Putin, Behind The Wheel, Opens Crimea Bridge
Russian President Vladimir Putin has opened the country's newly built bridge to the annexed Crimean Peninsula, driving a truck across the span and drawing angry condemnation from Kyiv and the European Union.
VISUAL REPORTS
Navalny Gets 30 Days In Jail For Anti-Putin Protests
A Moscow court has ordered opposition politician Aleksei Navalny jailed for 30 days over nationwide protests on May 5 against President Vladimir Putin. (Russian Service)
Savchenko's Arrested Extended For Two Months
A Ukrainian court has extended until July 13 the pre-trial detention of Nadia Savchenko, the lawmaker and former prisoner and fighter pilot who is awaiting trial on charges of plotting an attack on the country’s parliament with grenades and automatic weapons. Savchenko has accused authorities of pressuring witnesses and close relations. (Ukrainian Service)
New Armenian PM Uses Facebook Broadcasts To Talk To Nation
"As important decisions have been made, I want to inform you immediately," the 42-year-old Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian told viewers in a Facebook Live broadcast, two days after becoming prime minister.
A Polarized Montenegro Inspires Devoted Activists On Both Sides
Two women are a regular sight at rallies and protests in Montenegro. Each stands on a different side of the political barricades that divide the country.
OTHER NEWS
7:40am -- Good Morning!
[Excerpt from Current Time TV’s daily, first-read for Russian-speaking audiences.]
The Russian Ministry of Justice has reviewed reports alleging violations of minority rights in Chechnya, but has found no evidence of abuses of gays or lesbians in the North Caucasus region. Russia’s LGBT network reported in April that it had helped 114 persons who sought to flee, claiming persecution by Chechen authorities for their sexual orientation.
Czechs Deny Asylum To Russian Alleging Collaboration Between Nazis And U.S.S.R.
Czech authorities have denied asylum to a Russian man convicted for a social-media post stating that the Soviet Union collaborated with Nazi Germany and jointly "unleashed" World War II by attacking Poland.
Russian Deputy Names Kara-Murza Jr. As Target Of New Law
Russian Duma Deputy Andrei Isayev, a leading proponent of a new bill that would criminalize advocacy for or compliance with U.S. sanctions, has announced that, should the bill become law, Vladimir Kara-Murza Jr., deputy chairman of the Open Russia Foundation, could be subject to prosecution for openly campaigning for the adoption of the Magnitsky law against Russia. (in Russian, Current Time TV)
After Fire, Kemerovo Shopping Center Faces Wrecking Ball
Demolition has begun on the shopping center in Kemerovo where a fire claimed 60 lives, mostly children, in March. Some local entrepreneurs whose businesses survived the fire sought, without success, to save their properties from demolition, since, with the loss of their investment, they will now face bankruptcy. (Russian Service)
Khamzat Azimov: From Child Refugee To Alleged IS ‘Soldier’
Following the May 12 knife attack in central Paris by a Chechen “soldier” of the militant Islamic State group, Chechnya and France have exchanged angry barbs about who bears responsibility for the radicalization of the attacker, Khamzat Azimov, whom police shot dead. RFE/RL spoke to Azimov’s relatives about their life in Chechnya before they fled in 1999 during the region’s second war.
Russian Journalist Gets Court Date In Ukraine On ‘Treason’ Charges
RIA Novosti-Ukraine Director Kirill Vyshinsky has been transferred to the southern region of Kherson for a May 17 custody hearing following his arrest in Kyiv on suspicion of treason.
Jailed Ukrainian Filmmaker Sentsov Starts Hunger Strike In Russian Prison
Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov, who opposed Moscow's takeover of Crimea and is now in prison in Russia, has started a hunger strike to demand the release of all Ukrainian nationals held in Russian penitentiaries.
Bosnian Protesters Demand Justice, End To Corruption
Thousands of Bosnians took to the streets on May 15 to demand that authorities determine the truth behind the deaths of two young men -- a Muslim and a Serb -- in a protest that has spanned Bosnia's entrenched ethnic divisions.
INFOGRAPHIC: The Bridge To Crimea