Russia
# NASA cuts ties with Russia, with exception of space station
# Divisions among Russian emgires on Ukraine
# "Why Russians Long for the Soviet Union" - Victor Davidoff, "Moscow Times"
# "Putin's Nightingales" - David Remnick, "New Yorker"
# "In Crimea, Russia Showcases a Rebooted Army" -C.J. Chivers and David Herszenhorn
Ukraine
# What happened in Ukraine: A daily update
# Ukraine to get its own social network
# Ukraine far-right leader "shot himself"
# Firtash charged with racketeering in the U.S.
# David Frum asks why the weak response from the West over Russian calls for federalism
Eastern Europe
# Belarus withdraws Interpol request for Suleiman Kerimov
# Gagauzia labor migrants ask Russia for simpler citizenship procedures
Afghanistan/Pakistan
# Bomb kills six outside ministry compound in Afghanistan
# "Afghanistan and the Bottom Line" - Jamie Tarabay, Al Jazeera
# The things an Afghan election observer carries
# Retail politics in Afghanistan
# "The Secret Lives of Afghanistan’s Female Poets" - Lance Richardson, Slate
# Pakistan police apologize for German tourist's two week detention
Iran
# Iran and Russia working on $20 billion oil-for-food deal
# State Department notifies Iran of "serious concerns" about UN choice
# Israeli opposition leader throws support behind Iran talks
# Mother of Iranian passenger on Flight 370 "suffers in silence"
Central Asia
# China promises Tajikistan hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid
Caucasus
# Kim Kardashian makes plea for Kessab
# Iran’s gas courtship of Armenia
# Erdogan to make first post-vote trip to Azerbaijan
Of Interest
# What the NYT new news app is trying to do