Putin Recognizes ‘Independence’ of Two More Ukrainian Regions, Ahead of Annexation

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed decrees recognizing two Russian-occupied regions in southern Ukraine – Zaporizhzhia and Kherson – as “independent” states, following controversial referendums there on joining the Russian Federation.  Read

US Candidate Beats Russian in Contest to Lead Key Global Information-Communications Agency

In a diplomatic setback for Moscow, an election in Europe on Thursday saw a U.S.-backed candidate decisively beat a rival nominated by Russia to head an obscure but vital U.N. agency that oversees telecommunications infrastructure around the globe.  Read

US Confirms Death of American As Iran Fires Rockets Into Iraq

The State Department confirmed on Thursday that a U.S. citizen had been killed by an Iranian rocket in Iraqi Kurdistan, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that at least 73 of its ballistic missiles had hit Iranian-Kurdish “terrorist” targets in the area. Read

State Department: 'Preposterous' for Russia to Blame US for Pipeline Sabotage

 The Biden administration on Wednesday dismissed as “Russian disinformation” suggestions that the United States was behind the apparent sabotage of two major Russia-to-Europe natural gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea.  Read

‘Apparent Sabotage’: Nordic States Probe Russia-to-Europe Pipeline Leaks After Seabed Explosions

 Seismic monitors in Sweden said Tuesday they had detected two explosions under the Baltic Sea a day earlier, and operators of key Russia-to-Europe natural gas pipelines reported gas leaks leading to “significant pressure drop.”  Read

US Challenges Security Council Members to Take a Stand Against Russia’s ‘Sham’ Referendums

 As voting on joining Russia drew to a close in four Russian-held Ukrainian regions on Tuesday, the U.S. moved to introduce a U.N. Security Council resolution urging governments of the world not to recognize any attempt to further alter the status of Ukraine’s sovereign territory.  Read

Democracies Seek Unprecedented Human Rights Council Scrutiny of China

For the first time in the 16 years of its existence, the U.N. Human Rights Council is being asked to hold a debate on allegations of human rights abuses committed by China, one of its most powerful and influential members.  Read

Anti-Regime Protests Spread in Iran, As Regime Blames Unrest on Outside Agitators

 Pro-regime Iranians took to the streets of Tehran on Sunday in a show of support for the established order amid the largest anti-government protests in years, which according to some reports have spread to scores of towns and cities in all 31 of Iran’s provinces.  Read

Amid Protests in Iran, National Security Advisor Defends Ongoing Push for Nuclear Deal

 National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Sunday defended the administration’s continuing quest to revive the Iran nuclear deal, arguing that it was committed to doing so and at the same time stand up for the Iranian people protesting against the regime.  Read

High Turnout Reported in Referendums Being Staged in Russian-Occupied Regions of Ukraine

“Election officials” in Russian-held parts of southern and eastern Ukraine on Sunday reported high turnouts in referendums on joining the Russian Federation, as a five-day process which Western governments warned would be a “sham” continued.  Read

As UNSC Meets on Ukraine, Russia’s Foreign Minister Doesn't Listen, Walks Out After Slamming Attempts to 'Weaken Russia'

U.N. Security Council foreign ministers on Thursday roundly condemned the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, but their Russian colleague, in an apparent show of contempt, entered the chamber just in time to deliver a statement, before walking out again. Read

As Iran Protests Spread, Amanpour’s Refusal to Wear Headscarf Torpedoes CNN Interview With Raisi

 An arranged interview in New York with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was called off Thursday after his minders set as a condition that CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour wear a headscarf.  Read

Amid Frustrations Over Russia’s War, Biden Calls for a ‘More Inclusive’ UN Security Council

President Biden said on Wednesday the U.S. supports increasing the number of U.N. Security Council permanent seats to include “nations we’ve long supported” as well as additional permanent members from Africa and the Latin America-Caribbean region.  Read

Biden Voices Support For Iranian Protesters, But Republicans Criticize His Push for a Nuclear Deal

President Biden in his speech at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday expressed support for Iranians protesting against the regime, but congressional Republicans are criticizing him for continuing to pursue a nuclear deal with Tehran despite its malign behavior at home and abroad.  Read

Biden Seeks to Rally Leaders Against Russia; Putin Touts ‘Radical Transformation’ of Global System

As President Biden prepares to rally world leaders against Russia in an address to the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin – who will not be in New York this year – told foreign diplomats in Moscow that time was running short for “those who are trying to preserve their dominant role in international affairs.”  Read

Secret Service Raises Eyebrows by Tweeting Out a Photo of Agents Protecting Iranian President

 The U.S. Secret Service is charged with helping to protect foreign dignitaries taking part in the U.N. General Assembly high-level week in New York, but a decision by the agency to tweet out a photo featuring Iran’s U.S.-sanctioned president – whose attendance is highly controversial – attracted some criticism on Tuesday.  Read

In New York, Iran’s President Speaks Out Against ‘Hegemony’ as Anti-Regime Protests Spread at Home

The U.S.-sanctioned president of the Iranian regime, implicated in mass extrajudicial executions in the late 1980s, has arrived in New York, to the dismay of Iranian dissidents and Republican lawmakers who had urged the administration to deny him a visa.  Read

Biden: ‘I Did Not Take Lightly’ Decision to Free Taliban-Linked Drug Lord for American Hostage

A deal with the Taliban that secured the release of an American hostage in exchange for a convicted Taliban-associated heroin trafficker “required difficult decisions, which I did not take lightly,” President Biden said on Monday.  Read

An American and a Russian Vie for Leadership of Crucial UN Telecomm Agency

A secret ballot election in ten days’ time will decide whether an American or a Russian will take the helm of a little-known but crucial U.N. agency, whose work in the fast-advancing field of communications, from broadband to satellite orbits, touches billions of lives every day.  Read

Ukraine Gains: Milley Calls For ‘High States of Readiness’; Putin Warns of ‘More Impactful’ Response

Two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled that his forces could respond in a “more impactful” way to Ukraine’s counteroffensive strikes, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley on Sunday stressed the importance of maintaining “high states of readiness” in light of Russian setbacks in the conflict.  Read

Unprecedented Security Operation in Place for Funeral That Much of the World May Watch

One of the biggest funerals in history is underway in London on Monday, a security challenge described by Scotland Yard as “the largest single policing event that the Met Police has ever undertaken.”  Read

‘Deeply Immoral’: Russia Criticizes Refusal to Invite Putin to Queen’s State Funeral

Russia’s foreign ministry has confirmed – and condemned – Britain’s decision not to invite President Vladimir Putin or any other Russian representative to attend the state funeral for Queen Elizabeth II.  Read

Putin: Russia and China Back a ‘Multipolar’ World, Not One Based On ‘Rules That Someone Has Invented’

Russia and China stand for the building of a fair, multipolar world order based on international law, “not on some rules that someone has invented and is attempting to impose on others,” President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart on Thursday.  Read

Senate Panel Advances Far-Reaching Taiwan Bill; Administration Voices ‘Some Concern’

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday approved sweeping bipartisan legislation to strengthen U.S. support for Taiwan, with a pushback from some members reflecting concerns about provoking China that are evidently shared by the administration.  Read

‘Make Sweden Good Again’: Center-Right Bloc Narrowly Wins Election in Liberal Nordic Democracy

Eight years of left-leaning rule has come to an end in Sweden, with voters handing a slim majority to a center-right bloc boosted by concerns about immigration and crime in what has long been one of Europe’s most liberal democracies.  Read

‘Cautious Optimism’: Palestinian Leader Abbas Will Push for Full UN Membership

 Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas is preparing to make what may be his last annual speech at the U.N. General Assembly next week, as P.A. officials express “cautious optimism” that a new initiative to win full U.N. membership for the “State of Palestine” may succeed.  Read

Russia’s Medvedev Responds to Ukraine Security Proposals by Invoking Biblical Apocalypse

The Ukrainian government on Tuesday released a set of proposals designed to prevent Russia from ever again invading the country, prompting a leading Putin ally to warn that Western support for Kyiv will lead to an apocalypse of biblical proportions.  Read

Xi’s First Trip Abroad in Two Years Includes Meeting With Putin, Summit of Growing Eurasian Bloc

Beijing confirmed on Monday that President Xi Jinping will travel abroad this week for the first time in more than two years, to attend a summit of a growing Eurasian association viewed by some of its member-states as a rising counterweight to Western blocs like NATO.  Read

Refugee Admissions (Excluding Afghans) Fall Well Short of Biden’s Three-Decade-High Ceiling

As Fiscal Year 2022 draws to a close, the Biden administration is proposing a 125,000-person ceiling on refugee admissions for the new fiscal year – the same cap it set last year, although actual admissions have fallen well short of that.  Read

Ukraine Backers Hail Battlefield Wins; One Mentions ‘Unconditional Surrender’ by Putin

 Two hundred days after Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his forces into Ukraine, a series of striking counteroffensive successes has stunned observers, prompting one of Kyiv’s most outspoken supporters in Europe to raise the improbable prospect of an “unconditional [Russian] surrender.”  Read

Charles, Long an Advocate of Interfaith Dialogue, Proclaimed King and ‘Defender of The Faith’

Britain’s King Charles III was formally proclaimed king and “Defender of The Faith” in a weekend ceremony, and in his first speech affirmed his “particular relationship and responsibility towards the Church of England,” even as he pledged to serve the citizens of Britain and its realms, “whatever may be your background or beliefs.”  Read

9/11 Remembered: The Morning Queen Elizabeth’s Guards Played The Star-Spangled Banner

As many around the world mark the death of Queen Elizabeth, Sunday’s 21st anniversary of 9/11 provided a reminder of her response to the terrorist attack on America, including a break in centuries-old tradition and words of condolence that touched many on both sides of the Atlantic.  Read

Blinken Slams Putin’s ‘Threats’ to Limit Ukraine Grain Shipments

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “threat to discontinue” a fragile agreement enabling the shipping of Ukrainian grain to feed people around the world “will deeply anger and upset” countries benefiting from the deal, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.  Read

As Heir to Throne, Charles Said He Would Rather Be ‘Defender of Faith’ vs. ‘Defender of The Faith’

 When Britain’s new monarch is formally enthroned, among the titles he will assume, in line with tradition dating back to the 16th century, will be that of “Defender of The Faith” – “The Faith” referring to the doctrine of the Church of England (Anglican Church).  Read

US Backs Albania’s Decision to Sever Ties With Iran Over ‘Unprecedented’ Cyber Attack

 The U.S. threw its support behind Albania on Wednesday after the small Balkan nation, a NATO ally, severed relations with Iran and ordered its diplomats to leave in response to a massive cyberattack that paralyzed government systems over the summer.  Read

Putin, Xi to Meet Again, As Russian Experts Envision ‘Rise of a New World Order’

Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a multilateral summit in Uzbekistan next week. It would be their second face-to-face encounter in less than eight months, a period that has witnessed a growing bilateral partnership and pushback against the “rules-based order” championed by the West.  Read

Turkey’s Erdogan Repeats Veiled Threats Against Longstanding Rival (and NATO Ally) Greece

 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday escalated a row with neighboring Greece, repeating warnings that in response to supposed Greek threats, Turkey will take retaliatory action.  Read

Kremlin Welcomes Biden’s Decision Not to Label Russia a State Sponsor of Terror

The Kremlin on Tuesday welcomed President Biden’s decision not to designate Russia as a “state sponsor of terror,” a decision that came less than six weeks after the U.S. Senate unanimously adopted a resolution calling for the move.  Read

New UK Prime Minister Faces Tough Economic Challenge at Home, Antagonism From Russia and China

Outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called on his Conservative Party Monday to rally around its new leader, former Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, as she prepares to take office on Tuesday amid one of the worst economic crises in a generation.  Read

Russian State Gas Giant Releases Video Showing Europe Freezing Without Russian Gas

Ahead of a winter that could see a pivotal energy standoff between Russia and the West, a video clip reported released by the Russian state gas giant Gazprom on Monday depicts a frozen Europe after the gas flow is shut off.  Read

Labor Day: Biden Slams Republicans and ‘Trumpies,’ Tells a Heckler He’s ‘Entitled to Be an Idiot’

In back-to-back speeches marking Labor Day on Monday, President Biden again waded into political waters, slamming his predecessor and “MAGA Republicans” and in one instance telling a lone heckler who disagreed with him, “Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”  Read

House Members Make Bipartisan Appeal to Biden: Don’t Sign Nuclear Deal That Empowers Iran, Russia

A bipartisan group of 50 U.S. House members urged President Biden on Thursday not to finalize an Iran nuclear deal before consulting with Congress, saying they were “deeply concerned about multiple provisions that reportedly may be contained in the final language of any agreement with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.”  Read

Israel Objects: Deal Creates ‘Legal Pathway for Iran to Obtain Nuclear Weapons By 2031’

As debate builds around a looming new nuclear deal with Iran, a letter sent to President Biden this week highlighted deep concerns about provisions of the agreement from a quarter whose support the administration would ordinarily welcome – senior-ranking Israeli military officials.  Read

As Biden Calls Pro-Lifers ‘MAGA Republicans,’ Pro-Life Democrats Ask: What About Us?

On a day when President Biden in a combative speech lumped opposition to abortion with other purported characteristics of the “extremism” represented by “MAGA Republicans,” a DNC Twitter post on the subject prompted a plaintive question from the advocacy group Democrats for Life of America: “What about pro-life Democrats?”  Read

UN Rights Office Releases Xinjiang Report at Eleventh-Hour, Cites Possible ‘Crimes Against Humanity’

 Minutes before the official end of her term, the office of outgoing U.N. high commissioner for human rights Michelle Bachelet late on Wednesday night released a long-awaited report on human rights abuses in Xinjiang which Beijing had urged her to bury.  Read

UN Appointees Scold Americans for Opposing CRT, Push for Progress on Slavery Reparations

U.N. human rights appointees reviewing the United States’ record on racial justice raised concerns this week over the “pushback” against the teaching of critical race theory, and the impact of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade on racial and ethnic minorities.  Read