VIDEO REPORTS
And The Webby People’s Choice Award Goes To…
“Watch This Disabled Boy's World Change In Two Minutes,” a feature video produced by RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service and Current Time digital team that has been viewed more than one million times globally in Russian, English, and the original Kyrgyz, has won the prestigious Webby People’s Voice Award.
Chernobyl's Lasting Jewish Legacy
Chernobyl is known as the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster. But the Ukrainian town has a much deeper meaning for a New Yorker named Yitz Twersky. He recounts his family history, which originated in what he calls "the seat of the Twersky Jewish dynasty."
Donbas Feeds From Nature And Home Gardens
According to UN data, 1.5 million residents of Ukraine’s separatist-controlled Donbas region are experiencing food shortages -- sometimes food is too expensive or not available at all -- leaving locals to rely on what they can grow themselves or find. (In Russian/Current Time TV)
Georgian Troops Honored For Saving U.S. Lives In Afghanistan
More than 100 Georgian soldiers returned to Tbilisi on April 25 from a seven-month tour of duty in Afghanistan, receiving honors for saving the lives of several U.S. airmen last year following a suicide attack.
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Russian Court Bans Crimean Tatar Executive Council
A Russian-run court in the annexed Crimean Peninsula has branded the executive council for the region's Tatar minority an extremist organization and ordered it banned.
Ukrainian Talk Show Host Vows Hunger Strike
Ukraine authorities on April 26 revoked the work permit of Savik Shuster, a prominent Ukrainian talk show host, sparking an uproar that forced President Petro Poroshenko to defend his record on media freedom.
The first space rocket launch from the new Vostochny Cosmodrome, built at a cost of 400 billion rubles (6.14 billion USD), failed on April 27 due to technical problems, with President Vladimir Putin looking on. The Alexey Navalny Anti-Corruption Foundation has called the project, developed under the supervision of Russian Space Agency head Dmitry Rogozin, one of the most corrupt of recent years. (In Russian)
Kremlin Downbeat On NATO, EU Relations
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told a security conference in Moscow that the April 20 meeting of the NATO-Russia Council “did not inspire optimism” about the Kremlin’s relations with the alliance and the European Union.
Syria Post Brings Extremism Charges Against Russian Blogger
Moscow investigators levied criminal charges against Anton Nosik, the man considered to be the godfather of Russia's blogosphere, accusing him of extremism for a post that called for "wiping Syria off the face of the Earth.
Russia,Turkey Among Worst Violators Of Press Freedom
Rights watchdog Freedom House reports that press freedom in the world declined in 2015 to its lowest level in 12 years, under increased pressure from political, criminal, and terrorist elements.
Russia: The Cellist And The Lawyer
Banking records obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project show that cellist Sergei Roldugin, a friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, received money from an offshore company at about the same time it was being used to steal money from the Russian government in the notorious Sergei Magnitsky case.
85-Year Old Pensioner Is Russia’s Most Unlikely Dissident
Nikolai Suvorov made headlines earlier this month when he filed a suit against Russian President Putin, calling him “an enemy of the people.” A Saratov appellate court judge caused an even bigger scandal by accepting the case and setting a date for a hearing, only to resign days later after the case was dropped.
Georgia’s Hopes Of NATO Membership Recede
Recent pronouncements by the United States on the lack of “additional room” for NATO expansion suggest that, for the foreseeable future, Georgia will remain in the ambiguous position with regard to the alliance to which it was relegated in 2008.
Belarus: Are Authorities Lying About The Radiation?
Belarus suffered the most from the Chernobyl disaster, with 23 percent of the country’s territory contaminated with radiation. But authorities have declared as safe nearly 1,500 settlements in the “exclusion zone.” (In Russian/Current Time TV)
Commentary: By Electing A Populist, Serbia Is More European Than Ever
The bar for political success in the Balkans has been set very low indeed. It seems that all you need to do is refrain from threatening to start a war and you are fit to govern.