rferl--2020-02-24--Trump Says Would Be 'Great Thing' For Russia, Ukraine To Reconcile

U.S. President Donald Trump has said he would like to see rivals Russia and Ukraine mend ties in their ongoing geopolitical feud , which includes accusations by Kyiv that Moscow is fomenting a separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine by leading , supplying , and fighting alongside proxy forces .
“ Well , I 'd like to see them come together .
I think if they came together in the sense that they got along with each other , that would be a great thing , ” he told reporters on February 23 before departing on Marine Force One for his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had asked Trump to comment on Russian President Vladimir Putin ’ s recent accusations that other countries are trying split neighbors Russia and Ukraine apart , saying the two predominantly Slavic and Orthodox Christian countries would be a world superpower if they came together .
In response , Trump added that “ it would be a great thing for the world… .
If Ukraine and Russia could work out some agreement where they get along , to me that would be very good.
” About 7 percent of Ukraine ’ s territory has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2014 when Russia invaded and annexed Crimea and subsequently backed separatists in the two easternmost Luhansk and Donetsk regions .
More than 13,000 people have been killed in the war and an additional 1.5 million people have been internally displaced .
Russia denies being a party to the Donbas conflict and insists it is a civil war .
Kyiv has accused Russia of trying to further destabilize the country by sowing discord through propaganda and disinformation , frequent cyberattacks , and using energy as a coercive tool .
Both countries are embroiled in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trade , and seized assets .

A former top FBI counterintelligence agent pleaded guilty to charges related to his work for notorious Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, changing his plea after federal prosecutors filed new, reduced charges of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions on Russia by working for the billionaire industrialist.
The move by Charles McGonigal, made on August 15 before a federal judge in New York City, ends a prosecution that had stunned the FBI, where McGonigal had investigated Russian influence operations for years while climbing the bureau’s ranks.
The 55-year-old also still faces a separate set of foreign agent charges in Washington, D.C., related to work he did for Albanian officials.
McGonigal, who retired as head counterintelligence in the FBI's New York bureau in 2018, was originally indicted in January by a grand jury on more serious charges of money laundering and violating U.S. sanctions.
Prosecutors alleged that McGonigal and a former Russian diplomat with whom he was associated, were paid more than $200,000 to do work for Deripaska, a wealthy Russian metals tycoon who has long been seen as a Kremlin insider. Deripaska was hit with sanctions by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2018.
U.S. authorities said McGonigal was hired to dig up negative information on Vladimir Potanin, a rival oligarch to Deripaska. McGonigal and the former diplomat, Sergei Shestakov, also worked to try and get Deripaska removed from U.S. sanctions lists.
Shestakov has pleaded not guilty to the more serious charges than had been originally filed against McGonigal.
They "attempted to conceal Deripaska's involvement by, among other means, not directly naming Deripaska in electronic communications, using shell companies as counterparties in the contract that outlined the services to be performed, using a forged signature on that contract, and using the same shell companies to send and receive payment from Deripaska," the Justice Department said in a press release after McGonigal entered his plea.
McGonigal could receive up to five years in prison when he is sentenced in December.
The separate case filed in Washington, D.C., by federal prosecutors centers on work McGonigal allegedly did on behalf of a former Albanian intelligence officer, for which he was paid $225,000.
McGonigal also allegedly lied to the FBI about his contacts with foreign nationals and foreign travel while he was still employed by the bureau.
Deripaska also faces charges of violating U.S. sanctions through real estate deals and a complicated scheme under which he allegedly arranged for his girlfriend to travel to the United States to give birth to two of their children.


rferl--2020-02-24--Serbia Receives Delivery Of Russian Antiaircraft Systems Despite U.S. Sanction Threats

Serbia has over the weekend received a delivery of Russian-made Pantsir S1 air-defense systems , despite warnings of possible U.S. sanctions against the Balkan state , which is seeking membership in the European Union .
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic made the announcement on television on February 23 a day after the Defense Ministry confirmed receiving two of the six ordered short-range , rapid-fire antiaircraft systems .
“ Serbia strengthened its defensive and deterrent capabilities , ” the Defense Ministry said in a statement .
Vuicic intimated the radar-guided systems were purchased after suggestions from Russian President Vladimir Putin .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ efficiency in Syria , ” Vucic quoted Putin as saying during one of their recent meetings .
The delivery stems from a deal made last year that comes with a target detection and designation radar , target and missile tracking radar , and electro-optical sensor systems .
“ Each Panstir system is capable of guiding up to four missiles at a time , ” Air Force Technology reported .
They are meant for defense against cruise missiles , drones , and aircraft .
Despite formally seeking EU but not NATO membership , Belgrade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with Moscow .
The delivery of the Pantsir systems come less than a week after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Belgrade , praising the two countries ’ “ upward trend ” in defense cooperation .
Serbia has increased defense spending every year since 2016 and last year spent $ 906 million , or 28.7 percent more , on defense than the previous year , according to the International Institute of Strategic Studies ( IISS ) .
In the past three years , the Serbian military has purchased from Russia five Mi-17V-5 helicopters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ received six donated MiG-29 aircraft .
Additionally , Serbia last year received 30 armored combat vehicles from Russia , as well as 30 more T-72 tanks .
In October , Serbia held joint air military exercises with Russia in which the Russian-made long-range S-400 and Pantsir-S systems were deployed .
It was the first time that an S-400 battalion and a Pantsir-S battery had appeared in military drills outside Russia , the Russian Defense Ministry stated at the time .
Amid the bloody disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 1990s , Serbia fought wars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kosovo .
NATO intervened in 1999 to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists in 1999 .
The United States has threatened sanctions against Serbia if it purchases weapons that could jeopardize the security of neighboring NATO member states .
With reporting by Air Force Technology , AP , and Deutsche Welle

Serbia has over the weekend received a delivery of Russian-made Pantsir S1 air-defense systems, despite warnings of possible U.S. sanctions against the Balkan state, which is seeking membership in the European Union.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic made the announcement on television on February 23 a day after the Defense Ministry confirmed receiving two of the six ordered short-range, rapid-fire antiaircraft systems.
“Serbia strengthened its defensive and deterrent capabilities,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Vuicic intimated the radar-guided systems were purchased after suggestions from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Buy Pantsir, it showed its best efficiency in Syria,” Vucic quoted Putin as saying during one of their recent meetings.
The delivery stems from a deal made last year that comes with a target detection and designation radar, target and missile tracking radar, and electro-optical sensor systems.
“Each Panstir system is capable of guiding up to four missiles at a time,” Air Force Technology reported.
They are meant for defense against cruise missiles, drones, and aircraft.
Despite formally seeking EU but not NATO membership, Belgrade has maintained strong political and economic relations with Moscow.
The delivery of the Pantsir systems come less than a week after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Belgrade, praising the two countries’ “upward trend” in defense cooperation.
Serbia has increased defense spending every year since 2016 and last year spent $906 million, or 28.7 percent more, on defense than the previous year, according to the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS).
In the past three years, the Serbian military has purchased from Russia five Mi-17V-5 helicopters, four Mi-35M fighter helicopters, and received six donated MiG-29 aircraft.
Additionally, Serbia last year received 30 armored combat vehicles from Russia, as well as 30 more T-72 tanks.
In October, Serbia held joint air military exercises with Russia in which the Russian-made long-range S-400 and Pantsir-S systems were deployed.
It was the first time that an S-400 battalion and a Pantsir-S battery had appeared in military drills outside Russia, the Russian Defense Ministry stated at the time.
Amid the bloody disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 1990s, Serbia fought wars against neighbors Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Kosovo.
NATO intervened in 1999 to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian separatists in 1999.
The United States has threatened sanctions against Serbia if it purchases weapons that could jeopardize the security of neighboring NATO member states.
With reporting by Air Force Technology, AP, and Deutsche Welle


rferl--2020-02-24--Global Markets Fall Over Virus Fears As Ukrainian Consulate Closes In Milan

Rising infection numbers in several countries from a new coronavirus originating in China have spooked financial markets from the United States to Italy and Germany on February 24 .
Wall Street stocks finished with steep losses on February 24 as U.S. markets followed suit with peers around the world .
The broad-based S & P 500 closed 3.35 percent down , while the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than 1,000 points , or more than 3.5 percent .
Reacting to the quick spread of the COVID-19 virus in South Korea and Italy , the technological-laden Nasdaq witnessed similar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a record low .
Oil prices also declined .
Germany ’ s main trading platform , Frankfurt ’ s DAX , closed 4.01 percent down and the eurozone ’ s Eurostoxx 50 sunk by 4.01 percent .
Meanwhile , the Ukrainian Consulate in Milan said it would stop seeing citizens and accepting documents until further notice starting on February 25 due to the outbreak of the virus in the region of Lombardy .
The Italian sports minister announced late on February 24 that upcoming matches in Italian Serie A and the Europa League @ @ @ @ @ @ @ located in areas affected by the virus .
Seven people have died and more than 220 have caught the virus in Italy as of February 24 and it has the most confirmed cases in Europe .
Italian shares tumbled more than 5 percent , the biggest daily drop in almost four years , while residents emptied supermarket shelves to stock up on essentials .
The spread of the disease has already killed more than 2,600 people in China .
Afghanistan , Iraq , Bahrain , Kuwait , and Oman on February 24 reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ -- all involving people who had come from Iran , which has recorded the highest death toll outside the disease 's epicenter in China .
The semiofficial ILNA news agency reported that 50 people had died from the virus in the central city of Qom in Iran , but Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi rejected the report , telling a news conference that the total number of confirmed cases now stood at 61 , including 12 deaths .
In South Korea , seven people have died with 833 people infected -- the largest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been linked to a church in the city of Daegu .
However , World Health Organization ( WHO ) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cautioned against using the word `` pandemic , '' saying it did not fit the facts .
`` We must focus on containment while preparing for a potential pandemic , '' he told reporters in Geneva , adding that the world was not threatened by an uncontained spread or large-scale deaths .
The epidemic in China peaked between January 23 and February 2 and has been declining since , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Reuters , AP , AFP , dpa , RFE/RL ’ s Radio Free Afghanistan , Ukrainian Service , and Radio Mashaal

The Ukrainian Consulate in Milan has said it will stop seeing citizens and accepting documents until further notice starting on February 25 due to the outbreak of the virus in the Lombardy region.
The Italian sports minister announced late on February 24 that upcoming soccer matches in Italian Serie A and the Europa League would be played without spectators at venues located in areas affected by the virus.
Seven people have died and more than 220 have caught the virus in Italy as of February 24 and it has the most confirmed cases in Europe.
Italian shares tumbled more than 5 percent, the biggest daily drop in almost four years, while residents emptied supermarket shelves to stock up on essentials.
The spread of the disease has already killed 2,663 people and infected 77,658 in mainland China as of February 24.
The country's National Health Commission on February 25 reported 71 new virus deaths and 508 new confirmed cases for the previous day.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump will ask Congress for $2.5 billion to fight the coronavirus epidemic as rising infection numbers spooked financial markets from the United States to Italy and Germany on February 24.
The White House said more than $1 billion of the requested funds would be used for developing a vaccine to inoculate and protect the public from the virus, which originated in China and has infected more than 80,000 worldwide.
The remainder of the money would be used to support preparedness and response activities and to purchase equipment and supplies, White House budget office spokeswoman Rachel Semmel said.
Wall Street stocks finished with steep losses as U.S. markets followed suit with peers around the world.The broad-based S&P 500 closed 3.35 percent down, while the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than 1,000 points, or more than 3.5 percent.
Reacting to the quick spread of the COVID-19 virus in South Korea and Italy, the technological-stock-laden Nasdaq witnessed similar declines and 10-year Treasury yields were near a record low.
Oil prices also declined.
Germany’s main trading platform, Frankfurt's DAX, closed 4.01 percent down and the eurozone's Eurostoxx 50 sunk by 4.01 percent.
Afghanistan, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman on February 24 reported their first cases of the COVID-19 virus -- all involving people who had come from Iran, which has recorded the highest death toll outside the disease's epicenter in China.
The semiofficial ILNA news agency reported that 50 people had died from the virus in the central city of Qom in Iran, but Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi rejected the report, telling a news conference that the total number of confirmed cases now stood at 61, including 12 deaths.
In South Korea, seven people have died with 833 people infected -- the largest number outside China. Many new cases have been linked to a church in the city of Daegu.
However, World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cautioned against using the word "pandemic," saying it did not fit the facts.
"We must focus on containment while preparing for a potential pandemic," he told reporters in Geneva, adding that the world was not threatened by an uncontained spread or large-scale deaths.
The epidemic in China peaked between January 23 and February 2 and has been declining since, the WHO said.
With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa, and RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan, Ukrainian Service, and Radio Mashaal


rferl--2020-02-24--Pakistani Christian Woman Seeks Political Asylum In France

Asia Bibi , the Pakistani Christian woman who spent several years on death row after a 2010 conviction of blasphemy , has said she is seeking political asylum in France .
Bibi , 49 , said in an interview with France 's RTL radio on February 24 that her `` great desire was to live in France . ''
On February 25 , Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo will bestow an honorary citizenship certificate granted to Bibi by the French capital in 2014 , when she was still behind bars in Pakistan .
Last month , Bibi released a memoir in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subjected to in prison until her release in 2018 , amid an international outcry over her case .
The book , Enfin Bible !
, was released in French , with an English version due in September .
Bibi was sentenced to death by a court in the central province of Punjab in 2010 for allegedly committing blasphemy in a dispute with Muslim women while working on a farm .
Bibi was only able to depart Pakistan for Canada in May 2019 after being kept in protective custody out of security concerns .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and also urged the overthrow of the government following Bibi 's acquittal .
Bibi 's case brought international attention to Pakistan 's controversial blasphemy law , which carries an automatic death penalty .
Salman Taseer , the governor of Punjab , was killed in 2011 for defending Bibi and criticizing the misuse of the blasphemy law .
Pakistan 's minister for minorities , Shahbaz Bhatti , was assassinated later that year after demanding justice for Bibi .
Based on reporting by AFP and RTL

Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christian woman who spent several years on death row after a 2010 conviction of blasphemy, has said she is seeking political asylum in France.
Bibi, 49, said in an interview with France's RTL radio on February 24 that her "great desire was to live in France."
On February 25, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo will bestow an honorary citizenship certificate granted to Bibi by the French capital in 2014, when she was still behind bars in Pakistan.
Last month, Bibi released a memoir in which recounts the nightmare conditions she was subjected to in prison until her release in 2018, amid an international outcry over her case.
The book, Enfin Bible!, was released in French, with an English version due in September.
Bibi was sentenced to death by a court in the central province of Punjab in 2010 for allegedly committing blasphemy in a dispute with Muslim women while working on a farm.
Bibi was only able to depart Pakistan for Canada in May 2019 after being kept in protective custody out of security concerns.
Islamic extremists have threatened to kill her and also urged the overthrow of the government following Bibi's acquittal.
Bibi's case brought international attention to Pakistan's controversial blasphemy law, which carries an automatic death penalty.
Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab, was killed in 2011 for defending Bibi and criticizing the misuse of the blasphemy law.
Pakistan's minister for minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, was assassinated later that year after demanding justice for Bibi.
Based on reporting by AFP and RTL


rferl--2020-02-24--At Least Six Killed In Afghanistan Despite 'Reduction Of Violence' Deal

Afghan officials say at least six people have been killed in a Taliban attack in the northern Balkh Province , amid a weeklong `` reduction of violence '' agreed between the United States and the Taliban .
Five people were also wounded in the attack on February 24 that targeted a checkpoint of pro-government forces in Balkh 's Chahar Kint district , local governor Salima Mazari said .
In Samangan Province , the militants abducted a district governor along with two other government employees while they were on the way to work on February 24 , the provincial governor 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Earlier this month , the United States and the Taliban separately announced the `` reduction in violence '' that took effect on February 22 .
If the truce holds , it will be followed by the signing of a peace accord that would see the Pentagon pull thousands of troops from Afghanistan .
Afghan media , however , reported that the Taliban carried out several small-scale attacks on checkpoints manned by Afghan security forces .
Earlier , Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid was quoted by the dpa news agency as saying that during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no attacks on major cities , military corps , garrisons , or bases belonging to international forces .
Mujahid said that any other attacks outside major cities should not be considered a violation of the deal .
Based on reporting by dpa and Tolo News

The education of girls and women is universally accepted in more than 200 countries and territories, including nearly 50 Muslim-majority nations.
But Afghanistan’s hard-line Islamist Taliban rulers have banned teenage girls from attending school after the sixth grade since they returned to power two years ago. The ban was extended in December to women in universities.
Countless protests by Afghans inside the country, pressure from the international community, and lobbying by Muslim scholars and clerics have failed to convince the fundamentalist Taliban leaders to reopen schools.
Experts are divided over whether the ban is rooted in how the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam is shaped by conservative Pashtun tribal customs and cultural practices or if it is prompted by how senior Taliban ideologues interpret Islamic teachings.
Most Taliban leaders are ethnic Pashtun, Sunni Muslim clerics. Many were educated in Deobandi madrasahs in neighboring Pakistan. Deobandism emerged as a puritanical Islamic revivalist movement in 19-century British Colonial India. Based on the Sunni Hanafi school of jurisprudence, it is a prominent strain among Islamists in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Tribal Influences
Sami Yousafzai, a veteran Afghan journalist and commentator, argues that the Taliban restrictions against women are linked to social customs and cultural practices in eastern and southern Afghanistan.
Most Taliban leaders come from various Pashtun rural tribal communities in these regions bordering Pakistan.
"They believe that a woman's place is either inside a house or in a grave," Yousafzai said of the basic Taliban belief influenced by the status of women in the families of clerics and religious leaders in these Pashtun regions.
“Women living in the households of the current Taliban policymakers were never educated and never left their homes,” said Yousafzai, who has tracked the Islamist group since it emerged as a ragtag militia in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar in late 1994. “These women never performed any government or nongovernmental jobs.”
Yousafzai says the Taliban backs policies shaped by this worldview by leaning on Islamic teachings supporting such ideas. He says Taliban leaders rely on sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad that discourage women from leaving their homes.
“Their primary belief is that pubescent girls should not leave home under any circumstance,” he said. “This is why they view women leaving home for education or work as engaging in moral corruption.”
In Afghanistan, a Muslim nation of some 40 million people, activists and rights advocates accuse the Taliban of implementing "gender apartheid" by denying women education, work, freedom of movement, and deciding how they can appear in public.
Most Muslims agree that Islam allows women to get an education. Yet the Taliban publicly says that it will allow girls access to education only after ensuring complete gender segregation and other unspecified conditions.
Almost all Afghan secondary schools were gender segregated and universities imposed a strict separation between men and women after the Taliban takeover.
Yousafzai says in conservative and traditional Muslim societies around the world, some clerics also favor restrictions on women's education, work, and their role in public life. But the governments in those countries usually oppose or limit such ideas.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia -- one of the most conservative Sunni Muslim nations -- has allowed women to drive and granted them freedom of movement without a male guardian. These steps are part of a reform and modernity drive by Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman.
The Taliban ban on education has invited universal condemnation from Muslims globally.
“The Taliban's ban on women's education is not rooted in [the Islamic] Shari’a law but rather reflects cultural biases that contradict the teachings of Islam,” said Salam al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in the United States.
He said that contrary to Taliban practices, “Islam emphasizes the importance of seeking knowledge and encourages all individuals, regardless of gender, to acquire an education.”
Historical Conflict
But Islamic scholars and those who have attempted to convince the Taliban about reopening girls schools offer a different explanation.
John Mohammad Butt, an Islamic scholar and former BBC broadcaster who is the only Westerner to graduate from India’s Darul Uloom Deoband, argues that the Taliban's policy on girls' education is not tribal but shaped by the century-old conflict over modern education.
“The problem is that girls' education in Afghanistan -- indeed, contemporary education in general -- has generally been introduced in Afghanistan in line with a secular agenda,” he said.
In the 1920s, a coalition of conservative clerics and tribal and community leaders deposed reformist King Amanullah Khan. He wanted to modernize Afghanistan along Turkish leader Kamal Ataturk's secular lines and championed modern education and rights for women.
This opposition to modernity and secularism continued, and conservative clerics opposed women's education and work. It became a key part of the Islamist opposition to the pro-Soviet Afghan communist governments after the April 1978 military coup that ended the Afghan monarchy. The mujahedin accused the communists of spreading immorality by promoting women’s education and empowerment.
“This has led to particular wariness on the part of conservative circles in Afghanistan with regard to girls' education,” Butt said.
'Deep Ideological Conviction'
Obaidullah Baheer, a political science lecturer at the American University of Afghanistan, became part of an effort to rescind the ban by talking to the Taliban last year.
But he says the effort failed because “the ban is a matter of deep ideological conviction” for the current supreme leader of the Taliban, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada.
Baheer says that the most prominent Taliban leaders have studied in Pakistani madrasahs and were thus disconnected from village and tribal life.
“They have been indoctrinated by the Deobandi school of thought so that they now enforce the strictest version of Islam on the Afghan population,” he said.
He argues that the ban on girls’ schools is a deliberate policy championed by Akhundzada, who he says has endorsed Taliban Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani's Arabic language book The Islamic Emirate And Its System. In this book, Haqqani supports a fringe Islamic opinion of preferring the choice of one of the Prophet Muhammad's wives, Sawdah Bint Zam'ah, who chose to stay at home until her death.
Baheer says Haqqani ignores his other wives and other female companions that played an active role in many sectors of society and how they served as students and teachers for men.
“This fringe opinion is not held by all Taliban leaders but is one that the current absolute sovereign, the Taliban emir, seems to be convinced of,” he said.
Butt says that even Haqqani has acknowledged the principle that if there is something that women need to act upon, then that is also something that women need to learn about.
“I hope the Taliban authorities will come to realize in the not-too-distant future that education for women will make Afghan women into better Muslims,” he says. “It will enable them to make a stronger contribution to the well-being of their country.”
Two years after grappling with the issue, Western diplomats appear to be encouraging Afghan conservative and clerical circles to find ways to end the ban.
Tom West, the U.S. special representative for Afghanistan, recently tweeted that Afghan women must be educated and contribute to the economy to help their country stand on its own two feet.
“If change to policies is made, it will be because Afghans have asked for it, not a result of foreign requests,” he wrote.


rferl--2020-02-24--Kyrgyz Government Cancels $275 Million Chinese Project Amid Protests

BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan 's government has announced a decision to cancel a $ 275 million Chinese investment project in the eastern part of the country following mass protests against it .
The government 's press service said on February 24 that the decision to halt the plans to build a major logistics center was made due to protests `` by some local residents of the At-Bashi district '' in the Naryn region .
According to the press service , steps related to the cancellation of the agreement , which was signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping 's visit to Kyrgyzstan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This includes annulling a decision to provide 200 hectares of land for the project .
The government will return 45 million soms ( $ 645,000 ) to investors to compensate them for preliminary work , it added .
On February 17 , the Kyrgyz-Chinese Ata-Bashi Free Economic Zone Joint Venture said the contract was annulled because `` it is not possible to work on a large , long-term project amid circumstances '' where part of the local population opposes the construction of the logistics center .
Local residents have held several protests @ @ @ @ @ @

BISHKEK -- Kyrgyzstan's government has announced a decision to cancel a $275 million Chinese investment project in the eastern part of the country following mass protests against it.
The government's press service said on February 24 that the decision to halt the plans to build a major logistics center was made due to protests "by some local residents of the At-Bashi district" in the Naryn region.
According to the press service, steps related to the cancellation of the agreement, which was signed during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Kyrgyzstan in June 2019, are being taken. This includes annulling a decision to provide 200 hectares of land for the project. The government will return 45 million soms ($645,000) to investors to compensate them for preliminary work, it added.
On February 17, the Kyrgyz-Chinese Ata-Bashi Free Economic Zone Joint Venture said the contract was annulled because "it is not possible to work on a large, long-term project amid circumstances" where part of the local population opposes the construction of the logistics center.
Local residents have held several protests against the project since January.


rferl--2020-02-24--Armenia, Azerbaijan Trade Accusations Over Deadly Border Fighting

YEREVAN/BAKU -- Azerbaijan and Armenia have accused each other of violating the fragile cease-fire along their border .
The State @ @ @ @ @ on February 24 that one Azerbaijani soldier was killed by Armenian fire in the Gazakh @ @ @ @ @ the Armenian Defense Ministry said that one Armenian serviceman was slightly wounded in the fighting @ @ @ @ @ been locked in a conflict over Azerbaijan 's breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh for years .
@ @ @ @ @ Armenian-populated region from Azerbaijan during a war in the early 1990s that killed some 30,000 @ @ @ @ @ settle the conflict have brought little progress .

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated that there can be no advancement in the relationship between the United States and Afghanistan's Taliban rulers unless there is an improvement in the treatment of women in the country.
Speaking to reporters on August 15, the two-year anniversary of the Taliban’s seizure of power in Kabul, Blinken said the United States continues to work to hold the Taliban accountable for the commitments that it's made, particularly when it comes to the rights of women and girls.
"We've been very clear with the Taliban -- and dozens of countries around the world have been very clear -- that the path to any more normal relationship between the Taliban and other countries will be blocked unless and until the rights of women and girls among other things are actually supported," Blinken said.
No country has recognized the Taliban-led government, and the United States has avoided direct economic engagement in part over the treatment of women and girls, who have seen their rights drastically curbed by the hard-line Islamists. This includes a ban on women working in local and international nongovernmental organizations and a ban on education beyond the sixth grade.
The Taliban stormed back to power in August 2021 after President Joe Biden withdrew U.S. troops under the terms of an agreement reached in February 2020 between the Taliban and the administration of then-U.S. President Donald Trump.
Blinken defended the pullout and said the United States was not focused on other priorities.
"The decision to withdraw from Afghanistan was an incredibly difficult one, but also the right one," Blinken said. "We ended America's longest war. For the first time in 20 years, we don't have another generation of young Americans going to fight and die."
A number of international human rights organizations earlier on August 15 called the Taliban's two years of rule shameful and worrying.
Amnesty International and several other international human rights organizations demanded in a statement an effective response to the situation, noting the Taliban's strict decrees against human rights in Afghanistan, especially against women and girls.
The organizations said in a statement that in the past two years, the Taliban has increasingly imposed harmful policies against women and girls and religious and ethnic minorities that clearly violate Afghanistan's obligations under international human rights law.
The Taliban has previously rejected reports on the treatment of women as propaganda of international organizations. The militant group's leaders have said they have strengthened all the rights of women in Afghanistan in light of Islamic principles.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief spokesman for the Taliban, said in an interview with the AP marking the second anniversary of the Taliban takeover of the country that the Taliban views its rule of Afghanistan as open-ended and as drawing legitimacy from Islamic law. He also suggested a ban on female education will remain in place.
Female activist Soheila Yousefi calls the situation alarming and wants the world to pay attention.
"The international community should take serious action in this regard because the world chose to be silent in these two years and did not take any practical steps. Our request is that they should look at the current situation in Afghanistan, then take a serious and comprehensive review."
The Taliban did not respond to Radio Azadi's questions before the release of the report, but the rulers have spoken of strengthening human rights in Afghanistan, especially the rights of women and girls, according to Islamic principles.
With reporting by AP and AFP


rferl--2020-02-24--Constitutional Amendments In Turkmenistan Indicate Possible Succession Plan

ASHGABAT -- Turkmenistan has published a draft bill on constitutional amendments that offers a possible succession road map for the leadership in one of the most isolated countries in the world .
The bill 's text , signed by the authoritarian president , Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov , and carried by state-run media on February 24 , formalized turning the single chamber of the Central Asian nation 's parliament into a two-chamber institution and putting the head of the upper house as second-in-line for the presidency .
The move comes amid speculation about Berdymukhammedov 's allegedly bad health and his efforts to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as his successor .
The younger Berdymukhammedov is currently a lawmaker who has taken on more of a public profile in recent months , fueling speculation that a path is being cleared for him to take over from his father .
Last year , Berdymukhammedov disappeared from public view for several weeks , leading to rumors that he had died or had slipped into a coma during hospital treatment .
The decision to merge the gas-rich country 's single-chamber parliament , the Mejlis , with the People 's Council and turn the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in September 2019 .
The draft bill also suggests that the president can be `` removed from office ahead of schedule if he is unable to fulfill his duties due to illness . ''
Berdymukhammedov , 62 , who has established a pervasive cult of personality since becoming Turkmenistan ’ s leader in 2006 after the death of authoritarian leader Saparmurat Niyazov , has said the goal of the constitutional changes was to `` further the democratization '' of the country .

ASHGABAT -- Turkmenistan has published a draft bill on constitutional amendments that offers a possible succession road map for the leadership in one of the most isolated countries in the world.
The bill's text, signed by the authoritarian president, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, and carried by state-run media on February 24, formalized turning the single chamber of the Central Asian nation's parliament into a two-chamber institution and putting the head of the upper house as second-in-line for the presidency.
The move comes amid speculation about Berdymukhammedov's allegedly bad health and his efforts to groom his 38-year-old son, Serdar Berdymukhammedov, as his successor.
The younger Berdymukhammedov is currently a lawmaker who has taken on more of a public profile in recent months, fueling speculation that a path is being cleared for him to take over from his father.
Last year, Berdymukhammedov disappeared from public view for several weeks, leading to rumors that he had died or had slipped into a coma during hospital treatment.
The decision to merge the gas-rich country's single-chamber parliament, the Mejlis, with the People's Council and turn the legislature into a two-chamber institution was announced in September 2019.
The draft bill also suggests that the president can be "removed from office ahead of schedule if he is unable to fulfill his duties due to illness."
Berdymukhammedov, 62, who has established a pervasive cult of personality since becoming Turkmenistan’s leader in 2006 after the death of authoritarian leader Saparmurat Niyazov, has said the goal of the constitutional changes was to "further the democratization" of the country.


rferl--2020-02-24--Tajikistan Suspends Flights To Iran Over Coronavirus

DUSHANBE -- Tajikistan has suspended all air flights to Iran as many countries in the region scramble to take precautions @ @ @ @ @ death toll from the coronavirus outside of China .
Aziz Nabizoda , the deputy director @ @ @ @ @ Agency , said all flights were suspended as of February 24 .
According to Nabizoda @ @ @ @ @ Iran 's Varesh Airlines , as well as domestic airlines Tajik Air and Somoni Air @ @ @ @ @ The country had already cut off its land border with Iran .
Iran 's semiofficial @ @ @ @ @ February 24 that 50 people had died from the virus in the central city of @ @ @ @ @ Minister Iraj Harirchi rejected the report , telling a news conference that the total number @ @ @ @ @ 61 , including 12 deaths .
Iran is one of the most popular destinations for @ @ @ @ @ share historical , linguistic , and cultural ties .

DUSHANBE -- Tajikistan has suspended all air flights to Iran as many countries in the region scramble to take precautions after Tehran announced the highest death toll from the coronavirus outside of China.
Aziz Nabizoda, the deputy director of the Tajik Civil Aviation Agency, said all flights were suspended as of February 24.
According to Nabizoda, the agency has informed Iran's Varesh Airlines, as well as domestic airlines Tajik Air and Somoni Air, of the move.
Iran's semiofficial ILNA news agency reported on February 24 that 50 people had died from the virus in the central city of Qom, but Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi rejected the report, telling a news conference that the total number of confirmed cases stood at 61, including 12 deaths.
Iran is one of the most popular destinations for Tajiks as the two nations share historical, linguistic, and cultural ties.


rferl--2020-02-24--Prague To Rename Square By Russian Embassy After Boris Nemtsov

Prague 's city council has approved the renaming of a square where the Russian Embassy is located after slain Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov .
The council voted on the measure on February 24 , changing Pod Kastany Square to Boris Nemtsov Square .
The name will officially change on February 27 -- the fifth anniversary of Nemtsov 's killing .
It also approved naming a promenade in a city park after Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya , who was shot in 2006 .
`` With this gesture , Prague will join several other metropolises , which are highlighting the plight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' the council said in its motion .
The moves were supported by all of the major parties represented on the council .
`` Both personalities promoted democracy and they both were disgracefully murdered .
They deserve a memorial , '' Prague Mayor Zdenek Hrib said on Twitter .
The renaming of locations to honor opposition figures , or to move on from Soviet-era memorials , has ruffled feathers in Moscow .
In recent months , the Russian Embassy in Prague has complained about moves by municipal authorities in the capital over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in September 2019 to remove a statue of wartime Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev , which had been defaced several times .
Some view Konev , whose forces liberated much of Czechoslovakia 's territory in World War II , as an enforcer of Soviet rule in Central and Eastern Europe for the roles he played after the conflict .
Another Prague district voted in December to erect a memorial to the so-called Vlasov Army , a small force that some Czechs say did more to retake Prague than the Soviet Army did -- a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ man some Russian historians say was a Nazi sympathizer .
In February 2018 , Boris Nemtsov Plaza was officially unveiled outside the Russian Embassy in Washington , followed by a similar move in the Lithuanian capital , Vilnius .
А former deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin , Nemtsov was an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin , and had sought to build a viable opposition movement .
He was gunned down on a bridge near the Kremlin in February 2015 .
In July 2017 , a Moscow court found five men @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chechnya guilty of Nemtsov 's murder and sentenced them to lengthy prison terms .
But Nemtsov ’ s relatives and associates believe his killing was ordered at a higher level , and say justice will not be served until the person or people behind it are identified and prosecuted .

Prague's city council has approved the renaming of a square where the Russian Embassy is located after slain Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.
The council voted on the measure on February 24, changing Pod Kastany Square to Boris Nemtsov Square. The name will officially change on February 27 -- the fifth anniversary of Nemtsov's killing.
It also approved naming a promenade in a city park after Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was shot in 2006.
"With this gesture, Prague will join several other metropolises, which are highlighting the plight of the political situation in Russia today," the council said in its motion.
The moves were supported by all of the major parties represented on the council.
"Both personalities promoted democracy and they both were disgracefully murdered. They deserve a memorial," Prague Mayor Zdenek Hrib said on Twitter.
The renaming of locations to honor opposition figures, or to move on from Soviet-era memorials, has ruffled feathers in Moscow.
In recent months, the Russian Embassy in Prague has complained about moves by municipal authorities in the capital over similar moves.
Prague district councillors voted in September 2019 to remove a statue of wartime Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev, which had been defaced several times.
Some view Konev, whose forces liberated much of Czechoslovakia's territory in World War II, as an enforcer of Soviet rule in Central and Eastern Europe for the roles he played after the conflict.
Another Prague district voted in December to erect a memorial to the so-called Vlasov Army, a small force that some Czechs say did more to retake Prague than the Soviet Army did -- a force led by Andrei Vlasov, a man some Russian historians say was a Nazi sympathizer.
In February 2018, Boris Nemtsov Plaza was officially unveiled outside the Russian Embassy in Washington, followed by a similar move in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius.
А former deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin, Nemtsov was an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin, and had sought to build a viable opposition movement. He was gunned down on a bridge near the Kremlin in February 2015.
In July 2017, a Moscow court found five men from Russia's North Caucasus region of Chechnya guilty of Nemtsov's murder and sentenced them to lengthy prison terms.
But Nemtsov’s relatives and associates believe his killing was ordered at a higher level, and say justice will not be served until the person or people behind it are identified and prosecuted.


rferl--2020-02-24--Commemoration Of Chechen, Ingush Deportation Victims Returns To Day Tragedy Started

For the first time in eight years , Russia 's North Caucasus region of Chechnya has publicly commemorated the victims of the 1944 deportation on the actual day when the tragedy started .
Hundreds of people , including top Chechen officials and religious clerics , gathered in the center of the capital , Grozny , on February 23 to honor the thousands of victims of the deportation .
In 2012 , Moscow-backed leader Ramzan Kadyrov moved the Day of Grief and Remembrance from February 23 to May 10 , the anniversary of the burial of his father , Akhmad Kadyrov @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attack in Grozny in 2004 .
However , many Chechens continued unofficial commemorations of the deportation victims .
Commemoration ceremonies and public prayers were also held in mosques and cemeteries in the neighboring region of Ingushetia on the same day .
From February 23 to March 9 , 1944 , Soviet authorities deported almost all Chechens and Ingush -- an estimated 650,000 people -- to Central Asia , claiming they were collaborating with Nazi Germany .
As many as half of the deportees died either on the journey or due to the harsh @ @ @ @ @ @ @ live .
In 1957 , four years after Soviet dictator Josef Stalin 's death , the survivors were allowed to return to the North Caucasus .

For the first time in eight years, Russia's North Caucasus region of Chechnya has publicly commemorated the victims of the 1944 deportation on the actual day when the tragedy started.
Hundreds of people, including top Chechen officials and religious clerics, gathered in the center of the capital, Grozny, on February 23 to honor the thousands of victims of the deportation.
In 2012, Moscow-backed leader Ramzan Kadyrov moved the Day of Grief and Remembrance from February 23 to May 10, the anniversary of the burial of his father, Akhmad Kadyrov, who was killed in a bomb attack in Grozny in 2004.
However, many Chechens continued unofficial commemorations of the deportation victims.
Commemoration ceremonies and public prayers were also held in mosques and cemeteries in the neighboring region of Ingushetia on the same day.
From February 23 to March 9, 1944, Soviet authorities deported almost all Chechens and Ingush -- an estimated 650,000 people -- to Central Asia, claiming they were collaborating with Nazi Germany.
As many as half of the deportees died either on the journey or due to the harsh conditions in which they were forced to live.
In 1957, four years after Soviet dictator Josef Stalin's death, the survivors were allowed to return to the North Caucasus.


rferl--2020-02-28--Ukraine's Ex-President Calls On President 'To Stop Persecuting Opposition,' Before Questioning

Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has called on his successor , Volodymyr Zelenskiy , to stop `` persecuting '' the opposition and instead carry out his presidential duties Speaking before he was questioned at the State Bureau of Investigation ( DBR ) on February 28 , Poroshenko told his supporters that a judge of Kyiv 's Shevchenko district court had ruled to close the case he was summoned to be questioned about as there were no elements of crime found .
He also compared Zelenskiy with former Russia-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych , who was toppled in deadly anti-government protests in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ summoned for questioning as a witness in a case about alleged interference into court activities .
`` Volodymyr Oleksandrovych [ Zelenskiy ] , do your job as president .
Defend the country , strengthen the world 's solidarity , help solve social problems of the people and do not turn into a Yanukovych .
He had a very bad past and his future does n't look rosy either .
Leave judicial and law enforcement systems alone as their goal is to be independent , '' Poroshenko said , adding that his questioning looked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to distract attention away from the country 's social problems .
Poroshenko 's lawyer , Ilya Novikov , said later in a televised interview to Pryamiy television that his client was questioned for six hours .
The DBR had asked prosecutors to be allowed to forcibly bring Poroshenko in for questioning , but the former president arrived on his own .
Poroshenko , who is currently a deputy in parliament , was questioned as a witness several times last year in cases looking into several other investigations launched after he failed to win @ @ @ @ @ @ @ DBR said on January 20 that it was looking into 13 possible cases where Poroshenko or his associates were implicated .
A billionaire confectioner , Poroshenko and his party ran on a pro-European , anti-Russian ticket in July 's parliamentary elections , winning 25 seats .

Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has called on his successor, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to stop "persecuting" the opposition and instead carry out his presidential duties
Speaking before he was questioned at the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) on February 28, Poroshenko told his supporters that a judge of Kyiv's Shevchenko district court had ruled to close the case he was summoned to be questioned about as there were no elements of crime found.
He also compared Zelenskiy with former Russia-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych, who was toppled in deadly anti-government protests in February 2014.
The former president was summoned for questioning as a witness in a case about alleged interference into court activities.
"Volodymyr Oleksandrovych [Zelenskiy], do your job as president. Defend the country, strengthen the world's solidarity, help solve social problems of the people and do not turn into a Yanukovych. He had a very bad past and his future doesn't look rosy either. Leave judicial and law enforcement systems alone as their goal is to be independent," Poroshenko said, adding that his questioning looked like an attempt by Zelenskiy's team to distract attention away from the country's social problems.
Poroshenko's lawyer, Ilya Novikov, said later in a televised interview to Pryamiy television that his client was questioned for six hours.
The DBR had asked prosecutors to be allowed to forcibly bring Poroshenko in for questioning, but the former president arrived on his own.
Poroshenko, who is currently a deputy in parliament, was questioned as a witness several times last year in cases looking into several other investigations launched after he failed to win a second term as president.
The DBR said on January 20 that it was looking into 13 possible cases where Poroshenko or his associates were implicated.
A billionaire confectioner, Poroshenko and his party ran on a pro-European, anti-Russian ticket in July's parliamentary elections, winning 25 seats.


rferl--2020-02-28--Google Translate Overcomes Difficulties To Add Tatar, Turkmen, Uyghur Languages

Google says it 's online translation system has added five new languages , including Tatar , Turkmen , and Uyghur .
The U.S.-based Internet giant said that with the additions , which also include Kinyarwanda and Odia , its instantaneous translation system for computers and mobile devices now encompasses 108 languages .
Google said that languages such as the newly added five posed a particular problem because of the lack of existing online translations in those languages .
`` Translate learns from existing translations , which are most often found on the web .
Languages without a lot of web @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' the company said of the first languages it has added to the system in four years .
The addition of Uyghur , an official language of China 's northwestern region of Xinjiang , comes at a time when Chinese authorities are being accused of human rights violations in the area .
The United Nations estimated in 2019 that 1 million ethnic Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim Turkic-speaking indigenous people in Xinjiang were being held in what Beijing describes as `` counterextremism centers '' in the province .
The UN also said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ internment camps in China .
China describes the camps as `` vocational education centers '' aimed at helping people steer clear of terrorism and allowing them to be reintegrated into society .
Turkmen is the official language of the Central Asian state of Turkmenistan and Tatar is an official language of the Republic of Tatarstan within the Russian Federation .
Odia is spoken in the Indian state of Odisha and Kinyarwanda is an official language of Rwanda .


rferl--2020-02-28--Bulgaria Tightens Control On Turkey Border To Prevent Migrant Inflow

Bulgaria says it is tightening security along its border with Turkey to prevent an inflow of illegal migrants amid reports that Ankara may be relaxing its border controls to allow Syrian refugees to enter the European Union .
`` Forces have already been deployed at the border and measures to protect the maritime border have been intensified , '' Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said on February 28 during a government meeting .
Amid an escalation of the Syrian conflict , Turkish media reported that hundreds of migrants were flocking to Turkey 's borders with Greece and Bulgaria after a senior @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decided `` not to stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe . ''
Police , coast-guard , and border-security officials were ordered to stand down on refugees ' land and sea crossings toward Europe , the unidentified Turkish official told Reuters .
Bulgarian Defense Minister Krasimir Karakachanov said Sofia was ready to deploy up to 1,000 troops and 140 pieces of military equipment to the border with Turkey to prevent illegal migrant inflows .
Border police had prevented two groups of about 30 people from entering the country from Turkey , according to his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss the matter .
Under a 2016 agreement with the EU , Turkey restricted migration flows from Syria and other countries to Europe .
The deal involved an EU pledge to provide 6 billion euros ( $ 6.6 billion ) in aid to Ankara to house Syrian refugees .
The EU expects Turkey to `` uphold '' its side of the deal following the `` dangerous '' military escalation in Syria , a European Commission spokesman said .
The spokesman , Peter Stano @ @ @ @ @ @ @ notified Brussels of any change to that pact .
The development comes as Turkey said at least 33 of its soldiers had died in a Syrian government attack in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib , the last rebel stronghold in the country .
Turkey , which backs Syrian rebels , said it hit 200 government targets in response , `` neutralizing '' 309 soldiers .
Russia , Syria 's key military ally , said Turkish troops were attacked by Syrian forces while operating alongside militant fighters -- an allegation rejected by Ankara @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Bulgaria says it is tightening security along its border with Turkey to prevent an inflow of illegal migrants amid reports that Ankara may be relaxing its border controls to allow Syrian refugees to enter the European Union.
"Forces have already been deployed at the border and measures to protect the maritime border have been intensified," Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said on February 28 during a government meeting.
Amid an escalation of the Syrian conflict, Turkish media reported that hundreds of migrants were flocking to Turkey's borders with Greece and Bulgaria after a senior official was quoted as saying Ankara had decided "not to stop Syrian refugees from reaching Europe."
Police, coast-guard, and border-security officials were ordered to stand down on refugees' land and sea crossings toward Europe, the unidentified Turkish official told Reuters.
Bulgarian Defense Minister Krasimir Karakachanov said Sofia was ready to deploy up to 1,000 troops and 140 pieces of military equipment to the border with Turkey to prevent illegal migrant inflows.
Border police had prevented two groups of about 30 people from entering the country from Turkey, according to his ministry.
Borisov said he was arranging a phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss the matter.
Under a 2016 agreement with the EU, Turkey restricted migration flows from Syria and other countries to Europe.
The deal involved an EU pledge to provide 6 billion euros ($6.6 billion) in aid to Ankara to house Syrian refugees.
The EU expects Turkey to "uphold" its side of the deal following the "dangerous" military escalation in Syria, a European Commission spokesman said.
The spokesman, Peter Stano, said Turkish officials had not formally notified Brussels of any change to that pact.
The development comes as Turkey said at least 33 of its soldiers had died in a Syrian government attack in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib, the last rebel stronghold in the country.
Turkey, which backs Syrian rebels, said it hit 200 government targets in response, "neutralizing" 309 soldiers.
Russia, Syria's key military ally, said Turkish troops were attacked by Syrian forces while operating alongside militant fighters -- an allegation rejected by Ankara.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP


rferl--2020-02-28--Pentagon Vows Not To Let Russia, China  Deny West's Space Superiority

A senior Pentagon official has warned that China and Russia are stepping up efforts to develop sophisticated space capabilities in a bid to deny the United States and its allies of their current superiority .
James Anderson , performing the duties of deputy undersecretary of defense for policy , told a House of Representatives panel on February 27 that China and Russia are developing sophisticated on-orbit capabilities and an array of space weapons capable of targeting nearly every class of U.S. space assets , many of which were developed when there were few threats in space .
In his written @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's strategic forces subcommittee , Anderson said the United States is responding to the threat by `` transforming its space enterprise , fielding resilient architectures , developing space war-fighting expertise , and working closely with allies in combined operations . ''
Space Force General John Raymond , chief of space operations , told lawmakers that the United States “ can no longer assume that our space superiority is a given . ''
`` If deterrence fails , we must be ready to fight for space superiority , '' he added .
Anderson said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ $ 18 billion for space programs , including $ 111 million to support the new U.S. Space Force .
It also provides funding for the development of military space capabilities necessary to ensure U.S. technological and military advantages , he said .

A senior Pentagon official has warned that China and Russia are stepping up efforts to develop sophisticated space capabilities in a bid to deny the United States and its allies of their current superiority.
James Anderson, performing the duties of deputy undersecretary of defense for policy, told a House of Representatives panel on February 27 that China and Russia are developing sophisticated on-orbit capabilities and an array of space weapons capable of targeting nearly every class of U.S. space assets, many of which were developed when there were few threats in space.
In his written testimony to the House Armed Services Committee's strategic forces subcommittee, Anderson said the United States is responding to the threat by "transforming its space enterprise, fielding resilient architectures, developing space war-fighting expertise, and working closely with allies in combined operations."
Space Force General John Raymond, chief of space operations, told lawmakers that the United States “can no longer assume that our space superiority is a given."
"If deterrence fails, we must be ready to fight for space superiority," he added.
Anderson said requests for the 2021 defense budget provide $18 billion for space programs, including $111 million to support the new U.S. Space Force.
It also provides funding for the development of military space capabilities necessary to ensure U.S. technological and military advantages, he said.


rferl--2020-02-28--Kazakh Activists Demand Answers After Video Purportedly Shows Injuries To Aghadil's Body

NUR-SULTAN -- Activists in Kazakhstan are demanding answers after a video surfaced that appears to show the body of Dulat Aghadil , who mysteriously died in police custody this week , with multiple bruises and other injuries .
The video began circulating on the Internet late on February 27 , after Aghadil was buried in his native village of Talapker , near Nur-Sultan , the capital .
The video shows Aghadil 's body after it was delivered to his relatives .
Aghadil , who was detained late on February 24 , died hours later in custody .
Authorities have said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heart failure with no traces of violence having been found on his body . ''
Aghadil 's friends and rights defenders , however , have questioned the explanation , saying he did not drink due to a medical condition and that he had no history of heart issues .
In what will only add to their suspicions , the graphic video shows what appear to be wounds on Aghadil 's hands and feet and discolored areas scattered across his shoulders , back , upper arms , and other areas of his body .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen on many parts of the body .
Aghadil 's relatives have refused to comment on the video .
A medical expert who was present during the autopsy , Ruslan Satybaldiev , refused to comment , telling RFE/RL that he signed a nondisclosure agreement with the authorities as an investigation is under way .
After the video was released , Bakhytzhan Toreghozhina , the head of the Almaty-based human rights foundation Ar.Rukh.Khaq ( Dignity , Spirit , Truth ) , demanded the resignation of Interior Minister Erlan Turghymbaev and the immediate investigation and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's detainment .
Ivar Dale of the Helsinki Committee in Norway said the evidence warrants an immediate , independent autopsy while calling out President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev for failing to comment on Aghadil 's death .
`` Authorities previously claimed , absurdly , that he died from being drunk .
Does President @ TokayevKZ have an opinion on the matter ? ''
he said in a tweet .
Though Toqaev has yet to comment , Eldos Kilymzhanov , the deputy prosecutor of Nur-Sultan , told reporters on February 28 that the video of Aghadil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ without the consent of Aghadil ’ s relatives , adding that his mother has filed an official complaint with city prosecutors asking to `` undertake measures against individuals , who shot the video and distributed it without the family 's consent . ''
Kilymzhanov reiterated the authorities ' previous statement , saying that Aghadil died of heart failure and said that what looked like bruises on Aghadil 's body were the result of `` postmortem lividity . ''
Arman Khanbekov , who was introduced by Kilymzhanov as a forensics expert for the city @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was present during Aghadil 's autopsy and reiterated Kilymzhanov 's statement that postmortem lividity , or cadaveric spots , appear in dead bodies as blood pools in some areas depending on the body 's position after death .
Kilymzhanov also said that Aghadil 's brother and the family 's lawyer were present at the autopsy and had no objections to the procedure or to the official version of the cause of death .
`` We call on citizens to stay away from expedited conclusions and not to distribute false information , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ father of six , was widely known for his civil rights activities .
He was sentenced to several days in jail several times for taking part in unsanctioned rallies and resisting arrest .
Since August 2019 , he had spent at least 60 days in jail .
In November , Aghadil made headlines after he escaped from jail just one day before his expected release .
He later explained that he made the move `` to protest my illegal arrest . ''
He was buried on February 27 .

NUR-SULTAN -- Activists in Kazakhstan are demanding answers after a video surfaced that appears to show the body of Dulat Aghadil, who mysteriously died in police custody this week, with multiple bruises and other injuries.
The video began circulating on the Internet late on February 27, after Aghadil was buried in his native village of Talapker, near Nur-Sultan, the capital. The video shows Aghadil's body after it was delivered to his relatives.
Aghadil, who was detained late on February 24, died hours later in custody. Authorities have said he was intoxicated and died of "heart failure with no traces of violence having been found on his body."
Aghadil's friends and rights defenders, however, have questioned the explanation, saying he did not drink due to a medical condition and that he had no history of heart issues.
In what will only add to their suspicions, the graphic video shows what appear to be wounds on Aghadil's hands and feet and discolored areas scattered across his shoulders, back, upper arms, and other areas of his body.
Numerous scratches and small holes can be seen on many parts of the body.
Aghadil's relatives have refused to comment on the video.
A medical expert who was present during the autopsy, Ruslan Satybaldiev, refused to comment, telling RFE/RL that he signed a nondisclosure agreement with the authorities as an investigation is under way.
After the video was released, Bakhytzhan Toreghozhina, the head of the Almaty-based human rights foundation Ar.Rukh.Khaq (Dignity, Spirit, Truth), demanded the resignation of Interior Minister Erlan Turghymbaev and the immediate investigation and interrogation of the officers involved in Aghadil's detainment.
Ivar Dale of the Helsinki Committee in Norway said the evidence warrants an immediate, independent autopsy while calling out President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev for failing to comment on Aghadil's death.
"Authorities previously claimed, absurdly, that he died from being drunk. Does President @TokayevKZ have an opinion on the matter?" he said in a tweet.
Though Toqaev has yet to comment, Eldos Kilymzhanov, the deputy prosecutor of Nur-Sultan, told reporters on February 28 that the video of Aghadil's body was shot and distributed online without the consent of Aghadil’s relatives, adding that his mother has filed an official complaint with city prosecutors asking to "undertake measures against individuals, who shot the video and distributed it without the family's consent."
Kilymzhanov reiterated the authorities' previous statement, saying that Aghadil died of heart failure and said that what looked like bruises on Aghadil's body were the result of "postmortem lividity."
Arman Khanbekov, who was introduced by Kilymzhanov as a forensics expert for the city of Nur-Sultan, told the briefing that he was present during Aghadil's autopsy and reiterated Kilymzhanov's statement that postmortem lividity, or cadaveric spots, appear in dead bodies as blood pools in some areas depending on the body's position after death.
Kilymzhanov also said that Aghadil's brother and the family's lawyer were present at the autopsy and had no objections to the procedure or to the official version of the cause of death.
"We call on citizens to stay away from expedited conclusions and not to distribute false information," Kilymzhanov said.
Aghadil, a 43-year-old father of six, was widely known for his civil rights activities. He was sentenced to several days in jail several times for taking part in unsanctioned rallies and resisting arrest. Since August 2019, he had spent at least 60 days in jail.
In November, Aghadil made headlines after he escaped from jail just one day before his expected release. He later explained that he made the move "to protest my illegal arrest."
He was buried on February 27.


rferl--2020-02-28--'Assassination Attempt' On Well-Known Chechen Blogger Raises Alarm Bells Among Watchdogs

Media freedom watchdogs say they are alarmed over the reported assault of a well-known Chechen blogger in an unidentified European country where he lives in hiding .
An assailant broke into Tumso Abdurakhmanov ’ s apartment on February 26 while he was asleep and beat him with a hammer , according to the Sweden-based human rights group Vayfond .
Abdurakhmanov , who eventually managed to overpower the attacker , was said to be hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries .
Both Vayfond and the blogger ’ s brother called the assault an assassination attempt -- the latest attack in Europe on critics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Caucasus region .
“ Alarmed by the reported attempt to assassinate ” Abdurakhmanov , the representative on freedom of the media for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe ( OSCE ) , Harlem Desir , tweeted on February 27 , noting that the attack came after last month ’ s suspected murder of another Chechen blogger in France .
The 32-year-old Abdurakhmanov has lived in self-imposed exile since fleeing Chechnya in 2015 amid fears for his safety after becoming known for his criticism of the Kremlin-backed authorities in his native region @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Poland and has been turned down once already , despite strong support from human rights activists such as Amnesty International , which has warned he is “ at a very real risk of torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment ” if returned to Russia .
Gulnoza Said , Europe and Central Asia program coordinator at the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists ( CPJ ) , said the attack against Abdurakhmanov “ is alarming and must be thoroughly investigated.
” “ Bringing the perpetrators of this attack to justice is crucial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ living in Europe , ” she said .
The location of the attack has not been disclosed , but Abdurakhmanov posted a video on WhatsApp in which , after overpowering the purported attacker he interrogates him .
The alleged assailant says he is from Moscow and that he had been sent by someone named `` Abdurakhman from Grozny , '' the Chechen capital , in order `` to frighten '' the blogger .
“ They have my mother , ” he adds .
Meanwhile , sources in Chechnya told RFE/RL 's North Caucasus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the villages of Stanitsa Naurskaya and Stanitsa Shelkovskaya detained at least nine young men who had `` liked '' online videos posted by Abdurakhmanov .
Relatives of the allegedly detained men refused to comment .
Naursky district police officials denied that they detained anyone on that day , while a spokeswoman for the Shelkovsky district police hung up the phone after an RFE/RL correspondent introduced himself .
Rights groups say Kremlin-backed Ramzan Kadyrov , who has ruled the volatile region since 2007 , uses repressive measures and has created a climate of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They claim Kadyrov is ultimately responsible for the violence and intimidation of political opponents by Chechen authorities , including kidnappings , forced disappearances , torture , and extra-judicial killings .
Chechen authorities have threatened , intimidated , and arrested journalists for their work , according to the CPJ .
In late January , the body of Imran Aliyev , another Chechen blogger known for his criticism of Kadyrov , was found in a hotel room in the northern French city of Lille , with stab wounds , according to French media .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ be able to determine whether Aliyev 's death was tied to his reporting .

Media freedom watchdogs say they are alarmed over the reported assault of a well-known Chechen blogger in an unidentified European country where he lives in hiding.
An assailant broke into Tumso Abdurakhmanov’s apartment on February 26 while he was asleep and beat him with a hammer, according to the Sweden-based human rights group Vayfond.
Abdurakhmanov, who eventually managed to overpower the attacker, was said to be hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Both Vayfond and the blogger’s brother called the assault an assassination attempt -- the latest attack in Europe on critics of the leadership in Russia's North Caucasus region.
“Alarmed by the reported attempt to assassinate” Abdurakhmanov, the representative on freedom of the media for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Harlem Desir, tweeted on February 27, noting that the attack came after last month’s suspected murder of another Chechen blogger in France.
The 32-year-old Abdurakhmanov has lived in self-imposed exile since fleeing Chechnya in 2015 amid fears for his safety after becoming known for his criticism of the Kremlin-backed authorities in his native region. He has twice filed for asylum in Poland and has been turned down once already, despite strong support from human rights activists such as Amnesty International, which has warned he is “at a very real risk of torture and other inhuman or degrading treatment” if returned to Russia.
Gulnoza Said, Europe and Central Asia program coordinator at the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said the attack against Abdurakhmanov “is alarming and must be thoroughly investigated.”
“Bringing the perpetrators of this attack to justice is crucial for ensuring the safety of Chechen dissidents living in Europe,” she said.
The location of the attack has not been disclosed, but Abdurakhmanov posted a video on WhatsApp in which, after overpowering the purported attacker he interrogates him.
The alleged assailant says he is from Moscow and that he had been sent by someone named "Abdurakhman from Grozny," the Chechen capital, in order "to frighten" the blogger.
“They have my mother,” he adds.
Meanwhile, sources in Chechnya told RFE/RL's North Caucasus Service that on February 26 local police in the villages of Stanitsa Naurskaya and Stanitsa Shelkovskaya detained at least nine young men who had "liked" online videos posted by Abdurakhmanov.
Relatives of the allegedly detained men refused to comment. Naursky district police officials denied that they detained anyone on that day, while a spokeswoman for the Shelkovsky district police hung up the phone after an RFE/RL correspondent introduced himself.
Rights groups say Kremlin-backed Ramzan Kadyrov, who has ruled the volatile region since 2007, uses repressive measures and has created a climate of impunity for security forces in the region. They claim Kadyrov is ultimately responsible for the violence and intimidation of political opponents by Chechen authorities, including kidnappings, forced disappearances, torture, and extra-judicial killings.
Chechen authorities have threatened, intimidated, and arrested journalists for their work, according to the CPJ.
In late January, the body of Imran Aliyev, another Chechen blogger known for his criticism of Kadyrov, was found in a hotel room in the northern French city of Lille, with stab wounds, according to French media.
The CPJ said it has yet to be able to determine whether Aliyev's death was tied to his reporting.


rferl--2020-02-28--U.S. Envoy Calls Kosovo's Decision To Partially Lift Serbian Import Tariffs A 'Serious Mistake'

PRISTINA – The U.S. special envoy for Serbia and Kosovo says the United States does not support the Kosovar government ’ s decision to temporarily and partly lift the import tariff on products from Serbia .
In a tweet late on February 27 , Richard Grenell , who also serves as U.S. ambassador to Germany and has recently been appointed as President Donald Trump 's intelligence chief , called the move a “ half measure.
” '' Our position is quite clear : the tariffs must be completely dropped , '' Grenell tweeted , adding that Kosovar Prime Minister Albin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
The United States is one of the biggest backers of Kosovo 's independence from Serbia , which it declared in 2008 .
Serbia continues to consider its former province part of its territory .
European Union-facilitated talks on normalizing diplomatic relations were derailed in November 2018 by Pristina 's imposition of 100 percent tariffs on Serbian goods and services in response to Belgrade 's continued lobbying for countries to reverse their recognition of Kosovo .
In a statement on February 28 , the EU welcomed Kosovo ’ s announcement as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a positive effect ” on restoring regional trade and “ offer an opening ” for the resumption of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina .
`` Too much time has been lost.Trust needs to be urgently restored .
Serbia and Kosovo need to create an environment that is conducive for the dialogue to resume , to the benefit of both , ” it said .
Kurti on February 27 announced Kosovo would abolish the tariff on raw materials imported from Serbia from March 15 as a sign of “ goodwill to resolve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Kurti told a news conference that tariffs in place for all other Serbian goods will be eliminated on April 1 for a period of 90 days if Belgrade halts its campaign of prodding other countries not to recognize Kosovo ’ s statehood and removes trade barriers for Kosovo .
But if Serbia fails to show goodwill , Kosovo will gradually reciprocate in kind -- first in trade , then in political terms , he warned .
And if no satisfactory response from Belgrade has come , the tariff will be reimposed from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ally , the Democratic League of Kosovo ( LDK ) , threatened to quit the government if the tariff was not `` revoked unconditionally , '' Deputy Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti told local media .
Former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj , whose government imposed the tariffs in 2018 , condemned the plan set out by Kurti , calling it `` the beginning of the return of Serbia and Russia to Kosovo . ''
There have been no immediate comments from Serbian officials .
In a step toward improving ties , Serbian and Kosovar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ establish air , rail , and highway links between Pristina and Belgrade .

PRISTINA – The U.S. special envoy for Serbia and Kosovo says the United States does not support the Kosovar government’s decision to temporarily and partly lift the import tariff on products from Serbia.
In a tweet late on February 27, Richard Grenell, who also serves as U.S. ambassador to Germany and has recently been appointed as President Donald Trump's intelligence chief, called the move a “half measure.”
"Our position is quite clear: the tariffs must be completely dropped," Grenell tweeted, adding that Kosovar Prime Minister Albin Kurti "is making a serious mistake."
The United States is one of the biggest backers of Kosovo's independence from Serbia, which it declared in 2008. Serbia continues to consider its former province part of its territory.
European Union-facilitated talks on normalizing diplomatic relations were derailed in November 2018 by Pristina's imposition of 100 percent tariffs on Serbian goods and services in response to Belgrade's continued lobbying for countries to reverse their recognition of Kosovo.
In a statement on February 28, the EU welcomed Kosovo’s announcement as a “first step” that “could have a positive effect” on restoring regional trade and “offer an opening” for the resumption of the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.
"Too much time has been lost.Trust needs to be urgently restored. Serbia and Kosovo need to create an environment that is conducive for the dialogue to resume, to the benefit of both,” it said.
Kurti on February 27 announced Kosovo would abolish the tariff on raw materials imported from Serbia from March 15 as a sign of “goodwill to resolve the political and economic dispute with Serbia.”
Kurti told a news conference that tariffs in place for all other Serbian goods will be eliminated on April 1 for a period of 90 days if Belgrade halts its campaign of prodding other countries not to recognize Kosovo’s statehood and removes trade barriers for Kosovo.
But if Serbia fails to show goodwill, Kosovo will gradually reciprocate in kind -- first in trade, then in political terms, he warned.
And if no satisfactory response from Belgrade has come, the tariff will be reimposed from June 15.
Kurti's key coalition ally, the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), threatened to quit the government if the tariff was not "revoked unconditionally," Deputy Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti told local media.
Former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, whose government imposed the tariffs in 2018, condemned the plan set out by Kurti, calling it "the beginning of the return of Serbia and Russia to Kosovo."
There have been no immediate comments from Serbian officials.
In a step toward improving ties, Serbian and Kosovar officials earlier this year signed deals to establish air, rail, and highway links between Pristina and Belgrade.


rferl--2020-02-28--Four Lawmakers In Iran Test Positive As Coronavirus Forces Cancellation Of Friday Prayers

Four Iranian lawmakers have tested positive for the coronavirus as the rapid spread of the outbreak forced the cancellation of Friday Prayers in many mosques across the country .
Mohammad Ali Vakili , a member of the parliamentary presidium , said in a tweet on February 28 that four of 30 lawmakers in the Majlis , or parliament , tested positive for the virus .
Several other top Iranian officials have also contracted the virus , including Masoumeh Ebtekar , the vice president for women and family affairs , and Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirshi .
The announcement about the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of deaths linked to the new coronavirus jumped by eight to 34 over the past 24 hours , with 388 people testing positive -- an increase of 143 on the previous day .
Iran has become the main hot spot of the virus in the Middle East , and the country ’ s officials have been accused of hiding the true scale of the outbreak .
Authorities canceled Friday Prayers in Tehran and 22 provincial capitals in response to the looming pandemic , while the Health Ministry advised against all public events , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and universities , along with cultural gathering places such cinemas , theaters , and concert halls , have all been closed .
COVID-19 , the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus , has infected some 83,000 people in dozens of countries , causing 2,800 deaths .
Most of the cases and deaths were reported in China , where the disease emerged in December .
Countries on three continents reported their first cases of the coronavirus on February 28 , including Azerbaijan , Belarus , Lithuania , Nigeria , the Netherlands , and New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an Iranian national who had arrived last week came back positive for the disease .
The Health Ministry said the patient was in `` satisfactory '' condition and that he had been quarantined .
Azerbaijan 's coronavirus crisis center said a Russian national traveling from Iran had tested positive for the disease , media reported .
Meanwhile , authorities in neighboring Georgia announced a second Georgian citizen had tested positive for the virus after returning from Italy -- another major center of infection .
Georgian health officials said the patient ’ s health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reported case involved a 50-year-old man who had returned to the country from Iran via Azerbaijan , officials said .
Kyrgyzstan said it will bar citizens of China , Iran , South Korea , Japan and Italy from entering in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus .
The government said in a statement on February 28 that the temporary restrictions will come into effect on March 1 .
The measure will not affect travelers with diplomatic passports , it said .
Kyrgyz officials haven ’ t reported any cases of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by AP , Reuters , RFE/RL 's Kyrgz Service , and dpa

A polytechnic school in Russia’s Tatarstan, a region some 900 kilometers east of Moscow, is using manufacturing facilities that are part of a nearby special economic zone to assemble Iranian attack drones and are increasingly turning to underage students as laborers, many of whom often work in exploitative conditions.
The revelations at Alabuga Polytechnic University raise troubling implications about the lengths that Russian authorities are going to in order to boost the war effort and how the advanced Iranian weaponry -- which is increasingly used to bombard Ukrainian cities and has only recently begun to be manufactured inside Russia -- could contribute to escalating tensions and rising civilian casualties.
The use of underage students as drone factory workers and the details of the manufacturing facilities were first reported by Russian independent media outlets Protokol and Razvorot, which published a series of investigations in July.
Since then, RFE/RL’s Idel.Realities has spoken with students who describe grueling working conditions and interviewed dozens of parents whose children have been enrolled at Alabuga Polytechnic University -- some as young at 15 -- who say that their children were forced to work exceedingly long hours, often without proper breaks or meals, and under hostile conditions that have deeply affected their mental health.
“My son enrolled and 2 1/2 months later he called for me to take him away,” Zhanna, who asked to be identified only by her first name to protect against reprisals for speaking about the operation, told RFE/RL. “He said to me on the phone, ‘Come and get me or I’ll die,’ so I picked him up immediately.”
Zhanna, who asked that her underage son’s name also not be used, says that she sent him from Nizhny Novgorod to study at Alabuga Polytechnic University in 2022 because of its reputation as a leading technical institution inside Russia.
The school offered students -- often between the ages of 15-18 -- an opportunity to get vocational training as part of a dual program that combines a classroom education with practical work experience. Students were also promised an opportunity to work and earn a locally competitive salary of up to 70,000 rubles ($700) a month as part of the work experience program that could further their career growth.
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.
But, instead, those enrolled were encouraged and in some cases pressured into working at the drone facility, where the salaries of the mostly underage laborers are contingent on meeting tough production quotas.
“This is a textbook definition of what constitutes exploitation,” Sergei Podsytnik, an investigative journalist at Protokol who worked on the series of reports, told RFE/RL. “[Students] assemble drones, with the work taking priority over their studies.”
The pressure to fulfill these quotas has allegedly led to strenuous back-to-back days -- with some shifts lasting up to 15 hours -- with little time for sleep or adequate sustenance. Overtime work is often unpaid, further highlighting potential labor violations. Exhausted students also reported not always meeting their quotas, which led to them not earning the salary initially promised by the school. Many students came from disadvantaged backgrounds and relied on their earnings to cover costs for tuition, room, and board and would send the remainder home.
Other parents, such as Marina, said she decided to take her daughter out of the program when she discovered that she was working in apparent unsafe conditions and that staff from the school had instructed students not to tell their parents about the drone assembly work.
“This was the last straw for me,” Marina, who also asked for her identity to be concealed, told RFE/RL. “This is a dangerous production process that involves dangerous chemicals. They also forbid the kids from telling everything to their parents.”
RFE/RL sent multiple requests for comment to various staff and administrators at Alabuga Polytechnic University but received no replies.
Making Iranian Drones In Russia
The complicated and concerning dynamic at Alabuga Polytechnic University stems from growing military cooperation between Iran and Russia that has accelerated since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Iran has said it provided drones to Russia before the start of the war, but not since. However, U.S. intelligence officials have warned for months of continued deliveries and deepening cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, saying the two sides were exploring how to set up a manufacturing plant for Iranian drones inside Russia.
According to The Wall Street Journal, an Iranian delegation visited Yelabuga in Tatarstan on January 5, touring a potential site for such a factory at the Alabuga special economic zone close to Alabuga Polytechnic University. U.S. officials released satellite images in April of the plant being built.
Russia already possesses an array of unarmed aerial vehicles, or UAVs, which are used mainly for surveillance and artillery spotting, but has turned increasingly to Tehran for attack drones.
After being forced to abandon Ukrainian territory that its troops captured in the early stretches of the war, Moscow shifted to a strategy of relentless air assaults on Ukrainian cities. These attacks often rely on a combination of cruise missiles and self-detonating drones packed with explosives to knock out electricity and running water for the civilian population in Ukraine.
So far, Iran has provided Russia mostly with so-called "suicide" drones, known as the Shahed-136, that contain a modest amount of explosives that can detonate when the drones crash into targets, military experts say.
In acquiring its own domestic assembly line, Russia could dramatically increase its stockpile of the relatively inexpensive but highly destructive weapons systems.
WATCH: Russia has resorted to using Shahed-136 drones from Iran in its war on Ukraine. Ukraine says it's already downed many of the drones, which work by slamming into their intended target, laden with explosives. Ordinary Ukrainians say they can already recognize the sound of the drones, which use two-stroke engines like lawnmowers or motorbikes. Iran has denied supplying the drones to Russia.
The arrangement also offers substantial economic and political benefits for Iran, which has sought to portray itself as neutral in the Ukraine war. The appearance of Iranian-made drones over Ukrainian cities, however, has triggered threats of new economic sanctions from the West. The United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom have also all issued rules in recent months designed to cut off the flow of drone components to Russia and Iran.
The Washington Post reported in November 2022, citing unnamed U.S. intelligence officials, that the agreement to deliver Iranian drone schematics and materials for manufacture in Russia resulted from Iranian leaders believing that the arrangement would allow Tehran to avert new sanctions.
Foreign Recruitment And Patriotic Education
Alabuga Polytechnic University is formally not a college. All of its students are officially enrolled at nearby Yelabuga Polytechnic College, with the Alabuga institution existing on paper as a specialized program for students looking to break into high-tech industries.
Currently, about 1,000 students are studying at Alabuga Polytechnic University, with several hundred of them -- most of whom are between the ages of 15 and 17 -- involved in assembling the Iranian drones.
In addition to the work on the drones, there are other signs that point to blurred lines in Russia between the education system and the country’s military amid the war in Ukraine.
According to current and former Alabuga Polytechnic University students, team-building and organized extracurricular activities through the school often take on a “patriotic” character that may be designed to expose students to official government narratives of international events or echo talking points from state television.
Organized paintball games have become a mainstay for students, especially first-year arrivals, in which they are encouraged to compete against one another and then play together against more experienced outside players. Teachers and administration officials regularly refer to paintball as being part of a “patriotic” education needed to complement the technical aspect of their studies.
In one instance, a group of new students competed in paintball as Soviet soldiers against outside players who were dressed as troops from Nazi Germany in a capture-the-flag competition meant to simulate the World War II battle of Stalingrad. According to one student, the Nazi flag contained the compass symbol used by the NATO military alliance instead of the swastika used by Nazi Germany.
Other instances of political teachings from staff are more direct. In a recording obtained by RFE/RL from June 16, a senior administrator can be heard telling the teenagers that NATO launched a hybrid war against Russia back in 2011 and that it has slowly become more overt. The man then goes on to tell students that their hard work and exceeding long days at the drone factory are part of a nationwide struggle against the West and that their patriotism will be rewarded.
Several students and parents identified the man in the recording as Timur Shagivaleev, the director-general of the special economic zone where Alabuga Polytechnic University and the drone factory operate.
Shagivaleev did not respond to RFE/RL’s request for comment.
The man in the recording then goes on to tell students not to take holidays and to continue working “even if it's mom's birthday,” before ending his speech with, “Long live our great country.”
WATCH: Amid a new wave of Russian drone attacks on Ukraine, analysts in Kyiv are gaining useful intelligence from a collection of downed Russian aerial weapons. They have been studying the remains of Iranian Shahed drones and Russian Kinzhal missiles, among others.
Multiple current and former students told RFE/RL that students who work in the drone factory are often praised by staff, while those who have refused or asked to be reassigned due to the high workload are often publicly shamed. In some instances -- according to recordings heard by RFE/RL -- staff even encourage students to bully others who are not deemed “patriotic” enough.
According to Protokol and Razvorot’s investigations, Alabuga Polytechnic University has also turned toward recruiting foreign students to enroll. The majority of them come from African countries, but also from Central Asia and Azerbaijan, where they are promised “world class” salaries as part of the dual-track world experience program.
However, these foreign students are then given low-skill and menial tasks around the campus and the special economic zone, such as janitorial work, and are also paid lower salaries than initially promised.
Written by Reid Standish based on reporting by RFE/RL’s Idel.Realities


rferl--2020-02-28--U.S. Says Swiss Humanitarian Channel To Iran Fully Functional

The United States says a newly created , Swiss-based humanitarian trade channel has become fully functional to allow companies to send food , medicine , and other critical goods to Iran without violating U.S. sanctions .
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on February 27 said in a statement that “ the Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement ( SHTA ) will help ensure that humanitarian goods continue to reach the Iranian people without diversion by the regime . ''
The first SHTA trades were conducted as a test in late January .
Mnuchin said that a license has now been granted for trade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ operational .
The system ensures no revenue or payment is transferred to Iran , which Washington accuses of misusing such channels for corruption and the promotion of terrorism -- allegations Tehran denies .
The humanitarian channel was announced on October 25 and restricts the Central Bank of Iran 's ( CBI ) role in facilitating humanitarian trade because the `` CBI and its senior officials have facilitated significant funds transfers to terrorist organizations , '' according to the Treasury Department .
The SHTA mechanism allows items that are exempt from existing Iranian sanctions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , food , medicine , and medical devices .
U.S. sanctions were reimposed after President Donald Trump in May 2018 unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 international deal over Iran 's nuclear program .
Iran has faced severe shortages goods since them , leading to street protests and violent unrest .
Medical and other humanitarian goods were exempted from the sanctions , but many foreign banks avoided any dealings with Tehran amid fears they would find themselves subject to the punitive measures .
Brian Hook , the U.S. special representative for Iran , last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drug companies in using the system .
Switzerland , which is politically neutral , has been working with U.S. and Iranian authorities and has designated Swiss banks and Swiss companies to operate within the plan .
The Swiss Economic Ministry confirmed in a statement on February 27 that the “ payment mechanism to enable humanitarian goods to be delivered to Iran , came into effect.
” With reporting by Reuters , AP , AFP , and dpa