NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden appears to have landed in Moscow after boarding a flight from Hong Kong early Sunday morning. A statement released Sunday by the Hong Kong government said that an extradition request received from the U.S. “did not fully comply” with local legal requirements — something that the U.S. denies. The Hong …
Moscow
Must-Reads from Around the World
The E.U. is worried about Russia’s human rights record, rubber barons deforest Cambodia and Laos and attempts to introduce a law to protect women’s freedoms have reportedly been blocked by conservative religious lawmakers in Afghanistan
Bombing Probe Casts Spotlight on Awkward U.S.-Russia Security Ties
The massive beige-and-white building on Dakhdaev Street was probably the safest place the FBI could find to work this week in the southern Russian city of Makhachkala, where bombings and counterterrorism raids are a routine part …
Must-Reads from Around the World
Ex-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev criticizes Russia’s new laws, North Korean prison camps expand their perimeters, and a candidate in Kenya’s general election has accused Britain of trying to manipulate the result
Syria’s Rising Death Toll: The Darkness Before the Dawn or Sign of a Grinding Stalemate?
At least 60,000 Syrians have been killed in the country’s civil war since March 2011, U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay reported Wednesday. Despite that death toll, which Pillay described as “truly shocking,” U.N. envoy …
The Cry Heard Around the World: “Free Pussy Riot!”
After members of the Russian punk bank were sentenced to prison, demonstrations sprang up from Europe to New York City demanding their freedom–and their right of self-expression.
Russia’s Pussy Riot Trial: A Kangaroo Court Goes on a Witch Hunt
Is the ongoing trial of three Russian feminist punk rockers in Moscow a sign of a new tyrannical streak defining the rule of President Vladimir Putin?
Russian Realpolitik: Inside the Arms Trade with Syria
At an arms bazaar outside Moscow, military hardware and geopolitics are on display
Must-Reads from Around the World, June 20, 2012
Among today’s required reading: Western web attacks on Iran, the Bo Xilai story just keeps giving and testy exchanges between the U.K. and Argentina in Mexico.
Deadlocked, Iran and Western Nuclear Negotiators Agree Only to Keep Talking
No breakthroughs achieved as both sides dig in, overestimating their leverage
The Raids That Backfired: How the Russian Police Helped to Swell a Protest
Apparently concerned about a new march against Putin, the authorities tried disrupting the lives of its organizers. The move, however, gave fresh momentum to the demonstration
U.S. Frustration on Iran and Syria Puts New Cards in Russia’s Hands
Russia’s help will be crucial for President Barack Obama in addressing the crisis in Syria and the Iran nuclear standoff, but President Vladimir Putin is playing hard to get. Since resuming the presidency three weeks ago after a …
Must-Reads From Around the World, May 29, 2012
A Polarized Polity – In a significant development that squarely pits the Muslim Brotherhood against Egypt’s old guard, results of the first round of polling in the country’s presidential race reveal that next month’s runoff …