Tensions Rise at the £3bn Surrey Estate Russian Oligarchs Call Home

THE GUARDIAN: The secretive owners of mansions at St George’s Hill will be nervous about making an appearance on Liz Truss’s hitlist

St George’s Hill, near Weybridge, has been called Britain’s Beverly Hills. At least a quarter of its houses are owned by people from former Soviet states. Photograph: Martin Godwin/The Guardian
The warning to rich Russians linked to Putin that the UK government “will come after you” and ensure oligarchs have “nowhere to hide” is likely to hit hard at the gated luxury housing estate in Surrey dubbed “Britain’s Beverly Hills”.

Russians and those from former Soviet states own more than a quarter of the 430 luxurious homes in St George’s Hill, a heavily guarded 964-acre estate near Weybridge, Surrey, where mansions have changed hands for more than £20m each.

Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, said on Sunday that the government was drawing up a “hitlist” of oligarchs with links to Putin who will be added to the sanctions list in coming days and weeks.

“We have to make it deeply painful for the oligarchs that support the Putin regime. There are over a hundred Russian billionaires,” she told the Sunday Times. “Nothing is off the table in terms of who or what we are targeting. We are very clear about that – we are very prepared to do what it takes.”

Brad, one of six fluorescent jacket-wearing security guards who prevented the Guardian from entering St George’s Hill, said there were more Russians living on the estate now than at any time in his six years working at the gate. » | Rupert Neate, Wealth correspondent | Monday, February 28, 2022

Ukrainian Sailor Arrested for Trying to Sink Oligarch’s Superyacht

THE GUARDIAN: Mechanic on Lady Anastasia, owned by Russian arms exporter, sought revenge for attacks on Kyiv

Lady Anastasia, pictured in Palamos harbour in Catalonia, is owned by Alexander Mikheev, head of Rosoboronexport. Photograph: Dieter Wanke/Alamy
A Ukrainian sailor has been arrested in Mallorca and faces charges of attempting to sink a yacht owned by Alexander Mikheev, the CEO of the Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport and former head of the Russian helicopter federation. The boat is moored in the harbour of Port Adriano.

The unnamed man, who has been employed for the past 10 years as a mechanic on the Lady Anastasia, Mikheev’s 48-metre, £5m yacht, said he felt he had to do something after seeing footage of a Russian rocket attack on a block of flats in Kyiv, his home town. The defendant told the judge that he believed the rocket had been manufactured by Mikheev’s company.

Once on board the vessel he told the crew members, most of whom are also Ukrainians, to abandon ship. He allegedly then went to the engine room and opened a large valve in an attempt to sink the yacht. The crew members, aided by port staff, intervened to prevent the sinking. » | Stephen Burgen in Barcelona | Monday, February 28, 2022

Ukraine Invasion: Foreign Secretary Says Attacks Could Be 'Beginning of the End' for Putin

Feb 27, 2022 • Foreign Secretary Liz Truss insists the UK 'does welcome refugees' and the government is looking 'urgently' at what more the country can do, despite reports that Ukrainians are finding it hard to come to Britain.

And describing the situation on the ground in Ukraine, Ms Truss said there had not been any "overnight significant changes", "but we are seeing very, very strong and brave Ukrainian resistance".

Economy in Crisis: Russia Hit Hard by International Sanctions | DW News

Feb 28, 2022 • Russia's escalating war in Ukraine has prompted unprecedented economic sanctions against the country. Over the weekend, Russian banks were further cut off from the international financial system. Some have been excluded from the SWIFT payments system while moves have been made to stop the Russian central bank using its $630 billion (€562 billion) of foreign reserves. The sanctions are by far the most severe to have been leveled at Russia since the country invaded Ukraine last week. The country's increasing financial and political isolation is already causing significant consequences for the economy, the 11th-largest in the world by GDP.

Russia's currency, the ruble, fell by around 30% to record lows after the latest sanctions, although it did recover a little in recent hours. That compounds massive losses already experienced last week. In response, the Russian central bank has made an emergency decision to hike interest rates from 9.5% to 20%. The bank has also temporarily blocked the sale of securities held by foreigners. The currency collapse has led to long lines outside ATMs across Russia, with fears rising over further plunges in the value of the ruble. On Monday, the central bank announced that the Moscow Stock Exchange would not open. It also said in a statement that it has increased interest rates to support "financial and price stability and protect the savings of citizens from depreciation."

Putin Puts Russian Nuclear Forces on High Alert as Resistance to Ukraine Invasion Grows

Feb 28, 2022 • Following a wave of peace rallies held across the globe this weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has agreed to diplomatic talks with Russia. This comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin placed Russia's nuclear forces on high alert on Sunday, citing increasingly tightened international sanctions. We speak with Anatol Lieven, senior fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, who says it's not clear whether Putin is using a nuclear threat to topple the Ukrainian government or pressure them into a deal. Lieven also speaks about Belarus's support of the Russian invasion and argues future protests inside Russia against the war will be greatly influenced by Western sanctions.

Face à la Russie, le sursaut de l’Union européenne

LE MONDE – ÉDITORIAL : En décidant d’une aide financière à l’envoi d’armes létales aux forces ukrainiennes pour résister à l’agression russe, l’UE a brisé « un tabou » et se donne enfin les moyens de se comporter en puissance géopolitique.

Editorial du « Monde ». Au quatrième jour de la guerre qu’il a déclenchée contre l’Ukraine, Vladimir Poutine avait déjà deux exploits à son compte, dimanche 27 février : il a rendu à l’OTAN sa raison d’être et il a amené l’Union européenne à se transformer en organisation capable de fournir de l’aide militaire à un pays étranger.

Ursula von der Leyen, la présidente de la Commission, a raison : c’est bien « un moment décisif », un tournant historique dans sa politique de défense que l’UE a réalisé dimanche soir pour venir en assistance à l’Ukraine attaquée. Sous la conduite du chef de la diplomatie européenne, Josep Borrell, les ministres des affaires étrangères des Vingt-Sept ont adopté une aide de 450 millions d’euros pour financer l’envoi d’armes létales aux forces ukrainiennes pour résister à l’agression russe, ainsi que 50 millions pour des équipements non militaires. Cette assistance, qui pourra inclure des avions de chasse, s’ajoute aux livraisons d’armes déjà promises individuellement par plusieurs Etats membres. Jamais auparavant l’UE n’avait rempli cette fonction. « Un tabou est tombé », a commenté M. Borrell. » | Éditorial | lundi 28 février 2022

LIRE AUSSI :

Aide militaire à l’Ukraine : face à la menace russe, le basculement historique de l’Union européenne : Pour la première fois, les Vingt-Sept vont faciliter la délivrance d’armes létales, y compris des avions de combat, en débloquant 450 millions d’euros pour l’envoi d’une assistance militaire à Kiev. »

The Phone Has Become the Ukrainian President’s Most Effective Weapon

THE GUARDIAN: Analysis: Zelenskiy has managed to achieve an unheard-of range of sanctions against Russia thanks to a tireless round of calls to allies

In a string of phone calls from a besieged Kyiv, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has persuaded the west to agree to a set of sanctions against Russia that were inconceivable a week ago.

Sensing how European public opinion is responding to the bravery of his people, Zelenskiy has been constantly on the phone to western leaders, using his Twitter feed to cajole, encourage, scold and praise his allies. In the process, sanctions regarded as unthinkable a week ago have become a moral baseline. The pace at which the west has been agreeing to the new sanctions has also left the lawyers, officials and bankers gasping for air, officials admit, as they work under severe pressure to turn headlines into reality.

One leader’s office said: “We are in awe of him. He may not eventually be able to save Ukraine, or change Russia, but he is changing Europe.” With video » | Patrick Wintour, Diplomatic editor | Monday, February 28, 2022

Democracy Now! US News & World News – February 28, 2022

GOP Struggles to Find Right Message on Russia as Trump Calls Putin ‘Smart’

Feb 28, 2022 • Republicans in Washington are trying to counter Russian aggression as Donald Trump calls Putin ‘smart’ and other world leaders ‘dumb.’ MSNBC Political Analysts Jennifer Rubin and Matthew Dowd joined American Voices with Alicia Menendez to discuss the danger of touting Kremlin talking points.

Russische Nachrichtenagentur feiert irrtümlich Sieg

KOMMENTAR IN STAATSMEDIUM
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Eine staatliche russische Nachrichtenagentur veröffentlicht irrtümlicherweise einen Siegeskommentar. Russlands Führung rechnete offenbar mit einem raschen Sieg.

Immer mehr deutet darauf hin, dass Moskau von einem raschen Sieg ausging und dass auch die Staatsmedien darauf vorbereitet worden sind. Das zeigt ein Vorfall bei der staatlichen Nachrichtenagentur Ria. Die veröffentlichte einen vorbereiteten Kommentar, in dem der Autor den Sieg Russlands über die Ukraine feierte.

Der Kommentar wurde am Samstagmorgen – der Nacht nach dem gescheiterten ersten Großangriff auf Kiew – offenbar irrtümlich veröffentlicht, rasch wieder vom Netz genommen, aber im Webarchiv gespeichert. Solche Vorgänge kommen vor, denn Medien bereiten für erwartete Ereignisse Artikel vor, um schnell ihre Leser erreichen zu können. Erst vor Kurzem hatte Moskau viel Häme über den amerikanischen Mediendienst „Bloomberg“ geäußert, der einige Tage vor der russischen Invasion schon kontrafaktisch den Beginn der russischen Invasion vermeldet hatte, ehe der entsprechende Artikel zurückgezogen wurde. Nun geht Rias Text, eine Paraphrase von Aussagen Putins zur Rolle der Ukraine und dem Ringen mit dem Westen, schon von einem Sieg aus. » | Von Friedrich Schmidt, Politischer Korrespondent für Russland und die GUS in Moskau. | Montag, 28. Februar 2022

Volodymyr Zelensky: Russian Mercenaries Ordered to Kill Ukraine’s President

President Zelensky agreed to send a delegation to meet a Russian team at the Belarus border | UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/EPA
THE TIMES: More than 400 Russian mercenaries are operating in Kyiv with orders from the Kremlin to assassinate President Zelensky and his government and prepare the ground for Moscow to take control, The Times has learnt.

The Wagner Group, a private militia run by one of President Putin’s closest allies and operating as an arm-length branch of the state, flew in mercenaries from Africa five weeks ago on a mission to decapitate Zelensky’s government in return for a handsome financial bonus.

Information about their mission reached the Ukrainian government on Saturday morning and hours later Kyiv declared a 36-hour “hard” curfew to sweep the city for Russian saboteurs, warning civilians that they would be seen as Kremlin agents and risked being “liquidated” if they stepped outside. » | Manveen Rana | Monday, February 28, 2022

New subscribers to The Times: Flash sale: 3 months for £1. View offers.

Singapore’s Latest Ruling on Gay Sex Is ‘Cold Comfort,’ Activists Say

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Plaintiffs had hoped the Court of Appeal would overturn the colonial-era law. Instead, the top court said it was not “an architect of social policy” and that any change was up to Parliament.

The Singapore Court of Appeal, the country’s top court, declined Monday to overturn a law criminalizing gay sex, ruling that three men who brought challenges did not have legal standing because the government has pledged not to enforce the colonial-era law.

Gay rights advocates had sought to overturn the law, known as Section 377A, arguing that it stigmatizes gay men and promotes discrimination. The law, enacted in 1938 during British rule, does not apply to women.

Pink Dot SG, a leading L.G.B.T.Q. advocacy group that organizes Singapore’s annual pride event, said it was “profoundly disappointed” by the decision.

“The acknowledgment that Section 377A is unenforceable only in the prosecutorial sense is cold comfort,” the group said in a statement. “Section 377A’s real impact lies in how it perpetuates discrimination across every aspect of life: at home, in schools, in the workplace, in our media, and even access to vital services like health care.” » | Richard C. Paddock | Monday, February 28, 2022

The Ruble Crashes, the Stock Market Closes and Russia’s Economy Staggers under Sanctions.

THE NEW YORK TIMES: MOSCOW — The ruble cratered, the stock market froze and the public rushed to withdraw cash on Monday as Western sanctions kicked in and Russia awoke to uncertainty and fear over the rapidly spreading repercussions of President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

As the day began, Russia’s currency lost as much as a quarter of its value within hours. Scrambling to stem the decline, the Russian Central Bank more than doubled its key interest rate, banned foreigners from selling Russian securities and ordered exporters to convert into rubles most of their foreign-currency revenues. It closed the Moscow stock exchange for the day because of the “developing situation.”

“The economic reality has, of course, changed,” the Kremlin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, told reporters, announcing that Mr. Putin had called an emergency meeting with his top finance officials.

Even as Russian and Ukrainian delegations met for talks at the Belarus border, Moscow’s military offensive showed no sign of letting up, and the hectic moves offered the first signs that the sanctions imposed on Russia by the West over the weekend were shaking the foundations of Russia’s economy. The decisions by the United States, Britain and the European Union restricting the Russian Central Bank’s access to much of its $643 billion in foreign currency reserves have undone much of the Kremlin’s careful efforts to soften the impact of potential sanctions. » | Anton Troianovski | Ivan Nechepurenko contributed reporting. | Monday, February 28, 2022

Guerre en Ukraine: l'Union européenne annonce de nouvelles sanctions contre la Biélorussie

FIGARO / LIVE : L'Union européenne a décidé ce dimanche 27 février de prendre de nouvelles sanctions contre la Biélorussie en interdisant les exportations des «plus importants secteurs économiques» du régime de Minsk. Regarder la vidéo en anglais » | dimanche 27 février 2022

Let Me Save Civilisation, Donald Trump Urges Republicans

Donald Trump aired past complaints at Cpac and was warmly received. Polling, however, shows that his grip on the Republican Party is beginning to weaken | JOE RAEDLE/GETTY IMAGES
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Donald Trump confirmed his grip on the Republican Party with a speech to conservatives insisting that he alone could save “our civilisation”, but a straw poll taken after his address suggests that his rivals may be closing the gap.

The former president, 75, who addressed the Conservative Political Action Conference (Cpac) in Florida at the weekend, emerged as clear leader in a straw poll of delegates, with 59 per cent of the vote. In second place was Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, on 28 per cent. » | Alistair Dawber, Orlando | Sunday, February 27, 2022

New subscribers to The Times / The Sunday Times: The Flash Office.

FFS! Leave us alone! Leave the world alone! Stop 'molesting' us! You belong in klink, not in the White House! My advice to you is this: Go back to Mar-a-Lago and enjoy the trappings of your ill-gotten gains whilst you still can. The authorities are coming after you – soon. And as for "saving civilisation", you can't save even yourself, still less civilisation! So give us a break! Please! – © Mark

Putin the Hypocrite?

Photo thanks to Google Images
It is to be hoped that we’ll see no more images of Putin embracing Russian Orthodox prelates. Or vice-versa! Putin’s current actions in the Ukraine are as far away from Christianity as anyone can get! Russian Orthodox prelates should give Putin a wide berth.

Lionel Richie : The Only One

Provided to YouTube by Universal Music Group | Views on YouTube: 3,291,166

L’Ukraine sera-t-elle l’Afghanistan de Poutine?

Après avoir repoussé une colonne russe, des soldats ukrainiens inspectent une zone de combat dans Kiev, le 26 février, à la recherche d’éventuels obus non explosés. SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP
LE FIGARO : DÉCRYPTAGE - S’il est probable que Kiev finira par céder aux assauts de l’armée russe, on peut s’attendre ensuite à une longue résistance mêlant guerre de partisans, harcèlements et résistance passive.

Le 11 décembre 1994, lorsque le Kremlin avait lancé ses troupes à l’assaut de la Tchétchénie, un responsable russe avait déclaré qu’il viendrait à bout de la rébellion en 48 heures. Mais il avait fallu cinq semaines aux forces armées russes, et un déchaînement inouï de violences, de bombardements aériens et d’attaques de tanks, pour s’emparer du palais présidentiel, le 21 janvier 1995. Le conflit dura deux ans et il fut suivi d’un deuxième, plus long encore, en 1999. Grozny fut rasée, la Tchétchénie détruite. Les guerres ne se passent jamais comme prévu. À Grozny hier comme à Kiev aujourd’hui.

Les signes sont encore faibles, mais ils existent. Une première offensive contre Kiev, pensée comme un blitzkrieg, qui devait assurer la prise de l’aéroport d’Hostomel puis un raid au centre de la capitale pour y décapiter le pouvoir politique, capturer ou tuer Volodymyr Zelensky, a été contrecarrée par la résistance ukrainienne. Quelques tanks russes échoués au bord des routes. Des bombardiers abattus par la défense ukrainienne. De jeunes prisonniers russes au regard perdu affirmant ne rien savoir de cette guerre où ils ont été projetés. » | Par Isabelle Lasserre | dimanche 27 février 2022

Réservé aux abonnés

À LIRE AUSSI :

Jean-Louis Thiériot: «Sommes-nous prêts pour une guerre de haute intensité?» : TRIBUNE - La France et l’Europe doivent adapter leurs capacités de défense, argumente le député et membre de la Commission Défense de l’Assemblée nationale. »

Dmitrij Muratow – Kämpfer gegen Putins Zensur

Dmitrij Muratow | Bild: DPA
JOURNALISMUS IN RUSSLAND
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Russlands Militär will verbieten, dass das Bild einer unblutigen „Operation“ in der Ukraine Risse bekommt. Friedensnobelpreisträger Dmitrij Muratow und seine Zeitung „Nowaja Gaseta“ machen weiter, trotz aller Risiken.

Bald, nachdem Präsident Wladimir Putin die „Spezialoperation“ befohlen hatte, veröffentlichte Dmitrij Muratow auf der Website der „Nowaja Gaseta“ eine Videobotschaft. „Unser Land hat auf Befehl von Präsident Putin einen Krieg mit der Ukraine begonnen. Und niemand kann ihn stoppen. Daher verspüren wir neben Kummer auch Scham“, sagt der Sechzigjährige. „Als wäre es der Schlüsselanhänger eines teures Autos, wendet der Oberbefehlshaber in den Händen den Atomknopf. Ist der nächste Schritt eine nukleare Salve? Wie sonst soll man die Worte Putins von einer Vergeltungswaffe verstehen.“ » | Von Friedrich Schmidt, Moskau | Sonntag, 27. Februar 2022

Vladimir Putin: What’s Going On Inside His Head?

THE OBSERVER: The Russian president’s intentions are now clear. The psychology behind them has been years in the making

The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, making an address from the Kremlin on the situation in Ukraine. Photograph: EyePress News/REX/Shutterstock
You’ve all seen it now. The small, mean, vicious yet weirdly blank eyes. The stubby stabbing fingers that jab as he humiliates his underlings, making them shake with fear. The joy he takes in sadism. It’s almost comedy villain stuff. But cliches exist for a reason. And we need to stop kidding ourselves about Putin – and start taking steps to deal with him.

For decades we’ve wanted to avoid the challenge. Not so much appease as just hope he goes away. It’s a headache having to face up to the blunt fact that Putin is trying to utterly change the world. His aims are impossible to ignore now. The Kremlin’s foreign policy thinktanks are already churning out articles about how his invasion of Ukraine means the start of a “multipolar world”. Ignore the geopolitical PR. All multipolar means here is emboldened fascism. Before the political scientists among you get all carried away debating endlessly what “fascism” means let me explain my terms.

I mean Orwell’s boot stamping endlessly on people’s faces. I mean the underlying psychology that shines through in the violence that suffuses all of Putin’s language. Just last week, to give one small example, as Putin spoke with Macron, the Russian president casually invoked a Russian rape joke about Sleeping Beauty to explain what he would soon do to Ukraine. Conflating Ukraine and Sleeping Beauty, he gleefully put himself in the role of the rapist: “Whether you like it or not my beauty, you will need to put up with all I do to you.” (It rhymes in Russian.)

I mean the way he uses grievance narratives, always complaining how the world has put him down. There are many people – minorities, the economically disadvantaged – who bear righteous grievance. But when the world’s richest man, a blatant bully, does it, it means something else. » | Peter Pomerantsev * | Saturday, February 26, 2022

Peter Pomerantsev is the author of Nothing is True and Everything is Possible, Adventures in Modern Russia

However rich Putin is, he is a disgusting SOB! A ruthless tyrant who will go down in the history books as one of the worst leaders the world has ever known. He is good company for Adolf Hitler! That comparison, in itself, would be enough to give any normal, rational person sleepless nights. You can be sure that Putin will lose no sleep because of such a comparison, though.

People will be talking about Putin for decades, nay centuries, to come; and what they will say, obviously, won’t be good. He will be spoken of in the most negative terms. Putin will go down as one of the most hated men ever to have walked the face of the earth.

Money can buy a person a lot; it cannot, however, buy a person peace of mind. Nor a good night’s sleep.

It is clear to us all by now that the man is mentally imbalanced. Isn’t it also fair to ask ourselves the following question: Is dementia setting in?

Perhaps I am being too kind even to ask the question! It’s probably something far more sinister. – © Mark

Authentic Ukrainian Borscht | How to Make Ukrainian Red Beet Soup

In solidarity with our European brothers and sisters in the Ukraine, who are suffering so much at the moment, I bring you this authentic Ukrainian borscht recipe…
Ingredients:

1 lb pork ribs with bone
6 cups cold water
1 medium onion
1 carrot
1 medium beetroot
2-4 potatoes
1/4 of a medium cabbage
1.5 tbsp tomato paste
parsley+garlic for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
1 bay leaf

Phil Collins : I Wish It Would Rain Down | Remastered 2016

Jan 25, 2020 • Provided to YouTube by Laika Network | Views on YouTube: 16,887,534

We Are All Living in Vladimir Putin’s World Now

Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA, via Shutterstock
OPINION : GUEST ESSAY
THE NEW YORK TIMES: Journalists writing on international affairs in the 1920s and 1930s referred to the era as “postwar.” They saw events through the prism of the Great War that had devastated Europe just a few years earlier. Historians writing today refer to these same years as the “interwar” period, for the simple reason that they analyze what happened during those years as part of the lead-up to the even more destructive World War II. If only those journalists writing in 1930s Europe had the clarity of hindsight.

We should all have that clarity today. Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine is one of those moments that impels us to reinterpret our own era: what we called the 30-year peace that followed the Cold War (tending to forget, consciously or unconsciously, the wars in the former Yugoslavia) has now ended. Future historians will look at these last decades, by and large, much like they look at the interwar period, as an opportunity squandered.

The sooner we all admit it, the better we can prepare for what comes next. Unfortunately, a kind of self-serving denialism pervades Western capitals and prevents us from seeing the obvious. Passionate pleas to defend post-Cold War European order have no meaning because this era is over.

In the wake of Russia’s occupation of Crimea in 2014, Angela Merkel, then-chancellor of Germany, talked to President Vladimir Putin of Russia and reported to President Barack Obama that, in her view, Mr. Putin had lost touch with reality. He was, she said, living in “another world.” Today, we are all living in it. In this world, to quote Thucydides, “the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” » | Ivan Krastev * | Sunday, February 27, 2022

* Mr. Krastev is a permanent fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna and an expert on international politics.

Putin Orders Nuclear Deterrent Forces in Russia to Be on 'High Alert'

Feb 27, 2022 • Russian President Vladimir Putin has put his nuclear deterrent forces on "high alert" as international tensions rise over Russia's four-day invasion of Ukraine.

Related article.

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.