TheNewsGuru

Tag: Russia

  • Olympics: Putin open to Ukraine ceasefire

    Olympics: Putin open to Ukraine ceasefire

    Russian President Vladimir Putin says he is open to a ceasefire during the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris.

    French President, Emmanuel Macron confirmed it to Ukrainians that Paris would ask Moscow to agree to a truce for the duration of the Games, set for July 26 to Aug. 11, local media reported.

    In a news conference following Putin’s projected re-election on Sunday evening, Putin said he had so far, not heard of such a proposal by Macron.

    “In any case, we would always proceed from Russia’s interests and the situation on the battlefield,” the Kremlin leader said.

    The International Olympic Committee (IOC) wants to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in July and August as neutral athletes under strict conditions.

    The IOC initially banned Russia and its ally,  Belarus from international sports events after Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

    Putin said such restrictions would distort the meaning of the Olympic movement.

    The war started during the United Nations-backed Olympic Truce period, a few days after the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and ahead of Paralympics in the Chinese capital.

    Moscow had repeatedly said it remained open to negotiations to end the war under certain conditions, including being able to retain the large areas occupied in Ukraine.

  • UK criticises Russia over Putin’s election for another term

    UK criticises Russia over Putin’s election for another term

    British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has denounced the election in Russia which saw President Vladimir Putin tighten his grip on power following the stifling of any real opposition.

    The foreign secretary said “this is not what free and fair elections look like” after early results on Sunday showed the Russian president won nearly 88% of the vote.

    The result, recorded by Russia’s Central Election Commission, would be a record for Putin, extending his nearly quarter-of-a-century rule for another six-year term.

    Putin faced competition from only three candidates who had not criticised his rule nor his invasion of Ukraine.

    All serious challengers were wiped out before voting began.

    Arch foe Alexei Navalny died in an Arctic prison last month, and other critics are either in jail or in exile.
    Meanwhile, independent monitoring of the election was extremely limited, with the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) not invited to observe the three-day vote.

    Cameron tweeted: “The polls have closed in Russia, following the illegal holding of elections on Ukrainian territory, a lack of choice for voters and no independent OSCE monitoring.”

    “This is not what free and fair elections look like.”

    Earlier on Sunday, before the exit poll, Cabinet minister Mark Harper also said Russia’s elections were neither free nor fair.

    He told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I don’t think people have any illusion about whether they’re free or fair, and it’s particularly reprehensible that they’re trying to conduct those elections in parts of Ukraine, which is the sovereign state which Vladimir Putin has invaded.”

    Asked whether the UK would recognise Putin’s regime, the Transport Secretary said: “We of course have diplomatic relations with Russia, but we make our position to them very clear about their invasion of Ukraine.”

    Lord Robertson, a former secretary-general of NATO, said the West should not be intimidated by Putin.

    “I think that Putin is likely to double down again, he’ll claim this as a boost for himself and an endorsement for the military action he has taken,” he told the BBC’s The Westminster Hour.

    He said while western nations get “spooked” by Putin’s threat of using nuclear weapons, “we should not be intimidated by nuclear blackmail” because “he knows that we have got means of retaliating.”

    Russian nationals living in the UK took to polling stations on Sunday to spoil presidential election ballots in protest against Putin.

    The Russian Democratic Society – described as a community of Russian immigrants in the UK – organised a Noon Against Putin demonstration outside the Russian embassy in London.

    It came as associates of Navalny urged people across Russia to protest by crowding near polling stations at noon on Sunday.

    Putin to reshuffle senior gov’t roles after election victory

    Russia’s elite expects President Vladimir Putin to reshuffle senior government roles after his election victory, according to reports.

    Sources close to the authorities said they expected younger people to be brought in, including perhaps as deputy ministers and heads of ministerial departments.

    The older generation of government officials are expected to be demoted or retire after the election.

    Putin has not made major changes to the government since 2020.

    Changes at major state corporations, state energy behemoths and in Russia’s more than 80 regional governorships are also seen as possible.

    Top officials likely to retain their posts due to the ongoing Ukraine war are Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

    Technocratic prime minister Mikhail Mishustin and Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina are also expected to keep their jobs.

  • Putin calls on Russians to vote in flawed presidential elections

    Putin calls on Russians to vote in flawed presidential elections

    Russian President Vladimir Putin has called on the public to vote in the elections that will begin on March 15, that are overshadowed by allegations of fraud and manipulation.

    “Only you, the citizens of Russia, determine the fate of the fatherland,” Putin said in a speech broadcast on state television with excerpts quoted by Russian media earlier on Thursday morning.

    Russians are due to head to the polls for a presidential election that will conclude on Sunday, with Putin seeking a further six-year term.

    His re-election is seen as a foregone conclusion in the absence of any serious challenger, but the authorities are doing their utmost to present the poll as convincing.

    Three rival candidates, who either openly support Putin or who follow the Kremlin’s line, are seen as having no chance, according to a survey of eligible voters by a pro-government pollster earlier this week.

    “The elections are a step into the future,” said Putin.

    He also briefly mentioned the war on Ukraine, which he launched in February 2022, praising Russian soldiers for their “courage and heroism.”

    Putin also mentioned the elections being held in territories of Ukraine illegally annexed by Moscow during the war.

    These votes, organised by Moscow in Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson regions, as well as Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, are illegal under international law and are not recognised internationally as elections.

    Russians vote in presidential elections from March 15 to 17 and are widely expected to secure Putin his fifth term in office.

    Kremlin opponents are calling for the result not to be recognised as the polls do not meet democratic standards, with independent observers noting cases of fraud and manipulation.

    The central election commission did not authorise any opposing candidates to run in the election and others are in prison or have fled abroad, meaning Putin has no serious opposition.

    Just last month, dissident Alexei Navalny, a well-known Kremlin opponent who was long persecuted by the government, died in prison, his death was blamed by many in Russia and abroad on the authorities.

     

  • BREAKING: Russian military plane crashes, 15 onboard dead

    BREAKING: Russian military plane crashes, 15 onboard dead

    Russia’s Defense Ministry has confirmed a military transport plane caught fire and crashed in the Ivanovo region northeast of Moscow on Tuesday.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the military transport plane, an IL-76 aircraft, was captured descending toward the ground with one of its engines on fire.

    The footage has been circulating on social media. Other footage showed a column of black smoke rising from the crash site.

    “At about 1:00 p.m. Moscow time, an IL-76 military transport aircraft crashed during takeoff for a scheduled flight in the Ivanovo region,” the Defense Ministry was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.

    Eight crew members and seven passengers were said to have been on board the aircraft.

    “According to reports from the scene, the cause of the disaster was a fire in one of the engines during takeoff of the aircraft,” the Defense Ministry added.

    It did not say if there were any casualties.

    TASS, citing an anonymous emergency service official, reported that all 15 people on board the plane were believed to have died.

    The crash comes weeks after an IL-76 plane that Moscow claimed had been carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war crashed in a Russian region bordering Ukraine.

    The Ivanovo region is located more than 700 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

  • Paul Pogba receives offer from Russia

    Paul Pogba receives offer from Russia

    Suspended Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has received an offer from Russia.

    Pogba has been suspended for four years for doping, though he is appealing the ruling.

    And he has received an offer from a celebrity league in Russia where the Broke Boys have made a move.

    Their sporting director Artjom Chatjaturjan confirmed: “It may seem like a joke, but we called him. So far, he has politely refused.

    “He is in a desperate moment and he needs time to accept that he will not be able to play for so long.”

    Tribalfootball

  • Russia’s Medvedev fires ‘shots’ at Biden over attack on Trump

    Russia’s Medvedev fires ‘shots’ at Biden over attack on Trump

    Dmitry Medvedev, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, called Joe Biden a “mad” disgrace to the United States on Friday and said the U.S. president had no right to compare himself to Franklin D. Roosevelt.

    Biden opened his State of the Union address on Thursday with a reference to a 1941 speech to Congress in which Roosevelt said the union faced an unprecedented turning point in history.

    Biden also accused Republican rival Donald Trump of kowtowing to Russia and, just over two weeks after calling Vladimir Putin a “crazy SOB”, said he had a message for the Russian President on Ukraine: “We will not walk away.”

    “Even though Roosevelt was an infirm man in a wheelchair, he raised America from the Depression; Biden, on the other hand, is a mad, mentally disabled individual who set his mind on dragging humanity to hell,” Medvedev, a former president who is now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, wrote on X.

    “Roosevelt together with allies including the U.S.S.R., was fighting for peace; yet, Biden is actively and persistently trying to start WWIII.”

    “Roosevelt was fighting against fascists, but Biden is fighting for them,” Medvedev wrote in English. “He is the United States’ disgrace!”

    Medvedev, who cast himself as a liberal moderniser when he was president from 2008-2012, now presents himself as an anti-Western Kremlin hawk. Diplomats say his views indicate the thinking at the top levels of the Kremlin elite.

    The war in Ukraine has triggered a deep crisis in Russia’s relations with the West, and Biden angered Russian officials with his “crazy SOB” comment. Putin, with an ironic smile, said the remark showed why the Kremlin felt Biden was a preferable future president to Trump.

    Biden made that remark in a sentence about threats to the world including “that guy Putin and others,” the risk of nuclear conflict, and the existential threat to humanity from climate change.

    Putin portrays the U.S. and its allies as a crumbling empire that wants to destroy Russia and steal its natural resources.

    Biden says  U.S. won’t walk away from Ukraine

    President Joe Biden says the U.S. will continue to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    “My message to President Putin who I have known for a long time is simple: we will not walk away,” Biden said in his State of the Union address to both chambers of Congress.

    “If anybody in this room thinks Putin will stop at Ukraine, I assure you he will not,” the Democrat politician said.

    Biden, once again, called on Congress to authorise further U.S. aid for Ukraine.

    “Ukraine can stop Putin if we stand by Ukraine and supply the weapons,”  the 81-year-old said.

    He said that Ukraine was not asking for U.S. soldiers and he would not send any.

    The Republicans wanted the U.S. to relinquish its leading role in the world, he said.

    Biden also condemned statements by his predecessor Donald Trump on the NATO defence alliance.

    “It is dangerous and it is unacceptable,” he said.

    Trump recently said at an election campaign appearance that he would not provide any U.S. support to NATO allies with low defence spending in the event of a Russian attack.

    “We have to stand up to Putin,” Biden emphasised.

    The U.S. has been considered Kiev’s most important ally over the past two years since the start of the Russian war against Ukraine.

    The U.S. government has supplied Ukraine with huge quantities of weapons and ammunition.

    However, for some time now, there have been no more supplies from the U.S.

    A new aid package of around 60 billion U.S. dollars for Ukraine has passed the Senate.

    However, it is stuck in the second chamber, House of Representatives, where Republicans seem to be blocking it.

  • UK sanctions chiefs of Russian prison where Navalny died

    UK sanctions chiefs of Russian prison where Navalny died

    The UK government on Wednesday slapped sanctions on six senior officials of the Arctic penal colony where Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny died.

    The sanctioned individuals include Col. Vadim Kalinin, the head of the “Polar Wolf” IK-3 Arctic Penal Colony as well as five other people described as his deputies, namely: Lt.-Col. Sergey Korzhov; Lt.-Col. Vasily Vydrin; Lt.-Col. Vladimir Pilipchik; Lt.-Col. Aleksandr Golyakov; and Col. Aleksandr Obraztsov.

    The six officials are accused of being responsible for “activity that violates the right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and the right to life.”

    They will be banned from entering the UK, and their assets in the UK will be frozen, the UK government said.

    In addition, London called on the Russian authorities to release Navalny’s body to his family immediately and carry out a “full and transparent investigation” into his death.

    Last Friday, Russia’s penitentiary service said Navalny had died in prison, adding that the cause of death was being investigated.

    In January 2021, Navalny was arrested in Moscow upon arrival from Germany, where he had been receiving medical treatment for alleged poisoning in Russia.

    In February of that year, a court revoked his suspended sentence in the 2014 Yves Rocher fraud case for multiple probation violations and sentenced him to two and a half years in prison.

    In August 2023, Navalny was sentenced to 19 years in prison on extremism charges.

    At the time, 47-year-old Navalny was already serving several sentences for fraud, embezzlement, contempt of court, and violation of probation.

    He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

  • See countries that don’t  celebrate Valentine’s Day

    See countries that don’t  celebrate Valentine’s Day

    Valentine’s Day is observed on February 14 annually. On this day, people typically exchange modest gifts with their loved ones, and some choose to visit shopping centers for their Valentine’s Day shopping.

    It is celebrated in various ways, with some opting for a romantic dinner at home and others preferring to have fun outside. It is celebrated with great enthusiasm in many places around the world.

    Valentine’s Day is not seen as special or significant in some countries and is treated like any other day of the year.

    The following are countries
    That do not celebrate Valentine’s Day

    Russia
    Technically, Russia does celebrate a type of Valentine’s Day, but it is very different from the traditional holiday. On March 8, Russians celebrate International Women’s Day in much the same way that Western cultures celebrate Valentine’s Day.

    On this day, it is common for people to give each other flowers and chocolate. Additionally, there is an expectation for husbands and boyfriends to take care of all the cooking and cleaning, allowing women to have a day of relaxation.

    Russia does not celebrate Valentine’s Day in honor of a saint like many countries, but instead celebrates the love for women and pays tribute to them and their rights.

    Uzbekistan
    Uzbekistan is well known for its long history and diverse culture with Islam as the dominant religion. The country was tolerant of Valentine’s Day celebrations for many years until 2012 when an internal decree that bans the celebration of this holiday was issued by the Ministry of Education’s Department of Enlightenment and the Promotion of Values.

    Instead of observing Valentine’s Day, people in Uzbekistan celebrate the birthday of their country’s hero – Babur – a Mughal Emperor. Valentine’s Day is not illegal, but it is strongly discouraged in favour of commemorating Babur.

    Iran

    Iranian authorities have aimed to forbid Valentine’s celebrations, calling the holiday a “decadent Western custom” and threatening shops and restaurants with prosecution if they sell Valentine’s Day gifts.

    Despite the law against celebrating Valentine’s Day in Tehran, many restaurants have been fully booked and shops are selling teddy bears and chocolates. To avoid getting caught by inspectors, establishments use lookouts to keep an eye out for any enforcement patrols.

    Malaysia
    Malaysia is a federal, constitutional monarchy in Southeast Asia, divided by the South China Sea into two regions. The constitution grants freedom of religion, but it is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country, the population of which is approximately 60 percent Muslim. The capital is Kuala Lumpur.

    Since 2005, the celebration of Valentine’s Day has been banned. The Malaysian Islamic Development Department blames the holiday for everything from abortion to alcohol and takes the stance that it is a link of negative ills that can invite disaster and moral decay among youth. There is even an annual anti-Valentine’s Day campaign to reinforce the view. Anybody going out and celebrating does so at their own risk, including arrests.

    Indonesia
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    No law expressly prohibits the celebration of the day in Indonesia. However, in some areas of the country such as Surabaya and Makassar where people have more radical Muslim views, intimidation tactics or small-scale bans are used while in Bando Aceh, there is an outright ban.

    Saudi Arabia
    In Saudi Arabia, conservative officials strictly impose the ban on the holiday. Selling roses, red products and love-themed cards are banned in advance of February 14. The phenomenon has led to the creation of a black market of Valentine’s day products.

    Pakistan

    Pakistan has a divided stance on Valentine’s Day, as the country has experienced riots related to its celebration. In 2014, two universities in Peshawar were in conflict due to contrasting beliefs regarding the compatibility of Valentine’s Day with Islamic Law.

    Students threw rocks at one another, which eventually led to gunshots being fired from both sides, injuring three students, according to Wedded Wonderland.

    A private citizen petitioned the High Court in Islamabad to have the day banned. Finally, on February 7th, 2018, the Islamabad High Court banned Valentine’s Day celebrations and media coverage, claiming that it was a Western cultural import that contradicted Islamic teachings. Not everyone in Pakistan agrees with this decision, especially university students and flower vendors who did well on Valentine’s Day.

    India
    Owing to its independent revolution from the British empire in 1947, the Indian government refused to advocate Western values and culture.

    In 2015, party leader Chandra Prakash Kaushik told The Times of India “We are not against love, but if a couple is in love then they must get married … if they are not certain, they should not belittle love by openly going around together.”

  • Scores dead as massive Russian strike hit Ukrainian city

    Scores dead as massive Russian strike hit Ukrainian city

    The war between Russia and Ukraine reared its ugly head again  on Friday, when the former launched a massive air attack on the latter, thus killing at least 30 people and wounding scores across the country in the fiercest assault since the first days of the war nearly two years ago.

    Schools, a maternity hospital, shopping arcades and blocks of flats were among the buildings hit in the barrage, said Ukrainian officials.

    The attacks on Ukraine triggered international condemnation and fresh promises of military support to Ukraine, which has been fighting off invading Russian troops since late February 2022.

    “Today Russia hit us with almost everything it has in its arsenal,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

    According to the Ukraine Military, Russia had launched 158 missiles and drones on Ukraine and 114 of them had been destroyed.

    Interior Minister Igor Klymenko announced on Telegram: “As of now, 30 people have been killed and more than 160 wounded as a result of Russia’s massive attack on Ukrainian territory in the morning.”

    Late Friday, Russian authorities said a strike on a residential building in Belgorod, 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, had left one dead and four wounded.

    A total of 13 missiles were intercepted over the Belgorod region while 32 drones were downed overnight in the Bryansk, Kursk and Oryol regions north of the border and in the Moscow region, according to the Russian defence ministry.

    Russia’s army said it had “carried out 50 group strikes and one massive strike” on military facilities in Ukraine over the past week, adding that “all targets were hit”.

    The United Nations condemned the attacks and said they must stop “immediately”.

    “Regrettably, today’s appalling assaults were only the latest in a series of escalating attacks by the Russian Federation,” said UN assistant secretary-general Mohamed Khiari.

    Poland reported that a Russian missile passed through its airspace.

    “Everything indicates that a Russian missile entered Polish airspace… It also left,” said General Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the general staff of the Polish armed forces.

    After speaking to Polish President Andrzej Duda, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance “stands in solidarity” with Poland, adding: “NATO remains vigilant.”

     

  • Zelenksy confesses Russia is ‘Second Best Army In The World’

    Zelenksy confesses Russia is ‘Second Best Army In The World’

    Ukrainian President Vladimir tried to stay upbeat when discussing the “new phase of the conflict against Russia in an interview with the AP, claiming he had mixed emotions about the success of the counteroffensive so far.

    “We are fighting with the second (best) army in the world, I am satisfied,” he said. “We are losing people, I’m not satisfied. We didn’t get all the weapons we wanted, I can’t be satisfied, but I also can’t complain too much.”

    He reiterated fears that global attention shifting to Israel’s war with Hamas was another battlefront Ukraine had to fight, insisting “We must not allow people to forget about the war here.”