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HRW Says Kazakh Authorities Should Not Deport Karakalpak Activists To Uzbekistan
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on October 14 that Kazakh authorities should not extradite four Karakalpak diaspora activists to Uzbekistan, where they would face a serious risk of politically motivated prosecution and torture.
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The New York-based rights organization said all four activists – who emigrated to Kazakhstan a year ago – have advocated for protecting the sovereignty of Uzbekistan’s Autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan, where protests erupted earlier this year over proposed constitutional amendments.
“Uzbek authorities appear to be targeting diaspora Karakalpak activists as part of their heavy-handed response to the July protests in Karakalpakstan,” Mihra Rittmann, senior Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement on October 14.
“There is no doubt these activists face a serious risk of torture and politically motivated prosecution if forcibly returned to Uzbekistan," she said, "and Kazakhstan is legally prohibited from sending them back in such circumstances.”
Rittman said Kazakh authorities should refuse the request and release the activists.
Acting on information that the activists were placed on an international wanted list by Uzbek authorities, Kazakh police detained the four activists from the Karakalpak diaspora in Almaty between September 13 and October 5, HRW said.
The four were identified as Koshkarbai Toremuratov, a dissident blogger; Zhangeldy Zhaksymbetov, an opposition figure; Raisa Khudaibergenova, a cardiologist; and activist Ziyuar Mirmanbetova.
The charges against them have not been made public. But a Karakalpak activist in Almaty, Akylbek Muratov, who has seen several documents pertaining to the charges, told HRW that the four are wanted by Uzbekistan for alleged offenses against the state.
Mass protests took place in Karakalpakstan in early July after changes initiated by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev were proposed to the Uzbek Constitution. The changes included the removal of an article that guaranteed the right of Karakalpakstan to seek independence should its citizens choose to do so in a referendum.
The European Union has called for an independent investigation into the violent events in Karakalpakstan that, according to Uzbek authorities, left 21 people dead.
Karakalpaks are a Central Asian Turkic-speaking people. Their region used to be an autonomous area within Kazakhstan before becoming autonomous within the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic in 1930 and then part of Uzbekistan in 1936.
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Myanmar Earthquake Death Toll Tops 1,700 As Fears Mount Of Rising Casualties
The death toll from the powerful earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28 has risen to over 1,700, with fears that the number could soar in the coming days.
The 7.7-magnitude quake -- one of the strongest the war-torn country has experienced in a century -- also shook neighboring Thailand, causing damage and fatalities there.
The quake in Myanmar left around 1,700 dead, 3,400 injured, and more than 300 missing as of March 30, the Southeast Asian country’s military government said.
International aid agencies also warn of an expanding humanitarian crisis in the earthquake's aftermath.
"The destruction has been extensive, and humanitarian needs are growing by the hour," the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said in a statement, warning that there was “an urgent need to stabilize” the situation ahead of the monsoon season before secondary crises emerge.
Rescue workers in Myanmar are continuing to search for possible survivors in the rubble of collapsed buildings, and the country’s military leadership has declared a state of emergency across six regions and allowed hundreds of foreign rescue personnel into the country to assist with the quake’s devastating aftermath.
The junta chief, General Min Aung Hlaing, warned that the number of fatalities could go up and his administration faced a challenging situation, state media reported, days after he made a rare call for international assistance.
India, China, and Thailand are among Myanmar's neighbors that have sent relief materials and teams, along with aid and personnel from Malaysia, Singapore, and Russia.
Myanmar’s military government is locked in a fight with insurgents, a situation that could hamper the rescue and relief operation.
The opposition National Unity Government said that anti-junta fighters under its command would pause all offensive military actions for two weeks as of March 30.
Critical Infrastructure Severely Damaged
Across the country of 55 million, critical infrastructure -- including bridges, highways, airports, and railways -- has been severely damaged, hampering humanitarian operations.
The quake comes on top of an already dire situation in a county wracked by a conflict that has battered the economy, displaced over 3.5 million people ,and debilitated the health system.
In some areas near the epicenter in central Myanmar, residents told Reuters that government assistance was scarce, leaving people to fend for themselves.
The U.S. Geological Service's predictive modelling estimated Myanmar's death toll could top 10,000 and losses could exceed the country's annual economic output, Reuters reported.
Hospitals in parts of central and northwestern Myanmar, including the second-biggest city, Mandalay, and the capital Naypyitaw, were struggling to cope with an influx of injured people, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said late on March 29.
The quake also shook parts of neighboring Thailand, triggering the collapse of an under-construction skyscraper in Bangkok and killing at least 18 people across the capital, according to local authorities.
As of March 30, at least 76 people remained trapped beneath the rubble of the collapsed building, where rescue operations continued for a third day on March 30, using drones and sniffer dogs to hunt for survivors.
With reporting by Reuters
Iran's President Publicly Rejects Trump's Letter Calling For Nuclear Negotiations
Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian publicly rejected holding direct negotiations with Washington over its rapidly expanding nuclear program, which had been proposed in a letter from US President Donald Trump and delivered to Tehran earlier this month.
“Although the possibility of direct negotiations between the two sides has been rejected in this response, it has been emphasized that the path for indirect negotiations remains open,” Pezeshkian said in televised remarks on March 30, referring to Trump’s letter.
While high-ranking Iranian officials had previously spoken against the idea of holding nuclear talks with the United States, Pezeshkian’s comments mark Iran’s first formal rejection of the US call for negotiations.
Since Trump returned to the White House, his administration has consistently said that Iran must be prevented from acquiring nuclear weapons and they have previously warned that military action is on the table should Iran reject Trump’s outreach.
Pezeshkian’s remarks now help set the stage for a further rise in tensions between Tehran and Washington over the country’s nuclear program.
Iran has long maintained that its program is for peaceful use, but Iranian officials have also threatened to pursue a weapon as tensions amid a growing standoff with the United States over sanctions and renewed bombing in the Gaza Strip following the collapse of a cease-fire in Israel’s war against Iran-backed Hamas, which is deemed a terrorist organization by the United States and the EU.
A report in February by the UN’s nuclear watchdog said that Iran has accelerated its production of near weapons-grade uranium.
An Emirati delegation delivered a letter to Tehran from Trump proposing nuclear talks with the United States earlier this month, but hours before it arrived Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had already dismissed the prospect of talks with the Trump administration.
Similar comments were made by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on March 27 when he said that Tehran had sent a formal written response to Trump via Oman which maintained that Iran will not hold direct negotiations as long as Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign is in effect.
“This official response includes a letter in which our position regarding the current situation and Mr. Trump's letter has been fully explained to the other party,” Araqchi said.
In his televised comments, Pezeshkian offered the most direct acknowledgement yet that Tehran has rejected direct talks, although he left the door open for indirect negotiations with the United States and trust-building efforts.
“We don’t avoid talks; it’s the breach of promises that has caused issues for us so far,” Pezeshkian said. “They must prove that they can build trust,” he said, referring to the United States.
Iran’s economy has been reeling from years of sanctions, particularly after Trump, in his first term, pulled the United States out of a landmark nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed sanctions.
Tehran is looking to find ways to ease those sanctions or have them removed entirely, but the public rejection of Trump’s letter could lead to new pressure from Washington and other powers who are worried about Iran's nuclear program.
More sanctions could also be coming if Tehran doesn't reach an agreement.
With the 2015 nuclear deal set to formally expire in October 2025, world powers that are still part of the pact have only have a few months before they lose the ability to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran.
With reporting by the Associated Press
Ukraine Accuses Russia Of 'War Crime' Following Attack On Military Hospital
Kyiv accused Moscow of a "war crime" after Russian drones struck a military hospital in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, as part of an overnight attack that also hit a shopping center, apartment blocks, and other targets, killing at least two people according to authorities.
The Ukrainian military’s general staff accused Russia of “violating the norms of international humanitarian law” in the attack, which they denounced as “deliberate, targeted shelling."
They added on March 30 that casualties included servicemen undergoing treatment in the medical center.
An hour before the Kharkiv attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Kyiv expected a strong response from Western countries to the near daily Russian drone attacks on its territory.
“Our partners should clearly understand: These strikes are not just attacks on Ukrainian civilians, but also on all international efforts -- on the very diplomacy we are trying to use to end this war," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address on March 29.
In addition to the attacks on Kharkiv, Ukrainian authorities said that Russia fired a ballistic missile and launched drones as part of a barrage that also hit the cities of Dnipro, Kryviy Rih, and Poltava.
In total, Ukrainian authorities said that the overnight attacks killed at least two people and injured 26 others across the country.
Zelenskyy’s remarks came after a 24-period of intensifying deadly strikes by Russian forces. The Ukrainian president added that “for too long,” a US proposal for an unconditional cease-fire has been on the table “without a proper response from Russia. That says a lot.”
“Russia is striking at the positions of everyone who wants to end this war. It is impossible to ignore hundreds of Shaheds every night,” he added, referring to Iranian-made drones.
Zelenskyy's comments follow a recent series of US-led talks aimed at establishing a lasting truce between Kyiv and Moscow to end the full-scale war, which is now in its fourth year.
The highly sensitive diplomatic juncture comes after the White House announced on March 25 that both Russia and Ukraine agreed to a cease-fire and to allow navigation in Black Sea.
Issues persist with implementing the deal. Kyiv says that it would take effect immediately and Moscow has stated that it would follow the partial lifting of sanctions pertaining to Russian companies and banks involved in the international food trade.
Earlier, a regional governor said a Russian drone attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro late on March 28 killed four people and sparked a large fire in a hotel and restaurant complex as well as at multiple private homes.
Russian forces used more than 20 drones in the strike on Dnipro, which also injured 25. Zelenskyy said a pregnant woman was among the injured.
Pictures and videos posted on social media showed flames and large plumes of smoke in the air. Others showed shattered buildings, the badly damaged upper floors of a high-rise apartment block, and streets strewn with smashed glass and pieces of buildings.
Elsewhere on March 29, at least seven people were injured in a missile strike on Kryviy Rih, Ukraine’s state emergency service said.
Meanwhile, Russia claimed it had captured two more villages in eastern and southern Ukraine as it pressed forward with its ground attacks.
The Defense Ministry in Moscow said its forces had taken villages in the southern Zaporizhzhya region and in the eastern Donetsk region. The reports could not immediately be confirmed.
With reporting by Reuters
- By RFE/RL
American Woman Freed By Taliban, Second Release Of US Hostage In 8 Days
An American woman has been released by the Taliban rulers in Afghanistan after being detained since February, the second freeing of a US citizen in the past eight days.
In a video posted by US President Donald Trump on March 29, Faye Hall said she had been released by the Taliban after being detained in the war-torn country last month.
"I've never been so proud to be an American citizen," Hall said in the video. "Thank you, Mr President…God bless you."
Trump thanked Hall for the comments and added: "So honored with your words!"
Former U.S. Special Representative to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad first announced the release hours earlier on X, saying it had occurred on March 27. He said she was in the care of the Qatari delegation in Kabul.
"American citizen Faye Hall, just released by the Taliban, is now in the care of our friends, the Qataris in Kabul, and will soon be on her way home," said Khalilzad, who has been part of a US team seeking the release of hostages held by the Taliban.
The development came a week after George Glezmann, 66, was released from detention in Kabul following the first visit by a senior US official to Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power in the wake of the withdrawal of international troops in August 2021.
Hall had been detained in February while with a British couple in their 70s, Barbie and Peter Reynolds.
British media said the Reynolds had been operating school projects in Afghanistan for 18 years and had remained in the country despite the Taliban’s return to power.
Reuters quoted a US official as saying Adam Boehler, Washington's special envoy for hostage affairs, had worked with Qatari officials and others to win Hall’s release.
There was no immediate information on the British couple. Their daughter has pleaded for their release, citing health concerns.
Several Americans are still detained in Afghanistan.
Upon his release, Glezmann also thanked Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and others who helped free him.
He told Fox News he was abducted in the streets of Kabul and thrown "into a dungeon with no windows no nothing."
Two other Americans held in Afghanistan were exchanged in late January for a Taliban man imprisoned for life in California on drug and terrorism charges.
Ryan Corbett and William McKenty were swapped for Khan Mohammed, who was sentenced to two life terms in 2008 and was incarcerated in a US prison.
Aid worker Corbett, 40, and Mahmood Habibi, 37 -- who led the Afghan Aviation Authority under the previous Afghan government -- were detained separately in August 2022.
The world community has not recognized the Taliban as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan, although some countries -- including Russia, China, and Turkey -- still maintain embassies in Kabul.
Qatar has also maintained direct contact with the Taliban and has helped broker negotiations for the release of US hostages.
Amid poverty and unrest in the country, the Taliban rulers have made moves to open ties with the rest of the world. Western nations are reluctant to engage with the extremist group amid complaints of widespread human rights violations, especially against girls and women.
With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Azadi, Reuters, AFP, and AP
- By RFE/RL
Amsterdam Stabbing Rampage Suspect Is From Ukraine, Police Say
Police in the Netherlands said on March 29 that a man suspected of a stabbing rampage that wounded five people in Amsterdam is a Ukrainian national from the eastern Donetsk region.
The 30-year-old man is suspected of using multiple knives to randomly stab five people in a busy shopping area in central Amsterdam on March 27 and is set to appear in court on April 1, police said in a statement.
The motive for the attack remains unclear, and the investigation remains ongoing, police said.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tykhiy said Kyiv’s Embassy is “close contact with the law enforcement agencies of the Netherlands” and seeking additional information.
He added that the embassy is attempting to determine how the suspect arrived in the country and that it plans to work closely with Dutch authorities.
"We wish a speedy recovery to the victims. Such violence has no justification, and the perpetrator must be held accountable," Tykhiy added.
Two US citizens -- a 67-year-old woman and a 69-year-old man -- were among the victims of the attack, as were a 26-year-old man from Poland, a 73-year-old Belgian woman, and a 19-year-old woman from Amsterdam, police said.
They said the Polish man had been released from hospital, while the other victims remained hospitalized but in a stable condition.
Police said in the statement that the man checked into an Amsterdam hotel on March 26, the day before the attack. They did not release further details about his identity or arrival in the country.
A bystander wrestled the assailant to the ground during the attack and held him until police arrived.
Much of the Donetsk region, where Dutch police said the alleged assailant hails from, is occupied by Russia following the Kremlin’s armed incursion into eastern Ukraine in 2014 and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine that Russia launched in February 2022.
With reporting by Reuters and AP
- By RFE/RL
Myanmar Quake Death Toll Crosses 1,600, Scores Still Missing
The death toll of a 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar has climbed to more than 1,600 amid fears that the casualty figures will continue to rise in the war-torn nation and in neighboring Thailand.
Myanmar’s military-run government said on March 29 that 1,644 people were killed in the earthquake that rocked the region a day earlier, while authorities in Thailand said at least 10 people have been found dead so far.
The toll of those injured rose to 3,408, while the number of those missing increased to 139.
Rescue workers in Myanmar on March 29 continued to search for possible survivors in the rubble of collapsed buildings, and the country’s military leadership allowed hundreds of foreign rescue personnel to enter to assist in the effort.
The country’s junta government declared a state of emergency across six regions and its isolated leader, General Min Aung Hlaing, said earlier on state television that he had invited "any country" to provide help and donations.
Myanmar’s military government is locked in a fight with anti-junta insurgents, a situation that could hamper the rescue and relief operation.
A spokesman for the opposition National Unity Government said earlier that fighters from the anti-junta militias known as the People's Defense Forces would provide humanitarian help.
Historic City At Epicenter
According to the US Geological Survey, the earthquake occurred at around 1:30 p.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometers near Mandalay, the second-largest city in Myanmar. It was followed 11 minutes later by a 6.4-magnitude aftershock.
The tremors left buildings, bridges, and roads wrecked in the epicenter, Mandalay, an ancient city of about 1.5 million people, residents and local media said.
Reuters cited an unnamed resident as saying that destruction stretched across the entire city, leaving it with no electricity and disrupted phone lines.
Thailand’s capital, Bangkok -- located more than 600 miles from the epicenter -- was declared a disaster zone after the quake sent high-rise buildings swaying.
Thailand's deputy prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, said authorities had mobilized all possible resources in the search for survivors and to retrieve the remains of the deceased.
"We always have hope," Charnvirakul told reporters. "We're still working around the clock."
Thailand's state-owned operator of the country's airports said in a statement on March 29 that operations at six airports -- including in Bangkok and Phuket -- had returned to normal operations and safety inspections.
With reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters
Civilians Killed In Pakistani Drone Strikes Targeting Militants
Multiple civilians, including women and children, were killed in a Pakistani military operation targeting militants in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a provincial official said.
Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, a spokesperson for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, said in a March 29 statement that nine members of a family were killed unintentionally in the operation the previous day in the mountainous Katlang area of the province’s Mardan district.
“Several wanted terrorists were successfully targeted during the operation,” Saif said, adding that civilians living nearby, including women and children, were also killed.
Local residents told RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal that the victims, originally from Swat Valley, had been living in isolation in the Katlang area. They claimed the victims were killed as a result of military drone strikes on the family’s makeshift tent.
The incident sparked public outrage, with relatives and local residents staging a protest and temporarily blocking the Swat Motorway -- a major route leading to the Swat Valley -- to condemn the killing of civilians.
Mardan district police spokesperson Fahim Khan told Radio Mashaal that the bodies had been transferred to the district headquarters hospital for post-mortem examination, and that investigations into the incident are ongoing.
An unidentified police source was quoted by the AFP news agency as saying earlier on March 29 that the Pakistani military carried out three drone strikes targeting "Pakistani Taliban hideouts" in the region.
Violence On The Rise
The operation comes amid a rise in violent attacks in Pakistan’s strategic region bordering Afghanistan and Iran.
The extremist Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State-Khorasan groups are behind an escalating insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.
Earlier on March 29, a Pakistani intelligence official told Radio Mashaal that at least seven soldiers and six suspected militants were killed during a separate military operation in the province.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with the media, said five soldiers were also injured in the clash in the province’s Lakki Marut district and had been taken to a military hospital in the city of Bannu for treatment.
The official did not identify which militant group was involved in the clash, but AFP cited an unidentified police source as saying the operation targeted “armed Taliban” fighters.
Since the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan following the US withdrawal in 2021, violence by both TTP militants and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist militant group pursuing Balochistan's secession from Pakistan, has been on the rise.
BLA militants claimed responsibility for an unprecedented attack earlier this month with the hijacking of a passenger train with more than 400 people on board.
The Pakistani military previously claimed to have killed 11 suspected militants in four separate operations and clashes in North Waziristan and Dera Ismail Khan on March 26-27.
Radio Mashaal was unable to independently verify that claim.
Police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province said in a report released on March 19 that, in the first 10 weeks of this year, there were a total of 68 attacks on police, in which a total of 26 soldiers were killed.
The Pakistani government says it is committed to fighting terrorism.
In a March 23 speech, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said the nation and its security agencies are "united" against terrorism and will not allow militant groups to achieve their "unspeakable" goals.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who chairs Pakistan's National Security Committee, said on March 18 that the government should respond to terrorism with "full force."
With reporting by AFP
Russian Drone Attack On Ukrainian City Of Dnipro Kills 4, Injures 25, Governor Says
A Russian drone attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro late on March 28 killed four people and sparked a large fire in a hotel and restaurant complex as well as multiple private homes, the regional governor said.
"According to the information we have at the moment, there are four deaths in Dnipro," said Serhiy Lysak, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, on Telegram.
Russian forces used more than 20 drones in the strike on Dnipro, which also injured 25. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a pregnant woman was among the injured.
"Russia mocks the world’s peace efforts -- dragging out the war and committing these acts of terror because it still doesn’t feel real pressure," Zelenskyy said in his X post on March 29.
Lysak said a high-rise apartment building and nearly 10 private homes had caught fire. The blaze in the hotel complex has been brought under control, he said.
Pictures and videos posted on social media showed flames and large plumes of smoke in the air. Others showed shattered buildings, the badly damaged upper floors of a high-rise apartment block, and streets strewn with smashed glass and pieces of buildings.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha called the attack "Putin’s response to US cease-fire proposals."
Elsewhere on March 29, at least seven people were injured in a missile strike on Kryviy Rih, Ukraine’s state emergency service said in a statement.
The attack also damaged residential buildings, a store, a car wash, and an infrastructure facility along with more than 20 cars.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s armed forces on March 28 reported that a strike carried out the day before in the Bryansk region of Russia destroyed the military infrastructure of a checkpoint. The Ukrainian Air Force struck the Pogar border checkpoint in the locality of Sluchovsk in the Bryansk region, the General Staff of the Armed Forces said.
In addition to the military infrastructure, the strike destroyed the checkpoint’s means of communication and electronic warfare as well as a video surveillance system, according to the Ukrainian military. Casualties among personnel are preliminarily estimated at 15 to 40 Russian servicemen, the General Staff said.
It was not possible to verify the claims.
The General Staff called the air strike a response to the Russian Army’s continued drone attacks on Ukrainian settlements, which destroy civilian infrastructure and kill Ukrainian citizens.
"It is known that Russian [drone] launches have been repeatedly recorded from the Pogar location. The destruction of the specified checkpoint reduces the enemy's potential for conducting combat operations against units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine in the Sumy region and in the Kursk direction," the command said in a statement.
The Russian Defense Ministry did not report a strike on the Pogar checkpoint. The governor of the Bryansk region announced a strike on an agricultural enterprise in the area the day before.
Meanwhile, amid a series of US-led talks aimed at establishing a lasting truce between Kyiv and Moscow, US Vice President JD Vance said on March 28 that he sees "an incredible amount of progress" being made toward a peaceful resolution of the war in Ukraine.
"We make sure that what we're seeing from one party is met by the other party and vice versa [...] For the first time in four years, thanks to President Trump's leadership we have an opportunity to really achieve a peaceful settlement," Vance told reporters while visiting the US military base at Pituffik in Greenland.
With reporting by Reuters
- By Ray Furlong
RFE/RL Continues Lawsuit As It Awaits Funds; Judge Blocks Dismantling Of VOA
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is continuing legal action against the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) to secure the release of congressionally appropriated funding, it said in a statement on March 28.
USAGM oversees RFE/RL, Voice of America (VOA), and other US international media.
The USAGM claimed to terminate RFE/RL’s grant on March 15, hours after an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump called for the reduction of seven agencies -- including the USAGM -- to “the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.”
On March 26, USAGM wrote to RFE/RL saying that it was reversing the announcement but that this was “without prejudice to USAGM’s authority to terminate the grant.”
RFE/RL’s lawsuit maintains that USAGM does not have this authority, since the grant was awarded by an act of Congress.
A statement released by RFE/RL on March 27 said “RFE/RL awaits official confirmation from USAGM that grant funding will resume.”
The new statement on March 28 made it clear that this had not yet happened.
“We look forward to receiving the funds that Congress has appropriated to us through the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM). Until then, we will pursue all necessary legal remedies to ensure that Congressional intent is respected,” it said.
The statement also said RFE/RL’s commitment to its audiences and congressionally mandated mission "remains steadfast.”
On March 25, a US court granted RFE/RL’s request for a temporary restraining order (TRO), ruling that USAGM had acted “arbitrarily and capriciously” in terminating RFE/RL’s grant.
The grant's termination was communicated in a letter signed by Kari Lake, who listed her title as “Senior Advisor to the (USAGM) Acting CEO with Authorities Delegated by Acting CEO.”
After writing to RFE/RL on March 26, Lake continued to criticize RFE/RL and other USAGM entities.
“The question to the American people is do you want your hard-earned tax dollars going to this type of propaganda? I’m fighting it right now at the US Agency for Global Media and it’s going to be a battle,” she told Newsmax.
In a subsequent interview on One America News, Lake said that she had not yet had time to review the journalism of USAGM entities.
A federal judge in New York later on March 28 criticized USAGM's leadership, including Lake, for pulling the plug “seemingly overnight” on VOA and other news organizations run by the USAGM with “no consideration of the effects.”
Judge James Paul Oetken's comments came in an order blocking the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle VOA, calling the move a “classic case of arbitrary and capricious decision making.”
Oetken faulted the Trump administration for “taking a sledgehammer to an agency that has been statutorily authorized and funded by Congress."
In a win for VOA, the judge issued a temporary restraining order barring the agency from “any further attempt to terminate, reduce-in-force, place on leave, or furlough” employees or contractors, and from closing any offices or requiring overseas employees to return to the United States.
“This is a decisive victory for press freedom and the First Amendment, and a sharp rebuke” to the Trump administration’s “utter disregard for the principles that define our democracy,” said Andrew G. Celli Jr., a lawyer for VOA.
Celli represents a coalition of VOA journalists, labor unions, and Reporters Without Borders that sued the Trump administration after Trump issued the executive order that cut funding to the USAGM and six other unrelated federal entities as part of his campaign to shrink government and align its with his political agenda.
According to the lawsuit, VOA employees were told to finish their live broadcasts on March 15 then vacate the building. Soon after, the lawsuit said, they lost access to agency computer systems, including e-mail. VOA news website hasn’t been updated since.
The plaintiffs argued that in the absence of VOA's programming “propagandists whose messages will monopolize global airwaves” is filling the vacuum.
Trump and other Republicans have accused VOA of having a “leftist bias” and failing to project “pro-American” values to its worldwide audience, even though it is mandated by Congress to serve as a nonpartisan news organization.
Lake, a former television journalist, has been especially harsh in her characterization of the content produced by VOA, RFE/RL, and the other news organizations.
“We want to make sure that these agencies are in line with what our American values are. We’re telling America’s story. We’re not telling our adversaries’ stories.”
“By God," she said, “we’re not going to be putting out anti-American garbage.”
Separately on March 28, Radio Free Asia (RFA), another of USAGM's stakeholders, said it would shut down by the end of April if the courts did not prevent the Trump administration from cutting its funding.
RFA has filed a motion to stop the USAGM's termination of funding and ensure access to funds appropriated by Congress.
"The filing emphasizes the irreparable harm being done to RFA’s operations, its reputation, and its ability to protect journalists reporting from some of the most dangerous parts of the world," it said in a statement.
"Without court intervention, RFA is expected to fully shut down by the end of April."
RFA said it has already furloughed 75 percent of its US-based staffed and suspended more than 90 percent of its freelance journalists.
The agency has broadcast across Asia since 1996. Rights activists say its multilingual reporters provide reliable news in authoritarian countries, raising awareness about the plight of oppressed minorities such as Uyghur Muslims in China.
With reporting by AP and Reuters
- By RFE/RL
More Than 1,000 Killed, Scores Missing After Powerful Quake Hits Myanmar, Thailand
A strong 7.7-magnititude earthquake hit Southeast Asia on March 28, killing more than a thousand people in Myanmar and neighboring Thailand amid fears the casualty figures will continue to rise in both countries.
The death toll in Myanmar climbed to 1,002, the military government said on March 29. Fatalities have also been reported in neighboring Thailand, where the quake rattled buildings and brought down a skyscraper under construction in the capital Bangkok.
The Myanmar government has declared a state of emergency across six regions and the isolated country’s junta leader, General Min Aung Hlaing, made a rare request for international humanitarian aid.
He said on state television that he had opened routes for international assistance and invited "any country" to provide help and donations. Myanmar’s military government is locked in a fight with anti-junta insurgents, a situation that could hamper the rescue and relief operation.
A spokesman for the opposition National Unity Government said fighters from the anti-junta militias known as the People's Defense Forces would provide humanitarian help.
According to the US Geological Survey, the earthquake occurred around 1:30 p.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometers near Mandalay, the second-largest city in Myanmar. It was followed 11 minutes later by a 6.4-magnitude aftershock.
The tremors left buildings, bridges, and roads wrecked in the epicenter, Mandalay, an ancient city of about 1.5 million people, residents and local media said.
Reuters cited an unnamed resident as saying that destruction stretched across the entire city, leaving it with no electricity and disrupted phone lines.
Thailand’s capital, Bangkok -- located more than 600 miles from the epicenter -- was declared a disaster zone after the quake sent high-rise buildings swaying. Authorities said at least 10 people have been found dead so far.
Rescuers were searching for at least 80 construction workers trapped under a unfinished 33-story building that has collapsed into rubble in Bangkok, according to Defense Minister Phumtham Wechayachai.
With reporting by AP and Reuters
Lithuanian President 'Hopes For Miracle' As Search For US Troops Continues
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said he still “hopes for a miracle” as rescue crews continue work to recover a submerged military vehicle that was carrying four US soldiers who remain missing.
Nauseda told reporters after he arrived on March 28 to survey the situation at the Pabrade military training ground near Lithuania's border with Belarus that while many sceptics "would probably say there is nothing to hope for in these circumstances, I want to believe."
"I am still hoping for a miracle," he added.
Rescue operations have been under way since the early hours of March 25, when four US soldiers in an M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle went missing.
Their vehicle was found submerged in a bog out in the training ground, triggering a massive recovery effort involving hundreds of Lithuanian and US personnel and dozens of vehicles.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Davile Sakaliene said the rescue operation was able to remove "two to three meters of silt," but the vehicle was still not visible due to murky water.
"It's still not enough, and water is rushing into the incident site from a nearby lake," she told LRT radio earlier in the day. She previously said the vehicle was located in water and mud at “more than 5 meters down.”
Sakaliene said that the fate of the four soldiers has yet to be determined and that investigators have not ruled out the possibility that they are not in the vehicle, but elsewhere.
On March 27, US Ambassador to Lithuania Kara C. McDonald visited the site of the search operation, pledging that US authorities "will not rest until we find them."
Following the McDonald’s visit and the arrival of a team of US divers to the training ground, Sakalene said Lithuanians are “heartbroken” and “watching every moment of this rescue operation.”
“Just as America doesn’t leave its own behind, we in Lithuania don’t leave ours behind either. And we consider these American soldiers our own,” she told Fox News on March 28.
Lithuania, a NATO and EU member, hosts more than 1,000 US troops stationed in the Baltic nation on a rotational basis.
US Army Europe and Africa said in a statement earlier that the four soldiers were "conducting scheduled tactical training" when they went missing on March 25.
In the early hours of the rescue operation, several conflicting accounts emerged, including comments from NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that the four US soldiers were dead.
A NATO spokeswoman later walked back those comments.
Asked on the evening of March 26 by reporters if he had been briefed about the missing soldiers, US President Donald Trump said, “No, I haven’t.”
He has not commented on the situation since.
After New US Push, Ukraine Is Still Considering Minerals Deal
KYIV -- The Ukrainian government said it is still considering a draft agreement from the United States on the country's minerals amid media reports Washington has changed the terms of the deal several times.
Ukrainian Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced at a government meeting that Kyiv is forming its position on the agreement but lawmakers would only state their stance once there was consensus. Before then, she said, public discussion would be harmful.
As the United States has been engaging in shuttle diplomacy to bring peace to Ukraine, US President Donald Trump said on March 24 that he expected the two countries would soon sign a minerals and natural resources deal.
Speaking to Reuters, Mykhaylo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said that the draft agreement had yet to be finalized.
The news agency said that, according to three people familiar with the talks, the latest draft gives Ukraine no future security guarantees and requires it to contribute all income from the use of natural resources managed by state and private enterprises to a joint investment fund.
"Consultations are still happening at the level of the various ministries," Podolyak said.
Ukraine possesses significant deposits of critical minerals, including rare earths, although their exact size remains uncertain. Rare earth minerals are highly valued for their use in defense technologies, as well as in devices such as computers, smartphones, and batteries.
Recouping US Support
Last month, Ukraine and the United States reached a comprehensive agreement to develop Ukraine's vital mineral resources. The agreement was part of Trump's efforts to end the war and recoup some of the tens of billions of dollars the US has given Ukraine in financial and military aid since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
Following a contentious meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy at the White House on February 28, attempts to finalize the agreement collapsed.
At the heart of the original deal was a joint fund that would be financed by future profits from the extraction of valuable minerals in Ukraine.
It is not clear whether the terms of the minerals deal have changed or whether it will include the security guarantees for Ukraine that Zelenskyy has pushed for.
The Ukrainian president said on March 27 that the United States was "constantly" altering the terms of the proposed agreement, though he added that he did not want Washington to believe that Kyiv was opposed to it.
The London-based Financial Times reported on March 27 that the new draft agreement goes far beyond the first agreement and would cover all mineral resources, including oil and gas, and major energy assets across Ukraine.
In comments on X on March 28, Svyrydenko said that, given the importance of the agreement, "it is crucial for us to have a constructive dialogue with our American partners."
- By RFE/RL's Radio Farda and
- Kian Sharifi
Insisting On Indirect Talks, Iran Responds To Trump Letter Via Oman
Iran said it has given a "restrained" response to a letter by US President Donald Trump proposing direct talks over a new nuclear deal, as Tehran continues to insist on indirect negotiations.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on March 27 that Iran delivered its formal written response to Trump via Oman, maintaining that Tehran will not hold direct negotiations as long as Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign is in effect.
"This official response includes a letter in which our position regarding the current situation and Mr. Trump's letter has been fully explained to the other party," Araqchi said.
Trump’s letter was delivered to Iran by an Emirati official on March 12. Some observers have argued that Iran’s decision to reply via Oman was due to concerns over the relationship between the United Arab Emirates and Israel.
Others, however, have pointed to Trump’s rapport with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that Israel will be made aware of the contents of Iran’s letter by Washington.
Reports say Trump’s letter included a proposal for direct negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program and threats that failure to reach a deal would have severe consequences. Washington has not ruled out air strikes against Iran’s nuclear program.
Indirect Talks A No-Go
Ali Shamkhani, a top adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Tehran’s response was “restrained.”
“It has been said in the letter that Iran is ready for indirect negotiations and if talks are held on equal footing, there is readiness to take further steps to negotiate,” said Shamkhani, a former national-security adviser.
Ali Vaez, Iran Program director at the International Crisis Group, says Tehran’s insistence on indirect talks will not go down well in Washington because Trump cares about the optics of face-to-face negotiations.
“Trump has no interest in indirect negotiations,” Vaez told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda. “Any indirect talks through mediators, no matter how good they progress, will be vulnerable.”
Hossein Mousavian, a former Iranian ambassador to Germany, wrote on X that he believes Iran delivered “an ambiguous response” and “addressed all the key points in Trump’s letter.”
Vaez, however, criticized Iran’s negotiation tactics, arguing that decision-makers in Tehran “have no understanding” of how Trump operates.
“You cannot be ambiguous with Trump and his representatives. This type of diplomacy doesn’t work with this administration,” he said, adding that Iran needs to table a clear proposal for direct talks.
“Iran’s approach is a waste of time, and in the worst-case scenario, it’ll bring us to a dead-end where you can no longer have a peaceful resolution,” Vaez said.
The Islamic republic insists its nuclear program is peaceful, but there have been growing calls among hard-liners to weaponize it.
Trump pulled the United States out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran during his first term in office, arguing that it did not go far enough to rein in Iran's threat, such as restricting its missile program and ending support for its regional proxies.
Iran says it is willing to talk to lift US sanctions, but it has categorically ruled out talks over the missile program and regional activities.
With reporting by Elaheh Ravanshad of RFE/RL's Radio Farda
- By RFE/RL
U.S. Temporarily Restores Funding For War Crimes Research On Abducted Ukrainian Children -- Report
The United States has reportedly made a temporary reversal to cut a US-backed project to compile evidence of possible Russian war crimes related to the alleged abduction of Ukrainian children.
The yearslong US-funded effort, which was spearheaded in part by Yale University, had helped pave the way for the International Criminal Court to issue indictments against Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin’s main children’s advocate.
Yale researchers found that Putin and other top Russian officials were directly involved in an organized campaign to move children out of Ukrainian territories under Russian control, and move them into Russian summer camps and foster homes.
It was done, researchers said, with little to no effort to identify the children’s parents or legal guardians.
Earlier this month, the executive director of the Yale center, Nathaniel Raymond, told RFE/RL that the State Department was ending funding for the effort, something he called “a catastrophic blow" to efforts to document war crimes.
The Trump administration had also barred researchers from passing any of their evidence to the court's prosecutors. The White House has aggressively pushed back at The Hague court, all but declaring it to be illegitimate.
This week, however, the State Department reversed its decision, The Washington Post reported, and provided 6-weeks of funding to allow researchers to transfer its evidence to the European Union’s law enforcement agency, EUROPOL.
The State Department did not immediately respond to request for comment. Nor could Raymond be immediately reached.
Responding to a reporter’s question in Washington on March 27, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that the administration had stopped funding the effort, but suggested that the database of evidence was intact and would be transferred “to the appropriate authorities.”
“The data is secured. We secured the data,” Rubio said. “The program is not funded. It was part of the reductions that were made, but we secured the data and we’ve ensured that we have it and it can be transferred to any appropriate authorities.”
Russia, Ukraine Exchange Drone Strikes
KYIV -- Russia and Ukraine exchanged drone strikes overnight, as Russian forces increased the intensity of attacks on the ground.
In a statement, the Ukrainian Air Force said that, on the night of March 28, Russia launched 163 drones of various types.
Of the 163 drones launched overnight, the Ukrainian Air Force claimed to have shot down 89 of them. According to the air force, 51 failed to hit their targets, most likely as a result of electronic warfare countermeasures.
Over the past 24 hours, Russian troops have carried out massive shelling and air strikes on the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson and dozens of settlements in the region, said Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the regional military administration, on March 28.
Kherson has been a focal point of fighting near the front line, with residents living under constant threat from drone and artillery strikes.
Three people were reportedly killed and 12 others were injured in the latest shelling in Kherson.
Meanwhile, in Russia, the cities of Saratov and Engels were attacked overnight on March 28, with local residents reporting multiple explosions in the sky, according to Russian Telegram channels.
The Saratov region has repeatedly been a target for Ukrainian drone strikes, in particular because of the significant military airfield close to the city of Engels.
In total, the Russian Defense Ministry reported the interception of 78 Ukrainian drones in the early hours of March 28.
Increased Russian Attacks
As the United States engages in shuttle diplomacy to try to bring peace to Ukraine, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on March 28 that Russian troops had increased their activity on the ground, reporting 209 clashes in the last 24 hours.
The largest number of Russian attacks were in the direction of the strategic city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, the General Staff said.
The Ukrainian General Staff also announced that, since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has lost 910,750 military personnel, including 1,860 in the last 24 hours.
On March 5, Britain's Defense Ministry said that, so far in 2025, Russia had likely sustained approximately 90,000 casualties, killed or wounded. The ministry added that, since the beginning of the full-scale war, Russia had likely sustained 875,000 casualties.
Putin Suggests Temporary Administration For Ukraine To Move Toward Ending War
Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested Ukraine could be placed under a form of temporary international administration to allow for elections and the signing of key accords.
The long-term goal of such an administration would be reaching a settlement to end the war, Putin said during a visit to the Northern Fleet in Murmansk on March 28, according to Russian news agencies.
"This is just one of the options. I am not saying that there are no others," Putin said, speaking after talks in Paris about how to firm up Ukraine's position on and off the battlefield.
The idea could be implemented "under the auspices of the UN, the USA, with European countries" and with "partners and friends" of Russia, Putin said.
The goal would be "to hold democratic elections and bring to power a capable government enjoying the trust of the people and then to start talks with them about a peace treaty," Putin said.
Putin has long complained that Ukraine's authorities are not a legitimate negotiating partner because President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has remained in power beyond the end of his five-year mandate.
No Elections Under Martial Law
Elections were to be held in May 2024, but under Ukrainian law Zelenskyy remains president until new elections are held. But they cannot be held under martial law, which the country has been under since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022.
Putin repeated that he views the current leadership of Ukraine as illegitimate and he is therefore resistant to signing any documents with it.
Putin also expressed Russia's readiness for a peaceful settlement, saying Russia is "persistently and confidently moving toward achieving all the goals stated at the beginning" of the Russian invasion. "There is reason to believe that we will achieve them.”
He said he believed US President Donald Trump sincerely wants to end the conflict, and Trump's push for direct talks between US and Russian negotiators showed that Trump wants peace.
There has been no reaction from Ukraine to Putin's latest statements.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said it's too early to expect high-level talks with Russia.
"There's a lot of work to be done with both sides, particularly with the Russian side, which we haven't talked to for years," Rubio said on March 27 on his return flight to the United States after a Caribbean tour.
Asked how long it would take to make progress, Rubio said, "I just can't put a timeframe on that because it doesn't depend on us."
French President Emmanuel Macron, who on March 27 hosted a summit of the leaders of a "coalition of the willing," said they were more united around Ukraine than ever before and need to ensure that they're able to counter what he described as Russia's plan to draw out the negotiating process in order to grab more land.
"Our target is clear," Macron said at a press conference after the summit involving the leaders of 27 countries. "It is to achieve peace -- and to do this, we need to get Ukraine in the best possible place."
The summit discussed the potential deployment of European forces in Ukraine to complement a future cease-fire or peace deal.
"There will be a reassurance force operating in Ukraine representing several countries," Macron said.
He added that there is currently no unanimity on sending a European-led force and that not all members have agreed to participate, but he said that this is not required to move ahead.
The French president said that foreign ministers of coalition countries were tasked with looking at specific legal questions over any European-led reassurance force and told to report back in three weeks.
Whether the plan will result in a deployment or whether it will be integrated into diplomatic talks spearheaded by Washington remains to be seen.
Saudi Peace Talks
Following the summit, Zelenskyy said everyone understood that Russia does not seek peace and said that work on security guarantees would continue in the coming days and weeks.
Earlier this week, separate US talks with Kyiv and Moscow in Saudi Arabia led to the announcement of a deal that the White House said resulted in a cease-fire in the Black Sea and an agreement "to develop measures for implementing" their commitment to halt strikes on energy facilities.
But Russia is also demanding a number of conditions be met before it abides by the Black Sea agreement, including an easing of sanctions.
Macron said following the summit in Paris that he intends to speak to Trump and praised the recent US diplomacy.
Later on March 27, Trump adviser Elon Musk told Fox News that he believes there will be a negotiated peace to end the war.
“For the past two years, thousands of people have died every week for nothing. For what?” said Musk, who has become one of Trump's closest advisers.
He said he has "contempt" for people who want to continue the war without regard for those who are dying.
"I take great offense at those who…put the appearance of goodness over the reality of it,” he said. “Those who virtue signal and say we can’t give in to Russia but have no solution to stopping thousands of kids dying every day.”
Asked whether he is optimistic that Trump’s plan to end the war will work, Musk said the plan is the only thing that will work.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
- By RFE/RL
At Least 4 Russians Dead After Tourist Submarine Sinks In Egypt
At least four Russians died after a tourist submarine sank off the coast Hurghada, Egypt, on March 27.
The Russian Embassy in Egypt said all 45 tourists aboard the Sindbad were Russian citizens, confirming four fatalities while the fate of several others remained unknown.
It was unclear where the crew was from or whether they were among the dead.
“Most of those on board were rescued and taken to their hotels and hospitals in Hurghada,” the embassy said in a statement.
Local officials said that six people died and nine were injured in the incident.
It was not immediately clear what caused the submarine to sink in the popular Red Sea resort.
RFE/RL has not been able to independently verify available information.
This is a developing story and will be updated...
- By RFE/RL
New Russian Ambassador To US To Present Credentials On March 27
Russia's new ambassador to the United States will present his credentials to the Trump administration on March 27, the US State Department said.
Aleksandr Darchiyev, who was recently named as Russian ambassador to the United States, will present his credentials at 2:15 p.m. local time, according to the department's public schedule.
Louis L. Bono, the Senior Bureau official for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, will attend the “informal credential presentation,” according to the schedule.
Russia's RIA Novosti state news agency reported on March 26 that Darchiyev had arrived at his residence in Washington.
RIA Novosti said he told Russian journalists on arrival that a new "window of opportunity" had opened in the normalization of relations and the operation of diplomatic missions.
Moscow has not had an ambassador in the US since October.
Darchiyev previously served two long stints in the Russian Embassy in Washington and was ambassador to Canada from 2014 to 2021. He has been known in recent years for strong public denunciations of the United States and the West.
Darchiyev's appointment comes as Russia and the United States try to mend relations damaged by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and as US President Donald Trump pushes for a cease-fire in the conflict.
The White House said on March 26 that the United States reached separate agreements with Ukraine and Russia a day earlier to halt attacks in the Black Sea and "to develop measures for implementing" recent commitments to halt strikes on energy facilities.
Trump has said he wants to meet soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin in what would be the first meeting between Russian and US leaders since 2021.
With reporting by Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Macron Pushes Forward With Reassurance Force Plans For Ukraine Following Summit
Leaders from more than 30 countries met in Paris for talks about to how to firm up Ukraine's position on and off the battlefield as they promised new aid and considered proposals on the potential deployment of European forces in the country to complement a future cease-fire or peace deal.
Following the March 27 "coalition of the willing" summit, which does not include the United States, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the leaders gathered in Paris were more united around Ukraine than ever before. He said they need to ensure that they're able to counter what he described as Russia's plan to draw out the negotiating process in order to grab more land.
"Our target is clear," Macron said at a press conference after the summit. "It is to achieve peace -- and to do this, we need to get Ukraine in the best possible place."
The French president said that foreign ministers of coalition countries were tasked following the summit with looking at specific legal questions over any European-led reassurance force supporting a cease-fire, and told to report back in three weeks.
"There will be a reassurance force operating in Ukraine representing several countries," Macron said. "It is not Russia that can decide if a reassurance force can be stationed in Ukraine."
He added that there is currently no unanimity on sending a European-led force and that not all members have agreed to participate, but he said that this not required in order to move ahead.
Speaking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the eve of the summit, Macron said that the proposed reassurance force would not be on the front lines of the war and would not be tasked with monitoring or enforcing a cease-fire -- a job that he suggested could fall to UN peacekeepers.
At the March 27 press conference, Zelenskyy said that there were "many questions" and "few answers" over the possible deployment of European-led troops in Ukraine as part of any agreement.
"As for the actions of this contingent, its responsibilities -- what it can do, how it can be used, who will be in charge of it -- there are many questions. So far, there are few answers," Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy also urged the United States to respond to what he called Russia's violation of a commitment not to strike Ukrainian energy targets.
The Ukrainian leader said that energy infrastructure had been damaged in a Russian attack on March 27 and that it was "unclear who is monitoring" the pledges to halt such strikes.
Ukraine and Russia have traded accusations over breaching separate agreements with the United States to pause strikes against each other’s energy facilities.
Reaffirming Support For Ukraine
During the press conference, Macron added that a number of countries involved made further commitments of aid to Ukraine, including the French announcement of a new military aid package worth 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) on March 26.
Macron also said that European leaders had agreed not to ease sanctions imposed on Russia and that they would take additional measures to target Russia's so-called shadow fleet, a network of aged tankers used to covertly carry Russian crude oil around the world.
Earlier this week, separate US talks with Kyiv and Moscow in Saudi Arabia led to the announcement of a deal that the White House said resulted in a cease-fire in the Black Sea and an agreement "to develop measures for implementing" their commitments to halt strikes on energy facilities.
But Russia is also demanding a number of conditions be met before it abides by the Black Sea agreement, including an easing of sanctions.
Macron said following the summit in Paris that he intends to speak to US President Donald Trump and praised the recent US diplomacy.
Whether the plans will result in action on the ground and be integrated into diplomatic talks spearheaded by Washington remains to be seen.
Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy who has been involved in talks with Russia and Ukraine, earlier this week called the idea of the coalition “simplistic” and “a posture and a pose.”
Macron was asked about Witkoff’s criticism during his press conference and said that "we must hope for the best, but prepare for the worst," adding that he hoped that the United States would back the initiative but that his focus was on what Europe can do.
Easing Sanctions On Russia And A Black Sea Deal
US officials have recently raised the prospect of easing their set of sanctions on Russia.
Speaking to reporters during a working visit to Jamaica, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington will assess Moscow’s conditions.
"We're going to evaluate that. Some of those conditions include sanctions that are not ours -- they belong to the European Union," Rubio said at a news conference in Jamaica on March 26.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview with Fox News on March 26 that he believed Trump "would not hesitate to tighten sanctions if it gives him an advantage in negotiations." He added that tightening or easing sanctions would depend on further actions by the Russian leadership.
Meanwhile, in Ukraine, at least 11 people were injured in overnight drone strikes on the Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Dnipro on March 26, causing extensive damage.
Officials reported that Russian forces launched at least 86 Shahed drones at the two cities, hitting civilian buildings and vehicles.
- By Margot Buff and
- Austin Malloy
Iran Shows Off Military Might In Footage Of 'Underground Missile City'
Iran has released video showing a massive underground missile facility filled with a cache of high-powered weaponry.
The footage, shared by Iranian state media on March 25, showed Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Mohammad Baqeri and Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Aerospace Force commander, showing off what Iranian media said was an "underground missile city."
Some of Iran’s most advanced weapons are seen mounted on vehicles parked in the underground tunnels.
The release of the video comes at a moment of high tensions between Iran and the United States.
Farzan Sabet, a researcher specializing in nuclear nonproliferation and Middle East politics at the Geneva Graduate Institute, said the Islamic republic has made similar displays of its military strength in the past.
“During times of tension, they'll find various ways to signal their offensive military power, their defensive military power, and their deterrence capabilities. And so, one of the things they do, for example, is test missiles or carry out military exercises,” Sabet told RFE/RL. “One of the other things they do is to tour military facilities, and among those are missile facilities.”
On March 15, the United States launched large-scale air strikes on Yemen targeting the Iran-backed, US-designated terrorist group Ansarullah, better known as the Huthis.
Some defense observers consider the strikes to be intended in part as a warning to Iran.
Meanwhile, Iranian hard-liners have renewed a push for the development of nuclear weapons in the new Iranian year, which started on March 20.
US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on March 25 that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon. But she noted that US intelligence agencies are monitoring Iran’s nuclear activities closely.
Alone In A War-Torn Village, Ukrainian Man Buried His Wife And Walked To Safety
Humanitarian workers in Ukraine’s Donetsk region continue risking their lives to evacuate civilians trapped near the front lines.
Among them is Yevhen Tkachov, head of the Proliska Humanitarian Mission, who recently rescued an elderly man left alone after his wife was killed.
“We'll try to evacuate an old grandfather, who has frequent memory loss due to the war and concussion,” Tkachov told RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service while driving through a drone-active combat zone.
The evacuee, Hennadiy Shchipakin, had lived in Kalynove with his wife. While others fled, they chose to stay -- until tragedy struck.
“A few days ago, his wife was blown up and died,” Tkachov said.
Shchipakin walked alone to the village of Zorya after burying her.
“On the outskirts of the village, there was a tripwire. My wife went around it, but a dog tripped it,” he explained. “She died after a couple of days. The wounds were small. It was either an infection or shock. I buried her somehow.”
With her gone, he became Kalynove’s last remaining resident.
“The village is ruined. On Podolskiy Street, a long street on the hill, everything was leveled. There's nothing,” he said.
In Zorya, Nataliya, a former neighbor, awaited him.
“We were friends. They were like parents to us,” she said, recalling how isolated the couple had been. “There was no phone connection, no one at all. He buried her in a shed. When the war ends, they will bury her properly.”
Shchipakin is now being taken by ambulance to Kyiv to reunite with his son, whom he has not spoken to in months due to communication blackouts. Their brief phone call was their first in a long time.
“Good, good. Let’s meet. We’ll figure it out,” his son told him.
For Shchipakin, the war has taken everything -- but he is no longer alone.
- By RFE/RL
Zelenskyy, Macron Call for Unconditional Cease-Fire As Russia Tables Demands
French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy say Russia should accept a U.S.-brokered cease-fire with no preconditions.
Separately, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington will assess Moscow’s conditions for accepting the cease-fire.
At a joint press conference with Zelenskyy in Paris on March 26, Macron accused Russia of displaying a “desire for war” and insisted Moscow must accept the 30-day cease-fire “without preconditions.”
“This is a decisive phase to put an end to the war of aggression,” Macron said. On March 27, he will host delegations from the “coalition of the willing” -- a group of Ukraine’s allies seeking to aid Kyiv and secure a lasting cease-fire with Russia.
Zelenskyy, meanwhile, expressed hope that the United States wields enough influence to compel Russia into an unconditional cease-fire aimed at halting strikes in the Black Sea.
However, Washington says it will consider Russia’s conditions, which Moscow insists must be met before it agrees to the cease-fire.
"We're going to evaluate that. Some of those conditions include sanctions that are not ours – they belong to the European Union," Rubio said at a news conference in Jamaica on March 26.
Macron, however, pushed back, saying in Paris that it was “much too early” to consider lifting sanctions against Russia.
"We're not going to lift the sanctions, so it's much too early. Ultimately, sanctions depend solely on Russia's choice of aggression, and therefore, their lifting depends solely on Russia's choice to comply with international law," he said.
In addition to the Black Sea cease-fire, the White House said on March 25 that separate talks with Ukrainian and Russian representatives in Saudi Arabia this week resulted in an agreement "to develop measures for implementing" recent commitments to halt strikes on energy facilities.
Search Continues As NATO Walks Back Remarks On US Troop Deaths In Lithuania
The fate of four US soldiers who went missing in Lithuania during a training exercise is "unknown," a NATO spokeswoman said, walking back Secretary-General Mark Rutte's comment about their alleged deaths.
Rutte told reporters in Warsaw on March 26 that he had received news about "four American soldiers who were killed in an incident in Lithuania."
But after Lithuanian authorities disputed Rutte's remark, NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart wrote on X that the search for the missing soldiers was "ongoing."
"We regret any confusion about remarks [by Rutte] delivered on this today. He was referring to emerging news reports & was not confirming the fate of the missing, which is still unknown," she wrote.
The soldiers in the M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle have been missing since the early hours of March 25 at the Pabrade training ground where US units have been rotating since 2019.
The US Army confirmed that the vehicle used by the four soldiers had been found submerged in water.
Search and recovery efforts involving hundreds of Lithuanian and US personnel with dozens of vehicles were continuing on March 27, with attempts to reach the area still under way.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene said that the vehicle was located at “more than 5 meters down,” and digging is under way to get to it.
She added during a visit to the site, that other potential whereabouts of the four US soldiers are also being checked and have not yet been ruled out by investigators.
The soldiers have already spent two months on deployment in Lithuania, and the Baltic country's army is in touch with their families.
“Our armed forces and rescue services are working around the clock,” she added in a social media post showing the scene.
Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote on X on March 27 that his country was sending dozens of troops and scuba divers and equipment to Lithuania to help with the search.
US Ambassador to Lithuania Kara C. McDonald also visited the site of the search operation, where she praised Vilnius's assistance in the search and that US authorities "will not rest until we find them."
Asked on the evening of March 26 by reporters if he had been briefed about the missing soldiers, US President Donald Trump said, “No, I haven’t.”
US Army Europe and Africa said in a statement earlier that the four soldiers were "conducting scheduled tactical training" when they went missing on March 25.
The Pabrade training ground is located in eastern Lithuania, roughly 10 kilometers from the border with Belarus.
In a statement on March 26, the Lithuanian Army said the disappearance of the servicemen was reported at 4:45 p.m. local time on March 25, with official notification reaching Vilnius authorities by 7:20 p.m.
In Sign Of Move Away From Moscow, Armenian Parliament Votes To Start EU Bid
YEREVAN – Armenia’s parliament took another step in the country’s westward march, approving a bill calling for the government to seek European Union membership.
Adoption of the bill in the second and final reading was the latest move away from the orbit of Russia, as historical ties fray over what Yerevan says has been Moscow's glaring failure to support it in its conflict with neighbor and longtime adversary Azerbaijan.
The bill calling on the South Caucasus nation’s government to begin the EU accession process passed on March 26 with 64 yes votes, all from the ruling Civil Contract party, against seven no votes from opposition lawmakers.
“We submitted this bill so that the Republic of Armenia can express its political will for movement in the direction of the European Union. This process is irreversible. The people are calling for it,” said Artak Zeynalian, a former justice minister who represents a group advocating membership to the 27-nation bloc.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian backed the bill in January but noted that joining the EU would require a referendum. Armenia would also need to conduct major reforms in the justice system and other areas to have a chance of joining the 27-nation bloc.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought several wars in the past three decades over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which had been a majority ethnic-Armenian enclave since the Soviet collapse and is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory.
After Baku took full control over the region as the result of a lightning, one-day military offensive in September 2023, nearly 100,000 ethnic Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia. Yerevan accused Russia, which had almost 2,000 troops stationed in the region, of doing nothing to prevent the fighting and the subsequent exodus.
Days after the assault, Pashinian said in a televised address that Armenia’s existing security alliances – a reference to Russia and the Moscow-dominated Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) were "ineffective" and "insufficient.”
In February 2024, Pashinian froze Armenia's participation in the CSTO. It has also joined the International Criminal Court, meaning it would be expected to comply with an ICC arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin if he were to visit, and has deepened its defense ties with France.
Armenia held military drills with US troops in June 2024 and signed a strategic partnership agreement with the United States this January, a week before US President Donald Trump took office.
Russia has warned Armenia that a turn toward the EU could harm it in various ways, in particular economically. Russia’s deputy prime minister for Eurasian integration, Aleksei Overchuk, said in January that starting the process of joining the EU means “starting the process of leaving the Eurasian Economic Union,” a Moscow-led customs and trade alliance, adding that a country cannot be member of both blocs.
Last week, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu said Armenia risks losing tariff-free trade with Russia and a potential hike in Russian natural gas prices, and that Russia could expel large numbers of Armenian migrant workers.
Armenia and Azerbaijan announced last week that they had finalized the text of the historic peace deal, though it remains unclear exactly when their leaders would sign it.
With reporting by AFP
- By RFE/RL
Russian Court Convicts Azov Fighters Of Terrorism In Trial Kyiv Calls A 'War Crime'
A Russian court has convicted 23 Ukrainians who were captured in the siege of the city of Mariupol on terrorism charges and sentenced them to prison terms ranging from 13 to 23 years after a trial that Kyiv has described as a violation of international law and a "war crime."
The verdict and long prison terms came nearly two years after most of the defendants went on trial in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don, near Ukraine's border, in June 2023. Eleven of the initial 24 defendants were convicted in absentia after returning to Ukraine in prisoner exchanges, and one died in custody last year.
The Last Days Of Azovstal And The Fate Of Ukraine's Mariupol Defenders
According to Russian media reports and rights activists, the defendants included 14 current or former members of Ukraine's elite Azov Brigade, formerly known as a battalion and a regiment, which Russia has labelled a terrorist group, and nine women and one man who worked as cooks or support personnel.
The defendants were captured during Russia's bloody siege of the Azov Sea city of Mariupol months into the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Azov fighters battled Russian troops for months before around 2,500 surrendered in May 2022.
Many of them had held out at the Azovstal steel plant, whose capture cemented the Russian takeover of the ruined city.
The defendants were charged with staging a violent coup and organizing activities of a terrorist organization. Some were also charged with training to carry out terrorist activities.
In 2023, Mykhaylo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, wrote on Twitter that the trial amounted to "an official war crime."
A lawyer for one of the defendants said the 12 defendants who were in Russian custody would all appeal the verdicts. Acquittals and successful appeals are extremely rare in Russia.
With reporting by AP
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