UK isn’t dependent on Vladimir Putin for diesel, insist ministers – but imports have doubled

Hayley Dixon
Fri, March 25, 2022

Average pump prices show that diesel has now risen to around 178.72p

 a litre since Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Britain has nearly doubled imports of Russian diesel in the last decade despite ministers insisting the UK is “not dependent” on Vladimir Putin for energy.

An analysis of official data by The Telegraph has found that Russian diesel used in the UK supply has increased from 10 per cent in 2010 to 18 per cent in 2020.

It comes amid soaring prices as the invasion of Ukraine has sent the oil market into turmoil. Average pump prices show that diesel has now risen to around 178.72p a litre.

Ministers are preparing a new energy strategy and Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, has in recent weeks held talks with other leaders about ending the “addiction” to Russian supplies.


Since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, ministers have been keen to stress that the country gets just 4 per cent of its natural gas from Russia, but fewer mentions have been made of other energy sources.

Analysis of the Government’s Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics (Dukes) also shows that the percentage of the UK’s demand for coal that was imported from Russia has risen from 16 per cent in 2010 to 35 per cent in the first three quarters of 2021.

However, the volume of coal imported has decreased significantly as Britain has reduced its reliance on the fossil fuel for electricity significantly in recent years, with plans to eliminate it entirely by 2024.

The Dukes analysis shows that the UK imported 2,081 thousand tonnes of diesel from Russia in 2012, the first year that data is available, compared to 3,608 thousand tonnes in 2020.

In 2010 the UK produced 74 per cent of the country’s diesel needs, by 2020 it was down to 63 per cent.

Alongside Germany and France, it is one of the largest importers from Russia within Europe, where Moscow exports about 700,000 to 800,000 barrels of diesel per day.

In response to Putin’s “illegal invasion of Ukraine”, Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary vowed to phase out Russian imports of oil by the end of the year.

But last week the Prime Minister appeared to have walked away empty-handed from talks with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that were designed to encourage the states to produce more oil and export it to the UK.

Experts say that imports from other countries could also have originated in Russia and have questioned how dependency will be reduced.

A government spokesperson said: “We are not dependent on Russian energy.

“In the case of diesel, UK demand is met by a combination of domestic production and imports from a diverse range of reliable suppliers beyond Russia, including the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, and USA.

“The government will publish a British Energy Security Strategy which will set out how the UK will become more self-sufficient and move away from Russian energy imports.”

Redacted classified UFO report reveals new info on 'shapes,' investigation into 'unexplained' phenomena


Tyler Olson
Fri, March 25, 2022

A classified government report on "Unexplained Aerial Phenomena" shows the U.S. is investigating the shapes of objects sometimes seen by military pilots, and reveals details of the plan to investigate them.

A highly redacted version of the report, provided to Congress last June, was published this week by Freedom of Information Act activist John Greenewald on his website The Black Vault.

A shorter public version of the report was published around the same by the director of national intelligence (DNI). The longer declassified version published by The Black Vault closely mirrors that report but with additional specific details, especially about the shapes of the "Unexplained Aerial Phenomena" (UAP).

UFO REPORT REVEALS OFFICIALS CAN'T EXPLAIN THE MYSTERIOUS SIGHTINGS

"The most common shape described by military personnel in their reporting was a [redacted]," one part of the classified report published by The Black Vault reads. "Military aviators described many of these [redacted] objects as [redacted] or that [redacted]. Several sightings were [redacted] and resembled [redacted] shapes like a [redacted] or a [redacted]."

The phenomena long have been publicly reported, including as early as 2019 by The New York Times. In a 2019 story, the Times reported U.S. Navy pilots have been seeing these objects for years, with an especially high rate of sightings on the East Coast between 2014 and 2015.

The 2021 report by the DNI said the government recorded 144 reports from 2004 to 2021, including 80 that "involved observation with multiple censors."

The classified version published by The Black Vault also reveals further details about the nature of the reports.

PENTAGON LAUNCHING NEW UFO INVESTIGATION UNIT, REPLACING NAVY GROUP: REPORT

"In 18 incidents, described in 21 reports, observers reported unusual UAP movement patterns or flight characteristics," it says. "Some UAP appeared to remain stationary in winds aloft, move against the wind, maneuver abruptly or move at considerable speed without discernable means of propulsion. In a small number of cases, military aircraft systems processed radio frequency (RF) energy associated with UAP sightings."

That description is consistent with previously published video of the UAP, including some that was declassified by the Pentagon in 2020, as Fox News previously reported.

The most heavily redacted parts of the report published by The Black Vault are from pages and sections that do not appear on the initial unclassified version at all. Those include sections about "common shapes" and "less common/irregular shapes" reported by observers of the phenomena. The entire sections about the shapes are redacted.

The government has said that UAP "probably lack a single explanation," but that it classifies them into five categories. Those are "airborne clutter," including birds and balloons; "natural atmospheric phenomena," including ice crystals or thermal fluctuations; "USG or industry developmental programs," meaning "classified programs by U.S. entities;" and "foreign adversary systems," from Russia, China or other countries. There's also a final catch-all "other" category which the government says "we may require additional scientific knowledge to successfully collect on, analyze and characterize."

Neither the classified nor unclassified reports rule out aliens.

The classified report published by The Black Vault includes what appears to be descriptions of multiple UAP instances reported by Navy pilots, though the details are heavily redacted. It also says that the federal Unexplained Aerial Phenomena Task Force (USATF) plans to "leverage" data sharing of non-military departments in the federal government to learn more about the phenomena.

The report published by The Black Vault also includes a section on the "Geospatial Intelligence," "Signals Intelligence," "Human Intelligence," and "Measurement and Signature Intelligence," used to observe the phenomena. The details in that section are also heavily redacted.

Another appendix in the report published by The Black Vault reveals that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and its resources could be useful in learning more about the UAP.

"Given the national security implications associated with potential threats posed by UAP operating in close proximity to sensitive military activities, installations, critical infrastructure, or other national security sites, the FBI is positioned to use its investigative capabilities and authorities to support deliberate DoD and interagency efforts to determine attribution," the report said.

Analysis-Trudeau political deal offers Canada stability in raucous times


Canada's PM Trudeau speaks in the House of Commons in Ottawa

Fri, March 25, 2022
By Steve Scherer

OTTAWA (Reuters) -After a raucous start to the year and on the heels of a pandemic election that most voters did not want, a deal between Trudeau's ruling Liberals and their leftist rivals to keep power until 2025 may offer a measure of political stability for Canadians, analysts said.

Already this year a trucker protest brought gridlock to Canada's capital and blocked trade at a vital border crossing, prompting Trudeau to invoke rare emergency powers just after the main opposition Conservatives ousted their leader.

With Canada the home to the biggest Ukrainian diaspora outside of Russia, war in Ukraine and hitting the two-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic is further fueling anxiety.

"Canadians are feeling very uncomfortable right now. A message of stability is not a bad thing," said Darrell Bricker, chief executive officer of pollster Ipsos Public Affairs.

The deal with the left-leaning New Democrats on Tuesday means the Trudeau government is likely to remain in power for years to come. Minority governments like the current one normally last only a couple years.

"With everything that we've gone through over the past few years, to see more bipartisanship emerge I think will be welcomed by a lot of voters," said Karl Belanger, the former national director of the New Democrats.

Stability is also good for a tarnished Trudeau, who has been in power seven years but has failed to win a majority in the past two elections, including last September.

He can now try to get his top agenda items - like spurring green technologies and cutting emissions - off the ground without worrying his government will suddenly collapse.

As one government source put it, the Liberal-NDP deal "is a good way to give up nothing and get stability and predictability. ... It means I have job security".

Garry Keller, a Conservative strategist at public affairs consultancy StrategyCorp, said the Liberals "get the stability that they wanted."

While Trudeau may be the immediate benefactor, it also gives the Conservatives more time to imbed a new leader after their convention in September.

Whoever becomes the fourth Conservative leader in seven years can "not only get ready for an election, but introduce themselves and build a narrative with Canadian voters," Keller said.

For the New Democrats, who have never held federal power, the move may allow leader Jagmeet Singh to convert policies he has long promoted into reality, including dental care for low earners and a national prescription drug coverage program.

But as Belanger pointed out, the true winner from the deal "we'll see only when we when we have an election," and now that could be in 2025.

(Reporting by Steve Scherer; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

A popular Russian blogger and 

TikToker says the Ukrainian

conflict is a 'catastrophe'

Erin Snodgrass,Selima Hussain

Fri, March 25, 2022, 

Natalia KonstantinovaCourtesy of Natalia Konstantinova.

• A Russian blogger told Insider that the Ukrainian conflict feels akin to a "civil war."

• The two former Soviet countries share a similar culture, language, and customs.

• "Ukraine is absolutely a different country," Natalia Konstantinova told Insider. "But we have so many ties together."

A popular Russian blogger and TikToker told Insider that her country's unprovoked assault in Ukraine is a "catastrophe."

Natalia Konstantinova, who runs the popular TikTok and Instagram accounts @natashasrussia from which she educates her hundreds of thousands of followers on all things Russian culture, said the past four weeks have been difficult to process as Russian forces continue targeting Ukrainian cities and civilians.

"It's actually devastation," Konstantinova said of what's happening in Ukraine. "It's catastrophe because something has happened that none of us could imagine."

For weeks leading up to the invasion, Western intelligence suggested such an attack was possible, but both Russians and Ukrainians were skeptical that full-on war was around the corner.

Now, one neighbor attacked the other; a conflict that Konstantinova compared to a "civil war."

"Ukraine is absolutely a different country," she told Insider. "But we have so many ties together. We have a lot of relatives. We have a lot of friends."

The two former Soviet countries share a similar culture, language, and customs. Some regions in Ukraine are even primarily Russian-speaking. Many Russians have family members and friends living in Ukraine, exemplary of the deep historical ties between the two countries.

But much of Russian President Vladimir Putin's pre-war propaganda focused on the false notion that Ukrainian sovereignty was nonexistent; that the country was created by and dependent on Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that conditions for peace must include Ukrainian sovereignty as well as security guarantees and the restoration of territorial integrity.

Konstantinova, who said she has friends in Ukraine whom she tried to help at the onset of the war, acknowledged that the current Ukrainian and Russian plights are not comparable.

"Ukrainians suffer the most because they lose their homes," she said. "They lose their families."

The United Nations on Thursday said the Ukrainian civilian death toll now exceeds 1,000 and more than 3 million people have fled the country.

Still, she said, Russian citizens are feeling the blowback of Putin's war, as well.

"It affects us also," she said. "Like so much."

Konstantinova said Russians are dealing with rising prices and a depressing economy as a result of international sanctions. As a blogger, Konstantinova said she and other Russian content creators are struggling to make ends meet after a slew of payment systems and financial institutions suspended operations in the country.

Konstantinova withdrew all her money from PayPal before the system was blocked in Russia, so she's not yet certain what the impact will be on her finances now that the platforms are null.

"We will see next month how it's gonna be, as people can't donate directly anymore," she said.

She also said she's had to combat an uptick in online attacks and internet hate targeting her nationality and aiming to make her "ashamed" of being Russian.

"So all of us get these messages that we are baby killers, that we are awful," she said. "That we are the killers, we are the evil ones."

But Konstantinova said she refuses to buy into that idea.

"It's not a shame to be Russian right now. Nobody should be ashamed of their nationality or ethnicity," she said. "It is a shame to be Putinist, yes."

While she doesn't condone the online attacks, she told Insider she does understand the sentiment behind them.

"I know that they see in me like the whole population of the Russian Federation," she said. "And they see in me a person who's responsible for all of this. But it's not true."

The attacks, she said, are likely coming from people who feel helpless — a feeling she understands fully.

"You sit there and you can't do anything and it's probably the worst feeling ever," she said. "We see it and we can't change anything."

By speaking out against the war — or as Russians have been instructed to call the conflict, the "special operation" —Konstantinova knows that she risks consequences amid the country's crackdown on public dissent.

Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a new law that would punish anyone who shares "false information" about the war with up to 15 years in prison. The country also banned Facebook and Instagram under a new "extremism law."

As such, she is extra cognizant of her platform and believes it gives her a responsibility to inform and educate.

"There are so many people who live here, and for right now I see that if I have this tool to connect average people from abroad to average people who live here — so I'm gonna use it till like no, till the end," she said. "Until I'm detained or something. So, it's a great responsibility.

A sanctioned Russian oligarch says he's struggling to pay bills and isn't sure he can employ a cleaner or driver

Kate Duffy

Fri, March 25, 2022, 

• Petr Aven, a sanctioned Russian oligarch worth an estimated $5.6 billion, was interviewed by the FT.

• In the interview, he said he was struggling to pay bills and didn't "understand how to survive."

• He asked: "Will I be allowed to have a cleaner, or a driver?"

A sanctioned Russian oligarch has said he's struggling to pay bills and isn't sure if he'll be able to employ a cleaner or driver.

In an interview with the Financial Times published Friday, Petr Aven, whose wealth is estimated by Bloomberg to be around $5.6 billion, said: "We don't understand how to survive."

In the interview, Aven also asked the question: "Will I be allowed to have a cleaner, or a driver?" and added: "I don't drive a car... maybe my stepdaughter will drive."

Aven was sanctioned by the EU on February 28 and described as "one of Vladimir Putin's closest oligarchs." He was also sanctioned by the UK on March 15 because of his complicity in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said at the time.

In early March, Aven stepped down from the $22 billion investment firm LetterOne, which he cofounded with Mikhail Fridman, another sanctioned Russian oligarch. The two billionaires also reportedly resigned from the boards of the Russian banking company Alfa-Bank days after the EU sanctioned them.

The sanctions meant Aven's assets were frozen and he was banned from doing business in and traveling to the EU and the UK.

He told the FT: "Our business is completely destroyed. Everything which we were building for 30 years is now completely ruined. And we have to somehow start a new life."

Aven said his wife visited cash machines in London to withdraw as much money as she could before the EU sanctions began.

The billionaire told the FT that the sanctions on Russian oligarchs were "understandable" but "not fair," adding: "I don't complain when people are dying."

Aven said he doesn't own a yacht or a private jet, which could be subject to sanctions.

Other Russian oligarchs appear to have had their yachts and jets seized since being sanctioned. Among them are a $75 million superyacht linked to Dmitry Pumpyansky and a $120 million yacht linked to Igor Sechin.

2 luxury private jets belonging to billionaire oligarch Eugene Shvidler, Roman Abramovich's 'right-hand man,' have been seized, report says

Alia Shoaib
Sat, March 26, 2022

Roman Abramovich with Eugene Shvidler.Getty/Nick Potts

Two private jets owned by Eugene Shvidler, Russian oil tycoon and Roman Abramovich associate, The Times reported.

Shvidler was sanctioned by the UK government on Thursday.

The planes have been seized under new laws banning Russian planes from the UK.

The UK has indefinitely detained two private jets linked to Eugene Shvidler, a billionaire oil tycoon and "right-hand man" of Roman Abramovich, The Times of London reported.

Shvidler was one of the latest oligarchs to be sanctioned on Thursday, as the UK slapped targeted 65 new individuals and businesses "fuelling [Vladimir] Putin's war machine."


The oligarch's $45 million Bombardier Global 6500 jet, registered as LX-Fly, is impounded at Farnborough airport, southern England, The Times.

His $13 million Cessna Citation Latitude jet has also been seized.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps signed new laws earlier this month allowing the government to formally detain Russian aircraft and making it a criminal offense for sanctioned oligarch owners to move or fly their plans.

A Bombardier Global 6500 private jet.Thomas Pallini/Business Insider

The UK impounded the Bombardier Global 6500 jet, which can carry 13 passengers, earlier this month while it determined its final ownership.

Ministers are deciding what to do with two seized jets. The Times reported that it is believed they could sell them if they wished to.

"Since Putin began his illegal assault, we have used every power at our disposal to crush his cronies who could financially benefit him. We've held jets under investigations for three weeks, and now, I am using these powers to detain them indefinitely," Grant Shapps told The Times.

"Introducing these latest measures — detaining tens of millions of pounds worth of Russian private jets — shows this government will leave no stone unturned in depriving Putin's cronies of their luxury toys."

Eugene Shvidler has a net worth of $1.6 billion, according to Forbes.

He partnered with Roman Abramovich to purchase oil giant Sibneft in 1995, in what the BBC describes as a "rigged auction."

In 2005, the Russian state-owned gas firm Gazprom paid $13 billion for 73% of Sibneft's shares from Abramovich's investment and asset management company Millhouse LLC, of which Shvidler is chairman.

Abramovich, who owns Chelsea F.C. football club in the UK, has had his assets frozen and was given a travel ban by the government earlier this month.

NATO'S OPPORTUNISTIC ALLY
Turkey's foreign minister says sanctioned Russian oligarchs are welcome as tourists and investors
Sam Tabahriti
Sun, March 27, 2022,

From left: Roman Abramovich, Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Alexei Mordashov.

Turkish minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Russian oligarchs are welcome in the country, per CNBC.


It comes amid Russian billionaires being sanctioned by Western countries during the war.


Superyachts should remain outside the territorial waters of sanctioning countries, Turkey said.

Sanctioned Russian oligarchs are welcome in Turkey as tourists and investors, according to the country's foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu.

CNBC reported the story first.

The politician said in an interview with CNBC at the Doha Forum: "We implement UN-approved sanctions, so if any Russian citizens want to visit Turkey, of course, they can visit Turkey. Now Russians are coming to visit Turkey, that's no problem."

"If you mean that these oligarchs can do any business in Turkey, then of course if it is legal and it is not against international law, I will consider," he added when pushed on whether sanctioned oligarchs can do business in the country.

He said: "If it is against international law, then that's another story."

The Turkish foreign minister's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside of normal working hours.

Several Russian billionaires have had some of their assets seized amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Roman Abramovich, who owns Chelsea FC, had his two multimillion-dollar superyachts reportedly spotted in Turkey's coastal waters. Italy seized a superyacht belonging to one of Russia's richest men, Alexei Mordashov, last week.

Per CNBC's report, Turkey said that allowing Russian oligarchs into the country is legitimate – so long as the yachts remain outside the territorial waters of sanctioning countries, which extend 12 nautical miles from the coastline.

Cavusoglu also told reporters that he traveled to Russia and Ukraine for talks with his respective counterparts.

Meanwhile, Turkey, alongside France and Greece, intends to take part in a mission to evacuate Mariupol's remaining inhabitants. The countries are all NATO members.

Turkey says world cannot 'burn bridges' with Moscow


FILE PHOTO: Turkish President Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim Kalin is pictured during an interview in Istanbul

Sun, March 27, 2022, 4

DOHA (Reuters) - Turkey and other nations must still talk to Russia to help end the war in Ukraine, Turkey's presidential spokesman said on Sunday, adding that Kyiv needed more support to defend itself.

NATO member Turkey has good relations with both Russia and Ukraine and has sought to mediate in the month-long conflict.

"If everybody burns bridges with Russia then who is going to talk to them at the end of the day," Ibrahim Kalin told the Doha international forum.

"Ukrainians need to be supported by every means possible so they can defend themselves ... but the Russian case must be heard, one way or the other," so that its grievances could be understood if not justified, Kalin added.


Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged the West to give his country tanks, planes and missiles to fend off Russian forces. The West has responded to Russia's invasion by slapping sweeping economic sanctions on Moscow.

Ankara says Russia's invasion is unacceptable but opposes the Western sanctions on principle and has not joined them.

Turkey's economy, already strained by a December currency crisis, relies heavily on Russian energy, trade and tourism, and since the war began on Feb. 24 thousands of Russians have arrived in Turkey, seeing it as a safe haven from the sanctions.

Ahmet Burak Daglioglu, head of Turkey's investment office, told the forum separately that some Russian companies were relocating operations to Turkey.

Asked on a panel about Turkey doing business with any people which could be of benefit to President Vladimir Putin, he said: "We are not targeting, we are not chasing, we are not pursuing any investment or capital that has a question mark on it."

Two superyachts linked to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich have docked in Turkish resorts.

Western governments have targeted Abramovich and several other Russian oligarchs with sanctions as they seek to isolate Putin and his allies over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

(Reporting by Ghaida Ghantous, Andrew Mills and Jonathan Spicer; Editing by Edmund Blair and Gareth Jones)

US IMPERIALISM CALLS FOR REGIME CHANGE, AGAIN
Putin must be weakened, Biden says in speech urging global unity on Ukraine

With the war in Ukraine at a critical juncture, President Biden on Saturday used the capital of a country once dominated by the Soviet Union to demand an end to Russian President Vladimir Putin's vast power and to exhort U.S. allies to stand up to Russia's brutal invasion of its neighbor.

 President Biden speaks in Warsaw on Saturday. 

(Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

Patrick J. McDonnell, Tracy Wilkinson 

 LA Times

"The test of this moment is a test of all time," Biden said in what was designed as a rousing speech for unity uttered at a Polish castle destroyed by Nazis in World War II — and later rebuilt.

"For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power," Biden said of Putin — a dramatic final flourish to what the White House called a major speech and what appeared to be a call to unseat the man he has branded a killer and a war criminal.

The White House later clarified that Biden was not urging regime change, which would have been a major shift in U.S. policy. “The president’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region," a spokesman told reporters traveling with the president and speaking on condition of anonymity in keeping with White House protocol. "He was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia, or regime change.”

Still, the comments reverberated in Poland, Ukraine, Russia and beyond.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was not up to Biden to choose who leads Russia. "The president of Russia is elected by Russians," he said, according to Reuters.

Biden, in his speech, also reached out to the Russian people, saying the United States and the West do not have grievances with them but with their leaders. And he called for worldwide unity, something the administration has not been able to galvanize, with numerous countries sitting on the sidelines of the conflict.

"All of us must do the hard work of democracy each and every day," Biden said, "in Europe and in my country as well."

He opened his remarks by invoking the late Pope John Paul II, a Pole, whose "Be not afraid" speech in Warsaw in 1979 inspired Poland to eventually break away from Communist rule.

Throughout his visit to Europe, Biden has emphasized the "sacred obligation" the U.S. and its NATO allies have to protect Poland and other member states if Russia spreads its attacks into the eastern flanks of NATO territory. He told Polish President Andrzej Duda in a meeting that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization will defend "every inch" of its territory "for your freedom and ours."

As Biden visited Warsaw, a fresh volley of explosions was heard on the outskirts of Lviv, in western Ukraine and just miles from the border with Poland. Black smoke billowed on the horizon. Ukrainian authorities said a Russian missile attack hit a fuel storage facility. Though the third attack in the vicinity of once-quiet Lviv, it was the first one close to the city's population.

Russia on Friday announced that the "first phase" of its military assault had ended successfully, saying its forces would now concentrate on its main goal: consolidating control of occupied parts of eastern Ukraine. This might represent a scaling down of operations in the face of a failure to advance on key cities — or it may be another feint by Putin to confuse his adversaries.

Saturday's Lviv attacks seemed to suggest the latter. Biden, asked what he thought of Putin's shift in strategy, said he was not sure there had been any shift.

Initially, several U.S. officials embraced the analysis that Putin was scaling back because it fits with their narrative that Ukraine is prevailing in the conflict, even as Washington and European capitals are willing to send supplies and weapons to Ukraine but not troops or fighter jets.

While in Warsaw, Biden also got a firsthand glimpse of the war's toll on Poland. Meeting with Ukrainian refugees near the train station in Warsaw, he said he admired their spirit and resilience and branded Putin a "butcher." Millions of Ukrainians have fled across Europe or been displaced inside their country since Putin launched the invasion Feb. 24.

Earlier, Biden joined U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III at a session in a Warsaw hotel with top Ukrainian officials —Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, and Oleksii Reznikov, the country’s defense minister.

Poland, a NATO ally of the United States, shares a lengthy border with Ukraine and has been both the major destination of Ukrainian refugees and an essential corridor for aid — including military assistance — headed into Ukraine.

There is deep anxiety in Poland, seat of the Warsaw Pact during Soviet domination of Eastern Europe, that the war could spread into its territory.

But Washington, wary of a wider war with Russia, has not embraced Polish suggestions that an international peacekeeping force be deployed to Ukraine. And the Biden administration has also rejected outright a Polish proposal that Polish MiG-29 fighters be transferred to Ukraine via a U.S. airbase in Germany.

Poland has also urged that Washington expedite procedures to accept refugees from Ukraine with families in the United States. The Biden administration now says it will open doors to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees.

Biden and Duda and their delegations met for several hours, discussing the war and the refugee crisis, which has seen some 3.7 million Ukrainians flee the country, an exodus that continues daily and is considered the largest refugee influx in Europe since World War II.

The trip to the Polish capital came a day after Biden visited U.S. forces in the eastern Polish city of Rzeszow, some 45 miles west of the Ukrainian border. Washington has bolstered its forces in Eastern Europe in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In his comments to troops, Biden talked of a global struggle between democracies and autocratic forces.

“You’re in the midst of a fight between democracies and oligarchs,” the president told members of the U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne Division. "Is democracy going to prevail and the values we share, or are autocracies going to prevail?"

During a later briefing on the refugee response, Biden said, “the single most important thing that we can do from the outset" to force Putin to stop the war "is keep the democracies united in our opposition.”

Before going to Poland, Biden conferred with U.S. allies in Brussels, unveiling new sanctions against Russian officials, among other moves.

The president’s arrival to Poland comes at a crucial juncture in the Ukrainian conflict, now in its second month. Russian troops blitzed into Ukrainian territory Feb. 24.

Since then, the war has evolved into a grinding and costly conflict in which opposing forces on many fronts appear deadlocked — and, in some cases, Ukrainian troops are pushing back their Russian adversaries.

Questions remain about whether Russia will now ramp up its offensive throughout Ukraine or will concentrate its efforts on the east and south, where Russia has had some military success.

In comments Friday, Sergei Rudskoi, a top Russian defense ministry official, said that with the "first stage" completed, Moscow will concentrate on the “liberation” of the Donbas, a large stretch of eastern Ukraine where Russia-backed separatists have expanded control since the war began. Russian proxies in the Donbas have been battling Ukrainian forces since 2014.

“The combat potential of the armed forces of Ukraine has been significantly reduced," Rudskoi said.

That assertion came as a Russian assault on the capital, Kyiv, appears to have stalled amid fierce Ukrainian resistance.

But Russia depicted the attack on Kyiv not as an attempt to take the capital, but an effort to tie down Ukrainian forces while Russia concentrates on the east.

Western observers see the comments as a face-saving maneuver for Moscow as its forces have bogged down in the field because of military missteps and greater-than-expected Ukrainian resistance. However, many also caution that Putin has repeatedly lied about his intentions and operations, and the new comments must be viewed with skepticism.

Putin has denied from the outset that Russia had aims to occupy Ukrainian territory, saying strikes were meant to cripple Ukrainian military infrastructure. But his government’s assault on Ukrainian cities — including Kyiv and the eastern city of Mariupol, scene of vast devastation — seemed to undercut Putin’s assertions.

Putin has called the war a “special operation” meant both to bolster Russian security against NATO encroachment and to protect Russian speakers in the east subjected to “abuse and genocide.” The Ukrainian government denies any systemic abuse of Russian speakers in the east or elsewhere in Ukraine.

In recent days, Russian shelling has continued in various areas, including the outskirts of Kyiv and the northern cities of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second most populous, and Chernihiv.

Authorities in Kyiv have announced a new 35-hour curfew.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the curfew will run from 8 p.m. local time Saturday to 7 a.m. Monday, with local residents allowed to leave their homes only to get to bomb shelters.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky again called on other nations to step up humanitarian and military aid to his beleaguered nation.

“They are destroying our ports,” Zelensky said in a video address Saturday to Qatar’s Doha Forum, noting that the war had curtailed grain and other exports from Ukraine. “The absence of exports from Ukraine will deal a blow to countries worldwide.”

McDonnell reported from Lviv and Wilkinson from Washington.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Ukraine: Rockets strike Lviv as Biden castigates Putin — live updates

US President Joe Biden lashed at Vladimir Putin while delivering a speech in Warsaw, calling the Russian leader "a butcher." Meanwhile, Zelenskyy urged Poland once again to send fighter jets and tanks. DW has the latest.

The back-to-back airstrikes on Saturday shook Lviv, which had been largely spared since the Russian invasion began

Biden says Putin 'cannot remain in power'

Zelenskyy again calls for tanks and fighter jets from Poland

Ukraine says 12 journalists have died since the invasion began

The article was last updated at 05:45 UTC/GMT

Russia relying on munitions launched from its airspace: UK intelligence

The latest intelligence update from the UK's Defense Ministry says Moscow is trying to limit its aircrafts' exposure to Ukrainian air defense forces by relying on "stand-off" munitions launched from within Russian airspace.

A US report has cited a 60% failure rate among these Russian munitions.

The UK briefing said this failure rate would "compound Russia's problem of increasingly limited stocks forcing them to revert to less sophisticated missiles or accepting more risk to their aircraft."

The report also said that Russia's air and missile forces were continuing to target densley populated civilian areas across Ukraine.

Ukraine says 12 journalists have died since Russia invasion began

Ukrainian Attorney General Iryna Venediktova said on her Facebook page Saturday that 12 journalists have died since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.

Ten more journalists were injured during the war, she added, noting that citizens of Ireland, Russia and the United States were among the foreign reporters killed in the conflict. Venediktova alleged that the reporters were killed by the Russian army.

Zelenskyy calls on Poland to send fighter jets

In a video conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Poland once again to send fighter jets and tanks to fight off Russia's invasion.

Zelenskyy warned that, if Ukraine cannot repel Russia's attack, neighbors, including NATO countries, are vulnerable.

According to a readout provided by the Ukrainian president's official website, Zelenskyy said: "There is a high risk that the Russian army will pose a missile threat not only to the territories of our neighbors — Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and the Baltic States — but also a direct general military threat."

Despite Ukraine's request for fighter jets and a Polish plan to provide them via the Ramstein air force base in Germany, the US objected, and the plan was dropped.

Biden: 'For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power'

US President Joe Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met Saturday with Ukraine's foreign and defense ministers at the Marriott Hotel in central Warsaw. Biden and Austin promised US support to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov.

In a speech from Warsaw's Royal Castle during the visit to Poland, Biden told the world to prepare for a "long fight ahead." He castigated Russian President Vladimir Putin and ended his speech by saying: "For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power." The White House later said Biden was not calling for regime change in Russia.

Biden: 'Putin has the gall to say he is denazifying Ukraine'

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the US intends to send $100 million (€91 million) to Ukraine in civilian security assistance. This money is earmarked for the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs to "provide essential border security, sustain civil law enforcement functions, and safeguard critical governmental infrastructure."

Vladyslav Atroshenko, the mayor of the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv that lies close to the border with Russia and Belarus, said that the city "has been completely devastated."

Atroshenko warned that the city has been surrounded by Russian troops and it is no longer possible to set up escape corridors for civilians. The city is also without power and the major bridge connecting Chernihiv with Kyiv has been destroyed, the mayor said.

Ukrainian officials reported that airstrikes had hit the western city of Lviv on Saturday afternoon after explosions were heard earlier outside the city, leaving at least five wounded.

Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko announced an extended curfew will go into force until Monday morning. However, it was later canceled.

ar/sri (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)

AMERICAN EMPIRE IS THE MOST DANGEROUS

Joe Biden ready to use nuclear weapons first in ‘extreme circumstances’

Nick Allen
Fri, March 25, 2022,

Joe Biden shared a selfie with US soldiers during a visit to Poland on Friday - Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Joe Biden is prepared to use nuclear weapons first in “extreme circumstances” after he abandoned plans to drastically water down US policy.

The US president’s U-turn came after pressure from allies and the Pentagon, amid fears that Vladimir Putin may resort to deploying weapons of mass destruction in the coming months.

The US currently allows itself to use nuclear weapons to “defend the vital interests of the United States, its allies and partners”, as well as in response to “significant non-nuclear strategic attacks”.

However, for years Mr Biden has sought to rein that back, arguing that the “sole purpose” of the US nuclear arsenal should be as a deterrent only against a nuclear attack.

Stating his position in 2017, the president said: “The sole purpose of our nuclear arsenal is to deter and, if necessary, retaliate, for a nuclear attack against the United States and its allies.”

Mr Biden included his desire to minimise the role of nuclear weapons in his 2020 presidential campaign.

He was considering announcing the move earlier this year but the decision was delayed amid the Russian build-up on the Ukraine border, The Telegraph understands.

“In the current situation, it’s very challenging to make the case for ‘sole purpose’,” said an arms control expert who consulted with Mr Biden’s nuclear policy officials.

“The optics are extremely bad when Russia is being as threatening as it is. You don’t want to look weak. It was on the president’s desk awaiting his decision, then Ukraine happened.

“Pre-Ukraine, there was a chance the president would have gone ahead and made a ‘sole purpose’ declaration. He wanted to do that, but he didn’t have a lot of support in the Pentagon.”

Mr Biden’s decision came as he was under pressure to set a “red line” for how to respond to any use of chemical weapons by Putin in Ukraine.

Speaking in Brussels on Thursday, he said that the West would respond “in kind”, but declined to say whether it would lead to military intervention.

Responding to Russian nuclear threat

In 2020, Russia published a doctrine outlining its possible use of nuclear weapons.

It detailed four justifications: a ballistic missile attack against Russia or an ally, use of a nuclear weapon by an enemy, an attack on a Russian nuclear weapons site, or any attack threatening the existence of Russia.

Last month, Putin ordered his nuclear forces to be put on high alert.

As president, Mr Biden has the only authority to launch the US’s nuclear weapons. His new policy will say that the “fundamental role” of America’s nuclear weapons is to deter nuclear attacks, US officials told The Wall Street Journal.

However, that will still allow them to be used in “extreme circumstances” as a deterrent against chemical, biological, massive conventional and even potentially cyber attacks, officials told the newspaper.

Allies in Europe had been concerned that Mr Biden’s original plan would weaken deterrence against a massive conventional, or chemical and biological, attack by Russia on Nato.

Japan feared that the US explicitly limiting itself to retaliation against a nuclear strike could one day leave it open to an overwhelming conventional attack by China.

Supporters of Mr Biden’s original, more limited “sole purpose” campaign pledge will be disappointed.

“With ‘sole purpose’, you’re still safe. You’re still saying ‘If you want to nuke, us you’re going to die’. That’s the essence of deterrence,” said one member of the nuclear policy community who backed it.

“Even Putin would know if he does one or two nukes in Ukraine, he can’t get away with it.”

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has delayed the completion of Mr Biden’s overall defence strategy, of which the nuclear review is part.

The defence strategy was determined to be too focused on China, and is being amended to acknowledge the increased Russian threat.

‘Ukraine invasion is Tiananmen Square, squared’

Smoke Russian shelling Kyiv - (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda

As he travelled to within 50 miles of Ukraine’s border on Friday, the US president compared Putin’s invasion of Ukraine to China’s massacre of the Tiananmen Square protesters in 1989.

He described the devastation being unleashed on Ukraine as “like something out of a science fiction movie”.

However, the US president added: “The Ukrainian people have a lot of backbone. They have a lot of guts.”

He gave the example of a 30-year-old woman standing in front of a tank with a rifle, which recalled the famous “Tank Man” photo, of a man standing defiantly before tanks after the crushing protests in Tiananmen Square.

“This is Tiananmen Square, squared,” Mr Biden said.

Earlier on Friday, he had addressed US troops in the Polish city of Rzeszow, about 50 miles from the Ukraine border.

Speaking to the soldiers, he said: “You’re in the midst of a fight between democracies and autocrats. What you’re doing is consequential, really consequential.”

The president said he was “disappointed” not to be able to see the humanitarian crisis caused by the conflict “first hand”.

“They will not let me, understandably I guess, cross the border and take a look at what’s going on in Ukraine,” he said.

Joe Biden and Andrzej Duda, the US and Polish presidents - Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

More than 3.7 million Ukrainians have fled the country, roughly half to Poland.

Andrzej Duda, the Polish president, joined Mr Biden for his event and thanked him for his support.

He said that the Poles see the Ukrainians they are receiving as their “guests”, adding: “This is the name we want to apply to them. We do not want to call them refugees. They are our guests, our brothers, our neighbours from Ukraine, who today are in a very difficult situation.”

Mr Biden is due to wrap up his European visit on Saturday with a “major address” from Poland, according to Jake Sullivan, the US national security adviser.

He will meet with Ukrainian refugees and American humanitarian groups in Warsaw before delivering an address “that will speak to the stakes of this moment”, Mr Sullivan added.

“He’ll also talk about the context and history of this conflict and where he sees it going from here.”

Zurich Insurance removes Z symbol after letter used to show support for Ukraine war


The logo of Zurich Insurance is seen in Zurich

Sat, March 26, 2022

ZURICH (Reuters) - Zurich Insurance has removed its Z logo from social media after the letter became a symbol of support in Russia for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The company said it was removing the logo - a white Z on a blue background - because it did not want to be misinterpreted as supporting Russia in the conflict.

"We are temporarily removing the use of the letter 'Z' from social channels where it appears in isolation and could be misinterpreted," the company told Reuters in a statement.

"We're monitoring the situation closely and will take further actions if and when required," the company said, following a report by The Telegraph newspaper in England.

The letter Z has been used as a marking on Russian military vehicles taking part in the conflict and has been adopted by Russians supporting the war, with it being prominent on flags and at pro-Kremlin rallies.

Moscow has described its actions in Ukraine as a "special military operation."

Zurich Insurance said earlier this month that it was no longer taking on new domestic customers in Russia and will not renew existing local business.

(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

Google employee wows 

TikTok with tour of her everyday 

office perks: ‘Do you actually do any work?’

Dillon Thompson

Fri, March 25, 2022, 

A Google employee is sharing the everyday perks she enjoys at the tech company’s offices.

This jealousy-inducing insight comes courtesy of a TikToker named Sophie (@sophielawlor5), who appears to work at Google’s offices in Dublin, Ireland. Her clip, which now has over 7 million views, shows an apparently regular workday — and all the food, relaxation and office perks that are included.

Her video is just the latest popular TikTok that gives a behind-the-scenes look at interesting work lives. Earlier this month, a former “HQ Trivia” host went viral sharing how much money she made per episode. Before that, a former pro football player explained what NFL waterboys “actually do.”

Google employees in particular have consistently sparked interest on the app. Last year, a former employee shared what it was like to work at the company’s Bay Area office.

Sophie’s tour of the Dublin office drew a similar reaction. Her tour started in the morning with a trip to the breakfast buffet.

Then, she showed off a fancy-looking coffee machine, followed by some time working from a remote-controlled massage chair.

Next, she had lunch at a vast buffet line. Then she got some “fresh air,” on a rooftop patio featuring some colorful swing sets.

Finally, Sophie shared clips of her desk area and a stationery cubby.

TikTokers had strong reactions to the clip. Many expressed their jealousy over Sophie’s job.