Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow pressed the West on Thursday to lift sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, seeking to shift the blame for a growing food crisis that has been worsened by Kyiv’s inability to ship millions of tons of grain and other agricultural products due to the conflict. Britain immediately accused Russia of “trying to hold the world to ransom,” insisting there would be no sanctions relief, and a top U.S. diplomat blasted the "sheer barbarity, sadistic cruelty and lawlessness” of the invasion. Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, but the war, including a Russian blockade of its ports, has halted much of that flow, endangering world food supplies. Many of those ports are now also heavily mined. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tried to put the blame squarely on the sanctions. "We accuse Western countries of taking a series of unlawful actions that has led to the blockade,” he said in a call with reporters. … [Read more...] about Russia slams sanctions, seeks to blame West for food crisis

New York (CNN Business) Russia has spent the past half-century attempting to build a reputation on the world stage as a reliable supplier of energy. It took Vladimir Putin mere months to cast serious doubt on that reputation. "I wouldn't trust them," US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told CNN in response to a question about whether Russia will ever again be considered a reliable energy supplier. "They have to prove they are a reliable partner and they're certainly not doing that." Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions from the West have sent oil prices skyrocketing, lifting gasoline and diesel prices in the United States to unprecedented levels. Natural gas prices also have climbed around the world. Biden is 'obsessed' with lowering 'outrageous' gas prices, but presidents don't control prices, says Energy Secretary After the West imposed tough penalties on Russia, Putin warned that "unfriendly" nations would … [Read more...] about ‘I wouldn’t trust them.’ Energy Secretary blasts Russia for ‘weaponizing’ energy

Click here to read the full article. Brian Knappenberger explores technology and crime in “ Web of Make Believe : Death, Lies and the Internet,” a six-part anthology docuseries from Imagine that will debut on Netflix June 15. Episodes include “Death by SWAT” about the consequences of “swatting” – a harassment technique that involves a person making a false report to emergency police against an innocent target – and “A Murder in D.C,” about the conspiracies around the 2016 murder of Seth Rich, the slain Democratic National Committee staffer whose death was used by right-wing activists to help exonerate Russia’s interference in the 2016 Presidential Election. More from Variety Abortion Activists Depicted in 'The Janes' Sound Alarm About Possible Roe v. Wade Overturn: 'It's Going to Be Horrible' Carlos Santana Documentary Coming From Director Rudy Valdez, Imagine, Sony Music Entertainment (EXCLUSIVE) What Judd Apatow Learned From George Carlin and Why His Comedy … [Read more...] about Netflix Docuseries ‘Web of Make Believe’ Tackles Sextortion and Death by ‘Swatting’ in First Trailer (EXCLUSIVE)

Click here to read the full article. In the second big prize announcement by a Directors’ Fortnight partner, “The Mountain” (“La Montagne”), from emerging French auteur Thomas Salvador, has won the SACD Prize, awarded by France’s Writers’ Guild for the best French-language movie in the section. The second feature of the French actor-director after 2017’s promising “Vincent,” selected for San Sebastian’s prestige New Directors section, ”The Mountain” is sold internationally by Le Pacte which will also handle distribution in France. More from Variety Spanish Thesp Luis Tosar Joins Cast of Aqui y Alli Films' Sci-Fi Comedy 'Golem' (EXCLUSIVE) 'Anna K' Producing Duo on How the Ukraine War Has Hit Russia's Booming TV Industry Cannes Directors' Fortnight: Lea Seydoux-led 'One Fine Morning' Wins Best European Film Prize From a screenplay written by Salvador and Naila Guiguet, which was selected for Critics’ Weeks’ Next Steps 2020, “The Mountain” turns on … [Read more...] about Cannes Directors’ Fortnight: Thomas Salvador’s ‘The Mountain’ takes Best French-Language Film Award

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 WASHINGTON (AP) — Stagflation. It was the dreaded “S word” of the 1970s. For Americans of a certain age, it conjures memories of painfully long lines at gas stations, shuttered factories and President Gerald Ford’s much-ridiculed “Whip Inflation Now” buttons. Stagflation is the bitterest of economic pills: High inflation mixes with a weak job market to cause a toxic brew that punishes consumers and befuddles economists. For decades, most economists didn’t think such a nasty concoction was even possible. They'd long assumed that inflation would run high only when the economy was strong and unemployment low. But an unhappy confluence of events has economists reaching back to the days of disco and the bleak high-inflation, high-unemployment economy of nearly a half century ago. Few think stagflation is in sight. But as a longer-term threat, it can no longer be … [Read more...] about Worry about stagflation, a flashback to ’70s, begins to grow