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☆ Unpredictable Strongman? Two Years Into War, Putin Embraces the Image.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Anton Troianovski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

After President Biden called President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia a “crazy S.O.B.” this week, the Kremlin was quick to issue a stern condemnation. But the image of an unpredictable strongman ready to escalate his conflict with the West is one that Mr. Putin has fully embraced after two years of full-scale war. At home, the Kremlin is maintaining the mystery over the circumstances of the death last week of Aleksei A. Navalny, preventing the opposition leader’s family from reclaiming his body. In Ukraine, Mr. Putin is pressing his army to maintain its brutal offensive, boasting on television that he stayed up all night as the city of Avdiivka fell to Russian forces.

Persons: Biden, Vladimir V, Putin, Aleksei A Organizations: Kremlin Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Avdiivka, Russian

CNN —The Biden administration will impose a fresh slate of sanctions on more than 500 targets on Friday in response to the death of opposition figure Alexey Navalny and on the eve of Russia’s two-year war in Ukraine, according to a Treasury official. The sanctions mark the latest move by the administration to levy consequences against Russia amid heightened tensions between the two countries. While those sanctions have hampered Russia’s economy, they haven’t deterred Putin from proceeding with the invasion. The US, along with other Western governments, has levied a series of sanctions against Russia in recent years, but Russia has adapted to them. Putin has taken to gloating about Russia’s resistance to international sanctions, which take time to have an effect.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, Alexey Navalny, Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden, Vladimir Putin, Navalny’s, Putin, “, ” Biden, Sullivan Organizations: CNN, Treasury, Wednesday, Russia, US, Reuters Locations: Ukraine, Russia, San Francisco, United States, Moscow

☆ Biden meets with Yulia and Dasha Navalnaya in California
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Kevin Liptak | Michael Williams | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

After the meeting, Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin himself will be sanctioned. The meeting occurred in California, where Biden is traveling for political fundraisers. Shortly after Navalny’s death was reported, Biden placed the blame directly at Putin’s feet. And it just cannot be tolerated.”Biden has also sharply criticized the response to Navalny’s death from his likely 2024 rival, former President Donald Trump. A medical report attributed the cause of 47-year-old Navalny’s death to natural causes, Navalny’s spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, said on X.

Persons: Joe Biden, Alexey Navalny, Biden, Vladimir Putin, “, ” Biden, Putin, ” “ We’re, ”, Dasha, Biden “, Aleksey Navalny’s, ” Biden “, Yulia, Dasha Navalnaya, Navalny, Donald Trump, Trump, Navanly, Navalny “, Lyudmila Navalnaya, Kira Yarmysh, CNN’s Sam Fossum, Priscilla Alvarez Organizations: CNN, Russia, Stanford University, Treasury, US, Reuters, Putin, NATO, ”, IK Locations: California, Russia, Ukraine, ”, United States, Soviet, Germany, Kharp

☆ Putin looms over a third successive US election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —“Russia, Russia, Russia.”Ex-President Donald Trump’s scathing catch phrase for a torrent of investigations during his administration also serves as an apt catch-all for the current meltdown over Moscow roiling US politics. But Russia and its leader, whom President Joe Biden described as a “crazy S.O.B.” at a Wednesday fundraiser, won’t go away. All the ways Putin is playing in US politicsPutin is advancing Russian interests against the US on multiple fronts. Putin recently formalized his warming ties with North Korean tyrant Kim Jong Un by presenting him with a new limousine. The Russian leader was particularly incensed by the US-led operation to topple Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Donald Trump’s, Joe Biden, won’t, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ukraine –, –, Alexander Smirnov, “, Trump, Smirnov, Biden, it’s, Putin can’t, ” Douglas, Alexey Navalny, Biden lambasts Trump, ” Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, he’s, he’d, Mike Turner, Ksenia, Paul Whelan –, Evan Gershkovich, Geopolitically, Kim Jong Un, George W, Bush, Barack Obama, Moammar Gadhafi, Hillary Clinton, Robert Mueller, “ We’ll, Mueller Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, United States, European NATO, ”, Moscow, House Republicans, GOP, CIA, NATO, Republican Party, Republicans, Republican, Trump, Marine, Wall Street, Putin, Biden, US, Democratic Locations: Russia, Moscow, United States, China, Soviet, East Germany, United, Ukraine, Russian, European, Washington, Asia, Sweden, Finland, Berlin –, Europe, Ukrainian, California, North Korea, Iran, Crimea, Helsinki, Geneva

☆ Trump coopts Navalny’s legacy as a smokescreen for his own legal morass
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Alexey Navalny died a political martyr after returning home to confront Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal rule. But that’s not stopping Donald Trump from coopting his heroic legacy to suggest false equivalence with his own legal troubles. He offered a tempered tribute to Navalny, before returning to his own false claims of political persecution. There is no world in which Trump and Navalny can be compared. “Instead, Trump said Navalny’s death made him realize how bad America is.

Persons: CNN — Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s, Donald Trump, Putin, Trump, Navalny, “, …, ” Trump, Joe Biden, “ Trump, ”, he’s, predecessor’s thrall, Biden, Trump’s, CNN’s MJ Lee, Alexey Navalny, ” Biden, America, can’t Trump, Mike Johnson, Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Russia’s, Zelensky, it’s Organizations: CNN, Fox News, Russia, Communist, Fox, Trump, Kremlin, Biden, Republicans, Senate, NATO, White House, Soviet Union, Saturday Locations: Russian, Russia, West Coast, Ukraine, Moscow, Trump’s, America, Avdiivka, Washington

☆ US divisions over Putin’s Russia present grave global implications
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —US politics is now split by a fault line over Russia that could have far graver global implications even than condemning Ukraine to defeat after President Vladimir Putin’s invasion. Trump has also not repudiated his recent comment that he’d invite Russia to invade NATO nations that fell short of non-binding targets on defense spending. Aside from the mysterious hold that Putin appears to exert over Trump, the ex-president’s hostility towards Ukraine is easily explainable. Opposing aid to Ukraine is also an almost perfect issue for the ex-president and his allies in the GOP primary. These pressures weigh on Republican lawmakers as they cast increasingly tough votes on Ukraine aid.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Donald Trump, Trump, Mike Johnson –, Johnson, Joe Biden, Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Russia’s, ” Biden, Zelensky, –, Alexey Navalny, Hungary’s Viktor Orban, Putin’s, Putin, Trump’s, Kevin McCarthy’s, hasn’t, Ohio Sen, JD Vance, Ukraine “, Vladimir Putin, ” Vance, Barack Obama, “, ”, Vance, Nikki Haley, Haley, Sen, Pete Ricketts, Ricketts, ’ ” Ricketts, ‘, ’ ”, It’s, Mitch McConnell Organizations: CNN, Donald Trump Republicans, NATO, Trump, GOP, Senate, Republican, Soviet, European Union, Russian, Republican Party, Republicans, Munich, Ohio, United, Chicago Council, Global Affairs, Trump Republicans, Ukraine Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Europe, Avdiivka, Russian, Kremlin, America, United States, Munich, China, “, Ohio, Crimea, East Asia, Beijing, Moscow, Iran, North Korea, we’re, ’ ” The Nebraska, Soviet Union

☆ Cheney warns of Republican Party ‘Putin wing’ after Navalny death
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Jack Forrest | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —GOP former Rep. Liz Cheney on Sunday warned of a Republican Party “Putin wing” after former President Donald Trump responded to the death of outspoken Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny without actually mentioning him or Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We have to take seriously the extent to which you’ve now got a Putin wing of the Republican Party. Biden, in his comments at the White House following the announcement of Navalny’s death, forcefully pinned the blame on “Putin and his thugs.”“Make no mistake: Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death. What has happened to Navalny is yet more proof of Putin’s brutality. “When you think about Donald Trump, for example, pledging retribution, what Vladimir Putin did to Navalny is what retribution looks like in a country where a leader is not subject to the rule of law,” Cheney said Sunday.

Persons: Liz Cheney, “, Donald Trump, Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin, you’ve, Putin, ” Cheney, Jake Tapper, Joe Biden, Trump, Biden, “ Putin, ”, ” Biden, Jens Stoltenberg, “ He’s, GOP Sen, Tim Scott of, ” Scott, Scott, CNN’s Kit Maher, Avery Lotz Organizations: CNN, GOP, Republican, “ Putin, Putin, Republican Party, West, White, Union, NATO, “, Sunday, Trump Locations: “ State, Russian, Russia, United States, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Ukraine, America

☆ Putin saw an existential threat in Navalny, the opposition leader whose name he dared not mention
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Alexey Navalny once represented an alternative future for Russia: an optimistic, forward-looking place, free of the one-man rule of Russian President Vladimir Putin. It would be hard to overstate how profoundly Navalny symbolized Putin’s relentless drive to erase the last remnants of political opposition from Russia. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty ImagesWhat followed was a parody of criminal justice, as Russian prosecutors heaped on charges against Navalny, who continued to rail against Putin. Navalny had emerged as the most prominent leader of the Russian opposition following the assassination of outspoken Putin critic Boris Nemtsov in 2015, in plain view of the Kremlin. Putin famously refused to utter Navalny’s name, hinting at the deep unease about the legitimacy Navalny commanded as opposition leader.

Persons: CNN — Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Navalny, Alexei Navalny, Kirill Kudryavtsev, gaunt, “, ” Navalny, –, ”, I’m, Yulia, Vasily Maximov, Putin, Boris Nadezhdin, Boris Nemtsov, Nemtsov, Lyubov Sobol, Mikheil Saakashvili –, Ukraine’s, Saakashvili, ’ ” Organizations: CNN, Getty, Putin, IK, Valentine’s, “, Twitter Locations: Russia, Moscow, Berlin, AFP, Kharp, Autonomous Okrug, Ukraine, Russian, Navalny, Kyiv’s

Floral tributes to Alexei Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's fiercest foe who died Friday in a Russian penal colony, were removed overnight by groups of unknown people while police watched, videos on Russian social media channels show. Russia's prison service said in the Arctic penal colony where he was serving a 19-year sentence. On Saturday, police blocked access to a memorial in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk and detained several people, OVD-Info said. Videos and photos shared on Russian social media channels showed flowers being cleared from monuments to victims of Soviet-era repressions across Russia. The news of Navalny's death comes less than a month before an election that will give Putin another six years in power.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, ”, Nigel Gould, Davies, Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya, Alexei, Putin’s, ” Navalnaya, Joe Biden, Washington doesn’t, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Navalny “, Dmitry Peskov, Kira Yarmysh Organizations: Russia's Federal Security Service, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Russia’s Federal, Service Locations: Russian, Russia, Siberian, Novosibirsk, Moscow, British, Belarus, Eurasia, London, Russia’s, Kharp, Germany, ”

☆ Navalny is the latest in a long line of Putin critics who met an early death
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Lauren Said-Moorhouse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

CNN —When Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny returned to Russia in 2021, there were many who feared he would face an untimely end. The Kremlin has said it is investigating the critic’s death, the circumstances of which were not immediately clear. After his death, opposition leader Ilya Yashin said his friend had been working on a report about Russian troops and their involvement in Ukraine. Nemtsov’s death came two days before he was set to lead an opposition rally in the Russian capital. Alexander PerepilichnyyOver the years, suggestions have emerged of the possible use of a rare plant poison in the death of Russian financier Alexander Perepilichnyy.

Persons: Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s, ”, Navalny, Yegveny Prigozhin Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Reuters Yevgeny Prigozhin, –, Bill Browder, “ Putin, ” Boris Nemtsov, Boris Nemtsov, Dmitry Korotayev, Boris Yeltsin, Ilya Yashin, Nemtsov, Vladimir Putin, Nemtsov’s, Boris Berezovsky Boris Berezovsky, Yelena Gorbunova, Peter Macdiarmid, Boris Berezovsky, Putin, Berezovsky, Alexander Perepilichnyy, CNN Alexander Perepilichnyy, Perepilichnyy, Sergei Magnitsky, ANDREY SMIRNOV, Magnitsky, Browder, Alexander Litvinenko Alexander Litvinenko, Natasja Weitsz, Alexander Litvinenko, Litvinenko –, Robert Owen, Putin “, Litvinenko, Marina Litvinenko, Anna Politkovskaya, JENS SCHLUETER, Lom, Ali Gaitukayev, Politkovskaya, Chechen Republic …, ” Drownings, Prigozhin, Gennady Lopyrev –, “, Lopyrev, Pyotr Kucherenko, Pavel Antov, Vladimir Budanov, Budanov, Alexander Buzakov, Anatoly Gerashchenko, Ravil Maganov, Lukoil, Maganov “, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Sergei Skripal, Skripal, Yulia Organizations: CNN, Putin’s United, “, Kremlin, PMC Wagner, Reuters, Republican Party of Russia, Party, Newsweek, Royal Botanic, Getty Images, Hermitage Capital, KGB, Getty, Authorities, The, Protect Journalists, RIA Novosti, Russia’s, Science, Higher Education, Gazprom, Lukoil, Moscow Aviation Institute, TASS Locations: Russia, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Putin’s United Russia, Ukraine, ” Boris Nemtsov Russian, Kremlin, Moscow, Russian, London's, England, Soviet Union, Britain, Surrey, London, Kew, American, Chechnya, Leipzig, Germany, AFP, The New York, Chechen Republic, Washington, Gelendzhik, ”, Cuba, India, United States

The reported death in prison of Alexei Navalny, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent political rival, sent shockwaves throughout Russia and the world on Friday – even if some were unsurprised by the outcome. “There is no doubt that the death of Navalny was the consequence of something Putin and his thugs did,” U.S. President Joe Biden said in remarks at the White House on Friday. The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 91 ImagesHere is what you need to know about Navalny, his death and Russia’s handling of political prisoners. Who Was Alexei Navalny? Navalny later participated in several mass protests and lobbed criticisms more directly at Putin and other Kremlin officials.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s, Putin, Navalny, Joe Biden, “, ” Konstantin Sonin, ” Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya, Navalnaya, ”, Leonid Volkov, Navalny’s, Evan Gershkovich, Ilya Yashin, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Alexei Gorinov, Maria Ponomarenko – Organizations: White, overdevelopment, Associated Press, Reuters, Washington Post, University of Chicago, Ukraine, Munich, Russia’s Federal, Service, Nenets Autonomous, Tass, Wall Street Locations: Russian, Russia, U.S, Moscow, Ukraine, Belarus, Germany, Russia’s, Nenets, Nenets Autonomous District, Kharp, Bucha

☆ McConnell defends push for Ukraine aid amid attacks from Trump wing of GOP: ‘Every argument against this is wrong’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Manu Raju | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“I feel strongly this is in our best interest, America’s best interest and the world’s best interests to do this. Meantime, the House GOP has aligned itself closely with Trump and taken steps that have made some Republican senators uneasy – including impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the problems at the border. But McConnell didn’t think the flap would have much of an impact on Senate races. “I think that every one of these races will hash that out one way or another,” McConnell said. “The age issue is obviously front and center for both candidates,” McConnell said when asked about the matter.

Persons: Mitch McConnell, Donald Trump, McConnell, –, “ It’s, ” McConnell, Trump, Mike Johnson, McConnell harkened, – we’ve, Johnson, “, ” Johnson, I’ve, we’ve, Alejandro Mayorkas, hadn’t, Oklahoma GOP Sen, James Lankford, ”, Tom Suozzi, Biden, Robert Hur’s, ” CNN’s Clare Foran, Morgan Rimmer Organizations: GOP, CNN, Trump, Republican, “, Kentucky Republican, Homeland, Oklahoma GOP, Wall Street, Washington Post, Republicans, Democrats, New, Democrat Locations: Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, Oklahoma, New York

☆ A Popular Leader’s Surprising Turn Shadows Indonesia’s Election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Muktita Suhartono | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

More than 100 million people are voting on Wednesday in one of the biggest elections in the world. The contest for the top prize — the presidency of Indonesia — is a three-way race. But looming large is someone not on the ballot. That person is Joko Widodo, the incumbent president, who is not allowed to seek a third five-year term and will step down in October. A decade after Mr. Joko presented himself as a down-to-earth reformer and won office, he remains incredibly popular.

Persons: Joko Locations: Indonesia

As of last year, a majority of NATO countries did not meet this pledge. But the alliance does not have its own army, and its military operations are staffed and supplied by member countries. Which Countries Meet NATO’s 2% Defense Spending Target? Only 11 of the 31 NATO member countries were expected to meet that target for 2023, according to estimates published last July by the alliance. That means that 20 NATO countries were expected to spend less than 2% of their GDP on defense, based on the 2023 estimates.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Trump, we’re, Russia –, ” Trump, “, ’, ” Organizations: NATO, Reuters, Republican Locations: Russia, Ukraine, South Carolina, U.S, United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Poland, Greece, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Luxembourg, Belgium, Spain, Canada

☆ Putin to U.S.: Let’s Make a Deal on Ukraine (on My Terms)
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Paul Sonne | Anton Troianovski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia kept returning to one message over and over in his meandering, two-hour interview with the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson: Russia wants to negotiate a peace deal in Ukraine, albeit on the Kremlin’s terms. That message seemed aimed at the American right and Republicans in Congress, with an eye to undermining support for aid to Ukraine. If so, the day after the long-anticipated interview, it seemed lost in the muddle. The Russian leader’s discursive historical diatribes, delving into everything from the Rurik dynasty to the Golden Horde, dominated commentary about the interview online and overshadowed the message he intended to deliver. In Russia on Friday, experts and even some of Mr. Putin’s allies were also puzzling over why he gave short shrift to his main ideological commonality with Mr. Carlson’s followers: opposition to L.G.B.T.Q.

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, Tucker Carlson, Rurik, Putin’s, Carlson’s Organizations: Fox News, Golden Horde Locations: Russia, Ukraine

☆ Democrats know they have a Biden problem but they're standing by him
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Voters have repeatedly said they are worried about Biden's age. In the wake of special counsel Robert Hur's report, Democrats are rallying around the president. AdvertisementDemocrats are betting voters don’t care if President Joe Biden flubs a foreign leader’s name or key detail. “He knew exactly where the negotiation was going to go and he took Kevin McCarthy’s shirt.”Advertisement"I think President Biden is incredibly experienced, knowledgeable, wise. “He is not fit to be President.”Democrats were quick to point out that Trump, Biden’s almost certain challenger, has suffered his own recent flubs.

Persons: Robert Hur's, —, Joe Biden flubs, Robert Hur’s, Biden, he’s, ‘, Mitterrand, Kate Bedingfield, Bedingfield, François Mitterrand, Emmanuel Macron, Abdel Fattah El, Jamie Raskin, Hur, Joe Biden, ” Raskin, there’s, Dan Goldman, ”, “, Kevin McCarthy’s, YJkYIvBpED, @Morning_Joe, Beau, ” Biden, Mike Johnson, ” Johnson, Trump, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Nancy Pelosi, “ Donald Trump couldn’t Organizations: Service, LBJ, Trump, White, CNN, Voters, NBC, NBC News, Maryland Democrat, Republicans, ”, New, New York Democrat, MSNBC, Florida Gov, UN, Democratic, Committee Locations: United States, Mexico, New York, Florida

☆ Putin Calls on U.S. to ‘Negotiate’ on Ukraine in Tucker Carlson Interview
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Anton Troianovski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“Wouldn’t it be better to negotiate with Russia? Make an agreement,” Mr. Putin told Tucker Carlson, the American conservative commentator, in the Russian leader’s first interview with an American outlet since 2021. Mr. Putin also laid out his well-worn and spurious justifications for invading Ukraine, asserting that Russia’s goal was to “stop this war” that he claims the West is waging against Russia. But Mr. Putin was more direct than usual about how he sees his Ukraine invasion ending: not with a military victory, but through an agreement with the West. At the interview’s end, Mr. Putin told Mr. Carlson that the time had come for talks about ending the war because “those who are in power in the West have come to realize” that Russia will not be defeated on the battlefield.

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, ” Mr, Tucker Carlson, Mr, Carlson Organizations: Fox News, “ Locations: United States, Russia, American, Russian, Eastern, Ukraine

☆ Analysis: After Tucker Carlson’s softball interview, Putin walks away with propaganda victory
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —It’s evident now why Vladimir Putin granted an interview to Tucker Carlson. At times, between the airing of grievances, Putin appeared to school Carlson on historical events as the host looked on in bewilderment. It was a massive propaganda victory for Putin, who can — and will – now twist the encounter for his own ends. “VLADIMIR PUTIN’S INTERVIEW GAINS OVER 20 MILLION VIEWERS IN FIRST TWO HOURS,” RT boasted in one on-screen graphic. At the end of the interview, Carlson asked Putin if he would be “willing to release” Evan Gershkovich, the imprisoned reporter for The Wall Street Journal.

Persons: CNN —, Vladimir Putin, Tucker Carlson, Tucker, Putin, Alexei Navalny, Carlson, Putin’s, Clarissa Ward, “, ” Carlson, ” Putin, Putin’s mouthpieces, VLADIMIR PUTIN’S, Volodymyr Zelensky, Dmitry Peskov, ” Evan Gershkovich, Gershkovich, he’s, ”, Ted Mann, Evan, ’, ” Mann, “ Carlson, “ Evan Organizations: CNN, Fox News, Central Intelligence Agency, TASS, Wall Street Journal Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Russia, bewilderment, Kiev

☆ Modi’s ‘divine India’ vision threatens to marginalize millions
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

“(Today) is the beginning of a new time cycle,” Modi said at the new temple honoring Hindu deity Lord Ram. “After centuries of waiting, our Ram has arrived.”Modi’s vision of a “divine India” is a far cry from the ideas of the modern country’s founding fathers. “India becomes a de facto Hindu nation, where the task of building national Hindu religious symbols falls to the state. And he reiterated his party’s desire to build the Ram Temple on the contested holy site. Hindu groups have for decades claimed the Mughals destroyed Hindu temples, building mosques and other monuments in their place.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, ” Modi, Lord Ram, “, Ram, ”, Gilles Verniers, officiates, ‘, Sachin Tendulkar, Mukesh Ambani, Modi’s, ” Modi fasted, ” Narendra Modi, Prakash Singh, Pratishtha ”, –, Sunita Viswanath, “ Modi, tramples what’s, Ravi Agrawal, it’s, Babar, Douglas E, Curran, ” Agrawal, Ritesh Shukla, Aurangzeb, “ Aurangzeb, Policy’s Agrawal, Gilles Organizations: CNN, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Centre for Policy Research, Bloomberg, Getty, Indian, Human Rights, India’s, Ram Locations: Ayodhya, “, India, New Delhi, Babri, Delhi, India’s, Jammu, Kashmir, South Asia, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Varanasi

☆ Malaysia cuts prison sentence of disgraced former Prime Minister Najib Razak
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Malaysia has cut former Prime Minister Najib Razak’s 12-year prison sentence for corruption in half, according to authorities in the Southeast Asian country. Najib, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018, was found guilty of money laundering, abuse of power and other charges in 2020 related to the 1MDB scandal, which saw billions of dollars of taxpayers’ money embezzled out of Malaysia. In a statement Friday, the country’s Federal Territories Pardon Board said the former leader’s application to shorten his prison sentence to six years had been approved. The 1MDB fund was created soon after Najib took office in 2009. Goldman Sachs, which underwrote much of the 1MDB fund and was facing a host of criminal and regulatory proceedings in Malaysia, agreed to a $3.9 billion settlement with the country’s government in 2020.

Persons: Najib Razak’s, Najib, 1MDB, Goldman Sachs Organizations: CNN, United Locations: Malaysia, Territories, United States

☆ Trump poses dilemma for Senate GOP leaders after years of battling with McConnell
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-28 | by ( Manu Raju | Melanie Zanona | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Watch CNN’s coverage of Senate GOP leadership and Donald Trump on ‘Inside Politics Sunday with Manu Raju’ at 11 a.m. Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell hasn’t spoken to Trump in more than three years and tries to avoid uttering his name in public. As Trump steamrolls to the nomination, there are ample questions in GOP circles about how – and whether – Trump can rebuild Senate alliances that were critical in his first term but are nonexistent now. But Mullin said that the next Senate GOP leader and Trump need to move past the bad blood if they take back the majority and the White House. Asked last week if he could work with Trump as president, Thune said: “We can work with everybody.”Pressed again if he could do so as GOP leader, Thune said: “Well, that’s a hypothetical.”And the elevator doors closed.

Persons: Donald Trump, Manu Raju ’, Mike Johnson, Donald Trump ., Mitch McConnell hasn’t, John Thune of, hasn’t, Trump, “, ”, Texas Sen, John Cornyn –, McConnell, – Sen, John Barrasso, Kari Lake, Bernie Moreno, – Trump, –, there’s, Sen, J.D, Vance, Mitch McConnell, Chip Somodevilla, Johns, he’s, Rick Scott, Scott, —, Markwayne Mullin, Mullin, ” Mullin, they’re, ” Sen, Marco Rubio, Nikki Haley, Haley, Kevin Cramer, Mitch, Thom Tillis, Tillis, Josh Hawley, ” Hawley, Trump’s, Elaine Chao, ” McConnell, John Thune, John Cornyn, J, Scott Applewhite, Cornyn, Joe Biden, ” Cornyn, Barrasso, Joe Biden …, ” Thune, Thune –, Tim Scott of, Thune, CNN’s Morgan Rimmer, Lauren Fox, Christine Park Organizations: GOP, Trump, Team Trump, Republican, Capitol, Trump -, Republicans, Ohio Republican, CNN, Oklahoma Republican, White, Kentucky Republican, North Dakota Republican, North Carolina Republican, New, New Hampshire, Texas, Wyoming –, Thune Locations: New Hampshire, John Thune of South Dakota, Wyoming, Iowa, Arizona, Ohio, Ukraine, Washington ,, Florida, Oklahoma, Marco Rubio of Florida, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Washington, Tim Scott of South Carolina

Sen. Todd Young speaks to reporters before a Republican Senate policy luncheon at the US Capitol Building on September 19, 2023 in Washington, DC. Samuel Corum/Getty ImagesStatus of border talks remains unclearFrustration reigned inside the Senate GOP on Thursday amid lingering confusion over the status of a border deal. Pressed on whether it was realistic to pass a border deal with Trump opposing it, Young said: “It may be possible. This is about security for our own country and so let’s keep pushing to get this border deal,” she said. Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, one of the Democrats involved in the border talks, expressed frustration about Trump seeking to inject chaos into the situation.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, doesn’t, Joe Biden, Mitch McConnell, McConnell, Biden, ”, GOP Sen, Mitt Romney, ’ ”, ’ ” GOP Sen, Todd Young, “, James Lankford, ” Young, Sen, Anna Moneymaker, Underscoring, Thom Tillis, North Carolina –, –, Tillis, ” Tillis, McConnell –, “ We’re, ” McConnell, ” Sen, John Thune, we’ll, ” Thune, Samuel Corum, Young, you’ve, Ron Johnson of, ” Johnson, “ James Lankford, It’s McConnell, Republican Sen, Lisa Murkowski, “ I’m, Murkowski, Chris Murphy of, Donald Trump –, ” Murphy Organizations: Republicans, Trump, GOP, Capitol, ’ ” GOP, Republican, Building, CNN, Getty Locations: Ukraine, Utah, Indiana, Washington , DC, North Carolina, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, “, Alaska, Chris Murphy of Connecticut

In his first game back from an eight-month ban, Toney scored from a free kick to help Brentford beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 on Saturday and end a skid of five straight Premier League losses. I’m just buzzing to be back and scoring goals and playing for the team. Frank even gave Toney the captain's armband for this game, indicating how important his return is for the west London club. Toney led his team with 20 goals in 33 league games last season before being handed the ban in May. With the return of Toney, any thoughts of a relegation scrap for Brentford might soon be in the past.

Persons: — Ivan Toney, Toney, “, ” Toney, Thomas Frank, Dane, Frank, Nuno Espirito, Danilo, Ben Mee, Chris Wood, Callum Hudson, Forest's Orel Mangala, Mads Roerslev, Neal Maupay, volleying, Thomas Frank’s, “ I’m, I’ve, Gabriel Magalhaes, Gabriel Martinelli, ” Martinelli, Gabriel, Dean Henderson, Leandro Trossard, Martinelli's, Mikel Arteta’s, Roy Hodgson’s, ___ Organizations: Brentford, Nottingham Forest, Premier League, Nuno Espirito Santo, Forest, ” ARSENAL, Fulham —, Liverpool, Arsenal, Crystal, Emirates, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, League's Locations: London, Dubai, West Ham, Liverpool

☆ North Korea’s Kim vows to dismantle father’s unification arch as he declares South Korea ‘principal enemy’
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Brad Lendon | Gawon Bae | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The Kim family, beginning with Kim Il Sung, has ruled North Korea since its post-World War II founding in 1948. It symbolizes the efforts of Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung to set guidelines for uniting North and South Korea. South Korea not backing offOn Tuesday, South Korean leader Yoon Suk Yeol said his government will not be cowed by Kim’s latest threats. “If North Korea provokes, we will punish them multiple times as hard,” Yoon said at a Cabinet meeting in Seoul. Yoon, who has taken a much harder line on North Korea than his predecessors, said the South’s quarrel was with the Kim regime, not the people of North Korea.

Persons: Kim Jong Un, ”, Kim, Kim Jong Il, Kim Il, Kim Il Sung, “, Kim Jong, Jeong Eun, National Reunification ’ …, ’, ” Kim, KCNA, Leif, Eric Easley, “ Kim, ” KCNA, Yoon Suk Yeol, ” Yoon, Yoon Organizations: South Korea CNN — North, People’s Assembly, North Korean, Korea Institute for National Unification, National Reunification, Ehwa University, Democratic People’s, North, CNN, National Economic Cooperation Bureau, Kumgangsan, Tourism Administration, ROK, DPRK, United Nations, NLL Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Pyongyang, North Korea, North, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, DPRK, North Korea’s, Republic of Korea, Korean, Korea, South

☆ Ukraine’s US lifeline is hanging by a thinning thread
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

In a grave blow to its prospects, Ukraine aid has now been embroiled by Republicans in a separate imbroglio over immigration. While Ukraine’s survival is at stake, so is the reputation of the United States as a global leader. Johnson may struggle to retain his tenuous hold on his job if he uses Democratic votes to pass a Ukraine funding package. The Ukraine aid package is now caught in the most intractable US political issue — immigration. “We are at a moment in history.”But a group of Republican senators who normally back Ukraine aid signaled Monday they couldn’t move forward without immigration changes attached to the measure.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Joe Biden, Israel —, “, Jake Sullivan, Vladimir, ”, Sullivan’s, Shalanda Young, Mike Johnson, United States Oksana Markarova, CNN’s Wolf, Volodymyr Zelensky, Lloyd Austin, Zelensky, Donald Trump, Putin, Trump –, Republican Sen, Jim Risch of, “ Vladimir Putin, …, he’s, outlasting, ” Risch, Ben Hodges, ” Hodges, Johnson, Biden, Chuck Schumer, Texas Sen, John Cornyn Organizations: CNN, White, of Management, GOP, Wing, Kremlin, Trump, Republican, Intelligence and Foreign Relations, Halifax International Security, US Army, of, Republicans, Democratic, New York Democrat, Texas, Ukraine, US Defense Department, Internal Revenue Service, – Locations: Israel, Ukraine, Russian, U.S, United States, Russia, Moscow, North Korea, Iran, Kyiv, Washington, China, Jim Risch of Idaho, Canada, Ret, — Washington, Berlin, Paris, London, of America, Europe, Crimea, Ukrainian, Mexico, Taiwan

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