Month: June 2022

Russian Superyacht to Leave Fiji, Court Rules 

A Fiji court has ruled a Russian-owned superyacht be removed from the Pacific island nation by the United States because it was a waste of money for Fiji to maintain the vessel amid legal wrangling over its seizure.  The U.S. Justice Department’s Taskforce KleptoCapture has focused on seizing yachts and other luxury assets of Russian oligarchs in a bid to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin over the war in Ukraine.  The 106-meter(350-foot) Amadea arrived in Fiji on April 13 after an 18-day voyage from Mexico. It was seized by Fiji authorities after the country’s High Court granted a U.S. warrant …

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Ukrainian and Russian Forces Fight for Control of Sievierodonetsk

Ukrainian and Russian forces engaged in intense street-to-street fighting in the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk on Monday, as Ukraine’s president said Russian troops were also intending to capture the key southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.   The situation in Sievierodonetsk was “changing from hour to hour,” according to the head of the city’s administration, Oleksandr Stryuk, who spoke on television.   President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces had “every chance” to gain control in the city.   His assessment came after Luhansk regional Governor Serhiy Haidai suggested Ukraine had lost ground.        Haidai said, “Our defenders managed to undertake a counterattack for a certain time. …

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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Survives No-Confidence Vote 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson survived a no-confidence vote Monday but is weakened after more than 40% of his Conservative Party voted against him remaining in office. In a secret ballot, 148 of the 359 Conservative Party lawmakers voted against Johnson. At least 180 would have had to vote against Johnson for him to be removed. The prime minister has been under heavy scrutiny since revelations last year that he and his staff held parties in his Downing Street office when Britain was under strict COVID-19 restrictions. Lawmakers across the political spectrum have voiced concerns about Johnson, and he has …

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US Orders Seizure of 2 Luxury Jets Owned by Russian Oligarch Abramovich

The U.S. Justice Department ordered the seizure Monday of two aircraft owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, saying they had been used in violation of sanctions on Russia imposed over its invasion of Ukraine. The department said in court filings that the two aircraft, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner and a Gulfstream G650ER executive jet, had been flown into Russian territory earlier this year in violation of U.S. export controls set for US-made aircraft March 2. The department’s move targets one of the wealthiest Russian billionaires, who has already been forced to sell the Chelsea Football Club in the wake of …

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US Sanctions 2 Prominent Bosnian Leaders

The United States on Monday announced sanctions on two Bosnian officials, saying they sought “to pursue ethno-nationalist and political agendas at the expense of the democratic institutions and citizens” of Bosnia. Bosnia was the site of a violent interethnic war in the 1990s after the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. The U.S. said Marinko Cavara, in his capacity as the president of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, one of Bosnia’s two postwar administrative parts, “directly or indirectly engaged in actions or policies that undermine democratic processes and institutions.” The U.S. said Alen Seranic, health and social welfare minister in …

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Belgian King to Visit DR Congo

Belgium’s King Philippe on Tuesday begins a historic visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, in a region cruelly exploited by his ancestors, as tensions rise in the volatile east. The six-day trip, at the invitation of President Felix Tshisekedi, has strong symbolic significance, coming two years after Philippe expressed to the Congolese leader his “deepest regrets” for the “wounds” of colonization. The visit, the monarch’s first to the DRC since ascending the throne in 2013, has been billed as a chance for reconciliation after the atrocities and other abuses committed under Belgian colonial rule. The visit had originally been …

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Britain Gives Ukraine Long-Range Missiles to Counter ‘Brutal Russian Artillery’

Britain announced Monday it will supply an unspecified number of long-range missile launchers to Ukraine, following the United States’ decision last week to send similar weapons. Ukrainian troops will be trained to use the systems in Britain in the coming weeks. Ukraine has repeatedly asked the West to supply longer-range weapons as it faces an unrelenting barrage of Russian artillery in the eastern Donbas region. Changing tactics Britain’s Defense Minister Ben Wallace said in a statement Monday: “The U.K. stands with Ukraine in this fight and is taking a leading role in supplying its heroic troops with the vital weapons …

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Жителів окупованого Бердянська «вітають» з Днем Росії (фото)

В окупованому Бердянську Запорізької області жителів міста вітають із російським державним святом – Днем Росії, яке відзначається 12 червня. В місті вже з’явилися тематичні білборди. Як повідомили проєкту Радіо Свобода «Новини Приазовʼя» місцеві жителі, які не називають своїх прізвищ з міркувань безпеки, це не перше свято, яке окупаційна влада міста навʼязує містянам. Зокрема серед таких – День російської мови та народження поета Олександра Пушкіна 6 червня. А раніше, 1 червня, з нагоди міжнародного Дня захисту дітей в місті влаштували частування з «пловом по-дагестанськи» та виставкою російської військової техніки. «Як і 9 травня, перекрили весь центр, а ввечері салют запускали. В країні …

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Turkey at Center of Battle to Avert Global Food Crisis

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is due to visit Turkey on Wednesday for talks, including on creating a Black Sea corridor to allow Ukrainian grain to access world markets as global food prices soar. The talks come as Ankara faces pressure to open the Black Sea to NATO ships to break Russia’s blockade of Ukraine. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

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