1 Mar, 2023 21:10

Germany's army cannot defend the country – defense minister

Boris Pistorius has claimedthe government neglected the armed forces for decades

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius claimed on Monday that the country’s army isn’t prepared to protect the nation against military aggression. The minister made the remarks during a meeting with fellow members of the Social Democratic Party (SPD).

“We have no armed forces that are capable of defending [the country], that is, capable of defending [it] against an offensive, brutally waged aggressive war,” Pistorius said.

The minister said the Bundeswehr isunderstaffed and under-equipped after decades of neglectfrom the federal government. Pistorius added that Germany would have to invest much more in its military in order to be up to NATO standards.

Lieutenant General Alfons Mais, the commander and highest ranking officer of the German army, told the DPA press agency on Sunday that the €100 billion previously promised by Chancellor Olaf Scholz would not be enough to make the country’s armed forces battle ready. He further added that “the army that I have the duty to lead is more or less bare.”

Further remarks about the Bundeswehr’s lack of combat readiness came from the chairman of the German Armed Forces Association, Colonel Andre Wustner, who claimed in an interview on Sunday to Bild that of the approximately 300 Leopard 2 tanks in stock, “only 30% are currently operational.”

Despite this assessment, Germany has been providing extensive support to Ukraine in the conflict with Russia, sometimes at the expense of its own defense capabilities. Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, the country's top military contractor, told the Pioneer podcast on Tuesday that the government transferred to Ukraine two state-of-the-art air defense systems that were meant to protect the German capital.

Berlin’s continued weapon shipments to Ukraine have also been met with protest among Germans. Die Linke (Left Party) organized a rally on Saturday calling for Scholz to stop arming Kiev that organizers claimed was attended by around 50,000 people.

https://www.rt.com/news/572291-german-army-cannot-defend-minister/

1 Mar, 2023 21:18

Blinken finds ‘positive elements’ in Chinese Ukraine peace roadmap

The US secretary of state said Beijing’s 12-point plan had aspects to it that echoed Kiev’s own suggestions

Beijing’s recently proposed roadmap to resolving the Ukraine crisis includes several “positive elements” but ultimately rings hollow because China has not provided support to Kiev, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed on Wednesday during his visit to Uzbekistan.

The top diplomat noted that China’s proposal even contained some points found in Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s own peace plan, such as the need to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries.

However, Blinken stated that if Beijing was serious about its plan, it “would have been spending all of the last year working in support of the restoration of Ukraine’s full sovereignty,” while Moscow carried out its military operation in the country.

Instead, Blinken says China has been advancing “Russian propaganda” about the conflict, providing economic and diplomatic cover for Moscow amid tightening Western sanctions and even allegedly contemplating sending military aid to Russian forces.

Last week, China unveiled its 12-point plan to resolve the Ukrainian conflict, which included calls for resuming peace talks, condemning unilateral sanctions and upholding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.

The plan was welcomed by Moscow, which supported the notion of resolving the ongoing conflict through peaceful means. The Kremlin noted, however, that it saw no opportunity for a political resolution to the crisis at the moment.

Meanwhile, Kiev’s backers in the West have brushed off Beijing’s proposal, with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stating that China didn’t have “much credibility” in the issue. Western leaders have instead focused on repeatedly warning China against considering supporting Russia’s military campaign.

Blinken has stated that such a move would create a “serious problem” for US-China relations and result in Washington sanctioning any Chinese company that violates US sanctions or is “otherwise engaged in supporting” the Russian military operation.

China has rejected claims that it plans to provide any lethal aid to Moscow and has accused the US of hypocrisy and of fueling the conflict in Ukraine by continuing to send billions of dollars worth of weapons to Kiev.

https://www.rt.com/news/572277-blinken-china-ukraine-plan/

1 Mar, 2023 20:32

New York mayor claims mandate from heaven

Eric Adams told an interfaith breakfast that the separation of church and state was a bad idea

New Yorkers slammed Mayor Eric Adams for declaring himself anointed by God, dismissing the separation of church and state, and blaming student shootings on a lack of prayer in schools in a series of bizarre remarks he made during an Interfaith Prayer Breakfast at the New York Public Library on Tuesday.

“Don’t tell me about no separation of church and state,” Adams chided attendees, declaring “State is the body. Church is the heart. You take the heart out of the body, the body dies.”

“When we took prayers out of schools, guns came into schools,” the mayor continued. Explaining that he implemented policies with a “godlike approach,” he promised that homelessness and domestic violence would be gone from the city “if we were bringing our best fight in the ring.”

Adams insisted he “strongly believe[d] in all [his] heart” that “God said, ‘I”m going to take the most broken person and I’m going to elevate him to the place of being the mayor of the most powerful city on the globe’,” joking that “He could have made me mayor of Topeka, Kansas.”

Adams’ comments did not appear to be improvised, with his aide Ingrid Lewis-Martin introducing him to the assembled religious leaders in a similar vein. “Definitely one of the chosen,” Adams was a mayor whose government “doesn’t believe” in separating church and state, she said.

Many of the guests were reportedly appalled. Rabbi Abby Stein told the New York Times on Tuesday that she and “several people sharing her table” had reacted withimmediate horror, repeating “no, no, no, no” as the mayor’s “unhinged and dangerous” remarks washed over them.

New York Civil Liberties Union director Donna Lieberman said she was “speechless” to hear Adams inveighing against one of the nation’s foundational concepts. “As mayor, he’s bound to uphold the Constitution, which provides for separation of church and state,” she pointed out.

But Adams’ spokesman Fabien Levy insisted the mayor’s remarks had been misinterpreted, arguing the former NYPD officer merely meant “the policies we make as an administration are rooted in the mayor’s belief in the creator.”

https://www.rt.com/news/572289-adams-church-state-weird-speech/

1 Mar, 2023 16:20

Turkish FM speaks out on sanctioning Russia over Ukraine

==Ankara only supports UN-backed restrictions, Mevlut Cavusoglu says

Turkish FM speaks out on sanctioning Russia over Ukraine==

Türkiye will not be joining unilateral sanctions imposed on Russia by the West over the conflict in Ukraine, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday.

Cavusoglu was asked how long Ankara would be able to resist pressure from the US and its allies to put restrictions on Moscow ahead of talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting in India’s capital New Delhi.

We don't need to resist anyone, we make our own decisions as a sovereign state. We don't join any unilateral sanctions. We support only those [restrictions that are] introduced with the backing of the UN,” the foreign minister replied, as cited by the media.

“It’s not just about Russia, but we also don’t support sanctions against Iran or any other country,” Cavusoglu pointed out, adding that “no one can put pressure” on Türkiye.

India, which chairs the G20 this year, is hosting the summit of foreign ministers on Wednesday and Thursday.

An Indian foreign ministry official told Reuters on Wednesday that New Delhi didn’t want the conflict in Ukraine to dominate the discussions at the event, but acknowledged that it would likely be among the top issues on the agenda. The host nation’s “intention [is] to continue playing the voice of the Global South [Latin America, Africa, Asia and Oceania] and raising issues pertinent to the region,” the official said.

High-ranking Indian diplomat Vinay Kwatra told reporters that “questions relating to food, energy and fertilizer security, [and] the impact that the conflict has on these economic challenges that we face” will be among those to receive “due focus” in New Delhi.

However, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, who is a stalwart supporter of Kiev, insisted that India should use the G20 gathering to “make Russia understand that this war has to finish.” According to Borrell, the “success” of the whole meeting “will be measured in respect to what we will be able to do on that.”

An EU source said separately the EU delegation in New Delhi won’t support the final statement as a result of the summit if it doesn’t include condemnation of Russia’s conduct in Ukraine, Reuters reported.

https://www.rt.com/russia/572270-russia-turkey-india-g20/

1 Mar, 2023 10:51

Russia moves to extend anti-smear legislation

The State Duma will consider amendments to protect volunteer units and other entities aiding Russian forces in Ukraine

Russian lawmakers could expand legislation so that any attempts to discredit personnel and entities involved in the country’s military operation in Ukraine can be punished, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin has announced. Current legislation covers only the discrediting of Russian military and government agencies.

Writing on Telegram on Wednesday, Volodin revealed that the lower house of the Russian parliament would look into the initiative, which he said “would protect everyone who is now risking their lives while ensuring the security of the country and our citizens.”

The Duma official stated that any actions aimed at smearing the Russian Armed Forces or those who assist them, including volunteer formations, was unacceptable.

Perpetrators could face “severe punishment,” including a prison term of up to 15 years, community labor of up to five years, and fines of up to 5 million rubles ($66,500), Volodin added.

The initiative comes after Evgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner private military group, published an open letter to Volodin in late January, asking the speaker to introduce amendments targeting anyone who attempts to discredit volunteers, including ex-convicts, who are involved in Russia’s military operation in Ukraine. At the time, Volodin promised that the State Duma would consider the issue.

To enter into force, the amendments must pass three readings in the State Duma, be approved by the Federation Council – the upper house of parliament – and be signed into law by the president.

Following the launch of Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine in February 2022, Russian authorities have significantly intensified efforts to combat false information about the nation’s forces. In early March, Russia adopted legislative changes which allow the authorities to impose large fines on those who break the law. Should such activities entail “grave consequences,” offenders could face a prison term of up to 15 years.

https://www.rt.com/russia/572249-russia-discreditation-legislation-ukraine/

1 Mar, 2023 12:14

EU nation seeks to ban Russian nuclear industry

Lithuania has called the latest European Union sanctions a “compromise” and wants to expand them

Lithuania will keep pressing Brussels to place restrictions on Russian atomic power and to add the country’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom to the EU blacklist, the president of the Baltic nation, Gitanas Nauseda, stated on Tuesday.

The EU has not imposed sanctions on Rosatom despite repeated requests from Ukraine and the bloc’s most vocal critics of Russia, Lithuania and Poland. The move has been blocked by some EU members that rely on Russian nuclear fuel and technology.

“Due to specific actions by quite specific countries this [placing sanctions on Rosatom] has not been done,” Nauseda said, apparently referring to Hungary, which has four Russian-built nuclear reactors and plans to expand that by two more.

“We will keep fighting and there will be the eleventh and twelfth packages. We will fight, we will not calm down,” vowed the Lithuanian president.

Meanwhile,Russian nuclear fuel and technology sales soared last yearas imports by EU countries climbed to the highest level in three years, according to recent data compiled by the UK’s Royal United Services Institute.

The figures show NATO members including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia continued to buy reactor fuel from the sanctioned country last year. These nations are heavily reliant on nuclear know-how from Russia to run the power plants that produce up to half of the electricity they need.

Nauseda said the latest round of sanctions on Russia was a “compromise” like the previous nine packages, and that he was not “particularly happy” about it.

The tenth package of EU sanctions was adopted on Saturday. It targets, among other things, Western exports of advanced technologies and imports of high-revenue goods from Russia, and has a total value of €12.7 billion ($13.4 billion).

https://www.rt.com/business/572218-lithuania-russia-nuclear-industry-sanctions/

1 Mar, 2023 09:51

Russian allies facing ‘unprecedented pressure’ from US – security chief

Moscow is grateful to Venezuela for condemning “destructive” policies by the West, Nikolay Patrushev said during a visit to Caracas

The US will use any means necessary to force countries to cut ties with Moscow, the head of Russia’s Security Council, Nikolay Patrushev, said during a visit to Venezuela. He also warned that Washington is intent on preserving a unipolar world order.

Patrushev held security consultations with his Venezuelan counterpart Jose Adelino Ornelas Ferreira and other high-ranking officials in Caracas on Tuesday.

The Russian security chief argued that “all sovereign states are currently experiencing a moment of truth when they have to make a choice either to defend the freedom to select their path, their own values and identity, or to submit to the dictate of the so-called collective West, led by the US.”

In their attempts to preserve the unipolar world order, Washington and its allies resort to “political pressure, military blackmail, financial enslavement, economic sanctions and, of course, deceitful propaganda,” he insisted.

Moscow’s international partners have faced “unprecedented pressure from the US, which is trying to force them to cut any ties with Russia, no matter how close and beneficial they may be,” Patrushev stated.

The security official added that Russia is “grateful” to Venezuela for resisting those attempts and backing Moscow. “We appreciate the Bolivarian [Venezuelan] leadership’s public condemnation of the destructive policies by the West and NATO, as well as the aggression unleashed against Russia,” Patrushev said, referring to the conflict in Ukraine.

During the consultations, the prospect of enhancing interaction between the two nations’ justice ministries, security, and law enforcement agencies was discussed, the Russian Security Council said. Special attention was paid to countering Western-backed ‘color revolutions’, the statement added.

Patrushev later met with the Latin American nation’s president, Nicolas Maduro, at the Miraflores Palace.

The Russian security chief told Maduro that relations between Moscow and Caracas were a “strategic partnership” that was paramount for maintaining international security and stability.

The Venezuelan leader wrote on Twitter that cooperation at different levels for the benefit and development of both nations had been discussed.

In the run-up to the meeting with Patrushev, Maduro tweeted that Venezuela was taking “firm steps towards building the new world of equals, of respect, solidarity and cooperation.”

https://www.rt.com/news/572242-venezuela-maduro-patrushev-us/

1 Mar, 2023 09:39

US ready ‘to do more pain’ to China’s Huawei – WSJ

Washington reportedly plans to halt export licenses to the tech company

The US government is considering annulling existing licenses for American firms to export items to Chinese telecom giant Huawei Technologies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing its sources.

According to the report, the measure could be viewed as broader tightening of technology trade on national security grounds.

“The policy that had allowed exports to Huawei, notwithstanding the entity listing, is being wound down,” an unnamed former senior security official familiar with the matter was quoted as saying. “The White House is now telling Commerce, ‘Cut off the 4G sales, the time has come to do more pain to Huawei, to try to finish their demise,’” he reportedly stated.

Huawei has been subjected to American export restrictions on items for 5G and other technologies for several years, but the US Department of Commerce has granted licenses for some American companies to sell certain goods and technologies to the Chinese firm.

However recently, Washington indicated that it was considering not granting any such export licenses to companies such as Qualcomm and Intel, which produce chips needed for smartphones and other devices.

Huawei was placed on a US trade blacklist in 2019, with most American suppliers barred from shipping goods and technology to the company unless they were granted licenses. The measure is aimed at cutting off the Chinese company’s ability to buy or design the semiconductor chips that power most of its products.

Tensions between the US and China, the world’s two largest economies, have been on the rise as they compete for domination in key technology areas, including semiconductors. In October, the Biden administration unveiled sweeping restrictions on China’s ability to buy semiconductors and chip-making equipment, placing the country’s companies on a list for further scrutiny.

https://www.rt.com/business/572202-us-china-huawei-technology-ban/

>>18430237

Don’t anons think its weird Adams considered he’s appointed by God to be mayor of NY. My question is what God he speaks of, the crime wave us equal or worse than the last one. He seems to be afraid he’ll get voted out and he should, along with Hoschul, Make NY Red Again!