Cincunri Sakia

Minggu, 13 Februari 2022

Ukraine crisis: Boris Johnson plans further talks with world leaders as Downing Street warns of 'critical juncture' - Sky News

Boris Johnson will hold talks with world leaders this week in an attempt to bring Russia "back from the brink" of war, as the Ukraine crisis enters a "critical juncture".

Number 10 warned on Sunday evening that its intelligence "suggests Russia could be a planning an invasion of Ukraine at any moment", warning of "disastrous consequences".

Although the crisis on Ukraine's border had reached "a critical juncture," there remained a "window of opportunity for de-escalation and diplomacy", Downing Street said.

The prime minister is expected to continue diplomatic efforts in another trip to Europe this week and US President Joe Biden was on Sunday invited to visit Ukraine, following a phone call with country's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A statement from President Zelensky's office quoted him as saying President Biden's arrival would be "a powerful signal and contribute to de-escalation".

During the call the White House said both men agreed to keep pushing both deterrence and diplomacy to try to stave off a feared Russian military offensive.

It comes as Ukraine on Sunday called for talks with Russia and other members of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) within 48 hours.

Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said Moscow had failed to respond to questions raised on Friday under the Vienna Document, a series of agreements between the 57 members of the OCSE.

"Consequently, we take the next step," he said on Twitter.

Warning of 130,000 Russian troops massed

On Sunday Ukraine pledged 16.6 billion hryvnia (£435 million) to keep its airspace open to commercial flights after Dutch airline KLM said it would stop services to the country and Germany's Lufthansa contemplated following suit.

Two thirds of the 298 passengers killed when Malaysia Airlines MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014 were Dutch citizens.

President Zelenskyy on Sunday urged calm amid intensified warnings of a Russian invasion in the coming days, saying as he had seen no evidence of that, even as the US warned of 130,000 Russian troops massed outside Ukraine.

However, Ukraine's state air traffic service advised airlines to avoid routes over the open waters of the Black Sea from Monday to Saturday due to Russian naval exercises taking place there.

Canada, which has the world's third-largest Ukrainian population after Ukraine and Russia, also temporarily withdrew
its Ukraine-based military personnel to an undisclosed destination in Europe, due to "complex operational environment linked to Russia's unwarranted aggression against Ukraine."

'Back from the brink'

A Downing Street Spokeswoman asserted that the prime minister would "work tirelessly alongside our allies to get Russia to step back from the brink".

Number 10 did not confirm which world leaders the Mr Johnson hoped to speak with, but it is understood he is keen to engage with Nordic and Baltic countries.

Labour said at the weekend that ministers must learn lessons from the "chaos" of the Afghanistan evacuation to help people fleeing Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion.

Just as the Mr Johnson attempts to help de-escalate tensions on the Ukrainian border, he is also grappling with tensions running high at home, with critics saying he is distracted by the partygate police investigation.

The prime minister must answer a legal questionnaire sent to him by officers investigating allegations of lockdown-breaching parties, which could ultimately see him being fined if he is found to have broken the law.

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2022-02-13 22:39:56Z
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Canadian police make progress in clearing anti-vaccine protests by truckers - Financial Times

Canadian police have made progress clearing a week-long blockade by truckers and anti-lockdown demonstrators at a crucial border crossing with the US, as large trucks left the area peacefully and authorities arrested holdouts early on Sunday.

The Ambassador Bridge, the busiest border crossing in North America, was closed because of a small group of anti-vaccine mandate protesters who were joined by supporters in cars and pick-up trucks. The bridge connects Windsor, Ontario, with Detroit, Michigan.

Drew Dilkens, the mayor of Windsor, said: “[Police] have started the enforcement, they are going to continue until they finish it, the goal is to have people move out peacefully.” The Windsor police department said it made several arrests and towed vehicles on Sunday morning, according to its Twitter account and a news release.

“This is no longer just about vaccine mandates and mask mandates, this is more to do with an anti-government protest and it is leaderless,” Dilkens added.

The mayor said daily trade across the Ambassador Bridge was C$400mn (US$314mn), with crossings by 8,000-10,000 trucks.

On Saturday morning, lorry drivers had driven away without resistance after police moved in. Earlier, they had shouted “Shame” and “Freedom” as a police line advanced.

The protesters, part of the self-styled “Freedom Convoy” that has occupied Ottawa, Canada’s capital, for two weeks, had defied warnings to end the blockade, spending the night at the border.

What began as a narrow demonstration against a requirement that truck drivers crossing the Canada-US border be vaccinated against Covid-19 has swelled into a vast, foreign-funded anti-government protest. Justin Trudeau, the centre-left prime minister, has become the main target of the protesters’ anger.

His office said that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had established a co-ordinated command centre with provincial and municipal law enforcement to deal with the demonstrations, and warned that “consequences for breaking the law will be increasingly severe”.

As well as blocking Ambassador Bridge, protesters, whose demands range from easing Covid-19 curbs to the overthrow of Trudeau’s government, have laid siege to Ottawa and clogged traffic at another crucial border crossing in Coutts, Alberta. The Freedom Convoy does not have the support of trade unions representing truckers.

On Friday, a judge ordered an end to the blockade, while Doug Ford, premier of Ontario, declared a state of emergency, threatening those that blocked roads and bridges with C$100,000 fines and a year in jail. Police intervened on Saturday morning after the court-mandated deadline of 7pm on Friday had passed.

Yet the police said 4,000 demonstrators massed in Ottawa on Saturday, many of them dressed in camouflage, marching through residential neighbourhoods waving flags and chanting “Freedom”.

Police stood by as protesters removed barricades at Ottawa’s National War Memorial, which had been installed after people urinated on it and danced on the tomb of the unknown soldier during the protest’s first weekend.

“This isn’t just Ottawa, it’s the nation’s capital. But no one — not the city, the province, or the federal government — can seem to get their act together to end this illegal occupation,” Catherine McKenna, a former cabinet minister in Trudeau’s government, said in a social media post.

Ambassador Bridge supports more than a quarter of trade between Canada and the US, prompting concern from the White House about supply chain disruptions. Last week US president Joe Biden asked Canada to use federal powers to end the blockade, but Trudeau said he was not considering deploying the army.

Manufacturers have already suffered supply chain interruptions. Ford, the second-largest US carmaker, said on Friday that it had stopped work at its Ohio assembly plant, while Toyota and General Motors announced production cuts.

Thousands of anti-vaccine mandate protesters descended on Ottawa at the end of January, when about 400 trucks blocked streets in front of parliament for a fortnight. The protesters erected a stage, a screen, a bar tent, kitchens, bouncy castles and a hot tub. The hooting of vehicle horns has continued despite an injunction issued by a judge last week.

The protests have won the backing of high-profile figures on the US right wing, including former president Donald Trump, and inspired similar actions in France, New Zealand, the US and Australia.

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2022-02-13 17:39:33Z
1276320801

Sabtu, 12 Februari 2022

Russia and US evacuate diplomatic staff from Ukraine - Financial Times

Russia and the US said they would begin evacuating staff from their embassies and consulates in Ukraine on Saturday as western leaders engaged in a flurry of last-ditch diplomacy to convince Moscow to withdraw military forces from around the country’s borders.

The US state department has ordered “most US direct hire employees” to leave Kyiv on Saturday “due to the continued threat of Russian military action”, the embassy said.

A skeleton team will remain in Kyiv to maintain contact with the Ukrainian government, and the US will offer emergency assistance from the western city of Lviv, according to a state department official.

The US and UK are also pulling military advisers out of the country, although the British ambassador Melinda Simmons said she would stay. Dutch airline KLM announced it was cancelling its Ukraine flights and would not enter the country’s airspace.

US officials reiterated their warning to American citizens to leave Ukraine, after saying on Friday that Russia could launch a full-scale invasion as early as next week.

US president Joe Biden and French president Emmanuel Macron both spoke to Russian president Vladimir Putin on Saturday in an effort to convince him to draw back Russian forces.

Macron told the Russian president that “a sincere dialogue was not compatible with an escalation”, the Elysée said.

French officials said Macron was seeking to keep Putin talking to avert military action by the Russians. Macron will make calls to Biden, Olaf Scholz of Germany and Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine later on Saturday, a senior French official said.

Map showing the build up of Russian forces around Ukraine’s border

The aim of the dialogue was “trying step by step to lower the pressure and enter into a more constructive phase”, the official said, adding that Putin did not appear to have changed his position since his meeting with Macron in Moscow on Monday. The Russian president was both demanding and provocative while seeking to keep his options open, according to the official.

The Kremlin said Putin and Macron discussed “provocative speculations about planning for a supposed Russian invasion”, the west’s provision of weapons to Ukraine and “creating pretexts for possible aggressive actions in the Donbas by Ukrainian armed forces “.

Putin accused the west of ignoring Russia’s demand that Nato roll back its eastward expansion and failing to push Ukraine to fulfil its obligations under the long-stalled Minsk treaty governing the Donbas peace process.

Putin then discussed Russia’s security demands and “certain bilateral issues” with Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko, the Kremlin said.

Earlier on Saturday US secretary of state Antony Blinken told his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov “that a diplomatic path to resolving the crisis remained open, but it would require Moscow to de-escalate and engage in good-faith discussions”, according to the state department.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow had decided to “optimise” its staff at its Kyiv embassy and three consulates in Ukraine “out of caution over possible provocations from the Kyiv regime or third countries “.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky called for calm.

“Today, the best friend for enemies is panic in our country, and all this information, which only helps panic, does not help us,” he said, speaking from the southern region of Kherson, bordering Russian-occupied Crimea.

Life continues as normal in many parts of Kyiv © Roman Olearchyk

Outside the US embassy in Kyiv on Saturday morning diplomatic vehicles were being packed and driven away, while food was delivered to staff.

Germany on Saturday called on its citizens to leave Ukraine. The foreign ministry said it was temporarily closing Germany’s consulate in the eastern city of Dnipro, and relocating it to Lviv. Its embassy in Kyiv will remain open.

German chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to visit Kyiv on Monday before meeting Putin in Moscow on Tuesday.

Lloyd Austin, US defence secretary, spoke with Sergey Shoygu, Russia’s defence minister, and ordered the departure of 160 US troops who were serving as military advisers to Ukrainian forces, according to the Pentagon.

The Pentagon said the troops would stay in Europe to “provide flexibility in assuring allies and deterring aggression”.

British troops who have been training Ukrainian forces will leave this weekend, a government minister said. Spain urged its citizens to leave Ukraine.

In a speech Hungary’s leader Viktor Orban warned of the likelihood of a refugee crisis in Europe if Russia were to invade Ukraine and said his government was preparing for the consequences of a war. But he warned European leaders that threatening Moscow with sanctions was “a dead end”.

“Refraining from co-operation [with Russia], completely handing over huge economic opportunities [in Russia] to the Chinese is a strategic mistake,” he said. He also called on Europe to build up its military strength.

Though the White House believes Putin has not made a final decision, Russia has built up more than 130,000 troops along its border with Ukraine and in neighbouring Belarus, as well as weaponry that could be used for an assault on Kyiv.

Additional reporting by Guy Chazan in Berlin, Victor Mallet in Paris and Marton Dunai in Budapest

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2022-02-12 17:00:48Z
1276716352

Russia and US evacuate diplomatic staff from Ukraine - Financial Times

The US state department has ordered “most US direct hire employees” to leave Kyiv on Saturday “due to the continued threat of Russian military action”, the embassy said.

The US and UK are also pulling military advisers out of the country, although the British ambassador Melinda Simmons said she would stay.

US officials reiterated their warning to American citizens to leave Ukraine, after saying on Friday that Russia could launch a full-scale invasion as early as next week.

French president Emmanuel Macron spoke to Russian president Vladimir Putin on Saturday in an effort to convince him to draw back Russian forces. US president Joe Biden was due to speak to him later on Saturday.

Putin and Macron agreed to pursue dialogue about resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-backed separatists have held sway since 2014, and about future stability and security in Europe, according to the Elysée Palace.

Macron told the Russian president that “a sincere dialogue was not compatible with an escalation”, the Elysée said.

French officials said Macron was seeking to keep Putin talking to avert military action by the Russians. Macron would make calls to Biden, Olaf Scholz of Germany and Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine later on Saturday, a senior French official said.

The Kremlin said Putin and Macron discussed “provocative speculations about planning for a supposed Russian invasion”, the west’s provision of modern weapons to Ukraine and “creating pretexts for possible aggressive actions in the Donbas by Ukrainian armed forces”.

Putin then discussed Russia’s security demands and “certain bilateral issues” with Belarus’s strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko, the Kremlin said.

Russia’s defence ministry also summoned the US defence attaché over what it said was an incident involving a US submarine in Russian territory in the Pacific.

Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky called for calm.

Outside the US embassy in Kyiv diplomatic vehicles were being packed and driven away, while food was delivered to staff working there.

German chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to visit Kyiv on Monday before meeting Putin in Moscow on Tuesday.

Lloyd Austin, the US defence secretary, spoke with Sergey Shoygu, Russia’s defence minister, about “Russia’s force build-up in Crimea and around Ukraine”, according to the Pentagon. He also ordered the departure of 160 US troops who were serving as military advisers to Ukrainian forces.

“Abundance of caution, safety and security of our personnel [is] his paramount concern,” John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, tweeted.

The Pentagon said the troops would stay in Europe to “provide flexibility in assuring allies and deterring aggression”.

British troops who have been training Ukrainian forces will leave this weekend, armed forces minister James Heappey told the BBC.

Additional reporting by Guy Chazan in Berlin and Victor Mallet in Paris

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2022-02-12 16:24:41Z
1276716352

Ukraine-Russia tensions: Is invasion imminent? America says yes. Russia says no. China watches on - Sky News

American officials will not be drawn publicly on their intelligence assessments, but their language has hardened.

The degree of certainty with which they are now characterising Russia's intensions towards Ukraine suggests that something has changed over the past 24 to 48 hours.

There have been a curious range and number of meetings too about which little has been revealed.

The US president had a briefing with his national security team on Thursday evening. America's top general spoke on the phone to his Russian counterpart.

Britain's military chief, alongside the UK defence secretary, held face-to-face talks with their Russian counterparts.

Then there was the president's language in a primetime interview on Thursday night. "Things could go crazy quickly..." Joe Biden told NBC News as he urged American citizens to leave Ukraine now.

Was this just characteristically loose language by the president? Or did it reflect a change in the US assessment of Vladimir Putin's intensions?

Late on Friday, a senior defence official at the Pentagon in Washington said that additional US troops will be sent to eastern Europe.

"At the direction of the president, Secretary Austin today ordered to Poland the remaining 3,000 soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Infantry Brigade Combat Team based at Fort Bragg, N.C. They are expected to be in place by early next week," the official said.

For a few weeks now there's been a suggestion that President Putin would not want to upstage China by mounting an invasion during the Winter Olympics.

The logic being that Putin wouldn't want to steal Xi Jinping's big moment. "Don't bet on it" is now the American judgement of that assessment.

Vladimir Putin is testing Western unity and resolve which, despite protestations, seems somewhat shaky.

China's Xi Jinping only has one eye on his Winter Games. In an emerging world order, his dominant eye is on Ukraine.

Western resolve today will shape Xi's judgements tomorrow.

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2022-02-12 02:48:45Z
1249353442

Jumat, 11 Februari 2022

Russia-Ukraine crisis: Foreign Office advises British nationals to leave as US warns invasion could be 'any day now' - Sky News

Britons are being advised against all travel to Ukraine and those already in the country are being told to leave while they can.

The action came as Boris Johnson told world leaders he "feared for the security of Europe" over the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.

And the White House on Friday stated its belief that Russian military aggression against its neighbour could begin "any day now" - including during the current Winter Olympics, which are scheduled to end on 20 February.

Follow live updates after PM speaks to world leaders over Ukraine crisis

'British nationals in Ukraine should leave now'

On Friday evening, the Foreign Office issued updated travel guidance to advise UK citizens "against all travel to Ukraine".

"British nationals in Ukraine should leave now while commercial means are still available," the updated advice added.

"Since January 2022, the build-up of Russian forces on Ukraine's borders has increased the threat of military action.

"Due to this increased threat, the FCDO has taken the decision to further withdraw embassy staff from Kyiv.

"The embassy remains open but will be unable to provide in-person consular assistance. British nationals should leave while commercial options remain."

The action copies that taken by the US government, who were already advising Americans against travelling to Ukraine due to "the increased threats of Russian military action".

The State Department is also urging all those US citizens currently in Ukraine to leave the country now.

PM tells allies he 'fears for security of Europe'

In a virtual meeting on Friday evening, the prime minister spoke with the leaders of the US, Italy, Poland, Romania, France, Germany, the EU, and NATO.

"The prime minister told the group that he feared for the security of Europe in the current circumstances," a Downing Street spokesperson said.

"He impressed the need for NATO allies to make it absolutely clear that there will be a heavy package of economic sanctions ready to go, should Russia make the devastating and destructive decision to invade Ukraine.

"The prime minister added that President [Vladimir] Putin had to understand that there would be severe penalties that would be extremely damaging to Russia's economy, and that allies needed to continue with efforts to reinforce and support the Eastern frontiers of NATO.

"He urged the leaders to work together to deliver economic and defensive support to Ukraine."

But the spokesperson added that world leaders had agreed, if Mr Putin "de-escalated", there would be "another way forward" as they "pledged to redouble diplomatic efforts in the coming days".

White House warns invasion could begin 'any day now'

After the virtual meeting between Mr Johnson, US President Joe Biden and other world leaders, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Russia now had enough forces to conduct a major military operation against Ukraine.

An assault could begin "any day now" and "could occur before the Olympics have ended", Mr Sullivan told a televised briefing as he urged any American still in Ukraine to leave in the next 24-48 hours.

"The risk is high enough and the threat is now immediate enough that prudence demands that it is the time to leave now," he said.

"We are not saying that a decision has been taken by President Putin.

"What we are saying is that we have a sufficient level of concern based on what we are seeing on the ground, and what our intelligence analysts have picked up, that we are sending this clear message."

Russia is currently holding massive war games in Belarus, which borders Russia, Ukraine and Poland.

UK-Russia relations 'above zero'

Earlier in the day, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace had continued those diplomatic efforts as he held talks with his Russian counterpart in Moscow.

Mr Wallace described the discussions as "constructive and frank" and said that relations between Russia and Britain were "above zero" following the first meeting between a UK defence minister and Russia's Sergei Shoigu since 2013.

Stressing the need for talks to prevent "miscalculation and escalation", Mr Wallace expressed his hope that Friday's meeting had contributed to a "better atmosphere" between the two sides.

"When they say to me they are not going to invade Ukraine we will take that seriously but, as I also said, we will look at the actions that accompany it," the defence secretary said.

Mr Wallace also agreed with a US assessment that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could happen "at any time", amid the ongoing joint military drills between Russia and Belarus.

"The disposition of the Russian forces that we see - over 100,000 in both Belarus and Ukraine - obviously gives that size of force the ability to do a whole range of actions, including an invasion of a neighbouring country at any time," he said.

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"We obviously have made it very clear in NATO that an invasion would have tragic consequences and we are here, and I'm here today for example, to seek a way of whatever we can to deescalate that tension.

"I heard clearly from the Russian government that they had no intention of invading Ukraine. And I also heard some of their concerns."

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2022-02-11 20:48:45Z
1276716352

Kamis, 10 Februari 2022

Russia-Ukraine crisis: Ministers get new powers to sanction Russia after Liz Truss's stormy talks in Moscow with Sergei Lavrov - Sky News

The Foreign Office has signed off tougher sanctions on Russia just hours ahead of a self-imposed deadline - and after Foreign Secretary Liz Truss held stormy talks with her counterpart in Moscow.

New legislation was laid in parliament on Thursday that gives ministers the power to impose tough new sanctions on Russian oligarchs and businesses.

The Foreign Office said the legislation would allow the UK to sanction those linked directly to Russia's agitation over Ukraine, as well as Kremlin-linked organisations and businesses of "economic and strategic significance" to the Russian government.

This includes their owners, directors and trustees.

'A conversation between a dumb and a deaf person'

Earlier on Thursday, Ms Truss was involved in testy exchanges with her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov as they met in Moscow.

He characterised the meeting as a "conversation between a dumb and a deaf person".

"It seems like we listen but don't hear," he added.

"At least, our most detailed explanations fell on unprepared soil. They say Russia is waiting until the ground freezes like a stone so its tanks can easily cross into Ukrainian territory.

"I think the ground was like that today with our British colleagues - from which numerous facts that we produced bounced off."

But, pushing back against Mr Lavrov's statement, Ms Truss said: "I certainly was not mute in our discussions earlier.

"I put forward the UK's point of view on the current situation and the fact that, as well as seeking to deter Russia from an invasion into Ukraine, we are also very resolute in pursuing the diplomatic path."

She added there were "further talks to be had" between Russia and the West over the Ukraine crisis.

Truss meeting not a triumph of diplomacy

This was very far from a meeting of minds.

Sergei Lavrov said at the start that relations left a lot to be desired and that ultimatums and threats would lead nowhere. That seems to have been what he got.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss's suggestions of possible talks with NATO on transparency and confidence-building measures weren't likely to give a sense to Russia that the UK was taking what Russia sees as its legitimate security concerns seriously.

Mr Lavrov had already poured scorn on NATO’s response to Russia’s security guarantee proposals, saying there was nothing in there that Russia could engage with. Asking Russia to stick to a diplomatic path without giving it anything to keep it there is a challenge. In any case, it may also be only the US that Russia listens to.

There’s also the awkward story doing the rounds that when Mr Lavrov asked Ms Truss whether she recognised Russian sovereignty over Rostov and Voronezh oblasts, both in Russia, she said she would "never" do so. The British ambassador then had to tell her they were not in Ukraine.

The UK embassy issued a statement in Russian on Twitter quoting the foreign secretary as having said she’d thought Mr Lavrov was talking about Ukraine and that she’d indicated to him they were part of sovereign Russia. It seems a stretch.

Britain had an important message to bring and Ms Truss clearly brought it. She was resolute in the face of diplomatic bullying and stood up for Ukrainian sovereignty, as she needed to. But on Russia's "Diplomats' Day", this was not a triumph of diplomacy.

Foreign Office strives to meet self-imposed deadline

The foreign secretary had previously said that new sanctions legislation aimed at Russia would be "in place" by 10 February.

Critics questioned whether Thursday's announcement meant the Foreign Office had indeed met its own deadline.

Labour MP Chris Bryant said the legislation would "require a vote" in the House of Commons before becoming law.

He highlighted how MPs were now on recess for the next 10 days and without such a vote having taken place.

However, a Whitehall source stressed that existing post-Brexit sanctions legislation allowed ministers to bring in further powers with immediate effect.

Parliament will be asked whether to keep or scrap the new powers within the next 28 days, the source added.

Commenting on the new powers, Ms Truss said: "The UK is resolute in its support for Ukraine's sovereignty and right to self-determination.

"We urge Russia to de-escalate and choose the path of diplomacy. If Russia persists with its aggression towards Ukraine the UK and its partners will not hesitate to act."

The Foreign Office said the new Russia-focussed legislation would provide the framework for the strongest sanctions regime the UK has had against Russia.

Targets could include the country's chemical, defence, mining, oil, gas, communications and financial services industries.

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2022-02-10 20:58:46Z
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Minggu, 13 Februari 2022

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Truss meeting not a triumph of diplomacy