UKRAINE WRAP | Russian police detain opposition politician in Moscow

July 25 2022 20:30

Turkey tells Ukraine it is important for first grain shipment to take place soon

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar on Monday told Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov that it was important for the first shipment of grain under a U.N.-brokered deal to take place as soon as possible, his ministry said.

In a statement, the ministry said Akar welcomed a statement that Kyiv hopes to begin implementing the deal this week, adding Turkey would continue to do what it has to under the agreement.

Akar, who discussed the grain export deal with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin earlier, also said work at the Istanbul-based joint coordination centre (JCC) was continuing intensely, his ministry said.

-Reuters

July 25 2022 18:58

First Ukraine grain ships may move in days, says UN

The first ships to export Ukraine grain from the country's Black Sea ports may move within a few days under a deal agreed on Friday by Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and the United Nations, a U.N. spokesperson said on Monday.

A Joint Coordination Center will liaise with the shipping industry and will publish detailed procedures for ships in the near future, said deputy U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq.

-Reuters 

July 25 2022 16:33

Russia’s Lavrov courts Africa in quest for more non-Western friends

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov visited Congo Republic on Monday, the second leg of an African tour aimed at strengthening Moscow’s ties with a continent that has refused to join Western condemnation and sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

African countries, which have a tangled legacy of ties with both the West and the former Soviet Union, have largely avoided taking sides over the war in Ukraine. Many import Russian grain and, increasingly, energy too but they also buy Ukrainian grain and benefit from Western aid flows and trade ties.

Lavrov has already visited Egypt and will head from Congo to Uganda, then Ethiopia.

July 25 2022 15:27

Russia's Lavrov says no barriers to Ukraine grain export, defends strikes

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday there are no barriers to the export of grain from Ukrainian ports, after Ukraine and Russia signed a deal to unblock grain shipments on the Black Sea in Turkey last week. Speaking after Russian missiles struck Ukraine's main port of Odesa on Saturday, Lavrov said the strike had been aimed at military infrastructure in the port. He told a news conference there was nothing in the grain agreement signed by Russia to prevent it from continuing to attack military infrastructure in Ukraine. – Reuters

July 25 2022 15:25

Russian police detain opposition politician Gozman in Moscow

Russian police detained Leonid Gozman, an opposition politician, on Monday, his lawyer said, after a criminal case was opened over his alleged failure to inform the authorities swiftly enough about his citizenship of Israel.

"At the entrance to the Frunzenskaya metro station, he was detained by metro police officers," Gozman's lawyer, Mikhail Biryukov, said on Facebook.

Gozman was the last leader of the small Union of Right Forces political party, which brought together free-market reformers such as Anatoly Chubais, who has left Russia, and Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead in 2015 close to the Kremlin.

Since the invasion of Ukraine, political dissent has become more dangerous inside Russia. Protesters are routinely arrested and public criticism of the war risks prosecution. Gozman had argued publicly that President Vladimir Putin has inflicted more damage on Russia by invading Ukraine than any other Russian leader since Josef Stalin, and that post-Soviet Russia had essentially died with the war.

Gozman was last month listed officially as what Russia terms "a foreign agent" — a person who receives money from foreigners or is under the influence of foreigners. He has been placed on a federal wanted list, the interior ministry said. It was not immediately clear why.

In his last public post on Telegram, Gozman said: "For those who want and can protest — be careful, remember that what was almost free yesterday — a small fine — can cost freedom today ... Only if you understand what you will have to pay with — go ahead, and may God help you. Everyone else — do not give up." 

Reuters

July 25 2022 14:18

'Missile alert': Taiwan holds air-raid

“It is necessary to make preparations in the event of a war,” Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je said in a speech after overseeing drills for the exercise named Wan An, which means everlasting peace.

China claims democratically ruled Taiwan as its territory and has never ruled out taking the island by force. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claim and vows to defend itself.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has renewed debate in Taiwan about how best to react in the event of an attack amid stepped up Chinese military manoeuvres around the island.

“Chinese military planes have frequently harassed Taiwan in recent years and there's even the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war in February, these incidents remind us that we need to be vigilant in peace time,” Ko said.

July 25 2022 14:16

UK to Host Eurovision 2023 on Behalf of Ukraine

The 2023 Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted by the UK, as the war in Ukraine prevents the reigning champions from holding the competition.

Eurovision 2022, held in Italy, attracted 161-million views, according to its website. Ukrainian entrants Kalush Orchestra performed the winning song Stefania. Normally, the winners of one year host the following year’s contest. This has been decided against for the 2023 edition, in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The BBC will coordinate the relocated competition, and is now beginning the process of finding a host city. “The BBC is committed to making the event a true reflection of Ukrainian culture alongside showcasing the diversity of British music and creativity.” the broadcaster’s director-general Tim Davie said in a statement. 

Bloomberg

July 25 2022 14:13

Ukraine hopes first grain shipment under UN deal will be this week

Ukraine said on Monday it hoped a UN-brokered deal aimed at easing global food shortages by resuming grain exports from the Black Sea region would start being implemented this week.

Senior government officials told a news conference they hoped the first grain shipment under the deal would be from the port of Chornomorsk this week, and that shipments could be made from all ports included under the deal within two weeks.

Infrastructure minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said there were no limits on how much grain could be exported under the agreement reached on Friday, which also allows got the export and import of fertiliser.

"We believe that over the next 24 hours we will be ready to work to resume exports from our ports. We are talking about the port of Chornomorsk, it will be the first, then there will be Odesa, then the port of Pivdeny," said deputy infrastructure minister Yuriy Vasyuko.

Reuters

July 25 2022 12:02

Germany can’t let itself be blackmailed by Russia: Baerbock

Germany can’t let itself be “blackmailed” by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the international community needs to stand firm in its support for Ukraine, German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock told Bild Live.

“He’s using energy as a weapon, he’s using grains as a weapon because he’s trying to divide our country, the EU and the global community,” Baerbock said in an interview with the newspaper’s streaming channel.

“The important thing is that we don’t let ourselves be blackmailed or driven or anything, but that in this difficult situation, with the greatest possible mutual responsibility, we support Ukraine and protect our people in our country and prevent the hardship of people around the world from getting worse.”

Baerbock said Germany has seen over the last five months that Russia has used “all possible tricks and methods and that’s why we’re preparing for what will happen in winter.”

Bloomberg

July 25 2022 11:52

Ukraine, Russia reach deal to unblock grain exports stranded by war

Russia and Ukraine reached a deal aimed at releasing millions of tons of grain from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports that, if implemented, would mark a major step toward shoring up global food supplies.

Government officials from Kyiv and Moscow signed parallel agreements with Turkey and the UN at a meeting in Istanbul. Grain ship traffic should begin in the coming days, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The accord involves shipments from three Ukrainian ports: Odesa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi, said UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres. “This is an unprecedented agreement between two parties engaged in bloody conflict,” Guterres said at the ceremony.

The news could help revive agricultural trade from one of the world’s biggest wheat, corn and vegetable-oil exporters. If realised, that would help ease strained global grain supplies and take some pressure off food prices that surged to records levels in recent months. However, many logistical hurdles remain and it’s uncertain how quickly exports will progress with Russia’s war still raging. Ukraine faces challenges from finding enough ships to carry the backlogged grain, to getting insurance to cover operations.

The plan’s success also hinges on Moscow’s security assurances and President Vladimir Putin living up to his side of the bargain, at a time when the Kremlin is moving to annex occupied lands and continues to advance in Ukraine’s east.

The ports involved accounted for just over half of Ukrainian seaborne grain exports in the 2020-21 season, UkrAgroConsult data show.

Bloomberg

July 25 2022 11:48

Russia says it destroyed HIMARS ammo depot in Ukraine

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that its forces had destroyed an ammunition depot for U.S.-made HIMARS rocket systems in Bogdanovtsy, in Ukraine's Khmelnytskyi region. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the reports.Russia has previously said it has destroyed several of the HIMARS systems supplied to Ukraine by the West, in claims denied by Kyiv. – Reuters

July 25 2022 11:45

EU countries rewrite plan to cut gas demand, seek carve-outs

EU countries are seeking to soften the bloc's plan to require them to use less gas as Europe prepares for a winter of uncertain supplies from its main gas supplier Russia. The European Commission proposed last week that the 27 EU member states each cut their gas use by 15% from August to March. The target would be voluntary, but the Commission could make it binding in a gas supply emergency.

Brussels has urged countries to curb gas use now to help fill storage ahead of winter, and warned that a full cut-off of Russian gas is likely. But the EU plan has faced resistance from a swathe of governments, with some flatly against binding cuts and others unwilling to let Brussels control their energy use.

Diplomats from EU countries will discuss a revised proposal on Monday. The proposal, seen by Reuters, would keep the voluntary target for all countries to curb gas use, but set different mandatory targets.

The latest proposal, drafted by the Czech Republic, which currently chairs EU country meetings, offers a range of exemptions to the binding target to use less gas.

Countries without links to EU gas networks would be exempted — which could cover island countries such as Ireland and Malta — and those with large volumes of stored gas could face lower targets to curb demand.

States that export gas to other countries could also face lower targets, likely including Spain, which does not rely on Russia for gas and has been among the firmest opponents of the EU proposal. Critical sectors such as chemicals and steel could also be exempted.

The new proposal puts national governments rather than the Commission in charge of the process to make the target binding, which could only be done with majority support from countries.

Diplomats from EU countries had mixed views on the latest draft, with some welcoming it and others concerned by the large number of exemptions.

Energy ministers will attempt to approve it on Tuesday. The proposal needs approval from a reinforced majority of at least 15 EU countries to become law.

Reuters

July 25 2022 11:38

Russian strikes on Odesa port don't impact grain exports

The Kremlin said on Monday that a Russian cruise missile strike against the port of Odesa in southern Ukraine would not affect the export of grain. In a conference call with reporters, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia had targeted military infrastructure in a missile strike on Saturday, just hours after Kyiv and Moscow had signed a landmark deal to restart crucial grain exports from Ukraine.

"These strikes are connected exclusively with military infrastructure," Peskov said."They are in no way related to infrastructure that is used for the export of grain. This should not affect — and will not affect — the beginning of shipments."

Reuters

July 25 2022 11:30

Kremlin: Repaired gas turbine for Nord Stream 1 to be installed

A repaired turbine will be installed at a compressor station of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline once it is returned from maintenance in Canada and natural gas will then be supplied in "corresponding volumes" Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, said on Monday.

"The turbine will be installed after all the formalities are complete ... And the gas will be pumped in the corresponding volumes, the volumes which are technologically possible," Peskov told reporters.

He said that there was more Nord Stream 1 equipment that needed repairing and Siemens Energy, the company which is servicing the facilities, was aware of that. Peskov also said that Moscow was not interested in a complete stoppage of Russian gas supplies to Europe.

Reuters

July 25 2022 07:00

Germany back on path towards gas storage goals, says network regulator head

Germany is back on the path of decent gas injection levels and the task is now to reach its target of 75% gas storage levels by Sept. 1, the head of the country's network regulator said on Twitter on Monday.

Klaus Mueller, head of the Bundesnetzagentur regulator, added that gas importer Uniper had also ended withdrawals from storage. 

Reuters 

July 25 2022 06:30

Leader of country Putin could target next explains why she’s now ‘worried’

Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilița discusses Putin's invasion of Ukraine and whether he will invade her country.

July 25 2022 06:15

Russian investigator says wants new tribunal for Ukraine

The head of Russia's investigative committee said Moscow had charged 92 members of Ukrainian armed forces with crimes against humanity and proposed an international tribunal backed by countries including Bolivia, Iran and Syria.

The government's Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Monday quoted committee head Alexander Bastrykin as accusing "more than 220 persons, including representatives of the high command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as commanders of military units that shelled the civilian population.

"The Ukrainians were involved in "crimes against the peace and security of humanity, which have no statute of limitations," he said.

Bastrykin, whose committee probes major crimes, said 92 commanders and their subordinates had been charged, and 96 people, including 51 armed forces commanders, declared wanted.

Reuters could not independently verify the committee's allegations. Ukrainian authorities were not immediately available for comment.

The United States and more than 40 other countries agreed earlier this month to coordinate investigations into suspected war crimes in Ukraine.

Since launching what it calls a special military operation in February, Russian forces have bombed Ukrainian cities to ruins and left behind bodies in the streets of towns and villages they occupied. Ukraine says tens of thousands of civilians have died. Moscow denies responsibility.

There have also been some reports of Ukrainians mistreating Russian prisoners, though the vast majority of accusations documented by bodies such as the United Nations are of alleged atrocities committed by Russian invaders and their proxies.

Bastrykin was asked about his committee's investigations into Ukrainian security forces' actions in the self-declared people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, separatist, Moscow-backed territories in Ukraine's industrialized east, and whether investigations could take place under UN auspices.

Given that the "collective West" openly backed Ukraine, he said it would be more appropriate to work with Russian partners in the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the BRICS group and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

It was "expedient" to involve countries with an independent position on Ukraine, "in particular, Syria, Iran and Bolivia," he added.

Bastrykin said 1,300 criminal investigations had been initiated into members of Ukraine's military, political leadership, radical nationalist associations, and armed formations, with more than 400 people so far held accountable.

Targets of investigation included Ukrainian health ministry employees who he accused, without providing evidence, of developing weapons of mass destruction, as well as citizens of Britain, the United States, Canada, the Netherlands and Georgia.

Eight criminal cases had also been launched into attacks on Russian embassies or other representations in the Netherlands, Ireland, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania and France, he said.

Reuters 

July 25 2022 06:00

Russia's Lavrov offers reassurances over grain supplies

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov offered reassurances over Russian grain supplies to Egypt, amid uncertainty over a deal to resume Ukrainian exports from the Black Sea.