Why Russia condemns U.S. missile strike on Syria, suspends key air agreement

Putin’s spokesman said the Russian president considered the attack an attempt to distract attention from the heavy civilian casualties caused by a U.S.-backed offensive to capture the northern Iraqi city of Mosul from the Islamic State group.

Russian president Putin

MOSCOW — Russia on Friday condemned a U.S. missile strike against Syrian government forces as an attack on its ally and said it was suspending an agreement to minimize the risk of in-flight incidents between U.S. and Russian aircraft operating over Syria.
Even as Russian officials expressed hope that the strike against Syrian President Bashad al-Assad’s forces would not lead to an irreversible breakdown in U.S. relations with Moscow, the Kremlin’s decision to suspend the 2015 memorandum of understanding on the air operations immediately raised tensions in the skies over Syria.

Ukrainian crisis: America will hold Russia accountable while searching for common ground – Pence

US President Donald Trump believes common ground can be found with Russia, but Moscow must still be held accountable for the Ukrainian crisis, Vice President Mike Pence has said. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, He said, “The United States will continue to hold Russia accountable, even as we search for new common ground, which as you know, President Trump believes can be found.”

In his first major foreign policy address for the Trump administration, Pence issued a hardline statement, saying the US would demand that Moscow “honors the Minsk agreement, beginning by deescalating the violence in eastern Ukraine.” The US and its European allies have been claiming that Moscow is backing the rebel movement in eastern Ukraine against the post-coup Kiev government.

US President Donald Trump expects Russia to ‘return Crimea' – White House

US President Donald Trump has been tough on Russia and expects

Moscow to “return” the Crimea peninsula to Ukraine, the White House spokesman told reporters.

Addressing the resignation of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn – hounded by the media over his contacts with Russian diplomats prior to Trump’s inauguration – Spicer pointed out that Russia “seized” Crimea under the Obama administration and that the Trump-appointed ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has “strongly denounced the Russian occupation.”

Trump has made it clear that he expects Russia to “de-escalate the situation” in Ukraine and “return Crimea,” Spicer said at the White House briefing on Tuesday.

“Crimea is a part of Ukraine. Our Crimea-related sanctions will remain in place until Russia returns control of the peninsula to Ukraine,” Haley said at the UN Security Council meeting on February 2.

Source

Ceasefire in Syria: Russian fighter jets eliminated 12 Daesh militants in airstrikes to Support Turkish Troops

After brokering a ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government and opposition rebel groups, Russia bolstered Turkish military operations in the fight against Daesh, with three airstrikes around al-Bab.

Euphrates Shield, a Turkish operation to defend its border from terrorists, received a notable boost from Moscow. Turkish military officials announced that Russian fighter jets eliminated 12 Daesh militants in airstrikes. 

The Turkish army and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) are tightening their grip on the Daesh-held city, FSA division commander Taha Atraç told Sputnik Turkey of the progress in the region. The Syrian commander expects al-Bab to be liberated "within the next few days."

Official - Obama administration expels 35 Russian diplomats, closes two compounds

The United States expelled 35 Russian diplomats and closed two Russian compounds in New York and Maryland in response to a campaign of harassment against American diplomats in Moscow, a senior U.S. official said on Thursday.
The move against the diplomats from the Russian embassy in Washington and consulate in San Francisco is part of a series of actions announced on Thursday to punish Russia for a campaign of intimidation of American diplomats in Moscow and interference in the U.S. election.

Why Turkey, Russia Agree to Submit Syria Ceasefire Proposal to Damascus for Review

Russia-Turkey framework agreement on Syria proposes end of hostilities in the country starting at midnight local time on december 29. 

Moreover the two countries agreed that the deal should be submitted for considiration by Damascus, Turkish news agency reports.

Turkey and Russia have agreed on the outlines of a nationwide ceasefire plan in Syria for Damascus to consider, Turkish media reported Wednesday.

The general ceasefire proposal is planned to be presented to the Syrian government for consideration, according to Turkey's Anadolu news service.

BREAKING: Divers have also recovered 15 bodies and 239 body parts from the crash site, says Ministry of Defence (Russia) #Tu154

Rescuers Find 311 More Pieces of Tu-154 Plane Wreckage, Total Exceeds 1,500

The Divers have recovered the main Tu-154 Flight Data Recorder Found, to Be Decoded in Moscow - Russian Defense Ministry. 

"The Falcon small-class compact remote-operated vehicle found the main flight data recorder 1,600 meters [0.99 miles] from the shore at a depth of 17 meters [55.7 feet] at 5:42 a.m. [02:42 GMT]," the ministry said.

Don’t forget Aleppo: Russia holds memorial service for ambassador shot dead in Turkey

Dozens attend open-casket ceremony for Andrei Karlov, killed in Ankara by man shouting ‘Don’t forget Aleppo’

Russia has staged a sombre memorial ceremony for Andrei Karlov, the ambassador to Turkey shot dead in Ankara by a man shouting “Don’t forget Aleppo” and “Allahu Akbar”.

Russia and Turkey described the assassination on Monday as a failed attempt to derail a rapprochement between Moscow and Ankara, which has seen them cooperate more closely over Syria, where they have backed different sides in the conflict.

Diplomats and family members gathered at the Russian foreign ministry, a looming Stalin-era skyscraper in central Moscow, to bid farewell to Karlov, who was 62.

Moscow defends intercept of U.S. Air Force reconnaissance plane

Moscow defended its intercept of a U.S. reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea on Friday, saying it took the action because the aircraft turned off its transponder.

Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Igor Konashenkov dismissed Pentagon claims that the maneuver by the Russian SU-27 against the U.S. Air Force RC-135 was “unsafe and unprofessional.”

"We’re already getting used to claims of Pentagon representatives regarding alleged 'non-professional' maneuvers of our fighters when intercepting the U.S. scout planes on the Russian borders," he said in a statement carried by the state-run ITAR-TASSnews agency. "At the same time, we want to note that the RC-135U surveillance plane tries to sneak up to the Russian border with the transponder turned off each time. Therefore, the air defense forces on duty have to lift the fighter to visually identify the type of aircraft and its tail number.”

BREAKING: Obama, announcing new sanctions against Russia, says Moscow has failed to take any steps to de-escalate Ukraine cri…

US president barack Obama today announcing new sanctions against Russia, says Moscow has failed to take any steps to de-escalate Ukraine crisis.

details later..

Artillery fire kills civilians in Ukraine's Donetsk

Obama: Russia triggering 'dangerous escalation' in region; NATO: Russian artillery units operate in Ukraine

Two civilians were killed Saturday, apparently by artillery fire in Donetsk, the main separatist stronghold in eastern Ukraine, an AFP reporter witnessed. Their bodies were seen covered with bloodied sheets in a street of central Donetsk after artillery explosions rocked the city around 6:00 am (0300 GMT).

U S President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned Friday that Russia was triggering a "dangerous escalation" of the conflict in Ukraine due to its military presence and shelling there.

In a telephone call with Merkel, Obama said the conflict "has continued to deteriorate" since a Malaysian airliner was downed last month over rebel-held territory in Ukraine. The West accuses Russian-backed separatists of shooting down the plane, while Moscow blames Ukraine.

Russian Lavrov and Arabian Prince Saud focus on crises in Syria and Iraq

JEDDAH - Russia and Saudi Arabia Saturday stressed the importance of preserving Syrian and Iraqi territorial integrity after talks in the Western city of Jeddah.

Riyadh and Moscow have opposing positions on the conflict in Syria, with Russia backing President Bashar al-Assad and Saudi Arabia supporting the rebels seeking to topple him for more than three years.

But Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov said they had agreed "to work together to apply the Geneva I agreement that provides for a peaceful transfer of power in Syria," a Saudi spokesman said after the meetings.

US says Russia transporting tanks into Ukrainian Separatists

The United has said the pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine received  tanks and other ammunition from Russia. The US state department said on Friday that a convoy of military vehicles, including three tanks, were transported from a Russian depot into Ukraine this week. Three T-64 tanks, multiple rocket launchers and other military vehicles crossed from Russian into the Ukraine near the town of Snizhne, the state department said, describing this as "unacceptable". 

The Guardian reports that the vehicles – apparently out-of-use Russian tanks – appear to have been commandeered by Ukrainian separatist forces. Ukraine first raised concerns about the tanks crossing into its eastern region on Thursday, after several reports, including video footage uploaded to Youtube, appeared to show Russian tanks passing through Snizhne.

Happy in Russia, but I’d love to live in Brazil – Snowden

If Brazil were to offer political asylum to Edward Snowden, he would gladly accept. The whistleblower told Brazilian TV that he is certain that if he returned to the US he would be tried unfairly for revealing the NSA’s global spy program.

In an interview with Fantastico, a weekly program broadcast by Brazilian Globo News, Snowden opened up about his life in Russia and said he has no regrets over what he has done. The interview is thought to have been filmed two weeks ago when a selfie of Snowden posing with David Miranda, Laura Poitras and journalist Glen Greenwald appeared online.

RT - Donetsk People's Republic asks Moscow to consider its accession with Russia

Donetsk People's Republic has proclaimed itself a sovereign state and has asked Moscow to consider its accession with Russia, the Republic’s council said.

Earlier on Monday the results of referendums have been announced in Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, showing the majority of voters support self-rule, amid an intensified military operation by Kiev which resulted in several deaths.

Putin's first visit to Crimea since annexation treated heroic

Russian President, Vladimir Putin flew to Crimea Friday to mark the Soviet Union's World War II victory, his first trip to the peninsula since Moscow annexed it from Ukraine in March.

Putin declared his country is now stronger with the annexation of Crimea. "I am sure that 2014 will go into the annals of our whole country as the year when the nations living here firmly decided to be together with Russia, affirming fidelity to the historical truth and the memory of our ancestors,'' Putin was quoted as saying during a speech in the port city of Sevastopol.

"There is a lot of work ahead but we will overcome all difficulties because we are together, which means we have become stronger," the Russian leader said during his remarks to military leaders and other officials.

Russia takes Voice of America radio off air

The U.S.-funded Voice of America radio station has been taken off the air by Russia , as a senior Russian state media official called it “spam on our airwaves.” Dmitry Kiselyov, the head of the Rossiya Segodnya state media conglomerate on Wednesday, said a contract to broadcast Voice of America on AM radio would not be renewed.

“Rossiya Segodnya will not work with Voice of America,” Kiselyov said, the RIA Novosti news agency reported. The United States has targeted Kiselyov for sanctions over his role in promoting Russia’s annexation of Crimea. He presents a highly opinionated weekly news show on state television. “It’s as if they broadcast from the underworld. Or at least a world that no longer exists,” Kiselyov said of VOA and U.S.-funded Radio Liberty, which still broadcasts in Russia through a partner station.

NATO Secretary-General warns Moscow against further intervention in Ukraine

NATO Secretary-General has warned Russia that further intervention in Ukraine would be a “historic mistake” with grave consequences.

Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Moscow must pull back troops it has massed on the Ukrainian border. On Tuesday, Ukraine regained control of one of the government buildings occupied by pro-Russian activists in the east of the country.

Snowden Forensic Account: Obama Administration Spied On Human Rights Workers

NSA deliberately listened in on groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International and their staff.

Edward Snowden  made further revelations on Tuesday that the US targeted prominent human rights organisations and has spied on their staff.

Affirming this with evidence before the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, that NSA spied Europe's top human rights body. Speaking via a video connection from Moscow, Snowden said that the National Security Agency – for which he worked as a contractor – had deliberatly snooped on bodies like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Accoding to him, "The NSA has targeted leaders and staff members of these sorts of organisations, including domestically within the borders of the United States." Snowden did not reveal which groups the NSA had bugged.

Crimea Latest: US, EU Sanctions won't stop Putin - McCain

US Senator John McCain insisted on Tuesday that the sanctions the by the United States and the European Unions on Russia are not going to deter aggression from Moscow.  “They're not going to do it,” he said on radio show “Imus in the Morning," hosted by Don Imus.

Senator McCain affirmed that Europe can reasonably punish Russia  because of its dependence on Russian oil.