New defense white paper reflects Yoon Suk-yeol’s hardline stance on North Korea

Seoul labels Pyongyang as its enemy and emphasizes cooperation and deterrence with Washington and Tokyo

Sooyoung OhFebruary 16, 2023

ROK Air Force’s fleet of Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II fighters, March 25, 2022 | Image: Facebook

South Korea released its 2022 Defense White Paper on Thursday, and it takes a sharp U-Turn from the previous Moon Jae-in administration’s dovish approach to North Korea.

As widely predicted, the new white paper defines North Korea’s regime and armed forces as South Korea’s enemy, undoing the previous government’s removal of the line from the 2018 white paper.

The new report justifies the revision by pointing to Pyongyang’s own branding of Seoul as its “clear enemy” in December and notes that the DPRK expressed its intention to “communize the entire Korean Peninsula.”

The new white paper also adds the violation of the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement to its list of North Korean military provocations, mentioning the various missile tests, drone incursions and artillery fire into maritime buffer zones.

CLOSE NEIGHBORS

South Korea’s relations with Japan hit a nadir under Moon Jae-in and spiraled into a trade war and hostility over unsettled historical disputes. The Moon government even threatened to terminate an intel-sharing agreement with Japan.

No love was lost as Seoul’s 2020 white paper described Japan simply as a “neighbor” with which South Korea should cooperate in the broad context of pursuing global peace.

Amid efforts to repair relations and forge stronger trilateral ties with Japan and the U.S. to deter North Korea, the new white paper calls Tokyo a “close neighbor” with which Seoul shares common values and emphasizes the need to develop a “futuristic, cooperative relationship.”

Still, territorial claims and historical disputes over Imperial Japan’s wartime use of forced labor and sexual slavery are not to be brushed aside. Seoul says it is “firm” on countering efforts at revisionism and aims to resolve such sticking points while improving their relations.

THREAT PERCEPTION

Seoul’s latest defense white paper also suggests the North has continued to produce nuclear materials “in its nuclear plants, including the Yongbyon facility,” accumulating about 154 pounds (70 kilograms) of plutonium. It’s also believed to have a significant amount of highly enriched uranium (HEU).

The previous white paper put the amount of plutonium at 110 pounds (50 kilograms) and only mentioned the Yongbyon plant.

Following Pyongyang’s unprecedented number of missiles tested last year, the new white paper has added seven new projectiles to its line-up of the North’s known missiles.

It has identified close-range and short-range missiles deemed tactical guided weapons, new Pukguksong 4 and 5 submarine-launched ballistic missiles and two hypersonic models sporting wedge-shaped and conical gliders. The new paper also specifies the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile as capable of traveling over 3,400 miles (5,500 kilometers).

Hwasong-17 ICBMs appear during North Korea’s military parade | Images: Rodong Sinmun (Feb. 9, 2023)

INCREASED AGGRESSION

South Korea’s three-axis deterrence system comprising Kill Chain, Korea Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) and Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR) only took up half a page in the 2020 white paper.

But the new paper dedicates five pages to deterrence, emphasizing Kill Chain and KMPR, which involve pre-emptive strikes and retaliatory measures that could incapacitate the DPRK’s leadership.

Seeking to engage the North, the Moon administration downplayed the ROK’s military capabilities for most of its five years. It also held off on installing Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system components as long as possible following Chinese backlash. Instead, the previous government focused on homegrown defense systems, such as medium and long-range surface-to-air missiles.

Extended deterrence — the policy that the U.S. would defend South Korea with nuclear weapons — or has been the bedrock of the alliance. Based on the outcomes of the Security Consultative Meeting in November and the defense ministers’ meeting in Seoul in late January, the new white paper outlines ways to coordinate and respond to a possible nuclear attack by Pyongyang.

It mentions measures like tabletop exercises, joint nuclear planning, intel-sharing and deploying U.S. strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula with more specific details than the 2020 edition. On the other hand, the allies suspended tabletop exercises and large-scale joint military drills such as Foal Eagle about two years into Moon’s presidency.

As North Korea is increasing and intensifying its missile and nuclear provocations, the white paper indicates that the South is now inclined to respond more forcefully and regularly. However, while greater vigilance and military readiness are undoubtedly needed, whether a tit-for-tat approach strengthens or undermines deterrence remains to be seen.

Edited by John Lee

Qatargate: Cash-for-influence scandal widens with more EU lawmakers in frame


Maria Arena and Alessandra Moretti are mentioned in arrest warrant for another MEP, Andrea Cozzolino.

MEPs Maria Arena and Alessandra Moretti are connected to Belgium's Qatargate investigation | Photos by the European Parliament

BY CAMILLE GIJS AND EDDY WAX
FEBRUARY 16, 2023 

Belgium’s probe into alleged corruption and influence-buying by Qatar and Morocco in the European Parliament has widened, an international arrest warrant obtained by POLITICO shows.

MEPs Maria Arena and Alessandra Moretti are connected to the investigation being undertaken by Belgian prosecutors, according to the warrant for Italian MEP Andrea Cozzolino, who was arrested last week on charges of corruption, money-laundering and participation in a criminal organization. The warrant was issued on February 10 by Belgian investigative judge Michel Claise.

According to the document, Arena and Moretti were members of a “quadrumvirate,” along with Cozzolino and Belgian MEP Marc Tarabella, who was also arrested last week. The foursome, according to the warrant, did the bidding of former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, an alleged ringleader of the network operating in the European Parliament, who has made a plea deal with Belgian prosecutors.

The influence-buying scandal has rocked the EU capital, after Belgian authorities raided homes and offices in December 2022, amid allegations Qatar and Morocco handed out cash and gifts to secure favorable treatment in the European Parliament. In the months since, the institution, which often grandstands on rule-of-law and anti-corruption issues, has undergone a period of soul-searching as its leaders attempted to distance themselves from those implicated and enact reforms.

The saga has particularly shone a spotlight on the inner workings of the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) — the group to which the implicated MEPs belonged. The S&D has excluded Tarabella, Cozzolino and former Parliament vice president Eva Kaili and responded in January with its own anti-corruption and transparency plan.

The warrant seen by POLITICO sheds light on the extent to which the corrupt network allegedly infiltrated the European Parliament.

In one example cited in the warrant, Arena and Moretti were said to have acted on Panzeri’s instructions during a meeting about a possible Parliament resolution on Qatar, in late 2021. Panzeri, who was at that stage no longer an MEP and didn’t attend the meeting himself, gave instructions to his former assistant, seeking to influence the possible resolution.

The plan and the identities of the members of the so-called quadrumvirate were revealed in text messages sent to Panzeri by his former assistant, Giuseppe Meroni, who was still working in the S&D group at the time, according to the warrant. Panzeri struck a plea deal with Belgian prosecutors last month to exchange information for a reduced sentence.

“Qatar resolved,” Meroni said in one text to his former boss Panzeri, according to the warrant. After the meeting, Panzeri received a briefing on what had gone on from Arena as well as Francesco Giorgi — another of his former assistants, who was by then working for Cozzolino. Giorgi is the partner of Kaili, the jailed former European Parliament vice president, and is himself now in prison

“I can only say that it was a lawful exchange of information, as part of regular parliamentary political activity,” Meroni said in response to a POLITICO request for comment.

Moretti, the MEP identified in the warrant seen by POLITICO, denied the allegations. “I have never followed Mr Panzeri instructions in my political activity, no resolution has been discussed on December 2021.”

An Italian court ruled that the daughter of former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri can be extradited to Belgium | European Union

Unlike in the cases of Cozzolino and Tarabella, authorities haven’t asked the European Parliament to lift Arena and Moretti’s legal immunity, a step necessary to investigate or charge them. Arena declined to comment.

Arena has faced scrutiny over a trip to Doha in May 2022, after failing to declare on time that the Qatari government had paid for her flights and accommodation. Arena stepped down last month as chair of the Parliament’s human rights subcommittee — a role she succeeded Panzeri in. Moretti, meanwhile, on January 17 this year declared a subsidized trip to Qatar that took place in February 2020.
Morocco in the frame amid Pegasus spyware scandal

The warrant also highlights Morocco’s alleged role in the influence-buying scandal.

The document reveals that in an intercepted conversation, Panzeri and Giorgi discussed advancing Moroccan interests by placing either Cozzolino or Kaili on a special parliamentary committee investigating the use of Pegasus spyware to hack the phones of journalists, activists and politicians. Morocco, according to allegations in media reports, may have used the spyware to hack the Spanish government.

Cozzolino and Kaili were both made full members of the committee, though they have now lost those roles.

Cozzolino, who has repeatedly denied any wrong-doing, declined to comment.

Giorgi also managed to prevent Parliament from issuing a text that was unfavorable to Morocco, and informed Panzeri of this in May 2022, according to the warrant.

Two Moroccans considered crucial to the allegedly corrupt network are named in the arrest warrant: spy Mohamed Belahrech, codenamed M118 and known to European spy services for some time; and Abderrahim Atmoun, Rabat’s ambassador in Warsaw.

According to the warrant, Atmoun “played an important role” by handing out cash, and is thought to have worked “closely” with Moroccan intelligence and liaised with Belahrech.

Atmoun and Belahrech did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Western Sahara connection

According to the warrant, Morocco also attempted to influence the European Parliament’s position on the controversial issue of Western Sahara. The disputed territory is a former Spanish colony which for decades has been claimed both by Morocco and a rebel independence movement.

Spain, which had long remained neutral in the ongoing conflict, U-turned on its position last year, backing Rabat’s plan for limited autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty. The move followed a year of increasing tensions between Madrid and Rabat, after one of the rebel movement’s leaders was permitted to travel to a Spanish hospital for treatment.

The Belgian arrest warrant says Cozzolino released a statement at the request of Atmoun and Panzeri in March 2022, backing Spain’s change of position on Western Sahara.

Jacopo Barigazzi and Elisa Braun contributed to this article.

US backs Moderna, says govt should face Covid-19 vaccine lawsuit

Both Moderna and Pfizer Inc PFE.N have been the target of multiple patent lawsuits over their Covid vaccines, including a lawsuit brought by Moderna against Pfizer in August.


Reuters
Washington,UPDATED: Feb 16, 2023 08:18 IST


Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine at the McKesson distribution center in Olive Branch, Mississippi (Reuters)

By Reuters: 

The U.S. government should face a patent lawsuit over Covid-19 vaccines, not vaccine maker Moderna Inc MRNA.O, the Department of Justice told a Delaware federal court on Tuesday.

The Justice Department's court filing said the United States should be liable for any infringement of Arbutus Biopharma Corp ABUS.O and Genevant Sciences GmbH's patents that took place under Moderna's contract to provide shots for the government's nationwide vaccination effort.

Moderna made the same argument last year in an unsuccessful bid to win an early dismissal of the lawsuit.

Genevant declined to comment on the filing. Representatives for Moderna, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

Warminster Township, Pennsylvania-based Arbutus and Genevant — a joint venture between Arbutus and Roivant Sciences Ltd ROIV.O — sued Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna last year for royalties on its multi-billion-dollar Covid vaccines.

ALSO READ Moderna sues Pfizer, BioNTech for Covid-19 vaccine patent infringement

Both Moderna and Pfizer Inc PFE.N have been the target of multiple patent lawsuits over their Covid vaccines, including a lawsuit brought by Moderna against Pfizer in August.

Moderna asked the Delaware court to dismiss Arbutus and Genevant's case in May, arguing it could only be brought against the government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. It cited a law that was previously used to keep patent disputes from interfering with the supply of war materials during World War One.

But U.S. District Judge Mitchell Goldberg said in November that Moderna had not yet shown that the vaccines were made for the government or with its authorization and consent under the law, and that it may have instead been an "incidental beneficiary" of the shots.

The Department of Justice responded Tuesday that Moderna should not be liable based on its contract to provide the vaccines to the government as part of Operation Warp Speed.

It said the government's liability is limited to Moderna's alleged infringing activity that took place under its U.S. contract.

Rihanna called out by activists for wearing $1 million Burmese ruby ring during Superbowl performance

Rihanna performing at the Superbowl Halftime Show on Feb. 12, 2023. 

Photo: @baycojewels / Instagram

By Coconuts Yangon

Feb 16, 2023 |

Pop megastar Rihanna received a good deal of criticism for her performance during Sunday’s NFL Superbowl Halftime Show, but it was what she was wearing during the performance that has led to outcry from those opposed to Myanmar’s brutal military junta.

The activist group “Justice for Myanmar” called out Rihanna in a Twitter thread yesterday noting that the popstar had been wearing a Burmese ruby ring worth $1 million from New York City’s Bayco Jewels, which sells a number of pieces prominently featuring gems from Myanmar.

The activist group argues “Myanmar gems fund junta atrocities” and calls for a ban on their trade.

According to Bayco, the ring Rihanna was wearing features “a rare natural, unheated 19.47-carat sugarloaf cabochon Burma Ruby”.

While Myanmar has been mired in economic turmoil ever since the military overthrew the civilian government in February 2021 — due to economic sanctions, widespread worker strikes and internal military conflicts with anti-junta forces — one of the ways the junta government has managed to sustain itself is through the sale of gems. Myanmar is one of the top sources of precious stones in the world and is particularly well known for the quality of its rubies.

A report released by human rights watchdog Global Witness in December 2021 detailed how some of the world’s most famous jewelers risked funding the junta by selling rubies that were likely sourced from mines in the military-ruled country.

“There is no such thing as an ethically sourced Burmese ruby,” Clare Hammond, senior Myanmar campaigner at Global Witness, said in a statement. “These gemstones are sold as symbols of human connection and affection, yet the supply chain is steeped in corruption and horrific human rights abuses.”

Although the U.S. has sanctioned some of the major suppliers of gemstones from Myanmar, legislation that would ban their import completely has not been passed and many major international retailers still engage in their trade.

Rihanna is clearly aware of what’s happening in Myanmar. She was widely praised in February 2021 for this tweet raising awareness about the then-recent coup.

As Justice for Myanmar notes in their thread, Rihanna’s fellow artists have been prominent among the victims of the junta’s violence, which has killed an estimated 2,400 civilians.

Justice for Myanmar ends their thread with a call for Rihanna to stand with the people of Myanmar by boycotting Myanmar gems and calling for a ban on their trade.

Screenshot: @baycojewels / Instagram

US Worried by Myanmar Junta, Russia Expanding Nuclear Cooperation

February 15, 2023
Ingyin Naing

In this handout photo released by Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service, Myanmar State Administration Council Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, right, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov pose during their meeting in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Aug. 3, 2022.

WASHINGTON —

The United States is concerned about the expansion of Russia’s nuclear cooperation with the military-led government in Myanmar — also known as Burma — the U.S. State Department said this week.

“We are deeply concerned with — but not surprised by — Russia’s willingness to expand its material support, including through nuclear energy cooperation, to the repressive regime in Burma (Myanmar),” the State Department said in an emailed statement to VOA on Tuesday. “Russia’s actions are prolonging a crisis that threatens our efforts to advance peace and prosperity with our partners and allies in the Indo-Pacific.”

Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporation, known as ROSATOM, and the Myanmar junta signed the “intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the field of the use of nuclear energy” on February 6.

“This agreement is for the cooperation, not only for the small nuclear power plant, but also the applications of nuclear technology in multiple sectors, and it will enhance the socioeconomic development of the country," said junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in a signing ceremony last Monday at the newly opened Nuclear Technology Information Center in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city.

The two countries’ cooperation on nuclear energy begins “a new chapter in the history of Russian-Myanmar relations,” ROSATOM Director General Alexey Likhachev said during the signing ceremony. “The creation of a new industry in the country will undoubtedly benefit the energy sector, industry and the economy of Myanmar.”

Cooperation after coup

After the February 2021 coup, military-ruled Myanmar rapidly increased nuclear cooperation with Russia. A spokesperson for the Myanmar junta, Major General Zaw Min Tun, confirmed to VOA last Friday that Myanmar would build a small-scale nuclear reactor with Russia’s assistance.

SEE ALSO:
Myanmar Marks Second Anniversary of Military-Led Overthrow of Civilian Government

Zaw Min Tun told VOA Burmese by phone that the junta’s nuclear experts “are looking for suitable places in the country to build a small-scale nuclear reactor together with Russian nuclear experts.”

“The feasibility studies will be conducted in several places across the country to build a nuclear reactor. We haven’t chosen a place yet,” he said. “We will do it in the best location with the most favorable and safest environment in order to minimize danger.”

Last September, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing visited Russia to attend the Eastern Economic Forum and agreed with Russia on a road map for nuclear cooperation, including the possibility of implementing a small modular reactor project in Myanmar.

The statement by ROSATOM declared that the road map would guide cooperation in the field of “peaceful use of atomic energy” for 2022-23. In addition, experts from both countries would conduct studies about the possible construction of a light-water moderated nuclear reactor in Myanmar.

After 1999, the previous junta in Myanmar began negotiations with Russia on a nuclear reactor project, confirming their plans in January 2002 to build a nuclear research reactor for “peaceful purposes.”

Past nuclear pursuits

Myanmar, however, has been suspected of pursuing a nuclear weapons program in the past.

VOA sought comment from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), asking if the Myanmar junta’s plan for the nuclear reactor would be in accordance with the IAEA’s Additional Protocol. The IAEA has not yet responded.

Myanmar signed a key nuclear nonproliferation agreement, known as the Additional Protocol, with the IAEA in 2013. According to the agreement, the IAEA can expand its access to information and sites related to the country’s nuclear activities.

However, international analysts have concerns that Myanmar lacks the necessary regulatory and management systems to operate a nuclear power facility safely.

Map showing Myanmar

“In this type of reactor (a light-water moderated nuclear reactor), after some time, leaking can become a problem if proper maintenance is strictly required," Myanmar scientist Khin Maung Maung, a professor of physics at the University of Southern Mississippi, said in a statement to VOA. "Here proper maintenance is the key idea. As far as I am aware, there is not a single factory in Myanmar that enjoys this privilege.”

“There is no doubt that they (the military leaders) have the ambition and desire to own nuclear arsenals," he said, "and acquiring nuclear reactors, no matter how small, is definitely a step in that direction.”

ROSATOM previously said it would supply 10 metric tons of enriched uranium fuel to Myanmar, which, according to scientist Khin Maung Maung, is enough to build a nuclear weapon. Though the country doesn’t have the technical ability to convert the uranium to weapons-grade material, it could potentially use it in a “dirty bomb” scenario.

“With this much fuel in hand, they do not even need to enrich or build a proper weapon," he said. "But one must be careful and think through all possibilities when dealing with [the] Burmese military.”

Russians visit Myanmar

Last December, a Russian delegation composed of around a dozen senior military officers — led by Colonel-General Kim Alexey Rostislavovich — visited Myanmar. According to the Myanmar state media, the two sides focused on cooperation regarding defense and counterterrorism between the two militaries, saying this would contribute to “regional and global peace.”

Russia, however, has threatened global peace by invading Ukraine, while Myanmar’s military has removed the democratic system in the Southeast Asian country by staging a coup and bloody crackdown on civilians.

According to the State Department, many credible reports show that Russia is providing the Myanmar military with weapons that “enable it to perpetuate violence, atrocities and human rights abuses against the people of Burma.”

“Russia’s backing for the regime is also undermining stability in the broader region,” the State Department said in a statement to VOA on Tuesday. “The United States will continue working with the international community to promote accountability for the coup and all those responsible for the horrific violence, including those who support and arm the military regime.”

VOA’s Burmese Service contributed to this report.

Increasing food security with desert crops is no novelty project

Farmers in Sharjah are preparing to harvest wheat grown with cutting-edge technology that will help the UAE supply local markets

Workers check the wheat at the pioneering farm project in Mleiha,

 Sharjah. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Almost every culture celebrates harvest time in some form. From the Ewe people of Ghana welcoming the year’s first appearance of yams to the Moon Festival in East Asia, people across the world like to give thanks for a moment of plenty and enjoy the feeling of security that a reliable supply of food brings.

That sense of security underpinned this week’s news of a special harvest in rural Sharjah, where The National visited farmers and engineers getting ready to welcome the first fruits of a pioneering and high-tech wheat-growing project.

Next month, harvesting machines will roll out across a 400-hectare farm complex in Mleiha. In just four months, this desert land at the base of rocky mountains has been transformed into a green oasis, ready to yield up to 1,700 tonnes of wheat.

The crop has been grown without pesticides, chemicals or genetically modified seeds and the produce is destined for local markets in Sharjah and across the country. The project’s state-of-the-art technology includes satellites that can take thermal images of the site as well as soil sensors that measure the amount of water in the ground to avoid waste.

For a country that currently imports 1.7 million tonnes of this essential foodstuff, growing wheat in the desert is no novelty project. Rather, it is an important step on the UAE’s ambitious journey to increasing food security for its people.

The need to strive for self-sufficiency was starkly illustrated last year when the conflict in Ukraine – often referred to as a “bread basket”, given the enormous amount of wheat it grows and exports – threatened global supply chains.

Countries such as Egypt, the world’s largest importer of wheat, were faced with the prospect of running out of supplies from Ukraine and Russia as tonnes of grain sat idle in silos and transport ships were unable to sail through the Black Sea to deliver supplies.

Although globalisation presents many opportunities, this interconnectedness can also result in vulnerabilities when one part of the chain breaks. That the Sharjah farm focuses on wheat makes sense. One official involved in the project pointed out how the crop is a “strategic commodity with high nutritional value that can be stored for a long time”.

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The dream of growing food in the desert is not a new one. From the Emirates’ modern beginnings, the UAE’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, welcomed experts and technology from across the world to establish mass agriculture.

Since then, food security has been high on the country’s agenda. Last year Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, issued a directive on biosecurity requirements for farms and livestock holdings in Abu Dhabi to contribute to sustainable agriculture.

Last March, President Sheikh Mohamed attended the launch of a food loss and waste initiative, called Ne'ma — Arabic for blessing — that encourages the public and private sectors to cut waste and improve responsible consumption.

The UAE also takes a long-term approach to protecting and maximising its food supply. The country’s National Food Security Strategy 2051, launched five years ago by then Minister of State for Food Security Mariam Al Mheiri, now Minister of Climate Change and Environment, has 38 short and long-term key initiatives as well as five strategic goals to boost local production, identify alternative supply chains and reduce waste.

What the Sharjah wheat project offers is a realistic, practical and innovative way to grow more organic, nutritious and plentiful food in the UAE – and that’s something everyone can celebrate.

PEOPLE AFRAID OF MURDER BY CROWS

Singapore’s NParks to euthanize crows following attacks in Bishan

A murder of crows in a field. Photo: Unsplash

By Coconuts Singapore

Feb 16, 2023 | 

The National Parks Board told reporters last night that they are trapping crows near Block 110 Bishan Street 12 following several reports of attacks from at least three birds since last week.

The trapped crows will be euthanized to manage their population.

A Tuesday report by Shin Min Daily News said that the Bishan crows had attacked 10 people within 20 minutes on Monday.

Photos and videos showed the crows swooping down and pecking on people’s heads while they were walking down a pedestrian path. Some victims were shocked while others acted like it wasn’t the first time it happened to them.

The Board added they will be removing nests and pruning trees to further discourage crows from nesting there. They are also working with the Bishan-Toa Payoh Town Council.

Adrian Loo, group director of wildlife management at NParks, said the crows are an “invasive species” and a “threat” to native biodiversity.

The crows’ bad behavior could be due to the protective nature of their babies in the nests when they sense danger.

Crows were frequently culled by shooting decades ago but ways to mitigate its population have now shifted to discouraging the public from feeding them and disposing of food scraps properly.

In a video by the Straits Times, one of the residents Tan Soo How who was attacked and had witnessed the crows attack others said that initially he wanted to alert the authorities earlier but was worried that they would “catch them and kill them.”

“That’s what I don’t want,” he added.

Prigozhin hints at the end of Wagner mission in Ukraine, accuses Putin's generals of failure at Bakhmut

Wednesday, February 15, 2023

The Russian private military company the Wagner group, which has been taking active part in Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, is going through a rough patch.

Rumors about the likely withdrawal of the Wagner PMC from Ukraine were confirmed by the Wagner’s head, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Prigozhin made it clear that his mercenaries could not capture the Ukrainian town of Bakhmut. He accused the Russian Defense Ministry of impeding the operations of his PMC in Ukraine.

"Advance is not going as fast as we would like. I think they [Wagner mercenaries] would have already taken Bakhmut before the New Year, if not for our monstrous military bureaucracy and not the roadblocks that are set every day. Today we have a certain number of structural changes. The admission of prisoners to our ranks has been stopped," Prigozhin said.

According to Prigozhin, number of fighters in his PMC is going down due to losses and contract terminations.

"Of course, at some point the number of personnel will decrease. Accordingly, we will not be able to perform the tasks which we would like," said Prigozhin.

He also complained that the regular troops have no success in other parts of the front.

"If today there were 3-5 PMCs like Wagner in different directions, I think we would already rinse our socks in the Dnipro river," Prigozhin assured.

According to Russian human rights activists, Wagner recruited about 50,000 prisoners for the war in Ukraine. 85-90% of them have been killed in battles for Bakhmut. The group managed to achieve very modest successes in this area while losing almost all its personnel.

Since February 1, the recruitment of inmates to the Wagner PMC has been stopped. The Russian Defense Ministry is going to take over the recruitment of the prisoners

Putin, Wagner Group Target Serbian Government as Protests Hit Capital

Vucic (AP)
By Marisa Herman | Wednesday, 15 February 2023

Russian President Vladimir Putin – who continues to lose allies as his invasion of Ukraine drags into a second year – is using an infamous mercenary outfit to foment discord in Serbia as President Aleksandar Vucic has become increasingly aligned with Western nations.

On Wednesday Moscow’s long reach rocked Belgrade as pro-Russian protesters and hardline Serb nationalists protested across the capital.

The protesters said they opposed the Vucic government’s efforts to reduced tensions over Kovoso, a disputed territory that remains for nationalists part of Serbia’s historic heartland,

The Serbian government sees Kosovo as a pretext used by Russia and its paramilitary Wagner Group to ramp up influence operations in an effort to undermine Vucic’s government.

The Wagner Group appears closely aligned with the People’s Patrol, a Serbian nationalist organization which has referred to Vucic and his party as traitors and threatened to overthrow the government.

Putin has reason to be angered by Vucic, who has moved his country closer to the EU and the United States.

Vucic voted to support several UN resolutions condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its annexation of eastern territories.

"We, from the very beginning, said that we were not able and we could not support Russia's invasion against Ukraine," Vucic told Bloomberg in January. "For us, Crimea is Ukraine, Donbas is Ukraine, and it'll remain so."

According to press reports, the Wagner Group and its proxies set up operations in Belgrade in December, including efforts to recruit mercenaries to join the Russian war effort.

The Serbian government moved to close down those efforts, but now say they see the group’s hand in the current protests.

“Russia's Wagner Group and its proxies in Serbia are trying to destabilize the Serbian government,” a senior Serbian security official told Newsmax.

“We need our friends and partners to understand the threats and challenges that Serbia faces from Russia. These are serious threats directed at the Serbian government, especially President Vucic and his personal safety.”

Vucic has stated that the Wagner Group has no business maintaining a Serbian presence let along interfering in its politics.

When the People’s Patrol was chiefly protesting migrants in 2020, Vucic said he was “disgusted by fascist politics,” a slap in the face to the ultra-nationalists.

Wednesday’s protests came as Putin called Serbia an “important and reliable partner of Russia” in a letter to Vucic that congratulated Serbia on its statehood day on Wednesday.

But the U.S. government believes the Kremlin is unhappy with Vucic and sees Serbia’s pro-Western tilt as a serious threat to its goals in the region.

“The cables show how U.S. officials are tracking the movements and activities of Wagner on the ground in the Central African Republic and Serbia, and the extent to which the group poses threats to local forces and officials,” Politico reported last month.

An estimated 200,000 Russians have fled to Serbia since the outbreak of its war with Ukraine, with many said to be young dissenters opposed to the invasion and evading Putin’s mobilizations.

Intelligence agencies say the Wagner Group is being used to surveil and threaten Putin’s critics living in Serbia.

Reuters reported that protesters held up signs reading “Kosovo-No Surrender” and cheered “Serbia-Russia” when ultranationalist Damjan Knezevic, who has ties to the Wagner Group, called for rioting if Belgrade caves to the Western-backed plan on Kosovo.

“You (government) are fearing riots. I swear to you, we are ready for more than that,” he said.

Referring to Vucic, he told the crowd that if “state leadership fails to prevent Kosovo from joining the UN, we are asking the Russian leadership to use its veto and to give us at least a month to remove this traitor.”

The threats from the pro-Russian groups come as Vucic has publicly stated that Serbia “must remain on its EU path.”

With EU membership on the line, he said, “we would be lost without it, economically and politically. If we were to be alone and isolated, that is not something I would accept as a president.”

Newsmax

Tunisia journalists accuse state of intimidation

Issued on: 16/02/2023 - 

Tunis (AFP) – Dozens of journalists and rights activists protested in the Tunisian capital on Thursday, accusing the state of "repression" and attempts to intimidate the media.

The protest, organised by the SNJT journalists' union, came three days after police arrested Noureddine Boutar, the director of popular private radio station Mosaique FM.

The station has often been critical of President Kais Saied, who in 2021 sacked the government, froze parliament and seized almost total power in moves rivals have called a coup.

The demonstrators gathered outside government headquarters in Tunis, some wearing red tape across their mouths.

Others shouted "No to repression of journalists" and "We demand an independent free press".

"The authorities want to bring both private and public media into line, and (Boutar's) arrest is an attempt to intimidate the whole sector," SNJT director Mahdi Jlassi said at the protest, which had been organised prior to Boutar's arrest.

Large numbers of police were deployed to prevent the demonstrators from gathering directly in front of the prime minister's office in the North African nation.

Boutar is one of 10 public figures arrested since Saturday -- mainly critics of Saied, including members of the Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party.

Since Saied's power grab, several high-profile critics of the Tunisian leader have faced trial in military courts.

But the latest wave of detentions sparked fears the president is escalating against his opponents in the crisis-hit birthplace of the 2011 Arab uprisings.

'Defend their freedom'

Journalists' union chief Jlassi said authorities were "irked by the content of Mosaique FM's programmes, but this repression will not affect the will of journalists to defend their freedom".

The powerful UGTT trade union federation said Saied's government was trying to "snuff out every independent or opposition voice" by targeting the media.

It called on unions to "mobilise and prepare to defend the rights of Tunisians".

But Saied hit back at what he called "lies", telling Prime Minister Najla Bouden that the administration was acting with "full respect for the law".

"Has a single newspaper been shut down? Has a single programme been banned? Has a single journalist been prosecuted for anything relating to journalism?" he asked in a video posted on the presidency's Facebook page on Thursday.

Saied also hit back at criticism by unnamed foreign powers.

"We're not occupied or a protectorate, we're a sovereign state, and we know very well what we're doing," he said.

The United States said Wednesday it was "deeply concerned" by the spate of arrests.

"We respect the aspirations of the Tunisian people for an independent and transparent judiciary that is able to protect fundamental freedoms for all," said State Department spokesman Ned Price.

© 2023 AFP

MILITANT ANTI MONARCHISTS OF MILTON KEYNES

King Charles faces 'not my king' protest on walkabout

Issued on: 16/02/2023 - 

London (AFP) – King Charles III on Thursday encountered a group of anti-monarchy activists while on walkabout in the city of Milton Keynes north of London.

A group of protesters held up distinctive yellow placards with the message "Not my king", joining a crowd waving Union Jack flags.

The demonstration was organised by "Republic", a group calling for an end to the monarchy and an elected head of state in Britain.

Local newspaper the Milton Keynes Citizen reported that Charles "ignored the small banner-waving group" of 20 or so protesters.

Republic's leader Graham Smith wrote on Twitter: "I asked Charles why he's wasting money on the coronation. He didn't want to answer."

"We're determined to get the message across that it's OK to protest against the royals," he added.

Republic has announced it will hold a protest at the coronation on May 6.

The death of Elizabeth II in September has prompted questions over the future of the royals under Charles and his queen consort Camilla, as the family has been rocked by criticism from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and sex crime allegations against Prince Andrew.

Since the queen's death, several anti-royal protesters have been arrested for holding solo pickets, after legislation on protests was made tougher.

Charles was attending a reception at a church to mark Milton Keynes becoming a city as part of celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee.

He also visited a food bank.