rferl--2020-01-26--Two Ukrainian Soldiers Killed, Two Wounded In Donbas

Ukraine 's military said two of its soldiers were killed and two wounded in the country 's eastern Donbas region .
In a statement on January 26 , the military said one soldier was killed and another wounded by gunfire , while in a separate incident another soldier was killed and another wounded by an improvised explosive device ( IED ) .
The statement did not disclose the soldiers ’ identities or where exactly the incidents occurred .
Eleven Ukrainian soldiers have been killed this month so far , exceeding the number of killed in December by two .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Russia-backed separatists on January 26 , while it reported 10 violations the day before .
Earlier on January 26 , the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said separatists had shelled Ukrainian government positions in Orikhov and Novotoshkivskiy in the Luhansk region and Krasnogorivka and Lebedynskiy in the Donetsk region .
The conflict between Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists that started in April 2014 has killed more than 13,000 people .
Hostilities erupted there shortly after Russia annexed Ukraine 's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 , a move that has not been recognized by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ personnel were killed in 2019 and the beginning of January , the Prosecutor-General ’ s Office said on January 17 .
In the Donetsk region , 101 service personnel were killed , while 31 died in the Luhansk region .
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has vowed to end the war , which has internally uprooted 1.5 million people from their homes and caused a humanitarian crisis in the east .
Since ascending to the presidency in May , Zelenskiy has implemented measures with Russia to deescalate , including two prisoner exchanges and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three flash points along the 400-kilometer front line .
The Kremlin officially denies that it is a party to the war and describes the events in the Donbas as `` an internal Ukrainian conflict . ''

Ukraine's military said two of its soldiers were killed and two wounded in the country's eastern Donbas region.
In a statement on January 26, the military said one soldier was killed and another wounded by gunfire, while in a separate incident another soldier was killed and another wounded by an improvised explosive device (IED).
The statement did not disclose the soldiers’ identities or where exactly the incidents occurred.
Eleven Ukrainian soldiers have been killed this month so far, exceeding the number of killed in December by two.
The military said it reported 12 cease-fire violations by Russia-backed separatists on January 26, while it reported 10 violations the day before.
Earlier on January 26, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said separatists had shelled Ukrainian government positions in Orikhov and Novotoshkivskiy in the Luhansk region and Krasnogorivka and Lebedynskiy in the Donetsk region.
The conflict between Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists that started in April 2014 has killed more than 13,000 people.
Hostilities erupted there shortly after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a move that has not been recognized by the international community.
Some 130 Ukrainian military personnel were killed in 2019 and the beginning of January, the Prosecutor-General’s Office said on January 17. In the Donetsk region, 101 service personnel were killed, while 31 died in the Luhansk region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has vowed to end the war, which has internally uprooted 1.5 million people from their homes and caused a humanitarian crisis in the east.
Since ascending to the presidency in May, Zelenskiy has implemented measures with Russia to deescalate, including two prisoner exchanges and the mutual withdrawal of forces and weapons from three flash points along the 400-kilometer front line.
The Kremlin officially denies that it is a party to the war and describes the events in the Donbas as "an internal Ukrainian conflict."
With reporting by Hromadske International


rferl--2020-01-26--Syrian Government Troops Advance In Last Rebel Stronghold

Syrian government forces have captured several rural settlements in the northwestern province of Idlib , as they continue an offensive into the country ’ s last rebel stronghold , state media and a war monitor said on January 26 .
At least six villages in the Idlib countryside have fallen to government forces over the past two days , the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said .
Backed by Russian air strikes , government troops on January 26 reached the outskirts of Maaret al-Numan , 33 kilometers south of the city of Idlib , on an important highway that connects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said government forces had captured the village of Ghadqa near Maaret al-Numan earlier in the day .
Opposition activists said government troops are now less than a kilometer away from Maaret al-Numan .
According to the activists and paramedics , Maaret al-Numan is now almost empty as many residents have fled amid intense bombardments in recent weeks .
Idlib Province is home to some 3 million civilians and the United Nations has warned of the growing risk of a humanitarian catastrophe there .
Turkey said on January 24 that around 400,000 people from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ border as a result of the surge in violence .
Based on reporting by Reuters and AP

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--2020-01-26--Virus Death Toll In China Rises As Authorities Warn Disease Is 'Getting Stronger'

Chinese authorities said the ability of the new coronavirus to spread is strengthening and infections could continue to rise , with more than 2,300 people in the country infected and 80 killed by the disease .
China 's Health Minister Ma Xiaowei said on January 26 that the country was entering a “ crucial stage '' as “ it seems like the ability of the virus to spread is getting stronger . ''
Xiaowei said travel restrictions and other strict measures should bring results “ at the lowest cost and fastest speed.
” His remarks came as the World Health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 26 that he was on his way to Beijing to hold talks with Chinese officials and health experts about the coronavirus outbreak .
Countries throughout the world continued to detect further cases of the illness in their nations .
So far , all of the deaths have been in China .
But a growing number of other countries are reporting cases , including Thailand , Australia , the United States , Canada , and France .
The mayor of Wuhan , the epicenter of the outbreak , said he expects another 1,000 new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States , France , and Japan were prepared to evacuate their citizens from the city .
President Xi Jinping on January 25 said China was `` faced with the grave situation of an accelerating spread of the new coronavirus . ''
His remarks came amid reports that a mounting number of cities had undertaken virtual lockdowns with inbound and outbound transport being shut down .
China Association of Travel Services has told travel agencies to halt all group tours , as millions of people traveling during the holiday have helped fueled the spread @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country and elsewhere .
Most of the deaths have been among patients aged 50 or over , officials said .
The virus is part of a large family of coronaviruses .
Some cases are mild , with others causing cold- and flulike symptoms , including cough and fever .
In more severe cases , there is shortness of breath .
It can develop into pneumonia , which can be fatal .
With reporting by Reuters and AP

Chinese authorities said the ability of the new coronavirus to spread is strengthening and infections could continue to rise, with more than 2,700 people in the country infected and 80 killed by the disease.
China's Health Minister Ma Xiaowei said on January 26 that the country was entering a “crucial stage" as “it seems like the ability of the virus to spread is getting stronger."
Xiaowei said travel restrictions and other strict measures should bring results “at the lowest cost and fastest speed.”
His remarks came as the World Health Organization's director-general said late on January 26 that he was on his way to Beijing to hold talks with Chinese officials and health experts about the coronavirus outbreak.
Meanwhile, Chinese State Council Premier Li Keqiang has visited Wuhan where the mysterious virus was first reported in December and which is the epicenter of the illness. He was the most senior government official to visit the city of more than 11 million people.
The State Council, China's cabinet, said Li would meet with patients and medical staff on the front line.
Nearly 960 medial teams were dispatched from seven provinces to Wuhan, along with seven additional supervision teams, according to the National Health Commission.
Countries throughout the world continued to detect further cases of the illness in their nations.
So far, all of the deaths have been in China. But a growing number of other countries are reporting cases, including Thailand, Australia, the United States, Canada, and France.
The mayor of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, said he expects another 1,000 new patients in the city.
The United States, France, and Japan were prepared to evacuate their citizens from the city.
President Xi Jinping on January 25 said China was "faced with the grave situation of an accelerating spread of the new coronavirus."
His remarks came amid reports that a mounting number of cities had undertaken virtual lockdowns with inbound and outbound transport being shut down.
China Association of Travel Services has told travel agencies to halt all group tours, as millions of people traveling during the holiday have helped fueled the spread of the outbreak -- both inside the country and elsewhere.
Most of the deaths have been among patients aged 50 or over, officials said.
The virus is part of a large family of coronaviruses. Some cases are mild, with others causing cold- and flulike symptoms, including cough and fever. In more severe cases, there is shortness of breath. It can develop into pneumonia, which can be fatal.
With reporting by Reuters and AP


rferl--2020-01-27--Chinese Woman Charged With Manslaughter Over Deadly Fire In Russia

Authorities in the Siberian region of Tomsk have charged the head of a Chinese company over a fire that claimed @ @ @ @ @ .
The Investigative Committee said on January 27 that Sun An Ni , a woman @ @ @ @ @ Wood and holds Chinese citizenship , was detained two days earlier in the town of @ @ @ @ @ she was later charged with unintentional manslaughter – an accusation she rejected .
A January @ @ @ @ @ 's house for migrant workers in the town of Prichulymsky killed 12 people and injured @ @ @ @ @ killed were Uzbeks ; the other victim was believed to be Russian .
Based on @ @ @ @ @

Authorities in the Siberian region of Tomsk have charged the head of a Chinese company over a fire that claimed 12 lives earlier in January.
The Investigative Committee said on January 27 that Sun An Ni, a woman who heads the company Green Wood and holds Chinese citizenship, was detained two days earlier in the town of Asino.
The committee said she was later charged with unintentional manslaughter – an accusation she rejected.
A January 21 fire at Green Wood's house for migrant workers in the town of Prichulymsky killed 12 people and injured two.
Eleven of those killed were Uzbeks; the other victim was believed to be Russian.
Based on reporting by Interfax and TASS


rferl--2020-01-27--Report: Kremlin Rights Official Was Deceived While Probing Deadly Chechen Police Raids

A Russian newspaper has reported that the Kremlin ’ s main human rights advocate may have been deliberately deceived as part of her investigation into police raids in Chechnya that allegedly killed more than two dozen men .
Novaya Gazeta reported on January 27 that Tatyana Moskalkova held a meeting in Chechnya in September 2017 , as part of her investigation into the raids .
Two men she met with were identified to her as being among those who had reportedly been killed in the raids , the paper said , in what appeared to be an effort by local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ raids .
In fact , Novaya Gazeta said , the two men she met with were the siblings of two men who had allegedly been killed .
The paper said it compared social media and other photographs with official lists provided to Moskalkova ’ s office during the meeting to establish the two men were not who they said they were .
Moskalkova was investigating the police actions that took place in December 2016 and January 2017 .
Novaya Gazeta earlier reported that as many as 27 people were killed on January 26 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ raids .
In a statement issued after the newspaper ’ s latest report was published , Moskalkova ’ s office said it was investigating the report , which it called “ very serious.
” “ The commissioner contacted Novaya Gazeta and requested available materials , ” Interfax quoted her office as saying .
There was no immediate response to the report by the Kremlin , which in the past has avoided commenting on reports of rights abuses in Chechnya .
According to earlier press reports , Chechen law enforcement personnel conducted raids across @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the killing of a police officer .
Detainees were never formally arrested and no paperwork was filled out on them before they were summarily executed , Novaya Gazeta said .
The newspaper also said that an unnamed official within the Interior Ministry provided a list of victims .
The raids appeared to be separate from actions Chechen authorities took around the same time that targeted dozens of gay men in the region .
Chechnya is ruled by Ramzan Kadyrov , who was tapped by the Kremlin in 2007 to run the war-torn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even small-scale skirmishes , have all but ended .
But Kadyrov ’ s administration has been regularly accused of rampant human rights abuses , including abductions and extrajudicial killings .

A Russian newspaper has reported that the Kremlin’s main human rights advocate may have been deliberately deceived as part of her investigation into police raids in Chechnya that allegedly killed more than two dozen men.
Novaya Gazeta reported on January 27 that Tatyana Moskalkova held a meeting in Chechnya in September 2017, as part of her investigation into the raids.
Two men she met with were identified to her as being among those who had reportedly been killed in the raids, the paper said, in what appeared to be an effort by local authorities to undermine the reports about the raids.
In fact, Novaya Gazeta said, the two men she met with were the siblings of two men who had allegedly been killed.
The paper said it compared social media and other photographs with official lists provided to Moskalkova’s office during the meeting to establish the two men were not who they said they were.
Moskalkova was investigating the police actions that took place in December 2016 and January 2017. Novaya Gazeta earlier reported that as many as 27 people were killed on January 26, 2017, as part of the raids.
In a statement issued after the newspaper’s latest report was published, Moskalkova’s office said it was investigating the report, which it called “very serious.”
“The commissioner contacted Novaya Gazeta and requested available materials,” Interfax quoted her office as saying.
There was no immediate response to the report by the Kremlin, which in the past has avoided commenting on reports of rights abuses in Chechnya.
According to earlier press reports, Chechen law enforcement personnel conducted raids across the North Caucasus region in the wake of the killing of a police officer. Detainees were never formally arrested and no paperwork was filled out on them before they were summarily executed, Novaya Gazeta said.
The newspaper also said that an unnamed official within the Interior Ministry provided a list of victims.
The raids appeared to be separate from actions Chechen authorities took around the same time that targeted dozens of gay men in the region.
Chechnya is ruled by Ramzan Kadyrov, who was tapped by the Kremlin in 2007 to run the war-torn region. Outright military conflict, and even small-scale skirmishes, have all but ended. But Kadyrov’s administration has been regularly accused of rampant human rights abuses, including abductions and extrajudicial killings.


rferl--2020-01-27--Plane Carrying 83 Feared To Have Crashed In Afghanistan

KABUL – A passenger plane carrying dozens of people has crashed in Afghanistan ’ s central province of Ghazni , officials say .
There were no immediate reports of casualties .
Citing initial information , provincial Governor Wahidullah Kalimzai told RFE/RL that the aircraft belonged to Afghanistan 's national carrier Ariana Airlines and was carrying about 83 people .
In a Facebook post , the state-owned Ariana Airlines denied that one of its planes had crashed .
`` There has been an airline crash but it does not belong to Ariana because the two flights managed by Ariana today from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are safe , '' Ariana 's acting CEO , Mirwais Mirzakwal , told Reuters .
Kalimzai said the airliner came down in the Deh Yak district , a Taliban-held area southwest of Kabul .
His spokesman , Aref Nouri , earlier said that the crash took place at around 1:10 p.m. local time .
The cause is not known .
“ Our personnel are trying to reach the area .
But the area is remote , and our security forces do not have access to it , ” Nouri said .
Ghazni Province @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kush mountains .

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--2020-01-27--Iranian Airliner Skids Off Runway Into Highway; No Casualties Reported

An Iranian passenger airliner ended up on a highway after reportedly skidding off the runway during a hard landing in southwestern Iran .
None of the 135 passengers on board the Caspian Airlines flight was hurt in the January 27 incident in the southwestern city of Mahshahr , officials say .
The McDonnell Douglas jet was flying from Tehran 's Mehrabad Airport .
The semiofficial ISNA news agency quoted civil aviation spokesman Reza Jafarzadeh as saying the plane skidded off the runway at 7:50 a.m. local time .
He added that an investigation had been launched .
A state TV @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aircraft 's `` back wheel had broken off , as we saw it was left on the runway . ''
He said that the plane had been skidding with no wheels before it ground to a halt on the highway .
The state-run IRNA news agency , citing local aviation officials , said a technical issue delayed the plane 's landing , which caused the accident .
Iran has a poor aviation safety record , with U.S. sanctions preventing the country from modernizing its aging fleet .
On January 25 , an Iranian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was forced to make an emergency landing in Tehran due to a technical problem .
There were no injuries reported .
With reporting by the BBC , Reuters , and AP

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--2020-01-27--Ingushetia Leader Sacks Government For Reasons Unclear

The leader of Russia 's North Caucasus region of Ingushetia has sacked the regional government just four months after it @ @ @ @ @ I have made a decision to dismiss Ingushetia ’ s government , '' Makhmud-Ali Kalimatov @ @ @ @ @ on January 27 .
Kalimatov did not explain the reasons for his decision .
Kalimatov @ @ @ @ @ mainly Muslim-populated region on September 8 after he was elected by lawmakers .
Days later @ @ @ @ @ by Prime Minister Konstantin Surikov was formed .
Just last week , on January 22 @ @ @ @ @ as first deputy prime minister and Liana Pliyeva as acting economy minister .

The leader of Russia's North Caucasus region of Ingushetia has sacked the regional government just four months after it had been formed.
"I have made a decision to dismiss Ingushetia’s government," Makhmud-Ali Kalimatov wrote on an Instagram post on January 27.
Kalimatov did not explain the reasons for his decision.
Kalimatov took over the volatile, mainly Muslim-populated region on September 8 after he was elected by lawmakers.
Days later, a new cabinet led by Prime Minister Konstantin Surikov was formed.
Just last week, on January 22, Kalimatov appointed Vladimir Slastyonin as first deputy prime minister and Liana Pliyeva as acting economy minister.


rferl--2020-01-27--State Of Emergency Declared In Kazakh Capital Amid Winter Storm

NUR-SULTAN – Authorities in the Kazakh capital have declared a state of emergency after a winter storm pummeled the city @ @ @ @ @ snowfall .
Transportation links to and from Nur-Sultan were cut on January 27 , while @ @ @ @ @ remained closed .
The spokesman for Nur-Sultan International Airport , Zhenis Akhmetzhanov , told reporters @ @ @ @ @ for an unknown period of time for safety reasons .
Nur-Sultan 's emergencies department called @ @ @ @ @ the capital before the state of emergency is lifted .
Dozens of highways across the @ @ @ @ @ closed due to winter storms .

NUR-SULTAN – Authorities in the Kazakh capital have declared a state of emergency after a winter storm pummeled the city with strong winds and heavy snowfall.
Transportation links to and from Nur-Sultan were cut on January 27, while all schools in the capital remained closed.
The spokesman for Nur-Sultan International Airport, Zhenis Akhmetzhanov, told reporters that all flights were postponed for an unknown period of time for safety reasons.
Nur-Sultan's emergencies department called on residents not to leave the capital before the state of emergency is lifted.
Dozens of highways across the Central Asian country have been closed due to winter storms.


rferl--2020-01-27--Father Suspected Of Abandoning His Two Young Sons At Moscow Airport

Russian authorities have launched an investigation after two young brothers were left alone in Moscow 's Sheremetyevo International Airport .
The Investigative Committee says a man is suspected of leaving his two sons , born in 2011 and 2014 , completely on their own and `` in a condition of danger '' on January 26 .
The father later took a flight to the city of Rostov , a statement says .
The man is from the Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk .
He and his two sons arrived at Sheremetyevo Airport from the regional capital , also named Khabarovsk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the boys ' parents have been identified and investigators are trying to find other relatives of the two boys .
Russia media reports earlier said that the man left the boys with their IDs and a letter in which he explained he wasn ’ t able to take care of his children .
The Moscow region 's governor , Andrei Vorobyov , tweeted on January 27 that he had breakfast with the two boys .
`` We are waiting for Viktor the daddy , and we will find a job for him .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Vorobyov wrote .

Russian authorities have launched an investigation after two young brothers were left alone in Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport.
The Investigative Committee says a man is suspected of leaving his two sons, born in 2011 and 2014, completely on their own and "in a condition of danger" on January 26.
The father later took a flight to the city of Rostov, a statement says.
The man is from the Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk. He and his two sons arrived at Sheremetyevo Airport from the regional capital, also named Khabarovsk.
According to the Investigative Committee, the boys' parents have been identified and investigators are trying to find other relatives of the two boys.
Russia media reports earlier said that the man left the boys with their IDs and a letter in which he explained he wasn’t able to take care of his children.
The Moscow region's governor, Andrei Vorobyov, tweeted on January 27 that he had breakfast with the two boys.
"We are waiting for Viktor the daddy, and we will find a job for him. The kids love him very much," Vorobyov wrote.
With reporting by TASS


rferl--2020-01-27--Rockets Hit U.S. Embassy In Iraq, Wounding Three

Five rockets crashed into a riverbank near the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on January 26 , wounding three people .
Three of the projectiles hit the diplomatic installation , with one striking the embassy 's cafeteria , security sources told AFP and Reuters .
The incident on January 26 came amid anti-government protests in the capital , Baghdad , over corruption , foreign interference in Iraqi affairs , and the presence of U.S. troops in the country .
One protester was shot by Iraqi security forces , Reuters reported .
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi condemned the rocket attack @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement , Mahdi confirmed Iraq 's commitment to “ protecting all diplomatic missions.
” The same day , a U.S. State Department spokesperson called on `` the government of Iraq to fulfill its obligations to protect our diplomatic facilities . ''
It was the third such attack this month .
On January 21 , three Katyusha rockets fell near the U.S. Embassy in the heavily fortified Green Zone .
Nobody was injured .
Meanwhile , pro-Iranian demonstrators attacked the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on December 31 to condemn U.S. air strikes two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members of an Iran-backed militant group .
Iraqi security forces and guards fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd .
Days after the embassy attack , the United States killed Qasem Soleimani , the longtime head of an elite unit of Iran 's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps ( IRGC ) known as the Quds Force , in an air strike outside Baghdad on January 3 .
In response , Iran fired ballistic missiles at U.S. forces on Iraqi bases .
Based on reporting by AP , AFP , and Reuters

Five rockets crashed into a riverbank near the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on January 26, wounding three people.
Three of the projectiles hit the diplomatic installation, with one striking the embassy's cafeteria, security sources told AFP and Reuters.
The incident on January 26 came amid anti-government protests in the capital, Baghdad, over corruption, foreign interference in Iraqi affairs, and the presence of U.S. troops in the country.
One protester was shot by Iraqi security forces, Reuters reported.
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi condemned the rocket attack that targeted the U.S. Embassy.
In a statement, Mahdi confirmed Iraq's commitment to “protecting all diplomatic missions.”
The same day, a U.S. State Department spokesperson called on "the government of Iraq to fulfill its obligations to protect our diplomatic facilities."
It was the third such attack this month.
On January 21, three Katyusha rockets fell near the U.S. Embassy in the heavily fortified Green Zone. Nobody was injured.
Meanwhile, pro-Iranian demonstrators attacked the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on December 31 to condemn U.S. air strikes two days earlier that killed at least 25 members of an Iran-backed militant group.
Iraqi security forces and guards fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd.
Days after the embassy attack, the United States killed Qasem Soleimani, the longtime head of an elite unit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) known as the Quds Force, in an air strike outside Baghdad on January 3.
In response, Iran fired ballistic missiles at U.S. forces on Iraqi bases.
Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters


rferl--2020-01-27--Bulgaria Leaps Nine Spots In Annual Survey Of World's Best Countries

Bulgaria has moved up to 58th among 73 nations in a yearly survey of the world 's best countries commissioned by U.S. News & World Report magazine .
Based on 65 attributes relevant to the success of a nation assessed by more than 20,000 people around the globe , the survey found that Bulgaria scored highest in quality of life and citizenship .
Nearly 17 percent of the ranking ’ s weight went toward the extent to which a nation cares about human rights , gender equality , and the environment .
Here , Bulgaria earned 36 points .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to which a job market is robust and life is affordable and family-friendly , scoring 35 points .
“ Located in the southeastern corner of the Balkans , Bulgaria sits at the junction of Europe and Asia , ” the report summarized .
“ Its location has made it susceptible to invasions in the past , but it also has provided a rich culture -- the country is the birthplace of the Cyrillic script.
” Other Balkan nations in the ranking include Greece ( 27 ) , Turkey ( 35 ) , Croatia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) , and Serbia ( 72 ) .
Switzerland ranked first , followed by Canada and Japan .
Russia ranked 23rd , Azerbaijan 61st , Kazakhstan 66th , Ukraine 68th , and Belarus 70th .
The United states placed seventh , bolstered by the perception that it is the most powerful country in the world .
Though it scored highly for its entrepreneurship and cultural influence , the United States suffered from the sharpest drop in global trust since 2016 .
“ In 2016 the country elected Donald Trump president , ” the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and stances on issues including immigration and foreign trade have raised questions around the world , including from the country ’ s closest allies , about the nation ’ s future course on the global stage.
” The model used to score and rank countries was developed by brand strategy consultancy BAV Group and the University of Pennsylvania .
Explaining the report 's methodology , the magazine wrote : “ The 2020 Best Countries report and rankings are based on how global perception define countries in terms of a number of qualitative characteristics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drive trade , travel and investment , and directly affect national economies.
” Meanwhile , the International Monetary Fund said that Bulgaria is on track to adopt the euro currency by 2023 .
The country ’ s plans to adopt the currency by that year are “ completely foreseeable , ” IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva told Radio Bulgaria on January 26 .
Bulgaria has been a member of the European Union since 2007 .
Nineteen of the bloc ’ s 28 countries are in the eurozone .
“ My expectations are that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will happen exactly as made , ” Georgieva said .
With reporting by Reuters and Radio Bulgaria

Bulgaria has moved up to 58th among 73 nations in a yearly survey of the world's best countries commissioned by U.S. News & World Report magazine.
Based on 65 attributes relevant to the success of a nation assessed by more than 20,000 people around the globe, the survey found that Bulgaria scored highest in quality of life and citizenship.
Last year, Bulgaria ranked 67th.
Nearly 17 percent of the ranking’s weight went toward the extent to which a nation cares about human rights, gender equality, and the environment. Here, Bulgaria earned 36 points.
The Balkan nation performed best in the extent to which a job market is robust and life is affordable and family-friendly, scoring 35 points.
“Located in the southeastern corner of the Balkans, Bulgaria sits at the junction of Europe and Asia,” the report summarized. “Its location has made it susceptible to invasions in the past, but it also has provided a rich culture -- the country is the birthplace of the Cyrillic script.”
Other Balkan nations in the ranking include Greece (27), Turkey (35), Croatia (44), Romania (54), and Serbia (72).
Switzerland ranked first, followed by Canada and Japan. Russia ranked 23rd, Azerbaijan 61st, Kazakhstan 66th, Ukraine 68th, and Belarus 70th.
The United states placed seventh, bolstered by the perception that it is the most powerful country in the world. Though it scored highly for its entrepreneurship and cultural influence, the United States suffered from the sharpest drop in global trust since 2016.
“In 2016 the country elected Donald Trump president,” the report stated. “Trump's rhetoric and stances on issues including immigration and foreign trade have raised questions around the world, including from the country’s closest allies, about the nation’s future course on the global stage.”
The model used to score and rank countries was developed by brand strategy consultancy BAV Group and the University of Pennsylvania.
Explaining the report's methodology, the magazine wrote: “The 2020 Best Countries report and rankings are based on how global perception define countries in terms of a number of qualitative characteristics, impressions that have the potential to drive trade, travel and investment, and directly affect national economies.”
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund said that Bulgaria is on track to adopt the euro currency by 2023.
The country’s plans to adopt the currency by that year are “completely foreseeable,” IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva told Radio Bulgaria on January 26.
Bulgaria has been a member of the European Union since 2007. Nineteen of the bloc’s 28 countries are in the eurozone.
“My expectations are that the plans for Bulgaria’s eurozone entry will happen exactly as made,” Georgieva said.
With reporting by Reuters and Radio Bulgaria


rferl--2020-01-27--Outspoken Senior Russian Clergyman Dies Unexpectedly At 51

MOSCOW -- A high-ranking Russian clergyman known for his outspoken social and political commentary and wavering support for the government has died of unknown causes .
Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin , 51 , died on January 26 while sitting on a bench at the Church of Theodore the Studite at the Nikitsky Gate in Moscow where he was the rector , the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate told Russian media .
For years , Chaplin was a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration ’ s policies .
Lately , however , Chaplin had made critical statements targeting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ notable was his opposition to pension reform last year .
In March , he took part in a rally against the government ’ s social and economic policies .
“ They accuse us of rocking the boat , but this boat is not sailing there , ” Chaplin said then .
He also called for replacing the “ cynical ” and “ corrupt ” elites in Russia and advocated for the Orthodox Church to have decision-making power in the country .
In society , he said “ women with their defiant appearance and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He called humanism a “ satanic ideology , ” affirmed that the “ state and shrines are more important than man , ” and said that the commandment against killing only applied “ to a narrow circle of the righteous.
” Chaplin also once was quoted as saying Russia ’ s military operation in Syria was part of a “ holy war , ” and called for the need to kill Russia ’ s enemies in other countries .
Bestowing lavish gifts on the church ’ s hierarchy “ is a manifestation of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Chaplin said at a news conference in Stavropol on August 27 , 2012 .
In the Russian Orthodox Church , he rose to the position of chairman of the Synodal Department for the Interaction of the Church and Society , according to TASS .
On December 24 , 2015 , Chaplin was relieved of his post .
He had criticized the church for the growing influence of the patriarch .
Chaplin was born on March 31 , 1968 , in Moscow .
His father , Anatoly Chaplin , was a Soviet scientist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Moscow Theological Seminary and later from the Moscow Theological Academy .
Chaplin was ordained a deacon on April 21 , 1991 , and the following January was elevated to the priesthood .
He achieved the title of archpriest in 1999 .
With reporting by TASS and Interfax

MOSCOW -- A high-ranking Russian clergyman known for his outspoken social and political commentary and wavering support for the government has died of unknown causes.
Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, 51, died on January 26 while sitting on a bench at the Church of Theodore the Studite at the Nikitsky Gate in Moscow where he was the rector, the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate told Russian media.
For years, Chaplin was a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration’s policies. Lately, however, Chaplin had made critical statements targeting the country’s leadership. Most notable was his opposition to pension reform last year. In March, he took part in a rally against the government’s social and economic policies.
“They accuse us of rocking the boat, but this boat is not sailing there,” Chaplin said then.
He also called for replacing the “cynical” and “corrupt” elites in Russia and advocated for the Orthodox Church to have decision-making power in the country.
In society, he said “women with their defiant appearance and manners can provoke men to rape.”
He called humanism a “satanic ideology,” affirmed that the “state and shrines are more important than man,” and said that the commandment against killing only applied “to a narrow circle of the righteous.”
Chaplin also once was quoted as saying Russia’s military operation in Syria was part of a “holy war,” and called for the need to kill Russia’s enemies in other countries.
Bestowing lavish gifts on the church’s hierarchy “is a manifestation of love, which is completely natural,” Chaplin said at a news conference in Stavropol on August 27, 2012.
In the Russian Orthodox Church, he rose to the position of chairman of the Synodal Department for the Interaction of the Church and Society, according to TASS.
On December 24, 2015, Chaplin was relieved of his post. He had criticized the church for the growing influence of the patriarch.
Chaplin was born on March 31, 1968, in Moscow. His father, Anatoly Chaplin, was a Soviet scientist.
In 1990, he graduated from the Moscow Theological Seminary and later from the Moscow Theological Academy.
Chaplin was ordained a deacon on April 21, 1991, and the following January was elevated to the priesthood.
He achieved the title of archpriest in 1999.
With reporting by TASS and Interfax


rferl--2020-01-27--Report: Bolton Book Says Trump Tied Ukraine Aid To Probes He Sought

Former national-security adviser John Bolton has made claims in an unpublished book that U.S. President Donald Trump wanted to freeze aid to Ukraine unless it investigated his political rivals , The New York Times reports .
The January 26 report said Bolton writes in the book that Trump had told him he wanted to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in security aid to Ukraine until it helped him with investigations , including into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son .
Trump 's legal team has repeatedly insisted that the president never tied Ukraine aid to investigations .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ renewed their demand for Bolton to be called to testify in Trump ’ s impeachment trial in the Senate .
The president faces one charge of abuse of power and another on obstruction of Congress over his alleged efforts to prod Ukraine to investigate his political rivals while withholding $ 391 million in military assistance to Kyiv .
The trial will resume in the Senate later on January 27 .
Trump denied the claim in a series of tweets early on January 27 , saying : “ I NEVER told John Bolton that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ investigations into Democrats , including the Bidens . ''
“ In fact , he never complained about this at the time of his very public termination .
If John Bolton said this , it was only to sell a book , ” he added .
The document has been sent to the White House for prepublication review , a standard practice for some current and former administration officials who write books .
Bolton left the White House a day before Trump ultimately released the aid to Kyiv on September 11 and has told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ despite the president ’ s order barring aides from cooperating in the proceedings .
A July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is at the center of the trial .
A rough transcript of the conversation revealed that the U.S. president had urged his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate Biden , who is seen as a potential opponent in this year 's presidential election in November .
His son Hunter Biden was a paid board member of a Ukrainian energy firm when he served as vice president .
Critics say @ @ @ @ @ @ @ withheld as leverage .
“ John Bolton has the evidence , ” tweeted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ( Democrat-New York ) .
“ It ’ s up to four Senate Republicans to ensure that John Bolton , [ acting White House chief of staff ] Mick Mulvaney , and the others with direct knowledge of Trump ’ s actions testify in the Senate trial.
” The Democrats need at least four Republicans to vote with them to seek witness testimony in the trial .
However , the legislative chamber is controlled by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has not confirmed the contents of the draft of Bolton ’ s book .
He left his post after disagreements with the president .
Trump said he fired him .
Bolton said he resigned .
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have charged Trump with abuse of office and obstruction of Congress .
A trial is under way in the Senate to decide whether to convict and remove the president from office .
The chamber ’ s 100 senators are the jurors in the trial .
Trump has denied wrongdoing and has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hunt.
” Day seven of the impeachment trial begins on January 27 with Trump ’ s defense team expected to continue presenting opening arguments .
Other legislative work is possible as well .
With reporting by The New York Times , AP , C-SPAN , The Hill , and Reuters

Former national-security adviser John Bolton has made claims in an unpublished book that U.S. President Donald Trump wanted to freeze aid to Ukraine unless it investigated his political rivals, The New York Times reports.
The January 26 report said Bolton writes in the book that Trump had told him he wanted to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in security aid to Ukraine until it helped him with investigations, including into former Vice President Joe Biden and his son.
Trump's legal team has repeatedly insisted that the president never tied Ukraine aid to investigations.
After the report went online, Democrats renewed their demand for Bolton to be called to testify in Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate. The president faces one charge of abuse of power and another on obstruction of Congress over his alleged efforts to prod Ukraine to investigate his political rivals while withholding $391 million in military assistance to Kyiv.
The trial will resume in the Senate later on January 27.
Trump denied the claim in a series of tweets early on January 27, saying: “I NEVER told John Bolton that the aid to Ukraine was tied to investigations into Democrats, including the Bidens."
“In fact, he never complained about this at the time of his very public termination. If John Bolton said this, it was only to sell a book,” he added.
The document has been sent to the White House for prepublication review, a standard practice for some current and former administration officials who write books.
Bolton left the White House a day before Trump ultimately released the aid to Kyiv on September 11 and has told lawmakers he is willing to testify, despite the president’s order barring aides from cooperating in the proceedings.
A July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is at the center of the trial. A rough transcript of the conversation revealed that the U.S. president had urged his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate Biden, who is seen as a potential opponent in this year's presidential election in November. His son Hunter Biden was a paid board member of a Ukrainian energy firm when he served as vice president.
Critics say the crucial military aid to Kyiv was withheld as leverage.
“John Bolton has the evidence,” tweeted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (Democrat-New York). “It’s up to four Senate Republicans to ensure that John Bolton, [acting White House chief of staff] Mick Mulvaney, and the others with direct knowledge of Trump’s actions testify in the Senate trial.”
The Democrats need at least four Republicans to vote with them to seek witness testimony in the trial. However, the legislative chamber is controlled by Trump’s fellow Republicans.
RFE/RL has not confirmed the contents of the draft of Bolton’s book.
He left his post after disagreements with the president. Trump said he fired him. Bolton said he resigned.
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have charged Trump with abuse of office and obstruction of Congress. A trial is under way in the Senate to decide whether to convict and remove the president from office. The chamber’s 100 senators are the jurors in the trial.
Trump has denied wrongdoing and has called the impeachment proceedings a “witch hunt.”
Day seven of the impeachment trial begins on January 27 with Trump’s defense team expected to continue presenting opening arguments. Other legislative work is possible as well.
With reporting by The New York Times, AP, C-SPAN, The Hill, and Reuters


rferl--2020-01-27--Ukraine’s Zelenskiy Commemorates Auschwitz Anniversary With Survivors

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was an honor for him to meet with Holocaust survivors , telling them on the eve of the 75th anniversary of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp 's liberation that they are a living testament to the strength of humanity .
“ Probably , humanity has not yet come up with the words that could describe the indestructability and strength of your spirit , ” he said at a dinner on January 26 with Holocaust survivors and their families in Krakow , Poland , organized by the World Jewish Congress .
During his short speech , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the importance of protecting humanitarian values .
“ Most of these memories have a common call : ‘ Don ’ t be silent !
’ The younger generation must know these stories , know about the horrors of the Holocaust in order to never allow anything like this on the planet again , ” he said , receiving a standing ovation for his words .
Speaking through an interpreter , the Ukrainian president added : “ You are strong and incredibly courageous .
The Holocaust is named the dark period in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rays of sunshine that penetrated the darkness.
” On January 27 , Zelenskiy is set to join more than 200 survivors and delegations from nearly 60 countries at the site of the former concentration camp where 1.1 million people were murdered , most of whom were Jews .
Himself of Jewish heritage , Zelenskiy has said he had family members who perished in the Holocaust .
“ Hatred needs to be done away with .
It needs to be uprooted .
We need to get rid of hatred because this is the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ civilization , ” Zelenskiy said .
`` We must stop evil before it actually threatens humanity.
” He also paid tribute to the Ukrainians who risked their own lives to save Jews , calling them a source of pride .
About 10 percent of the 27,362 Righteous Among The Nations were Ukrainian gentiles , according to the World Holocaust Remembrance Center .
“ I am proud that more than 2,500 Ukrainians have been honored with this high title , ” the Ukrainian president said .
Zelenskiy ’ s speech came amid concerns over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ November 2019 survey by the U.S.-based Anti-Defamation League found that about one in four Europeans harbor `` pernicious and pervasive '' attitudes towards Jews , compared with 19 percent of North Americans .
In Germany , 42 percent agreed that `` Jews still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust , ” the survey findings said .
Zelenskiy also is scheduled to meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda during the visit .
With reporting by AP and Reuters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was an honor for him to meet with Holocaust survivors, telling them on the eve of the 75th anniversary of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp's liberation that they are a living testament to the strength of humanity.
“Probably, humanity has not yet come up with the words that could describe the indestructability and strength of your spirit,” he said at a dinner on January 26 with Holocaust survivors and their families in Krakow, Poland, organized by the World Jewish Congress.
During his short speech, Zelenskiy denounced anti-Semitism and racism while speaking of the importance of protecting humanitarian values.
“Most of these memories have a common call: ‘Don’t be silent!’ The younger generation must know these stories, know about the horrors of the Holocaust in order to never allow anything like this on the planet again,” he said, receiving a standing ovation for his words.
Speaking through an interpreter, the Ukrainian president added: “You are strong and incredibly courageous. The Holocaust is named the dark period in the history of humanity. And you are the rays of sunshine that penetrated the darkness.”
On January 27, Zelenskiy is set to join more than 200 survivors and delegations from nearly 60 countries at the site of the former concentration camp where 1.1 million people were murdered, most of whom were Jews.
Himself of Jewish heritage, Zelenskiy has said he had family members who perished in the Holocaust.
“Hatred needs to be done away with. It needs to be uprooted. We need to get rid of hatred because this is the single greatest power that is ruining our civilization,” Zelenskiy said. "We must stop evil before it actually threatens humanity.”
He also paid tribute to the Ukrainians who risked their own lives to save Jews, calling them a source of pride.
About 10 percent of the 27,362 Righteous Among The Nations were Ukrainian gentiles, according to the World Holocaust Remembrance Center.
“I am proud that more than 2,500 Ukrainians have been honored with this high title,” the Ukrainian president said.
Zelenskiy’s speech came amid concerns over a global resurgence in anti-Semitism.
A November 2019 survey by the U.S.-based Anti-Defamation League found that about one in four Europeans harbor "pernicious and pervasive" attitudes towards Jews, compared with 19 percent of North Americans.
In Germany, 42 percent agreed that "Jews still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust,” the survey findings said.
Zelenskiy also is scheduled to meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda during the visit.
With reporting by AP and Reuters


rferl--2020-01-26--Virus Death Toll In China Rises To 80 As Authorities Warn Disease Is 'Getting Stronger'

Chinese authorities said the ability of the new coronavirus to spread is strengthening and infections could continue to rise , with more than 2,700 people in the country infected and 80 killed by the disease .
China 's Health Minister Ma Xiaowei said on January 26 that the country was entering a “ crucial stage '' as “ it seems like the ability of the virus to spread is getting stronger . ''
Xiaowei said travel restrictions and other strict measures should bring results “ at the lowest cost and fastest speed.
” His remarks came as the World Health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 26 that he was on his way to Beijing to hold talks with Chinese officials and health experts about the coronavirus outbreak .
Meanwhile , Chinese State Council Premier Li Keqiang has visited Wuhan where the mysterious virus was first reported in December and which is the epicenter of the illness .
He was the most senior government official to visit the city of more than 11 million people .
The State Council , China 's cabinet , said Li would meet with patients and medical staff on the front line .
Nearly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ provinces to Wuhan , along with seven additional supervision teams , according to the National Health Commission .
Countries throughout the world continued to detect further cases of the illness in their nations .
So far , all of the deaths have been in China .
But a growing number of other countries are reporting cases , including Thailand , Australia , the United States , Canada , and France .
The mayor of Wuhan , the epicenter of the outbreak , said he expects another 1,000 new patients in the city .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Japan were prepared to evacuate their citizens from the city .
President Xi Jinping on January 25 said China was `` faced with the grave situation of an accelerating spread of the new coronavirus . ''
His remarks came amid reports that a mounting number of cities had undertaken virtual lockdowns with inbound and outbound transport being shut down .
China Association of Travel Services has told travel agencies to halt all group tours , as millions of people traveling during the holiday have helped fueled the spread of the outbreak -- both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the deaths have been among patients aged 50 or over , officials said .
The virus is part of a large family of coronaviruses .
Some cases are mild , with others causing cold- and flulike symptoms , including cough and fever .
In more severe cases , there is shortness of breath .
It can develop into pneumonia , which can be fatal .
With reporting by Reuters and AP


rferl--2020-01-27--Ukraine’s Richest Billionaire Akhmetov Buys $221 Million French Riviera Estate

Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov has bought a lavish , 14-bedroom mansion for 200 million euros ( $ 221 million ) in the French Riviera town of Saint-Jean Cap-Ferrat , the Financial Times ( FT ) reported on January 27 .
The seller of the nearly 200-year-old home in the south of France , Italy-based beverage company Campari Group , had announced an agreement to sell it to an unnamed buyer in August .
The acquisition of the 19th-century Palladian mansion and botanical gardens adds to Akhmetov ’ s growing real estate portfolio , which includes a penthouse in the natty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Park purchased for a then-record $ 221 million in 2011 .
It also marks the latest example of the uber-rich parking their money into real estate .
Akhmetov , 53 , is Ukraine ’ s wealthiest person whose net worth is an estimated $ 6.7 billion by Forbes .
A native of the eastern Donetsk region , Akhmetov accumulated his wealth in metals and mining and owns a sprawling business empire that includes coal mines in the United States , and energy , engineering , finance , media , and retail companies in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Donetsk soccer team , another hobby of the ultra-wealthy .
He was still based in Donetsk -- Ukraine ’ s industrial heartland -- when Russian-backed forces started fighting the Ukrainian army there in April 2014 in a war that has killed more than 13,000 people .
FT cited a statement it obtained from Akhmetov ’ s System Capital Management ( SCM ) announcing the latest property purchase .
“ SCM Holdings Limited investment company announces the acquisition of a real estate asset , Volla ‘ Les Cedres ( France ) , from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as quoted by FT .
The Italian beverage maker acquired the 18,000-square-foot mansion in 2016 as part of a deal when it bought Societe des Produits Marnier Lapostolle , the maker of the noted orange liqueur Grand Marnier .
Campari immediately put the estate on the market with an asking price of 350 million euros , making it the most expensive abode in the world at the time .
It was built in 1830 and once belonged to Belgian King Leopold II .
The purveyors of Grand Marnier bought it in the 1920s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on 14 hectares of land and has a vast botanical garden .
With reporting by Bloomberg , Forbes , Financial Times , Variety , and Mansion Global

Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov has bought a lavish, 14-bedroom mansion for 200 million euros ($221 million) in the French Riviera town of Saint-Jean Cap-Ferrat, the Financial Times (FT) reported on January 27.
The seller of the nearly 200-year-old home in the south of France, Italy-based beverage company Campari Group, had announced an agreement to sell it to an unnamed buyer in August.
The acquisition of the 19th-century Palladian mansion and botanical gardens adds to Akhmetov’s growing real-estate portfolio, which includes a penthouse in the upscale Knightsbridge neighborhood of London at One Hyde Park purchased for a then-record $221 million in 2011.
Akhmetov, 53, is Ukraine’s wealthiest person whose net worth is an estimated $6.7 billion by Forbes.
A native of the eastern Donetsk region, Akhmetov accumulated his wealth in metals and mining and owns a sprawling business empire that includes coal mines in the United States, and energy, engineering, finance, media, and retail companies in Ukraine. He also owns the Shakhtar Donetsk soccer team.
He was still based in Donetsk -- Ukraine’s industrial heartland -- when Russian-backed forces started fighting the Ukrainian Army there in April 2014 in a war that has killed more than 13,000 people.
FT cited a statement it obtained from Akhmetov’s System Capital Management (SCM) announcing the latest property purchase.
“SCM Holdings Limited investment company announces the acquisition of a real-estate asset, Volla ‘Les Cedres (France), from the Campari Group,” the statement read as quoted by FT.
The Italian beverage maker acquired the 18,000-square-foot mansion in 2016 as part of a deal when it bought Societe des Produits Marnier Lapostolle, the maker of the orange liqueur Grand Marnier.
Campari immediately put the estate on the market with an asking price of 350 million euros, making it the most expensive abode in the world at the time.
It was built in 1830 and once belonged to Belgian King Leopold II. The purveyors of Grand Marnier bought it in the 1920s, according to Bloomberg.
It stands on 14 hectares of land and has a vast botanical garden.
With reporting by Bloomberg, Forbes, Financial Times, Variety, and Mansion Global


rferl--2020-01-27--North Macedonia Announces Urgent Measures Due To Severe Pollution

North Macedonia ’ s government says it 's imposing urgent measures in the country ’ s capital , Skopje , and the western city of Tetovo in order to shield inhabitants from dangerously high levels of air pollution .
Authorities said January 27 that the levels of toxic particles in the air were about 11 times higher than the safe levels on two consecutive days , representing a health hazard .
North Macedonia has been for years one of Europe 's most polluted countries .
Health authorities estimate that more than 3,000 people die each year as result of air @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the heavy use of household wood-burning stoves during cold winters , old cars , and the practice in some areas of garbage disposal by incineration .
The government has recommended that companies allow pregnant women and persons over the age of 60 to not work , for construction companies to cut down on outdoor work and for sport and other outdoor activities to be banned on days of high pollution .
Authorities said officials would reduce the use of vehicles by half , and ordered the health and welfare ministries to provide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emergency services and home visits to people with chronic illnesses .
The measures will take effect from January 28 .

North Macedonia’s government says it's imposing urgent measures in the country’s capital, Skopje, and the western city of Tetovo in order to shield inhabitants from dangerously high levels of air pollution.
Authorities said on January 27 that the levels of toxic particles in the air were about 11 times higher than the safe levels on two consecutive days, representing a health hazard.
North Macedonia has been for years one of Europe's most polluted countries. Health authorities estimate that more than 3,000 people die each year as result of air pollution, which is mostly a consequence of the heavy use of household wood-burning stoves during cold winters, old cars, and the practice in some areas of garbage disposal by incineration.
The government has recommended that companies allow pregnant women and persons over the age of 60 to not work, for construction companies to cut down on outdoor work, and for sport and other outdoor activities to be banned on days of high pollution.
Authorities said officials would reduce the use of vehicles by half, and ordered the Health and Welfare ministries to provide shelter for homeless people and to increase emergency services and home visits to people with chronic illnesses.
The measures will take effect from January 28.
With reporting by AP


rferl--2020-01-27--Former Imprisoned Ukrainian Film Director To Address U.S. Officials On Crimea

WASHINGTON -- Oleh Sentsov , the Ukrainian film director who was held in Russian prisons for more than five years , will be meeting with officials on Capitol Hill this week as he seeks to persuade the United States to take a tougher stance on human rights abuses in Crimea and the militarization of the peninsula .
Sentsov , who was freed by Russia in a prisoner swap with Ukraine in September , will meet with State Department officials , members of Congress and attend a meeting of the U.S. Helsinki Commission , he said at a briefing at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He will be joined by other Ukrainian human rights activists .
The 43-year old said Russia continues to hold hundreds of political prisoners in occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine as well as in Russia itself , with many kept in inhumane conditions and subject to torture .
He is hoping U.S. pressure will help get them released .
“ They are not receiving normal food , they are not receiving medical attention .
It is really an underground pit , ” he said of the prisoners .
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pro-Kremlin president , Viktor Yanukovych , and backed separatists in the Ukraine ’ s eastern provinces , setting off a war that has killed more than 13,000 since April of that year .
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy , who was swept to power last year amid promises to end the war , won the release of 35 Ukrainian political prisoners including Sentsov in September and then another 76 from separatist-controlled regions in December as part of a swap with Russia .
Zelenskiy has promised a third swap to free political prisoners held in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been given .
Russia still holds 96 political prisoners , most of whom were detained in Crimea , including 69 Crimean Tatars , according to Ukrainian NGOs .
Anywhere from 101 to 184 are still held in the separatist-controlled regions , according to NGOs and the Ukrainian government .
The freeing of Crimean prisoners may prove more difficult because those individuals are now considered Russian citizens following the annexation , said Andriy Kurkov , president of Pen Ukraine Center , an NGO that seeks to protect freedom of speech .
Moreover , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known , making it difficult to round up international support , he said .
“ There are no well highlighted cases of Crimean Tatars .
They don ’ t have celebrity prisoners among them .
If some cases could be highlighted in the [ United ] States and become almost symbolic representatives of this group , it would be much easier for the Ukrainian government to talk about possible exchange of Crimean Tatars , ” he said .
Tamila Tasheva , the coordinator of CrimeaSOS organization , said the situation in Crimea has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world focuses on the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine to settle the fighting in eastern Ukraine .
“ We don ’ t have a communications platform for Crimea .
We don ’ t have many countries that support Crimean projects ” such as supporting local NGOs , she said .
“ It is a problem.
” Sentsov , a 2018 Sakharov prize laureate , is now trying to use his international recognition to help draw more U.S. and global attention to the situation in Crimea .
Russia agreed to release prisoners @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ukrainian activists said .
The filmmaker and his fellow activists traveled to the UN headquarters in New York on January 24 to discuss developments on the peninsula with diplomats from various countries .
Following his meetings in Washington , Sentsov will give a speech in Utah at the Sundance Film Festival , the largest independent film festival in the United States .
The United States can maintain that pressure on Russia to release the Crimean prisoners by imposing sanctions and using its global influence , said Voldoymyr Yelchenko , Ukraine ’ s new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ countries in Latin America , Africa , and Asia are “ quite indifferent ” to the Crimean issue and see it as a problem that Russia and Ukraine must solve on their own , Yelchenko said .
“ But we understand that without more sanctions and international pressure it will never be resolved , ” he said .
The activists will ask officials to impose sanctions on officials in Russia and Crimea responsible for human rights abuses on the peninsula and raise concerns about the growing Russian military presence on the island , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Crimea is gradually turning into a huge military base .
What for ?
What is Russia preparing for , ” Yelchenko said .
They will also ask the State Department to nominate another envoy to Ukraine after Kurt Volker stepped down in September amid the House of Representatives ' impeachment investigation into President Donald Trump , said Maria Tomak , co-founder of the Ukrainian NGO Media Initiative for Human Rights .
The activists ’ trip to Washington comes just days after National Public Radio reported that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insinuated that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Yelchenko said he wasn ’ t going to rush to judge Pompeo ’ s statement .
“ Officially , we know quite well that Ukraine has very strong bipartisan support ” in Congress as well as “ strong support ” in the State Deparment , ” he said .
Yelchenko will meet with Pompeo later this week in Kyiv as he makes his first official visit to Ukraine since becoming the nation ’ s top diplomat in 2018 .

WASHINGTON -- Oleh Sentsov, the Ukrainian film director who was held in Russian prisons for more than five years, will be meeting with officials on Capitol Hill this week as he seeks to persuade the United States to take a tougher stance on human rights abuses in Crimea and the militarization of the peninsula.
Sentsov, who was freed by Russia in a prisoner swap with Ukraine in September, will meet with State Department officials, members of Congress and attend a meeting of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, he said at a briefing at the Ukraine Embassy in Washington on January 27. He will be joined by other Ukrainian human rights activists.
The 43-year old said Russia continues to hold hundreds of political prisoners in occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine as well as in Russia itself, with many kept in inhumane conditions and subject to torture. He is hoping U.S. pressure will help get them released.
“They are not receiving normal food, they are not receiving medical attention. It is really an underground pit,” he said of the prisoners.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 following the ouster of Ukraine’s pro-Kremlin president, Viktor Yanukovych, and backed separatists in the Ukraine’s eastern provinces, setting off a war that has killed more than 13,000 since April of that year.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was swept to power last year amid promises to end the war, won the release of 35 Ukrainian political prisoners including Sentsov in September and then another 76 from separatist-controlled regions in December as part of a swap with Russia.
Zelenskiy has promised a third swap to free political prisoners held in Crimea, though no time frame has been given.
Russia still holds 96 political prisoners, most of whom were detained in Crimea, including 69 Crimean Tatars, according to Ukrainian NGOs. Anywhere from 101 to 184 are still held in the separatist-controlled regions, according to NGOs and the Ukrainian government.
The freeing of Crimean prisoners may prove more difficult because those individuals are now considered Russian citizens following the annexation, said Andriy Kurkov, president of Pen Ukraine Center, an NGO that seeks to protect freedom of speech.
Moreover, the prisoners held in Crimea are not well known, making it difficult to round up international support, he said.
“There are no well highlighted cases of Crimean Tatars. They don’t have celebrity prisoners among them. If some cases could be highlighted in the [United] States and become almost symbolic representatives of this group, it would be much easier for the Ukrainian government to talk about possible exchange of Crimean Tatars,” he said.
Tamila Tasheva, the coordinator of CrimeaSOS organization, said the situation in Crimea has fallen off the international radar screen as the world focuses on the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine to settle the fighting in eastern Ukraine.
“We don’t have a communications platform for Crimea. We don’t have many countries that support Crimean projects” such as supporting local NGOs, she said. “It is a problem.”
Sentsov, a 2018 Sakharov prize laureate, is now trying to use his international recognition to help draw more U.S. and global attention to the situation in Crimea.
Russia agreed to release prisoners last year amid international pressure, the Ukrainian activists said.
The filmmaker and his fellow activists traveled to the UN headquarters in New York on January 24 to discuss developments on the peninsula with diplomats from various countries.
Following his meetings in Washington, Sentsov will give a speech in Utah at the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the United States.
The United States can maintain that pressure on Russia to release the Crimean prisoners by imposing sanctions and using its global influence, said Voldoymyr Yelchenko, Ukraine’s new ambassador to the United States.
Most countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia are “quite indifferent” to the Crimean issue and see it as a problem that Russia and Ukraine must solve on their own, Yelchenko said.
“But we understand that without more sanctions and international pressure it will never be resolved,” he said.
The activists will ask officials to impose sanctions on officials in Russia and Crimea responsible for human rights abuses on the peninsula and raise concerns about the growing Russian military presence on the island, the ambassador and activists said.
“Crimea is gradually turning into a huge military base. What for? What is Russia preparing for,” Yelchenko said.
They will also ask the State Department to nominate another envoy to Ukraine after Kurt Volker stepped down in September amid the House of Representatives' impeachment investigation into President Donald Trump, said Maria Tomak, co-founder of the Ukrainian NGO Media Initiative for Human Rights.
The activists’ trip to Washington comes just days after National Public Radio reported that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insinuated that Americans don’t care about Ukraine.
Yelchenko said he wasn’t going to rush to judge Pompeo’s statement.
“Officially, we know quite well that Ukraine has very strong bipartisan support” in Congress as well as “strong support” in the State Deparment,” he said.
Yelchenko will meet with Pompeo later this week in Kyiv as he makes his first official visit to Ukraine since becoming the nation’s top diplomat in 2018.


rferl--2020-01-27--Kosovo, Serbia Make 'Good Progress' In Working Out Railway Deal Details

Kosovo and Serbia have made progress in working out the details of a deal on restoring railway traffic between their capitals , according to the special U.S. envoy to the Balkan nations , a week after the former war foes reached an agreement to resume commercial flights .
“ We made good progress this morning on issuing a Letter of Intent on railway cooperation , ” Richard Grenell said after a meeting between the Serbian and Kosovar delegations on January 27 .
“ The discussions went well enough that we also discussed other issues , ” he said in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as U.S. ambassador to Germany , hosted the talks at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin .
He has conducted separate meetings with officials in Belgrade and Pristina in recent days to discuss the railway agreement .
The statement comes after Grenell on January 20 mediated the signing of an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia on the resumption of commercial flights between their capitals that were broken two decades ago when the 1998-99 Kosovo conflict escalated .
Kosovo ’ s outgoing Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj hailed the agreements as “ positive signs ” and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to repair its railway system , which is in “ a miserable situation.
” Relations between Pristina and Belgrade have remained strained after the Kosovo war that claimed more than 10,000 lives and left over 1 million people homeless .
Serbia continues to consider its former province part of its territory .
Kosovo 's independence , declared in 2008 , has been recognized by about 100 countries , including the United States .
Talks on normalizing diplomatic relations were derailed in November 2018 by Pristina 's imposition of 100-percent tariffs on Serbian goods @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continued lobbying for countries to reverse their recognition of Kosovo .
During his visits to Pristina and Belgrade this month , Grenell urged the two neighbors to overcome their differences and to focus on economic development .

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.