How Russians Skirt Putin’s Digital Iron Curtain

MOSCOW, June 13 (Reuters) – In a quiet cafe popular for its free Wi-Fi and good coffee, a Russian interior designer logs onto a virtual private network so ⁠she can ⁠chat with friends abroad using the U.S. messaging service WhatsApp, which is blocked inside Russia. Later, she ⁠toggles off the VPN to buy a ticket …

Read more

Since March, Trump Has Repeatedly Said the Iran War Will End Soon

(Corrects date of last statement to June 11, not June 12) WASHINGTON, ⁠June 12 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said the ⁠United States has reached a deal to end the war with Iran, but the agreement has not ​been finalized and he has disputed accounts that it favors Tehran. Since the conflict began on …

Read more

Trump’s Name Removed From Kennedy Center in Predawn Operation

By JC Whittington, Gershon Peaks and Blake Brittain WASHINGTON, June 13 (Reuters) – Workers ⁠stripped ⁠U.S. President Donald Trump’s name from the ⁠Kennedy Center early on Saturday, less than six months after it went up, complying with ​a judge’s ruling that the performing arts landmark cannot be renamed without an act of Congress. The work …

Read more

Brazil Unveils Subsidized Motorcycle Credit Program for App-Based Delivery Drivers

BRASILIA, June 12 (Reuters) – Brazil’s government on Friday launched a subsidized credit ⁠program ⁠for app-based delivery drivers to purchase ⁠motorcycles, in a fresh move to boost demand and support a part of the ​workforce that has expanded rapidly in recent years. The program will offer annual interest rates of 11.5% and 12.5% for female …

Read more

Iran Deal Very Close, Signing Possible in Coming Days, US Official Says

By Steve Holland and Doina Chiacu WASHINGTON, June 12 (Reuters) – Negotiators for the United States and ⁠Iran ⁠are close to the finish line of a ⁠deal aimed at ending their three-month war and it could be signed in the coming days, a senior ​U.S. official said on Friday. A painstakingly negotiated agreement would include …

Read more

Kushner Project Being Developed on Disputed Land, Albanian Villagers Say

By Edward McAllister and Fatos Bytyci ZVERNEC, Albania, June 13 (Reuters) – When Kostaq Konomi approached what he says is his land on the seafront in southern ⁠Albania last ⁠month, he was met with a barbed wire fence and men in black ⁠uniforms who refused him entry. The land, he later learned from news reports, …

Read more

Al Qaeda-Linked Militants Curb Their Brutality in Seized Malian Territory

By Robbie Corey-Boulet, David Lewis and Portia Crowe DAKAR, June 13 (Reuters) – The meetings have become routine. Every few months, jihadists in Mali affiliated with al Qaeda summon the men of Poutchi to a mud-brick mosque ⁠to collect ⁠tax on their crops and cattle, and later distribute food, medicine and animals to the poor. …

Read more

EU Envoys Agree to First Phase of Membership Talks for Ukraine and Moldova

BRUSSELS, June 12 (Reuters) – Ambassadors from the European Union’s 27 ⁠countries ⁠agreed on Friday to advance membership ⁠talks with Ukraine and Moldova, with the first phase of negotiations set to ​begin on Monday. Even as Ukraine continues to fight Russia’s invasion, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has made EU membership a key ‌strategic goal to anchor …

Read more