Singapore, Singapore | AFP | Oil prices surged more than six percent in Asian trade Tuesday following heavy losses a day earlier after top exporter Saudi Arabia began a price war with Russia. West Texas Intermediate was trading up 6.1 percent at more than $33 a barrel while Brent crude …
Read More »Putin proposes to enshrine God, heterosexual marriage in constitution
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin has submitted to parliament a number of proposed constitutional changes, including amendments that mention God and stipulate that marriage is a union of a man and woman. Putin unleashed a political storm in January by proposing an overhaul of the constitution, the …
Read More »Putin sends political plan to MPs in quick-fire Russia reform push
Moscow, Russia | AFP | President Vladimir Putin moved quickly on Monday to push through an overhaul of Russia’s political system that has fuelled speculation over his ambitions after his term expires. Less than a week after announcing the reforms that unleashed a political storm in Russia, Putin submitted the package …
Read More »What is Putin up to with surprise political shake-up?
Moscow, Russia | AFP | With the shock replacement of his government and plans for a constitutional overhaul, President Vladimir Putin has set in motion sweeping changes to Russia’s political order. But what is the longtime Russian leader really up to? And — with Putin facing the end in 2024 …
Read More »Russian government resigns as Putin pushes reforms
Moscow, Russia | AFP | The Russian government resigned on Wednesday after President Vladimir Putin proposed a series of constitutional reforms, Russian news agencies reported. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said the proposals would make significant changes to the country’s balance of power and so “the government in its current form has …
Read More »Russia to contest doping ban, Putin defiant
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia decided on Thursday to contest its ban from major sporting events over doping violations, as President Vladimir Putin slammed its sidelining as unfair and insisted athletes should be able to compete under the national flag. Russia’s RUSADA anti-doping agency “made a decision not to agree” …
Read More »Who’s buying biggest guns?
Latest in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Burundi firepower | THE INDEPENDENT | Countries in the East African region continue to spend more on strengthening their armed forces, according to latest data. Although Kenya and Tanzania are the biggest spenders because of their relatively big budgets, most attention is on Uganda, Rwanda, …
Read More »Pupils assemble AK-47s as Russia marks Kalashnikov at 100
Moscow, Russia | AFP | More than a hundred Russian schoolchildren were taught to assemble AK-47s in a Moscow park on Saturday as the country this weekend celebrates the centenary of the birth of Mikhail Kalashnikov, inventor of the legendary rifle. On Sunday, the 100th anniversary of Kalashinkov’s birth …
Read More »Russia’s big move to Africa
What the Euro-Asian nation promised African countries at a historic summit in Sochi Kampala, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA AND JULIUS BUSINGE | One might have probably heard about Sochi, Russian city located on the Black Sea Coast near the border with Georgia, for co-hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup. …
Read More »MUSEVENI: Africa should boost trade with Russia, China and India
Sochi, Russia | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni on Thursday joined a panel of experts and leaders at the ongoing Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi to discuss the challenges and opportunities of doing business in Africa. “The population of Uganda is now 42 million. It will be 106 million by …
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