Issue #14 Apr. 09, 2021
Preview IssueVladimir Putin: Killer On The Loose
As Vladimir Putin moves tens of thousands of Russian troops and military hardware to Ukraine's eastern border, it's a good time to look at the Kremlin dictator's blood-soaked past, dating back to his KGB years in Dresden, Eastern Germany. He's responsible easily for tens of thousands of deaths in Ukraine, Syria & Russia, particularly during the Second Chechen War. Many people think he bombed his own citizens in their homes in 1999, killing more than 300 people, to gin up public support for the Chechen war. And, of course, at least 20 of his fiercest critics have been murdered, died under suspicious circumstances or were poisoned. Yet the West and much of the rest of the world treat him as if he's a normal leader. We have World in Ukraine: France thanks to L'Oreal Ukraine and GOLAW. A fabulous nine-page section on the entire bilateral relationship, including an interview with Ambassador Etienne de Poncins, who is preparing for President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit with French President Emmanuel Macron next week in Paris. We have a horrible and heartbreaking story about a young mother who died less than 12 hours after giving birth -- a death that appears could have been easily prevented. We list the top 10 smugglers sanctioned by Zelensky. Columnist Sergii Leshchenko says Ukraine's leaders should go after exiled billionaire oligarch Dmytro Firtash, while Mikheil Saakashvili is concerned about copyright protections. Lifestyle cover: the musical Ukrainian duo Bloom Twins.
