Tag Archives: Russia

Today should be fun. Via Patch: White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer will deliver a televised briefing Tuesday at 2 p.m. Earlier in the day, the leaders of the House Oversight Committee revealed that former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn may have acted inappropriately or illegally by failing to document his dealings with foreign governments as a retired military officer, …

CNN reports: The White House declined Tuesday to provide documents related to President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser that the panel investigating Michael Flynn had requested, according to a letter obtained by CNN. White House Director of Legislative Affairs Marc Short outlined in a letter to the House oversight committee how it would not complete the request from the …

The Daily Beast reports: The man who now stands a very good chance of becoming the next president of France, Emmanuel Macron, is trying to shore up his campaign against Russian influence that might favor his opponent, far-right candidate and Vladimir Putin favorite Marine Le Pen. On Monday, the day after Macron and Le Pen beat nine other candidates to …

From the editorial board of the New York Times: Moscow is unlikely to take meaningful action against Chechnya, or to rethink its broader policy toward gay rights, in the absence of strong and sustained international pressure. In recent years several countries from the Americas and Europe have promoted equality for gay and transgender people as universal human rights. The Obama …

The Hill reports: Former Trump advisor Carter Page defended himself during a CNN appearance on Saturday, amidst mounting reports about his alleged contacts with Russian officials during the presidential campaign. “I was never, nothing I was ever asked to do or no information I was ever asked for, was anything beyond what you could see on CNN,” Page told CNN’s …

CNN reports: The FBI gathered intelligence last summer that suggests Russian operatives tried to use Trump advisers, including Carter Page, to infiltrate the Trump campaign, according to US officials. The new information adds to the emerging picture of how the Russians tried to influence the 2016 election, not only through email hacks and propaganda but also by trying to infiltrate …

Even though gays don’t exist there? Gay Star News reports: Chechnya’s president has vowed to ‘eliminate’ all gay men by the end of May. Ramzan Kadyrov, head of the Chechen Republic, threatened to rid the area of homosexuality ‘by Ramadan’. Ramadan, Islam’s holy month, begins on 26 May this year. Speaking to Gay Star News, a Foreign and Commonwealth Office …

Business Insider reports: The House Intelligence Committee announced on Friday that it had extended invitations to three former officials with knowledge of Russia’s interference in the US election to testify in an open hearing in May, over a month after the committee’s chairman first scrapped the session. “Yesterday, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence sent two letters related to …

NBC News reports: Hillary Clinton slammed President Donald Trump’s administration for what she said were moves against LGBT rights during a fundraiser for an LGBT community center in New York City on Thursday. “Each time this administration elevates an outspoken opponent of LGBT equality — sometimes in particularly cruel ways like replacing the first openly gay Secretary of the Army …

Reuters reports: Russia’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Jehovah’s Witnesses was an “extremist” organisation and must hand over all its property to the state, Russian news agencies reported. Interfax news agency quoted Sergei Cherepanov, a Jehovah’s Witnesses representative, as saying that the group will appeal the decision in the European Court of Human Rights. “We will do everything possible,” …

Radio Free Europe reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman sought to downplay evidence of a campaign of abuse targeting gay men in Chechnya, saying the Kremlin has “heard no confirmation” of reports that have prompted outrage in the West. Speaking to journalists on April 20, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin has no reason to doubt regional leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s …

The Independent reports: Exxon Mobil has reportedly applied to the US Treasury Department for a waiver from US sanctions on Russia, which – if granted – would mean that it can resume its joint venture with Russian-state owned oil giant PAO Rosneft. Citing people familiar with the matter, the Wall Street Journal reported that Exxon had been seeking US permission …

This is the guy who used to work for NOM. Business Insider reports: The leader of California separatist group Yes California announced in a 1,600-word statement on Monday that he “intends to make Russia” his “new home” and is therefore withdrawing his petition for a “Calexit” referendum. Louis Marinelli, who has spearheaded the Calexit campaign since 2015, set up a …

Reuters reports: A Russian government think tank controlled by Vladimir Putin developed a plan to swing the 2016 U.S. presidential election to Donald Trump and undermine voters’ faith in the American electoral system, three current and four former U.S. officials told Reuters. They described two confidential documents from the think tank as providing the framework and rationale for what U.S. …

Ho hum, another insane teabagger who has no idea of how the First Amendment works. Brian Tashman reports at Right Wing Watch: Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to Donald Trump, spoke with InfoWars broadcaster Paul Joseph Watson today about the campaign to have Fox News fire Bill O’Reilly for his years of sexual harassment of women. Fox News officially fired …

Via press release: With recent reports of abductions, detentions, enforced disappearances, torture and deaths targeting gay and bisexual men in Chechnya, a Canadian non-profit human rights organization announced today an emergency response plan to assist those in danger. Founded in 2006, Rainbow Railroad actively assists LGBTQ people escape danger through its global network of safe routes. “Since we first received …

Via press release: We continue to be disturbed by reports of kidnapping, torture, and murder of people in Chechnya based on their sexual orientation and those persecuted by association. If true, this violation of human rights cannot be ignored – Chechen authorities must immediately investigate these allegations, hold anyone involved accountable, and take steps to prevent future abuses. We are …

“I am disgusted and appalled by reports from both the Russian media and non-governmental organizations that authorities in the Russian republic of Chechnya have rounded up, tortured, and even murdered individuals who are believed to be gay. When faced with such crimes of hate and inhumanity, it is the responsibility of every person of conscience to speak out—to oppose this …

PAGING NIKKI HALEY. PAGING REX TILLERSON. The Associated Press reports: In the face of growing international concern about reported detentions and killings of homosexuals in Chechnya, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman says the Kremlin does not have confirmed information about the matter. The respected Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta reported this month that police in the predominantly Muslim republic rounded up …

Bloomberg reports: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said a chemical-weapons attack in Syria that provoked U.S. missile strikes on the Middle Eastern country may have been orchestrated. “There’s growing evidence that this was staged,” Lavrov said at a Moscow news conference with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts on Friday. Publications including in the U.S. and the U.K. have highlighted “many …