“Anger in sports is important,” Lukashenko said. “If you have already qualified and are going there in a neutral status, hit them in the face, show them that you are a real Belarusian,” he continued. Lukashenko has not clarified whether his comments were made in a spirit of sporting competitiveness, or if the implication was … Read more
Are there unintended consequences to European Union sanctions against Russia? While rocked initially by the restrictions, Russia’s economy has shown remarkable resilience. Europe, on the other hand, is facing a year of glacial growth. There are also growing concerns around the legitimacy of some of the embargoes being issued by Brussels, the adverse impact on … Read more
But it also resulted in him suffering “delusional beliefs” about the state of affairs in his country, as underlings feared sharing any information that could be seen as negative, Umarov said. He added that although there are clear parallels between the autocracies in Central Asian countries and Russia today, there is also an important difference. … Read more
Warsaw, Poland — A Russian-Belarusian rock band that denounces Moscow’s Ukraine invasion returned to the stage this week, voicing defiance after being detained in Thailand in January and threatened with deportation to Russia. The band, Bi-2, formed in the 1980s in Belarus when it was part of the Soviet Union, left Russia in protest over … Read more
Yulia Navalnaya, wife of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, attends the Munich Security Conference (MSC), on the day it was announced that Alexei Navalny died by the prison service of the Yamalo-Nenets region where he had been serving his sentence, in Munich, southern Germany on February 16, 2024. Kai Pfaffenbach | Afp | Getty … Read more
Lukashenko, 69, has been running Belarus since 1994. He is a close ally of Vladimir Putin and once said he regards the Russian leader as “his elder brother.” He also warned there would be changes before the 2025 elections take place. “There is still a year ahead before the presidential elections. A lot can change. … Read more
“My main task is for our family to stay the same, despite everything,” she told Harper’s Bazaar. Behind the scenes, however, those who knew the couple well said Navalnaya not only shared her husband’s views, but also helped shape them. Telepathic connection “At every stage of Alexei’s career, Yulia has always been by his side,” … Read more
EU leaders finally approved €50 billion in funding for Kyiv until 2027 in early February after Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán had blocked the package in a previous December meeting. U.S. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, has had trouble passing a military aid package to Ukraine through Congress, where it is opposed by a significant share of … Read more
Despite the IOC’s ultimate recommendation to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in Paris as neutrals — that is, without a national flag or anthem — the International Gymnastics Federation recently decided not to include any Russian gymnasts on the list of athletes permitted to take part in qualifying competitions for the 2024 Olympics. … Read more
Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine is dividing Europe’s eastern neighborhood — with some countries moving closer to the European Union but others, including Georgia, gladly following Russia’s path to authoritarianism, a report published Wednesday said. The report by Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum noted that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine boosted relations between some eastern states and … Read more
