Thom Hartmann: Is Trump Really Going to Jail? (w/ David Cay Johnston)

Feb 22, 2022 • Will Donald Trump go to jail? He is over 70 and most people over that age without ‘previous’ don’t go to jail.

Does this mean if Trump is indicted, most likely in Georgia, there is the potential that he loses everything he has, except his presidential pension. The rest goes. Could the whole Trump organization be dissolved?

How likely is this scenario?

David Cay Johnston joined Thom to discuss the possibilities.

Bio: David Cay Johnston - Investigative Journalist & Co-founder of DCReport.org / Pulitzer Prize Recipient (2001) / Distinguished Visiting Lecturer-College of Law and Whitman School of Management, Syracuse University / Author of 8 books including his latest, The Big Cheat: How Donald Trump Fleeced America and Enriched Himself and His Family

Russian Troops Meet with Stiff Resistance, Ukrainian Forces Re-take Kharkiv | DW News

Feb 27, 2022 • Scholz pledges €100 billion for German military, end to Russian energy expors.

A turning point in the history of our continent. That's how Chancellor Olaf Scholz described Russia's war against Ukraine. Speaking to a special session of parliament, the German leader announced a raft of policy changes that would have been unthinkable just days ago. Germany will drastically strengthen its military and move quickly to eliminate its reliance on Russian energy exports. He put the blame squarely on Russian President Vladimir Putin - who he said had brought decades of peaceful coexistence to an end. Here's some of what he said

. Holding out in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Russia's military assault verges on genocide - and he's called for Russia to be stripped of its seat on the UN Security Council.

Moscow's forces targeted civilian infrastructure overnight, including gas pipelines - as they stepped up efforts to push further into Ukraine. Moscow's forces have met stiff resistance as they attempt to push further into Ukraine. The mayor of Kyiv says the capital is holding its defense lines and there are no Russian troops in the city. And after reports of heavy fighting in eastern Kharkiv, the regional governor says Ukrainian forces have retaken full control of the city. Russia's latest attacks have targeted civilian infrastructure and the military.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sent tens of thousands of people fleeing their homes since Thursday. Huge crowds have been waiting at train stations to travel to the border and cross into neighboring countries. Scenes from Lviv in western Ukraine show the fear and frustration: There's not enough space on the trains to carry everyone to safety. Men are forced to say goodbye to their families, as they are not allowed to leave because they've been called up to fight. Many of the refugees are headed to Poland.

Ukraine is doing its best to repel the Russian attack by training civilians to fight. Support from the US and other NATO members has also bolstered national defenses. But few believe Ukraine is a match for its much larger neighbor.

Taking active and reserve troops together, Kyiv can draw on more than 1 million men and women. Russia has more than three million. Ukraine has less than 2,500 tanks, compared to Russia's 13,000.

And in the air, Ukraine has just 67 attack aircraft in contrast to Russia's 1,500. In Berlin a demonstration calling for restoring peace in Ukraine is underway, with estimates of 20,000 or more people taking part in the protest.

The demonstration is organized by a variety of groups including workers' unions, religious groups and environmental organizations. Protesters are calling on Russia to immediately withdraw from Ukraine and to respect democracy and human rights. In the past days there have been numerous demonstrations across the world in support of Ukraine and demanding an immediate end to all violence.

Vladimir Putin Puts Russia’s Nuclear Deterrence Forces on High Alert

THE GUARDIAN: Russian president says order taken in response to ‘aggressive statements’ by Nato over Ukraine

Vladimir Putin has warned foreign countries not to interfere in the invasion of Ukraine, saying it could lead to ‘consequences they have never seen’. Photograph: Alexei Nikolsky/AP
Vladimir Putin has ordered his military to put Russia’s nuclear deterrence forces on high alert in response to “aggressive statements” by Nato countries.

The order came at a meeting between the president, the defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, and the chief of the general staff of the armed forces of Russia, Valery Gerasimov.

“Senior officials of the leading Nato countries also allow aggressive statements against our country, therefore I order the minister of Defense and the chief of the general staff [of the Russian armed forces] to transfer the deterrence forces of the Russian army to a special mode of combat duty,” Putin said in televised comments.

“Western countries aren’t only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic sphere, but top officials from leading Nato members made aggressive statements regarding our country. » | Andrew Roth in Moscow | Sunday, February 27, 2022

Putin Shunned by World as His Hopes of Quick Victory Evaporate

THE OBSERVER: Russian troops facing fierce resistance as Germany abandons its postwar military stance to supply arms to Ukraine

A woman holds a Vladimir Putin placard as she takes part in a protest for peace in Lisbon, Portugal, on Saturday. Photograph: Rodrigo Antunes/EPA
Vladimir Putin was facing growing international isolation and the prospect of pariah status on Saturday night as long-term allies dramatically turned against him following the invasion of Ukraine, and western nations planned further decisive military and financial action against Moscow.

As his hopes of a quick victory evaporated in the face of fierce resistance by Ukrainian soldiers and armies of citizen volunteers, Russia’s president was deserted by his key ally, China, and had his ultimatum demanding Kyiv’s surrender defiantly brushed aside by Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

In perhaps the most striking development Germany announced on Saturday night that it would supply Ukrainian troops with 1,000 anti-tank weapons as well as 500 Stinger missiles from its own military reserves.

“The Russian assault on Ukraine marks a turning point,” Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, said, signalling a major shift in his country’s postwar military stance. “It threatens our entire postwar order. In this situation it is our duty to support Ukraine to the best of our ability in its defence against the invasive army of Vladimir Putin. Germany stands closely on the side of Ukraine.”

Significantly, the German government was also said to be bowing to intense pressure from Britain, the US and Canada to ban Russia from the crucial Swift banking payments system after repeated appeals from Kyiv for the west to do so. Sources in Berlin said German ministers’ views were shifting on the issue and they were actively discussing measures that “would hit the right people”, having previously resisted, partly because of fears that a ban would affect the flow of funds to aid agencies in Russia. » | Emma Graham-Harrison in Kyiv, Peter Beaumont in Lviv, Andrew Roth in Moscow, Philip Oltermann in Berlin | Saturday, February 26, 2022

Guerre en Ukraine : le ciel européen se ferme progressivement aux avions russes

LE FIGARO : En représailles à l'invasion de l'Ukraine, de plus en plus de pays interdisent aux compagnies russes de les survoler. Tour d'horizon de la situation.

«La France ferme son espace aérien aux avions et compagnies aériennes russes à compter de ce soir» a tweeté le ministre des Transports, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari. Paris rejoint notamment l'Allemagne, la Belgique, le Luxembourg puis l'Italie, qui ont d'ores et déjà annoncé fermer leur ciel aux compagnies russes, comme de nombreux autres pays en représailles à l'invasion de l'Ukraine.

«Le ministère allemand des Transports a décrété une interdiction de vol pour les avions et les exploitants d'avions russes dans l'espace aérien allemand» à partir de dimanche 15 heures, a annoncé le ministère des Transports. Berlin a précisé que cette interdiction était valable pour trois mois mais ne concernait pas d'éventuels vols humanitaires. «La Belgique a décidé de fermer son espace aérien à toutes les compagnies russes. En Europe, le ciel est ouvert (...) à ceux qui connectent les peuples, pas à ceux qui commettent des agressions brutales», a indiqué de son côté sur Twitter le Premier ministre belge Alexander De Croo. » | Par Thomas Engrand et AFP agence | Dimanche 27 février 2022

EN DIRECT :

Les Européens ont commencé à livrer des quantités «significatives» d'armements à l'Ukraine »

Guerre en Ukraine : assumer le coût des sanctions contre la Russie

LE MONDE – ÉDITORIAL : Si l’on considère que l’enjeu de la sécurité en Europe est existentiel pour nos démocraties, il y a, au minimum, un prix économique à payer. Penser peser sur la Russie sans sacrifices est une illusion.

Editorial du « Monde ». Brandies depuis plusieurs semaines alors que la menace russe se faisait de plus en plus précise, les fameuses sanctions « massives et sans précédent » promises par les démocraties occidentales sont tombées, vendredi 25 février, en réaction à l’invasion de l’Ukraine par la Russie. Elles sont de deux ordres : d’une part des mesures personnelles à l’égard du président Vladimir Poutine, de son ministre des affaires étrangères, Sergueï Lavrov, et de nombreux responsables dont les avoirs à l’étranger sont gelés, et d’autre part une série de sanctions destinées à frapper l’économie russe.

Ce train de mesures restrictives porte sur les secteurs de la finance, des transports, de la technologie, de l’énergie et sur la politique des visas. Dans le secteur financier, elles visent à bloquer l’accès de grandes banques russes aux marchés des capitaux occidentaux. Aucun consensus n’a cependant été atteint à ce stade pour décider de la sanction financière la plus dure et sans conteste la plus efficace contre Moscou : l’éviction de la Russie du système de messagerie Swift, utilisé pour les transactions financières par plus de 11 000 banques et institutions dans 200 pays. Une telle décision pénaliserait considérablement la Russie car, en frappant le système de paiement de ses exportations énergétiques, elle priverait le budget russe de sa principale ressource et compliquerait donc le financement de l’effort de guerre. » | Éditorial | samedi 26 février 2022

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Ukraine | DW News

The German Bundestag meets for an extraordinary plenary session. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz issues a government statement on the situation in Ukraine.

Auf Deutsch hier.

Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz ist sehr beeindruckend. Eine tolle Rede. Herr Scholz hat die richtige Entscheidung gefasst. – © Mark

Russian Forces Press Toward Cities, as Ukraine Stiffens Resistance

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ukrainian troops and civilian volunteers battled to keep control of Kharkiv, the second-largest city. The Russian priority remained the capture of Kyiv, the capital, which observed a daylong curfew as explosions were heard from the outskirts.

Smoke rose after shelling on the outskirts of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on Sunday, the fourth day of Russia’s invasion. | Irakli Gedenidze/Reuters
As Russian forces pressed into Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Ukraine’s defense forces and civilian volunteers battled to hold off Russia’s invasion for a fourth day on Sunday, as international pressure mounted on Moscow and support for Kyiv’s besieged government grew.

The pace of Russia’s advance appeared to slow, with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine saying that his country’s fighters had “withstood and successfully repelled enemy attacks.” But the offensive seemed likely to intensify, as U.S. officials said that most of the more than 150,000 Russian troops who had massed around Ukraine were now engaged in the fighting. Here are the latest developments: Ukrainian forces take aim at Russian supply lines as battles rage in multiple cities. » | The New York Times | Sunday, February 27, 2022

EU to Cut Off Some Russian Banks from SWIFT

Germany Decides to Send Weapons from Its Military to Ukraine | DW News

Feb 26, 2022 • The German military will send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 "Stinger" class surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian invasion, the government announced. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said the weapons would be delivered as soon as possible to support the Ukrainian military. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was Germany's "duty to support Ukraine to the best of its ability in defending itself against the invading army of Vladimir Putin."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised Germany's decision to send weapons, in a major reversal of policy for Berlin. "Keep it up, Chancellor Olaf Scholz! Anti-war coalition in action!" Zelenskyy tweeted.

Earlier Saturday Berlin authorized NATO partners the Netherlands and Estonia arms deliveries to Ukraine. For the Netherlands, 400 German-made anti-tank weapons are involved, while Estonia was granted approval to sent artillery from old GDR (East German) stocks.

The move marks a major change of course for Germany, which had until now refused the delivery of lethal weapons to Ukraine due to its policy of not sending weapons to a conflict zone.

The Netherlands also said it would sent anti-tank weapons to Ukraine, according to the Dutch defense ministry.

Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 : Rosalía Gómez Lasheras | Live HD Classical Music

Nov 25, 2013 • Pianist Rosalía Gómez Lasheras performs in de Young Pianst Festival finale in Amsterdam, november 24 2013.

ROSALÍA GÓMEZ LASHERAS.

French Cooking Academy with Stephane: Pork Chops Normandy-style, Served with an Apple-flavored Cream Sauce

Côtes de porc à la normande
Sep 30, 2021 • Get a taste of regional France with these pork chops cooked in a Normandy-style, which is easy-to-make and perfect if you are short on time.

Get the recipe here.

À Kiev, l'armée ukrainienne résiste aux assauts russes

Des membres des services ukrainiens recherchent des obus non explosés après un combat contre des soldats russes à Kiev, dans la matinée du 26 février 2022. SERGEI SUPINSKY / AFP

LE FIGARO : REPORTAGE - Au troisième jour de l'offensive lancée par Vladimir Poutine, au moins 198 civils ukrainiens, dont trois enfants, ont été tués et 1115 personnes blessées en Ukraine.

Envoyé spécial à Kiev
Face à une caserne militaire, située à une dizaine de kilomètres de la place Maïdan, l'avenue de la Victoire est jonchée de débris des combats de la nuit. Près d'un pont où gisent trois carcasses calcinées encore fumantes de camions de transport de troupes, des soldats ukrainiens ramassent des restes humains mêlés aux éclats d'obus et de grenades et aux douilles de kalachnikov, qu'ils placent dans des sacs en plastique. Au loin, des tirs d'obus sourds ponctuent ce début de matinée sous un soleil froid. Aux abords d'un abribus aux vitres fracassés par les éclats et les rafales, trois soldats ukrainiens gardent le corps d'un camarade tué au combat, enveloppé dans un morceau de moquette. Des soldats creusent des abris et des tranchées en prévision des nouveaux combats à venir. » | Par Patrick Saint-Paul | samedi 26 février 2022

Réservé aux abonnés

Pour la manière criminelle dont Poutine se comporte envers l'Ukraine et les Ukrainiens, il appartient à La Haye ! L'homme mérite d'être jugé sévèrement et rapidement. Il ne devrait pas être autorisé à vivre dans le luxe et le confort extrême dans son palais, où qu'il se trouve. C'est un homme mauvais. Qu'il périsse ! – © Mark

Guerre en Ukraine, en direct : sous couvre-feu, Kiev se prépare à la résistance ; Moscou veut « élargir l’offensive dans toutes les directions »

Photo du site Le Monde.
LE MONDE – LIVE EN COURS : Dans la nuit de vendredi à samedi, la capitale ukrainienne a été visée par des raids aériens des forces russes. Le président ukrainien, Volodymyr Zelensky, a appelé les habitants à continuer le combat, alors que l’Allemagne a annoncé la livraison à l’Ukraine d’un millier de lance-roquettes et de 500 missiles sol-air.

« Au moins 3 052 personnes ont été arrêtées », après avoir participé en Russie à des manifestations contre l’invasion de l’Ukraine, depuis jeudi, dont 467 samedi, a fait savoir l’ONG spécialisée OVD-Info. Ces manifestations se sont multipliées à travers la Russie en dépit de leur interdiction par les autorités. » | Le Monde | samedi 26 février 2022

The Insanity of Vladimir Putin's Invasion of Ukraine and Why It Could Be the End of Him

Feb 26, 2022 • Vladimir Putin's reckless, wicked and totally unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is a massive miscalculation which could be fatal for him.

After 22 years as supreme ruler of Russia he appears to be losing his mind. The invasion is being condemned throughout the world and he appears to have little or no support at home.

Russian soldiers who have waited for weeks on the Ukrainian border are now fighting innocent civilians of a sovereign nation in a battle which they must know is unjust and unfair.

Like Brexit, the invasion of Ukraine is an exercise with no perceivable upside and one which will result in endless problems which will take years to resolve.

Putin's dictatorship in which he is absolutely supreme shows the danger for any political system when any individual becomes too powerful.

Putin's example should serve as a warning to the UK where Boris Johnson' is more powerful than any prime minister for a very long time and where his government is taking away many rights, imposing restrictions, enriching its friends with generous contracts and doing everything possible to gain electoral advantage.

Ukraine under Attack: Is Europe Powerless against Putin? | To the Point

Feb 24, 2022 • The world looks on as Russian President Vladimir Putin launches a full-scale attack on Ukraine. And now it’s becoming clear that he intends to use his country’s military might in a bid to re-write European history.

The West, meanwhile, has been imposing what have been described as the toughest sanctions ever. But Putin is clearly not impressed.

So, is it time for Europe’s democracies to face up to some new and uncomfortable truths and, perhaps, fight for their future?

On ‘To the Point’, we ask: Ukraine under attack: Is Europe powerless against Putin?

Our guests: Ulrike von Hirschhausen (historian); Vendeline von Bredow (Economist); Matthew Karnitschnig (Politico)

‘We Will Give You Arms’: Zelensky Asks People to Defend Ukraine during Speech

Feb 26, 2022 • Kyiv is still under Ukraine’s control following a night of Russian assaults on the capital, president Volodymyr Zelensky has said, declaring he will arm anyone who wants to help resist Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

“We have withstood and are successfully repelling enemy attacks. The fighting goes on,” the Ukrainian president said in an emotional speech on Saturday after small Russian raiding groups’ attempts to infiltrate the capital led to street skirmishes, with heavy gunfire and explosions heard through the night.

Gravitas Plus | Explained: The Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Premiered Feb 20, 2022 • The story of the Ukraine-Russia crisis does not begin in 2021, or 2014, It begins in the 9th century. There was a time when the two countries were one. There was a time when Ukraine gave its nuclear arsenal to Russia. Palki Sharma Upadhyay will tell you why Putin wants Ukraine.

Ukraine Crisis: 'Putin Will Meet Hell' Says Former President Petro Poroshenko

Feb 26, 2022 • Ukraine's former president Petro Poroshenko has told Sky News that this war 'is not about Ukraine' but about the "free world". He added: "Putin will meet hell. Russian people and soldiers will pay a big price."


WIKIPEDIA: Petro Poroshenko.

Wolodymyr Selenskyj : Sein schwerster Kampf

ZEIT ONLINE: Die Ukrainer wehren sich gegen die russische Invasion und der Präsident ist mittendrin. Wolodymyr Selenskyj hat im Krieg erstaunlich an Statur gewonnen.

Wolodymyr Selenskyj am 12. Februar 2022 in der Region Cherson | © Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/AP/dpa
Wolodymyr Selenskyj, der ukrainische Präsident und ehemaliger Schauspieler, fürchtet um sein Leben – und bleibt in Kiew. US-Präsident Joe Biden hatte ihm schon vor einer Woche geraten, er solle die ukrainische Hauptstadt aus Sicherheitsgründen verlassen. Aber Selenskyj weigerte sich, blieb, machte weiter. Auch in der Nacht zum Samstag boten ihm die US-Amerikaner an, ihn in Sicherheit zu bringen. Aber Selenskyj schlug aus und meldete sich mit einer zweiten Videobotschaft. Die erste hatte er zuvor gepostet, nachdem russische Medien Gerüchte gestreut hatten, er habe Kiew verlassen. Auf dem Video ist es dunkel, hinter Selenskyj lassen die beleuchteten Säulen der Präsidialadministration keine Zweifel daran, wo er sich befindet. Neben ihm der Premierminister, seine Berater, der Fraktionschef. "Wir sind alle hier", sagt Selenskyj in die Kamera. "Unsere Soldaten sind hier. Wir verteidigen unsere Unabhängigkeit. Das werden wir auch weiter tun. Ruhm der Ukraine. Ruhm den Helden."

Im Angesicht des Krieges hat Selenskyj erstaunlich an Statur gewonnen. Während er zu Beginn dieser Eskalation noch ungeschickt kommunizierte, ist er mit der großen und schweren Aufgabe des Krieges gewachsen. Vor einer Woche wurde er bei der Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz von den internationalen Gästen noch beklatscht wie eine exotische Mitternachtseinlage. Er hielt er dort eine pathetische, emotionale, fast wütende Rede gegen die westliche Gleichgültigkeit angesichts des gefährlichen Aggressors Russland. Aber die Ereignisse sollten ihm recht geben: Wenige Tage später marschierte die russische Armee in der Ukraine ein.

Das hat Eindruck gemacht, auch bei seinen zahlreichen Kritikern. "Er ist mit dem Volk in dieser schweren Zeit", sagte der ukrainische Politologe Wolodymyr Fesenko ZEIT ONLINE. Der Präsident habe sich als "sehr würdig" erwiesen. Und selbst ukrainische Bürgerinnen und Bürger, die ihn 2019 nicht zum Präsidenten gewählt haben, sagen inzwischen: Das ist unser Präsident, wir sind stolz auf ihn. » | Von Simone Brunner | Samstag, 26. Februar 2022

'I’m Ready’: Ukraine’s Civilians Take Up Arms

Ukraine Crisis: Chaos Descends on Ukrainian Capital

Feb 26, 2022 • On Sky News Breakfast live from Kyiv with Mark Austin on Saturday February 26:

- Ukraine says fighting has been ongoing on the streets of Kyiv overnight. It is understood Russian troops are approaching Kyiv from two sides in an attempt to surround the capital.

- No casualties were reported by Ukraine's Foreign Minister following a missile strike on a residential apartment building in Kyiv.

- Fighting is continuing across much of Ukraine, but Russian troops are largely concentrated in three main areas: to the south, near Crimea, to the north west near the border with Belarus, and close to Kharkiv.

Angela Stent: Putin Wants “a Disruptive World Order Where There Are No Rules” | Amanpour & Company

Feb 26, 2022 • In 2019, renowned foreign policy expert Angela Stent wrote "Putin’s World" -- a book that examined the dictator's creation of a paranoid and polarized world. Now, in her latest article in Foreign Affairs, Stent outlines “the Putin doctrine,” whereby the West is manipulated into viewing Russia as if it were the Soviet Union: a power to be respected and feared. Stent sits down with Walter Isaacson to discuss the meaning of all this -- and the crisis in Ukraine.

Russian Forces Close In on Ukraine Major Cities | DW News

Feb 25, 2022 • Ukrainian forces battled Russian troops on multiple fronts, including the outskirts of Kyiv.

Ukraine's border guard has said that males aged 18-60 are not allowed to leave the country in a statement posted on its Facebook account. The border guard said that this restriction will last for the duration of the period of martial law in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared martial law earlier on Thursday shortly after it was reported that Russia had attacked Ukraine.

Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar has warned that Russian forces are poised to enter areas just outside the capital, Kyiv, on Friday. A government adviser, Anton Herashchenko, said the Russian troops planned to break through into the capital using tanks but that Ukrainian forces were ready to counter the attack with anti-tank missiles supplied by foreign allies. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had earlier said the government had information that "subversive groups" were moving on the city. This comes after a night of reported air raids in the city that were said by a DW correspondent to have set some residential buildings on fire. Many Kyiv residents have taken shelter in underground metro stations.

The Ukrainian general staff of the armed forces said Ukrainian troops were firmly resisting what he called "Russian occupiers" in the Kyiv area. Ukrainian airborne assault troops were reported in a statement to have stopped "overwhelming enemy forces" at the Teteriv River near the settlements of Dymer and Ivankiv, northwest of the capital. The statement said a bridge over the river was destroyed. "The hardest day will be today. The enemy's plan is to break through with tank columns from the side of Ivankiv and Chernihiv to Kyiv,'' Interior Ministry adviser Anton Gerashchenko said on Telegram.

Ukraine: Russia Influence Is Now a Tory Conflict of Interest

Feb 26, 2022 • When Boris Johnson says he’s appalled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, I can’t help but think it’s because he sees it as a massive threat to future Russian funding of his party. Will Rishi Sunak, Alok Sharma, Robert Buckland and the dozen or so other Tory MPs and ministers who have taken donations linked to Russia now return them? Will Johnson’s friend, Evgeny Lebedev, the son of a KGB agent, be allowed to continue as a legislator in the House of Lords? And did Jacob Rees Smug’s Somerset Capital Management have inside information when deciding to sell all their shares in one of the Russian banks before it was sanctioned? I think we can guess the answers.


As a one time dyed-in-the-wool Tory voter, it hurts me to have to say this, but I will say it nevertheless: I wouldn't trust BoJo further than I could throw him! Nor the band of shysters he surrounds himself with. These days, the good ol' Tories–the decent ones–are nowhere to be seen on the benches of the House of Commons. – © Mark

„Ich bin hier, wir legen die Waffen nicht nieder“

Präsident Wolodymyr Selenskyj spricht über sein Smartphone im Zentrum von Kiew zur Nation. | Bild: DPA
SELENSKYJS BOTSCHAFTEN
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Der ukrainische Präsident wendet sich mit Videos immer wieder an sein Volk. Selenkyj wählt einfache Worte und wirkt entschlossen. Damit will er den Kontrast zu Putin erhöhen – dem er gleichzeitig Verhandlungen anbietet.

Am frühen Samstagmorgen hat Wolodymyr Selenskyj ein 39 Sekunden langes Selfie-Video veröffentlicht. Im morgendlichen Licht steht der ukrainische Präsident im olivfarbenen Pullover auf dem Platz vor seinem Amtssitz im Zentrum von Kiew. Diesen Ort erkennt jeder Ukrainer, der schon einmal Nachrichten geschaut hat – es ist der Hintergrund, vor dem in anderen Zeiten zu Besuchen in Kiew ankommende Staatsgäste gefilmt wurden.

„Allen guten Morgen, Ukrainer!“, beginnt Selenskyj. Es werde gerade viel Desinformation verbreitet: Dass er die Armee aufrufe, die Kämpfe einzustellen und selbst die Stadt verlasse. „Das ist nicht so. Ich bin hier. Wir legen die Waffen nicht nieder. Wir werden unseren Staat schützen. Unsere Waffe ist unsere Wahrheit, unsere Wahrheit sind unser Land, unsere Kinder. Und all das werden wir verteidigen. Das ist alles, was ich Euch sagen wollte. Ruhm der Ukraine!“ » | Von Reinhard Veser, Redakteur in der Politik. | Samstag, 26. Februar 2022

Ukraine: Who Is Not on the UK Sanctions List?

Mr Deripaska (left) pictured with President Putin in 2014 | GETTY IMAGES
BBC: The UK government has announced more individuals and companies that it is sanctioning following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

But there are still several Russian individuals who have been sanctioned by the US or the EU but not by the UK.

Their names appeared on a list of 35 people who Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny suggested should be sanctioned, which was read out in parliament by Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran. Oleg Deripaska » | Reality Check team, BBC News | Friday, February 25, 2022

Ukraine invasion: West imposes sanctions on Russia's Putin and Lavrov: Western nations have ordered personal sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov over the invasion of Ukraine. »

Ukrainian Fighters Battle to Hold Kyiv

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The Ukrainian capital is transformed into a battle zone, and President Volodymyr Zelensky warns against false reports of his demise. NATO leaders said more troops would be deployed.

The scene Saturday morning after fighting in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. | Sergei Supinsky/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
KYIV, Ukraine — The Ukrainian defense forces, outmanned and outgunned, waged a ferocious resistance to the Russian invasion on Saturday, battling to keep control of the capital, Kyiv, and other cities around the country.

There was intense street fighting, and bursts of gunfire and explosions could be heard across the city, including its heart, Maidan square, where in 2014 Ukrainian protests led to the toppling of a pro-Moscow government. Here are the latest developments: » | The New York Times | Saturday, February 26, 2022

Ukraine conflict: UK intelligence fears ‘bloody and brutal’ war: Cabinet ministers received what one source described as an "ominous assessment" from defence and intelligence chiefs on Thursday night about what may lie ahead for the people of Ukraine. »

What Is Putin’s Endgame? Garry Kasparov on Russia’s Attack on Ukraine | Amanpour & Company

Feb 24, 2022 • A vocal critic of the Russian leadership is Garry Kasparov, the chess grandmaster who repeatedly ranked world number one for 20 years before turning his attention to politics. He tells leaders to “help Ukraine fight against the monster you helped create.” Kasparov speaks with Walter Isaacson. Originally aired on February 24, 2022

Beyond Ukraine, the Target Is What Putin Calls America’s ‘Empire of Lies’

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The Russian leader is consumed by revanchist fury and convinced of a relentless Western plot against Moscow.

PARIS — President Vladimir V. Putin has ordered Russian troops into Ukraine but made clear his true target goes beyond his neighbor to America’s “empire of lies,” and he threatened “consequences you have never faced in your history” for “anyone who tries to interfere with us.”

In another rambling speech full of festering historical grievances and accusations of a relentless Western plot against his country, Mr. Putin reminded the world on Thursday that Russia “remains one of the most powerful nuclear states” with “a certain advantage in several cutting-edge weapons.”

In effect, Mr. Putin’s speech, intended to justify the invasion, seemed to come closer to threatening nuclear war than any statement from a major world leader in recent decades. His immediate purpose was obvious: to head off any possible Western military move by making clear he would not hesitate to escalate.

Given Russia’s nuclear arsenal, he said, “there should be no doubt that any potential aggressor will face defeat and ominous consequences should it directly attack our country.” He added: “All necessary decisions have been taken in this regard.”

Mr. Putin’s move into Ukraine and his thinly veiled nuclear threat have now shattered Europe’s notions of security and the presumption of peace it has lived with for several generations. The postwar European project, which produced so much stability and prosperity, has entered a new, uncertain and confrontational stage. » | Roger Cohen | Thursday, February 24, 2022

Leer en español:

Más allá de Ucrania, el objetivo de Putin es lo que llama el ‘imperio de la mentira’ de EE. UU. : El líder ruso parece consumido por la furia revanchista y convencido de la existencia de un implacable complot occidental contra Moscú. »

Kray Casper | BYU Changed My Life: My Gay Mormon Story

Premiered 21 hours ago • Kray was a remarkably normal Mormon. He knew he was gay, but did everything in his power to deny and hide it. If you bury it, it doesn’t exist, right? He gave everything to the Church, served a full-time mission, and then enrolled at BYU. All this to bury what he was (a normal gay man).

As he was leaving his mission, Kray’s mission president made him a promise: if you date and marry a woman, your SSA (same-sex attraction) will disappear. Kray believed him.

It was his experience at Brigham Young University (BYU), Idaho that changed Kray’s life forever. His story involves a professor, a new friend, an affair, losing his education at the University, and reassembling the shattered pieces of a life that ‘once was’.

Kray’s story is more familiar and relatable than most want to admit. It is raw and candid.

The Guardian View on Putin’s Ukraine War: Promoting Bloodshed, Not Ending It

THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: The Russian president is threatening the international system by taking what he wants, irrespective of the human cost

The aftermath of a Russian air strike in Kyiv. Photograph: Genya Savilov/AFP/Getty Images
Just a few weeks after its 30th anniversary, the Russian Federation has gone to war with Ukraine, a country proud of its history, but which spent 700 years largely under foreign rule. The initial Russian offensive began on three fronts on Thursday to the sound of a missile barrage. The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, sent tanks to pound Ukraine’s cities. His warships attacked from the sea. Innocent civilians are being killed, their homes reduced to rubble. With Russian forces closing on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, and the government asking its three million people to take up arms, Mr Putin’s war “to stop genocide” may promote one.

Mr Putin is acting like a thug. He is threatening the international system by taking what he wants, irrespective of the human cost. A humanitarian crisis looms as tens of thousands of refugees cross into eastern Europe. The images beamed from the streets of Ukraine have rekindled memories of the wars of the 20th century – of a kind that once seemed unimaginable in 2022. Many have been left to wonder: is this a new cold war? Or the beginning of a third world war? Of the two, the former is unwanted but preferable to a global conflagration. » | Editorial | Friday, February 25, 2022

„Bleibt standhaft. Ihr seid alles, was wir noch haben“

Kampf um Kiew: Soldaten der ukrainischen Nationalgarde am Freitag im Zentrum der Hauptstadt | Bild: REUTERS
KRIEG IN DER UKRAINE
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: An der polnischen Grenze warten Angehörige im Chaos auf Kinder und Enkel, in Kiew melden sich die Männer zum Kriegsdienst, Präsident Selenskyj ruft zum Durchhalten auf. Eindrücke aus der Ukraine.

Drei Tage in Kiew, vor und nach Ausbruch des großen Krieges. Abend Nummer eins: Drei Freunde sitzen zusammen. Es sind, grob gesagt, Mittfünfziger. Dmytro, der Unternehmer, Olexander, der Verleger, und der Schriftsteller Andrej Kurkow sitzen in einer Küche beisammen. Wo früher vermutlich ein Samowar stand, steht ein Wasserkocher. Es gibt Tee und Gebäck. Der Unternehmer, der Verpackungsmaterial produziert, kann sich nicht vorstellen, dass die russische Luftwaffe Kiew bombardiert, Kiew, im Mittelalter die „Mutter der russischen Städte“. » | Von Sofia Dreisbach, Redakteurin in der Politik; Gerhard Gnauck, Politischer Korrespondent für Polen, die Ukraine, Estland, Lettland und Litauen mit Sitz in Warschau; Alexander Haneke, Redakteur in der Politik | Freitag, 25. Februar 2022

Poutine: la patiente reconquête du petit kagébiste, métamorphosé en champion de l’Empire russe

Vladimir Poutine, jeudi 24 février au Kremlin, avant sa rencontre avec des hommes d’affaires moscovites. SPUTNIK/via REUTERS
LE FIGARO : RÉCIT - L’ancien lieutenant-colonel du KGB, marqué par la chute du mur de Berlin, a autorisé une opération militaire en Ukraine. Une forme de revanche.

Vladimir Poutine a sonné l’heure de la revanche. L’heure de régler enfin ses comptes avec l’Histoire. Avec l’Ukraine. Et avec l’Occident. Rien ne peut être compris de la folle aventure qui a commencé ce jeudi au petit jour avec l’attaque massive par la terre et par l’air lancée par l’armée russe à travers tout le territoire ukrainien, si on n’a pas en tête que l’homme tout-puissant qui est aux commandes de la Russie veut se venger. Avec un grand V.

«Nous allons démilitariser et dénazifier l’Ukraine», a-t-il lancé à la face du monde, en annonçant «une opération spéciale», utilisant - ce qui est loin d’être un hasard - un vocable propre aux tchékistes de l’époque soviétique pour désigner la guerre qu’il a déclaré à l’Ukraine. Il s’agit d’une reconquête. Où s’arrêtera-t-elle? » | Par Laure Mandeville | Publié : jeudi 24 fevrier 2022 ; mis à jour : vendredi 25 février 2022

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La Story par Renaud Girard : «Je croyais Poutine rationnel, il est en fait paranoïaque»

LE FIGARO : Renaud Girard parle de la guerre en Ukraine et Vladimir Poutine ici.

Guerre en Ukraine : Pologne, Moldavie, Slovaquie... plus de 50 000 Ukrainiens ont fui leur pays en moins de quarante-huit heures

LE MONDE : Le Conseil de l’Europe a suspendu la Russie vendredi. Vladimir Poutine a appelé l’armée ukrainienne à « prendre le pouvoir » à Kiev et à renverser le président Zelensky. Mais il s’est dit prêt à envoyer une délégation pour des pourparlers à Minsk.

LIVE EN COURS ICI.

French Cooking Academy with Stephane: Northern France’s Answer to Boeuf bourguignon: Slow-cooked Beef in Dark Belgian Ale

Carbonnade flamande
Feb 24, 2022 • if you are tired of the boeuf bourguignon than try the carbonnade flamande. slow cooked beef with caramelized onions, fresh herbs and dark Belgian beer.

Ingredients:

1 kg chuck steak I (or any cuts beef suited for slow cooking)
4 onions ( finely sliced)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon flour (toasted)
1 tablespoon capers
4 tablespoons mixed herbs (parsley, chives, tarragon)
salt and pepper to season
400 ml Belgium dark ale I (e.g. Chimay grande reserve)
Some extra water for topping up

Stjepan Hauser & Petrit Çeku : Concierto de Aranjuez

Hauser and Petrit Çeku performing Adagio from Concierto de Aranjuez with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra at the Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb, October 2017.

Elisabeth Fuchs, conductor
ilmed and edited by MedVid production
Sound and mixing by Morris Studio

Die Schwulenheiler 2 | Panorama - die Reporter | NDR

Apr 8, 2015 • Nicht nur christliche Hardliner lehnen Homosexualität ab, auch in den evangelischen Landeskirchen glauben einige, Homosexualität sei Sünde und ließe sich therapieren.

Homophobie in Russland - Wenn die "Falschen" Händchen halten

Jul 16, 2015 • So heftig reagieren Passanten auf Moskaus Straßen, wenn zwei Männer Händchen halten. Zwei russische Videoblogger haben sich von einer versteckten Kamera filmen lassen und die Reaktionen eingefangen.

A Plea to the Free World, US and Israel: Tell Putin That Zelensky Must Not Be Harmed

THE TIMES OF ISRAEL: Ukraine’s president fears he is Russia’s ‘number one target’ and his wife and children are number two. Our pledged support for Ukraine must include demanding his safety

Russia “has marked me down as the number one target,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky warned in a video message early Friday. “My family is the number two target. They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state.” He reportedly told EU leaders in a video call late Thursday that it might be the last time they see him alive.

Having interviewed Zelensky barely two years ago in his presidential offices in Kyiv, and with my heart going out to him and his people, I want to issue what is both a personal and a principled plea to the US, the free world, and emphatically Israel’s leadership, too, to do their best to ensure that he is not targeted or harmed.

President Joe Biden on Thursday stressed that while American troops would not be deployed to fight Russia in Ukraine, the United States “will support the Ukrainian people as they defend their country.” In a conversation with Zelensky on Thursday, he condemned the Russian invasion and, similarly, promised “to provide support and assistance to Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.”

In a phone call of his own with Zelensky on Friday, Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett “offered Israel’s assistance with any humanitarian aid needed,” the Prime Minister’s Office announced, “and said that he stands by the people of Ukraine in these difficult days.” » | David Horovitz | Friday, February 25, 2022

Putin calls on Ukraine army to remove ‘neo-Nazi’ leadership in Kyiv »

Four Times Opinion Writers Analyze Russia’s Invasion: ‘The World Has Changed Overnight’

Ukrainian troops at a frontline military outpost shortly before the area was hit by artillery fire from Russian-backed separatists in the village of Novo Luhansk in eastern Ukraine on Feb. 19. | Lynsey Addario for The New York Times
Read the article and listen to the podcast here.

Democracy Now! US News & World Headlines – February 25, 2022

Ukraine Reportedly Battling Russian Troops on the Outskirts of Kyiv | DW News

Feb 25, 2022 • Russian forces would enter areas outside Kyiv on Friday, a top Ukrainian defense official has said. Ukraine's president called on the international community to help his country.

Explosions were heard in Ukraine's second-largest city Kharkiv, which lies close to Ukraine's eastern border with Russia, on Friday with the mayor telling residents to seek shelter from Russian missiles in subway stations, basements and bomb shelters, Reuters news agency reported. Air raid sirens were set off in cities across the country as reports emerged of rockets landing in residential areas.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday that Russia wanted to "liberate Ukrainians from oppression," adding that the invading force is not planning to occupy Ukraine, Reuters reported.

The aim of the invasion, according to Lavrov, is to demilitarize Ukraine. He went on to say that Russia wants the Ukrainian people to be independent and determine their own destiny. Lavrov added that Moscow would engage in talks with Kyiv, but only after the Ukrainian military laid down its weapons.

The Kremlin on Friday also pledged to retaliate to Western sanctions. It acknowledged that sanctions would be damaging, but that the problems they may cause would be solvable. "It goes without saying that retaliatory measures will follow," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "Just how symmetrical or asymmetrical they will be depends on the analysis, the restrictions have yet to be analysed," he added. The comments from the Kremlin came as the EU announced that it was preparing further emergency sanctions against Russia.


Putin is an evil man; a wicked man! – © Mark

Au-delà de l'Ukraine, la Russie regarde déjà vers l'ex-Yougoslavie

Vladimir Poutine (ici le 25 juillet 2021) aurait les yeux rivés sur les pays de l'ex-Yougoslavie. Alexei Nikolsky / TASS via Reuters
LE FIGARO : VU D'AILLEURS - La stratégie de pouvoir de Poutine vise les républiques qui ont succédé à la Yougoslavie, dans lesquelles les forces prorusses donnent déjà le ton aujourd'hui. Cela concerne tout particulièrement un pays.

Par Carolina Drüten (Die Welt)
L'Otan arme son flanc sud-est. L'Alliance prévoit de déployer un «battlegroup» sous commandement français en Roumanie dès ce printemps: environ un millier de soldats prêts à combattre et censés souligner la volonté de défense collective de l'Occident – un message direct envoyé à Moscou.

Pendant longtemps, l'Alliance s'est concentrée sur son flanc nord-est. Jusqu'à présent, des groupes de combat n'avaient été déployés qu'en Estonie, en Lituanie, en Lettonie et en Pologne. Pourtant, le renforcement du flanc sud-est ne revêt pas un intérêt pour l'Alliance que dans le cadre de cette crise ukrainienne. Car une région souvent négligée jusqu'à présent joue un rôle central dans la stratégie russe, une stratégie qui vise à reconquérir les sphères d'influence perdues après la guerre froide.

Au-delà de la mer Noire et des anciens États du Pacte de Varsovie que sont la Roumanie et la Bulgarie, Moscou vise les républiques qui ont succédé à la Yougoslavie, des républiques dans lesquelles des forces parfois ouvertement prorusses donnent aujourd'hui le ton. » | Par LENA | vendredi 25 février 2022

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EN DIRECT - Suivez minute par minute l'évolution de la guerre en Ukraine ici.

„Die City ist abhängig vom schmutzigen Geld“

Der Eaton Square in London heißt gelegentlich auch „Roter Platz“. | Bild: EPA
OLIGARCHEN IN LONDON
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: In der britischen Hauptstadt leben viele russische Superreiche und Oligarchen – manche nennen die Stadt daher „Londongrad“ oder „Moskau an der Themse“. Für sie wird es nun ungemütlich.

Der Eaton Square, eine der teuersten Adresse Londons, wird auch „Roter Platz“ genannt – so hoch ist die Dichte russischer Superreicher, die sich dort Luxusapartments gekauft haben. Der Milliardär und Putin-Freund Roman Abramowitsch erwarb hier vor zwei Jahrzehnten ein Haus für 28 Millionen Pfund, eine von mehreren Immobilien, die der FC-Chelsea-Eigentümer sich in der britischen Hauptstadt angeschafft hat. Auch der Oligarch Oleg Deripaska besitzt eine Residenz am Eaton Square, nur wenige Gehminuten vom Buckingham Palast und vom Botschaftsviertel entfernt. Vor den prachtvollen, sechsstöckigen Häusern aus georgianischer Zeit stehen dicke Mercedes-Autos, Rolls-Royces, Lamborghinis und Maseratis. Am Abend liegen die Häuser um den großen Platz aber fast völlig dunkel. In den Fenstern brennt kein Licht: Es wohnen hier kaum Menschen, die meisten Häuser dienen nur als Geldspeicher.

Fast drei Jahrzehnte lang hat London reiche Russen und ihr Geld mit offenen Armen empfangen. Sowohl Konservative als auch Labour wollte Investoren anlocken. In die feinen Stadtteilen Kensington und Chelsea oder Westminster kamen so viele, dass die Hauptstadt den Spitznamen „Londongrad“ oder auch „Moskau an der Themse“ erhielt. Durch sogenannte „Goldene Visa“ konnten Investoren, die mindestens 2 Millionen Pfund mitbrachten, eine Eintrittskarte fürs Königreich erwerben. Für 10 Millionen Pfund bekam man ein Expressverfahren zur Aufenthaltsgenehmigung für die Insel. Das jüngste Programm startete die Labour-Regierung im Jahr 2008 nach der Finanzkrise, um Geld auf die Insel zu holen. Von den 13.213 Investoren-Visa gingen 2600 an Russen und gut 4200 an Chinesen, die so die Eintrittskarte fürs Königreich erhielten. » | Von Philip Plickert, Wirtschaftskorrespondent mit Sitz in London. | Freitag, 25. Februar 2022

Um weiterzulesen, finden Sie die beliebtesten Abonnements der FAZ hier.

Related here and here.

Guerre en Ukraine : la résistance de Kiev et des Ukrainiens aux assauts militaires de la Russie

LE MONDE : RÉCIT | Les soldats russes se rapprochent de la capitale ukrainienne tandis qu’ailleurs, des fronts militaires se multiplient, des villes sont encerclées et des réfugiés fuient les combats. La situation militaire n’est pas encore désespérée, mais une partie du pays se projette déjà dans une logique de guerre de résistance.

Au deuxième jour de la guerre lancée par Vladimir Poutine contre l’Ukraine, passée la sidération, le tableau des opérations militaires s’éclaircit. Premier enseignement : l’armée ukrainienne se bat. Second enseignement : elle recule.

A Kiev comme à Moscou, les militaires ont ressorti des cartes d’états-majors qui semblaient destinées à prendre la poussière. S’y dessinent des fronts multiples, des villes encerclées, des réfugiés fuyant les combats et une capitale européenne aux abords de laquelle résonne le bruit des hélicoptères de combat et des canons. » | Par Benoît Vitkine (Moscou, correspondant) et Faustine Vincent | vendredi 25 février 2022

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Ukrainian Officials Report Missile Attacks in Kyiv

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ukraine’s president denounced Russia in a televised address: “They say that civilian objects are not a target for them. It is a lie. They do not distinguish in which areas to operate.”

Destroyed Russian Army rocket launchers in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Friday. | Maksim Levin/Reuters
The Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, was under bombardment on Friday morning, with missile strikes and a rocket crashing into a residential building as the second day of Russia’s military offensive pressed closer to the heart of the government.

Ukrainian forces were battling Russian troops on the outskirts of Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million people, where President Volodymyr Zelensky warned in a television address that he was “target No. 1” of the Russian advance.

By midmorning, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said that Russian forces had entered the Obolon district, a few miles north of central Kyiv, and urged people in the capital to stay indoors. In a sign of the potentially chaotic fight that could unfold, the ministry said on Facebook that Kyiv residents should “prepare Molotov cocktails” to deter “the occupier.”

Mr. Zelensky said that 137 Ukrainians, military and civilian, had been killed in the Russian invasion that began on Thursday morning, and that Russian “sabotage groups” had entered the capital with the aim of decapitating Ukraine’s government “by destroying the head of the state.” Russian troops enter the outskirts of Kyiv. » | Shashank Bengali and Marc Santor | Published: Thursday, February 24, 2022; Updated: Friday, February 25, 2022

Follow NYT live news updates on Russia invading Ukraine.

Russia Ukraine Conflict: Putin Launches Full-scale Invasion

Feb 24, 2022 • It was as sudden as it was brutal and relentless. Ukrainians woke up to find themselves plunged into the midst of war. Explosions and air raid sirens rang out here in Kyiv and cities across the country as Russia launched a full scale invasion on multiple fronts in the early hours of the morning, firing missiles at key military infrastructure sites.

Its troops are reported to be advancing from the north of Kyiv. Other cities that have been targeted include Odessa, the major port on the Black Sea, and there are reports of hundreds of explosions in Mariupol, which is located close to Russian-occupied territory.

But also in towns like Lutsk in Ukraine's west. It shows the breadth of the assault from the Russian military.

Ukraine has declared martial law, urging citizens to take up arms to defend their country. There are reports of heavy casualties already on both sides. And as the West threatened to cripple Moscow's economy with devastating sanctions, an ominous warning from Vladimir Putin to any country trying to interfere - you will face "consequences you have never seen", he declared.

Top Hat : 1935 – Heaven | Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers

Kenny Rogers : Crazy

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group | Views on YouTube: 2,696,043

Guerre en Ukraine : les Vingt-Sept adoptent des sanctions «massives» contre Moscou

Emmanuel Macron à son arrivée à Bruxelles, jeudi. YVES HERMAN / REUTERS
FIGARO / EN DIRECT / EN COURS: Réunis à Bruxelles, les pays membres ont tranché pour un train de mesures touchant l'énergie, les transports et la finance russes. Ces sanctions s'ajoutent à celles annoncées un peu plus tôt par Joe Biden en riposte à l'invasion russe. L'Otan tiendra un sommet en visioconférence vendredi.

Les dernières informations à retenir
Vladimir Poutine a annoncé jeudi une opération militaire en Ukraine dans une déclaration surprise à la télévision peu avant 04 heures du matin.

Le ministre ukrainien des Affaires étrangères, Dmytro Kouleba, a peu après annoncé le début d'une «invasion de grande ampleur». L'armée russe a affirmé avoir détruit 74 installations militaires, dont 11 aérodromes dans le pays, ainsi que 18 stations radar des systèmes de défense antimissile, des déclarations invérifiables.

Une série d'explosions ont été entendues à Kiev, où les sirènes d'alarme anti-bombardement ont retenti. Dans l'après-midi, le maire a annoncé un couvre-feu. Explosions également à Kramatorsk, ville dans l'est qui sert de quartier général à l'armée ukrainienne, à Kharkiv, deuxième ville du pays située près de la frontière russe, à Odessa, sur la mer Noire, ainsi qu'à Marioupol, plus grande ville ukrainienne proche de la zone de front.

La Russie a pris le contrôle de la centrale de Tchernobyl, site du pire accident nucléaire de l'histoire en 1986, a annoncé la présidence ukrainienne. » | Par Alain Barluet, Patrick Saint-Paul, Anna Darroman, Mayeul Aldebert, Hugues Maillot, Jeanne Sénéchal et Laura Andrieu | jeudi 24 février 2022

Ein Bild, das für sich spricht.

Une image qui parle d'elle-même. / A picture that speaks for itself.
Für dieses ausdrucksvolle Bild bedanke ich mich bei motherjones.com auf Pinterest.

‘Putin Chose This War,’ Biden Says about Ukraine Attack

Feb 24, 2022 • US President Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin bears full responsibility for attacking Ukraine and said Russia will face the consequences because of it.

Punish Russia to the max! Glory be to the US! God bless Biden! And God bless America! – © Mark

A Poke in the Eye for Putin!

Ein Stich ins Auge für Putin! / Un coup dans l'oeil pour Poutine !
With many thanks to The Proud Gay on Pinterest for this delightful photo.

MP Calls for Roman Abramovich to Be Stripped of Chelsea Ownership

Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea Football Club in 2003 but has rarely been seen in Britain recently | ALEXANDER HASSENSTEIN/UEFA/GETTY IMAGES
THE TIMES: Roman Abramovich has been named as a person of interest by the UK government due to his links to the Russian state and his “public association with corrupt activity and practices”, according to a leaked document.

A confidential Home Office document dated 2019 cited the owner of Chelsea Football Club as an example of Russian billionaires that the government was monitoring.

It stated that the government would use “the relevant tools at its disposal, including immigration powers” to prevent Russian oligarchs using the UK to facilitate illicit finance.

Abramovich is not understood to have been barred from the country by the Home Office. » | Matt Dathan, Home Affairs Editor | Thursday, February 24, 2022

New subscribers to THE TIMES – special offer: Full digital access for three months for just £1.

Are we Brits so damn poor that we must prostitute ourselves to these Russian oligarchs? Kick them out! It doesn’t matter how many billions they have in their shady bank accounts. Their influence is polluting our body politic. And as for giving titles such as ‘Lord’ to Russians, it is nothing short of a disgrace.

We can thank the Tories for this, of course. To Tories, the bottom line means everything; principles count for little, or perhaps nothing.

Whilst these people are allowed to influence our politics, Putin will have his poisonous tentacles wrapped around British politics too. – © Mark

Putin Is Teaching Us a Brutal Lesson About History

Ben Wiseman
OPINION
THE NEW YORK TIMES: What I see on the faces and hear in the voices of so many of the people around me is sheer disbelief about Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and a brutal war in Europe: Aren’t we supposed to be past this? Didn’t history move on? The Wall came down, the Cold War ended, and democratic liberalism was the wave of the future, which wouldn’t be so kind to strongmen like Vladimir Putin.

Well, Putin didn’t get the message. Nor did plenty of others around the world. Our notions about history were innocent and disregarded most of it. They also depended on a solipsistic projection of Western — and, especially American — culture and beliefs onto nations that share neither.

I don’t know if it’s a boomer thing, a modern thing, an elite thing or some other thing, but in my lifetime, in this country, among many of my generational peers, there has been a sense that people had learned particular lessons and were evolving past extremes of pettiness and barbarism, certainly in the corners of the globe deemed more enlightened.

In Europe, so devastated and so educated by World War II, sovereign nations wouldn’t be invaded just because their neighbors were mightier, meaner and more rapacious. That was a grandiosity and folly of the past — before the European Union and before all of our “advances,” a word we’ve used so frequently and clung to so tightly, as if the accretion of knowledge and the epiphanies of science were guarantors, or at least harbingers, of affluence and peace. » | Frank Bruni | Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD OPINION: No Justification for a Brazen Invasion »

Russia Pushes into Area around Chernobyl, Ukraine Officials Say

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The advance, part of a multipronged Russian assault against Ukraine, risked damaging the cement-encased nuclear reactor that melted down in 1986.

Cities across Ukraine were damaged from Russian attacks. Ukrainian officials reported that more than 40 soldiers were killed and dozens wounded in fighting. | Ukrainian State Emergency Service, via Reuters
SLOVYANSK, Ukraine — On Day 1 of the first major land war in Europe in decades, the Russian military plunged into Ukraine by land, sea and air, killing dozens of Ukrainian soldiers, and ominously touching off a pitched battle at the highly radioactive Chernobyl exclusion zone that risked damaging the cement-encased nuclear reactor that melted down in 1986.

The day began before sunrise with the terrifying thud of artillery strikes on airports and military installations all over Ukraine. And by sunset, Russian special forces and airborne troops were pushing into the outskirts of the capital, Kyiv. While the ultimate goal of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and his generals remained unclear, American officials assessed that the end game was likely the decapitation of Ukraine’s government and the replacement of its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, with a Russian-controlled puppet regime.

As of early evening Thursday, Mr. Zelensky remained in place as commander in chief, and Ukrainian forces, which officials said shot down several Russian jets and a helicopter, were engaged in fierce battles all along a broad front line to maintain control over their country.

It was in the toxic marshes of the Chernobyl exclusion zone in northern Ukraine that one of the most dangerous battles was playing out. » | Michael Schwirtz, Valerie Hopkins and Andrew E. Kramer | Thursday, February 24, 2022

Guerre en Ukraine : la Russie a pris le contrôle de la centrale de Tchernobyl, selon la présidence ukrainienne : La capitale ukrainienne a imposé un couvre-feu alors que les Russes ont conquis l’aéroport militaire de Hostomel, situé à 25 km au nord-ouest de Kiev. La Russie a envahi le territoire ukrainien et le bombarde depuis jeudi au petit matin. »

Ukraine loses control of the Chernobyl nuclear site – presidential adviser »

Guerre en Ukraine : le président Zelensky appelle les citoyens à se battre et promet des armes

Fireball after Russian Missile Hits Airport in Western Ukraine - BBC News

Feb 24, 2022 • Russian forces have launched a military assault on neighbouring Ukraine, crossing its borders and bombing military targets near big cities.

A missile sparked a fireball as it hit Ivano-Frankivsk International Airport in western Ukraine.

Russia's military breached the border in a number of places, in the north, south and east, including from Belarus, a long-time Russian ally. There are reports of fighting in some parts of eastern Ukraine.

Who Can Prevail on Putin Now War in Ukraine Has Started? Peace Depends on It

THE GUARDIAN – OPINION: The Russian leader listens to China’s Xi Jinping and a circle of rich cronies. Only they may be able to prevent huge bloodshed

Russian president Vladimir Putin with Chinese president Xi Jinping in Beijing, China, 4 February 2022. Photograph: Alexei Druzhinin/AP
All Europe must have awoken this morning and heard the news with horror. Sometimes history refuses to die. The fate of 44 million Ukrainians at the mercy of Russia and its vast army is appalling to contemplate. Indeed, so wild and mendacious are the utterances of Vladimir Putin in the past 24 hours that they suggest a dictator deranged and out of control. It is precisely the danger that was forecast by strategic theorists at the dawn of the nuclear age.

As of this morning, Putin’s declared intention is to “demilitarise” Ukraine and assert Russia’s de facto sovereignty over the Donbas east of the country. The latter is chiefly an exaggeration of what Russia has done covertly since 2014. The former is hard to see other than as formal conquest. This is no longer some border dispute or separatist uprising, but the concerted assault of a great power on a substantial neighbour.

Ukraine’s friends and sympathisers have been fulsome in offering comfort and “support”. Ever since 1989, western Europe has been eager, perhaps over-eager, to welcome former Soviet bloc countries into its embrace. Many thought this a mistake. Offering Nato and EU membership up to Russia’s border was certain to inflame that country’s well-known sense of insecurity, but the risk was taken. At the same time any idea of including Ukraine and Georgia in that embrace was rightly thought a risk too far. Putin has now grotesquely proved that risk. » | Simon Jenkins | Thursday, February 24, 2022

AUF DEUTSCH:

China will keine Invasion erkennen: Erst vor Kurzem haben sich Xi Jinping und Wladimir Putin eine „Freundschaft ohne Grenzen“ versprochen. Wie weit reicht sie nach dem russischen Angriff auf die Ukraine? Von einer Invasion will man in Peking jedenfalls nichts wissen. »