Moscow'€™s actions in the Crimea are comprehensible, former German chancellor, Helmut Schmidt said, criticizing the Western reaction to the peninsula'€™s reunification with Russia. President Vladimir Putin’s approach to the Crimean issue is “completely understandable,” Schmidt wrote in Die Zeit newspaper where he’s employed as an editor. [...]

The new Ukraine of "€œYats,"€ Tyahnybok and Yarosh, in a rush, signed the political points of an association agreement with the EU in a Brussels summit last Friday. No less than 30 (unelected) EU bureaucrats also signed it, including European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission (EC) President Jose Manuel Barroso. [...]

€‹European lawmakers are calling into question the ability of the Troika to effectively deal with the crisis, and many are attacking its methods. An investigation report due in April will look at the handling of the Greek sovereign debt debacle. [...]

Thousands of people have trekked across Spain to protest austerity they claim is destroying their country. Under the banner of "no more cuts!" the protesters are calling for an end to the Spanish government'€™s "empty promises." Six “columns” of trains, cars and buses, as well as bands of pedestrians have travelled from Extremadura, Andalusia, Valencia, Murcia, Asturias, Galicia and Aragon, [...]

Western sanctions might push Russia to deepen cooperation with BRICS states, in particular, to strengthen its ties with China, which will possibly turn out to be a big catastrophe for the US and the EU some time later. On March 18, the spokesperson for the Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, claimed in a BBC interview that Russia would switch to new partners in case of economic sanctions being imposed by the [...]

Philosopher, plutocrat, poseur or perfectionist investor, George Soros has a remarkable pedigree for prophecy. His latest assessment? The euro may kill the EU itself. Thanks to his investment acumen, George Soros is doubtless the richest philosopher in history, a position which has allowed him to bankroll all manner of activities from sponsoring Xerox machines in the Soviet bloc during the cold wa [...]

Claiming that Crimea is part of Ukraine is the same as Serbia arguing that Kosovo is not really separated from it, Gregory Copley, editor of Defense & Foreign Affairs, told RT. [...]

Shortly before the planned Crimea referendum, the West has increased pressure on Russia. Those efforts could backfire, warn two experts at the Washington-based Brookings Institution. They shed light on the way Vladimir Putin views Europe as a threat. [...]

US President Barack Obama has ordered that sanctions be applied against 11 Russian and Ukrainian officials, the White House said. Earlier, the EU imposed sanctions against 21 officials after Crimea declared its independence.  The US has imposed sanctions against Russian and Ukrainian officials on Monday, with the White House stating that "the actions and policies" of the Russian government with r [...]

While the Crimean referendum tops world media headlines, an attempt at secession is going on in Veneto, Italy, with its major city Venice. But as it is being virtually ignored by media, people in Europe are hardly aware of what'€™s happening next door. “Do you mean the independence of Crimea?” says a Berlin resident when RT’s Irina Galushko asks him of what he thinks of the current referen [...]

The referendum on Crimea's status is going peacefully, with record-breaking turnout, international observers report. Most of them told RT that the referendum is credible and the vote of the Crimean people should be respected. [...]

A senior US State Department official has allegedly been caught giving an unexpected message to the EU while discussing Ukrainian opposition leaders’ roles in the country’s future government. The phone call was taped and posted on YouTube. [...]

The snipers who shot at protesters and police in Kiev were allegedly hired by Maidan leaders, according to a leaked phone conversation between the EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and Estonian foreign affairs minister, which has emerged online. [...]

Kurt Nimmo | Russian general urges his government to wise up to the threat on its borders. On February 5 a Russian news website, KM.ru, posted an interview with Gen. Leonid Ivashov, the former foreign relations head of the Russian Ministry of Defense and current president of the Academy of Geopolitical Studies. [...]

A four nation poll has revealed a widening gap between the UK and rest of the EU, with attitudes on both sides of the channel hardening as UK public opinion becomes increasingly hostile towards Europe. [...]

Joining an old European geopolitical and ideological project would have been catastrophic for the Ukrainian economy, political expert John Laughland told RT, noting that it was actually the EU, not Russia, blackmailing Ukraine into signing a suicide note. The European foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says Ukraine's U-turn is indeed a major disappointment. [...]

Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of several Ukrainian cities in protest at Kiev’s decision to suspend the EU trade agreement. A major rally for Euro integration with sporadic clashes is taking place in Kiev. Ukrainian police had to use teargas after a group of protesters tried storming government buildings in Kiev. [...]

The P5+1 world powers and Iran have struck a historic deal on Tehran’s nuclear program at talks in Geneva on Sunday. Ministers overcame the last remaining hurdles to reach agreement, despite strong pressure from Israel and lobby groups. [...]

In order to keep Amsterdam clean, the city now hires chronic alcoholics. For five cans of beer, tobacco and about $13 in cash per day they have to sweep the city's streets. The new project aims at tackling anti-social behavior by keeping addicts busy. [...]