By Mark Trevelyan and Felix Light
Well-known Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky (click here) was killed by a bomb blast in a St Petersburg cafe on Sunday in what appeared to be the second assassination on Russian soil of a figure closely associated with the war in Ukraine.
Russia's state Investigative Committee said it had opened a murder investigation. State-owned RIA news agency said 25 people were wounded and 19 of them were being treated in hospital....
Rupert they have one of your guys. Russia is not the USA and the USA is not Russia. This is a hostile time in the world.
By Humeyra Pamuk
Court (click here) orders Wall Street Journal’s Gershkovich held to May 29
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (click here) urged the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who Russia accuses of spying, in a call on Sunday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who said Washington should not politicize the case.
Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday it had arrested Gershkovich, accusing him of gathering information about a Russian defence company that was a state secret.
The Wall Street Journal has denied Gershkovich was spying. The White House has called the espionage charge, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years, "ridiculous."...
Rupert that is a nice sentiment, but, there is no press freedom in Russia. I thought most folks knew that. There is only propaganda. Nothing more. Everyone the government decides they don't like for reporting the truth is nabbed for espionage. It's is crazy, but, true. Considering that the Murdoch news agency doesn't really produce a lot of truth, this is a very odd issue.
There is nothing friendly about Russia anymore. Paul Whelan's only sin was that he was an American and retired military. For that he attends a wedding in Russia and is arrested on espionage charges.
It is a ridiculous idea to think an American is safe in Russia. No American is safe in Russia. St. Petersburg where Tatarsky was assassinated, is in extremely close proximity to Europe. It is stated that St. Petersburg may as well be park of Europe for the strong European culture that exists there. I guess Tatarsky felt he was safe and allowed himself more freedom than Moscow appreciated. Putin probably had a fit over the exposure of his tanks on video.
January 1, 2019
By Tamar Lapin
An American man (click here) held in Russia on espionage charges is an innocent retired Marine who was in Moscow for a wedding, his family said Tuesday.
“We are deeply concerned for his safety and well-being,” the family of Paul Whelan said in a statement posted to Twitter Tuesday. “His innocence is undoubted and we trust that his rights will be respected.”
Whelan, 48, was detained for three days before his arrest Friday on spying charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
The last time the family heard from Whelan was Dec. 28, the night before the wedding he was going to attend....
