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Pompeo began his trip with a Monday stop at the statue of Ronald Reagan in Budapest’s Liberty Square, completed in 2011 to commemorate his administration’s stalwart opposition to the Soviets. Then, on Tuesday morning in Bratislava, the secretary of state visited the Gate of Freedom memorial at Slovakia’s Austrian border. He ended the day with a meeting with Poland’s foreign minister, Jakub Czaputowicz. At every stop, Pompeo reminded his audience of U.S. and international reporters of the grim legacy of Soviet Communism while paying tribute to his host countries, which, he said, “cast off the Soviet yoke.” At the Gate...

Whether you like it or not, Joseph Stalin was one of the greatest anti-fascists in the history of the anti-fascist movement. Under Stalin's command, the Red Army defeated the nazis and saved several ethnic groups from nazi extermination. This is a legacy we cannot forget.

The recent controversy over the Orthodox Church in Ukraine has been the subject of a lot of confusion, especially online. The following questions and answers attempt to clear up confusion in a non-partisan way that does not take sides in the dispute.Updates will be added whenever new information comes to light, so check back periodically.LAST UPDATED OCT. 18, 2018Who are the players in the current dispute and what is being disputed?The primary parties in the dispute are the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate, MP), led by Patriarch Kyrill, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (EP), led by Patriarch Bartholomew.Directly affected...

Konstantin Goldenzweig resigned from the Kremlin-backed NTV channel Renowned Russian journalist Konstantin Goldenzweig has resigned from state-funded TV channel 'NTV' after becoming disenchanted with the Kremlin's misinformation campaign. He announced the move through Facebook on June 9, TJ reports. "I want to thank all my colleagues who helped me, taught me, encouraged me and were my friends. And continue to be my friends. And sorry for taking part in this propaganda madness. There is only one banal conclusion: the deals with your own conscience are only as good as those you can cancel" - Goldenzweig wrote.

Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs branch in Moscow has removed a “wanted” poster from its website after media reports identified the suspect featured in it as the deputy defense minister of the separatist Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine. The poster identified a man named Sergei Velikorodny, who is wanted on fraud charges, according to the page that was still available Wednesday as a cached version on Russia's Yandex search engine. The page also included his photo, provided his middle name — Nikolayevich — and said he was born on Jan. 30, 1976. The man in the photograph bears a...

MOSCOW — A top pro-Russia rebel commander in eastern Ukraine has given a bizarre version of events surrounding the Malaysian jetliner crash — suggesting many of the victims may have died days before the plane took off. The pro-rebel website Russkaya Vesna on Friday quoted Igor Girkin as saying he was told by people at the crash site that "a significant number of the bodies weren't fresh," adding that he was told they were drained of blood and reeked of decomposition.

KIEV, Ukraine — With a fierce onslaught of gunfire and mortar shelling, Ukrainian government forces on Saturday expelled pro-Russian insurgents from Slovyansk, a long-blockaded rebel stronghold, government officials and separatist leaders said. After rebels fled the city, the site of some of the fiercest battles throughout the insurrection, government forces raised the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian national flag above the City Council building. In retaking Slovyansk, Ukrainian forces did not necessarily deal a decisive blow to the rebels, but they were finally gaining traction and reasserting state authority in eastern Ukraine, three months after separatists seized cities and towns throughout the region,...

The slaughter of 53 protesters in the Maidan on February 20 changed history. Now, exclusive photographs show what really happened. KIEV, Ukraine—The first crack of a sniper’s round in Kiev’s Independence Square came shortly after nine o’clock on the morning of February 20 and the last about seven hours later at around four o’clock in the afternoon drawing to a close the bloodiest day in what had been a months-long struggle to oust Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych. Many of the 53 people slain died from clean shots to the head or neck—telltale wounds inflicted by expert marksmen; while others were...

MOSCOW, March 19. /ITAR-TASS/. The Communist Party of Russia suggests renaming one of the streets or squares in the Russian capital to celebrate the reunification of Crimea with Russia. Andrei Klychkov, the leader of the Communist Party faction in the Moscow State Duma, said on Wednesday that the party was going to submit its proposal to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin soon. They believe that Europe Square in front of the Kievsky railway station could be a perfect place to perpetuate the historical event. Klychkov said several new names for the square had been suggested. “The list of names includes Square...

Nato's military commander in Europe has issued a warning about the build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine's border. Supreme Allied Commander Europe Gen Philip Breedlove said Nato was in particular concerned about the threat to Moldova's Trans-Dniester region. Russia said its forces complied with international agreements. The build-up has been allied with Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, following the removal of Ukraine's pro-Moscow president. Moscow formally annexed Crimea after the predominantly ethic-Russian region held a referendum which backed joining the Russian Federation.

The spectacle of Russia swallowing pieces of a neighboring country while claiming to defend its people would make George Orwell grimace with recognition. This weekend's charade, a "referendum" in which we're told more than 96% voted to join Russia, fits perfectly with the Orwellian narrative. In this twilight zone of make-believe, Russian troops invade after removing the insignias from their uniforms and Putin explains, "You can go to a store and buy a uniform," claiming they are local "self-defense forces." Maybe Crimean shops also sell machine guns and armored personnel carriers. In this world of double-speak and misinformation, Moscow is...

As you watch or listen to "news" broadcasts about events in Ukraine and the Crimea, sometimes actual news with varying degrees of correct information, and sometimes either witting or unwitting propaganda, today's must-read report from Oleg Atbashian is something to keep in the back of your mind as context. Americans, and particularly naive liberals such as President Obama and much of his foreign policy team, may be inclined to consider the actions of Vladimir Putin and of Russian and Ukrainian nationalists through a filter of western democratic well-meaning...which means that just as they did with the "Arab Spring" they will...

t’s been a busy few weeks for Vladimir Putin. In the last month, the Russian president has hosted the Olympic Games, invaded a neighboring country and massed troops along its border. Back in Moscow, the Kremlin has cranked up the volume of hysterical anti-Western propaganda to a roar while cracking down on the last vestiges of the free media. All the while, he proclaims he wants peace and accuses Western leaders of hypocrisy and anti-Russian sentiment. If Putin wanted to do a better imitation of Adolf Hitler circa 1936-1938, he would have to grow a little mustache. Equally troubling is...

(Reuters) - Russian state media said Crimeans voted overwhelmingly to break with Ukraine and join Russia on Sunday, as Kiev accused Moscow of pouring forces into the peninsula and warned separatist leaders "the ground will burn under their feet". RIA news agency said 93 percent backed annexation, citing an exit poll released as voting ended at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT). Another Russian agency said turnout was over 80 percent. Caught in an East-West crisis reminiscent of the Cold War, Kiev said Russia's build-up of forces in the Black Sea region was in "crude violation" of an international treaty, and announced...

Russia’s increased military buildup along Ukraine’s eastern border signals the possibility of a full-scale invasion and one that could lead to a worst-case global scenario, pitting NATO allies against old Russian foes and debilitating the global economy to nothing short of catastrophe if nothing is done to stop Moscow’s aggression, U.S. officials and analysts told TheBlaze. And the crisis seems to be heading in that direction. On Friday, more Russian troops and armored vehicles were seen offloading from ships in the Crimean harbor, reporters in the area said. The day before, Russia had already massed more than 8,000 troops and...

Stepping out of my hotel yesterday morning, I found a sinister new force patrolling the streets of Simferopol. These men wore black balaclavas, blue military combat clothing and carried large assault rifles - yet despite the Russian invasion of Crimea, they wore the badges of Ukraine. Baffled, I wandered up and nervously asked who they were. ‘Berkut,’ came the gruff reply - and, as we walked rapidly away, my Crimean companion shivered.

Andriy Parubiy, the head of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, claims that Russia has placed 80,000 solders, 270 tanks, 370 artillery systems, and 140 combat aircraft near the Ukrainian border. “Ukraine today is facing the threat of a full-scale invasion from various directions," he said, according to The New York Times.

It’s not at all clear what Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk thinks he can accomplish during his visit with President Obama later this week. It’s a good bet that he’s not coming to urge on Obama the advice offered by New York Times columnist Tom Friedman. I had to read Friedman’s March 4 column twice to be sure I hadn’t fallen for a parody from The Onion. Friedman has a prescription to weaken Vlad Putin that sounds like something written by Al Gore and edited by the folks who publish Mad Magazine. According to Friedman, if Obama wanted to frighten...

As Russia spins a false narrative to justify its illegal actions in Ukraine, the world has not seen such startling Russian fiction since Dostoyevsky wrote, “The formula ‘two times two equals five’ is not without its attractions.” Below are 10 of President Vladimir Putin’s recent claims justifying Russian aggression in the Ukraine, followed by the facts that his assertions ignore or distort. 1. Mr. Putin says: Russian forces in Crimea are only acting to protect Russian military assets. It is “citizens’ defense groups,” not Russian forces, who have seized infrastructure and military facilities in Crimea. The Facts: Strong evidence suggests...

“Meet Viktor Yanu­kovych, who is running for the presidency of Ukraine.” Vladimir Putin and I were standing in his office at the presidential dacha in late 2004 when Yanu­kovych suddenly appeared from a back room. Putin wanted me to get the point. He’s my man, Ukraine is ours — and don’t forget it. The “Ukrainian problem” has been brewing for some time between the West and Russia. Since Ukraine’s Orange Revolution, the United States and Europe have tried to convince Russia that the vast territory should not be a pawn in a great-power conflict but rather an independent nation that...