Indicted Russians

The US is dropping the much-hyped indictment for ‘election meddling’ against a company supposedly behind the so-called Russian troll farm, closing the opening chapter of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russiagate investigation.

A Utah court has arrested a Russian citizen for conspiring against the US by buying F-16 manuals on eBay. The man insists he needed these and other files, like those for F-35s, to develop an ultra-realistic fighter jet simulator.

The US should give Russia evidence about the alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential election and the 13 Russians indicted for it, President Putin said. Without evidence, the accusations are nothing but “yelling and hollering.”

President Donald Trump has urged his attorney-general to probe why Barack Obama failed to stop alleged Russian election meddling on his watch. That followed a string of Trump tweets accusing his predecessor of inaction.

US media coverage of the indictment of 13 Russians for alleged meddling in the 2016 election had a few funny moments, including one episode in which a CNN correspondent hot on the trolls’ trail found himself at a dumpster.

In a fierce Twitter skirmish, former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul has tried to explain the evil of Russia’s “election meddling.” Turns out, it’s all about definitions.