Tag Archives: Russia

World

Possible mass graves near Mariupol as Russia attacks in east

Leave a comment

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Satellite photos of what appeared to be rows upon rows of freshly dug mass graves on the outskirts of Mariupol brought the horrors of the war increasingly into focus, as Russia pounded away Friday at Ukrainian holdouts in the city’s steel mill and other targets in a drive to seize the country’s industrial east.

“Every day they drop several bombs on Azovstal,” Petro Andryushchenko, an adviser to Mariupol’s mayor, said of the besieged steelworks. “Fighting, shelling, bombing do not stop.”

Cities elsewhere in the Donbas region also came under Russian fire overnight, and the attacks interfered with efforts to evacuate civilians.

The region, home to coal mines, metal plants and heavy-equipment factories, is bracing for what could be an epic clash as Russian President Vladimir Putin attempts to salvage a victory from the 8-week-old war widely seen as a blunder and a humanitarian disaster.

On Thursday, Putin claimed victory in the battle for the strategic southern port city of Mariupol, even though an estimated 2,000 Ukrainians remained holed up at the sprawling steelworks, which has been bombarded for weeks. Putin ordered his troops not to storm the stronghold but to seal it off.

At the same time, Maxar Technologies released new satellite images that it said showed more than 200 graves in a town near Mariupol, prompting accusations that the Russians were trying to conceal the slaughter of civilians taking place in the city.

Initial estimates from the Ukrainians said the graves could hold 9,000 bodies, but Andryushenko said there could be more. Ukrainian authorities have said over 20,000 civilians have been killed in the nearly two-month siege of Mariupol.

“The graves have been dug up and corpses are still being dumped there,” the mayor’s aide said.

Putin said Friday that Russia gave Ukrainian forces inside the steel plant the option to surrender, with guarantees to keep them alive, and offered “decent treatment and medical care,” according to an account of a phone call with European Council President Charles Michel, provided by the Kremlin.

“But the Kyiv regime does not allow them to take this opportunity,” Putin charged.

Repeated attempts to evacuate civilians from the the city have failed because Russia did not honor cease-fires, Ukrainian officials have said.

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said no humanitarian corridors for civilian evacuations would be open in Ukraine on Friday because it was too dangerous. She urged civilians to “be patient” and “hang in there.”

Days into the Russian offensive to take the east, the campaign has yet to become a full-out assault, with military analysts saying Moscow’s forces are still ramping up. But scattered towns in the east have experienced the thud of incoming shells that drive citizens out in panic.

Slovyansk, a city of about 100,000 in eastern Ukraine, came under fire during the night, according to Mayor Vadym Lyakh, who said no injuries were reported. But he urged residents to leave and said a convoy of buses would be organized. In Rubizhne, Russian fire prevented attempts to bring buses in, Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai said.

Intensive shelling was also heard overnight in Kharkiv, a northeastern city that lies outside the Donbas but is seen as one of the gateways the Russians intend to use to encircle Ukrainian forces in the Donbas from the north, the south and the east.

If successful, the campaign would give Putin a vital piece of the country and a badly needed victory to show the Russian people amid the war’s mounting casualties and the economic hardship caused by Western sanctions.

But analysts say Russian forces have yet to achieve any major breakthroughs in the Donbas or gain any significant ground. A senior U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the Pentagon’s assessment, said the Ukrainians were hindering the Russian effort to push south from Izyum, which lies outside the Donbas.

On Friday, Rustam Minnekayev, a senior Russian military official, outlined Russian war aims that appeared to be wider than what the Kremlin has stated in recent weeks. He said Russia’s forces aim to take full control of not just eastern Ukraine but southern too.

He said such a move would open the way to the nation of Moldova, where Russia backs the breakaway region of Transnistria. Moldovan officials are warily watching Putin’s actions in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russia’s top diplomat, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, said talks between the two countries have “ground to a halt” because Moscow hasn’t received a response from Kyiv to its latest proposals, the details of which have not been released.

Putin’s lead negotiator at the talks, Vladimir Medinsky, said he held several lengthy conversations Friday with the head of the Ukrainian delegation. He gave no details on what was discussed or say if any progress was made.

The battle for Mariupol has been seen as key to the eastern assault. Its capture would complete a land bridge between Russia and the Crimean Peninsula, which was seized by Moscow in 2014, and free up Putin’s forces to take part in the larger campaign in the east.

Mariupol has been the site of some of the worst suffering of the war, and the satellite images released Thursday hinted at even more. In the images, long rows of dirt mounds stretch away from an existing cemetery in Manhush, outside Mariupol.

There was no immediate reaction from the Kremlin on the satellite pictures. When mass graves and hundreds of dead civilians were discovered in Bucha and other towns around Kyiv after Russian troops retreated three weeks ago, Russian officials denied their soldiers killed any civilians there and falsely accused Ukraine of staging the atrocities.

The U.N. Human Rights office again condemned the Russian invasion.

“Over these eight weeks, international humanitarian law has not merely been ignored but seemingly tossed aside,” U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said.

___

Fisch reported from Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. Associated Press journalists Mstyslav Chernov and Felipe Dana in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Yuras Karmanau in Lviv and Robert Burns and Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report, as did other AP staff members around the world.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Read original article here

World

Russian General Lets Slip a Secret Plan to Invade Moldova and Seize Ukraine’s Entire Coastline

Leave a comment

As Russian troops tighten their grip on the strategic port town of Mariupol, their strategy is finally becoming clear. Russian military commander Rustam Minnekaev now says the second phase of President Vladimir Putin’s “special operation” is focused on establishing a “land corridor” from the Donbas all the way to Moldova, which would cut off the rest of Ukraine from the sea.

“One of the tasks of the Russian army is to establish full control over the Donbas and southern Ukraine. This will provide a land corridor to the Crimea, as well as influence the vital objects of the Ukrainian economy,” Minnekaev said Friday at a meeting with the Union of Defense Industries, as reported by the Russian state-owned Interfax. “Control over the south of Ukraine is another way out to Transnistria, where there are also facts of oppression of the Russian-speaking population.” Transnistria is a separatist region of Moldova that has so far not been officially involved in the war despite hosting a Russian military base since the 1990s.

The general’s words suggest that Moldova’s sovereign borders would also come under threat from further Russian expansion. Phony efforts to protect Russian-speaking peoples have often foreshadowed Putin’s imperial invasions.

In reality, Russian speakers have been struck down in the hundreds in eastern Ukraine during the brutal invasion.

If successful, the strategy would include taking the port of the former seaside resort town of Odesa near the Moldovan border, which has suffered sporadic bombardments but no full-fledged invasion so far. Russia’s warship Moskva was hit about 75 miles off the coast of Odesa two weeks ago, before it sank en route to Crimea.

The refocusing of troops from northern Ukraine to the southern regions of the country has further choked Mariupol, where Ukrainian troops and civilians are holed up in a steel factory surrounded by Russian troops. Satellite imagery identified a growing number of graves outside the port city, where Ukrainian officials say up to 200 new graves have been dug since April 3.

While the Russian military has largely now left northern Ukraine alone save for sporadic missile strikes, fresh evidence of Russia’s ruthless tactics there in recent weeks continue to build a case for widespread war crimes. Andrii Nebytov, the head of police for Kyiv region, told CNN that they are examining 1,084 bodies found in the region outside Kyiv, including Bucha, for signs of torture. “These are civilians who had nothing to do with territorial defense or other military formations,” he said. “The vast majority—between 50 percent and 75 percent—are people killed by small arms, either a machine gun or a sniper rifle, depending on the location.”

Among the atrocities are evidence of widespread rape and sexual mutilation. The youngest victim who survived to tell her story is just 15, according to CNN. Several female bodies in mass graves show evidence of horrific crimes as well.

On Friday, the United Nations Human Rights Office described Russian atrocities against Ukrainians as a “horror story of violations against civilians” that shows no sign of abating.

Read original article here

World

Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now

Leave a comment

April 22 (Reuters) – A Russian general said Moscow wants to seize all of southern and eastern Ukraine, far wider war aims than it had acknowledged as it presses on with a new offensive. read more

Rustam Minnekayev said Moscow aimed to seize the entire eastern Donbas region, link up with the Crimea peninsula, and capture Ukraine’s entire south as far as a breakaway, Russian-occupied region of Moldova. That would mean pushing hundreds of miles beyond current lines.

* Ukraine’s general staff said Russian forces had increased attacks along the whole frontline in the east of the country and were trying to mount an offensive in the Kharkiv region, north of Russia’s main target, the Donbas.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Register

* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russian forces control most of Mariupol but Ukrainian troops remain in a part of it. About 120,000 civilians were blocked from leaving, he said.

* The mayor of Mariupol appealed for the “full evacuation” of the city.

* The U.N. human rights office sounded the alarm about growing evidence of war crimes in Ukraine, urging both Moscow and Kyiv to order combatants to respect international law.

* U.S. President Joe Biden pledged $800 million in more weaponry for Ukraine and said he would ask Congress for more money to help the Ukrainian military. read more

* German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said NATO must avoid a direct military confrontation with Russia that could lead to a third world war.

* Plans for Pope Francis to meet in June with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, who has backed Russia’s war in Ukraine, have been suspended, the pope told an Argentine newspaper.

* Ukraine is working with lawyers on a mechanism to use frozen Russian funds to compensate it for its economic losses, its justice minister told Reuters.

* World Bank President David Malpass said the food security crisis caused by the war was likely to last months and that Ukraine had suffered some $60 billion worth of physical damage.

“If you have a helmet and a bulletproof vest, but you do not have a gun in your hands, you are doomed,” said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, appealing for military aid.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Register

Compiled by Robert Birsel, Kim Coghill and Angus MacSwan

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Read original article here

Business

American Express, Verizon, Kimberly-Clark and more

Leave a comment

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:

American Express (AXP) – American Express rose 1.2% in the premarket after reporting better-than-expected profit and revenue for the first quarter. Amex reported a profit of $2.73 per share compared with the $2.44 consensus estimate, helped by increased spending by millennial and Gen-X consumers as well as small and medium-sized businesses.

Verizon (VZ) – Verizon earned an adjusted $1.35 per share for the first quarter, matching estimates, with revenue also essentially in line. Verizon lost 36,000 phone subscribers during the quarter, less than the 49,300 losses expected by analysts who were surveyed by FactSet. Verizon fell 1.4% in premarket trading.

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) – The consumer products company’s shares jumped 3.8% in the premarket after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue. Kimberly-Clark said it was able to deal with a “volatile and inflationary” environment and raised its full-year organic sales forecast.

Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) – The steel producer and mining company’s stock rallied 3.5% in premarket trading after beating top and bottom-line estimates for the first quarter. Cleveland-Cliffs also raised its average selling price forecast for the full year.

Schlumberger (SLB) – The oilfield services producer beat estimates by a penny with an adjusted quarterly profit of 34 cents per share, and revenue also topped Wall Street forecasts. Schlumberger also raised its dividend by 40%, and its stock added 1.1% in premarket action.

Snap (SNAP) – Snap lost an adjusted 2 cents per share for its latest quarter, compared with consensus forecasts of a 1 cent per-share profit for the social media company. It also issued a conservative sales growth outlook for the current quarter, and the shares fell 1.1% in premarket trading.

Gap (GPS) – Gap cut its sales growth outlook amid increasing competition and more promotions. The company also announced that Old Navy President and CEO Nancy Green is departing. Gap stock tumbled 14.8% in the premarket.

Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) – AB InBev will sell its stake in its Russian joint venture and take a $1.1 billion impairment charge as a result. The beer brewer suspended sales of its Budweiser brand in Russia last month following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. AB InBev fell 1.8% in premarket action.

SAP (SAP) – SAP shares slid 4.1% in premarket trading after the German business software company said it would take a $300 million revenue hit due to its exit from the Russian market.

Boston Beer (SAM) – Boston Beer reported a quarterly loss of 16 cents per share, compared with analysts’ expected profit of $1.97 per share. The beer brewer’s revenue missed estimates as shipment volume declined more than 25% from a year earlier and gross margins fell as well. Shares were down 3.2% in the premarket.

Read original article here

US

U.S. sends Ukraine Phoenix Ghost drones, howitzers to combat Russia

Leave a comment

Placeholder while article actions load

President Biden announced an additional $800 million in military assistance for Ukraine on Thursday, with the initial portion arriving over the weekend. The package, which represents a sharp increase in artillery shipments, includes weapons that meet Ukraine’s specific needs on the battlefield, which is shifting toward the Donbas region in the east.

The latest package includes 72 155mm howitzers and the tactical vehicles to tow them, along with 144,000 artillery rounds. That is a significant increase over the 18 howitzers in another shipment also announced in April, and it is enough to equip five battalions, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.

By some expert estimates, the 144,000 rounds could last as long as four weeks. “The howitzers are really equipment designed to help Ukrainians hold the line against the forthcoming Russian assaults,” said Samir Puri, a Singapore-based military analyst with the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Also in the package are over 120 Phoenix Ghost Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems — drones that the U.S. Air Force developed “in response, specifically, to Ukrainian requirements,” according to Kirby. Later in the day, he said the drones had actually been “developed for a set of requirements that very closely match” the Ukrainians’ needs for operations in Donbas.

“Its principal focus is attack,” he said.

In battle for Ukraine’s east, front-line soldiers defend against Russia

The Phoenix Ghosts, designed by Aevex Aerospace, are similar to Switchblade drones, small and precise weapons packed with explosives that are able to strike targets in “kamikaze” fashion. The Phoenix Ghost system will require minimal training for experienced drone operators, Kirby said. Washington announced in March it would send 100 Switchblades to Kyiv.

Ukraine has kept the Kremlin from taking a major prize — Kyiv, the capital — by adopting guerrilla tactics in the forests of the country’s north and west. But the open and flat lands of the east are far better suited for Russia’s ability to muster large formations of tanks and armored vehicles.

Warmer weather in the coming weeks will also provide the Kremlin’s armored formations with greater freedom of movement. On Thursday, the British Defense Ministry said that Moscow’s forces were advancing toward Kramatorsk, an eastern Ukrainian city that is a constant target of Russian missile and rocket fusillades.

The Phoenix Ghosts may address some of these challenges by allowing Ukraine to strike at Russia’s advancing columns from afar, Puri said. Ukrainian forces on the retreat “can stay in the fight somewhat from a slight distance away … and still [present] a serious threat.”

Washington Post Pentagon and national security reporter Karoun Demirjian explains the difficulties of deciding which weapons to send Ukraine. (Video: Joshua Carroll/The Washington Post)

Exploding ‘kamikaze’ drones are ushering in a new era of warfare in Ukraine

Kyiv has found success with other drones. Ukraine’s Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2, the size of a small airplane and equipped with laser-guided missiles, has wreaked havoc on Russian tanks and trucks. Russian President Vladimir Putin had previously protested to his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, over the transfer of those arms to Ukraine.

The Phoenix Ghost is a tactical weapon designed to “deliver a punch” and would be useful against a number of targets, said a U.S. defense official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under terms set by the Pentagon.

Such weapons are also light and portable, making them easy to ship from Ukraine’s NATO neighbors and from the country’s west to the eastern front line, Puri said. By contrast, delivering howitzers presents logistical challenges and greater risk of Russian interdiction, he added.

Demirjian reported from Washington and Cheng from Seoul. Liz Sly and Dan Lamothe contributed to this report.

Read original article here

World

Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine

Leave a comment

EU urges citizens to work from home, drive less to reduce Russian gas reliance

The EU is calling on people to switch up their habits in order to use less energy, which it says will help to reduce reliance on Russian gas. The EU imports roughly 40% of its natural gas from Russia.

The European Commission and the International Energy Agency has compiled put together a list of energy-saving measures and say they could save households an average of up to 500 euros ($540) annually.

“People across Europe have helped Ukraine by making donations or aiding refugees directly, and many would like to do more. Most households are also experiencing higher energy bills because of the energy crisis exacerbated by the war,” the Commission and IEA said in a joint statement.

“Using less energy is not only an immediate way for Europeans to reduce their bills, it also supports Ukraine by reducing the need for Russian oil and gas, thereby helping to reduce the revenue streams funding the invasion,” the organizations added.

“If all EU citizens were to follow the recommendations below at home and in their workplace, it would save 220 million barrels of oil a year, which is enough to fill 120 supertankers, and around 17 billion cubic metres of gas, which is enough to heat almost 20 million homes,” the IAE said on its website.

The list of measures encourages people to:

  • Turn down heating and use less air conditioning
  • Adjust the boiler’s settings
  • Work from home
  • Use the car more economically
  • Reduce speed on highways, with the car air conditioning turned down
  • Leave the car at home on Sundays in large cities
  • Walk or bike for short journeys instead of driving
  • Use public transport
  • Skip the plane, take the train

— Natasha Turak

Mariupol mayor appeals for a full evacuation of the city

People walk past cars damaged during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 21, 2022.

Alexander Ermochenko | Reuters

The mayor of Mariupol has called for a full evacuation of the besieged southern port city, which Russia says it has captured, except for the Azovstal steel plant complex, where a few thousand Ukrainian troops and civilians are holding out. It has been the site of the heaviest shelling since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, cut off from electricity, water and food for nearly two months.

The city has lost roughly 80% of its pre-war population of around half a million people. Ukraine’s government now says that satellite imagery shows mass graves in the area.

“We need only one thing – the full evacuation of the population. About 100,000 people remain in Mariupol,” Mayor Vadym Boichenko said on national television, according to Reuters.

— Natasha Turak

Putin’s decision not to storm Mariupol plant may be aimed at freeing up Russian forces: UK

Intense fighting continues in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, with Putin’s decision to blockade the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol likely aimed at freeing up his forces for fighting elsewhere, the U.K.’s Defense Ministry said in its daily intelligence update on Twitter.

A few thousand Ukrainian troops and civilians are still holed up inside the plant, and several attempts to create humanitarian evacuation corridors have failed.

“Despite Russia’s renewed focus they are still suffering from losses sustained earlier in the conflict,” the U.K.’s ministry wrote. “In order to try and reconstitute their depleted forces, they have resorted to transiting inoperable equipment back to Russia for repair.”

— Natasha Turak

Ukrainian officials say up to 9,000 people may be buried in a mass grave near Mariupol

As many as 9,000 people may be buried in a mass grave in a village outside the city of Mariupol, Ukrainian officials said in a statement on Telegram.

Satellite images captured by the U.S. defense contractor Maxar show mass graves 20 times bigger than a cemetery discovered this month in the city of Bucha, the Mariupol City Council said, according to NBC translation. The site in the village of Mangush could hold 3,000 to 9,000 — and 70 bodies have been found so far, the city council.

Maxar said the graves appeared toward the end of March and expanded in April.

CNBC and NBC were not able to independently confirm the report.

A grave with a wreath and a Ukrainian flag in Chernihiv, Ukraine on April 16, 2022. As many as 9,000 people may be buried in a mass grave in a village outside the city of Mariupol, Ukrainian officials said, NBC News reported.

Andre Luis Alves | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

“The biggest war crime of the 21st century was committed in Mariupol. This is the new Babyn Yar,” said Mariupol’s Mayor Vadym Boychenko, referring to the Kyiv ravine where Nazi forces killed an estimated 33,000 Jews in 1941.

“And now Putin is destroying Ukrainians. He has already killed tens of thousands of civilians in Mariupol. And this requires a strong reaction from the entire civilized world. Anything needs to stop the genocide,” said the mayor.

The embattled city of Mariupol has been hit especially hard as victory there will be a prized target for Russia. The capture of the southern port city will give Moscow control over much of Ukraine’s southern coast and provide a land corridor to Crimea, which the Kremlin annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

— Chelsea Ong

Zelenskyy says Russia rejected Easter truce proposal

Ukrainian soldiers patrol in the frontline of Mykolaiv surrounded of the destruction after the Russian shelling over a village in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address that Russia has rejected an Easter truce proposal.

Celestino Arce | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Russia rejected an Easter truce proposal, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.

“This shows very well how the leaders of this state actually treat the Christian faith, one of the most joyful and important holidays,” he added, though he said he still hopes for peace.

Earlier, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a four-day pause to the fighting in Ukraine during the Orthodox Christian Easter to evacuate civilians and allow humanitarian aid to be sent into needy areas.

Zelenskyy also said Mariupol continues to resist Russia, despite Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claim of victory in the city.

— Chelsea Ong

Read CNBC’s previous live coverage here:

Read original article here

World

New tanks and artillery bolster Ukraine’s hopes of defeating Russia

Leave a comment

An inrush of howitzers, artillery shells and drones is heading to Ukraine in a new $800 million package announced Thursday by President Biden. The Pentagon says Ukraine now has more functional tanks on the ground than Russia due to shipments from countries including the Czech Republic.

The big picture: With a potentially decisive battle now underway in the eastern Donbas region, the urgency to get arms to the front lines is ramping up, and concerns about provoking Vladimir Putin are fading — at least in Washington.

  • Biden promised to continue sending arms “without interruption” and told Americans they should be proud that U.S. arms and intelligence were helping Ukraine “beat back Putin’s savagery.”

In contrast, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under pressure from Kyiv, EU allies and his own government for refusing to provide certain heavy weaponry, like tanks or other military vehicles.

  • Scholz defended his cautious approach this week in the Bundestag, saying Germany could not “go it alone” and had to consider its own defense needs and the risk of escalation beyond Ukraine’s borders.

There’s also a growing debate about what a realistic outcome in the Donbas might look like.

  • A European official briefed reporters Tuesday that the latest assessment is Russia will be able to take the remainder of Luhansk and “a bit” of Donetsk — the two provinces that comprise the Donbas region — as well as a very narrow land corridor to Crimea.
  • At that point, within four to six months, there will be a stalemate and the potential for more serious negotiations, the official predicted.
  • However, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Parliament this week that he sees no path to a diplomatic solution with Putin, and thus “we must do everything we can to ensure he fails.”

Some experts argue that, with enough Western support, Ukraine could actually defeat Russia, which the Pentagon says has lost 25% of its combat power in eight weeks of war.

  • “If we continue this path, accelerating deliveries with broader European production and contribution, in a few weeks Russia will be losing unambiguously,” Eliot Cohen of The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies tweeted Thursday. “Time to double down and aim for Ukrainian victory.”
  • A European Council of Foreign Relations analysis contends that if NATO countries commit to a lend-lease program for Ukraine — paired with intensive training for Ukrainian troops on advanced systems like F-15 fighter jets — Ukraine could gain the upper hand.
  • If the war does drag on, Russia will be contending with dwindling stockpiles, and sanctions could impact future production of some weapons systems.
  • Yes, but: It’s not entirely clear what a military victory for Ukraine would look like, as outright surrender from Putin appears unlikely.

Putin in a televised meeting on Thursday ordered Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to cancel plans to raid the massive steel plant in Mariupol where Ukrainian troops and hundreds of civilians are holding out, and instead seal it off.

  • Putin effectively claimed control of the key port city, but he has rebuffed Ukrainian calls for a humanitarian corridor to allow the troops and civilians out.
  • Maj. Serhiy Volyna, commander of Ukraine’s 36th Separate Marine Brigade that’s defending the plant, has refused to surrender but said Wednesday that, “We are probably facing our last days, if not hours.”

Go deeper: Satellite images show mass grave in Ukrainian town near Mariupol

Read original article here

Business

Tata Steel to Infosys: Indian businesses are quitting Russia

Leave a comment

Tata Steel, one of the largest steelmakers in India, said on Wednesday that it has “taken a conscious decision to stop doing business with Russia.”

The company, which is also one of the biggest steel producers in Europe, said it has a plan in place to ensure minimal disruption to its business.
All “our steel manufacturing sites in India, the UK and the Netherlands have sourced alternative supplies of raw materials to end its dependence on Russia,” it added in a statement, without providing any further details.

Tata Steel is part of Tata Group, one of India’s biggest multinational conglomerate.

Its announcement comes just days after Infosys (INFY), one of India’s largest tech companies, said that it has started moving its operations out of Russia.
“Given what is going on in the region, we have started to transition all of our work from our centers in Russia to our center outside Russia,” Infosys CEO Salil Parekh told reporters last week.

“We are also providing some assistance for re-skilling of individuals that are displaced and, seeing as they move to other geographies if they can work in some of our locations in eastern Europe,” he added.

In the last two months, dozens of companies from around the world have suspended, abandoned or scaled back their businesses in Russia.

Close ties

The halting of operations by the Indian corporate giants comes at a time when New Delhi is reportedly stepping up its purchases of Russian oil, now trading at a heavy discount because of Western sanctions.
Unlike the West, the South Asian country — which has a long-standing relationship with Moscow — has not imposed sanctions on Moscow and this month abstained in a vote to remove Russia from the UN Human Rights Council. More than 50% of the country’s military equipment comes from Russia.

While the United States continue to try to rally the world behind crippling economic sanctions on Moscow, India has also not backed off purchases of Russian energy oil or gas, defending its position by pointing to Europe’s continued reliance on imports from Russia.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said earlier this month that “India has to make its own decisions about how it approaches” the Russian war in Ukraine.

The top US diplomat noted that “India’s relationship with Russia has developed over decades, at a time when the United States was not able to be partner to India,”

But “times have changed,” Blinken added, and the United States is “able and willing to be a partner of choice with India.”

— Manveena Suri in New Delhi contributed to this report.

Read original article here

World

Many say Biden not tough enough on Russia: AP-NORC poll

Leave a comment

WASHINGTON (AP) — Many people in the U.S. still question whether President Joe Biden is showing enough strength in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine, even as most approve of steps Biden is already taking and few want U.S. troops to get involved in the conflict.

A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows 54% of Americans think Biden has been “not tough enough” in his response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Thirty-six percent think his approach has been about right, while 8% say he’s been too tough.

But as the war has dragged on, Americans’ desire to get involved has waned somewhat. Thirty-two percent of Americans say the U.S. should have a major role in the conflict. That’s ticked back down from 40% last month, though that remains slightly higher than the 26% who said so in February. An additional 49% say the U.S. should have a minor role.

The results underscore the conundrum for the White House. As images of Russian attacks on civilians and hospitals are shared around the world, there’s pressure to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin and help millions of Ukrainians under attack in their home country or fleeing for safety. But Biden must also manage the threat of escalation with Putin, who has raised the alert level on using Russia’s nuclear weapons, and prevent the U.S. from getting involved in a much larger conflict.

“Given the potential desperation of President Putin and the Russian leadership, given the setbacks that they’ve faced so far militarily, none of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential resort to tactical nuclear weapons or low-yield nuclear weapons,” CIA Director William Burns said in a recent speech at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Burns added that “so far we haven’t seen a lot of practical evidence” of Russian nuclear escalation.

The White House has authorized more than $2 billion in weapons and led Western sanctions that have crushed the Russian economy. Biden announced Thursday an additional $800 million in military aid for Ukraine. Biden has ruled out sending U.S. troops — a decision supported by a majority of Americans.

The U.S. has also held back some weapons and defensive systems sought by Ukraine and placed early limits on intelligence sharing that have been loosened throughout the conflict.

The poll and follow-up interviews with respondents indicate many Americans, responding to images of Ukrainians being killed and Russian forces allegedly committing war crimes, want to see more action to stop Putin. A majority — 57% — say they believe Putin has directed his troops to commit war crimes. Just 6% say he has not, while 36% say they aren’t sure.

“I know that we’re not directly responsible,” said Rachel Renfro, a 35-year-old from Nashville, Tennessee. “But we’ve always been the kind of people that insert ourselves into these kinds of situations, and I don’t understand why we’re not doing that now to a bigger degree.”

Renfro wants to see the U.S. accept more refugees and provide more aid to Ukraine. Sending troops should be “an absolute last resort,” she said.

Most Americans are in favor of the U.S. sanctioning Russia for the invasion, providing weapons to Ukraine and accepting refugees from Ukraine into the U.S. More Americans also support than oppose deploying U.S. troops to Eastern Europe to support U.S. NATO allies in response to Russia’s invasion, and about two-thirds say NATO membership is good for the U.S.

But public support stops short of deploying U.S. troops to Ukraine to fight against Russian forces. Only 22% say they favor deploying U.S. troops to Ukraine to fight against Russian forces, while 55% are opposed; 23% say they are neither in favor nor opposed.

Michael Gonzalez, a 31-year-old from Fort Collins, Colorado, said Biden’s response was “about right,” citing wide-ranging sanctions on Russian banks, oligarchs, and government officials and their families.

“In a perfect world, I wish we can go out there with the troops,” said Gonzalez, whose father served in the Cuban military and whose stepfather worked as a private contractor during the U.S. war in Afghanistan. “I feel like we shouldn’t be policing the world and going everywhere. I wish we could help them, but we’ve been fighting for a while.”

Biden faces other significant political challenges heading into the midterms with inflation at a four-decade high and soaring energy prices exacerbated by the war. The poll suggests the balance in the tradeoff between sanctions on Russia and the U.S. economy might be shifting. By a narrow margin, Americans say the nation’s bigger priority is sanctioning Russia as effectively as possible over limiting damage to the U.S. economy, 51% to 45%. Last month, more said they prioritized sanctioning Russia over limiting damage to the economy, 55% to 42%.

Anthony Cordesman, emeritus chair in strategy at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, noted that Americans broadly support many actions the White House is already taking. Building up Ukraine’s air defense or sending more tanks and airplanes also requires setting up logistics, including radar and maintenance capabilities, that take far longer than many people would expect, Cordesman said.

The White House making that case to people who want more action carries its own risk.

“If you start communicating the limits to what we can do in detail, you may or may not reassure the American people, but you’re providing Russia with a lot of information that you scarcely want to communicate,” Cordesman said.

___

The AP-NORC poll of 1,085 adults was conducted April 14-18 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.

Read original article here

World

Russia Sanctions Zuckerberg, VP Harris, Others With Travel Ban

Leave a comment

  • Russia announced a travel ban on several top US business leaders, journalists, and officials.
  • The Russian foreign ministry said the sanctioned individuals will be denied entry indefinitely.
  • The travel ban is unlikely to have a significant impact on Mark Zuckerberg or others on the list.

Russia slapped a travel ban on Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and 28 other prominent Americans on Thursday. 

The sanctions were imposed in retaliation for Western sanctions against Russia for its attack on Ukraine. The travel ban includes top Pentagon officials, US business leaders, and journalists, including US Vice President Kamala Harris, LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky, and ABC reporter George Stephanopoulos.

The Russian foreign ministry said the individuals will be denied entry into Russia on an “indefinite basis,” according to an Insider translation of the ministry’s press release. The ministry said they had identified the people as responsible for shaping “the Russophobic agenda” in the US, per a translation.

The sanction is unlikely to have any significant impact on Zuckerberg or any of the other individuals outside of stopping them from visiting Russia.

Notably, the sanctions’ list did not include the names of other top US business leaders like Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal, or Google CEO Sundar Pichai even though Twitter and YouTube have been proactive in handling Russian misinformation.

Several of the sanctioned reporters on the list commented on the Russian travel ban on social media.

“A funny thing happened to me on the way to work today,” Kevin Rothrock, the Connecticut-based managing editor of the Meduza news website covering Russia tweeted shortly after he was included in the list on Thursday.

“I’m getting a lot of ‘congratulations’ replies to this,” tweeted Mark MacKinnon, senior international correspondent for The Globe and Mail, regarding the sanction against him. “But for me, it’s a genuinely sad day. I loved my time living in Russia, and made a lot of friends there (though many of them have left). I always tried to report honestly about the country. I guess that was the problem.”

Spokespeople for Meta and LinkedIn did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.

Russia sanctioned US President Joe Biden last month and later announced another round of sanctions against 398 members of Congress.

Russia previously banned Zuckerberg’s platforms Facebook and Instagram and dubbed them “extremist” organizations. LinkedIn has been blocked in Russian since 2017. 

Translations by Oleksandr Vynogradov.



Read original article here

The Ultimate News Site