Russia hints at "contacts in progress" with U.S. on potential prisoner swap
CBSN
Washington — Russian President Vladimir Putin's top spokesman said Tuesday that there has been contact between the U.S. and Russia about a possible prisoner swap that could involve Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
The U.S. is seeking the release of the American journalist and Paul Whelan, both of whom are considered "wrongfully detained." They have vehemently denied the espionage charges against them.
"We have already stated that there are certain contacts in progress regarding this issue, but we do not want to make them public. They must be followed and maintained in complete silence," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a press briefing, according to Russian state media outlet TASS.
A blistering heat wave that recently brought record-breaking temperatures to large sections of the southwestern United States, including several major cities, is forecast to continue this week as it tracks over much of the country on its way toward the East Coast. Meanwhile, meteorologists have warned that powerful storm weather could dump as much as a foot of rain, or more, on parts of Florida and potentially give rise to another round of tornado threats in central states. Metropolitan areas like Chicago may be affected by a possible twister.
After four days of voting, with more than 400 million people eligible across 27 countries, European voters have pulled the bloc's 720-seat parliament farther to the right than it has ever been. The European Parliament, for the next five years, will now have a record number of far-right legislators. Far-right parties made gains in Europe's top three economies — Germany, France and Italy — with gains by politicians who campaigned against immigration, against support for Ukraine and against climate policy.
Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference is typically a springboard for the company to announce new tech features for its software programs, and not as flashy as its yearly September event to trumpet its latest iPhone rollout. But this year, the WWDC could be a make-or-break moment for the tech giant.