After they win elections and move into the White House, plenty of presidents at some point eventually break a campaign promise. Donald J. Trump will not even wait that long. He will break an important campaign promise the moment he takes the oath of office. While stumping for a return to power in the fall, […]
Read MoreTag: Putin, Vladimir V
Azerbaijan’s Leader, Emboldened, Picks a Rare Fight With Putin
It was a tense conversation between two authoritarian leaders accustomed to getting their way. President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia was offering explanations for the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash that had killed 38 people days earlier. Perhaps it was a flock of birds, Mr. Putin said, or an exploding gas canister. Maybe a Ukrainian drone. […]
Read MoreTakeaways From Marco Rubio’s Senate Hearing
Marco Rubio, the Republican senator from Florida named by Donald J. Trump to be the next secretary of state, was warmly welcomed by senators from both parties at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday. He has served for years on the Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees in the Senate, and is known as a lawmaker devoted […]
Read MorePoland’s Leader Suggests Russian Hand in Plot to Attack Western Cargo Planes
Poland’s prime minister appeared on Wednesday to confirm the conclusions of western intelligence officials who had warned of a Russian plot to blow up cargo aircraft over western countries. “I can only confirm that Russia planned acts of air terror, not just against Poland but against airlines across the globe,” the prime minister, Donald Tusk, […]
Read MoreRubio Is in Spotlight on Second Big Day of Cabinet Hearings
When President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice for secretary of state, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, appears before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations today, it may be easy for him to persuade senators that he can lead American diplomacy at a moment of unusual global turmoil. The harder task may be convincing them that he […]
Read MoreWe Must Stand by Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin of Russia appalled the world with his full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago. He planned to topple Ukraine’s democratically elected government, install a Kremlin puppet regime and expose the West as weak, divided and diminished. After more than 1,000 days of Mr. Putin’s reckless war of choice, he has failed […]
Read MoreBiden Aides Warned Putin as Russia’s Shadow War Threatened Air Disaster
After innocent-looking cargo shipments began catching fire at airports and warehouses in Germany, Britain and Poland over the summer, there was little doubt in Washington and Europe that Russia was behind the sabotage. But in August, White House officials became increasingly alarmed by secretly obtained intelligence suggesting Moscow had a far larger plan in mind: […]
Read MorePhotograph Revives Ukraine-Russia Culture War
It looks like a serene snapshot from Ukraine’s battlefield: A group of armor-clad soldiers huddled around a makeshift table scattered with food and playing cards. Some laugh or smoke, and one lounges on the ground, smiling as he scrolls through his phone. The photograph is unlike others of the Ukrainian front that have rallied people […]
Read MoreKremlin Confirms Readiness for Putin to Meet Trump
The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia remains open to a meeting between President Vladimir V. Putin and President-elect Donald J. Trump, but that any concrete steps to set up such talks could be made only once Mr. Trump is sworn into office on Jan. 20. Responding to comments made on Thursday by Mr. Trump, […]
Read MorePutin Gets a Snub in the Vast Wine Cellars of a Former Soviet Republic
Hermann Goering, Hitler’s right-hand man, survived the cut. His bottles of wine — part of a collection seized by the Soviet army as a trophy at the end of World War II and deposited in a labyrinthine underground cellar in Moldova — are still on display. A gift of 460 bottles given in 2013 to […]
Read MoreAzerbaijani Anger Over Plane Crash Grows, in Deepening Schism With Russia
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan on Monday excoriated Russia for trying to duck responsibility in the downing of an Azerbaijani passenger jet last month, doubling down on a rare confrontation with the Kremlin that has highlighted Russia’s loss of influence in much of the former Soviet Union. Meeting with the two surviving flight attendants and […]
Read MoreUkraine Attacks Kursk Region of Russia Anew
Ukrainian forces went on the offensive in the Kursk region of Russia, Ukrainian and Russian officials said Sunday, in what appeared to be an effort to regain the initiative there as they struggle to thwart relentless Russian assaults across eastern Ukraine. The Russian Ministry of Defense said Ukrainian forces launched a large assault featuring tanks, […]
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