What Lies Beneath: Vets worry toxins caused cancer

ReutersFactbox-Pact gives Turkey oversight of warship transit to Russia, UkraineUnder the international Montreux Convention, NATO member Turkey has control over passage of vessels between the Mediterranean and Black Sea, making it a potentially key player in any military conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Earlier this month, six Russian warships and a submarine transited Turkey’s Dardanelles and Bosphorus straits to the Black Sea for what Moscow called naval drills near Ukraine waters.Associated PressTexas law firm agrees to review Oklahoma death penalty caseA partner with a Texas law firm said Tuesday at least 20 attorneys are prepared to review the case of an Oklahoma death row inmate who has long maintained his innocence in the 1997 killing of a motel owner in Oklahoma City. Stan Perry, an attorney with Houston-based ReedSmith, said his firm already has begun reviewing the case of Richard Glossip, 59, who was twice convicted and sentenced to die for killing Barry Van Treese, the owner of the motel where Glossip worked. “We have a team of 20 attorneys working on this, including two former prosecutors, and our task is to come up with, develop and do a thorough, complete, independent investigation,” Perry said.The HillHungary sending troops close to Ukraine borderThe Hungarian defense ministry on Tuesday announced in a Facebook post that it would be sending troops close to the Hungarian-Ukrainian border, which is situated in the northeastern region of Hungary, Reuters reported.The defense ministry did not quantify the number of troops that would be moving toward its border with Ukraine but noted that they were being deployed for humanitarian and security purposes, the news wire noted. Hungarian Defense…The Daily BeastPutin Orders Troops Into Ukraine After Shocking DeclarationSERGEY BOBOKRussian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russian “peacekeeping” troops to the pro-Kremlin regions of Luhansk and Donetsk after unilaterally declaring that the two chunks of Eastern Ukraine should be considered independent states.The dramatic escalation, which many fear could lead to all-out war, followed an address to his nation on Monday, in which the Russian president formally announced “the immediate recognition” of the pro-Kremlin regions of Luhansk and Donetsk—which stretchThe HillBelarus: NATO pullback will factor into Russian troop withdrawalThe withdrawal of Russian troops from Belarus amid heightened tensions with Ukraine would primarily depend on NATO pulling back its own forces from the region, the head of the Belarusian army said on Monday, according to Reuters. “The Russian Armed Forces’ units will return to their permanent bases only when an objective need for that arises and when we decide,” Viktor Gulevich said.”In no small measure this will also depend on our Western…The HillUkraine announces EU military training mission in the countryUkraine has reached an agreement “in principle” with the European Union for the bloc to hold a military training mission in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Monday.Kuleba told reporters that the EU would “roll out [an] advisory training military mission in Ukraine,” Politico reported.He added that the mission is not about combat but is “a new element in the cooperation between Ukraine and the European Union.” The move comes as…The HillSullivan: Russia planning ‘extremely violent’ operation to ‘crush’ UkraineWhite House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday the U.S. believes Russia is planning an “extremely violent” invasion of Ukraine, saying Moscow will seek to “crush” the Ukrainian people.”We believe that any military operation of the size, scope and magnitude of what we believe the Russians are planning will be extremely violent. It will cost the lives of Ukrainians and Russians, civilians and military personnel alike,” Sullivan…