European Commission to present proposal for visa liberalization with Ukraine in April

The European Commission (EC) will present a proposal for visa liberalization with Ukraine in April. This was reported by the chairman of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, after a meeting on Thursday,  March 17th in Brussels with the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko. The President of the European Commission said that both sides are interested in facilitating travel for their citizens. He noted that Kiev has opened the way for the liberalization of the visa regime by undertaking …


President of Azerbaijan pardons 14 political prisoners

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree to pardon 148 convicts, including political prisoners. This was reported Grani.ru with reference to Minval.Az. 137 of those pardoned were serving prison sentences, six were in corrective labor facilities, and five were to pay fines. 16 are foreign citizens.

The head of the Society for Women's Rights, Novella Jafaroglu, said that there are only 14 political prisoners among those who were pardoned, and dozens of political prisoners remain in …


Rosbalt: Boris Nemtsov told police of threats against him several months before his murder

The Co-Chairman of RPR-PARNAS (Republican Party of Russia), Boris Nemtsov, was killed in Moscow in February of 2015. A few months before his death, in the fall of 2014, he filed a report with the police in Yaroslavl indicating he had received death threats, as reported by the Russian Federal News Agency, Rosbalt, citing the case reports filed in connection with the murder.

Nemtsov’s assistant during his time as the Deputy of the Yaroslavl Regional Duma told investigators about this report …


Kremlin rejects Obama’s call for release of Savchenko

Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov commented on a telephone conversation between the presidents of the US and Russia, in which Barack Obama urged Vladimir Putin to release Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko, as Interfax reported.

According to Peskov, Putin rebuffed Obama’s request, saying that he was interfering in the trial.

“The President [Obama] has been given multiple clarifications on this matter, as have other colleagues abroad on other levels of government, since we are speaking about …


Ukraine coordinates preparation of Savchenko sanctions list

The President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, during a meeting with Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Linas Linkevičius, began coordinating the preparation of Savchenko’s sanctions list with the European Union and the US.

According to the press service of the Ukrainian President, during the meeting, Poroshenko commented on the positive efforts of Lithuania to secure the release of Nadiya Savchenko. The parties also coordinated the preparation of Savchenko’s sanctions list.

Poroshenko …