News
Russia Hits Record 75,000 Monthly COVID-19 Deaths In October
Russia's state statistics agency, Rosstat, has tallied 74,893 deaths from COVID-19 in October, the highest monthly number since the pandemic began.
The agency reported on December 3 that total deaths from the pandemic through October reached over 537,000, the worst fatality count in the world behind the United States and Brazil.
Statistics for November, when the country faced a surge of infections, haven't been released.
The government's official COVID-19 death figures are almost half the Rosstat numbers.
The discrepancy can be explained by the government's coronavirus task force taking into account deaths where the virus was established as the primary cause of death after a medical examination.
Rosstat publishes figures under a wider definition for deaths linked to the virus.
The surge in infections is largely attributed to the highly infectious Delta variant and low vaccination rates, with only around 40 percent of Russians fully vaccinated.
Russia in recent months has faced its deadliest and largest surge of coronavirus cases, with both figures regularly breaking records.
Based on reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters
Current, Former RFE/RL Journalists Labeled As 'Foreign Agents' By Russia
Russia's Justice Ministry has labeled four current and former RFE/RL journalists as "foreign agents" -- a designation used by the government to designate what it says are foreign-funded organizations that are engaged in political activity, as well as people linked to them.
RFE/RL Tatar-Bashkir-Service and Idel.Realities journalists Alina Grigoryeva, Andrei Grigoryev, Regina Khisamova, and former contributor Regina Gimalova were added to the Russian registry of "foreign agents,"the ministry said.
Idel.Realities is a regional news outlet of RFE/RL's Tatar-Bashkir Service.
The controversial "foreign agent" legislation was adopted in 2012 and has been modified repeatedly while being increasingly used to shutter civil-sector and media groups in Russia.
It requires nongovernmental organizations that receive foreign assistance, and which the government deems to be engaged in political activity, to be registered, to identify themselves as "foreign agents," and to submit to audits.
RFE/RL President Jamie Fly condemned the Russian authorities' move and reaffirmed the Tatar Bashkir Service's determination to keep reporting for audiences inside Russia, a mission that he called "more important than ever."
“Even as the Kremlin increases its threats against Ukraine, the Putin regime is escalating its campaign against journalists who dare to report the facts inside Russia’s own borders," Fly said.
"Despite today’s designations, RFE/RL's Tatar Bashkir Service will continue to serve its audience inside Russia. Its work is more important than ever.”
The "foreign agents" label has led to several NGOs, media organizations, and other groups to shut down as they lose revenues from advertisers.
The designation also restricts other media from citing a “foreign agent” organization without including a disclaimer.
Most recently, the "foreign agents" legislation was used by Russian authorities last month to kick off the process of shutting down one of the post-Soviet world's most prestigious human rights organizations, International Memorial.
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Says It Wants To Be Prepared In Case Russia Invades Ukraine, Hopes To Make Aggression 'Very, Very Difficult'
U.S. President Joe Biden's administration says it wants to be prepared in case Russia invades Ukraine and the onus is on Moscow to change its behavior toward its neighbor, as warnings over a buildup of Russian troops near the border intensified on December 3.
The White House rebutted Russian demands this week over the West's relations with Ukraine by saying that "NATO decides who joins NATO, not Russia," and added that U.S. security assistance to Ukraine remains under consideration.
Administration spokeswoman Jen Psaki also said that the United States was ready to impose sanctions or take other punitive measures against Russia if it escalates its actions with respect to Ukraine.
The White House declined to say whether military planning is among the moves being considered as part of a "comprehensive" set of measures for Ukraine.
It also said it couldn't tell what Russian President Vladimir Putin's plans were with respect to Ukraine but that Moscow had taken steps that could allow for an invasion.
"That is why we want to be prepared and in an area we have expressed serious concern about," Psaki said.
Biden said hours earlier that he was readying initiatives to "make it very, very difficult" for Russia to escalate militarily against Ukraine, as Kyiv expressed fears of an attack next month amid a troop buildup in western Russia.
The warning came after a Russian official suggested Biden and Putin would speak by video "within days" but possibly after the Russian leader's scheduled trip next week to India.
Psaki said the White House was preparing for a possible call with Putin to discuss the Ukrainian situation.
"What I am doing is putting together what I believe to be the most comprehensive and meaningful set of initiatives to make it very, very difficult for Mr. Putin to go ahead and do what people are worried he's going to do," Biden said.
Biden told reporters that his administration was in "constant contact" with Ukraine and European allies about the situation, following weeks of reports that more than 90,000 Russian troops, tanks, and heavy weaponry were amassing near the border with Ukraine.
Russia invaded and forcibly seized Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, while Russia-backed separatists also launched a conflict in eastern Ukraine against the Kyiv central government. Peace efforts have lowered the intensity of fighting but commitments on both sides remain unmet.
NATO and Western leaders have repeatedly warned of consequences if Russia escalates the situation militarily.
Earlier on December 3, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov told lawmakers that Ukrainian intelligence had "emphasize[d] that the likelihood of large-scale escalation by Russia exists."
In an address to Ukrainian parliamentary deputies, Reznikov added that "the most likely time we must be ready to stand against such an escalation will be the end of January." He said the best way to reduce the threat was to "work together with our [Western] partners" and "make the price of possible escalation unacceptable for the aggressor."
Putin aide Yury Ushakov said that "a concrete date and time" for a videoconference between Biden and Putin was set but that "it is better to wait until all the parameters are fully agreed on with the American side, and then, we will be able to officially announce it."
He added that Putin would repeat a demand by Moscow for a legally binding commitment to “exclude any further NATO expansion eastward and the deployment of weapons systems that would threaten us on the territories of neighboring countries, including Ukraine.”
Moscow has consistently denied participating in the Ukrainian conflict despite overwhelming evidence of troops, equipment, and other Russian support for the separatists in a war that has killed more than 13,200 people.
Putin reportedly spoke to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on December 3 and complained of Ukraine's use of Turkish-made drones in the ongoing conflict.
He called the alleged use of Bayraktar unmanned aerial vehicles "provocative," the Kremlin said.
Erdogan was quoted as saying on November 29 that he was willing to act as a mediator between Ukraine and Russia, despite strained relations over Ankara's sale of armed drones to Kyiv earlier this year.
On December 1, Russia's Defense Ministry said that more than 10,000 Russian troops had started military exercises near the Ukrainian border.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on December 2 in Stockholm that "the United States and our allies and partners are deeply concerned by evidence that Russia has made plans for significant aggressive moves against Ukraine, including efforts to destabilize Ukraine from within and large-scale military operations."
Lavrov told Blinken that Moscow needed "long-term security guarantees," which would halt NATO's eastward expansion.
Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, cited "significant national security interests of the United States and of NATO member states" if Russia attacked Ukraine.
With reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Kremlin Says Preliminary Date Set For Putin-Biden Video Call
An aide to Vladimir Putin told reporters on December 3 that a video call would be held between the Russian leader and U.S. President Joe Biden after the former's trip to India next week.
Yury Ushakov did not specify when exactly the video call will take place, saying that final details of the talks were still being worked out.
"The contact is to take place within days. We already have a concrete date and time for this videoconference. But it is better to wait until all the parameters are fully agreed on with the American side, and then, we will be able to officially announce it," Ushakov said.
Ushakov said the two leaders would discuss the progress of the implementation of agreements made between Biden and Putin in Geneva in June, "unsatisfactory" bilateral ties, and "Afghanistan, Iran, Libya, the Ukraine crisis, and the dialogue on strategic stability."
Ushakov stressed that Moscow hopes Russia's demands for legal guarantees against NATO expansion eastward would also be discussed, adding that the Russia-initiated idea of holding a summit of the United Nations' Security Council leaders "will likely be discussed" as well.
Reports of a Russian buildup of tens of thousands of troops near the Ukrainian border in recent weeks prompted the United States and several of its NATO allies to reiterate their support for Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity in recent days.
A day earlier, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Russia to withdraw its troops deployed near Ukraine and seek a diplomatic solution to escalating tensions in the region, warning Moscow of "severe costs" in case of an aggression against its neighbor.
Russia illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in March 2014. Shortly thereafter, Moscow began supporting separatists in eastern Ukraine in a conflict in which more than 13,200 people have died.
Ukraine and Western officials say Russia has kept tens of thousands of troops and heavy equipment near the Ukrainian border since war games held in western Russia earlier this year.
Russia has denied it is plotting an attack and blames Ukraine and its Western backers for fanning tensions, pointing to what it says is a similar Ukrainian military buildup.
With reporting by TASS and Interfax
Belarusian Mother Of Five Sentenced To Four Years In Prison For Challenging Election Results
MINSK -- A court in Minsk has sentenced Volha Zalatar, an activist and mother of five children, to four years in prison for running an online chatroom that challenged the official results of last year's presidential election, which handed victory to strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka despite opposition claims the balloting was rigged.
The Minsk City Court on December 3 found Zalatar guilty of running the dze.chat online community, which a court in Minsk had earlier deemed to be an "extremist" operation.
Anton Matolka, who says he is in fact the administrator of dze.chat, called Zalatar's case and her sentence politically motivated, saying that she had never run the chat group, but did organize events for it such as tea talks and concerts as a volunteer.
The 38-year-old Zalatar, who has been recognized as a political prisoner by rights organizations in Belarus, was arrested in March. Her children range in ages from four to 17 years.
Zalatar's sentence is one of many in recent months pronounced against activists as Belarusian authorities suppress dissent in any form since the disputed presidential election in August 2020.
Rights activists and opposition politicians say the poll was rigged to extend Lukashenka's 26-year rule. Thousands have been detained during countrywide protests and there have been credible reports of torture and ill-treatment by security forces. Several people have died during the crackdown.
Many of Belarus's opposition leaders have been arrested or forced to leave the country, while Lukashenka has refused to negotiate with the opposition.
The United States, the European Union, and several other countries have refused to acknowledge Lukashenka as the winner of the vote, and imposed several rounds of sanctions on him and his regime, citing election fraud and the police crackdown.
- By RFE/RL
U.S., Europeans Disappointed By Iran's Stance In Nuclear Talks
The United States and European powers have voiced disappointment at what they said was Iran's lack of seriousness in the latest round of negotiations on reviving a landmark 2015 nuclear deal.
The talks between Iran and the remaining parties to the nuclear agreement -- Britain, France, and Germany (known as the E3), China, and Russia -- were resumed on November 29 in Vienna after a five-month hiatus, with the United States participating indirectly.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on December 3 that the talks were paused because Iran does not seem to be serious about doing what is necessary to return to compliance with the deal.
Speaking at a conference in Washington, Blinken said the United States would not allow Iran to draw out negotiations while continuing to advance its nuclear program, warning that Washington will pursue other options if diplomacy fails.
"What we've seen in the last couple of days is that Iran right now does not seem to be serious about doing what's necessary to return to compliance, which is why we ended this round of talks in Vienna," Blinken said.
"We're going to be consulting very closely and carefully with all of our partners in the process itself...and we will see if Iran has any interest in engaging seriously," he said.
The European Union official chairing the meeting said there had been some progress, but further "convergence" was necessary.
"We have identified the challenges ahead. Now it is time to consult with capitals," EU diplomat Enrique Mora told reporters. "We will be resuming here in Vienna next week."
"We have substantial challenges ahead, time is not unlimited, there is an obvious sense of urgency," he added. "But above all we need a certain convergence of policy to start negotiations."
Diplomats are aiming to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) which began unraveling in 2018 when former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled out of the deal and reimposed sanctions, prompting Iran to exceed limits on its nuclear program.
Trump's successor, Joe Biden, has said the United States is ready to rejoin the JCPOA, provided Iran resumes observing the deal's conditions.
Senior E3 diplomats in a statement expressed "disappointment and concern" in the negotiations after Iran proposed changes to the text negotiated during the previous six rounds, which started in April and were suspended in June when Iran elected a new president.
"Major changes [have been] demanded [by Iran]," the officials said in a statement, adding that some were incompatible with the 2015 deal.
"Tehran is walking back almost all of the difficult compromises crafted after many months of hard work," they added.
The E3 diplomats went on to say it was "unclear how these new gaps can be closed in a realistic time frame."
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki accused Iran of failing to come to Vienna with "constructive proposals."
But Iran's top negotiator sounded a defiant note in response to Western criticism, saying the European side can propose their own drafts for discussion, state media reported.
"There is no problem if the Europeans also provide drafts, and they can be discussed, but they must be based on principles approved by both sides," Ali Bagheri Kani said, according to state broadcaster IRIB, before leaving Vienna.
Among other things, Iran is demanding the lifting of all U.S. sanctions and guarantees that Washington will not withdraw from any future agreement.
Iran's semiofficial ISNA news agency said the talks would "most likely" resume on December 6, but French President Emmanuel Macron warned there could be a longer break in the talks.
With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
Bulgaria's New Fragmented Parliament Convenes Ahead Of Coalition Talks
SOFIA -- Bulgarian lawmakers have convened for their first session of parliament since a newly formed anti-graft party emerged as the surprise winner of the country's third general elections this year.
Lawmakers voted 158-1 with 72 abstentions on December 3 to approve the We Continue The Change party's nominee for speaker, 34-year-old lawyer Nikola Minchev.
Under the constitution, President Rumen Radev will give the party led by two Harvard University graduates a mandate to form the next government.
Radev, who was reelected to a second five-year term last month, told lawmakers that he would start consultations with the parliamentary political groups on December 6.
The co-leader of We Continue the Change, Kiril Petkov, said he was ready to assume the post of prime minister if a coalition agreement is reached with potential partners -- the leftist Socialist Party, the anti-elite There is Such a People party, and the liberal anti-corruption group Democratic Bulgaria.
Petkov said he expected such a deal next week.
Voters in the poorest nation in the European Union went to the polls on November 14 to elect a new parliament in a bid to break a monthslong political deadlock and secure a government to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic as well as rising energy prices and endemic corruption.
Two parliaments elected in April and July had failed to produce governments because of unclear majorities and disagreements between political parties on a new cabinet.
We Continue the Change won the most seats in the last election -- 67 -- but it fell well short of the majority needed in the 240-seat chamber to form a government on its own.
Six other parties entered the fragmented legislature, including the GERB party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, which received 59 seats, and the ethnic-Turkish MRF party with 34 seats.
The Socialists came fourth with 26 legislators, followed by There is Such a People with 25 seats, Democratic Bulgaria with 16 seats, and the pro-Russian nationalist group Vazrazhdane with 13 seats.
Ahead of the vote, Petkov rejected the prospect of forming a ruling coalition with the GERB or MRF parties.
Russian Media Watchdog Files Cases Against Meta And Google
Russia's Roskomnadzor media watchdog has filed suits against Alphabet's Google and Meta's Facebook that could see them fined at much as 10 percent of their local revenue.
The Magistrates Court in Moscow’s Taganka district said on December 3 that the cases originally were filed against the two companies in October over their repeated failure to delete content that Russia considers illegal.
The court added that it will hold hearings into the cases on December 24.
Roskomnadzor has been filing cases against Google, Telegram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok since February, saying the social media giants had failed to remove content that Russian authorities consider illegal.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused social media platforms and other tech giants of flouting the country's Internet laws, including a push to force foreign firms to open offices in Russia and store Russians' personal data on its territory.
Many critics say the push has nothing to do with "Internet integrity" and instead accuse the authorities of trying to quell dissent.
Social media companies have already been fined hundreds of millions of rubles for content violations.
Based on reporting by TASS, Interfax, and RIA Novosti
Remains Of 45 Victims Of Bulgarian Bus Crash Arrive In North Macedonia
SKOPJE -- The remains of 45 people, including 12 children, killed in a bus crash in neighboring Bulgaria last week have arrived in North Macedonia for burial.
Two military plane carrying the remains landed at Skopje's airport on December 3, with funerals expected to take place later in the day.
President Stevo Pendarovski, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, and parliamentary speaker Talat Xhaferi were among North Macedonia officials who paid tribute to the victims by laying wreaths on the runway.
Foreign dignitaries also attended the ceremony, including Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani and Albanian Interior Minister Blendi Cuci.
Meanwhile, the public paid tribute to the victims of the crash on Skopje’s Skanderbeg Square.
"I don't know them at all. However, I sympathize with all of them,” said Skopje resident Imrane Sulejmani. "I have a child, and it could have happened to him, too."
A previously announced procession through the capital was canceled at the request of the victims' families.
The bus was traveling from Istanbul to Skopje via Bulgaria on November 23 when it was involved in a fiery crash on a highway outside Sofia.
All of the victims were from North Macedonia. Most were ethnic Albanian tourists.
An investigation into the cause of the accident is being led by the Bulgarian Prosecutor's Office in cooperation with its counterpart in North Macedonia.
Officials in North Macedonia said the initial probe suggested that the tragedy was caused by human error.
Russian Ultranationalist Faces Posthumous Murder Charges
Maksim Martsinkevich, a notorious Russian ultranationalist who died in custody last year, is to be tried posthumously on murder charges, a lawyer representing his family said on December 3.
Lawyer Aleksei Mikhalchik told the TASS news agency that the charges filed posthumously against Martsinkevich by the Investigative Committee were based on alleged confessions he had made in a Siberian prison before his death.
The 36-year-old’s death in a detention center in the Urals city of Chelyabinsk in September 2020 sparked allegations of foul play.
Officials said Martsinkevich, also known by his nickname Tesak (Machete), committed suicide as he faced a possible life sentence over ethnically charged killings committed in the mid-2000s.
Martsinkevich's parents believe their son was murdered while in custody. Their request to launch a probe into his death have been rejected by Russian authorities.
In addition to his neo-Nazi activities, Martsinkevich founded a homophobic group whose aim was to "cure" homosexuals.
Russian authorities opened an investigation against him after several videos showing Martsinkevich and his followers humiliating and beating gays circulated on the Internet in 2013.
In late December 2018, a court in Moscow found Martsinkevich guilty of robbery and hooliganism and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.
Before that, Martsinkevich had been convicted three times on extremism charges.
While in prison, he said he had abandoned his neo-Nazi views.
In December 2020, six alleged associates of the ultranationalist were detained and charged with the murders of several individuals from Central Asia.
With reporting by TASS
- By RFE/RL
Kyrgyz Court Refuses To Recognize Books Used By Jehovah's Witnesses As 'Extremist'
BISHKEK -- A court in Bishkek has refused to deem publications from the Jehovah's Witnesses as extremist, rejecting a step by authorities toward completely outlawing the religious group.
The Birinchi Mai district court in the Kyrgyz capital on December 3 rejected a request by the Prosecutor-General’s Office to recognize 11 books, two brochures, and six videotapes belonging to the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Kyrgyzstan as extremist.
The materials in question were confiscated in 2019 from the religious group, which has operated in the Central Asian nation for more than 23 years, by the State Committee for National Security (UKMK).
Investigators then concluded that the materials "instigate religious hatred," while the Prosecutor-General’s Office asked the court last month to recognize the literature and videotapes as extremist and ban the group's activities in the country.
The Jehovah's Witnesses was officially registered in Kyrgyzstan in 1998. Currently, there are some 5,000 followers of the religious teaching.
Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan are the only Central Asian nations where Jehovah’s Witnesses are not officially outlawed.
In Russia, a large-scale crackdown on the religious denomination has been conducted since it was labeled as extremist and banned there in 2017.
- By RFE/RL
Belarus Labels RFE/RL's Telegram, YouTube Channels 'Extremist'
A Belarusian court has designated the official Telegram channel of RFE/RL's Belarus Service and some of the broadcaster's social-media accounts as extremist in a continued clampdown on independent media and civil society,
The decision to label RFE/RL's accounts "extremist" -- including its YouTube channel -- was made by the Central District Court on December 3 based on information provided by the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption, known as GUBOPiK.
Crisis In Belarus
Read our coverage as Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka continues his brutal crackdown on NGOs, activists, and independent media following the August 2020 presidential election.
In a statement, GUBOPiK said that anyone subscribing to channels or other media designated as "extremist" may face jail time or other penalties, such as fines.
"RFE/RL adamantly rejects this ridiculous label," RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said in response to the news.
"We are committed to continuing to provide objective news and information to the Belarusian people, who are in need of independent media more now than ever. The Lukashenka regime continues to make clear that their disregard for the truth and their efforts to restrict access to independent information know no bounds," he added.
Authorities in Belarus have declared hundreds of Telegram channels, blogs, and chatrooms “extremist” after the country was engulfed in protests following the August 2020 presidential election, which authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka claimed to have won and that the opposition says was rigged.
In response, the government has cracked down hard on the pro-democracy movement, arresting thousands of people and pushing most of the top opposition figures out of the country. There have also been credible reports of torture and ill-treatment, and several people have died.
Dozens of news websites have been blocked in Belarus and independent media shuttered as part of a sweeping crackdown on information in the wake of the protests.
The website of RFE/RL's Belarus Service has been blocked within Belarus since August 21, 2020, while the accreditation of all locally based journalists working for foreign media, including RFE/RL, were annulled by the Belarusian authorities in October 2020.
Lukashenka, who has run the country since 1994, has denied any fraud in the election and refuses to negotiate with the opposition on a political transition and new elections.
The West has refused to recognize Lukashenka as the legitimate leader of Belarus and has imposed several waves of sanctions against the government and other officials accused of aiding and benefiting from the crackdown.
On December 2, the European Union, the United States, and other key Western allies further tightened the sanctions in response to a crisis on the bloc’s eastern flank that the West accuses Lukashenka of fomenting by funneling thousands of mainly Middle Eastern migrants to the border region in retaliation against the sanctions.
Belarusian national carrier Belavia said on December 3 that it had cut its fleet by about half due to the sanctions. The airline has been accused of flying the migrants to Minsk.
The Belarus Foreign Ministry said on December 3 that the “unprecedented pressure” applied on it could prompt Minsk to retaliate.
"We have repeatedly said that all unfriendly anti-Belarusian steps will be followed by appropriate measures of response. The new round of sanctions is no exception," the ministry said in a statement.
The isolation has made the Belarusian strongman more reliant than ever on Russia, which analysts say is using his weakened position to strengthen its hold over its smaller neighbor.
Residents Of Daghestan's Capital Block Street Demanding Restoration Of Gas Supply
Dozens of residents in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's North Caucasus region of Daghestan, have blocked traffic demanding the restoration of natural-gas supplies that were cut off after a leak caused an explosion, killing one and injuring four people in a private house last month.
The protest lasted for several hours until local authorities met with the demonstrators late in the evening on December 2 and promised to solve the issue.
The natural-gas supply to the area was stopped after investigators said that a deadly explosion on November 22 was caused by a gas leak.
According to law enforcement, the tragedy happened because of an illegal connection to a major natural-gas delivery system. Four persons, including two children, remain in hospital with burns from the accident.
On December 1, Makhachkala city authorities said the natural-gas delivery line that was damaged by the blast had been restored, but added that deliveries in the affected area will be fully restored only after inspectors checked every building in the area for possible gas leaks.
Based on reporting by Meduza, Gazeta.ru, and Kavkazsky Uzel
Bosnia Arrests Seven Suspects Over 1992 Massacre
SARAJEVO – Authorities in Bosnia-Herzegovina say they have arrested seven people suspected of involvement in war crimes committed against civilians during the 1992-95 Bosnian War.
The suspects were apprehended on December 3 in or near the eastern towns of Bijeljina and Sokolac, Bosnia's State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) said.
It said all seven suspects will be handed over to prosecutors for questioning before a court rules on their possible pretrial detention.
According to Bosnia’s Prosecutor's Office, they were charged with participating in the killing of 22 Bosniaks, including seven children, in the village of Balatun nearly 30 years ago.
At the time, the three suspects were members of the Serb police, it said.
Serb paramilitaries led by Zeljko Raznatovic Arkan seized the Bijeljina area and massacred at least 100 civilians in the town over the following days.
At least 500 civilians were killed in Bijeljina by the end of the war, according to the nongovernmental organization Return Association.
More than 100,000 people were killed in the Bosnian conflict, which ended with a U.S.-brokered agreement that divided the country and its administration largely along ethnic lines among Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats.
This is the second operation to arrest war crimes suspects conducted by SIPA in the last 10 days.
On November 30, the agency arrested nine people in the northwestern town of Novi Grad suspected of crimes against humanity.
Loading... Turkmenistan Has The Slowest Internet In The World
Turkmenistan has been recognized as the country with the slowest Internet in the world, with users needing almost a full day to download a movie.
Cable.co.uk said in a report on worldwide broadband speed in 2021 that Turkmenistan, with an Internet speed of 0.50 megabits per second (Mbps), was the slowest of all 224 countries surveyed, with it taking just over 22 hours and 34 minutes to download a movie file with a size of 5 gigabytes.
That puts the secretive and isolated Central Asian country behind even war-torn nations such as Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia, and Afghanistan in terms of Internet speed, the report showed.
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has ruled his country with an iron fist, tolerating little dissent while shutting it off from the outside world amid an economic crisis that has pushed many of its citizens into poverty.
The hard-line government in Ashgabat has stepped up control on people's access to information in recent years in an attempt to contain the message coming out of Turkmenistan about people's hardships, while also blocking any information coming from abroad that is critical of the Turkmen government.
Of the 11 former Soviet republics that are members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the research results showed the top three fastest nations were Russia (35.73 Mbps, 66th place overall), Ukraine (25.26 Mbps, 77th overall), and Belarus (19.86 Mbps, 92nd overall). Several other former Soviet satellites in Central Asia fared poorly in the survey, with Kazakhstan (5.83 Mbps, 173rd overall) and Tajikistan (1.82 Mbps, 211th overall) near the bottom of the list.
Three other former Soviet republics -- Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, all of which are now members of the European Union and NATO -- ranked in the top 40 nations. Estonia led the Baltic trio with an average speed of 84.72 Mbps, putting it 22nd overall in the world. Latvia ranked 33rd with a speed of 63.28 Mbps, while Lithuania followed closely, ranked with a speed of 56.17 Mbps, placing it 37th in the rankings.
In Eastern Europe, three countries with the fastest average Internet speed were Hungary (104.07 Mbps, 10th), Romania (67.40 Mbps, 29th) and Slovenia (67.20 Mbps, 30th). The slowest three were the Balkan nations of North Macedonia (15.38 Mbps, 107th), Albania (19.36 Mbps, 96th), and Kosovo (22.21 Mbps, 81st).
Cable.co.uk said the rankings were derived from over 1.1 billion speed tests taken in the 12 months leading up to June 30.
"Though the countries occupying the bottom end of the table still suffer from extremely poor speeds, 2021's figures do indicate that the situation is improving," it said.
Four Ex-State Security Officers Jailed In Serbia For 1999 Murder Of Journalist
BELGRADE -- A Serbian court has sentenced four former state security officers to up to 30 years in prison over the 1999 murder of journalist Slavko Curuvija, an outspoken critic of the late strongman Slobodan Milosevic's government.
Following a retrial 22 years after the killing, the Belgrade Special Court on December 2 handed 30-year prison sentences to both the former head of Serbian State Security, Radomir Markovic, and the ex-head of Belgrade's intelligence branch, Milan Radonjic.
Secret service agents Ratko Romic and Miroslav Kurak were each given 20 years in prison. Kurak was tried in absentia.
The verdicts can be appealed.
A court had convicted the four in 2019, but that ruling was overturned and a retrial ordered.
Ivana Stevanovic, executive director of the Slavko Curuvija Foundation, described the new verdict as “a very important step” in dealing with the politically motivated crimes committed in the 1990s.
Veran Matic, president of the Commission for the Investigation of Murders of Journalists in Serbia, called it “a very important message” for Slavko’s family and colleagues, as well as for all journalists in Serbia.
According to Attila Mong, the Europe correspondent for the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalist, the ruling is “an important step in ending impunity in the case," but he said Serbian authorities should “continue to work toward complete justice by identifying those who ordered the murder and pursuing their prosecution.”
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) welcomed the verdict “as a fragile progress in bringing justice for crimes committed against journalists” in the Balkans.
“The accused can still appeal. But if the conviction is not overturned, it can inspire justice in other cases of attacks on Balkan journalists,” the Paris-based media freedom watchdog said.
According to the Independent Journalist Association of Serbia, 32 journalists were physically attacked last year and nearly 100 reported threats.
Curuvija stood out as a sharp critic of Milosevic, who involved Serbia in wars in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Kosovo during his heavy-handed 12-year rule.
The owner and editor of two independent newspapers, Curuvija was gunned down outside his home in Belgrade in April 1999, just days after the start of NATO’s bombing campaign that helped end Belgrade's military operations against ethnic Albanians in its then-province Kosovo.
The journalist’s family has accused Milosevic of personally ordering the killing.
Milosevic was arrested in 2001 and held at a UN court in The Hague for genocide and other war crimes committed during the wars that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s.
The former Serbian president died in the tribunal's detention unit in 2006 before a verdict was reached.
Pilot Who Supports Temporarily Banning Belarus From Voting On ICAO Confirmed To UN Aviation Body
The U.S. Senate has confirmed C.B. "Sully" Sullenberger to be the U.S. representative on the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the United Nations' air-safety body.
The 70-year-old Sullenberger, who rose to fame as a commercial pilot who safely landed an Airbus A320 on New York's Hudson River after an in-flight emergency in 2009, said earlier this year that Belarus should be temporarily barred from voting at the ICAO because of its diversion of a Ryanair flight in May.
"More action needs to be taken," Sullenberger told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 29 during his nomination hearing.
He noted that under certain conditions the ICAO can temporarily remove the voting rights of a state for violating international norms.
“We should be pulling every lever necessary to hold accountable those responsible for this act,” Sullenberger said.
Belarusian journalist Raman Pratasevich and his Russian girlfriend, Sofia Sapega, were detained when Belarus scrambled a military jet to escort the Athens-to-Vilnius flight which they were on to land in Minsk because of a bomb threat that proved to be false.
Sullenberger said the arrest of Pratasevich "showed flagrant disregard for international norms of aviation security and safety." He said the ICAO "must ensure that those standards are upheld" and he vowed to push for a full chronology of what happened.
The ICAO said on November 9 that an investigative report on the incident will not be released until its next session in January.
Pratasevich and Sapega are currently under house arrest. Pratasevich faces charges of being behind protests that followed a disputed presidential election in August 2020, an offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The charges against Sapega are less clear.
Based on reporting by Reuters
Navalny Pays Fine In Libel Case Involving World War II Veteran
Imprisoned Kremlin critic Aleksei Navalny has paid a fine of 850,000 rubles ($11,500) in a libel case involving a World War II veteran, the press service of the Moscow court that heard the case said on December 2.
Navalny was accused of slandering the veteran, who took part in a promotional video in support of last year's constitutional amendments that cleared the way for President Vladimir Putin to run for two more terms in office after 2024.
The trial centered on a social-media post from June 2020 in which Navalny, one of Putin's most vocal critics, described the people in the video as “traitors,” “people with no conscience,” and “corrupt lackeys.”
Russia's Investigative Committee argued that the comments contained "deliberately false information denigrating the honor and dignity" of the World War II veteran, Ignat Artyomenko.
The anti-corruption campaigner described the case as politically motivated and a fabricated Kremlin public relations campaign meant to harass and discredit him.
Navalny had a testy exchange with Judge Vera Akimova during a hearing in February in which he accused her of having “poor knowledge of the Criminal Code,” among other accusations.
Akimova later found Navalny guilty of libel and ordered him to pay the fine. The press service of the Babushkinsky district court in Moscow told Interfax on December 2 that Navalny paid it in full.
The libel trial came after the Kremlin critic was ordered to serve 2 years and 8 months in prison for violating the terms of probation imposed from a widely criticized 2014 embezzlement case. He is currently serving that sentence.
Based on reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service and Interfax
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Calls Russian Military Activity Near Ukraine Cause For 'A Lot Of Concern,' As Kyiv Warns Moscow It Will 'Fight Back'
The United States is tracking enough indicators surrounding Russian military activity near Ukraine to trigger "a lot of concern," the top U.S. military officer said on December 2, while Ukraine's defense minister warned of a possible large-scale military offensive by Moscow next month.
Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to speculate about the options the United States might consider in the event of a Russian invasion. But Milley stressed the importance of Ukraine's sovereignty to Washington and to the NATO alliance.
"There's significant national security interests of the United States and of NATO member states at stake here if there was an overt act of aggressive action militarily by the Russians into a nation state that has been independent since 1991," Milley said during a flight from Seoul to Washington.
Milley also said it would be a mistake for any country to draw broad strategic conclusions about the U.S. response based on its withdrawal from Afghanistan in August.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov accused Russia of gearing up for a possible large-scale military offensive next month. Speaking in parliament on December 3, Reznikov said that Kyiv would not stoke tensions in the area, but that "Ukraine will fight back, if necessary."
"Our intelligence is looking into all possible scenarios, including the worst one. It emphasizes that the likelihood of large-scale escalation by Russia exists. The most likely time we must be ready to stand against such an escalation will be the end of January," he said.
"The better we work together with our [Western] partners, the less the threat of escalation will be. The way to avoid the escalation is to make the price of possible escalation unacceptable for the aggressor. Ukraine is most interested in the political and diplomatic settlement scenario," he added.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Russia on December 2 to withdraw its troops deployed near Ukraine and seek a diplomatic solution to escalating tensions in the region, warning Moscow of "severe costs" in case of an aggression against its neighbor.
Blinken made the statements after meeting his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on December 2 in Stockholm on the sidelines of a gathering of foreign ministers of Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) nations.
"The United States and our allies and partners are deeply concerned by evidence that Russia has made plans for significant aggressive moves against Ukraine, including efforts to destabilize Ukraine from within and large-scale military operations," Blinken told a news conference after the talks.
Blinken said he urged Lavrov during what he called a "candid" meeting to seek a diplomatic exit from the crisis, while reaffirming Washington's "unwavering" support for Ukraine’s "territorial integrity, its sovereignty, its independence."
Blinken's talks with Lavrov came a day after a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Riga, Latvia, where Blinken said Russia's military operations appeared to be an effort to destabilize Ukraine from within.
Ukraine and Western officials say Russia has kept tens of thousands of troops and heavy equipment near the Ukrainian border since war games held in western Russia earlier this year.
Russia, which backs separatists fighting against Kyiv in eastern Ukraine, denies it is plotting an attack. Moscow blames Ukraine and its Western backers for fanning tensions, pointing to what it says is a similar Ukrainian military buildup.
On December 1, Russia's Defense Ministry said more than 10,000 Russian troops started military exercises in the country's southwest, close to the Ukrainian border.
Blinken cautioned Moscow that despite what he called "a massive Russian disinformation campaign," Ukraine was neither threatening nor seeking a military confrontation with Russia.
"The only threat is that of renewed Russian aggression toward Ukraine," Blinken said, adding that Moscow will face serious consequences in case Russia invades.
With reporting by Reuters
Bosnian Serb Leader Meets With Putin For Talks On Gas, Balkan Issues
The Serb member of Bosnia-Herzegovina's tripartite presidency, Milorad Dodik, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on December 2 for talks that reportedly included discussion of an infrastructure project to receive Russian gas.
The Kremlin has not published any accounts of the talks.
But Dodik left the meeting praising Putin's "familiarity" with the situation in the Balkans and touting the "attention at this level in the Russian Federation" that was being granted to Republika Srpska, the Serb-dominated entity that along with a Bosniak and Croat federation makes up Bosnia.
The two men reportedly discussed plans for a "second line" of the TurkStream pipeline, which already delivers Russian gas to the region via the Black Sea.
Local media said the pipeline extension would go from Raca, on the Bosnian border in Republika Srpska with Serbia, toward Banja Luka, the de facto power center of Republika Srpska.
The pipeline extension should be jointly owned by Gazprom and the Republika Srpska side as part of a deal that would also include the construction of two gas power plants, Dodik said before leaving for Moscow.
Customers in Republika Srpska recently began receiving rerouted gas supplies coming from Russia via the TurkStream pipeline under plans announced by Gazprom in January.
TurkStream is an essential element in Russia's strategy to bypass Ukraine with its natural gas supplies to Europe, along with the Nord Stream and the still-contentious Nord Stream 2 projects.
Dodik is reportedly scheduled to meet with Gazprom leaders on December 3.
In April, the publicly owned company in charge of gas production and transport for the national government of the state of Bosnia, BH-Gas, filed criminal charges over the rerouting of gas arriving via Serbia to Sepak, near Zvornik on Bosnia's eastern border with Serbia.
Political leaders in Republika Srpska have blocked efforts to pass national-level legislation to regulate the gas and electricity sectors.
Dodik is one of three members of the Bosnian presidency set out in a 26-year-old peace treaty that ended the Bosnian War and divided the country and its administration largely along ethnic lines among Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats.
He has repeatedly threatened the secession of Republika Srpska from the rest of Bosnia and vowed to ignore the authority of the international overseer of civilian authority in Bosnia, High Representative Christian Schmidt.
Moscow has lent considerable diplomatic support to Dodik and his challenges to central Bosnian authorities and the international high representative.
Dodik has been threatening to withdraw from state-level institutions, including Bosnia's joint judiciary, military, and tax administration.
Belarus Threatens 'Harsh' Response After EU And Allies Expand Sanctions
The European Union, the United States, and key Western allies have further expanded their sanctions against Belarus's political and economic elite over alleged antidemocratic behavior, rights violations, and the exploitation of migrants by strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka's regime.
The European Union said ministers at a council meeting on December 2 adopted the bloc's fifth round of sanctions since tensions skyrocketed after Lukashenka's widely disputed reelection in August last year and with a crisis continuing over thousands of Middle Eastern migrants amassed at Belarus's border with EU member Poland.
Belarus has violently cracked down on protesters, with thousands of detentions following the August 2020 election that demonstrators and opposition figures say was rigged to extend Lukashenka's 26-year rule. There have also been credible reports of torture and ill-treatment, and several people have died.
Belarus's Foreign Ministry responded to the latest sanctions announcements by vowing "harsh and asymmetrical" steps in response.
"The depth of the absurdity of the EU's decision on the latest sanctions against sovereign Belarus and its very content is by now difficult to comprehend," the ministry in Minsk said.
The new EU sanctions target 17 individuals and 11 entities thought to be responsible for the crisis at the EU-Belarus border, and should come into effect on their publication later in the day in the EU's Official Journal, a legal registry. In total, the EU has so far targeted 183 Belarusian individuals and 26 entities with sanctions.
Britain, the United States, and Canada also announced their own punitive measures targeting Belarusian entities including a complete asset freeze on a global leader in potash fertilizer, OJSC Belaruskali.
In a joint statement, the EU, Britain, Canada, and the United States cited "continuing attacks on human rights and fundamental freedoms in Belarus, disregard for international norms and repeated acts of repression."
The U.S. Treasury said its fifth round of sanctions was blocking 20 individuals, 12 entities, and three aircraft over "the Lukashenka regime’s blatant disregard for international norms and the well-being of its own citizens."
It cited the Belarusian authorities' "migrant smuggling and victimization of migrants" since Lukashenka threatened last summer to erode EU border security.
The U.S. added a third son of Lukashenka's -- businessman Dzmitry -- along with the President's Sports Club that he's chaired since 2005, to its list.
The British government singled out its asset ban on Belarusian potash fertilizer company OJSC Belaruskali as useful to "target a major source of revenue and foreign currency" for the Lukashenka regime.
"These sanctions continue to target important sources of revenue to the Lukashenka regime and place severe restrictions on those responsible for some of the worst antidemocratic acts in Belarus," British Foreign Minister Liz Truss said.
The newest targets of the Western sanctions also include state air carrier Belavia, as well as senior border guard and law enforcement officials, judges and prosecutors, and "propagandists" for Lukashenka's regime.
Last week, exiled Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya praised the EU for imposing four rounds of sanctions but called the measures "leaky" and urged "more decisive actions" to increase pressure "on the enterprises that have been monopolized by Lukashenka and his family."
Previous EU sanctions already target Lukashenka and two of his sons.
EU officials have accused Lukashenka of "weaponizing" vulnerable migrants from Iraq and other countries by transporting them with added flights from the Middle East and encouraging them to try to claim asylum at Belarus's borders with Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland.
Lukashenka accuses the European Union of failing to meet international asylum laws by refusing the migrants entry, even as he's admitted bringing migrants to the EU's frontier.
Belarusian authorities have recently cleared the makeshift migrant camps at the border and transferred about 2,000 people to a warehouse turned into shelter, while allowing a series of repatriation flights to Iraq.
EU officials are already said to be working on a possible sixth round of sanctions against Belarus, diplomatic sources have said.
The crisis on the EU-Belarus border has also contributed to the bloc's tensions with Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, a longtime Lukashenka ally who has ordered air patrols over Belarus's border since the stalemate intensified.
With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
Azerbaijani Police Severely Beat Opposition Politician, Activists
BAKU -- Relatives of Tofiq Yaqublu say the opposition politician was severely beaten by police and other activists are missing after a rally demanding the immediate release from prison of hungry striking opposition activist Saleh Rustamli..
Yaqublu, a member of the Coordination Center of Azerbaijan's Democratic Forces' National Council and a leading member of the opposition Musavat party, was rushed to hospital late on December 1 after he was released from custody with deep bruises on his face and body, his daugthter Nigar Hazi told RFE/RL on December 2.
Hazi posted a video showing the signs of the beating -- especially his bruised and swolled face -- on YouTube, sparking a public outcry.
On the video, Yaqublu says that police beat him after they detained him.
Interior Ministry spokesman Elsad Haciyev said on December 2 that "allegations that Yaqublu was beaten while in police custody are groundless."
Representatives of the opposition Popular Front of Azerbaijan (AXCP) party told RFE/RL that two party activists, Pasa Dadaszade and Saqif Qurbanov, were also severely beaten by police after they were detained at the rally. They say that Dadaszade suffered several fractures to one of his hands.
The whereabouts of four other activists -- Rustam Ismayilbeyli, Ilhan Huseyn, Sayyad Quliyev, and Elxan Aliyev -- have been unknown since they were detained at the demonstration, their relatives told RFE/RL on December 2.
Opponents of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Western countries, and international human rights groups say his government has persistently persecuted critics, political foes, independent media outlets, and civic activists.
Aliyev, who has ruled the nation of almost 10 million people since shortly before the death of his father and predecessor, Heydar Aliyev, in 2003, has shrugged off the criticism.
- By RFE/RL
EU To Help Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine Improve Defense Capabilities
The European Council has adopted assistance measures to strengthen the military and defense capacities of Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine over three years.
The measures under the European Peace Facility (EPF) aim to promote “domestic resilience and peace,” and do not involve the supply of lethal equipment, the Council said in a statement on December 2.
Under the program, Georgia is to receive assistance worth 12.75 million euros ($14.46 million) to help its armed forces' “ability to provide their services to civilians in crises or emergency situations,” it said.
The assistance measure will provide medical and engineering equipment, as well as “civilian-type mobility assets,” according to the European Council.
It said 7 million euros ($7.9 million) will be made available to help Moldova’s military build the capacities of its medical and engineering services.
In particular, the money will finance the provision of medical equipment for the Military Medical Service, and of explosive-ordnance-disposal equipment for the Engineering Battalion.
For Ukraine, a 31 million euro ($35.1 million) assistance measure will “enhance the overall resilience” of the country and “help strengthen the capacities” of its armed forces.
It will finance field hospitals and other military medical units, as well as “engineering, mobility and logistics units.”
The announcement comes amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine, where fighting between government forces and Moscow-backed separatists has claimed more than 13,200 lives over the past seven years.
Moldova and Georgia have also been locked in protracted conflicts for years.
In 1992, Moldova fought a bloody war in its Moscow-backed separatist Transdniester region that ended in a truce mediated and maintained by Russia. Russian troops are still stationed in the region.
Russia troops have also maintained troops in Georgia's breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia since fighting a brief war against Georgia in 2008.
The European Peace Facility was established earlier this year with the aim of "preventing conflict, preserving peace and strengthening international security and stability."
Under the facility, the council had already adopted assistance measures worth 10 million euros ($11.3 million) to support Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Navalny Associate Sobol's Suspended Sentence Replaced With Prison Term
A court in Moscow has switched the one-year suspended sentence handed to opposition politician Lyubov Sobol, a close associate of jailed anti-corruption campaigner Aleksei Navalny, to actual prison time.
Sobol's lawyer, Vladimir Voronin, said on December 2 that the decision was made by the Simonovsky district court in the Russian capital. He did not provide any other details.
The 34-year-old Sobol fled Russia in August, days after she was sentenced to 18 months of parole-like limits on her freedom in another case after a court in Moscow found her guilty of publicly calling for the violation of coronavirus safety precautions, a charge that has been widely used against those who were involved in countrywide protests against the jailing of Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's most vocal critic.
Media reports have said that Sobol is currently in neighboring Estonia.
In mid-April, the Magistrate court of Moscow found Sobol guilty of illegally forcing her way into the apartment of Federal Security Service (FSB) officer Konstantin Kudryavtsev in December 2020, hours after Navalny had published a recording of what he said was a phone conversation with Kudryavtsev.
During the 49-minute phone call, in which Navalny posed as an FSB official conducting an internal review, Kudryavtsev described the details of an operation to poison the Kremlin critic in August 2020.
Sobol described the court's decision as a ruling designed to silence her.
In October, Sobol was added to the database of wanted persons of the Interior Ministry, with a designation that she is "wanted under an article of the Criminal Code."
Navalny was arrested after returning to Russia from Germany in January, where he was treated for a near-fatal poisoning with a Novichok-type nerve agent that he says was ordered by Putin.
The Kremlin has denied any role in the incident, which was the latest of numerous attacks on Navalny.
In February, Navalny was convicted of violating the terms of a suspended sentence related to an embezzlement case that he has called politically motivated. The remainder of Navalny's suspended sentence, 2 1/2 years, was changed to real prison time.
Russian Journalist, Family Given Political Asylum In France
Russian journalist Aleksei Malinovsky and his family have been granted political asylum in France, where they fled in September fearing for their safety after police raided their house and assaulted him.
Malinovsky worked for the Novyye Kolyosa (New Wheels) newspaper in Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, which is sandwiched between Lithuania and Poland.
The newspaper's publisher, Igor Rudnikov, who left Russia for the United States in March 2020 fearing persecution, told RFE/RL on December 2 that Malinovsky, his wife, and children had traveled to France in September, where they sought political asylum.
In October 2020, police broke down the door of Malinovsky's apartment, violently beat him in the presence of his children and wife, and searched the premises.
The newspaper's offices were also searched at the time. The searches were linked to a May 2020 article about alleged corruption involving the deputy chief of the Kaliningrad city police, Andrei Pershikov.
The paper, which focuses on investigative reports related to the questionable activities of the authorities and police in the region, has been published for more than 25 years under various titles.
The newspaper and its journalists have been under pressure recently over their investigative reports and had to change the publication's name several times and get reregistered because of moves by courts to close it.
Last year, the newspaper fully switched to an online platform after Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor requested it be shut for a 10th time.
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
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