Square Waves Are a Thing — and If You See Them, Get Out of the Water Immediately


Stacey Leasca
Tue, March 1, 2022

Cross sea waves in La Rochelle, France

Adrian Hij/Getty Images

Heading to the coast for a seaside trip is what vacation dreams are made of. Soaking in the sun while feeling the warm sand between your toes as the shore laps against your feet makes for a magical scene. However, there are still a few things to be wary of when spending time at the beach — namely, some very specific water safety tips to keep in mind.

While you may know a thing or two about traditional rip currents and changing tides, you may not be aware of the dangers of square waves. Yes, this is a real thing — and a truly stunning phenomenon at that — but it's also one of the most dangerous sights to see in the water.

Known as a "cross sea," a square wave occurs when two swells meet to form a square, often resembling a checkerboard pattern. As the European Space Agency explained in 2010, "The conditions are quite common in the ocean and occur when a windsea and a swell, or two swell systems, coexist." It pointed to a 2004 study that showed "a large percentage of ship accidents occurred in crossing sea states."

HowStuffWorks further explained, these square waves are rather rare, but when they do occur, they generally can be found along coastal areas. A prime place to view them from a safe distance is along the western coast of France on the Île de Ré. (If you want to really get into it, HowStuffWorks also pointed to a scientific breakdown of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation, which is why these waves form in the first place.)

But these cross seas can form swells up to 10 feet high, as well as create unique wind patterns, making it difficult for boaters to navigate and swimmers to make their way through. So, again, while rare, if you do stumble across this, avoid heading out via a boat or swimming in the potentially rough seas. Instead, choose to spend your time relaxing on the sand, or just splash in the shallows for a refreshing dip and wait for better conditions to take your ocean plunge in peace and safety.

MODI HAS NOT CRITICIZED PUTIN'S WAR

Indian students in Ukraine in fear as Russian invasion grows

By KRUTIKA PATHI and SHEIKH SAALIQ

1 of 18

Mansi Singhal, an Indian student studying in Ukraine who fled the conflict, hugs her mother after she arrived at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian student Abrar Sheikh has been waking up to the loud thuds of bombs that have pummeled Sumy, a city in northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border, for the last three days. When he hears the sounds of shelling, he rushes to a nearby bunker, praying the bombs don’t find him.

On Tuesday, the blare of the bombs became louder. The food inside the bunker got scarcer and the cries of children inside grew.

“At that moment, all I could think of was my family,” Sheikh, 22, said by cellphone from the underground bunker on Wednesday, his voice thick with fear.

“Sometimes the bunker goes all silent after we hear the sound of the bombs and I think, ‘Is this it?’” he said. “At night we pull the curtains in our rooms to keep them dark, hoping Russian troops don’t know we are inside.”

Thousands of Indians studying in Ukraine have suddenly found themselves in the midst of the war after Russia invaded the country last week, with many hunkered inside bunkers and fearful of what lies ahead.

Pressure on the Indian government to pull out its citizens has intensified in recent days, especially after one student died in shelling in Kharkiv on Tuesday. The government says about 17,000 out of an estimated 20,000 Indian citizens in Ukraine have left the country and that India is trying to evacuate the rest to nearby countries from where they can be flown back home. Many of those who remain stranded are in conflict areas such as Kharkiv and Sumy.

Sheikh, a medical student at Sumy State University, has been trying to leave the city for several days. But shelling by Russian forces has left him and about 500 other Indian students in the city trapped.

They are about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the Russian border. But they are hundreds of kilometers and at least 10 hours away from Ukraine’s western border, considered to be safer, where Indian officials have so far focused their evacuation efforts. Evacuation flights have taken off from countries bordering western Ukraine, such as Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania, with more scheduled. A group of Indian Cabinet ministers has flown to these countries to help with rescue efforts.

But for those stuck in the eastern region, there appears no safe way out yet. India has sent a team from its embassy in Moscow to Belgorod, a Russian city close to the border with Ukraine, foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said Tuesday. “This team is in place and ready to see whatever we can do to extract our students and citizens from the Kharkiv and Sumy area,” he said.

India has asked all its citizens to immediately leave Kharkiv after receiving information from Russia, External Affairs Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said. They have been advised to move to three safe zones about 15 kilometers (9 miles) away using any means, including on foot, he said. Bagchi did not describe the information provided by Russia.


Activists of All India Students' Association hold a photograph of Indian student Naveen who was killed in Russian attack in Ukraine, during a protest in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. The protesters were demanding that Indian government should bring back students studying in Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin should stop the war. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

In Sumy, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) from Kharkiv, an oil depot was reportedly bombed, railway tracks have been destroyed, and there is fighting in the streets, students said.

“We cannot leave. We have no way of getting to the western part. There is no train or bus or any transport to take us there,” said Chandra Reddy, 22, another medical student at Sumy State University.

Reddy said he was in touch with Indian authorities, who urged him to stay put for now.

He said he risked his life on Tuesday to go to a nearby grocery store, leaving the bunker where he has spent most of his time over the last six days. He quickly bought packets of rice, vegetables and fruit — enough to last a few days — before rushing back.

On the same day, Indian student Naveen S. Gyanagoudar was killed in Kharkiv when he left his bunker to go buy food.

“When I heard that, it hit me that I had just done the same thing, that this can be me next,” Reddy said.

Approximately 18,000 Indian students were in Ukraine, most of them studying medicine. The state-run universities are popular with Indian students for their high-quality education at affordable prices, and as an alternative to India’s overcrowded and competitive public universities.

Following the invasion last week, a number of Western and Asian countries slapped sanctions on Russia, but India sought to appear neutral. It has refrained from criticizing Russia or directly acknowledging Ukraine’s sovereignty, instead pushing for diplomacy and dialogue. On Wednesday, it abstained from voting on a U.N. General Assembly resolution demanding an immediate halt to Moscow’s attack on Ukraine - similarly, it abstained from voting on a U.N. Security Council resolution last week. Experts said the decision didn’t signal support for Moscow, but reflected India’s historic partnership with Russia, a Cold War ally it continues to rely on for energy, weapons and support in conflicts with neighbors.

Activist of All India Students' Association shout slogans during protest in New Delhi, India, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. The protesters were demanding that Indian government should bring back students studying in Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin should stop the war. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Stranded Indians have appealed for help on social media. In one video, a crying student begged the Indian government for assistance. Another showed dozens of students walking toward crowded borders where they waited for hours before being allowed into neighboring countries.

Such images have sparked sharp criticism of the government’s rescue operation, with some, including opposition political leaders, saying India should have reacted sooner.

India issued an advisory on Feb. 15 telling those who didn’t have essential work in Ukraine to consider leaving temporarily — four days after the United States urged all Americans to leave immediately.

Government officials have rejected the criticism. Many have rushed to New Delhi’s airport in recent days to welcome returning students with flowers.

Nimshim Zimik, who returned to India on Tuesday, said she spent a week in a basement in the Ukrainian city of Vinnytsia, ready with her luggage and essential documents. At night, she and her friends took turns sleeping.

“But we could never really sleep knowing that a bomb could fall anytime on us,” she said.

On Saturday, with no signs of help arriving, Zimik decided to leave the city.

She and 53 other students contacted a Ukrainian driver and left early in the morning. But the bus broke down midway, forcing them to walk almost 10 kilometers (6 miles) to the Romanian border.

She was finally evacuated in a special flight from Romania on Tuesday.

“It’s like a dream,” she said. “Arriving here feels like a very heavy load has been lifted off me.”

___

Associated Press journalists Ashok Sharma and Chonchui Ngashangva contributed to this report.

In wartime battle over imagery, so far it hasn’t been close

By DAVID BAUDER

Members of civil defense prepare Molotov cocktails in a yard in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022. A Ukrainian official says street fighting has broken out in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkiv. Russian troops also put increasing pressure on strategic ports in the country's south following a wave of attacks on airfields and fuel facilities elsewhere that appeared to mark a new phase of Russia's invasion. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

NEW YORK (AP) — For people outside Ukraine, the conflict with Russia is experienced almost solely through the media. In that theater, it hasn’t been close.

Virtually all of the war’s indelible images — a woman’s chilling offer of sunflower seeds to a Russian soldier, city residents turning old bottles into Molotov cocktails, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying he wants ammunition instead of a ride — have served to rally the world to his country’s side.

Ukraine may ultimately be overcome by sheer military might, but the power of war’s imagery will likely never be underestimated in the future.

News coverage has emphasized a David vs. Goliath theme, capturing both the fortitude and suffering of Ukrainians, and the country’s leaders have skillfully provided material to advance the narrative.

“They seem to recognize that this is a war of images as much as a ground war,” said Kenneth Osgood, a professor of history and an expert on propaganda and intelligence at the Colorado School of Mines. “Because without support, as a military reality, Ukraine doesn’t stand a chance. As a political reality, it absolutely does.”

Few moments captured the imagination quite like the answer reportedly offered by Ukrainian soldiers stationed on Snake Island in the Black Sea, when those on a Russian warship told them to surrender or face a bombing.

“Russian warship,” the answer came back, “go (expletive) yourself.”

Although early reports said the soldiers were killed in an ensuing attack, the Ukrainian Navy later confirmed they were alive and well. The AP could not independently verify any of the account.

“It was as brave and courageous and in-your-face as it could possibly be,” said Marty Kaplan, professor at the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism at the University of Southern California. “That’s what the world was seeing. They were speaking on our behalf to the Russians.”

News reports have been filled with stories of ordinary Ukrainians taking up arms, despite advancing age or inexperience.

Pictures of defiance were also common, like citizens in Chernihiv photographed standing in the road to block Russian tanks. In one widely spread video clip, an angry woman verbally confronts a Russian soldier, ultimately offering to “put sunflower seeds in your pocket so they grow when you die.”

In some cases, Ukrainians have humanized Russian soldiers in a way that divorces them from the faceless juggernaut, instead making them seem like vulnerable pawns themselves. In one posted video, a captured soldier phones home to his mother. Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Nations read aloud the plaintive last text messages one Russian soldier sent home before he was killed.

Ukraine’s government has maintained an active Twitter feed. It posted a map showing the comparative sizes of Russia and Ukraine with the message, “realize the scale of Ukrainian heroism” and urged followers to “tag @Russia and tell them what you think of them.”

On Tuesday, it retweeted a photo of author Stephen King wearing a shirt saying “I Stand with Ukraine,” adding the message “we will prevail over those langoliers for you, sir,” a reference to one of King’s creations.

The Ukrainians have also stressed civilian casualties to emphasize the point that real people are suffering, despite Russian claims of seeking military targets. Pictures have emerged of unexploded bombs landing near a playground, or in front of a grocery store.

Reporters have found plenty of examples on their own. A story by The Associated Press depicted doctors in the port city of Mariupol fruitlessly trying to save a 6-year-old girl injured in Russian shelling.

As he tried to help save her, a doctor looked at the camera of a video journalist and said, “Show this to Putin.”

In a report that emphasized a victory for Ukraine, CNN’s Matthew Chance on Tuesday walked by a column of Russian military vehicles blown up by Ukrainian missiles, some still smoldering. He spotted an unexploded grenade on the ground and carefully walked away.

It was memorable television, yet its meaning was unclear. Was this just a random sign of military success or something more?

For the Ukrainians, Zelenskyy has been a tireless advocate, appearing with countrymen and on near-constant video addresses. Turning down an offer to escape the country and instead pleading for help made him a hero to many watching.

By video, he gave a speech Tuesday to the European Parliament, his translator at one point fighting off sobs.

After Zelenskyy received a standing ovation, MSNBC’s Willie Geist said, “the Churchill comparisons are exhausted at this point.”

“Zelenskyy and his team have been really clever for calling things what they are,” Osgood said. “They’re giving his message of ‘we’re standing alone against the giant’ with a refreshing kind of bluntness — and a hint of defiant desperation.”

The story being told through the imagery is more than superficial. It has almost certainly galvanized support for Ukraine elsewhere and provided momentum for military aid, sanctions and other economic repercussions to Russian interests that would not have otherwise happened, said Philip Seib, author of last year’s “Information at War: Journalism, Disinformation and Modern Warfare.”

In contrast to Zelenskyy, Russian leader Vladimir Putin has given speeches that have led to whispers about his mental capacity, and literally appears isolated by being seen at huge tables far away from any aides.

The Russian story — a brutal invasion of a neighboring country for reasons unclear — is a hard sell to begin with. But the Russians have shown a Soviet-era incompetence that contrasts with their recently displayed adeptness in information warfare, Osgood said.

“This is part of their overall strategy,” Seib said. “What they did not consider is that there are so many other voices out there.”

The momentum created has also led to other negative impacts for the Russians, including restrictions placed on social media distribution of their state-controlled media outlets.

Despite successes for the Ukrainians, many news outlets have been careful to note that dark days still lie ahead.

“This is genuinely suspenseful,” Kaplan said. “We don’t know what is going to come next. It could end up in horror. Or it could end up being the triumph of the human spirit.”

___

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

Captured Russian Troops Call Home While Filmed by Ukrainian Officials, Raising Geneva Convention Questions



Richard Sisk
Tue, March 1, 2022

Several demoralized Russian troops captured in Ukraine were allowed to call home over the weekend to tell their families they were safe and profess confusion about why they were sent to war.

"Mama and Papa, I didn't want to come here. They forced me to," a Russian soldier said in videos purporting to show the phone calls that were taken by Ukraine's Interior Ministry and posted on YouTube. Videos and stills of captured or surrendered Russian troops also were posted on the Ukrainian Security Service's Facebook page.

The posting of the videos showing captured Russian troops raised questions about whether Ukraine had violated Article 13 of the Geneva Conventions, calling for the protection of prisoners of war "against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity."

The captured Russian soldiers, and any Ukrainians captured by the Russians, were entitled to humane treatment and protections under the law of war and the Geneva Conventions, said Gary Solis, a Vietnam veteran, retired Marine judge advocate general and author of the book, "The Law of Armed Conflict."

"It's a violation" of Geneva to post the videos, but not what would be considered a "grave breach" to be taken up by a war crimes tribunal in The Hague, Solis said.

"Anybody who is captured is a prisoner of war" and must be shielded from abuse and provided medical treatment as a lawful combatant, he added. "Clearly, the Russians who were captured were wearing uniforms."

He compared what the Ukrainians had done more to a misdemeanor than a felony, and also noted that there was a positive humanitarian aspect of the videos in showing "proof of life" to the families of the captured troops.

The International Criminal Court in The Hague has made no mention of Ukrainian actions since Russia invaded last week, but on Monday, ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan said in a press release that he planned to begin an investigation "as rapidly as possible" into possible war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Russia tied to the bombing and shelling of civilian buildings.

In English subtitles added to one video by Ukrainian authorities, another Russian soldier tried to explain his plight to his mother: "Hello, hello, Mom? Hi, did you recognize me? I am in the territory of Ukraine. I've been taken captive but I'm alright."

In addition to the videos of soldiers calling home, the Interior Ministry showed off-camera interrogators questioning the troops who mostly appeared to be unharmed and speaking freely, but some had cuts and bruises on their faces.

One soldier appeared under sheets in what was either an aid station or hospital bed and said "I got here not knowing" what the mission was, according to the Ukrainian translation. "I didn't imagine what will happen here. There was no need to come here."

He said "our convoy got under fire" and now "my legs are broken." He had a wife and two children back in Russia, the soldier said, and "I pray to God to recover."

A common theme among the soldiers was that they were conscripts, with little concept of why they were sent into Ukraine and-or what their mission was once they crossed the border.

One Russian soldier said: "We came here under the pretext of doing military exercises. We were not planning to make war on Ukraine. I am alive and healthy as a captive, and my message is to stop the war in Ukraine. It is nonsense; people are dying."

Ukrainian officials gave no overall figure for how many Russian troops may have been captured, but Ukraine's Interior Ministry reported Tuesday that 5,710 Russian troops had been killed since the Feb. 24 invasion began.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov declined Sunday to give numbers on how many Russian troops had been killed or captured but said more Ukrainians than Russians had been killed, Russia's Tass news agency reported.

"There are dead and wounded among our comrades," Konashenkov said without giving any figures, but added that Ukraine's losses were "many times" more than Russia's -- again without giving specifics.

Although they may not be wearing uniforms, the civilians would be considered lawful combatants so long as they were wearing a sign or symbol of their allegiance, and simply carrying a weapon would qualify as such a sign, Solis said.

Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com

Related: Russia-Ukraine War: What to Know on Day 6 of Russian Assault

Ukrainian authorities say citizens don't need to declare captured Russian tanks and military equipment for tax purposes

Cheryl Teh
Tue, March 1, 2022,

A fragment of a destroyed Russian tank on the outskirts of Kharkiv, Ukraine,

 on February 26.

SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty Images

Ukrainian authorities said captured Russian tanks wouldn't be counted as part of citizens' income.

They said that seized tanks and military equipment need not be declared for tax purposes.

They said such items would be considered a "manifestation of the unity and cohesion" of Ukrainians.

Ukrainian authorities have reassured citizens that they don't need to declare captured Russian tanks or any equipment they pick up as personal income.

"Have you captured a Russian tank or armored personnel carrier and are worried about how to declare it? Keep calm and continue to defend the Motherland!" a statement from the Ukrainian National Agency on Corruption Prevention seen by Interfax-Ukraine said.

"There is no need to declare the captured Russian tanks and other equipment, because the cost of this ... does not exceed 100 living wages," or 248,100 Ukrainian hryvnia, the agency said, according to Interfax-Ukraine. The sum equates to about $8,300.

On the agency's website, a document dated Monday said the seizure of tanks or equipment would be considered a "manifestation of the unity and cohesion of the Ukrainian people in the fight against invaders" and would not be taxable.

"Thanks to the courage and victory of the defenders of the Ukrainian state, hostile military equipment, weapons, and other armor arrive as scrap. It is impossible to evaluate such objects in accordance with the Law of Ukraine," it said.

Ukraine has fiercely resisted Russia's invasion, which began on Thursday. Amid the conflict, images have emerged that appear to show abandoned Russian military vehicles in Ukraine.

Insider's live blog of the Russian invasion of Ukraine is covering developments as they happen.

I'm ashamed of Britain's response to Ukraine invasion, says Labour MP


Labour MP Chris Bryant has said he is 'ashamed' of the UK's response the the Ukraine crisis. (Parliament)

A Labour MP has said he is "ashamed" of the UK's response to the Ukraine crisis and called for sanctions against the UK's wealthy Russian oligarchs and Vladimir Putin's Kremlin colleagues.

Chris Bryant, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Russia, said the UK hasn't done enough with its sanctions in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

He told MPs: "Putin is the only enemy.

"But I do feel ashamed. The United Kingdom signed the Budapest Accord in 1994 guaranteeing the territorial integrity of Ukraine."

The UK government has issued sanctions against Vladimir Putin and defence minister Sergei Lavrov, but Bryant said other high-profile leaders in the Kremlin have been unaffected.

Read more: Ruthless Putin 'knows no limit' and will indiscriminately carpet bomb Ukrainian cities, UK warns

Both men's assets have been frozen across the US, EU, UK and Canada and each have been banned from entering the US.

Bryant said the UK needs to go further with who the measures are targeting.

"We are not guaranteeing the territorial integrity of Ukraine," he said.

"I don't want war, nobody wants war, but we're not even sanctioning Sergei Shoygu, the Russian defence minister yet, nor Igor Osipov, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet," he said.

Russian president Vladimir Putin pictured on Wednesday, as his attempted invasion of Ukraine enters its seventh day. (Getty)

The MP for Rhondda went on to name other individuals including Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, adding: “Why don’t we use parliamentary privilege to get this out there so the lawyers can’t attack the sanctions that we must surely bring, rapidly, today?”

His comments came after the UK defence secretary Ben Wallace warned Putin "doesn't really care" about sanctions,

In response, Boris Johnson said we "simply have to accept” that no Western nation will become militarily involved in the fight.

He added: “Because the consequences of a direct confrontation between the UK and Russia would be I think, and indeed other Western countries and Russia, would not be easy to control.

"And if I can repeat the point I made earlier, I think they would play directly into Putin’s narrative.”

During Prime Minister's Questions, Johnson was also quizzed on what the UK is doing to help with the hundreds of thousands of refugees who are feeling Ukraine in the hope of surviving Putin's onslaught.

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford called on the PM to'waive all visa requirements for the people Ukraine who are fleeing war'. (Getty)

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford called on the PM to “waive all visa requirements for the people Ukraine who are fleeing war".

But Johnson was hesitant to committing to saying all refugees would be let in, despite pressure from the opposite benches.

“What we won’t do is simply abandon all checks," he said.

"We don’t think that, that is sensible, particularly in view of the security concerns, the reasonable security concerns about people coming from that theatre of war.”

On Tuesday Johnson announced more than 200,000 Ukrainians could be allowed to join family in the UK - twice the amount previously given.

Read more: Russia launches nuclear submarine drills after Putin puts them on high alert

Ukrainian nationals fleeing the conflict in their country queue to pass through border control upon arrival at the Paris-Beauvais Airport in France. (Getty)

Russia has continued its attack on Ukraine, seen is the city of Kharkiv. (Getty)

A burnt-out car is seen on the street after a missile in Kharkiv. (Getty)

Speaking during a visit to Poland, he said the government would "make it easier for Ukrainians already living in the UK to bring their relatives to our country".

Ukraine on Wednesday entered its seventh day of a sustained assault from Russian forces, and have so far targeted built-up areas in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Mariupol and Chernihiv, but have been largely held by Ukrainian armed forces as well as citizens, many of whom have taken up arms.

In Kyiv, Tuesday evening's missile strike on a TV Tower killed five people while a 40 mile-long convoy of soldiers is on its way towards the capital, though US officials have claimed it has made little progress in the past 24 hours, frozen in place by logistical and supply problems.

Fears of nuclear war were stoked by Russian defence minister Sergei Lavrov, who warned that any world war sparked by the current crisis "will become nuclear".

DOING MORE THAN THE UK*

Germany seized the world's largest mega-yacht worth $600 million belonging to Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, according to Forbes report

Taiyler Simone Mitchell
Wed, March 2, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, poses for a photo with USM Holdings founder, businessman Alisher Usmanov during an awarding ceremony in Moscow's Kremlin, Russia, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017

Alexei Druzhinin/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

Sanctions against Russia and its oligarchs have been implemented by several countries.

A Russian billionaire had his yacht seized by German authorities Wednesday, according to Forbes.

Alisher Usmanov has spoken highly of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past.

Germany seized Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov's mega-yacht on Wednesday, according to Forbes, which cited multiple unnamed sources.

Usmanov's yacht, which has been docked in Hamburg, Germany, for months for a refitting, is the first to be seized since Russia's attack on Ukraine began on February 24.

Dilbar, a 512-foot yacht that weighs 15,917 tons, "is the largest motor yacht in the world by gross tonnage," according to Lürssen, the German ship's maker.

Usmanov bought the custom-built yacht for an estimated $600 million and it took 52 months to build, according to Forbes.

The US State Department was unable to confirm to Insider if the yacht was indeed seized. Usmanov and Germany's Federal Foreign Office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Many countries, including the US and the European Union, have implemented sanctions — financial consequences applied by one party to another — against Russian banks, Russian oligarchs, and even Russian President Vladimir Putin, in an effort to end the country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Usmanov's assets were frozen as part of sanctions levied by the European Union, according to the Guardian. After the European Union announced sanctions against Usmanov and other Russian oligarchs, he stepped down as President of the International Fencing Federation, one of his companies.

"I believe that such a decision is unfair, and the reasons employed to justify the sanctions are a set of false and defamatory allegations damaging my honor, dignity, and business reputation," Usmanov said in a statement on the company's website.

"I hereby suspend the exercise of my duties as the President of the International Fencing Federation effective immediately until justice is restored," he added.

The oligarch has historically supported Russian President Vladimir Putin, though he has not commented on the current attack on Ukraine.

"I am proud that I know Putin, and the fact that everybody does not like him is not Putin's problem," the Uzbekistan-born oligarch told Forbes in a 2010 interview.

*LONDON IS THE OLIGARCHS HOME BASE

Russia billionaires move superyachts to Maldives as sanctions tighten, data shows

FILE PHOTO: St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF)


Wed, March 2, 2022

In this article:

Alisher Usmanov
Uzbek-born Russian business magnate

Oleg Deripaska
Russian businessman


By Alasdair Pal

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -At least five superyachts owned by Russian billionaires were anchored or cruising on Wednesday in Maldives, an Indian Ocean island nation that does not have an extradition treaty with the United States, ship tracking data showed.

The vessels' arrival in the archipelago off the coast of Sri Lanka follows the imposition of severe Western sanctions on Russia in reprisal for its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.

Late on Wednesday Forbes reported that Germany had seized Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov's mega yacht in a Hamburg shipyard.

Usmanov was on a list of billionaires to face sanctions from the European Union on Monday. A Forbes report based on three sources in the yacht industry said his 512-foot yacht Dilbar, valued at $600 million, was seized by German authorities.

German authorities did not immediately respond to Reuters inquiries. Forbes said representatives for Usmanov did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier, the Clio superyacht, owned by Oleg Deripaska, the founder of aluminium giant Rusal, who was sanctioned by the United States in 2018, was anchored off the capital Male on Wednesday, according to shipping database MarineTraffic.

The Titan, owned by Alexander Abramov, a co-founder of steel producer Evraz, arrived on Feb. 28.

Three further yachts owned by Russian billionaires were seen cruising in Maldives waters on Wednesday, the data showed. They include the 88-metre (288 ft) Nirvana owned by Russia's richest man, Vladimir Potanin. Most vessels were last seen anchored in Middle Eastern ports earlier in the year.

A spokesperson for Maldives' government did not respond to a request for comment.

The United States has said it will take strict action to seize property of sanctioned Russians.

"This coming week, we will launch a multilateral Transatlantic task force to identify, hunt down, and freeze the assets of sanctioned Russian companies and oligarchs – their yachts, their mansions, and any other ill-gotten gains that we can find and freeze under the law," the White House said in a tweet on Sunday.

Washington imposed sanctions on Deripaska and other influential Russians in 2018 because of their ties to President Vladimir Putin after alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election, which Moscow denies.

(Reporting by Alasdair Pal in New Delhi

Additional reporting by Mohamed Junayd, Editing by William Maclean)

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
After Russia invaded Ukraine, Credit Suisse asked investors to destroy documents linked to oligarch yacht loans, report says

Kate Duffy
Wed, March 2, 2022

Man enters Credit Suisse's offices in New York.

Brendan McDermid/Reuters


Credit Suisse asked investors to destroy documents tied to oligarchs' yacht and jet loans, the FT reported

The bank said the request was after a data leak to the media but didn't specify which one, per the FT.

It comes as the US, UK, and the EU sanctioned Russian oligarchs in the wake of Ukraine's invasion.

Credit Suisse asked investors to destroy documents tied to its oligarch and wealthy clients' yacht and private jet loans after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, The Financial Times reported.

The move was part of the Swiss bank's effort to prevent leaks of its dealings with oligarchs who have been sanctioned, according to The FT.

Credit Suisse wrote a letter to investors this week, asking them to "destroy and permanently erase" information linking to a securitisation of loans financed by yachts, private jets, real estate, and financial assets, three sources whose company received the letter, told The FT.

The letter was sent during the week when the US, UK, and the EU issued sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, which included sanctioning numerous Russian oligarchs and billionaires.

Credit Suisse wrote in the letter that the request was because of a "recent data leak to the media," which was "verified by our investigators," according to the three people who spoke to The FT.

In late February, leaked data revealed that Credit Suisse managed hundreds of millions of dollars with known criminals and human rights abusers.

The bank declined to comment to Insider and The FT.

Credit Suisse's request comes after The FT reported in early February that the bank had used derivatives to offload risks relating to $2 billion of loans to oligarchs and tycoons.

The FT reported an investor presentation, which showed that one-third of the defaults on Credit Suisse's yacht and aircraft loans in 2017 and 2018 were tied to US sanctions against Russian oligarchs.

The Billionaire Attempting To Kill Australia’s Coal Industry


Editor OilPrice.com
Wed, March 2, 2022

Coal is having a renaissance. Despite the fact that even the most coal-dependent countries agree that coal needs to be phased out as soon as possible, it’s proving to be much, much easier said than done. As the price of energy soars on the back of geopolitical risks and supply shortages, legions of consumers are returning to the dirtiest of fossil fuels. In fact, the world consumed a record-breaking amount of coal in 2021 and is on track to reach an all-time high once again this year.

All of the UN climate scenarios which could feasibly lead to keeping the world from heating by more than 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial averages require the complete elimination of coal, along with seriously scaling back the production and consumption of oil and gas. Despite this, economies around the world are having an all but impossible time weaning themselves off of it. Many developing countries are highly dependent on the cheap, reliable, and relatively readily available fossil fuel, and are faced with difficult trade-offs between climate-friendly policies and arrested economic development. But it’s not just the developing world that’s keeping coal alive. In fact, a recent study found that a handful of financial firms from just six countries – the United States, China, Japan, India, Canada, and the United Kingdom - are collectively responsible for more than 80% of coal financing and investment. What’s more, as European energy markets face the double whammy of Russian aggression in Ukraine and pandemic recovery, oil and gas supplies are painfully tight and coal has helped fill the gaps. And in Australia, its long love affair with coal simply never ended.

As a clear outlier among developed nations, Australia currently boasts the highest carbon emissions from coal in the world on a per capita basis. In one telling anecdote, the current Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison once physically toted a lump of coal to parliament and held it in his hands while saying, “This is coal. Don’t be afraid, don’t be scared, it won’t hurt you.” The coal-rich nation has been an ardent resister of phasing out the fossil fuel, which accounts for 65% of its domestic energy mix.

Many Australian citizens support the ousting of coal from the country’s economy, but one Australian man might actually have the power to do it. Mike Cannon-Brookes, the third-richest person in Australia with a net worth of A$20 billion, has declared that he wants to end the domestic coal industry by buying it up and shutting it down, and replacing it with renewable energy capacity. Cannon-Brookes has already made a bid to buy the nation’s biggest electricity company and says that negotiations are ongoing.

Morrison and other critics of this plan have warned that the continued use of coal in Australia is essential to keep energy prices affordable for the public. Cannon-Brookes has countered by saying that renewables are now cheaper than coal and that consumers only stand to benefit from the transition. It’s true that in terms of building new energy capacity, renewable energies are now the cheapest form of energy production on Earth. And when you factor in environmental externalities and the long-term economic impact of coal’s carbon footprint, it is hard to argue against. In the short term, however, a transition is sure to be painful.

A transition away from coal in Australia, where coal is the status quo and has been throughout the nation's post-colonial history, was always going to be a difficult one. Indeed, the energy transition around the world will be marked by price shocks and economic disruptions due to the magnitude of the task at hand. Now, with private interests and deep-pocketed investors, such Cannon-Brookes, getting involved and forcing the agenda forward without waiting for government or industry, the future for coal in Australia is looking more uncertain than ever.

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com

Scientists take rare look under Great Lakes' frozen surfaces





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Great Lakes Winter WaterBridget Wheelock, wetland ecology lab manager in Central Michigan University's biology department, holds a chunk of ice she extracted while conducting a field study on the frozen surface of Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022 in Standish, Mich. 

(AP Photo/Mike Householder)


MIKE HOUSEHOLDER and JOHN FLESHER
Tue, March 1, 2022, 

STANDISH, Mich. (AP) — Bridget Wheelock knelt onto the frozen surface of Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay, reached a gloved hand into the frigid water below and pulled out a large chunk of ice.

“There’s a little bit of prism effect. Right here,” the Central Michigan University researcher said last week, pulling the block closer and pointing. “Can you see that?"

“Oh, yeah,” said her colleague, Matt Sand, leaning in for a look before holding open a collection bag as Wheelock slid the fragment inside.

They were members of more than a dozen crews from U.S. and Canadian universities and government agencies who ventured onto the frozen Great Lakes to gather samples and data.

The field studies over the past few weeks — a collective effort known as the “Winter Grab” — were intended to boost knowledge of what happens in the five lakes when they're covered partially or completely with ice.

“We got everything that we set out to get. The group as a whole did very well,” said Don Uzarski, director of Central Michigan University's Institute for Great Lakes Research, who oversaw the sampling work by Wheelock and Sand.

Lake scientists long have considered winter a season when aquatic activity slows. Most do their field studies at other times of year.

But researchers now think more is going on in the bitter depths than previously believed, including activity influenced by climate change.

“All of these different components of the ecosystem ... we always measured during the summertime, but we really don’t know what’s taking place out there in the wintertime at all," Uzarski said.

“You can't take half the puzzle and figure out what it looks like. You have to put the whole thing together.”

Saginaw Bay, off Michigan's eastern coast, is a favorite of anglers in pursuit of sport fish, primarily perch and walleye. Their fortunes have risen and fallen over the past half-century amid efforts to help the Great Lakes recover from industrial pollution, habitat loss, nutrient overloading and exotic species infestations.

Uzarski and fellow researchers study the bay's coastal wetlands, a stopover for migrating species such as great blue herons and sandhill cranes. The area is plagued by phragmites, an invasive reed that covers thousands of shoreline acres. Toxic algae blooms have formed in the waters, likely a result of farm fertilizer runoff.

For the recent excursion onto the icy bay, Wheelock and Sand affixed cleats to their boots and lugged a sled and wheeled cart loaded with tools and supplies. Temperatures hovered around freezing but a driving wind and slushy rain made it seem much colder.

Stopping nearly a tenth of a mile (0.16 kilometer) offshore, they used an auger, saws and other tools to bore holes through ice nearly 15 inches (38 centimeters) thick. In addition to their ice observations, they measured snow density and scooped samples from the shallow water.

The mission — and others around the lakes — will produce data on light penetration through the ice.

“Light is driving photosynthesis, which is the energy for the entire ecosystem,” Uzarski said.

Scientists also will analyze the samples for organic matter, particularly tiny plant and animal plankton at the base of aquatic food chains.

The Winter Grab was organized with a sense of urgency: Great Lakes ice cover has been shrinking since the 1970s. Some experts say it may become increasingly rare as the climate heats up.

That could have many ripple effects beyond devastating the ice fishing industry, Uzarski said.

Without ice, there's more winter evaporation. If that lost water isn't replaced by rain or snow, lake levels drop — with potential implications for wetlands, nutrient concentrations and fish.

“It is all connected,” Uzarski said.

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Flesher reported from Halifax, Va.

___

Follow Mike Householder on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/mikehouseholder and follow John Flesher at https://www.twitter.com/JohnFlesher.

Norway wealth fund held $3 billion in Russian investments at end of 2021

Gwladys Fouche
Thu, March 3, 2022

A general view of the Norwegian central bank, where Norway's sovereign wealth fund is situated, in Oslo

By Gwladys Fouche

OSLO (Reuters) - Norway's $1.3 trillion wealth fund, the world's largest, said on Thursday it held investments in Russia worth some 27 billion crowns ($3.03 billion) at the end of 2021, equivalent to 0.2% of its total value and down from 30 billion crowns a year earlier.

On Sunday the government said the fund would first freeze and then divest its Russian assets following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The fund's Russian assets consisted of shares in 51 companies, it said on Thursday. The most valuable stakes were in Gazprom, Sberbank and Lukoil, which together accounted for two-thirds of the total.

All the investments were in equities, with 80% of them listed on the Moscow stock exchange, 18% in London and 0.6% in New York, a fund spokesperson told Reuters.

Investing the state's revenues from oil and gas production and managed by a unit of Norway's central bank, the fund is one of the world's largest investors, investing its cash in equities, bonds, real estate and renewable energy projects.

The fund's value stood at 12.3 trillion Norwegian crowns at the end of 2021, equivalent to $257,000 for every Norwegian man, woman and child.

($1 = 8.8667 Norwegian crowns)

Market value of Norway's wealth fund - https://graphics.reuters.com/NORWAY-SWF/lgpdwajadvo/chart.png

(Editing by Terje Solsvik)

Exxon to exit Russia, leaving $4 billion in assets

Sabrina Valle
Tue, March 1, 2022

FILE PHOTO: Logo of the Exxon Mobil Corp is seen at the Rio Oil and Gas Expo and Conference in Rio de Janeiro

By Sabrina Valle

HOUSTON (Reuters) -Exxon Mobil on Tuesday said it would exit Russia oil and gas operations that it has valued at more than $4 billion and halt new investment as a result of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The decision will see Exxon pull out of managing large oil and gas production facilities on Sakhalin Island in Russia's Far East, and puts the fate of a proposed multi-billion dollar liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility there in doubt.

"We deplore Russia's military action that violates the territorial integrity of Ukraine and endangers its people," the company said in a statement critical of the intensifying military attacks.

Its planned exit follows dozens of other Western companies ranging from Apple and Boeing to BP PLC, Shell and Norway's Equinor ASA that have halted business or announced plans to abandon their Russia operations.

Exxon, which is scheduled to meet with Wall Street analysts on Wednesday, did not provide a timetable for its exit, nor comment on potential asset writedowns. Its Russia assets were valued at $4.055 billion in its latest annual report, filed in February.

Earlier, Exxon began removing U.S. employees from Russia, two people familiar with the matter said. The number of staff being evacuated was unclear. The company sent a plane to Sakhalin Island to retrieve staff, one of the people said.

Exxon operates three large offshore oil and gas fields with operations based on Sakhalin Island on behalf of a consortium of Japanese, Indian and Russian companies that included Russia's Rosneft. The group had been advancing plans to add a LNG export terminal at the site.

"Exxon's Russian business is relatively small in the context of its wider enterprise, so it does not have the same significance as it has to BP or TotalEnergies, if it were to abandon its Russian assets," said Anish Kapadia, a director at energy and mining researcher Pallissy Advisors.

The company, which has been developing its Russian oil and gas fields since 1995, had come under pressure to cut its ties with Russia over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special operation".

The Sakhalin facilities, which Exxon has operated since production began in 2005, represents one of the largest single direct investments in Russia, according to a project description on Exxon's website. The operation recently has pumped about 220,000 barrels per day of oil.

India's ONGC Videsh, which owns a 20% stake in the Sakhalin-1 project, said the partners will decide over the next few weeks on how to keep operating the project after exit, the Indian company told Reuters in an emailed statemnt.

Rosneft holds a 20% stake in the project.

The overseas investment arm of India's top explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp also said it did not see "any immediate impact" on the operation of the project due to Exxon's decision.

Japan's Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development (SODECO), which owns a 30% stake in the Sakhalin-1 project, is trying to confirm details of Exxon's announcement, a spokesperson said, adding that it will keep an eye on the Russia-Ukraine situation and decide what to do in the future.

State-backed oil producer Japan Petroleum Exploration Co (Japex), which owns 15.285% in SODECO, is also checking details of the Exxon's announcement and will talk to its partners to decide a future plan, a Japex spokesperson said.

(Reporting by Sabrina Valle; Additional reporting by Gary McWilliams, Yuka Obayashi and Nidhi Verma; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell Richard Pullin and Jonathan Oatis)