This week’s bonus episode is an extended interview with Bektour Iskender, a journalist and co-founder of Kloop, an NGO and leading news publication in Kyrgyzstan. Through his work with Kloop, Bektour trains young journalists to cover politics and investigate corruption, while also reporting on the most significant stories happening in his home country and near abroad.
We spoke to Bektour about his work in journalism and the history of Russian colonial aggression in Kyrgyzstan, creating a snapshot of a country whose past mirrors Ukraine’s, and whose present is also being determined by Russia’s war.
"The enemy continues to use small infantry groups, but they are powerless in their attempts to capture Pokrovsk," Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine's Armed Forces, reported July 18.
The Russian oil giant has been trying to sell its 49.13% stake in India's Nayara refinery, but the EU's latest sanctions package could make such a deal too risky for buyers.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Russian President Vladimir Putin that launching a third round of negotiations is important and that Turkey is prepared to host discussions in Istanbul once both sides agree on a date.
In an exclusive interview, Ukrainian anti-corruption activist Vitaliy Shabunin speaks out on what he says is a politically motivated criminal case against him, as well as corruption and the democratic backsliding in Ukraine.
According to the case file, he was struck in the face and torso by an enlistment officer. After he collapsed, the officer hit the man with a stun gun at least three to four times and struck his head against the floor multiple times, the records show.
The sanctions target operatives of Russia's military intelligence (GRU), responsible for widespread malicious cyber activity in the U.K. and Europe, the Foreign Office said.
