President Vladimir Putin has addressed the people of Russia following a historic election victory with over 87% of the vote in his favor, amid a record-high turnout. Here are the key takeaways from his speech and a question-and-answer session at campaign headquarters in Moscow on Sunday night. Putin’s dream “I dreamed of …
Read More »France pours cold water on Ukraine’s EU dream
Ukraine will have to meet the EU’s economic and political standards before being allowed to join the bloc, French Europe Minister Laurence Boone told lawmakers in Paris on Wednesday. The minister was briefing French MPs on the decision by EU leaders to greenlight formal accession talks with Kiev, reached at …
Read More »Japan’s ruling party secures majority to fulfill Abe’s ‘dream’
Japan’s current and former prime ministers’ Liberal Democratic Party, alongside its coalition partner Komeito, have won enough seats to comfortably secure the two-thirds majority needed to push forward long-debated constitutional changes. The ruling coalition claimed 75 of the 125 House of Councillors seats up for grabs on Sunday, according to local media. …
Read More »Is the Olympic dream over for Russia’s ‘Empress’?
The level of talent on display in St. Petersburg across the past few days has been nothing short of staggering. Commentators on Russian TV gushed that they’d never seen anything like it, even in a country with such a storied history of female figure skating icons. Fans in the stands …
Read More »Clash in the Caucasus: As Georgia’s EU dream crashes on the rocks, bombastic Saakashvili’s dramatic return has been a non-event
The small but strategically important Caucasus country elected the American-backed Mikhail Saakashvili to serve as president from 2004 to 2013. Still revered by some as an eminent reformer but loathed by others as a self-seeking political gambler given to histrionics and authoritarian tendencies, he has just tried and failed to …
Read More »Teenage dream: Britain’s Raducanu makes history with staggering US Open title win over Fernandez
In an all-teenage final at Flushing Meadows, Raducanu ran out a straight-sets winner 6-4 6-3 to become the first British female Grand Slam singles champion in 44 years. Appearing in just her second Grand Slam, the teenage star also became the first qualifier – male or female – to go …
Read More »Gilgamesh Dream: US confiscates Sumerian tablet stolen from Iraq & bought by Hobby Lobby
On Tuesday, the US Justice Department announced that Hobby Lobby – whose owners are devout Christians – agreed to forfeit the artifact, which contains a portion of the ancient Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the world’s oldest works of literature. “Forfeiture of the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet demonstrates the [DOJ’s] …
Read More »‘Disney Dream’ put off: Cruise line postpones test voyage over ‘small number’ of ‘inconsistent’ Covid-19 tests among 300 staff
While US health officials had approved the two-night cruise set for later this week, Disney rescheduled the trip on Monday, pointing to issues with Covid-19 tests. Part of the company’s efforts to secure a conditional sailing certificate amid ongoing pandemic restrictions, the “simulation” cruise will now take place next month, …
Read More »Is the American dream really losing its appeal in China?
“Are Chinese people falling out of love with the Western dream?” Kristin Huang asked in the South China Morning Post on Monday. The piece is a reflection of the times we live in, covering the consequences of the growing geopolitical rift between China and the West, which has been exacerbated …
Read More »Marvel-lous: Zenit’s Dzyuba fulfils a dream by donning Deadpool costume on his way to lift Russian Premier League trophy (VIDEO)
Never shy to make a spectacle of himself, the hitman headed out to the pitch in the eye-catching red-and-black costume of X-Men character Deadpool as Zenit strolled to glory with an emphatic 6-1 win over their nearest rivals, second-placed Lokomotiv Moscow. The resounding victory created an unassailable nine-point gap over …
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