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Iran's Ahmadinejad Says Nuclear Summit 'Humiliating'

President Mahmud Ahmadinejad delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark National Nuclear Day in Tehran on April 9.
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark National Nuclear Day in Tehran on April 9.
Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has condemned a nuclear security summit that opens in Washington today as humiliating to humanity.

U.S. President Barack Obama is hosting the summit, which is focused on preventing nuclear terrorism but where world leaders are also set to discuss his push for new sanctions against Iran's nuclear program.

Iran's official IRNA news agency quoted Ahmadinejad as telling delegates at a domestic tourism industry event, "world summits being organized these days are intended to humiliate human beings."

Presidents, prime ministers, and other leaders from 47 countries will attend the summit. Iran and North Korea were not invited to the conference.

Russia Against Oil Sanctions

Meanwhile, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned that energy sanctions on Iran -- the kind said to be most favored by U.S. lawmakers -- could lead to a "humanitarian catastrophe."

The Russian president said Iran's nuclear program should be watched, but the proposed UN sanctions should not, as he said, make the "whole Iranian community start to hate the whole world."

Many Western countries fear Iran's nuclear program is being used to develop a bomb. Tehran says the program is peaceful.

Medvedev told the television news agency ABC today that sanctions should not target Iran's oil trade and "should not cause suffering."

Russia has voiced support for the U.S.-led effort to toughen UN sanctions on Iran, and Medvedev is due to arrive in Washington today to attend the two-day conference on nuclear security.

Also today, Medvedev warned that Russia could opt out of a nuclear disarmament treaty signed last week if the U.S. missile-defense program in Europe creates what he called "imbalance."

compiled from agency reports

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India Captures Bulgarian-Managed Ship From Pirates, Rescues Crew

The navy said in a post on social media that all 35 pirates aboard the ship, the Maltese-flagged bulk-cargo vessel Ruen, had surrendered.
The navy said in a post on social media that all 35 pirates aboard the ship, the Maltese-flagged bulk-cargo vessel Ruen, had surrendered.

Indian naval forces including special commandos seized a cargo vessel that had been hijacked by Somali pirates, rescuing 17 crew members, a spokesperson for the navy said on March 16. The navy said in a post on social media that all 35 pirates aboard the ship, the Maltese-flagged bulk-cargo vessel Ruen, had surrendered, and the ship had been checked for the presence of illegal arms, ammunition, and contraband. The Ruen was hijacked last year and the navy said it had intercepted the vessel on March 15. The ship was listed as being managed by Bulgarian company Navigation Maritime Bulgare.

Iran's Medical Council Warns Of Doctor Shortage Due To Emigration

The report cited the ongoing economic crisis in Iran as a key reason for medical personnel choosing to leave. (file photo)
The report cited the ongoing economic crisis in Iran as a key reason for medical personnel choosing to leave. (file photo)

Iran's Medical Council in a March 16 report warned that the country is facing a shortage of doctors, especially pediatric surgeons, because of the increasing number of physicians emigrating from the country. The nongovernmental organization's report cited the ongoing economic crisis in Iran as a key reason for medical personnel choosing to leave. Mohammad Raiszadeh, head of the council, previously called the "emptying of physicians" a "serious" crisis and warned about the future of Iran's health sector. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Radio Farda, click here.

Trump Son-In-Law Kushner Plans Luxury Projects In Serbia, Albania

Former U.S. President Donald Trump (left), his daughter Ivanka Trump (center), and her husband, Jared Kushner, attend a mixed-martial-arts event at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, on March 9.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump (left), his daughter Ivanka Trump (center), and her husband, Jared Kushner, attend a mixed-martial-arts event at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, on March 9.

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former U.S. President Donald Trump, has disclosed plans to develop luxury projects in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, and on Albania's Adriatic Sea coastline. "Excited to share some early design images for development projects we have been creating for the Albanian coast and downtown Belgrade," he wrote on social media with artist renderings of four sites. The New York Times on March 15 reported that among the projects is a luxury hotel, 1,500 residential units, and a museum in Belgrade at the site of the vacant former Yugoslav Army headquarters that was destroyed by NATO bombings in 1999.

Iranian Religious Scholar, Women's Rights Activist Arrested, Husband Says

Sedigheh Vasmaghi (file photo)
Sedigheh Vasmaghi (file photo)

Sedigheh Vasmaghi, a prominent Iranian religious scholar and political activist, has been arrested by plainclothes security agents, her husband, Mohammad Ebrahimzadeh, said on March 16. Vasmaghi was arrested at her home by four agents -- three men and a woman – with what they said was a court order. They seized her laptop, medications, and her cane, her husband said. Vasmaghi had been summoned by the authorities in the past and is an outspoken critic of the clerical establishment and the compulsory hijab. She had worn a head scarf for years, but in recent months she appeared without a head scarf to protest the repression of women, she told RFE/RL. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Radio Farda, click here.

Bulgarians Lay To Rest Patriarch Neophyte, Who Opposed Russian War

Bulgarian Patriarch Neophyte is laid to rest in Sofia on March 16.
Bulgarian Patriarch Neophyte is laid to rest in Sofia on March 16.

Thousands of people in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, joined with Orthodox Christian leaders on March 16 to bid a final farewell to Patriarch Neophyte, who died on March 13 after a long illness. The popular Neophyte, who became patriarch in 2013, was an outspoken critic of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Patriarch Bartholomew, the Istanbul-based spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, led the funeral service of the Bulgarian patriarch. Following Neophyte's death, Bulgaria’s leadership called for four days of mourning, while President Rumen Radev postponed the scheduled handover of the mandate to form a new government until March 18. To read the original story by RFE/RL’s Bulgarian Service, click here.

Updated

Several Troops Killed In Suicide Attack On Pakistan Military Post

Casualty figures are expected to rise as firing between the militants and security forces continued. (file photo)
Casualty figures are expected to rise as firing between the militants and security forces continued. (file photo)

Pakistan says seven soldiers were killed and 17 wounded in a militant attack that targeted a sprawling army post in the volatile North Waziristan district near the Afghan border on March 16.

"The terrorists rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the post, followed by multiple suicide-bombing attacks, which led to the collapse of a portion of a building," the Pakistani military said in a statement.

Residents in North Waziristan in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province said a powerful explosion shook doors and damaged windows at around 6.15 a.m. local time.

The army said five soldiers died in the truck bombing and two officers in the shoot-out that ensued. All six assailants were killed and a clearance operation was still under way in the area, it added.

The army did not name the militant group behind the attack. But a newly formed militant group, Jaish-e Fursan-e Muhammad, claimed responsibility for the assault.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack and paid tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives.

North Waziristan has long been a hotbed of militants operating on both sides of the border. Pakistani officials say attacks have risen in recent months, many of them claimed by the Pakistani Taliban (TTP).

After the Afghan Taliban returned to power following the withdrawal of the U.S.-led forces from the country, many TTP members have reportedly found sanctuary in Afghanistan, using it to launch more frequent attacks on Pakistani troops and civilians.

It has damaged the relationship between Islamabad and the Taliban-led government in Kabul, which denies allowing Afghanistan to be used by militants.

Pakistani military officials have previously claimed that their mop-up operations in North Waziristan cleared the area of Taliban fighters and other militant groups.

With reporting by Reuters
Updated

Zelenskiy Praises Range Of Ukraine's Drones Following Attacks Deep Inside Russia

A photo posted on the official Telegram account of the Belgorod region's governor on March 16 purports to show the aftermath of fresh attacks on Belgorod.
A photo posted on the official Telegram account of the Belgorod region's governor on March 16 purports to show the aftermath of fresh attacks on Belgorod.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has hailed the new long-range capabilities of his military’s combat drones following reports of attacks deep inside Russian territory.

"In these weeks, many have already seen that the Russian system of warfare has weak points and that we can reach these points with our weapons," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address on March 16.

He did not name a specific attack but the remarks came after reports that three oil facilities in Russia's Samara region -- more than 1,000 kilometers inside Russia -- had been set ablaze in drone attacks on March 15.

Earlier on March 16, Ukrainian forces launched multiple attacks on Russia, killing at least three people in the border city of Belgorod and hitting an oil refinery in the Samara region, Russian officials said.

A man and two women died in the Ukrainian shelling that also wounded three others in Belgorod, regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine

RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.

The official added that five people were also wounded when a Ukrainian drone hit a car in the village of Glotovo, some 2 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

A Ukrainian drone strike caused a fire at an oil refinery that belongs to Russian oil giant Rosneft in the Samara region, some 850 kilometers southeast of Moscow, regional Governor Dmitry Azarov said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Social-media videos showed images of buildings on fire. Azarov said that an attack on another refinery was thwarted.

The attacks come a day after a Russian ballistic missile strike killed at least 20 people and wounded more than 70 others in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa.

Two Iskander-M missiles fired from Russian-occupied Crimea struck a residential area in Odesa on March 15, Governor Oleh Kiper said.

Several of the victims were medics and rescuers who were killed by a second missile after they rushed to the scene to treat people hurt in the initial strike, Kiper added.

In his evening video address on March 15, Zelenskiy vowed that Russia would receive a "fair response" from Kyiv's forces.

On March 16, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said it had detained a 61-year-old Russian man for planning what it called a terrorist attack on Ukraine's behalf on a trans-Siberian railway junction in the Ural Mountains' Sverdlovsk region.

State news agency TASS quoted the FSB as saying the man had been recruited by Kyiv's intelligence services in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv and sent to Russia. The agency said the man had confessed to the charges and was cooperating with the investigation.

Ukraine has previously said it was targeting the trans-Siberian railway, a key route for Russian freight traversing the country.

The March 16 Ukrainian attacks come as Russia entered the second day of voting in a presidential election that is all but certain to extend Vladimir Putin’s rule by another six years after he crushed dissent. Putin has accused Kyiv of trying to disrupt the election.

With reporting by Reuters and AP
Updated

Russian Police Investigate At Least 28 Cases Of 'Vandalism In Polling Stations'

A woman pours a liquid into a ballot box during the Russian presidential election in Moscow on March 15.
A woman pours a liquid into a ballot box during the Russian presidential election in Moscow on March 15.

Russians completed the second day of voting late on March 16 in a three-day presidential election that has seen sporadic protests as some people, defying threats of stiff prison sentences, showed their anger over a process set up to hand Vladimir Putin another six years of rule.

Russian officials and independent media on March 16 reported some three dozen incidents of individual protests at polling stations, with some people attempting to destroy voting sheets by a variety of methods.

Russian authorities also stepped up threats of long prison terms for those who attempt to disrupt the voting process, including during a planned noon action on March 17.

More than one-third of Russia's 110 million eligible voters cast ballots in person and online on the first day of the country's three-day presidential election, the Central Election Commission (TsIK) said after polls closed on March 15 in the country's westernmost region of Kaliningrad.

Balloting started up again on March 16 in the Far East of Russia and continued in all 11 time zones of the country, as well as the occupied Crimean Peninsula and four other Ukrainian regions that Moscow partially controls and baselessly claims are part of Russia.

Putin is poised to win and extend his rule by six more years after any serious opponents were barred from running against him amid a brutal crackdown on dissent and the independent media.

The ruthless crackdown that has crippled independent media and human rights groups began before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine was launched, but has been ratcheted up since.

Almost exactly one month before the polls opened, Putin's most vocal critic, opposition leader Aleksei Navalny, died in an isolated Arctic prison amid suspicious circumstances as he served sentences seen as politically motivated.

Independent media on March 16 reported that Russian police had opened at least 15 criminal probes into incidents of vandalism in polling stations by midday, a number expected to grow.

Some Russians expressed their anger over Putin's authoritarian rule by vandalizing ballot boxes with a green antiseptic dye known as "zelyonka" and other liquids.

Among them was a 43-year-old member of the local election commission in the Lenin district of Izhevsk city, the Interior Ministry said on March 16.

The official was detained by police after she attempted to spill zelyonka into a touchscreen voting machine, the ministry said. Police didn’t release the woman’s name, but said she was a member of the Communist Party.

Green Dye And Fire Spoil Ballot Boxes In Incidents Across Russia
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Similar incidents were reported in at least nine cities, including St. Petersburg, Sochi, and Volgograd.

In Moscow, police arrested a woman who burned her ballot inside a voting booth in the city’s polling station N1527 on March 15, Russian news agencies reported, citing election officials in the Russian capital.

The news outlet Sota reported that that woman burned a ballot with "Bring back my husband” handwritten on it, and posted video purportedly showing the incident.

There also was one report of a firebombing at a polling station in Moscow, while In Russia's second-largest city, St. Petersburg, a 21-year-old woman was detained after she threw a Molotov cocktail at an entrance of a local school that houses two polling stations.

"It’s the first time I've see something like this -- or at least [such attacks] have not been so spectacular before," Roman Udot, an election analyst and a board member of the independent election monitor Golos, told RFE/RL.

"The state launched a war against [the election process] and this is the very striking harvest it gets in return. People resent these elections as a result and have started using them for completely different purposes [than voting]."

Ella Pamfilova, head of Russia's Central Election Commission, said that over the first two days of voting there had been 20 incidents of people pouring liquids into ballot boxes and eight cases of attempted arson or the use of smoke bombs.

Russia's ruling United Russia party claimed on March 16 that it was facing a widespread denial-of-service attack -- a form of cyberattack that snarls internet use -- against its online presence. The party said it had suspended nonessential services to repel the attack.

Meanwhile, Russian lawmakers proposed amendments to the Criminal Code to toughen punishments for those who try to disrupt elections "by arson and other dangerous means." Under the current law, such actions are punishable by five years in prison, and the lawmakers proposed to extend it to up to eight years in prison.

No Serious Challengers

Before his death, Navalny had hoped to use the vote to demonstrate the public's discontent with both the war and Putin's iron-fisted rule.

He called on voters to cast their ballot at 12 p.m. on March 17, naming the action "Noon Against Putin." HIs wife and others have since continued to call for the protest to be carried out.

Russian Opposition Plans 'Noon Against Putin' Election Protests
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Viral images of long lines forming at this time would indicate the size of the opposition and undermine the landslide result the Kremlin is expected to concoct.

The Moscow prosecutor's office threatened criminal liability for those who come to the polling stations at noon on the last day of voting. The office said it could regard long lines at noon as interfering with the work of election commissions.

Putin, 71, who has been president or prime minister for nearly 25 years, is running against three low-profile politicians -- Liberal Democratic Party leader Leonid Slutsky, State Duma deputy speaker Vladislav Davankov of the New People party, and State Duma lawmaker Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party -- whose policy positions are hardly distinguishable from Putin's.

Boris Nadezhdin, a 60-year-old anti-war politician, was rejected last month by the TsIK because of what it called invalid support signatures on his application to be registered as a candidate. He appealed, but the TsIk’s decision was upheld by Russia's Supreme Court.

"Would like to congratulate Vladimir Putin on his landslide victory in the elections starting today," European Council President Charles Michel wrote in a sarcastic post on X, formerly Twitter, on March 15.

"No opposition. No freedom. No choice."

Ukraine and many Western governments have condemned Russia for holding the vote in regions it occupies parts of, calling the move illegal.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres added his voice to the criticism on March 15, saying he "condemns the efforts of the Russian Federation to hold its presidential elections in areas of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation."

His spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, added that the "attempted illegal annexation" of those regions has "no validity" under international law.

Many observers say Putin warded off even the faintest of challengers to ensure a large margin of victory that he can point to as evidence that Russians back the war in Ukraine and his handling of it.

With reporting by Reuters and AP

Bulgarian Political Bloc Condemns Verbal Attack On Jewish Member

Bulgarian legislator Daniel Laurer (file photo)
Bulgarian legislator Daniel Laurer (file photo)

Bulgaria's reformist We Continue the Change/Democratic Bulgaria political bloc (PP-DB) on March 15 condemned an incident the day before in which a mob cornered a Jewish member of parliament representing the PP-DB in a cafe, calling him names and shouting anti-Semitic phrases at him.

The PP-DB said in a statement that it strongly opposes any kind of “discriminatory speech and hooligan attacks” and called the attack against member of parliament Daniel Laurer unacceptable and called for those involved in the “hooligan attack” to be held accountable.

"We are using this opportunity to express again strong concern about the currently unpunished incitement of ethnic hatred in Bulgarian society,” the statement said. “With the clear knowledge that it is done for election purposes, we are convinced that tacitly encouraging such behavior is far from harmless."

The statement was in response to an incident on March 14 in which a group of about 20 people verbally attacked Laurer. The demonstrators entered a cafe where Laurer was and started shouting anti-Semitic phrases such as "Go to Israel," "Jewish SOB,” and "Jews destroyed this world” and calling Laurer names.

The group eventually allowed Laurer to leave the cafe but continued taunting him as he walked to the nearby National Assembly building.

Some of the people in the group had taken part in a protest sponsored by the Revival party that was held earlier on March 14 in front of the U.S. Embassy. The Revival party, which has expressed anti-European and pro-Kremlin views, is the fourth-largest in the Bulgarian parliament.

Human rights organizations called the verbal attack on Laurer a hate crime and demanded an investigation. Thus far, Bulgaria’s law enforcement agencies have remained silent.

The PP-DB together with the GERB form Bulgaria’s governing coalition, which supports a pro-Western course. Laurer previously served as minister of innovation and growth in former Prime Minister Kiril Petkov's government.

The Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC) announced on March 15 that it had sent a message to the prosecutor's office about the attack on Laurer, saying the incident is a clear example of hate speech.

The attack on Laurer “is a dangerous escalation of fascist propaganda against which the Bulgarian Prosecutor's Office is inactive," the BHC said.

The press center of the Interior Ministry said the identity of the people who participated in the incident had been established. Police were due to submit a report to the prosecutor-general's office.

The prosecutor-general’s office in Sofia said in January that it opened an investigation into an incident in which obituaries of Adolf Hitler were pasted onto the exterior of the Sofia Synagogue.

The Jewish community said at the time that there had been an increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the country.

Europe To Use Frozen Russian Profits To Buy Arms For Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk pose at a press conference in Berlin on March 15.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk pose at a press conference in Berlin on March 15.

Ukraine's European supporters will use profits on frozen Russian assets to finance arms purchases for Kyiv, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on March 15 following a meeting with his French and Polish counterparts in Berlin. Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reaffirmed their support for Ukraine at the meeting. Scholz told a joint news conference afterward that the “windfall” profits from Russian assets frozen in Europe would support arms purchases. European support has become increasingly key as U.S. President Joe Biden has been unable to get a big Ukraine aid package through Congress.

Orban Calls For Hungarians To 'Occupy Brussels' In Upcoming Elections

In a speech on March 15, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has often clashed with the EU during his time in power, said Hungary had to choose between "Brussels and Hungarian freedom."
In a speech on March 15, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has often clashed with the EU during his time in power, said Hungary had to choose between "Brussels and Hungarian freedom."

BUDAPEST -- Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a nationalist who has held power in Hungary for the past 14 years, has issued a stinging rebuke of the European Union and called on his countrymen to help "occupy Brussels" in elections set for the bloc this summer.

In a speech during a national holiday to commemorate Hungary’s failed 1848 revolution against Habsburg rule, the right-wing populist, who has often clashed with the EU during his time in power, said Hungary had to choose between "Brussels and Hungarian freedom" in the vote.

"They start wars, destroy worlds, redraw countries' borders and graze on everything like locusts," Orban told the crowd from the steps of the National Museum.

“We Hungarians live differently and want to live differently.”

Orban and his Fidesz ruling party have been accused by critics at home and abroad of backsliding on democracy, threatening judicial independence, and of being hostile toward migrants and people from the LGBT community.

The Hungarian prime minister has talked openly about his plans to turn the country from a democracy into an "illiberal state," and the government has taken control of much of Hungary's print and broadcast media.

Budapest also has repeatedly used its veto power to thwart initiatives supported by the rest of the bloc such as refusing to send weapons to Ukraine to help it repel invading Russian forces and maintaining economic and diplomatic ties with Moscow during war, souring relations with Brussels dramatically as Hungary prepares to take over the EU's rotating presidency on July 1.

With elections for the European parliament now less than three months away, Orban told the crowd, many of whom were brought in on buses from elsewhere in the country, 2024 will be a "turning point" for the right wing.

“Brussels is not the first empire that has set its eyes on Hungary,” said Orban, who last week traveled to the United States to meet with former President Donald Trump while avoiding any meetings with President Joe Biden or his administration.

“The peoples of Europe today are afraid that Brussels will take away their freedom.... If we want to preserve Hungary’s freedom and sovereignty, we have no choice: We have to occupy Brussels.”

Orban's fiery anti-EU rhetoric came a day after U.S. Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman warned Budapest about its expanding relationship with Russia saying it raised “legitimate security concerns.”

Opposition politicians, speaking at other rallies, delivered messages that contrasted with those of Orban. Among the opposition politicians who addressed the crowds was businessman Peter Magyar, who has said he plans to launch a new party to challenge Fidesz.

"No matter what faults the European Union has, this is the club that we are a member of," said Magyar, who was once close to Fidesz.

Magyar said there is a moral, political, and economic crisis in Hungary, and the majority of Hungarians "have lost confidence in the entire political elite."

He listed examples of corruption in Hungary ranging from wasted EU funds to shortcomings in health-care, education, and child protection and said the current government can be defeated in an election.

"If Hungarian voters finally see a real, incorruptible, 'nonblackmailable,' honest, open, and free-from-extremism political force, more and more people will believe that there is hope for change, perhaps faster than many would think," Magyar said.

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of late Russian opposition figure Aleksei Navalny, spoke in a video message at a Budapest rally sponsored by Mayor Gergely Karacsony and student associations. She described Orban as an accomplice of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Be brave," Navalnaya said, repeating one of her husband’s central messages. She added that beyond Orban there are other Putin supporters in Europe.

Putin dared to start its full-scale invasion of Ukraine because he knew that he would get help from some backers in Europe, she said. Just as Putin does not represent all of Russia, Hungary cannot be equated with all that Orban represents, she said.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, and dpa

Activist Says Kyrgyz President Accepted $3 Million From Tycoon In 2020

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Raimbek Matraimov, the former deputy chairman of the customs service (composite photo)
Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Raimbek Matraimov, the former deputy chairman of the customs service (composite photo)

Associates of Kyrgyz activist Melis Aspekov, who was sentenced last month to seven years in prison on charges of plotting mass disorder, have published a letter in which Aspekov claims President Sadyr Japarov accepted $3 million from Raimbek Matraimov, the former deputy chairman of the customs service. The letter, which the activists published on March 15 on Facebook, says Japarov received the money in October 2020 when he was released from prison. Sadyr Japarov, who in 2020-2021 was at the center of a corruption scandal, is wanted in connection with several crimes. Japarov has not commented on Aspekov's claim.

U.S. Envoy Frustrated With Kurti's Refusal To Reverse Serbian Dinar Ban

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar told RFE/RL after meeting with Kurti on March 15 that the ban on the dinar is causing Kosovar citizens "a lot of pain."
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar told RFE/RL after meeting with Kurti on March 15 that the ban on the dinar is causing Kosovar citizens "a lot of pain."

PRISTINA -- Frustration is growing among Kosovo's Western backers, a senior U.S. diplomat told RFE/RL's Balkan Service, because of Prime Minister Albin Kurti's refusal to reverse a ban on the use of Serbia's dinar in the country's ethnic-Serb dominated north.

The restriction, which bans financial institutions from using any currency other than the euro for local transactions, took effect on February 1, ratcheting up tensions between Serbia and Kosovo in the face of efforts by Washington and Brussels to get the dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade back on track.

"What is happening now with the decision of the Central Bank [of Kosovo] is that there are many [Kosovar] citizens who are feeling a lot of pain, people who are not getting their modest salaries," Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and U.S. envoy for the Western Balkans U.S. Gabriel Escobar told RFE/RL after meeting with Kurti on March 15 at the end of a three-day visit.

Kosovo is not a member of the European Union or its common currency area, the eurozone, but it unilaterally adopted the euro in 2002 to help bring monetary stability and to simplify and reduce transaction costs inside and outside the country.

Belgrade, which has never acknowledged its former province's 2008 declaration of independence, still pays many ethnic Serbs at institutions in Serb-dominated parts of Kosovo in dinars. Many also hold their pensions and get child allowances in dinars.

Escobar told RFE/RL during the interview in Pristina that Kurti had told him the decision to reverse the ban was not his to make.

"The prime minister said that it was the decision of an independent institution (the central bank)," Escobar said.

"We are talking about [people] with disabilities, pensioners, students -- the most vulnerable people -- and this decision has affected them very deeply," he said.

The central bank argues that the change doesn’t stop anyone from accepting money from any country, it just means the money is converted into euros. Still, it adds a layer of cost and complication to the daily lives of ethnic Serbs still tied to the dinar.

The U.S. diplomat, however, said the dinar issue "will be a topic of discussion in Brussels" on March 19 when the chief negotiators of Kosovo and Serbia are scheduled to meet, and that he still hopes a solution will be reached.

Escobar decried what he called the lack of communication between Kurti's government and the United States, one of Kosovo's key Western allies.

"We will always be a close friend of Kosovo, but that doesn't mean we're not going to have differences with individuals and with individual governments. And I think that's where we are right now, we are entering a period of a lack of communication. And we, at least from the American side, are doing everything that we can to repair that relationship," he said.

Referring to Kurti's ruling party, Escobar admitted there is a "lot of frustration with this Vetevendosje government not just in Washington, but in Brussels, Rome, Berlin, and Paris as well."

Escobar has previously warned that the ban on the circulation of the Serbian dinar impacts the most vulnerable people in the Serb community.

The decision "has caused some real hardship for some of the citizens of this country," he said.

Separately, the EU has warned both Kosovo and Serbia that refusal to compromise on the issue jeopardizes both countries' chances of joining the 27-member bloc.

Diplomatic sources have told RFE/RL the March 19 meeting in Brussels is expected to cover the sequencing plan for the implementation of the agreement on the path toward normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia among other issues, including the dinar.

Updated

Several Russians Vandalize Polling Stations In Protest On First Day Of Presidential Vote

The Central Election Commission urged police to increase security at polling stations, which are open from March 15-17 for Russia's presidential election.
The Central Election Commission urged police to increase security at polling stations, which are open from March 15-17 for Russia's presidential election.

About a dozen Russians, defying threats from authorities of long prison sentences, have vandalized ballot boxes and polling stations across the country in protest of a presidential election that is almost certain to hand Vladimir Putin six more years as president.

Police in Moscow on March 15, the first of three days of voting, detained a woman after she poured a green antiseptic dye known as "zelyonka" into a ballot box after she deposited her voting sheet.

The Investigative Committee said the woman was detained and a probe had been launched into "obstructing the implementation of voters' rights."

At another polling station in the capital, a man was detained after he poured a similar liquid into a ballot box.

Reports from several areas across the country -- including the city of Borisoglebsk in the Voronezh region that borders Ukraine, the southwestern city of Rostov-on-Don, the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, the Volgograd region that borders Kazakhstan, the North Caucasus region of Karachai-Cherkessia, and Ukraine's Russian-occupied Crimea -- also highlighted voter protests using the dye.

Meanwhile, the Baza Telegram channel published a video from a polling station in Moscow, showing a woman pouring a flammable substance on a voting booth and setting in on fire.

In Russia's second-largest city, St. Petersburg, a 21-year-old woman was detained after she threw a Molotov cocktail at an entrance of a local school that houses two polling stations.

Ella Pamfilova, chairwoman of the electoral commission, warned those found guilty of disrupting voting during the three days would face up to five years in prison.

Russian elections are tightly controlled by the Kremlin and are neither free nor fair but are viewed by the government as necessary to convey a sense of legitimacy.

They are mangled by the exclusion of opposition candidates, voter intimidation, ballot stuffing, and other means of manipulation. Those who were expected to be Putin's main challengers currently are either incarcerated or have fled the country, fearing for their safety.

Adding to the anger of some is the inclusion of four regions of Ukraine that Russia illegally annexed since it launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022.

In the Russian-occupied southeastern city of Skadovsk in Ukraine's Kherson region, an explosive device detonated at a polling station but caused no casualties, Russian-installed officials said.

Many Western governments have called conducting of elections in the occupied areas "a grave violation of international law."

With reporting by AFP, Baza, and Mediazona

Russia Asked Imprisoned 70-Year-Old Rights Defender Orlov To Fight In Ukraine

Oleg Orlov, the 70-year-old human rights campaigner and co-chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Memorial group, who is charged with repeatedly "discrediting" the Russian Army, attends his verdict hearing in Moscow on February 27.
Oleg Orlov, the 70-year-old human rights campaigner and co-chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Memorial group, who is charged with repeatedly "discrediting" the Russian Army, attends his verdict hearing in Moscow on February 27.

The Memorial human rights group said on March 15 that imprisoned 70-year-old veteran human rights defender Oleg Orlov was offered exoneration if he agreed to join Russia's war effort in Ukraine. According to Memorial, guards at a Moscow detention center made the offer to every inmate, including Orlov, upon arrival. Orlov rejected the offer, reminding the guard that he was 70 years old and had been handed a 30-month prison term in late February for publicly condemning Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Orlov maintains his innocence. To read the original story by Current Time, click here.

Finland Moves To Block Asylum-Seekers From Entering Via Russia

Barriers are placed at the closed Vaalimaa border checkpoint between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland, in January.
Barriers are placed at the closed Vaalimaa border checkpoint between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland, in January.

Finland plans to adopt temporary legislation that will allow its border authorities to block asylum-seekers seeking to enter its territory from Russia, the government said. Finland closed all crossings on its 1,340-kilometer border with Russia late last year amid a growing number of arrivals who lacked valid documents to enter the European Union. However, a few asylum-seekers have continued to arrive and the government believes the numbers could rise significantly with the advent of spring and a rise in temperatures. Helsinki accuses Moscow of funneling migrants to the border, a claim the Kremlin has denied.

Belarus Hands Tajik Man Accused Of Evading Russian Military Service To Moscow

Russia's Investigative Committee said Belarusian authorities have detained an unidentified Tajik man who fled Russia in October along with another Tajik national to evade military conscription after both obtained Russian citizenship before the Kremlin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The Investigative Committee said on March 15 the man was extradited to Russia and confessed to evading military service. The second man remains at-large. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion, migration police raided homes of Central Asian migrant workers, checking their documents. Those who have Russian passports have been forced to join Russian troops fighting in Ukraine. To read the original story by Current Time, click here.

Bodies Of 100 Soldiers Returned To Ukraine

During the last exchange, Ukraine returned the bodies of 58 soldiers and Russia 61, the agency said. (file photo)
During the last exchange, Ukraine returned the bodies of 58 soldiers and Russia 61, the agency said. (file photo)

The bodies of 100 fallen Ukrainian soldiers were returned to Ukraine, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War -- a Ukrainian government agency -- reported on March 15. The Ukrainian military is handing the bodies over to law enforcement officials and forensic experts to identify them. After identification, the bodies will be handed over to the families for burial, the agency said, adding that the International Committee of the Red Cross offered assistance in the repatriation of the bodies. During the last exchange, Ukraine returned the bodies of 58 soldiers and Russia 61, the agency said. To read the original story by Current Time, click here.

Updated

NGOs Urge Kyrgyz President To Veto Controversial 'Foreign Agents' Bill

The Kyrgyz parliament in session (file photo)
The Kyrgyz parliament in session (file photo)

BISHKEK -- A chorus of calls from leading nongovernmental organizations in Kyrgyzstan and abroad is demanding that President Sadyr Japarov veto a controversial bill modeled on Russia’s repressive “foreign agents” laws that they say will significantly restrict freedom of expression in the country.

Kyrgyz lawmakers approved the legislation requiring nonprofits receiving foreign funding to register with the government as "foreign representatives" in its third and final reading without debate on March 14. Japarov is widely expected to sign the bill into law in the coming days.

Since the bill was first introduced last year, civil society activists have warned of the consequences, especially given that similar legislation in Russia laid the groundwork for the systematic dismantling of civil society.

"The approval of the bill by the Supreme Council deputies indicates that they are politically corrupt and any violations of Kyrgyzstan’s citizens' rights and freedoms stay unpunished. Respected president, we call on you to use your constitutional right and veto the bill on 'foreign representatives," the joint statement by a group of NGOs said.

"Such a decision would set an example for the protection of citizens’ rights and freedoms and respect of justice in the country," the statement added.

According to the bill, noncommercial organizations and media outlets that receive foreign funding and are engaged in broadly defined "political" activities will be obliged to report about their activities to the authorities. The legislation will also introduce wide oversight powers by the authorities and potential criminal sanctions for undefined criminal offenses.

Deputy Prime Minister Edil Baisalov, in an online briefing on March 14, attempted to persuade NGOs and civil rights activists that the legislation will not impose any problems for them and rejected ongoing concerns and criticism.

Amnestly International, however, also called on Japarov to veto the law, citing expectations it will have a "highly restrictive" impact on civil society.

"This move not only undermines the right to freedom of association and threatens the independence of NGOs, but also erodes the very fabric of the once-vibrant civil society in Kyrgyzstan," said Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia director.

“The passing of this legislation by parliament is deeply troubling.... The president can, and should, veto this legislation. It is crucial for international partners of Kyrgyzstan to remind its government and lawmakers what freedom of association means in practice, and compel them to immediately engage in meaningful dialogue with civil society organizations so that this harmful legislative initiative does not become law," she added.

Since 2012, Russia has used its “foreign agents” law to label and punish critics of government policies, including the February 2022 full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

The vague laws have been used to persecute organizations working in diverse fields such as education, culture, health care, environmental protection, human rights defense, and especially independent media.

Once Central Asia's standout country for independent journalism, intrepid reporting, and media innovation, Kyrgyzstan fell 50 places in the global media monitor Reporters Without Borders' most recent global ranking, sitting at 122nd place -- only 12 spots above its longtime authoritarian neighbor, Kazakhstan.

That plunge was in large part due to the authorities' decision to put severe restrictions on RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service -- including freezing its bank accounts -- in October 2022.

Updated

Zelenskiy Vows 'Fair Response' To Attack On Odesa That Killed 20

In a handout photo from Ukraine's Emergency Service, firefighters work at the site of a Russian missile strike in Odesa on March 15.
In a handout photo from Ukraine's Emergency Service, firefighters work at the site of a Russian missile strike in Odesa on March 15.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the Russian forces that attacked the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa with Iskander missiles and drones on March 15 would receive a "fair response" from Kyiv's forces.

The air strike killed 20 people and injured more than 70, Ukraine's State Emergency Services said.

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Two Russian Iskander-M missiles, fired from Russian occupied Crimea, struck a residential area in Odesa, said Oleh Kiper, governor of the region. Several of the dead were medics and rescuers who were killed by a second missile after they rushed to the scene to treat people hurt in the initial strike, Kiper added.

Zelenskiy denounced the attack as "heinous" and referred to the Russian forces that carried it out as "scum."

Russia has stepped up its strikes on the southern city in recent weeks, launching drones or missiles almost every day this month. The March 15 attack was one of the deadliest in weeks.

"Russia continues to terrorize Odesa," said Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Andriy Kostin on Facebook, noting the local residents, doctors, and emergency responders killed after they rushed to the scene of the first missile strike. Ten people suffered serious injuries, he added.

March 16 has been declared a day of mourning, and a criminal investigation has been launched.

Zelenskiy met with military commanders, including Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, saying afterward on Telegram that the officials identified the enemy's "most vulnerable places," adding that the greater the price Russia must pay for its aggression, "the closer the just end of this war will be."

He also called for the production of more high-tech drones with longer ranges for future operations.

A separate attack on Ukraine's Vinnytsya region killed at least two people, while Russia's border region of Belgorod and a refinery in the western region of Kaluga were reportedly targeted again by drones and missiles.

A Russian drone struck a residential building in Vinnytsya, the capital of the region with the same name in western Ukraine, killing one person and injuring four, Serhiy Borzov, the regional governor, said on Telegram. He later said a second victim, a woman, died in the hospital.

The Ukrainian military said separately that Russia launched 27 Shahed-type drones and eight missiles at seven Ukrainian regions.

"All 27 Shahed attack drones were shot down above the Kirovohrad, Mykolayiv, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytskiy, Vinnytsya, and Kyiv regions,” the military said in a statement, adding that many of the drones had been heading toward the capital.

The military did not specify whether missiles were also shot down.

In Russia, where three days of voting got under way in a presidential election featuring incumbent Vladimir Putin whose outcome is not in doubt, officials reported more alleged attacks by Ukrainian drones and missiles on the border region of Belgorod.

In the regional capital of Belgorod, which has been targeted by cross-border attacks for several days in a row, fresh missile and drone strikes wounded two people, damaged several residential buildings, and disrupted the voting, regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram.

A video circulating on social media purportedly shows a van on a Belgorod street being struck by a projectile and exploding. It was not immediately clear whether there were people in the van.

Russia's Defense Ministry said its air-defense systems had downed all drones and missiles allegedly launched by Ukraine on Belgorod.

On March 14, two people were reportedly killed in Belgorod in explosions on the roads that appeared to have been caused by projectiles. There were also unconfirmed reports of repeated cross-border incursions by groups of Russians who are fighting on Ukraine's side.

Separately, Baza Telegram channel, which is linked to Russian security services, reported a fire at the Pervy Zavod refinery in Kaluga that it said was caused by debris from one of four drones shot down by Russian air-defense systems. It said the fire was "quickly localized."

However, a report on social media, accompanied by a video showing a purported blast at an industrial outlet resembling a refinery, said three out of four drones actually struck the Pervy Zavod.

A Ukrainian intelligence source told Reuters that the drone attack on the Kaluga refinery caused damage and was conducted by Ukraine's HUR military intelligence service.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Ukraine was checking the extent of the damage. The statement could not be independently verified.

Dozens of Ukrainian drones struck energy infrastructure in several Russian regions in recent days, including oil refineries in Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, and the Leningrad region.

Ban On Serbian Dinar Has Created Challenges In U.S. Relations With Kosovo, Envoy Says

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar speaks to reporters in Pristina on March 14.
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar speaks to reporters in Pristina on March 14.

PRISTINA -- A senior U.S. diplomat on March 14 said a regulation on the use of the Serbian dinar in northern Kosovo has caused problems for some citizens in the region and challenges for the U.S.-Kosovo relationship.

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar said Kosovo’s controversial decision on the dinar is “an issue that we need to address immediately.”

Escobar, speaking to reporters after a meeting with Prime Minister Albin Kurti, said that the United States remains the most reliable and committed partner of Kosovo, but the dinar issue has presented challenges in the relationship.

"To be honest, these challenges are due to the current treatment of the Serbian minority. It is unfortunate that we have to go through this situation," he said.

Escobar, who is on the second day of a visit aimed at restarting normalization talks between Kosovo and Serbia, told reporters that he had a good and open conversation with Kurti, who he said promised to review some of his proposals related to the issue of prohibiting the use of the Serbian dinar.

Even though Kosovo is not a member of the European Union or its currency zone, it unilaterally adopted the euro in 2002 to help bring monetary stability and to simplify and reduce transaction costs inside and outside the country.

Belgrade, which has never acknowledged Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence, still pays many ethnic Serbs at institutions in Serb-dominated parts of Kosovo in dinars. Many also hold their pensions and get child allowances in dinars.

Escobar said no one can remain unaffected to hear how the most vulnerable people in the Serb community are being affected by the new dinar regulation. The decision “has caused some real hardship for some of the citizens of this country," he said.

"The prime minister accepted this and promised to look at some of the proposals I presented to him today," Escobar said after the nearly two-hour meeting with Kurti.

The restriction, which bans financial institutions from using any currency other than the euro for local transactions, took effect on February 1.

It has also fueled Western concerns about regional tensions escalating as a full-scale war rages in Ukraine, while Washington and Brussels struggle to get the Pristina-Belgrade dialogue back on track.

Brussels has warned both that refusal to compromise jeopardizes both countries’ chances of joining the bloc.

Kurti said that during his meeting with Escobar he expressed readiness to address current issues and informed Escobar of the steps taken to facilitate the implementation of the regulation on the dinar.

"Great to meet with...Escobar. Thanked him for U.S. support and stressed the need to hold Serbia accountable for the Banjska attack,” Kurti said on X, formerly Twitter, referring to a deadly attack on September 24 by an armed group on Kosovar police officers in the village of Banjska in northern Kosovo.

Escobar also said he hoped the Kosovar government would be flexible during a dialogue meeting on March 19 in Brussels.

Diplomatic sources told RFE/RL that the meeting will be at the level of chief negotiators. It is expected to cover the sequencing plan for the implementation of the agreement on the path toward normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia among other issues, including the dinar.

With reporting by AP
Updated

About One-Third Of Voters Turn Out On First Day Of Election Set To Extend Putin's Rule

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station in St. Petersburg on March 15.
A woman casts her ballot at a polling station in St. Petersburg on March 15.

More than a third of Russia's eligible voters cast ballots in person and online on the first day of the country's three-day presidential election, the Central Election Commission (TsIK) said after polls closed on March 15 in the country's westernmost region of Kaliningrad.

Russians began casting ballots earlier in the day in an election that President Vladimir Putin is all but certain to win, extending his rule by six more years after any serious opponents were barred from running against him amid a brutal crackdown on dissent and the independent media.

The Kremlin released a video showing Putin calmly voting online from a computer in a government office, and the TsIK said voting proceeded in an orderly fashion across the country, but there were numerous reports of vandalism at polling stations along with more than a dozen arrests.

The vote, which is not expected to be free and fair, is the first major election to take place in Russia since Putin launched his full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February 2022.

Putin, 71, who has been president or prime minister for nearly 25 years, is running against three low-profile politicians -- Liberal Democratic Party leader Leonid Slutsky, State Duma Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov of the New People party, and State Duma lawmaker Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party -- whose policy positions are hardly distinguishable from Putin's.

Boris Nadezhdin, a 60-year-old anti-war politician, was rejected last month by the Russian Central Election Commission (TsIK) because of what it called invalid support signatures on his application to be registered as a candidate. He appealed, but the TsIk's decision was upheld by Russia's Supreme Court.

"Would like to congratulate Vladimir Putin on his landslide victory in the elections starting today," European Council President Charles Michel wrote in a sarcastic post on X, formerly Twitter.

"No opposition. No freedom. No choice."

Green Dye And Fire Spoil Ballot Boxes In Incidents Across Russia
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Voters cast their ballots at nearly 100,000 polling stations across the country's 11 time zones, as well as in regions of Ukraine that Moscow illegally annexed. Ukraine and Western governments have condemned Russia for holding the vote in those Ukrainian regions, calling it illegal, and on March 15 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres added his voice to the criticism.

Guterres "condemns the efforts of the Russian Federation to hold its presidential elections in areas of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said, adding that the "attempted illegal annexation" of those regions has "no validity" under international law.

There were reports that public sector employees were being urged to vote early on March 15, a directive Stanislav Andreychuk, the co-chairman of the Golos voters' rights movement, said was aimed at having workers vote "under the watchful eyes of their bosses."

The outcome, with Putin's foes in jail, exile, or dead, is not in doubt. In a survey conducted by VTsIOM in early March, 75 percent of the citizens intending to vote said they would cast their ballot for Putin, a former KGB foreign intelligence officer.

The ruthless crackdown that has crippled independent media and human rights groups began before the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine was launched, but it has been ratcheted up since. Almost exactly one month before the polls opened, Putin's most vocal critic, opposition politician Aleksei Navalny, died in an isolated Arctic prison amid suspicious circumstances as he served sentences seen as politically motivated.

Many observers say Putin warded off even the faintest of challengers to ensure a large margin of victory that he can point to as evidence that Russians back the war in Ukraine and his handling of it.

Most say they have no expectation that the election will be free and fair, with the possibility for independent monitoring very limited.

Russian Opposition Plans 'Noon Against Putin' Election Protests
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"Who in the world thinks that it will be a real election?" Michael McFaul, the former U.S. ambassador to Moscow, said in an interview with Current Time ahead of the vote.

Before his death, Navalny had hoped to use the vote to demonstrate the public's discontent with both the war and Putin's iron-fisted rule. He called on voters to cast their ballot at 12 p.m. on March 17, naming the action Noon Against Putin. HIs wife and others have since continued to call for the protest to be carried out.

Viral images of long lines forming at this time would indicate the size of the opposition and undermine the landslide result the Kremlin is expected to concoct. The strategy was endorsed by Navalny not long before his death and his widow, Yulia Navalnaya, has promoted it.

"We need to use election day to show that we exist and there are many of us, we are actual, living, real people and we are against Putin....What to do next is up to you. You can vote for any candidate except Putin. You could ruin your ballot," Navalnaya said.

With reporting by Todd Prince, Current Time, and AP

Macron Again Declines To Rule Out Western Troops In Ukraine, But Says Not Needed Now

President Emmanuel Macron speaks to French television on March 14.
President Emmanuel Macron speaks to French television on March 14.

French President Emmanuel Macron on March 14 warned Western powers against showing any signs of weakness to Russia as he reiterated his position that sending Western troops into Ukraine shouldn't be ruled out. In an interview on French national television, Macron was asked about the prospect of sending Western troops to Ukraine, which he publicly raised last month. "We’re not in that situation today," he said, but added that "all these options are possible." Macron, who is the commander in chief of the country's armed forces, declined to describe in which situation France would be ready to send troops.

U.S. Lawmakers Weigh Lend-Lease Program Favored By Trump As Ukraine Aid Compromise

The speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson
The speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson

U.S. lawmakers who have been working to find a way to pass a major military aid package for Ukraine say they are considering a proposal that would set up a lend-lease program favored by former President Donald Trump.

Senator Markwayne Mullin (Republican-Oklahoma), who on March 14 toured an arms factory in Arkansas, said he supports additional U.S. military aid for Ukraine, though he previously voted against the bill when it passed the Senate last month.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine

RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here.

The Senate bill would provide roughly $60 billion to support Ukraine against Russia's full-scale invasion, but it has been stuck in the House, where Republicans, including many who back Trump, oppose it.

But Mullin described another package that is being worked on that Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has supported because it could help make the United States less dependent on China.

"There is a package that's being worked on the Senate and the House side that could possibly move forward," he said, citing an idea that would give the United States first rights to Ukraine's mineral resources in return for the aid.

Mullin joined U.S. Air Force General C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Senator John Boozman (Republican-Arkansas), on the tour of a Lockheed Martin factory in Camden, Arkansas, where they walked past workers assembling components of the M270 Multiple-Launch Rocket System and the High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). Both systems have been in high demand in Ukraine.

Boozman said he supported the lend-lease bill, adding that the military funding that Ukraine seeks will eventually be provided "because it’s so important.”

The tour took place a day after House Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican-Louisiana) told Republican senators to expect the House to send them legislation to help Ukraine but cautioned that whatever the House passes "may not look exactly like the Senate supplemental."

During a question-and-answer session at a Senate Republican retreat on March 13, Johnson tried to reassure Republican senators who are frustrated about the lack of action on funding for Ukraine and floated the idea of making it a loan, according to senators who participated in the discussion quoted by The Hill.

Senator John Cornyn (Republican-Texas) praised the idea of a lend-lease program in addition to or perhaps instead of the $60 billion the Senate included in its package.

"That's what FDR did in World War II," Cornyn said, referring to a lend-lease program that President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed in 1941 to arm Britain and other allies against Germany.

Cornyn also said another proposal calling for the forfeiture of $300 billion in Russian assets held in Western financial institutions "is a great idea."

"It would be justice to make the Russians to pay for Ukraine, pay the United States and allies for arming Ukraine," he said, referring to legislation known as the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity (REPO) for Ukrainians Act.

Senator Lindsey Graham (Republican-South Carolina) said a lend-lease program would help Ukraine stop Russian gains on the battlefield.

"I think it’s an elegant solution, particularly with the REPO Act, where you can take oligarch assets," he said, according to The Hill. "I think that is a sweet spot, because if you're for helping Ukraine, are you really going to say no to a loan?"

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, asked about the possibility of a lend-lease program during a conference call with reporters, said the bill passed by the Senate "will answer very well our strong desire to continue to support Ukraine" and urged Johnson to bring it to the floor.

With reporting by The Hill and AP

Belarus Halts Lithuanian Imports In Response To Border Closures

A sign on the border of Lithuania warns against traveling to Belarus.
A sign on the border of Lithuania warns against traveling to Belarus.

Belarus said on March 14 it was blocking a range of imports from Lithuania in retaliation for its neighbor closing two more border checkpoints. The Baltic state, which shelters many Belarusian opposition activists and is a staunch supporter of Ukraine, closed two crossings in early March after closing two checkpoints last year. Belarus said the new import ban targeted various items including food and alcohol, clothing, household appliances, car parts, and construction equipment. The move "is a response to Lithuania's decision to stop the flow of merchandise, transports, and people at two border crossings," the government said.

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