
-
The scientist rewriting DNA, and the future of medicine
-
'Anxious': US farmers see tariffs threaten earnings
-
Nostalgia fuels UK boom in vintage video game repairs
-
Snappy birthday: Germany's Leica camera turns 100
-
Bucks clinch playoff berth as West battle tightens
-
Czech beer culture eyes UNESCO listing as pubs take hit
-
Explosions as Kyiv under missile attack, says mayor
-
Weary Boutier still alive in LPGA Match Play after 45-hole day
-
Artificial glaciers boost water supply in northern Pakistan
-
Brooksby upsets Paul to reach Houston final
-
Thomas, Bednarek hit jackpot at Grand Slam Track meet
-
Rodman on target as USA beat Brazil in Olympic rematch
-
'Hands Off!' Anti-Trump Americans flood Washington
-
Harman leads by three at Texas Open
-
Barcelona draw to increase Liga lead after Real Madrid stumble
-
Ecuador mounts anti-drug op overseen by Blackwater founder
-
Pegula rallies to reach Charleston final
-
Nick Rockett flies to victory in magical Mullins Grand National
-
Ovechkin on the brink of the 'impossible'
-
Anthony, Bird to enter basketball Hall of Fame
-
'Phenomenal' Munster edge O'Gara's La Rochelle to reach Champions Cup quarters
-
Munster edge O'Gara's La Rochelle to reach Champions Cup quarters
-
Rahul, Jaiswal fire as Delhi and Rajasthan register big IPL wins
-
Aston Villa beat Forest for seventh straight win ahead of PSG trip
-
Jaiswal, Archer help Rajasthan thrash Punjab in IPL
-
Inter's title charge stalls after throwing away points at Parma
-
Real Madrid stumble at home to Valencia in Liga
-
Leading garment producer Bangladesh holds crisis talks on US tariffs
-
PSG win 13th French title ahead of Aston Villa Champions League clash
-
Nick Rockett storms to victory in the 'Mullins' Grand National
-
Despair and sadness follow death of Malian musical great Amadou
-
Arsenal held by Everton, Wolves push Ipswich closer to relegation
-
Lions contender Prendergast fires Leinster to Champions Cup quarters
-
Nick Rockett wins the 'Mullins' Grand National for father and son
-
Last-gasp Buendia goal keeps Leverkusen's Bundesliga title hopes alive
-
Video shows last minutes before Gaza aid workers' deaths, Red Crescent says
-
Zverev 'mentally' affected by Australian Open defeat
-
Rahul guides Delhi to third straight IPL victory
-
Arsenal draw at Everton to edge Liverpool closer to Premier League title
-
Senate Republicans move forward with Trump tax cuts
-
Sinner regrets 'unfair' doping ban as he prepares return to courts
-
Isa hat-trick powers Toulon into Champions Cup quarters in Saracens thriller
-
'Hang tough, it won't be easy': Trump defiant on tariffs
-
Zelensky slams 'weak' US reply to Russian strike on his hometown
-
Musiala hamstring tear compounds Bayern's injury crisis
-
Selfies, goals and cheers at South Africa's grannies World Cup
-
Tsunoda frustrated with 15th in Red Bull qualifying debut
-
Rain forecast adds new element to combustible Japanese GP
-
Ukraine mourns 18 killed in Russian missile strike
-
Germany's Mueller to leave Bayern Munich after 25 years
RBGPF | 100% | 69.02 | $ | |
RELX | -6.81% | 48.16 | $ | |
SCS | -0.56% | 10.68 | $ | |
RYCEF | -18.79% | 8.25 | $ | |
GSK | -6.79% | 36.53 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.7% | 22.83 | $ | |
BTI | -5.17% | 39.86 | $ | |
RIO | -6.88% | 54.67 | $ | |
NGG | -5.25% | 65.93 | $ | |
BP | -10.43% | 28.38 | $ | |
BCC | 0.85% | 95.44 | $ | |
CMSC | 0.13% | 22.29 | $ | |
BCE | 0.22% | 22.71 | $ | |
VOD | -10.24% | 8.5 | $ | |
JRI | -7.19% | 11.96 | $ | |
AZN | -7.98% | 68.46 | $ |

Russians split from family in Ukraine strive to maintain ties
Before conflict broke out, visiting her brother and sister was easy for Alla Lavrova, who could drive from her home in Russia and across the border to Ukraine in just one hour.
But with tensions soaring after Western leaders accused Moscow of amassing tens of thousands of troops on the border with Ukraine, Lavrova, 56, doesn't know when she'll see her siblings again.
"I haven't seen them for two-three years," she says, wiping the counter of her cafe in the town of Oktyabrsky in southwestern Russia.
"It has become more difficult to cross the border because of the political situation," she tells AFP.
Many residents of this small town have had to adapt to keep in touch with loved ones since 2014, after an insurgency of Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Crossing the border to work, shop or visit family used to be easy but now the process has become a headache with further restrictions introduced with the coronavirus pandemic.
And the situation is unlikely to change soon with Washington warning of an imminent Russian invasion into Ukraine.
"I am sorry that Russia and Ukraine have developed such relations," Lavrova says, casting a disapproving glance at the muddy footsteps her customers left.
"We ordinary people have warm, human relationships. But at the highest level -- it's different," she adds.
- Easier to visit Peru -
Like Lavrova, many families in this region have relatives in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city just 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the border with Russia.
Her brother and sister studied and eventually settled there during Soviet times, taking up Ukrainian citizenship after the USSR collapse in 1991.
Until 2014, the siblings would see each other regularly, especially at Easter -- an important holiday in both Orthodox Russia and Ukraine.
Now they only speak by phone.
"They can't even come and say a prayer at our parents' grave," Lavrova says.
Crossing the border is still possible for Russians but it comes with tedious administrative procedures that discourage many to even try.
Sofia Vinakova, a 22-year-old student, says she missed her grandmother's funeral in Ukraine's capital Kyiv last September.
"Only my mother could go," she says, taking a sip of her strawberry vodka.
Dmitry Popov tells AFP he tried to visit his cousins in Kharkiv in 2019, but Ukrainian authorities refused him entry.
Young men are often subject to extensive checks with Kyiv authorities fearing the infiltration of Russian soldiers.
"It's easier to visit Peru," says 22-year-old Popov, who keeps in touch with his relatives in Ukraine by playing online video games together.
- Avoid politics -
Vinakova says she remains in contact with her aunt in Ukraine through video calls, but they don't mention the conflict.
"In Ukraine they say it's Russia's fault. Here, it's the opposite. We came to the conclusion that talking about it would be useless," Vinakova says. "Politics is politics. We are family".
While most of the residents in the border region who spoke to AFP said they do not believe there will be a military confrontation, some are concerned for their relatives in Ukraine.
Vladimir Sidletsky, a 70-year-old retired electrician, says he has an older sister living in Lugansk, one of the two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatists.
"We are worried about her. We told her to come and join us because of the situation there," Sidletsky tells AFP as he puts down his heavy shopping bag and pulls up the collar of the jacket to shield himself from the cold.
"But she doesn't want to," he says.
"We'll hold on. We survived 1941. We'll get through this too" is what his sister says.
Despite the difficulties, Vinakova remains positive and certain that she will see her Ukrainian aunt again.
If necessary, "we'll meet in a third country," she says.
H.Gonzales--AT