UKRAINE WRAP | Russian councillor says she's not afraid after anti-war speech

March 28 2022 - 20:23

UK to strengthen economic pressure on Russia, PM Johnson tells Zelenskiy

 Britain will strengthen economic pressure on Russia, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a call ahead of peace talks over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"President Zelenskiy provided an update on negotiations and the two leaders agreed to coordinate closely in the days ahead," Johnson's office said in a readout of the call.

"The Prime Minister reiterated the UK would maintain and strengthen economic pressure on Putin's regime."

-Reuters

March 28 2022 - 18:50

Turkey treading a fine line for acting as 'sanctions safe haven' for Russians

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine sparked a flurry of Western sanctions on Moscow, at least one oligarch and thousands of other Russians have arrived in Turkey, seen as a safe place to stay, invest and hold assets despite its Nato membership.

Acting as a safe haven raises risks for Turkey's government, banks and businesses that could face tough decisions and penalties if the US and others ramp up pressure on Moscow with broader “secondary” sanctions.

March 28 2022 - 17:05

Russia wants payment in roubles for supplying gas to EU

Russia is working out methods for accepting payments for its gas exports in roubles and will take decisions in due course should European countries refuse to pay in the Russian currency, the Kremlin said on Monday.

At a meeting of EU leaders on Friday, no common position emerged on Russia's demand last week that “unfriendly” countries pay in roubles, not euros, for its gas in the wake of US and European allies teaming up on a series of sanctions against the country.

Concerns about security of supply were enhanced after the demand, with companies and EU nations scrambling to understand the ramifications.

March 28 2022 - 16:30

Displaying 'Z' symbol could be criminal act in Germany, ministry says

Individuals who display the letter “Z” in Germany to symbolise support for Russia's war in Ukraine could be liable to prosecution, an interior ministry spokesperson said on Monday.

The interior minister for the state of Berlin said earlier that city authorities would jump on cases of the Z symbol being used to endorse Russia's aggression after announcements by Bavaria and Lower Saxony that they would punish such acts.

A spokesperson for the federal government's interior ministry told reporters: “The letter Z, as such, is of course not forbidden, but its use may in individual cases constitute an endorsement of the Russian war of aggression.”

March 28 2022 - 13:56

Russian councillor says she's not afraid after anti-war speech

A local councillor in southern Russia who criticised Moscow's invasion of Ukraine as amounting to a war crime has said she felt an obligation to speak up and was prepared for the consequences.

Russian officials have denied committing war crimes and say their forces in Ukraine have not targeted civilians.

The Semiluksky district council in Voronezh, about 500 kms (310 miles) south of Moscow, has asked law enforcement to investigate Nina Belyayeva for extremism after she made the comments at a meeting on March 22.

"I'm not afraid," Belyayeva, a lawyer and devout Christian told Reuters in an interview. "The very least that I wanted to do was to say that I am against what’s going on."Belyayeva's decision to speak out was unusual. Many Russians appear to back the war while others keep their opinions to themselves.

Public criticism of the war carries risks. Thousands of Russians who took part in protests have been detained over the past month, and a state TV producer who interrupted a live news bulletin holding up an anti-war sign has been fined.

Reuters sent requests for comment about Belyayeva's case to the Kremlin and to the investigative committee for Voronezh region, which investigates serious crimes. Neither replied.

At the March 22 session of the Semiluksky council, Belyayeva took the floor and said she opposed President Vladimir Putin's decision to invade Ukraine.

"I consider what is happening there to be a war crime," she can be heard saying in a mobile phone video of the session that was posted later on social media.

Other council members interrupted her, with one asking: "What's going on in your head?" and another saying: "And what about our soldiers who are giving their lives?" One councillor accused her of encouraging Russian soldiers to surrender, an allegation she denied.

Raising her voice to make herself heard, Belyayeva said the Kremlin's justification for the invasion was false. "There is not a single piece of evidence that Ukraine was preparing to attack Russia. None. None. None," she said.

Afterwards, the council adopted a resolution, seen by Reuters, asking law enforcement to investigate whether Belyayeva had committed a crime by violating laws on extremist behaviour.

Belyayeva said that as of Friday night, she had not been charged with any offence.

Belyayeva said since the footage of the council session spread on social media, she had received some negative comments, but mostly messages of support.

"For many the fact that I spoke out has also had an impact: 'You see, I'm not alone. Nina Belyayeva believes that, too.' That was my aim."On Feb. 24, Russia began what it calls a "special military operation" to demilitarise and "denazify" Ukraine. Ukraine and its Western allies have called that a baseless pretext for an unprovoked war. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 13:40

North Macedonia declares five Russian diplomats personas non grata - Foreign Ministry

North Macedonia has declared five Russian diplomats personas non grata for violating diplomatic norms and ordered them to leave the country in five days, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday.

The Russian ambassador in the country was informed the five people have carried out activities that are contrary to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and had to leave, the ministry said.

North Macedonia has joined international sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 13:21

Kazakh radio host fired after invoking 'Uncle' Putin and suggesting possible invasion

A Kazakh radio station fired one of its presenters on Monday after she said "we will call in Uncle Vova if you talk too much" in a heated Facebook debate, a reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the idea that Russia could invade.

Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic, shares the world's second-longest land border with Russia and has close economic and political ties with Moscow, being a member of Russian-led trade and military blocs.

It has a large ethnic Russian population and the war in Ukraine has sparked heated online debates between supporters of both sides.

After a public outcry, the Europa Plus Kazakhstan radio station distanced itself from host Lyubov Panova's Facebook comments and then, on Monday, said that her contract had been terminated.

Panova did not immediately reply to a request for comment."Vova" is an affectionate diminutive of "Vladimir" and Panova made the comment in response to another Facebook user's criticism of support for Russia and Putin.

Deputy Prosecutor General Bulat Dembayev issued a statement warning social media users against making comments that call for Kazakhs to join the Russia-Ukraine conflict or incite ethnic hatred."Moreover, some social network users, including Kazakh citizens ... publish separatist slogans that refer to the territorial integrity of our country," he said, warning that such actions constitute a crime.

Kazakhstan has avoided criticising Russia's invasion of Ukraine, although President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said this month that all countries must strictly adhere to the norms and principles of the UN Charter.

And the deputy foreign minister told a German newspaper that companies leaving Russia due to the war in Ukraine were welcome to move production to Kazakhstan, saying Kazakhstan would not want to be on the wrong side of a new "iron curtain".

Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special military operation" to disarm and "denazify" its neighbour. Kyiv and the West consider this a pretext for an unprovoked invasion. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 13:00

EU seeks end to golden passport schemes, halt to sales of visas to Russians

The European Commission called on EU governments on Monday to end national programmes to sell citizenship to investors, also known as golden passports schemes, and urged them to suspend the sale of visas to Russians and Belarusians.

The move follows a new push from the European Parliament to shrink and regulate the multi-billion-euro citizenship and visa industry which the EU has long considered a security risk.

It comes amid concerns that people hit by European Union sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine may be holders of EU golden visas or passports.

"Some Russian or Belarusian nationals who are subject to sanctions or are significantly supporting the war in Ukraine might have acquired EU citizenship or privileged access to the EU, including to travel freely in the Schengen area, under these schemes," the European Commission said on Monday.

Since the start of the Russian aggression, which Moscow calls a special operation, the EU has blacklisted nearly 700 top politicians, businessmen and military staff accused of supporting the Kremlin.

The Commission urged an immediate end to existing national programmes for the sale of passports. Currently only Malta, Cyprus and Bulgaria have such schemes and they have all committed to ending them. Cyprus' parliament has just voted to end its programme.

Brussels also said governments should check whether sanctioned people were holding a golden passport or visa they had issued.

The European Commission said it did not know whether sanctioned people were among the beneficiaries of the programme. A spokesman declined to clarify whether it had asked EU states to provide lists of people who had bought visas or passports.

Countries should determine whether to annul those passports and should immediately withdraw residence permits, the Commission said.

Several EU countries run golden visa schemes and have had golden passports programmes.

The Commission refrained from calling for the end of golden visa programmes, but urged strict checks and asked EU governments to suspend the granting of residence permits to Russians and Belarusians. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 11:50

Ukraine receives a mostly silent salute at Oscars ceremony

A few celebrities also made brief comments, but the Oscars telecast distinctly did not turn into a megaphone for messages about Ukraine. Instead, the show's directors opted for a silent message that did not mention Russia, which invaded Ukraine 31 days ago.

“We'd like to have a moment of silence to show our support for the people of Ukraine currently facing invasion, conflict and prejudice within their own borders,” read the message posted on screen just before a commercial break.

The message said millions of families needed food, medical care, clean water and emergency services and asked viewers for humanitarian aid.

March 28 2022 - 11:16

Biden says Putin can’t remain in power after Ukraine war

Biden implored the world’s democracies to steel themselves for a protracted conflict with Putin’s government, his latest plea for allies to hold the line against an adversary he labelled a “butcher.”

“We need to be clear-eyed: This battle will not be won in days and months,” Biden said in a forceful speech at Warsaw’s Royal Castle on Saturday, the conclusion of a trip to Europe to show allied unity against Moscow. “We need to steel ourselves for the long fight ahead.” 

He concluded his speech by remarking, “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power.” 

March 28 2022 - 10:13

Russian gas flows to Europe remain stable

Russian gas deliveries to Europe on three main pipeline routes were stable on Monday morning, with the Yamal-Europe pipeline continuing to flow eastward from Germany into Poland. 

Flows to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline across the Baltic Sea were at 71,025,104 kilowatt hours per hour (kWh/h) on Monady morning, slightly down from 73,133,575 kWh/h in the early hours of the morning, data from the pipeline operator showed.

Eastbound flows into Poland from Germany along the Yamal-Europe pipeline were at 1,471,327 kWh/h at the Mallnow border point, data from operator Gascade showed, slightly up from Sunday.

March 28 2022 - 09:00

Taiwan sees Ukraine war helping Chinese yuan's internationalisation

The war in Ukraine and Russia's effective exclusion from the global currency system could be an opportunity for China to raise the profile of its currency in a challenge to the US dollar, a senior Taiwanese security official said on Monday.

Russia has said it is counting on China to help it withstand the blow to its economy from Western sanctions, and will use Chinese yuan from its foreign exchange reserves after the sanctions blocked its access to its US dollars and euros reserves.

Taking questions in parliament, National Security Bureau Director-General Chen Ming-tong said China had always wanted a way to throw off the domination of the US dollar, and the war could boost the use of the yuan.

March 28 2022 - 08:00

Is the war in Ukraine ushering in a new world order?  

The new war in Europe has been described as a turning point in human history. It's been more than a month since Russia invaded Ukraine - causing death and destruction across much of the country.

March 28 2022 - 07:30

British intelligence says Russian forces' Ukraine disposition unchanged

 The disposition of Russian forces in Ukraine during the last 24 hours has seen no significant change, British military intelligence said on Monday.

However, Russia has gained more ground in the south, in the vicinity of Mariupol, as it fights to capture the port, the defence ministry added. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 07:00

Japan cannot confiscate Russian foreign reserves at BOJ: finance minister

Japan's current law does not allow the government to confiscate the reserves of foreign central banks held by the Bank of Japan (BOJ), finance minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Monday.

Suzuki made the remark in parliament when asked about Russia's foreign reserves parked with the BOJ that have been frozen as part of sanctions against the country's invasion of Ukraine. — Reuters

March 28 2022 - 06:44

Ukraine insists on territorial integrity as talks loom

With peace talks between Russia and Ukraine set to take place in Turkey this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy insisted on the territorial integrity of his country after earlier suggesting he was ready for a compromise.

Zelenskyy said in his video address to the Ukrainian people late on Sunday that in talks due to take place in Istanbul his government would prioritise the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine.

But in says made to Russian journalists earlier in the day Zelenskyy adopted a different tone, saying Ukraine was willing to assume neutral status and compromise over the status of the eastern Donbas region as part of a peace deal.

March 28 2022 - 06:15

Zelenskyy asks: Is the West scared of Russia?

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy demanded more military hardware, including tanks and planes, from the West, and questioned whether Nato is intimidated by Moscow.

March 28 2022 - 06:00

'Decrepit' to 'effective': Ex-US adviser on Ukraine's forces

Retired US Army Colonel Liam Collins, who helped train and reform Ukraine's military, said that it has turned from a ‘decrepit’ state into a force effective at fending off Russian advances in major Ukrainian cities.

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