VISUAL REPORTS
Locals Rage At Moscow As Siberian Forests Burn
Massive wildfires are burning across Siberia. In the Irkutsk region, a lack of equipment and manpower to fight the blazes has left locals feeling abandoned by Moscow.
Prague To Remove Statue Of Soviet Marshall, Drawing Moscow’s Ire
Seventy years after the end of World War II, Soviet Commander Ivan Konev is again in the midst of conflict, this time in the Czech capital city Prague, where a monument dedicated to him will soon be removed.
Following Self-Immolation, Russia Urged To Protect Linguistic Diversity
After an ethnic Udmurt scholar set himself on fire to protest Russia's language policies, Human Rights Watch (HRW) is urging the government to reassess the policies in an effort to eliminate discrimination and sustain linguistic diversity.
Armenian Ex-President Kocharian Faces Trial For Bloody 2008 Crackdown
The trial of Armenia's former President Robert Kocharian is expected to begin this week, as he faces charges in the deadly 2008 crackdown on demonstrators during his final days in office.
Tajik Children Brave Treacherous Bridge To School
Some 300 children from four villages in the Vahdat district of Tajikistan must make a treacherous journey to school, walking between three and four kilometers every day, wading through rivers, and crossing a high, rickety suspension bridge.
OTHER NEWS
Trump Administration Releases $250 Million In Military Aid To Ukraine
The Trump administration has released $250 million in U.S. military aid to Ukraine -- funds that it had held up despite criticism that the money was desperately needed to counter Russian aggression and territorial expansion.
Ukraine Receives Nearly $1 Million From U.S. For Crimea And Donbas Broadcasts
RFE/RL’s Crimea unit reports that U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent announced in Kyiv on September 13 that the U.S. has given Ukraine approximately $1 million for broadcasting equipment to “provide quality Ukrainian content to more than four million people” in Ukrainian regions currently under Russian control. (Crimea.Realii/Ukrainian Service)
First Russian Removed From U.S. Treasury’s Russian Oligarch List
The U.S. Treasury Department has taken Valentin Gapontsev, a Soviet-born scientist with U.S. citizenship, off its so-called "Russian Oligarch" list following a 20-month lobbying effort and court fight in Washington.
EU Formally Extends Russia Sanctions Linked To Aggression Toward Ukraine
The European Union has formally approved an extension of sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes, against 170 Russian officials and Russian-backed Ukrainian separatists as well as 44 entities for another six months until March 15.
IMF Says Combating Graft Is Priority For New Ukraine Loan
Fighting corruption will be a key component of any new lending program Ukraine gets with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), an IMF communications director has said An IMF team is currently in Kyiv, “taking stock of the new government's policy intentions."
Russia Seeking Interpol Help To Locate Alleged CIA Informant
Russia's Foreign Ministry says that Moscow has asked the international police agency Interpol for help in locating a former Kremlin official who is alleged to have been a CIA informant and who disappeared in 2017.
Russian Duma Authorizes Destruction Of Drones At Rallies
The Russian Duma has approved a bill allowing law enforcement agencies to “limit the location of drones over public events and adjacent territories, shoot down drones, and suppress and intercept their control signals.” Security Committee chairman Vasily Piskaryov has said the previous lack of rules has led to complaints and requests for reimbursements for damages.(Russian Service)
Ukrainian Parliament Dissolves Central Election Commission
The Ukrainian parliament has voted to dissolve the Central Election Commission, which President Volodymyr Zelesnkiy has accused of “bias and political involvement” during recent elections. The current commission was appointed in September 2018 for a 7-year term. (Ukrainian Service)
Ukrainian Man Pleads Guilty In Massive U.S. Cybercrime Case
Ukrainian national Fedir Hladyr has pleaded guilty to hacking and wire-fraud charges in Seattle in what the FBI says is one of the largest cybercrime cases it has handled. The FBI has said FIN7, the hacking group where Hladyr was a systems administrator, hacked information from 15 million credit and debit cards, causing more than $100 million in losses between 2015 and 2019.
Ukraine’s PrivatBank Raided By Police
Police have raided the headquarters of PrivatBank, Ukraine's largest bank, which was nationalized in 2016, as part of a criminal investigation into whether bank officials exceeded their authority in concluding agreements with domestic and international recruitment and consulting companies.
Czech President Tells Serbia He Will Seek To Withdraw Kosovo Recognition
Speaking during a September 11 visit to Belgrade, Czech President Milos Zeman said he would like his country to withdraw its recognition of Kosovo as a sovereign nation. “A war crimes-led state should not be located in the community of democratic countries,” he said.
Visgrad Four Leaders Call On EU To Swiftly Add Balkan States
During a Balkan-Central European summit overshadowed by the Czech president's call for his country to withdraw its recognition of Kosovo, the prime ministers of the Visegrad Four countries have called for the swift expansion of the European Union to include states in the western Balkans.
Hundreds Of Tajik Women And Children Stranded In Syrian Refugee Camps
A Tajik government source says Syrian refugee camps currently house at least 575 Tajik women and children whose families had joined the Islamic State militant group. Most are in the Al-Hol refugee camp, located in northeastern Syria.
Uzbekistan Offers Seven-Day Visa Free Travel To Chinese Citizens
The waiver, described by the government as an effort to promote tourism, will be available from the start of 2020 to both citizens of mainland China and Hong Kong.
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