Russia

An aerial view shows the massive damage done to Beirut port's grain silos and the area around it on August 5, 2020, one day after a mega-blast tore through the city's port.

Who Owned the Dangerous Cargo That Blew Up Beirut? No One Will Say

Those linked to the shipment and interviewed by Reuters all denied knowledge of the cargo's original owner or declined to answer the question

President Vladimir Putin attends the Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg, Russia, July 26, 2020.

Putin: Russia Approves First COVID-19 Vaccine, Hopes to Begin Mass Production Soon

Vaccine approved after less than two months of human testing, stirring concerns that Russia may be putting national prestige before sound science and safety

Police use smoke grenades during a protest after the Belarusian presidential election in Minsk, Belarus, late Sunday, Aug. 9, 2020

Belarus Cracks Down on Mass Protests After 'Europe's Last Dictator' Reelected in Landslide

Opposition in Belarus refuses to recognise official election win by Lukashenko

Russia's President Vladimir Putin speaks with Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan and Iran's President Hassan Rohani during a video conference call, dedicated to the conflict in Syria, in Moscow, Russia, July 1, 2020.

Iranians, Russians Receive Text Messages Offering Cash for Info on U.S. Election Hacking

Written in Farsi, the Iran text messages say: 'The United States pays up to $10 million for any information on foreign interference in American elections'

Settlement Affairs Minister Tzipi Hotovely speaks at Ono Academic College, Kiryat Ono, June 7, 2020.

Israel Confirms Settlement Affairs Minister as Ambassador to London

Meeting in weekly session, ministers approve six appointments chosen by the Foreign Ministry for envoys to London, Moscow, Beijing, Shanghai, Minsk and Bangalore

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during the Holocaust Forum at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial museum in Jerusalem, January 23, 2020.

Belarus Says It Suspects Russian Mercenaries of Violent Plot Ahead of Election

Belarus said on Wednesday it had detained more than 30 suspected Russian mercenaries near Minsk after receiving information that more than 200 fighters had entered the country to destabilize it

A drawing by Yulia Tsvetkova. The caption reads: "Real women have hair on their bodies, and that's normal!"

This Russian Artist Dares to Draw Vaginas. She Could Face Years in Prison

'People here don’t really distinguish between feminism and LGBTQ,' says artist and activist Yulia Tsvetkova, who was charged with distributing pornography to minors over the internet

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a video call at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Russia, Friday, June 19, 2020.

Putin Says Russian Navy to Get Hypersonic Nuclear Strike Weapons

Weapons are in final testing phase, says Russia's defense ministry

U.S. Military: Russia Ships More Military Supplies to Libya

The accusation comes as rival Libyan factions — backed by different foreign powers pouring weapons and fighters into the country — prepare to face off over the strategic coastal city of Sirte

From top left: Turkey's Erdogan and Libya's UN-backed leader Sarraj, Russia's Putin, U.S. President Trump, Italy's PM Conte, French President Macron, and Egypt's Sissi with Libya's General Haftar,.

Analysis The War in Syria Is Moving to Libya, With New Players and Shuffled Alliances

Egypt and Turkey are the main rivals fighting for control in the North African country, but the conflict is also where the strategic interests of Arab countries, the EU, and Russia clash – as the U.S. watches from the sidelines

Chechnya's regional leader Ramzan Kadyrov speaks during a meeting in Grozny, Russia, May 10, 2019.

U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Chechen Leader Over Human Rights Violations

U.S. has 'has extensive credible information' that Ramzan Kadyrov is 'responsible for numerous gross violations of human rights dating back more than a decade, including torture and extrajudicial killings,' Pompeo says

Vladimir Putin (L) and Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) speak at the inauguration ceremony of gas pipeline "TurkStream," Istanbul, January 8, 2020

Pentagon Report: Turkey Sent Up to 3,800 Fighters to Libya

The report comes as the conflict in oil-rich Libya has escalated into a regional proxy war fueled by foreign powers pouring weapons and mercenaries into the country

A subject receives a shot in the first-stage safety study clinical trial of a potential vaccine by Moderna for COVID-19 in Washington, March 16, 2020.

UK, U.S., Canada Accuse Russian Hackers of Stealing Information on Virus Vaccine Trials

The persistent and ongoing attacks are seen by intelligence officials as an effort to steal intellectual property, rather than to disrupt research

U.S. Military: Russian Mercenaries Planted Land Mines in Libya

There was no immediate comment from Russia or the Wagner Group, a Kremlin-backed private security company that has been implicated in the conflict in the North African country

Russian President Vladimir Putin shaking hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad at the Kremlin in Moscow, October 20, 2015.

Analysis Russia Ramps Up Bid to Break Up U.S. Alliance With Syria's Kurds

Moscow promises to make the Kurds an integral part of the diplomatic process and partners in the Syrian government when the civil war ends, but the Kurds aren't biting

Russia Says Joint Patrol With Turkey Hit by Bomb Attack in Syria

Russia called off the patrol following the blast near the town of Ariha in Idlib province that damaged one Russian and one Turkish armored personnel carrier, the ministry said

Sissi addresses journalists in Cairo on January 31, 2015

Eastern-based Libyan Parliament Asks Egypt to Intervene in War

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has already warned the army might enter Libya if the GNA and its Turkish allies renew an assault on Sirte, a central coastal city

A woman holds a sign as Iranian-Americans protest China's bypassing of US sanctions in doing business with Iran, as well as the handing over of Kish island in the Persian Gulf to China in exchange for military, regional and international support, in front of the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles, California on July 10, 2020

Opinion China Is Winning the Middle East and Trump Is Helping It

Bejing is emerging as a regional competitor to the U.S. in trade, technology and now militarily too

In this June 15, 2020, file photo, the Voice of America building stands in Washington

Trump's Global Media Chief, a Former Bannon Associate, Plows Ahead With Controversial Changes

Michael Pack has assured Congress that VOA and its sister networks will remain independent, but critics fear he is turning them into a propaganda machine for President Donald Trump

A displaced Syrian woman, stands next to her tent at a camp for displaced Syrians from Idlib and Aleppo provinces, Syria's northwestern Idlib province on July 11, 2020.

On Fifth Attempt, UN Security Council Renews Syria Aid via Turkey

The United Nations describes the aid as a 'lifeline' for Syrians in the country's northwest ■ Russia and China abstained from the vote after blocking the move repeatedly

Roger Stone is seen after Trump commuted his federal prison sentence outside his home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S. July 10, 2020.

Roger Stone ‘Suffered Greatly’: Trump Commutes Longtime Adviser’s Prison Sentence

The White House says that Stone, who was convicted of lying under oath, is a 'victim of the Russia Hoax that the Left and its allies in the media perpetuated in an attempt to undermine the Trump Presidency'

A member of a humanitarian aid agency disinfects inside Ibn Sina Hospital as prevention against the coronavirus in Idlib, Syria, March 19, 2020.

Syria's Rebel-held Region Braces for New Battle After First Case of Coronavirus Detected

Hospitals suspend non-emergency procedures, schools close in the last rebel stronghold ■ Russia, China again veto UN Security Council resolution to keep aid flowing through Turkey

Local residents receive humanitarian aid from the Russian military in the town of Al-Rastan, Syria, August 15, 2018.

Russia and West in Showdown Over Humanitarian Aid to Syria’s Last Rebel Area

Members of the UN Security Council have been haggling over cross-border aid delivery to Syria, with Russia, a major ally of the Syria government, working to reduce the deliveries down from two crossings to just one

Rawan al-Aziz, a 6-year-old Syrian displaced child, from Southern Idlib countryside, poses for a picture in a tent at Atmeh camp, near the Turkish border, Syria June 19, 2020.

Opinion Do Five Million Syrian Lives Matter? Ask Russia and China

U.K. shadow minister for international development: Open border crossings are critical for Syrians. Without them millions will starve, and face COVID-19 with no medical aid at all. But at the UN Security Council, two countries are blocking those lifelines

Bags of Russian humanitarian aid are seen laying on the ground, after residents refused to accept them, in the town of Derouna Arha near the Syrian border with Turkey, June 16, 2020.