Following the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in Lima, Peru, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was ready to mend ties with the United States and US President-elect Donald Trump. "The President-elect confirmed he is willing to normalize Russian-American relations. I told him the same," Putin said. Putin said a date and location to meet with Trump was not discussed. Putin and Trump share a strong relationship, with Trump praising the Russian president throughout his successful presidential campaign. Russia supported Trump during the presidential election in the United States. Putin also thanked current US President Barack Obama "for the years of joint work." "I told him that we would be happy to see him (Obama) in Russia anytime if he wants, can and has desire," Putin said. Looking ahead, Putin said Russia is ready to freeze its oil output at their current level, adding that Russian oil firms were ready to do so ahead of a freeze pact that OPEC … [Read more...] about Russian President Vladimir Putin looks to ‘normalize’ ties with United States, Trump
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United States’ global image suffering under Donald Trump’s presidency: survey
The image of the United States is in sharp decline across the world under the leadership of Donald Trump, a survey from the Pew Research Center shows. The survey, which covered 37 countries, showed US favorability ratings dropping to 49 percent just five months into Trump's presidency. This compares with 64 percent at the end of his predecessor Barack Obama's 8-year term in office. Read: 'Treat Donald Trump like a normal politician who is wrong about everything' Trump himself scored even lower in the survey, with just 22 percent of respondents saying they trusted him to do the right thing in international affairs, compared with 64 percent for Obama. The only two countries that saw ratings improve for Trump over Obama were Russia, where confidence in the US president rose to 53 percent from 11 percent, and Israel, where there was an increase of 7 points to 56 percent. Russia was also the only nation that the study found to have a large improvement in its image of the US, … [Read more...] about United States’ global image suffering under Donald Trump’s presidency: survey
Missing the World Cup is a wake-up call for United States
Shock poured from the United States on Tuesday after the United States failed to get the required point against Trinidad and Tobago to qualify for the World Cup. Reactions from current and former players of the team ranged from speechlessness to outrage as the US failed to reach the tournament for the first time since 1986. "Every single one of those players — nightmares for the rest of their lives because this is an utter embarrassment with the amount of money that is in Major League Soccer and in this sport," said former US player Taylor Twellman, who is now a pundit on American broadcaster ESPN. "You can't get a draw, a tie, against Trinidad? You don't deserve to go to the World Cup." The setback comes as a particular shock given the development of US football over the past few decades. The last time the United States didn't qualify for the World Cup, they lacked a professional soccer league and were relying on amateur players who played for universities. Nowadays, Major … [Read more...] about Missing the World Cup is a wake-up call for United States
Assad says Syria open to dialogue with United States
In an interview with US television network CBS on Thursday, the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said he is open to dialogue with the United States. "But as principal, in Syria we could say that every dialogue is a positive thing," he told television journalist Charlie Rose, in excerpts of an interview which is to be aired Sunday on CBS's "60 Minutes" program. Assad also said such a dialogue needs to be based on "mutual respect." When he was asked about relations between Syria and the United States, Assad said there was no direct communication. UN officials warn of about the high number of people besieged Meanwhile, the UN has more than doubled its estimate of Syrian who living in besieged areas to 440,000. They risk death by starvation, dehydration and lack of medical care. On Thursday the UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos announced the new number while briefing the Security Council on what she called the "breathtaking levels of savagery" that continue as Syria's civil war … [Read more...] about Assad says Syria open to dialogue with United States
Russian ‘banker’ pleads guilty to spying in United States
A Russian banker pleaded guilty to spying in New York as part of an alleged ring that sought economic information. The plea comes less than four weeks before 41-year-old Evgeny Buryakov was due to stand trial. Dressed in prison garb, the burly defendant pleaded guilty in federal court to acting as a unregistered foreign agent. "I plead guilty, your honor," he said before federal Judge Richard Berman. The convoluted case included listening devices planted in binders by the FBI, reminiscent of "a plotline for a Cold War-era movie," said Preet Bharara, the US prosecutor for Manhattan. "More than two decades after the end of the Cold War, Russian spies still seek to operate in our midst under the cover of secrecy," he said. "Thanks to the work of the FBI and the prosecutors in my office, attempts to conduct unlawful espionage will not be overlooked." Prosecutors said Buryakov posed as an employee for the Russian bank Vnesheconombank in Manhattan, but in reality was working for … [Read more...] about Russian ‘banker’ pleads guilty to spying in United States