INFOGRAPHIC: The Bloody Eastern Front
VISUAL REPORTS
Reforms In Central Asia Can Be 'Painful,' Says Top EU Diplomat
In a wide-ranging interview with RFE/RL during a meeting of the EU-Central Asia Forum in Kyrgyzstan, the European Union's foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini said promoting democratic change in Central Asia can sometimes be a "painful process," but that she sees signs of "encouragement," especially in Uzbekistan.
Dozens Detained In Anti-Government Protests In Kazakhstan
At least 70 people were detained in Kazakhstan's two largest cities at day’s end on July 6, as protesters staged the latest in a series of rallies against newly elected President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev. Men appearing to be security agents used umbrellas to try and block RFE/RL reporters and videographers from filming the incidents.
Serbian President Facing Protests For More Than Seven Months
Thousands of Serbs marched against the government of President Aleksandar Vucic for the 31st weekend in a row since such rallies began in December.
Russia Mourns Sub Losses Amid Many Questions
As Russia mourns the loss of 14 sailors in a submarine incident, officials have provided few details about the victims and how they died.
Former Russian Inmates On Their Lives After Torture
Former prisoners who were tortured inside a Russian prison have been talking to RFE/RL about their lives since their release. In a new RFE/RL documentary, they discuss the fate of the imprisoned guards who tortured them, and say torture continues to be used routinely in Russian penitentiaries.
OTHER NEWS
Putin's Ban On Russia-Georgia Flights Comes Into Force
A decree banning direct flights between Russia and Georgia, issued by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to anti-Russia protests in Tbilisi, has come into effect on July 8.
Putin, Erdogan Discuss S-400 Missile System
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, discussed by phone on July 6 the supply of Russian S-400 missile defense systems to Turkey, as implementation of the controversial deal moves ahead.
NATO Chief Says Russia Still Not Complying With INF
Speaking on July 5 after talks with Russian diplomats, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said there were still no signs of Moscow trying to comply with a key Cold War-era arms-control treaty, and said, “time is running out."
Gazprom Reaches Five-Year Gas Deal With Turkmenistan
The deal with the state-owned Turkmengaz company, until July 2024, reestablishes Russia as the leading importer of Turkmen gas after it was displaced by China around the beginning of the decade.
Russian Troll Farm Employees Detained In Libya
A Moscow organization with links to the notorious Russian "troll farm" said two of its employees have been arrested by Libyan authorities, and one news report said they were accused of trying to influence upcoming elections there.
Death Toll From Siberia Floods Rises To 23
Russian officials have raised the death toll from flooding in the southern Siberian region of Irkutsk to 23, and report that the rising waters have affected 107 towns and villages, inundated more than 10,000 homes, and displaced about 33,000 people.
Ukraine Requests U.S. Weapons Ahead Of Possible Trump-Zelenskiy Meeting
The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv published a statement on July 7 announcing Ukraine’s formal request to purchase U.S. military equipment for the first time as the country continues to battle Russia-backed separatists in two eastern provinces.
Can Ukraine's 'Euro-Optimists' Rise From The Ashes?
Svitlana Zalishchuk is one of several young liberals who was elected to the Ukrainian legislature after the 2014 Euromaidan protests ushered in a new political era. The election of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has brought that era to an end, and left Zalishchuk and her peers struggling to stay afloat.
Moldovan Parliament Publishes Second Report On $1 Billion Bank Fraud
A Moldovan parliamentary commission has published the second part of an investigation detailing the disappearance of some $1 billion from the nation’s banking system, but critics say the report leaves the key question unanswered.
Food Poisoning Kills 14 Prison Inmates In Tajikistan
Tajikistan has opened a criminal investigation after 14 prison inmates died of food poisoning while being transferred from Tajikistan's northern Sogd region to prisons in Dushanbe, Norak, and Yovon in southern Tajikistan on July 7.
Take It Or Else: Turkmen Officials Forced To Spend Vacations At Overpriced State Resort
Many state workers in Turkmenistan's northern Dashoguz region have little say over where they will spend their precious vacations this summer. Several told RFE/RL's Turkmen Service that they were ordered by authorities to buy holiday packages for Avaza, a glitzy resort town on Turkmenistan's Caspian coast where hotels are largely empty due to exorbitant prices, or “be fired from their jobs, 100 percent."
PRESSROOM: Russia Adds RFE/RL Contributor To List Of Extremists
Svetlana Prokopyeva, contributor to RFE/RL Russian Service, was added to the Federal Financial Monitoring Service of the Russian Federation -- Rosfinmonitoring’s list of terrorists and extremists. In early February, prosecutors launched an investigation on suspicion that Prokopyeva had violated a law against "justifying terrorism through the use of the media" in a commentary she made for the Moscow-based Ekho Moskvy radio station. (in Russian, Current Time TV)