Section: News & Summaries
What Nadiya Savchenko’s Example Can Teach the West
March 5 marked the sixty-third anniversary of Joseph Stalin’s death. A friend texted me a photo of a poster from a Moscow bus shelter, a death mask of the Soviet dictator, captioned with the words: “That one died, this one will, too,” presumably a reference to Russia’s current ruler Vladimir Putin. There’s a certain...
Will Ukraine’s Intrepid Female Pilot be Swapped for Russian Officers Held by Ukraine?
“Freedom does not have a price! I don’t believe anyone in Russia! I’m not afraid and I will not beg!” These may be the last words that Nadiya Savchenko, Ukraine’s most famous political prisoner held by Russia, will speak. On March 3, the day her trial was scheduled to end and she was denied an opportunity to make a closing...
The Church That Stalin Couldn’t Kill: Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Thrives Seventy Years after Forced Reunification
Seventy years ago, on March 8-10, 1946, under orders from Josef Stalin, an illegal “synod” of Kremlin-controlled clergy gathered in the city of Lviv, recently absorbed into the Soviet Union as part of the settlement of World War II. The purpose of the gathering was to liquidate the independent existence of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, or...
Russia Declares War on Crimean Tatars
Two years after invading and annexing Crimea, Russia appears ready to outlaw the Crimean Tatar Mejlis, the representative body of the largest indigenous people of the peninsula. The behavior which Russia deems “extremist” is essentially the Mejlis’ implacable, but always peaceful, opposition to Russia’s occupation.It is unclear...
Mother of Hunger-Striking Pilot Calls for Justice
Editor’s Note: Ukrainian fighter pilot Nadiya Savchenko started a “dry” hunger strike on March 3 after Russian prosecutors requested a 23-year sentence for Savchenko. In 2014, Savchenko was captured by the pro-Russian separatists in the Donbas, transferred to Russia, where she was accused of involvement in the death of two Russian...
Questions cloud future of Malaysia Airlines
Two years after twin air crashes that left its brand in tatters, Malaysia Airlines is still a company in limbo. ||| Singapore/ Kuala Lumpur – Two years after twin air crashes that left its brand in tatters, Malaysia Airlines is still a company in limbo. The loss of two Boeing 777s just months apart in 2014 triggered a much needed state...
“You Have Not Defeated Me and You Never Will!” Ukrainian Fighter Pilot Nadiya Savchenko Tells Court
Even for Russia, where everyday life can best be described as Kafkaesque, the case of Nadiya Savchenko is outrageous. In 2014, during the war in Ukraine’s Donbas, Savchenko, a Ukrainian military officer captured by the pro-Russian separatists in combat, was transferred to Russia, where she was accused of involvement in the death of two...
Families of MH370 passengers sue airline
Families of 12 passengers on Flight 370 sued the carrier and the government, ahead of the second anniversary of the plane’s disappearance. ||| Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Families of 12 passengers on Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 on Friday sued the carrier and the government, ahead of a filing deadline next week on the second anniversary...
‘Free me or watch me starve to death’
A Ukrainian pilot on trial in Russia over the killing of two journalists plans to tell a court to release her or she will starve herself to death. ||| Moscow – A Ukrainian woman pilot on trial in Russia over the killing of two Russian journalists plans to tell a court to release her within 10 days of pronouncing its verdict or she will...
Remembering Boris Nemtsov
Boris Nemtsov’s legacy and his final project—exposing the Kremlin’s role in the war in Ukraine—were remembered at an event in Washington to mark the first anniversary of his assassination. “He was a man of great values,” said Paula J. Dobriansky, a Senior Fellow at Harvard University and an Atlantic Council board director. Nemtsov was...