Bottom Line Up Front: The U.S. is reportedly close to imposing sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline project, a massive Russian-German joint endeavor. Germany, the world’s largest natural gas importer, already gets at least 40% of its gas from Russia. The Nord Stream 2 is a source …

VOA’s Turkish and Kurdish services contributed to this report. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s party suffered heavy losses in Sunday’s local elections, losing critical cities across the country, while the main opposition party is on course to win the capital Ankara. In Istanbul, election results remain too close to call, …

The United States and Russia have flown nuclear bombers over the Norwegian Sea, amid rising tensions following the recent withdrawal of the two Cold War-era arch foes from a landmark nuclear arms treaty and the build-up of NATO military forces on the US-led alliance’s eastern flank near Russia. The US …