president spoke out against the growing trend of using unilateral restrictions to achieve economic advantage, as he addressed guests of the St. Petersburg Int [...]

Oakland California is suing Monsanto for contaminating the city’s storm water with toxic polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), threatening the region's ecosystem. “Agrochemical giant Monsanto knowingly contaminated Oakland’s storm water and the San Francisco Bay with a highly toxic chemical for decades, a new lawsuit filed by the California city claims. Oakland wants the company to pay for the [...]

Trump’s bid for regime change in Venezuela is starting to look like a fatal overreach. With the South American country’s military remaining firmly loyal to President Maduro, embarrassing questions loom over US’ dubious game plan [...]

These measures will only affect products that have analogues in Russia, Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, Maxim Oreshkin said. "Because the US continues to apply protective measures in the form of additional import duties on steel and aluminum and refuses to provide compensation for Russia's losses, Russia is using its WTO rights and introducing balancing measures with re [...]

Russia could freeze the Turkish Stream gas pipeline project for several years in response to Turkey shooting down a Russian jet in Syria, Reuters reported on Wednesday citing sources from Gazprom. According to the sources no decision has been taken by Gazprom about changes to the project’s schedule, but the company was awaiting instructions from President Putin. [...]

According to the bipartisan group, this is intended to make sure victims and first responders get “the care they earned.” A bipartisan group of US lawmakers have introduced a bill to make the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund permanent, Fox News reported Monday. [...]

"One who deceives will always find those who allow themselves to be deceived," Niccolo Machiavelli wrote. The famed Renaissance-era philosopher's sage words describe to a tee the allegation that Syrian forces attacked the city of Douma, 10km northeast of Damascus, with nerve gas on April 7, 2018. [...]

Russian aviation has conducted 431 sorties and hit 1,458 terrorist targets in seven Syrian provinces over the past week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday. "Over the past week (from November 26 to December 4), Russian aviation has carried out 431 sorties from the Hmeymim airbase and conducted pinpoint strikes on 1,458 terrorist targets in the provinces of Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, Hama, Ho [...]

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. [...]

With the Syrian Army on the brink of defeating militants concentrated near the Golan Heights, Damascus is close to wrapping up its campaign to free southern Syria. Under a recently signed deal, rebels who refuse reintegration will be evacuated to areas in northern Syria, with the Syrian Army deploying units to pre-2011 positions along the Golan. [...]

As a way to improve living standards and boosts its economy, the nation of Finland is moving closer towards offering all of its adult citizens a basic permanent income of approximately 800 euros per month. The monthly allotment would replace other existing social benefits, but is an idea long advocated for by progressive-minded social scientists and economists as a solution—counter-intuitive [...]

Although Berlin has sided with the US and recognised self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaido, it is keeping Otto Gebauer, whom he picked to represent Venezuela in Germany, in limbo and has not granted the representative key diplomatic status. Spain, above all, has reportedly urged fellow EU member states not to recognise him. [...]

The threat by an Iraqi parliamentary committee to cancel the country’s security pact with the United States reflects Baghdad’s growing fears that Washington will not rein in Turkey, so that it must seek protection from Russia and Iran, analysts told Sputnik. Last week, Turkey deployed troops to a camp in Mosul in northern Iraq. Baghdad condemned the move as a violation of sovereignty and as [...]

Escalation of US-China bilateral tariffs to shave off $1 trillion from America’s GDP. A study by the US Chamber of Commerce shows how the deterioration in the trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies, China and the United States, will drastically affect the American economy. [...]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is believed to be capable of going to great lengths to maintain his grip on power, which could lead to his ultimate downfall, expert on Central Asia Henry Kamens wrote for New Eastern Outlook. [...]

It took several teams of doctors, three organs, and a 16-hour surgery at a Moscow hospital to give a second chance at life to a nine-year-old boy who suffers from a genetic disease. [...]

Beijing has said political dialogue is the only solution to the conflict in Ukraine, and not sanctions. On Monday, the European Union announced it was prolonging economic sanctions against Russia for another six months, for what it called Moscow’s noncompliance with the terms of a ceasefire agreed in Minsk, Belarus. [...]

MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) - Mexico and Germany oppose any scenario of military intervention in Venezuela, believing that it would lead to catastrophic consequences, the two countries’ foreign ministers said at the joint press conference on Thursday. [...]

Iran is moving forward to get rid of the US dollar as a means of payment, independent researcher Timothy Alexander Guzman points out, adding that Washington has obviously shot itself in the foot by imposing sanctions on Moscow and Tehran. [...]

US President Donald Trump has threatened Tehran that it would "the official end" if it fights in a tweet as Washington builds up its military presence close to Iran. It’s unclear what triggered the US leader as all the Iranian officials were saying in recent days is that they want to avoid a military confrontation with the US. [...]

A few months ago, entrepreneur Charles Devenish contacted me to tell me about his plans to develop various mining enterprises across India. He spoke about the massive amounts of untapped mineral resources lying beneath India that is just lying there and has been for a long time. [...]