MOSCOW—Russian President Vladimir Putin offered his first substantive remarks on the U.S. presidential race, noting what he called Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s sharp anti-Russian rhetoric. He praised President Trump for improving relations between the two countries, and said he was reassured by Mr. Biden’s support for extending arms-control agreements. Mr. Putin’s comments come after the … Read more
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the foreign ministers of Japan, India and Australia pledged to uphold territorial sovereignty and freedom of navigation as rising tension between the countries and China draws them closer to counter Beijing’s expansionist ambitions. On a visit to Tokyo limited to less than 24 hours because of President Trump’s … Read more
U.S. and Russian negotiators made progress Monday on a new framework accord that would freeze each side’s nuclear arsenal and outline the parameters for a detailed treaty that would be negotiated next year, a senior Trump administration official said. The accord, if it comes together in the coming month, would give each side something it … Read more
The U.S. saw 50,000 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, as President Trump’s doctors said he could be released from the hospital as soon as Monday. The total death toll in the U.S. reached 209,394, as an additional 690 were reported on Saturday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Total infections in the U.S. … Read more
President Trump’s contraction of Covid-19 puts him in the company of two other conservative leaders who also made light of the risks of the coronavirus only to fall ill themselves, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. For both of those leaders, getting ill not only didn’t hurt their political fortunes, but … Read more
The Trump administration is launching an investigation into the trade practices of Vietnam, faulting the country for currency practices and invoking the same trade law the U.S. used in imposing sweeping tariffs on Chinese imports. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative Friday evening said it would pursue an investigation into Vietnam’s “acts, policies, and practices that … Read more
The U.S. and European Union imposed sanctions against Belarus officials on Friday, part of a coordinated effort by Western allies to censure the authoritarian regime over accusations of political repression and rigging elections. The EU reached an early morning deal to advance a sanctions package against more than three dozen Belarusian individuals deemed responsible for … Read more
Turkey’s role in the growing clash between Armenia and Azerbaijan—two countries Moscow regards as within its sphere of influence—is adding a new element to a string of proxy fights pitting Turkey and Russia against each other and challenging Russia’s longstanding policy of neutrality over the simmering conflict. Roughly the size of Delaware, the province of … Read more
MEXICO CITY—A group of about 3,000 Honduran migrants, including many women and children, overwhelmed soldiers and police and crossed into Guatemala on Thursday, heading toward the U.S. southern border to flee poverty and rising joblessness brought by the coronavirus pandemic. With the U.S. presidential election a little more than a month away, the new caravan … Read more
MOSCOW—Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny blamed President Vladimir Putin for his poisoning with a Soviet-era nerve agent and promised to return to Moscow to fight for political change in Russia. The opposition politician, who has accumulated an enormous online following with exposes of Kremlin-linked corruption, said he was poisoned with a new type of Novichok and … Read more