A conference to discuss the status of poverty in the European Union has been held in the Belgian capital Brussels, Press TV reports. The conference gathered over 700 politicians, academics and rights campaigners to discuss the EU’s ongoing economic crisis focusing on unemployment and social exclusion. EU governments, institutions and structures were criticized during the conference over their failure... 

The guided-missile destroyer USS Ross. Ukrainian and American naval forces are taking part in joint maritime drills dubbed Sea Breeze 2014, which began on Monday in the northwestern part of the Black Sea and will last till September 10. “Today in the north-west part of the Black Sea, we are beginning the joint Navy exercises of Ukraine and the US, known as ‘Sea Breeze 2014’. The exercises will... 

The European Union has formerly adopted a fresh package of sanctions against Russia despite Moscow’s retaliation warnings. European Council President Herman Van Rompuy announced the sanctions on Monday saying that their implementation will take place over the next few days. Referring to the ceasefire deal between pro-Russian activists and the Kiev government, he said that “This will leave time... 

A pair of Russian bomber jets reportedly practiced cruise missile attacks against targets in the United States last week, according to a report published on Monday in the Washington Free Beacon. Bill Gertz, a writer for the Beacon, reported that two Russian Tu-95 Bear bombers were tracked flying over the Labrador Sea last week in the northern Atlantic Ocean near Iceland, Greenland and Canada as part... 

Colleague lays flowers in memory of photo journalist Andrey Stenin killed in southeastern Ukraine, at the Rossiya Segodnya building. Russian journalist Andrey Stenin, missing in eastern Ukraine for a month, has been confirmed dead, RIA Novosti, the news agency where he worked, reports. He was in a vehicle traveling in a convoy of escaping civilians when it came under heavy fire. Stenin apparently died... 

Thousands of British protesters have marched into London’s iconic Trafalgar Square against the government’s program to privatize the UK’s National Health Service, the NHS. The protest march for the NHS was organized by a coalition of activists, political parties and national trade unions. Hundreds of these protesters have been marching for a week from Jarrow, a town 300 miles north of the... 

One of the world’s legendary investors is upping his bet on Argentina’s shale oil and gas industry in a show of confidence for shale production in South America’s largest unconventional prize and a big boost for both supermajors and smaller players making big waves in the heart of new discovery areas. George Soros has doubled his stake in YPF SA, the state-owned oil company in Argentina, which... 

Support for Scotland’s Yes campaign is on the rise as the country’s independence referendum draws nearer, a new opinion poll shows. According to a poll conducted by YouGov for the Sunday Times, 51 percent of Scottish voters plan to vote yes, while 49 percent will vote no. A similar YouGov poll published on September 2, showed 47 percent of the respondents said they’d vote in favor of... 

Russian consumer watchdog Rospotrebnadzor has suspended all confectionery imports from Ukraine after discovering two Ukrainian companies broke consumer protection laws. “In order to ensure the rights of consumers, starting September 5 Rospotrebnadzor is suspending the import of confectionery goods produced in Ukraine to the Russian Federation,” the watchdog said in a statement on Friday. The... 

A new rapid reaction force, likely numbering at least 4,000 and ready to be deployed within 48 hours, will be created in Eastern Europe, after a decision by the 28 NATO member states following a conference in Wales. “This is a demonstration of our solidarity and resolve,” said NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the summit, largely dedicated to Ukraine, and attended by the country’s... 

Pro-Russians have accused Ukrainian government forces of breaking the ceasefire deal just hours after it went into effect, pledging to pursue their independence drive in the east. A leading member of the parliament established by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said on Saturday that Ukrainian units had launched several missiles toward the pro-Russian militants’ positions in the... 

Murderer: John L Wilson Junior, 38, is in court today charged with the first-degree murder of 14-year-old Kelli O’Laughlin, in her suburban Chicago home. The man charged with stabbing a 14-year-old teen to death after she interrupted hum burglarizing her suburban Chicago home sent chilling text messages to her mother from the girl’s stolen cell phone, a court heard today. The heartbroken... 

A new species of titanosaur unearthed in Argentina. The new fossil remains excavated in southern Argentina have represented the most complete giant sauropod dinosaur ever discovered. The skeletal analysis of the found bones demonstrated size of the beast measured 26m from head to tail and weighed in at almost 60 tones, as heavy as 14 African elephants. The palaeontologists also unravel that the skeleton... 

Marine Le Pen, the leader of France’s far-right National Front party, says the EU is to blame for the crisis in Ukraine as it forced the situation where Kiev had to choose between East and West. Now that France is joining sanctions against Russia over the alleged direct interference in the political crisis in Ukraine and Paris is considering suspending the €1.2 billion deal of two Mistral helicopter... 

Last president of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev Ex-Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev has again blamed the ongoing turmoil in Ukraine on the hasty and thoughtless breakup of the USSR. He noted that a peaceful outcome could only be reached through resumed dialogue between Russia and the US. The former Soviet leader expressed these opinions in the afterword to his latest book of memoirs called “After...