RUSSIA

thelivyjr
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Re: RUSSIA

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THE DRIVE

"The Ukraine Situation Report: Cross-Border Sabotage Raids And CIA Operatives In Kyiv - A clearer image is coming into view of the clandestine aspects of Ukraine’s defense as Russian missiles strike a crowded mall."


BY HOWARD ALTMAN

JUN 27, 2022

Though much of the attention on Russia’s war in Ukraine is focused on the battle for Donbas, and understandably so, there’s a shadow war taking place out of the public eye.

Over the weekend, The New York Times reported that “some C.I.A. personnel have continued to operate in the country secretly, mostly in the capital, Kyiv, directing much of the vast amounts of intelligence the United States is sharing with Ukrainian forces, according to current and former officials.”


Meanwhile, “a few dozen commandos from other NATO countries, including Britain, France, Canada and Lithuania, also have been working inside Ukraine.”

Ukraine is conducting its own shadow war as well, according to the Times of London, with troops from the Shaman battalion, a nickname given to Ukraine’s 10th Special Forces Detachment, taking part in cross-border sabotage missions.

“The exact targets are classified but the teams’ forays across the border help to explain how Russian oil refineries, ammunition depots and communications networks have been mysteriously sabotaged,” the paper reported.

We are just learning about these actions and while we are unable to independently confirm them, they do offer a glimpse, if true, about how Ukraine is taking matters into its own hands to defend itself by striking across the border.

The latest

Rescue operations continue after more than a thousand civilians were in the Amstor mall in Kremenchuk hit by Russian missiles on Sunday, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said on his Telegram page.

“The mall is on fire, rescuers are fighting the fire, the number of victims is impossible to imagine,” Zelensky wrote.

“No danger to the Russian army."

"No strategic value."

"Only the attempt of people to live a normal life, which so angers the occupiers."

“Russia continues to place its powerlessness on ordinary citizens."

"It is useless to hope for adequacy and humanity on her part.”

The Russians, however, claim that the intended target was the Kremenchuk road machine plant about 100 yards away where they say Ukrainian military equipment has been repaired since 2014

So far, three deaths have been confirmed, while 20 others have been hospitalized, nine of them in critical condition, said Poltava regional state administration head Dmytro Lunin, according to the Pravda Gerashchenko Telegram page.

Ukraine officials say they've struck Snake Island, the strategically important Black Sea rock, yet again, once more eliminating a Russian Pantsir air defense system.

Russia, without offering any proof, denied any damage and said it was Ukraine that suffered losses.

The U.S. will soon announce it will supply Ukraine with the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS.

This system is one that Kyiv has considered introducing itself in the past and Ukrainian Air Force pilots have also highlighted it as one of the best solutions to help overhaul the country’s surface-to-air missile inventory.

According to a report from CNN, citing an anonymous source, a U.S. announcement regarding the purchase of NASAMS systems for Ukraine is likely to come this week.

It is expected to be part of the latest package of arms and other support for Kyiv, together with additional artillery ammunition and counter-battery radars.

The Pentagon says it continues to “work diligently” to get the additional four M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) into Ukraine that were announced last week as part of the latest Presidential Drawdown Authority, a senior U.S. defense official told reporters Monday morning.

The official added that the second round of HIMARS training should coincide with that as well.

Ukraine has already used the systems, including an incident in which it says it struck a Russian command post in Donbas.

“We're conducting training out of Ukraine, in Germany and England,” said the official, adding that involves everything from maintaining to operating the donated HIMARS units.

There were more than 60 missile strikes across Ukraine over the weekend, including at Kyiv, Lviv, Chernihiv and Odesa, the official said.

“They certainly could be a protest against the G7 [summit] or the arrival of the HIMARS.”

On Sunday, the Institute for the Study of War suggested the strikes were indeed a protest against the ongoing G7 summit.

“This is the first such major strike on Kyiv since late April and is likely a direct response to Western leaders discussing aid to Ukraine at the ongoing G7 summit, much like the previous strikes on April 29 during UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ visit to Kyiv,” ISW reported.

There were other explosions of note recently as well.

Russian military warehouses well behind the front lines apparently blew up, Euromaidan Press reported on Twitter.

"Locals have reported huge fire in the Russian-occupied Svatove following the explosions."

"The explosions happened in the Russian military warehouses, according to the Luhansk Oblast head."

"Svatove is more than 60 kilometers behind the frontline."

The Ukrainian pullout from Severodonestk over the weekend offers lasting lessons, the official told reporters.

“The small number of Ukrainians that held the Russians at Severodonetsk as long as they did is really something we'll probably all study in the future,” the official said.

“And when they chose to leave Severodonetsk, they chose to do it of their own accord, and to give that up in order to move to better prepare locations for the continuing of that defense.”

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu may or may not have visited Ukraine to meet with Russian generals and hand out medals.

Many media outlets, like The Mirror, report that he was in Ukraine, citing the Russian Ministry of Defense.

However, Reuters added a correction to its story "to show that Shoigu visited troops involved in the Ukraine operation, according to the defence ministry."

"It was not immediately clear whether or not he visited Ukraine."

Photos of a rotund Russian general taking command hit social media over the weekend, with that officer being called “the bottom of the barrel.”

The senior U.S. defense official said the Pentagon was aware of “several reliefs of Russian generals in Ukraine."

While the official deferred specifics to the Russian Ministry of Defense, “we do continue to see concerns with that leadership, and continued morale concerns with Russian forces.”

Ahead of the NATO summit in Madrid this week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the organization was boosting its high readiness forces to well over 300,000.

There are currently about 40,000 NATO Response Force troops.

The increase includes:

More prepositioned equipment, and stockpiles of military supplies.

More forward-deployed capabilities, like air defense.

Strengthened command and control.

And upgraded defense plans, with forces pre-assigned to defend specific Allies.

“Together, this constitutes the biggest overhaul of our collective deterrence and defense since the Cold War,” he said.

The Panzerhaubitze, a German self-propelled 155 mm howitzer, was spotted in the wild in Ukraine.

"Expected for so long: the German #Panzerhaubitze safely camouflaged in the bushes, was already in action," said German TV reporter Katrin Eigendorf in a tweet.

"Ruslan has just returned from Germany where he was trained."

"The question: will the howitzer be in time to stop the Russian advance?"

The arrival of the German howitzer in Ukraine was first announced six days ago by Ukraine Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov.

Russia continues to steal Ukraine's grain.

In an exclusive report, BBC says it has evidence and explains how it’s happening.

"They take grain to the annexed Crimea first, where they transport it to Kerch or Sevastopol [ports], then they load Ukrainian grain on Russian ships and go to the Kerch Strait," BBC quotes Andrii Klymenko, an expert at the Institute for Black Sea Strategic Studies in Kyiv, who regularly monitors movements of ships around Crimea.

"There, in the Kerch Strait [between Crimea and Russia], they transfer Ukrainian grain from small ships on to bulk carriers, where it is mixed with grain from Russia - or in some cases, they sail to this area just to give the appearance they are loading up with Russian grain."

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/t ... es-in-kyiv
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Re: RUSSIA

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REUTERS

"U.S. to boost military presence in Europe as NATO bolsters its eastern flank"


By Aislinn Laing, Andrea Shalal and Robin Emmott

June 29, 2022

Summary

* Finland, Sweden to join NATO after ratification

* Biden promises more troops, weapons to Europe

* NATO agreed new force structure to deter Russia

* Madrid protesters call for more arms to Ukraine


MADRID, June 29 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden pledged more American troops, warplanes and warships for Europe on Wednesday as NATO agreed the biggest strengthening of its deterrents since the Cold War in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Biden's commitment at the Madrid summit "to defend every inch of allied territory" came as the U.S.-led military alliance also set in motion a new plan to reinforce the Baltic states and Poland against any future Russian attack.


With more German, British and other allied troops to be on alert to deploy eastward, the United States is also adding to the 100,000 personnel already in Europe by sending more warships to Spain, planes to Britain, pre-positioned weapons to the Baltics and more soldiers to Romania.

"We mean it when we say an attack against one is an attack against all," Biden said.

However, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi played down a threat of a near-term armed confrontation between NATO and Russia.

"There is no risk of a military escalation."

"We must be ready, but there is no risk," he said.

The Baltics originally sought permanent NATO bases and as much as a tenfold increase to NATO's troop presence from around 5,000 multinational soldiers prior to the Ukraine invasion, as well as adding air and maritime defences.

What NATO agreed on Wednesday falls short of that, but it means more allied troops in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, more equipment, weapons and ammunition sent to the region, and setting up a system of rapid reinforcements.

NATO leaders agreed to move towards putting more than 300,000 troops at higher readiness.

In the past, the alliance relied on far fewer troops - some 40,000 - to be first in line to respond to any Russian attack or other crises.

"President (Vladimir) Putin's war against Ukraine has shattered peace in Europe and has created the biggest security crisis in Europe since the Second World War," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference.

"NATO has responded with strength and unity."


The United States will also create a new permanent army headquarters in Poland, which was immediately welcomed by Polish president Andrzej Duda, as Warsaw long sought a permanent U.S. military base on its soil.

"It is a fact that strengthens our safety a lot ... in the difficult situation which we are in," Duda said.

As NATO also agreed a long-term military and financial aid package for Ukraine, Ukrainian refugees gathered in central Madrid to call for more arms for their nation, which is now facing a war of attrition against superior Russian artillery in the east of the country.

Ukrainian student Kateryna Darchyk, 20, told Reuters: "We ask for NATO to give us weapons because we have soldiers, we have people ready to fight for Ukraine, men and women who are ready to protect their country."

END OF NORDIC NEUTRALITY

In addition, NATO's 30 leaders invited Finland and Sweden into the alliance, a decision that once ratified would end decades of Nordic neutrality by putting the two countries under the United States' nuclear umbrella.

"The significance of this really can't be overstated," Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters.

"We're seeing the expansion of the alliance, which is exactly the opposite of what Putin wanted."

"He wanted less NATO, he's getting more."

That was made possible after Turkey dropped its veto against the two countries' progress to membership following four hours of talks on Tuesday evening in Madrid, ending weeks of drama that threatened allied unity.

As part of the deal, Sweden and Finland agreed not to support Kurdish militant groups.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to block their bids over Ankara's accusations the two countries supported a Kurdish militia in northern Syria.

Turkey views the militia as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which is also deemed a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union.

Both Finland, which has a 1,300 km (810 mile) border with Russia, and Sweden, home of the founder of the Nobel Peace Prize, are now set to bring well-trained militaries into the alliance, possibly giving NATO Baltic Sea superiority.

"We are not yet covered by NATO's Article 5," Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told Reuters, referring to NATO's collective defence clause.

"Our aim is that period should be as short as possible," he said.

Additional reporting by Sabine Siebold, Belen Carreno, Humeyra Pamuk and Guillermo Martinez and Kylie MacLellan in London and Giulia Segreti in Rome, writing by Robin Emmott; Editing by Tomasz Janowski

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/us ... 022-06-29/
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Re: RUSSIA

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THIS TWERP ZELENSKY DIDN'T EVEN KNOW RUSSIA WAS GOING TO INVADE HIS COUNTRY, SO WHAT ON EARTH DOES HE KNOW ABOUT RUSSIA'S INTENTIONS ABOUT ANYTHING, AND WHY IS ANYONE IN NATO OR ELSEWHERE STUPID ENOUGH TO LISTEN TO HIM?

BECAUSE NATO IS MORE IGNORANT ABOUT REALITY THAN EVEN ZELENSKY, A TV COMEDIAN, IS?

REUTERS

"Ukraine tells NATO Russia wants to dictate future world order"


By Pavel Polityuk

June 29, 2022

KYIV, June 29 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told NATO leaders on Wednesday his country needed more advanced weapons and money to defend itself against Russia, warning that Moscow's ambitions did not stop at Ukraine.

He put the monthly cost of defending Ukraine against Russia's invasion at about $5 billion.

"This is not a war being waged by Russia against only Ukraine."

"This is a war for the right to dictate conditions in Europe - for what the future world order will be like," he said in a virtual address to a summit of the Western defence alliance in Madrid.


"That is why it is absolutely necessary to support Ukraine, even now, with weapons, finances and political sanctions against Russia, which will stop its ability to pay for the war."

Zelenskiy said Ukraine needed modern missile and air defence systems to counter Russia's artillery.

"By providing them to us, you can completely break Russia's tactics to destroy cities and terrorise civilians," he said.

Moscow calls its actions a "special military operation" to disarm Ukraine and rid it of what it calls anti-Russian nationalism fomented by the West.

Ukraine and the West say Russia launched an unprovoked war of aggression.

Zelenskiy said Russia did not want to stop at taking areas of southern Ukraine or the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, where the heaviest battles of the war are being fought.

"It wants to absorb city after city in Europe, which the Russian leadership considers its property and not independent states."


"This is Russia's real goal," he said.

"The question is - who is next for Russia?"

"Moldova?"

"The Baltic States?"

"Poland?"

"The answer is all of them."

He said NATO was adapting a new 10-year strategy that was "first and foremost a strategy for the security of your societies, your states" while Ukraine suffered "cruise missiles, torture, murder of children, rape of women."

"Financial support for Ukraine is now no less important than aid with weapons," he said.

"We need about $ 5 billion a month - and that's a fundamental thing."

"This is exactly what is needed for defence, for security."


Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/uk ... 022-06-29/
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Re: RUSSIA

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

"Russia and China slam NATO after alliance raises alarm"


By JILL LAWLESS, JOSEPH WILSON and SYLVIE CORBET, Associated Press

30 JUNE 2022

MADRID (AP) — NATO was facing rebukes from Moscow and Beijing on Thursday after it declared Russia a “direct threat” and said China posed “serious challenges ” to global stability.

The Western military alliance was wrapping up a summit in Madrid, where it issued a stark warning that the world has been plunged into a dangerous phase of big-power competition and myriad threats, from cyberattacks to climate change.

NATO leaders also formally invited Finland and Sweden to join the alliance, after overcoming opposition from Turkey.

If the Nordic nations’ accession is approved by the 30 member nations, it will give NATO a new 800-mile (1,300 kilometer) border with Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned he would respond in kind if the Nordic nations allowed NATO troops and military infrastructure onto their territory.

He said Russia will have to “create the same threats for the territory from which threats against us are created.”

China accused the alliance of “maliciously attacking and smearing” the country.

Its mission to the European Union said NATO “claims that other countries pose challenges, but it is NATO that is creating problems around the world.”


Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told the summit that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had brought “the biggest overhaul of our collective defense since the end of the Cold War.”

The invasion shattered Europe’s peace, and in response NATO has poured troops and weapons into eastern Europe on a scale unseen in decades.

Member nations have given Ukraine billions in military and civilian aid to strengthen its resistance.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who addressed the summit by video link, asked for more.

He urged NATO to send modern artillery systems and other weapons and warned the leaders they either had to provide Kyiv with the help it needed or “face a delayed war between Russia and yourself.”

“The question is, who’s next?"

"Moldova?"

"Or the Baltics?"

"Or Poland?"

"The answer is: all of them,” he said.

At the summit, NATO leaders agreed to dramatically scale up military force along the alliance’s eastern flank, where countries from Romania to the Baltic states worry about Russia’s future plans.

It announced plans to increase almost eightfold the size of the alliance’s rapid reaction force, from 40,000 to 300,000 troops, by next year.

The troops will be based in their home nations but dedicated to specific countries in the east, where the alliance plans to build up stocks of equipment and ammunition.

President Joe Biden, whose country provides the bulk of NATO’s firepower, announced a hefty boost in America’s military presence in Europe, including a permanent U.S. base in Poland, two more Navy destroyers based in Rota, Spain, and two more F35 squadrons to the U.K.

The expansion will keep 100,000 troops in Europe for the foreseeable future, up from 80,000 before the war in Ukraine began.

Biden said Putin had believed NATO members would splinter after he invaded Ukraine, but he got the opposite response.

“Putin was looking for the Finland-ization of Europe,” Biden said.

“You’re gonna get the NATO-ization of Europe."

"And that’s exactly what he didn’t want, but exactly what needs to be done to guarantee security for Europe.”


Still, strains among NATO allies have also emerged as the cost of energy and other essential goods has skyrocketed, partly because of the war and tough Western sanctions on Russia.

There also are tensions over how the war will end and what, if any, concessions Ukraine should make.

Money remains a sensitive issue — just nine of NATO’s 30 members currently meet the organization’s target of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense.

At what Stoltenberg called a “transformative” summit, the leaders published NATO’s new Strategic Concept, its once-a-decade set of priorities and goals.

The last such document, in 2010, called Russia a “strategic partner.”

Now, NATO is accusing Russia of using “coercion, subversion, aggression and annexation” to extend its reach.

The 2010 document made no mention of China, but the new one addressed Bejing’s growing economic and military reach.

“China is not our adversary, but we must be clear-eyed about the serious challenges it represents,” Stoltenberg said on Wednesday.

NATO said that China “strives to subvert the rules-based international order, including in the space, cyber and maritime domains” and warned of its close ties with Moscow.

The alliance said, however, that it remained “open to constructive engagement” with Beijing.

China shot back that NATO was a source of instability and vowed to defend its interests.

“Since NATO positions China as a ‘systemic challenge,’ we have to pay close attention and respond in a coordinated way."

"When it comes to acts that undermine China’s interests, we will make firm and strong responses,” its statement said.

NATO also stressed the need to address political instability in Africa’s Sahel region and the Middle East — aggravated by “climate change, fragile institutions, health emergencies and food insecurity” — that is driving large numbers of migrants toward Europe.

Host Spain and other European countries pushed for this new focus.
___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine.

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Re: RUSSIA

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

"Russia's messages with missiles tell West to back off"


By TAMER FAKAHANY and CARA ANNA, Associated Press

2 JULY 2022

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The latest in a litany of horrors in Ukraine came this week as Russian firepower rained down on civilians in a busy shopping mall far from the front lines of a war in its fifth month.

The timing was not likely a coincidence.

While much of the attritional war in Ukraine’s east is hidden from sight, the brutality of Russian missile strikes on a mall in the central city of Kremenchuk and on residential buildings in the capital, Kyiv, unfolded in full view of the world and especially of Western leaders gathered for a trio of summits in Europe.

Were the attacks a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin as the West sought to arm Ukraine with more effective weapons to bolster its resistance, and to set Ukraine on the path to joining the European Union?

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko suggested as much when missiles struck the capital on June 26, three days after EU leaders unanimously agreed to make Ukraine a candidate for membership.

It was “maybe a symbolic attack” as the Group of Seven leading economic powers and then NATO leaders prepared to meet and apply further pressure on Moscow, he said.

At least six people were killed in the Kyiv strike, which pummeled an apartment building.

The former commanding general of U.S. Army forces in Europe, retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, went further in connecting the attack and the meetings.

“The Russians are humiliating the leaders of the West,” he said.


A day after the Kyiv attack, as G-7 leaders met in Germany to discuss further support for Ukraine during their annual summit, Russia fired missiles at a crowded shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, killing at least 19 people.

The timing of both attacks appeared to be juxtaposed with the European meetings of U.S. President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron, all supporters of Ukraine.

Defying the evidence, Putin and his officials deny that Russia hit residential areas.

Putin has denied that Russian forces targeted the Kremenchuk mall, saying it was directed at a nearby weapons depot.

But Ukrainian officials and witnesses said a missile directly hit the mall.

It was hardly the first time that bursts of violence were widely seen as signals of Moscow’s displeasure.

In late April, Russian missiles struck Kyiv barely an hour after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a news conference with visiting U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

“This says a lot about Russia’s true attitude toward global institutions,” Zelenskyy said at the time.

Kyiv's mayor called the attack Putin’s way of giving the “middle finger.”

The Russian president recently warned that Moscow would strike targets it had so far spared if the West supplied Ukraine with weapons that could reach Russia.

If Kyiv gets long-range rockets, Russia will “draw appropriate conclusions and use our means of destruction, which we have plenty of,” Putin said.


On Friday, a day after Russian forces made a high-profile retreat from Snake Island near the Black Sea port city of Odesa following what Ukraine called a barrage of artillery and missile strikes, Russia bombarded residential areas in a coastal town near Odesa and killed at least 21 people, including two children.

While Russia’s messaging can be blunt and devastating, Ukraine’s signals under Zelenskyy have focused daily on seeking to amplify Moscow’s cruelty to a world that day by day risks becoming weary of the war.

If interest fades, the concerted support seen at global summits could fade, too. and with it the urgency to deliver the heavier weapons that Ukraine craves.

Zelenskyy tends to pair pleas for more help with reminders that all of Europe ultimately is at stake.

He described the mall attack as “one of the most daring terrorist attacks in European history.”

For all of Ukraine’s indisputable suffering, it was a bold statement of some hyperbole in the context of extremist attacks with mass deaths in Paris, Nice, Brussels, Madrid and London in this century alone.

For Zelenskyy and Ukraine, the underlying demand cannot be reiterated enough: provide more heavy weapons, and faster, before Russia perhaps makes irreversible gains in the eastern industrial region of the Donbas, where street-by-street fighting grinds on.

In his nightly public addresses, Zelenskyy also makes sure to capture the traumatic toll on everyday life in Ukraine, appealing well beyond global leaders to the wider world.

This week, he accused Russia of sabotaging “people’s attempts to live a normal life.”

Images of the shopping mall’s smoking debris said the rest.
___

Fakahany reported from London.
___

Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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Re: RUSSIA

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THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

"White House sparks backlash after saying high gas prices guard 'liberal world order'"


Christian Datoc

1 JULY 2022

The White House's messaging on elevated gas prices continues to provoke frustration from consumers.

National Economic Council Chairman Brian Deese spoke with CNN Thursday afternoon just hours after President Joe Biden told reporters that the public should expect prices to remain at their current level for "as long as it takes" for Ukraine to win the war against Russia.


"What we heard from the president, this is about the future of the liberal world order."

"We have to stand firm," Deese said.


"At the same time, what I'd say to Americans across the country is you have a presidential administration that is going to do everything in its power to blunt those price increases and bring those prices down."

"These are uncertain times," he said about a recent poll showing that 85% believe America is on the wrong track.

"When prices are high, people are understandably frustrated when they are pulling up at the gas pump."

"That's understandable."

"At the same time, it is our job, and it’s the president’s firm conviction, that what he can do as president is to take every responsible action that he has, and we have and also remind the American people that even as we go through this challenging period, even whilst we move through this transition, we also have made historic economic progress."


National gas prices dipped roughly 20 cents to round out June, but they continue to hover above $4.80 per gallon, and Deese's comments sparked a significant negative backlash on Twitter.

Biden himself has recently sought to change his messaging on gas prices after Democratic officials urged the White House to focus on domestic solutions rather than blaming prices on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"The American people understood."

"The American people rose to the moment."

"The American people did what they always have done: defend freedom around the world."

"They chose to stand with the people of Ukraine," Biden said during a speech calling for a three-month gas tax holiday.

"So for all those Republicans in Congress criticizing me today for high gas prices in America, are you now saying we were wrong to support Ukraine?"

"Are you saying we were wrong to stand up to Putin?"

"Are you saying that we would rather have lower gas prices in America and Putin’s iron fist in Europe?"

"I don’t believe that," he said.


https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 66401ca916
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Re: RUSSIA

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THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

"German chancellor: Putin has resources to continue Ukraine war for 'long time'"


Emily Jacobs

3 JULY 2022

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned in a new interview that Russian President Vladimir Putin likely has the resources necessary to continue his military invasion of Ukraine for a "long time."

Scholz made the comments while discussing Russia's brutal war with CBS's Face the Nation in a pre-recorded interview that aired Sunday morning.

The German chancellor, who was elected to replace Angela Merkel upon her retirement, told anchor Margaret Brennan that the Russian president began preparing to invade his western neighbor at least one year before formally launching the military effort.

That time, Scholz explained, allowed Putin to stockpile necessities that would ensure he could continue his efforts for as long as necessary.

Asked by Brennan when Russia would run out of resources, meaning weapons and funds, Scholz said that: "No one really knows."

"He has — he is perhaps the leader of a very great country with a lot of people living there, with a lot of means, and he is really doing this brutal war with — and he prepared for it [for] very long," he continued.

"I think the decision to — to do this war was taken one year before it started or possibly earlier because he prepared for it."

"And so, he will be able to continue with the war really a long time."


The chancellor went on to point out that the western nations backing Ukraine in it's fight for sovereignty also had deep pockets.

"This is the message we say to [Putin]: We are able to support the Ukraine as long as necessary for defending its serenity, the democracy, the rule of law and all the things the people in Ukraine are looking for," Scholz said.

Scholz couldn't say if Putin's expansion efforts stopped at Ukraine, telling the network that the West's continued support for the European nation "will help to give him the view that this is not working and that he will not be successful."

As for a timeline for the rest of the war, the German leader told the network: "The conflict will end when Putin understands that he will not be successful with idea to conquer part of the territory of his neighbor."

Russia began invading Ukraine in late February and has turned millions of women and children into refugees fleeing the violence.

The bloodshed has also killed tens of thousands of Ukrainians and an unknown number of Russians.

President Joe Biden and other major western leaders condemned Putin as a war criminal as devastation mounted across the European country and committed to providing Ukraine with the necessary resources to fight the invasion.

Ukraine has united in its resolve to fight the continued invasion, though it is unclear how long the country will be able to keep Russian forces from taking any major cities.

Putin withdrew his forces from the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv toward the end of May in order to concentrate on taking the Donbas, which is located in the southeastern part of Ukraine and controlled by Russian-backed separatist groups.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ge ... 1fdc674acd
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Re: RUSSIA

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FOX NEWS

"Unity at G20 fails over differences on Ukraine war, Russia, US snub each other"


Caitlin McFall

8 JULY 2022

Tensions between world leaders remained heightened Friday during talks with G20 nations in Bali, Indonesia as top economies look to address the biggest problems facing the globe.

Divisions between Western nations and the increasingly unified China-Russia front highlighted stark divisions and made effective diplomacy nil when it came to issues surrounding the war in Ukraine.

Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov walked out of proceedings twice reports said Friday, first when his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock began to speak and again when Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba appeared on video.


Lavrov said the global food crisis – a major issue slated for the November summit and a result of Russia’s naval blockade in the Black Sea – was not the fault of Moscow.

"If the West doesn’t want talks to take place but wishes for Ukraine to defeat Russia on the battlefield – because both views have been expressed – then perhaps there is nothing to talk about with the West," he said, according to a report by The Guardian.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Russian counterpart reportedly ignored each other outside the proceedings – which is the first time Lavrov has met with Western leaders since Russia’s deadly invasion of Ukraine in February.

"You know, it was not us who abandoned all contacts," Lavrov told reporters.

"It was the United States."

" And we are not running after anybody suggesting meetings."

"If they don’t want to talk, it’s their choice."


Blinken reportedly directed pointed comments at Moscow during a closed-door meeting that Lavrov was not present for, accusing it of blocking millions of tons of grain and exacerbating a global food shortage.

Lavrov’s sit-in apparently did not have a rebuttal to Blinken’s comments and said she did not have prepared remarks, according to one anonymous diplomat who attended the meeting.

This week’s talks were intended to lay the groundwork for a summit set to be hosted by Indonesia in November, but the rocky diplomatic relations have set an uncertain tone for the upcoming conference.

"The world has yet to recover from the pandemic, but we are already confronted with another crisis: the war in Ukraine," Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said.

"The ripple effects are being felt globally on food, on energy and physical space."

However, officials appeared to make a point to show their disinterest in working with Russia so long as the country continues its war in Ukraine and said there would be no joint communiqué as in previous years.

Western officials apparently suggested they were focused on addressing food and energy shortages that have become a global problem following Moscow’s invasion and said they would work to establish bloc agreements to counter the growing global crises.

However, the tone of the talks were of little surprise following the stops made by Western nations and officials from Russia and China prior to the G20 meeting in Bali.

Lavrov, along with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, reportedly stopped in several Asian capitals to rally support for their position and bolster their shared ties.

Blinken, along with his German, French and British counterparts have been meeting for months and attended NATO and G7 conferences over the last week.

The Indonesian host attempted to reign in the hostilities by reminding all attendees that the world is facing monumental crises that will have devastating effects if they are not remedied.

Developing nations in the G20, like Argentina, Brazil India and Indonesia, could also face steep consequences if relations between the West remained strained with Russia and China.

"Honestly, we cannot deny that it has become more difficult for the world to sit together," Marsudi said.

"The world is watching us, so we cannot fail."

Reports surfaced Friday alleging that Western nations refused to attend a group dinner Thursday evening after learning that Lavrov would be attending.

The customary group photo was also abandoned in a boycott allegedly led by Blinken and G7 members, according to a report by Politico EU.

Lavrov reportedly turned snappish when asked about the omitted group photo shoot and told reporters, "I didn’t invite anyone to pose for a photo together with me."

"It’s obvious that they used the G20 for goals that weren’t envisaged when it was created," he said.


The Associated Press contributed to this report.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/un ... 30608e1771
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Re: RUSSIA

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THE WASHINGTON POST

"As war nears 5th month, Blinken keeps Russian diplomats at arm’s length"


John Hudson

9 JULY 2022

NUSA DUA, Indonesia — In the nearly five months since Russia invaded Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has maintained the same posture toward Moscow: Do not engage.

The top U.S. diplomat has not held a single meeting or phone call with a senior Russian official throughout the conflict — a cold shoulder strategy he continued over the weekend at a gathering of foreign ministers of the world’s 20 biggest economies in Indonesia where his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, was sometimes in the same room with him.

“The problem is this,” Blinken told reporters at a news conference on Saturday.

“We see no signs whatsoever that Russia is prepared to engage in meaningful diplomacy.”

Some veteran diplomats say the lack of contact is a mistake given the United States’ wide set of interests involving Moscow.


The war in Ukraine has killed tens of thousands of Ukrainians, sent global food and energy prices soaring, and raised military tensions between Russia and NATO to new heights.

The United States is also seeking the return of high-profile American detainees from Russia, including WNBA star Brittney Griner and Marine veteran Paul Whelan.

“The first step is opening channels of communication where you can measure what your adversary is looking for,” said Tom Shannon, a former senior State Department official with three decades of government experience.

“You can’t know unless you try.”


Blinken hasn’t spoken to Lavrov since January and chose not to meet him on the resort island of Bali despite their close physical proximity here.

The avoidance came as the G-20’s host urged her fellow diplomats to start talking to find a resolution to the conflict.

“It is our responsibility to end the war sooner rather than later and settle our differences at the negotiating table, not at the battlefield,” Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said in a keynote speech.

U.S. officials offered several reasons for not engaging, including a concern that it would be seen as inappropriate as the Kremlin engages in a brutal war, and a suspicion that the failed attempts of other countries, such as France, Turkey and Israel, to engage Moscow would only be repeated.

“A number of other countries have engaged with Russia in recent months and they report the same thing: no sign that Russia is prepared to engage in diplomacy,” Blinken said.

Critics say meetings between Russian officials and foreign allies provide a poor comparison.

“If the United States isn’t present, it’s not a serious conversation in the mind of the Russians,” said Jeremy Shapiro, a Europe scholar and former Obama administration official.

“That shouldn’t be a surprise: The United States provides the vast majority of assistance to Ukraine and is the leader of the Western coalition.”


Shannon said shifts in the war’s momentum can open diplomatic opportunities.

The United States needs to be testing Russia’s appetite for an off-ramp as the conflict evolves, he said.

“What’s happened is we’ve let a period of maximum leverage slide,” he said.

“We had the Russians on the run when they were in northern Ukraine and trying to take Kyiv and they were suffering heavy casualties,” he said.

“Since then, they've rectified that situation: moving the fight to the east and largely fighting through artillery.”

“You want to be talking through those phases,” he added.

Talking to the Kremlin in the middle of a crisis has precedent, from the Cold War to more recent conflicts.

During the George W. Bush administration, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Lavrov on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, a month after Russia invaded Georgia in 2008.

John F. Kerry, President Barack Obama’s secretary of state, spoke frequently with Lavrov after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and stoked an insurgency in eastern Ukraine.

“Being in a room with John Kerry is not a favor to anybody,” said Shapiro.

“It’s an old State Department joke but it’s an important point."

"The job of secretary of state is to talk to friends and enemies to figure out what can be done through negotiation.”

Some U.S. officials argue that Lavrov’s relative weakness within the Russian system makes him an inconsequential negotiating partner.

But advocates of engagement say they’re missing the purpose of talks.

“It’s true Lavrov is not a decision-maker but he is a conduit who faithfully reflects the position of the Kremlin,” Shapiro said.

“You wouldn’t meet with Lavrov to close the deal, but if you want to understand where the Russians are or send a message discreetly to Putin, he’s your guy.”

Russia’s frustrations with being locked out of discussions seem apparent, though officials in Moscow are loath to admit it.

Last month, Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, was overheard by a Politico reporter bemoaning the lack of contact with U.S. officials while dining at a popular Washington restaurant.

In Indonesia, Lavrov rejected the notion that he was upset but made clear that the lack of dialogue was beyond his control.

“It was not us who abandoned all contacts, it was the United States,” he said Friday.

“We are not running after anybody suggesting meetings."

"If they don’t want to talk, it’s their choice.”

Though a broad array of nations at the G-20 strongly advocated dialogue, many made clear that they blamed Russia for starting the war and exacerbating global food and energy insecurity.

“A supermajority of the delegates were critical of Russia,” said a Western official present for the closed door meetings and who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive talks.

“A minority of delegates were more even[-handed].”

The presence of Russia and its friendlier partners, such as China, India and South Africa, resulted in the meeting ending without a joint communique expressing shared goals.

The “family photo,” a hallmark of G-20 events usually featuring matching shirts, was also scrapped due to sharp disunity within the group.

Advocates of engagement admit it offers no guarantee that Russia will seek a settlement of the war, especially as the battlefield momentum shifts to Russian forces, which have captured all of the eastern region of Luhansk in recent days.

While Blinken maintains his distance, other U.S. officials have had some minor engagement with Moscow.

In March, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev.

In May, the top U.S. military officer, Gen. Mark A. Milley, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke over the phone with their Russian counterparts on security-related issues.

The scope of military-to-military discussions was limited, however, and not designed to negotiate an end to the conflict.

Blinken, who often champions the power of diplomacy, said he would seize the opportunity if he sensed Russian sincerity.

“If we see any signs that Russia is actually prepared to engage in real diplomacy and bring this war to an end, of course, we’ll engage in that,” he said on Saturday.

Others said there is only one way to find out.

“The very basis of international negotiation is that you don’t show signs of making compromises until you’re at the table making compromises,” Shapiro said.

“You don’t offer compromises before you even start.”

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Re: RUSSIA

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REUTERS

"Brazil wants to buy as much diesel as it can from Russia, foreign minister says"


By Michelle Nichols

JULY 12, 2022

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Brazil is looking to buy as much diesel as it can from Russia and the deals are being closed “as recently as yesterday,” Brazilian Foreign Minister Carlos Franca said on Tuesday, without giving further details on the transactions.

“We have to make sure that we have enough diesel to the Brazilian agribusiness and, of course, for Brazilian drivers,” Franca told reporters during a visit to the United Nations in New York.

“So that’s why we were looking for safe and very reliable suppliers of diesel - Russia is one of them.”


Brazil is looking to buy “as much as we can” from Russia, he said.

It was not immediately clear how Brazil would buy Russian diesel without coming up against Western sanctions, imposed on Moscow over its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.

When asked if there had been any Western pushback over the plan to buy diesel from Russia, Franca said: “I don’t think so.”

“Russia is a strategic partner of Brazil."

"We are partners at BRICS,” he said, referring to the group comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, a bloc seen as a powerful emerging-market alternative to the West.


“We rely heavily on fertilizers export from Russia and from Belarus as well."

"And of course, Russia it’s a great provider of oil and gas."

"You can ask Germany about that."

"Can ask Europe about that."

"So Brazil, we are in short supply of this,” he said.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Monday that a deal was close with Moscow to buy much cheaper diesel, in what would appear to be the latest tangible benefit stemming from his friendly relationship with President Vladimir Putin.

High fuel prices have hurt Bolsonaro’s re-election hopes ahead of an October vote, leaving him trailing in polls to leftist former leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Reporting by Michelle Nichols at United Nations and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis

https://www.reuters.com/article/brazil- ... SL1N2YT1Q4
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