Month: April 2023

The Chinese defense chief vowed Tuesday to take military cooperation with Moscow to a new level, a statement that reflects increasingly close Russia-China ties amid the fighting in Ukraine.  Chinese Defense Minister General Li Shangfu held talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu after attending a meeting Sunday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.  “The armed forces of China and Russia will implement the agreements reached by the heads of state and expand military cooperation, military-technical ties and arms trade,” Li said in opening remarks at Tuesday’s meeting with Shoigu. “We will certainly take them to a new …

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With Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan languishing in many polls ahead of May elections, his challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, is promising to mend strained ties with Turkey’s Western allies. Analysts say that could be bad news for Moscow. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

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Nearly 300 Tyrannosaurus rex bones that were dug up from three sites in the United States and assembled into a single skeleton sold at Tuesday at a Switzerland auction for 4.8 million francs ($5.3 million), below the expected price. Crafted into an open-mouth pose, the T. rex skeleton measuring 11.6 meters long (38 feet long) and 3.9 meters high (12.8 feet) high came in under the anticipated range of 5 million to 8 million francs when it went under the hammer at the Koller auction house in Zurich. Koller had said Tuesday’s sale would be the first time such a …

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is “in good health and good spirits, considering the circumstances” after his arrest in Russia late last month. Speaking to reporters in Japan, Blinken said the United States continues to “call for his immediate release from this unjust detention.” U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy said Monday she visited Gershkovich, whom Russia has accused of spying. “This is the first time we’ve had consular access to Evan since his wrongful detention over two weeks ago,” Tracy said in a short statement in Russian on Telegram. …

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The European Union ambassador to Sudan was attacked in his home in Khartoum on Monday, the bloc’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said, as fighting between rival generals gripped the nation. “A few hours ago, the EU Ambassador in Sudan was assaulted in his own residency,” Borrell wrote on Twitter, without detailing any injuries to the envoy. “Security of diplomatic premises and staff is a primary responsibility of Sudanese authorities and an obligation under international law,” he added. The European Union’s ambassador to Sudan is 58-year-old Irish diplomat Aidan O’Hara. E.U. spokeswoman Nabila Massrali told AFP that he was “OK” following …

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With Turkey nearing hotly contested presidential elections in May, international rights groups are condemning a crackdown on independent media that have challenged the incumbent president’s control of the mainstream media. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

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