CIA Director John Brennan accused Russia of having a “scorched earth policy” in Syria, which had led to the death of thousands of civilians.

Speaking in an interview with PBS, Brennan said, “What the Russians have done in Syria in terms of some of the scorched-earth policy that they have pursued that have led to devastation and thousands upon thousands of innocent deaths, that’s not something that the United States would ever do in any of these military conflicts.”

When asked if the CIA …

The Deputy Director General for Aircraft Industry and Operations of the State Concern Ukroboronprom, Volodymyr Korobov, stated at a briefing on January 3rd that Ukroboronprom will produce American M16 automatic rifles, LIGA.net reported.

“We have a project: the production of M16 automatic rifles in the territory of Ukraine. We are far along in this project. We started it and we will implement it. I hope that we will soon move towards practical implementation. Currently, we’re signing all …

In Grozny, on New Year's eve, anti-alcohol raids were conducted in cafes and restaurants. The security forces detained all who drank alcohol, Grozny residents told the Caucasian Knot news website.

"On the eve of January 1st, my friends and I were in a cafe in Grozny, gathered to celebrate the holiday. Suddenly the police stormed in and they detained three men, who were sitting at a table next to us and were drinking alcohol. Fortunately, we did not have any alcohol, otherwise, we would have to …

Last year, Russian military aircraft and ships approached the borders of Latvia 209 times, which was fewer times than in the previous year, Delfi news agency reported, citing the Latvian Defence Ministry’s data.

In 2015, Russian military hardware was noticed more than 270 times near the Latvian borders. The Latvian National Armed Forces identified more than 140 flights by Russian aircraft, as well as 130 cases of Russian submarines and ships appearing near the territorial waters of Latvia. …

The Ukrainian Deputy Minister for the temporarily occupied territories and internally displaced persons, George Tuka, is convinced that Ukraine will regain control over the occupied territory of the Donbas in 2017 or in mid-2018 at the latest. Tuka stated this in his interview with Novoye Vremya.

“Currently, Russia is ready to give back the Donbas only on its own terms. However, I am sure that Ukraine will manage to take over the initiative and implement its own scenario on the return of the …