12 Feb, 2023 22:09

Chechen leader explains when Russian borders can change

It only happens when Moscow decides to do so, Ramzan Kadyrov says

Western hopes that Russia is going to be separated into several smaller states are in vain as only Moscow can decide on the shape of the country’s borders, the leader of Russia’s Republic of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has said.

“As for the breakdown of Russia, suchattempts have been made by the West since the 1990s,” Kadyrov wrote on Telegram on Sunday.

“Russian borders change only when it wants this itself,” the Chechen leader insisted, making it clear that those attempts won’t succeed.

Kadyrov said that he wrote his post in response to an “overconfident expert” from Ukraine who predicted a scenario in which the Russian state is dissolved.

The expert in question was most likely Aleksey Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, who claimed on Saturday that Russia was a colonial state that was going to fall apart anyway.

“There’ll be free Ichkeria [the name given to Chechnya by the separatists in the 1900s], Tatarstan, Dagestan. It’ll happen in the near future, and we need to prepare for this and don’t pretend that if they [Russia] have nuclear weapons, this won’t happen,” Danilov said.

Russian borders last changed in the fallwhen the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions joined Russia following referendums, in which the populations of those areas overwhelmingly supported this move.

(According to the media west and Russua, the Russian people support Putin and their country more. Especially when the west wants to send tanks from Germany with Iron Crosses on them. Russia lost 25 million citizens and generations of people, along with Putin’s entire family and his older brother dying by starvation during the Bloodlands, 2nd WW. They will never give in or break up!)

https://www.rt.com/news/571380-kadyrov-borders-ukraine-danilov/

12 Feb, 2023 12:36

African country ‘clears’ concerns over Russian base deal – AP

Sudan has reportedly concluded a review of an agreement on a planned naval station on the Red Sea

The Sudanese military has resolved its concerns over an agreement with Moscow to set up a Russian naval base on the Red Sea coast, the Associated Press reported on Saturday, citing two Sudanese officials.

“They cleared all our concerns. The deal has become OK from the military side,” an official was quoted as saying. According to the sources, Russia has also agreedto demands, including the provision of “more weapons and equipment.”

The next step is the ratification of the agreement by Sudan’s yet-to-be-formed parliament.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who visited several African states in the past week, also told reporters on Thursday that the deal was “in the process of ratification.”

According to the agreement signed in 2020, the base would house up to 300 Russian military and civilian personnel, and would simultaneouslyhost up to four warships. In 2021, Khartoum reportedly wanted to amend the deal while seeking economic aid from Moscow.

Sudan has been without a functioning parliament since 2019, when Omar al-Bashir, a leader of 30 years, was overthrown in a coup. Several political parties signed an accord in Cairo, Egypt on Tuesday aimed at dialogue as part of the transition to civilian rule.

A group of US and European envoys traveled to Sudan on the same day Lavrov met with Sudanese officials. Bloomberg cited three people familiar with the matter as saying thatLavrov’s trip “came as a surprise in Western capitals.”

Last year, the US also stepped up diplomatic engagement with Sudan, dispatching John Godfrey to serve as Washington’s first ambassador to Khartoum since the 1990s. Godfrey told local media in September that a Russian base would “lead to further isolation of Sudan at a time when most Sudanese want to become closer to the international community.”

Oleg Ozerov, a senior Russian diplomat, has accused the West of using “blatant pressure”when dealing with Africa.“I can’t say that African countries are very happy about that,”Ozerov said on Thursday.

https://www.rt.com/news/571365-sudan-russian-naval-base/

Report:Biden Administration Allowing Medicaid Funds to Pay for Groceries

Amy Furr12 Feb 2023

President Joe Biden’s (D) administration is reportedly allowing states to use Medicaid for food and nutritional counseling, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Journal reported Sunday that policy makers are trying to determine whether “food as medicine” programs can enhance health and also save money, the outlet said:

A growing body of research suggests that addressing food insecurity can improve health as well as deliver savings by reducing medical visits, the need for medication, or by helping control serious illness. The programs have also appealed to some GOP lawmakers who believe states should have more control over their Medicaid programs.

Tapping medical funds for food programs has raised objections from some who sayit is an unnecessary expansion of Medicaid. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, already helps people on lower incomes pay for food, these people say.

According to the American Society for Nutrition (ASN), the concept of “food as medicine” is between nutrition and healthcare.

“It may take many forms, including medically tailored meals, medically tailored groceries, and produce prescription programs,” the society’s website read, adding, “Evidence suggests food as medicine can work.”

Per the Journal, the concept may be in the form of programs that deliver meals for people with specific medical needs to hospitalized patients, or vouchers to help individuals get healthy foods instead of junk food.

According to Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA), who chairs the House Agriculture Committee, “food as medicine” is a good idea, however, the concept needs more consideration and study.

“In Washington sometimes, bright shiny things get a lot of attention and sometimes a lot of financial resources. Let’s look at what the needs are,” he commented.

Meanwhile, the government’s Medicaid program rolls reportedly inflated, which began draining many state’s budgets.

“Improper payments have also grown, a result of ineligible patients state officials have balked at removing, data from the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) showed,” according to a Breitbart News article from February 2022.

In late 2022, while Americans were desperate for grocery costs to go down as inflation continued plaguing the nation, food manufacturer executives said costs would not decrease in the near future.

“Historical data shows that food prices tend to steadily rise — approximately two to three percent annually — and rarely decrease,” Breitbart News reported in October.

https://www.breitbart.com/health/2023/02/12/report-biden-administration-allowing-medicaid-funds-pay-groceries/