Four Californian teenagers just returned home on Tuesday after being detained in Russia at a youth leadership conference and interrogated by police. The students were detained on Thursday in St. Petersburg and were only allowed to leave the country on Monday. They apparently possessed a wrong type of visa. The four teenagers had to pay a fine of $110. “I believe we got caught up in a bigger … [Read more...]
Massive Swedish Hunt for Russian Submarines In Stockholm Archipelago
As tensions with Moscow grow, Sweden has decided to increase its military presence in the Stockholm archipelago on Saturday, reawakening memories of the Cold War, when it was hunting Soviet submarines along its coast. The military is searching Swedish waters for “foreign underwater activity” and has mobilized ships, troops and helicopters for this aim. This decision comes after Moscow has … [Read more...]
Nasa Chooses Companies to Bring Astronauts Into Space
Boeing and SpaceX will be receiving $6.2 billion from NASA in an ambitious project that aims to finish developing new crew capsules that will bring NASA astronauts back into space. In 2011, space shuttles were retired and since then, Americans have been relying on Russia’s Soyuz vehicles to transport their astronauts to the International Space Station. However, Boeing and SpaceX now claim to … [Read more...]
EU Votes for Toughened Sanctions against Russia
The Eastern Ukraine conflict may soon force the EU to take new punitive measures against Russia. European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said in a statement that “the sanctions aim at promoting a change of course in Russia’s actions destabilizing eastern Ukraine.” However, the sanctions will not go into effect immediately. Last week, there was a cease fire agreement established in Minsk. … [Read more...]
Quick Strike Force for Ukraine on the Verge of Creation
During the NATO summit that is taking place in Wales this week, President Barack Obama and other allied leaders will be discussing the creation of a quick-strike force of several thousand troops as a response to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO Secretary General, told reporters that the new created quick-strike unit will represent a “Readiness Action Plan” whose sole … [Read more...]
U.S. Accuses Russia of Lying about Ukraine
An emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council took place on Thursday due to the tense situation in eastern Ukraine. During the meeting, the United States expressed their disapproval with the fact that Russia lied about its military activity on the territory of Ukraine. Samantha Power, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. told the U.N. council that Russia had sent tanks and air defense units to fight … [Read more...]
Discussions Are Over between Putin and Poroshenko Yet Much Remains Undecided
Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko had a face-to-face encounter on Tuesday in Minsk, when they discussed the steadily worsening Ukraine situation at the bargaining table. It wasn’t just the handshake that was tense, as discussions produced no result or hope of solution for the Ukrainian conflict. All that came out of the encounter was the suggestion of future discussions. Initially, the Minsk … [Read more...]
Russian Aid Trucks Already on their Way out of Ukraine
Over two hundred humanitarian aid trucks are returning to Russia after entering the rebel-held eastern Ukraine region on Friday. Russia highlighted the dire need of citizens living in this area for humanitarian aid after their homes and livelihoods had been destroyed during the long months of fighting. The only problem with this seemingly altruistic picture is the fact that the Russian convoy … [Read more...]
Russian Aid Convoy Crosses Border into Ukraine
On Friday, over 200 Russian trucks crossed the border into Ukraine after the long-stalled aid convoy proceeded into the country without any Red Cross escorts. Such actions sparked criticism and drew angry accusations from Moscow. Ukraine suggested that Moscow has broken its word concerning the convoy. A senior Ukrainian security official went so far as to call Russia’s actions a “direct … [Read more...]
Russia Denies That Its Vehicles Were Destroyed in Ukraine
According to NATO, a Russian military convoy had crossed overnight into Ukraine and was destroyed by Ukrainian forces. Moscow, however, denies all these allegations. These reports have caused concerns over the Russian convoy that set off towards Ukraine from Moscow on Thursday. The humanitarian aid convoy that is set for eastern Ukraine is still a source of tension, more now that military … [Read more...]
