WEATHER ALERT
Putin calls for resuming production of intermediate missiles after scrapping of treaty with US
Read full article: Putin calls for resuming production of intermediate missiles after scrapping of treaty with USRussian President Vladimir Putin has called for resuming production of intermediate-range missiles that were banned under a now-scrapped treaty with the United States.
Under Putin, the uber-wealthy Russians known as 'oligarchs' are still rich but far less powerful
Read full article: Under Putin, the uber-wealthy Russians known as 'oligarchs' are still rich but far less powerfulWhen Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000, the outside world viewed “Russian oligarchs” as men who whose vast wealth, ruthlessly amassed, made them almost shadow rulers.
NATO freezes a Cold War-era security pact after Russia pulls out, raising questions on arms control
Read full article: NATO freezes a Cold War-era security pact after Russia pulls out, raising questions on arms controlNATO allies have frozen their participation in a key Cold War-era security treaty in response to Russia’s withdrawal from the pact.
For nearly a quarter century, an AP correspondent watched the Putin era unfold in Russia
Read full article: For nearly a quarter century, an AP correspondent watched the Putin era unfold in RussiaUnder President Vladimir Putin’s nearly quarter-century in office, Russia’s quality of life rose markedly and the country opened itself to the world.
General who led Syrian bombing is new face of Russian war
Read full article: General who led Syrian bombing is new face of Russian warGen. Sergei Surovikin has become the face of Russia’s new military strategy in Ukraine, which includes unleashing a barrage of strikes against the country's infrastructure.
US ambassador to Russia leaves post as Ukraine war drags on
Read full article: US ambassador to Russia leaves post as Ukraine war drags onThe U.S. ambassador to Russia, John Sullivan, ended his tenure as America’s top diplomat in Moscow on Sunday after nearly three years, spanning the Trump and Biden administrations, and will retire from a lengthy career in government service.
Gorbachev remembered fondly in Germany for enabling unity
Read full article: Gorbachev remembered fondly in Germany for enabling unityMikhail Gorbachev was enduringly popular in Germany for enabling the country’s reunification after four decades of post-World War II division — and setting the scene for the peaceful collapse of communism that made it possible.
Putin pays tribute to Gorbachev but won't attend his funeral
Read full article: Putin pays tribute to Gorbachev but won't attend his funeralRussian President Vladimir Putin has paid tribute to former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev but will not attend the weekend funeral, a decision reflecting the Kremlin’s ambivalence about Gorbachev’s legacy.
Kremlin offers mixed view of Gorbachev's historic role
Read full article: Kremlin offers mixed view of Gorbachev's historic roleThe Kremlin treaded carefully Wednesday reacting to Mikhail Gorbachev’s death, praising his prominent role in reshaping 20th-century history, but noting his “romantic” view of the West.
Russian media: Ex-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev dead at 91
Read full article: Russian media: Ex-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev dead at 91Mikhail Gorbachev, who as the last leader of the Soviet Union waged a losing battle to salvage a crumbling empire but produced extraordinary reforms that led to the end of the Cold War, has died at 91, Russian media reported Thursday.
EXPLAINER: Why Russia-Lithuania tensions are rising
Read full article: EXPLAINER: Why Russia-Lithuania tensions are risingNew tensions between Moscow and the West are rising after Lithuania decided to halt the transport of some goods through its territory to the Russian region of Kaliningrad as part of European Union sanctions on the Kremlin.
The Moskva, sunk off Ukraine, served in wars hot and cold
Read full article: The Moskva, sunk off Ukraine, served in wars hot and coldThe missile cruiser Moskva, named in honor of the Russian capital, was launched during the Cold War, saw service during conflicts in Georgia, Syria and Ukraine, and helped conduct peacetime scientific research with the United States.
USSR's death blow was struck 30 years ago in a hunting lodge
Read full article: USSR's death blow was struck 30 years ago in a hunting lodgeWhen the leaders of the Soviet Union’s three Slavic republics met at a secluded hunting lodge near the Polish border on Dec. 8, 1991, they delivered a death blow to the USSR.
Media groups welcome 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for journalists
Read full article: Media groups welcome 2021 Nobel Peace Prize for journalistsJournalists, human rights groups and other activists enthusiastically welcomed the awarding of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to two journalists at a time when media groups around the world face new pressures and crackdowns from the authorities.
Ukraine leader stresses NATO, EU ties on independence day
Read full article: Ukraine leader stresses NATO, EU ties on independence dayUkraine’s president has urged closer ties between the ex-Soviet nation and NATO and the European Union in a speech marking the 30th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence.
As tanks rolled in 1991, AP photographer sprang into action
Read full article: As tanks rolled in 1991, AP photographer sprang into actionOn Aug. 19, 1991, a group of top Communist Party hard-liners declared they had removed Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev from power and declared a state of emergency in the country.
Geneva regains diplomatic spotlight with Putin-Biden summit
Read full article: Geneva regains diplomatic spotlight with Putin-Biden summitWith Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin heading to town, Geneva is returning to the international spotlight as a leading hub for diplomacy and multilateralism, things that were largely shunned by the Trump administration.
Making history: The scramble to document presidents' summits
Read full article: Making history: The scramble to document presidents' summitsIf President Joe Biden has any private words with Russia’s Vladimir Putin at their meeting next week, U.S. interpreters and diplomats will be standing by to document their high-stakes encounter.
George Shultz wasn't 'afraid to struggle against the odds'
Read full article: George Shultz wasn't 'afraid to struggle against the odds'(AP Photo/Barry Thumma, File)WASHINGTON – Time was running out when Secretary of State George P. Shultz returned home in April 1988 after flying 16,000 miles in a failed mission to persuade Arabs and Israelis to negotiate their differences. AdA lifelong Republican, Shultz negotiated the first-ever treaty with the Soviet Union to reduce the size of their ground-based nuclear arsenals. The president would not yield, and Reagan and Shultz returned to the United States disappointed but determined to pursue an accord. Although Shultz objected, Reagan went ahead with the deal and millions of dollars from Iran went to right-wing Contra guerrillas in Nicaragua. But only a few years later, Reagan and Shultz, considered Israel’s best friends, had opened the door to Palestinian legitimacy and possibly a Palestinian state on land held by Israel.
Larry King, broadcasting giant for half-century, dies at 87
Read full article: Larry King, broadcasting giant for half-century, dies at 87King died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, his production company, Ora Media, tweeted. In its early years, “Larry King Live” was based in Washington, which gave the show an air of gravitas. “Do you know who I am?”“Always loved Larry King and will miss him,” Seinfeld tweeted Saturday. Originating from Washington on the Mutual network, “The Larry King Show” was eventually heard on more than 300 stations and made King a national phenomenon. “Larry King Live” debuted on June 1, 1985, and became CNN’s highest-rated program.
Writer Gail Sheehy, author of Passages, dies at 83
Read full article: Writer Gail Sheehy, author of Passages, dies at 83Sheehy, widow of New York magazine founder Clay Felker, died Monday of complications from pneumonia in Southampton, New York, according to her daughter, Maura Sheehy. She would continue with The Silent Passage (menopause), New Passages (life after 50), Understanding Mens Passages (a midlife resource for men) and Passages in Caregiving (caring for family members). Sheehy told her own story in the 2014 memoir Daring: My Passages.When not writing books, Sheehy was a popular lecturer and television commentator and a well-traveled journalist specializing in psychological portraits of public figures. For New York magazine, Vanity Fair and other publications, she interviewed everyone from Bill and Hillary Clinton to Margaret Thatcher to Mikhail Gorbachev. (Sheehy and Felker later adopted a girl, Momh).
Were they worth it?: Key protest movements over the decades
Read full article: Were they worth it?: Key protest movements over the decadesThe very nature of a protest suggests a fervent desire for change, the need to right a perceived historic injustice. Confronting tyranny can also backfire, the result a more dictatorial leader or a ruinous civil war. Here's a look at some of the key protests of recent decades and what they achieved or failed. Syria exploded quickly from an uprising against the Assad dynasty to ruinous civil war which still continues with more than half million dead and millions displaced. In neighboring Lebanon and in Iraq, civil protests erupted last October against ruling elites.