Latest Russia government News

Belarus election is poised to extend the 30-year rule of 'Europe's last dictator'

Jan. 24, 2025 09:19 AM EST

The last time Belarus staged a presidential election in 2020, authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko was declared the winner with 80% of the vote. That triggered cries of fraud, months of protests and a harsh crackdown with thousands of arrests. Not wanting to risk such unrest...

University students lead a strike in Serbia as populist president plans a rally to counter protests

Jan. 24, 2025 08:33 AM EST

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — A student-led strike closed down numerous businesses and drew tens of thousands into the streets throughout Serbia on Friday as populist President Aleksandar Vucic planned a big rally to counter persistent anti-government protests that have challenged his tight grip on...

Kremlin scoffs at Trump's claim that a drop in oil prices will help end Ukraine conflict

Jan. 24, 2025 06:23 AM EST

MOSCOW (AP) — The Kremlin insisted Friday that a settlement in Ukraine couldn’t be facilitated by a drop in global oil prices as U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested. Speaking by video from the White House to the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump said...

Davos 2025: Trump leaves an impression with his video address to the World Economic Forum

Jan. 23, 2025 15:00 PM EST

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump drew pockets of laughter and a few moans with his blunt comments to an international audience while appearing by video link Thursday at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Trump's address and answers to a...

Trump’s threat of tariffs and sanctions on Russia over Ukraine may fall flat

Jan. 22, 2025 15:05 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to impose stiff taxes, tariffs and sanctions on Russia if an agreement isn’t reached to end the war in Ukraine, a warning that is likely fall on deaf ears in the Kremlin. The United States already prohibits the import of virtually...

EU needs to end its military dependency on the US and arm itself 'to survive,' says Tusk

Jan. 22, 2025 10:53 AM EST

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union cannot rely on the United States to defend it and must increase military spending and security preparedness to help Ukraine and deter Russia from targeting any more of its neighbors, top EU officials warned on Wednesday. “Ask not of America what...

Russia's Putin and China's Xi discuss their close ties in chat after Trump's inauguration

Jan. 21, 2025 21:11 PM EST

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke Tuesday with Chinese President Xi Jinping and emphasized their close ties a day after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th U.S. president. The two leaders discussed their prospective contacts with Trump's administration during...

Trump pardons upend massive Jan. 6 prosecution by freeing rioters and dismissing cases

Jan. 21, 2025 20:22 PM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rioters locked up for their roles in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack were released while judges began dismissing dozens of pending cases Tuesday after President Donald Trump’s sweeping grant of clemency to all 1,500-plus people charged in the insurrection that shook the foundation...

Then and now: What has changed as Trump returns to the White House

Jan. 19, 2025 07:32 AM EST

NEW YORK (AP) — When Donald Trump arrived in Washington in 2017 just before his first inauguration, he was a stranger to most in town. As the only president in history without prior experience in public office or the military, it was unclear how he would govern. Not this time. ...

An imprisoned Nobel laureate underscores human rights abuses in Belarus

Jan. 19, 2025 00:55 AM EST

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The yellow name tag that Ales Bialiatski wears on his prison garb sets him apart from other inmates in Penal Colony No. 9 in eastern Belarus. It marks Bialiatski as a political prisoner to be singled out for harsh treatment. Because he's been labeled an...