The deputy speaker of the Russian State Duma says the US Congress is “transfixed on war and destruction,” after it issued an order to evaluate the ‘survivability’ of Russian and Chinese leaders in the event of a nuclear exchange. [...]

Lina Rubino, vice-secretary general of the Italian Supreme Court, has thanked doctors from Russia and other countries for their help in combating the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, in a video message shown at the virtual edition of the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum. “We, Italians, are already experiencing international solidarity. As you may know, Italy is currently enjoying the help of R [...]

In a recent article for the Turkish newspaper Aydınlık, Ismail Hakki Pekin, former chief of the Turkish General Staff Intelligence Department, warned that Turkey is moving step by step to war. In an interview with Sputnik Turkiey, Pekin commented on his assumption, saying that Ankara has found itself in a difficult situation, particularly due to foreign pressure. [...]

Chinese scientists have found that Europe and America’s East Coast have been infected by some of the most aggressive Covid-19 strains, as they discovered dozens of virus mutations. These destroy a host’s cells faster than others. The ability of the novel coronavirus to mutate has been previously vastly underestimated, a team from China’s Zhejiang University, led by Professor Li Lanjuan, says [...]

Russia decided to validate Donbass residents' documents for humanitarian reasons and the presidential decree will remain in force until the Minsk peace deal is implemented, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Saturday. [...]

The head of Wuhan’s virology institute has debunked the evolving US ‘Wuhan virus’ theory, saying Covid-19 couldn’t have artificially leaked. She said her lab didn’t have the first virus samples until as late as the end of 2019. Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) director Wang Yanyi described the theory – that Covid-19 was a creature of her laboratory – as “pure fabrication.” She e [...]

On Monday, US President Donald Trump gave the CIA the green light to conduct drone strikes against suspected militants, according to the Wall Street Journal. This new authority is a shift from a policy under former President Barack Obama that limited the CIA’s ability to engage in paramilitary activity, and may very well strain relations between the agency and the Pentagon.   [...]

Videos obtained by RT show areas around Beirut’s port reduced to rubble and ruins after explosions near the city’s docks destroyed nearby buildings and blew out windows more than 10 kilometers away. Free-lance journalist Owen Holdaway sent videos from Beirut Thursday evening showing the aftermath of the blasts. "A large part of the area has been completely devastated," Holdaway said in a video [...]

Foreign nationals can get on a fast track to receiving Ukrainian citizenship by investing the equivalent of $100,000 US into the country's economy, according to a recent directive by the Ukrainian cabinet of ministers. In an official directive dated March 1 establishing immigration quotas for foreign nationals and stateless persons for 2017, 2,223 people married to Ukrainian citizens, and an [...]

Israeli authorities escalated demolitions in occupied East Jerusalem in August, knocking 51 Palestinian buildings and displacing 85 people, many of whom were children, a Palestinian rights group said. The demolition of homes, which Israel says were built without proper permits, have been conducted in an "unprecedented manner" in the past month, Palestinian rights group, Wadi Hilweh Information [...]

A study of hundreds of human genomes has revealed humans in different regions of the world have evolved for diets with differing amounts of meat and vegetables - Europeans, particularly southerners, are optimized for a high-plant diet, while Greenland's Inuits are better able to process fatty meats. [...]

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United Kingdom’s chief of defence intelligence, Lt. Gen. Jim Hockenhull, has warned that Russia’s nuclear-powered Burevestnik (NATO name Skyfall) cruise missiles could remain in the atmosphere for multiple years if necessary and could pose a threat at any moment. "Moscow is testing a sub-sonic nuclear-powered cruise missile system which has global reach and woul [...]

The surge in right-wing and anti-establishment sentiments as a result of failed neo-liberal policies in Europe is likely to lead to collapse of the EU in “a tragic development,” prominent American linguist, scholar and activist Noam Chomsky told RT. [...]

On Tuesday, it was reported that Turkey had deployed its S-400 air defense systems to the northern city of Samsun near the Black Sea, probably for testing, with Ankara making no official statement on the matter. The US State Department has expressed alarm over reports about possible tests by Turkey of its Russian-made S-400 missile systems. [...]

The current march to war in Syria is being justified by claiming that Bashar al Assad used chemical weapons on his people. This video demonstrates evidence that Assad did not have chemical weapons because they were all destroyed in 2014. Major Evidence That Assad Did Not Conduct Chemical Attacks Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard Says The U.S. Government Is Directly Funding ISIS And Al Qaed [...]

Washington’s crackdown on Huawei has been in place since May 2019, when the US Department of Commerce blacklisted the Chinese tech giant, accusing the company of cooperating with China's intelligence services, allegations that both Beijing and the firm vehemently reject. Several top Brazilian telecom companies have rejected an American Embassy invitation to meet a US official who earlie [...]

As Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen prepare to face off in the runoff on May 7, Western mainstream media have started vigorously blaming Russia of attempting to orchestrate a cyberattack on Macron's campaign. Pierre Curien, an expert on cybersecurity explained to Sputnik France why these flimsy claims fall apart at the slightest scrutiny. [...]

LONDON – The UK judge presiding over the case of the Venezuelan gold in the Bank of England urged the legal team representing Venezuela's self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido to find “better excuses” for its failure to comply with a UK court order to pay for the legal costs of the appeal it lost in October. This is according to a statement by Venezuela Central Bank (BCV) lawyers, w [...]

An international legal team is preparing a lawsuit against NATO over the alliance’s alleged use of depleted uranium munitions during its bombing of Yugoslavia. These have allegedly caused a rise in cancer-related illnesses across the region over the years. [...]

A wide-ranging anti-coronavirus vaccination campaign began in Moscow on Saturday, with thousands signing up for shots online, in the Russian capital. Frontline workers were given first priority, as previous indicated. Those wishing to participate have to sign up online before receiving their initial dose of Sputnik V at one of the city’s 70 specialist clinics. The vaccine consists of two se [...]

The White House's statement regarding Damascus' alleged "preparations" for the use of chemical weapons in Syria has prompted concerns that it could be followed by a series of US strikes on Syrian government forces. Sputnik contributor Andrei Kots explained why these fears are not unfounded. [...]

I was constantly told as a child that the United States was the greatest nation in the world and never faltered in its dedication to democracy. I saw my country as a force for good, selfless in its commitment to promoting peace and stability across the globe. I was quickly disillusioned. My view of American foreign policy soured as I grew up and started reading and thinking for myself. The Unit [...]