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Biden warns Russia will pay a ‘severe price’ if it uses chemical weapons in Ukraine

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Biden warns Russia will pay a ‘severe price’ if it uses chemical weapons in Ukraine

Whereas the US has up to now not offered any proof that Russia plans to make use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, the White Home — most notably, press secretary Jen Psaki — has warned that the weapons might be used within the battle.

Russia might use chemical weapons in Ukraine or manufacture a “false flag” operation that makes use of them, Psaki stated Wednesday. The press secretary, slamming what she known as false claims from Russia that the US is growing chemical weapons in Ukraine, tweeted, “Now that Russia has made these false claims, and China has seemingly endorsed this propaganda, we must always all be looking out for Russia to presumably use chemical or organic weapons in Ukraine, or to create a false flag operation utilizing them. It is a clear sample.”

She additionally famous Russia’s “lengthy and well-documented monitor report of utilizing chemical weapons” in addition to its sample of “accusing the West of the very violations that Russia itself is perpetrating.”

The US authorities has beforehand discovered that the Russian authorities used chemical weapons in each the 2020 poisoning of Russian opposition chief Alexey Navalny and in 2018 towards Sergei and Yulia Skripal in England. Each determinations by the US led to sanctions underneath the Chemical and Organic Weapons Management and Warfare Elimination Act, which requires the President to impose financial and diplomatic sanctions if a rustic is discovered to have used chemical weapons. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned earlier this 12 months of the potential of Russia finishing up a faux or actual chemical weapons assault as a manufactured pretext for an invasion into Ukraine. However his feedback got here earlier than Russia’s full invasion started.

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Moreover, the US has stated that Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, whose regime is supported by Russia, has used chemical weapons on its folks dozens of instances throughout the battle there.

When requested about her tweets at Thursday’s press briefing, Psaki declined to take a position on hypotheticals concerning the US response if Russia had been to make use of chemical weapons in Ukraine.

“Effectively, they’ve a big organic and chemical weapons program. So it is a sample, however in addition they have the capability. Whereas I am not going to get into particular intelligence, we have a look at all of these elements,” Psaki informed reporters.

She continued, “So the target (of the tweets) was to clarify the inaccuracy of the knowledge and the misinformation they’re making an attempt to place out and clarify to the world that they not solely have the capability, they’ve a historical past of utilizing chemical and organic weapons, and that on this second, we must always have our eyes open for that chance.”

She declined to take a position on whether or not there’s any signal of imminent use of chemical weapons by Russia in Ukraine.

Pressed by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on whether or not there will likely be a army response from the US if Russia had been to conduct a chemical weapons assault, Psaki stated the present US posture has not modified.

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“I am not going to get into hypotheticals. What we’re saying proper now could be they’ve the capability and the capabilities. I am additionally not going to get into intelligence. However the President’s intention of sending US army to struggle in Ukraine towards Russia has not modified,” she stated.

Biden emphasised later Friday that the US won’t ship floor troops into Ukraine.

“We won’t struggle the third world battle in Ukraine,” Biden stated throughout a speech in Philadelphia to the Home Democratic Caucus.

He added, “I wish to be clear although, we’re going to make it possible for Ukraine has the weapons to defend themselves of an invading Russian pressure. And we’ll ship cash and meals support to avoid wasting Ukrainians lives. We’ll welcome Ukrainian refugees with open arms if in actual fact they arrive all the way in which right here.”

Throughout the speech, Biden additionally thanked Democratic Home members for his or her assist of Ukraine, noting he spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday for about an hour. Biden added that he speaks to the Ukrainian President “nearly every day.” Biden confused how vital it’s that the US and its allies transfer collectively on any strikes to counteract the Kremlin.

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“I do know I’ve often annoyed you, however extra vital than us transferring once we wish to is ensuring all of NATO is collectively, is collectively — they’ve totally different vulnerabilities than we do,” Biden stated.

White Home stops in need of saying Russia is committing battle crimes

The White Home stated Friday that there are “robust indications” that Russia is committing battle crimes in Ukraine, stopping in need of a declaration, which legally requires an investigation earlier than such an evaluation could be made.

“We now have all seen the devastating pictures popping out of Ukraine and are appalled by Russia’s brutal techniques. Pregnant ladies on stretchers, residence buildings shelled, households killed whereas looking for security from this horrible violence. We’re additionally seeing experiences of different varieties of potential abuses, together with sexual and gender-based violence,” White Home deputy press secretary Andrew Bates informed reporters aboard Air Pressure One.

He added, “These are disgusting assaults. Civilian casualties are growing. If Russia is deliberately concentrating on civilians, that may be a battle crime. And as we’re all seeing on reside tv, proof is mounting and we’re documenting it because it takes place. There are robust indications that that is occurring and that the heinous manner Russia is prosecuting this battle will end in battle crimes.”

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US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield grew to become the highest-ranking US official to say that actions dedicated by Russia towards the Ukrainian folks represent battle crimes, telling the BBC Thursday, “They represent battle crimes; there are assaults on civilians that can not be justified by any — in any manner in any way.”

Different Biden administration officers haven’t gone so far as to declare outright that Russia has dedicated battle crimes — violations of worldwide legal guidelines of armed battle — and as an alternative have pointed to “credible experiences” that such crimes have been carried out and their assist for investigations into Moscow’s actions.

Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday referenced “atrocities” dedicated by the Russians and stated that the UN ought to examine the allegations of Russian battle crimes. On Friday, Harris stated, “We’re clear that any intentional assault or concentrating on of civilians is a battle crime. Interval.”

Bates stated the US helps the human rights activists, civil society and impartial media documenting, amassing and exposing proof of doable battle crimes, human rights abuses and violations of worldwide humanitarian regulation.

The US will share that proof with allies and companions and can “assist accountability” with each software obtainable, “together with prosecutions when applicable,” Bates stated.

This story has been up to date with further reporting.

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Russia launches Christmas Day attack on Ukraine’s energy system

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Russia launches Christmas Day attack on Ukraine’s energy system

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Russia has carried out a Christmas Day attack on Ukraine’s energy system, leaving more than half a million people without heating, water and electricity. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack, the 13th large-scale assault of 2024 on the country’s grid, was “deliberate” and not a coincidence. “What could be more inhuman?” he wrote on X.

About 50 of the 70 missiles fired in the attack were intercepted, along with a “significant” portion of the more than 100 attack drones deployed, he added.

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This year Ukrainians marked Christmas Day on December 25 for the second time, after switching to the western Gregorian calendar last year. The decision to stop celebrating Christmas on January 7 in line with the Orthodox calendar was made by Kyiv to break with Russian influence.

Oleh Syniehubov, governor of Ukraine’s eastern Kharkiv region, told Ukraine’s national television news that the attack had left more than 500,000 people without heating, water and electricity.

Temperatures across Ukraine are around freezing point.

Heating supplies were also cut in some areas of Ukraine’s Ivano-Frankivsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions, in the west and south of the country. 

Ukraine’s energy grid operator, Ukrenergo, urged consumers to limit consumption by not switching on multiple appliances at once, adding that the system was still recovering from the previous Russian attack on December 13.

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Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, said that its power stations had been damaged and one of its long-term employees killed.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andriy Sybiha, said on X that the attack reflects Russian President Vladimir Putin’s response to “those who spoke about illusionary ‘Christmas ceasefire’”.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said last week that Zelenskyy had rejected his proposal for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange on the January 7 Orthodox Christmas.

Ukraine denied that such a proposal was ever on the table, asking Hungary to “refrain from manipulations” regarding the war. On Friday, Heorhii Tykhyi, spokesperson for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, described it as “PR, a move” by Orbán.

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American Airlines lifts ground stop that froze Christmas Eve travelers

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American Airlines lifts ground stop that froze Christmas Eve travelers

An American Airlines agent talks to a customer at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Ill., last week. On Tuesday, the airline issued a national halt to flights.

Kamil Krzacznski/AFP via Getty Images


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Kamil Krzacznski/AFP via Getty Images

American Airlines passengers across the U.S. endured a sudden disruption of service on Christmas Eve, as a “technical issue” forced the airline to request a nationwide ground stop of its operations.

“The ground stop has now been lifted,” the Federal Aviation Administration told NPR shortly after 8 a.m. ET.

On Facebook and X, passengers shared stories of boarding planes early on Christmas Eve — only to be left waiting on the tarmac. In some cases, they described being told the flight would return to its gate so everyone onboard could deplane.

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The ground stop lasted for about one hour, according to the airline.

 “We sincerely apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this morning,” the airline said.

In a statement sent to NPR, American says the widespread delays were caused by a “vendor technology issue” affecting systems that are needed for a flight to be “released” — one of the final key steps before a plane takes off from an airport.

Early circumstances around Tuesday’s outage seemed ominous, reminding travelers of a nightmare scenario that played out two years ago when computer problems fueled a meltdown for Southwest Airlines as it tried to cope with bad weather during the holidays.

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Southwest stranded millions of travelers — and was later ordered to pay a $140 million civil penalty.

Aviation industry veterans like George Hamlin, a consultant, notes that Southwest took the brunt of the blame for the meltdown — but, he adds, “now we’re finding out that it’s a larger, more endemic problem than that.”

Delayed American Airlines passengers who posted to social media Tuesday said pilots blamed the slowdown on a computer system that aims to ensure an optimal center of gravity by balancing planes’ cargo weight and other factors.

Winter weather also threatens to snarl Christmas Eve travel, including storms along the East and West Coasts of the U.S.

The FAA’s operations page shows nearly a dozen airports were deicing planes Tuesday morning, including at Philadelphia International, and Dulles International and Reagan National outside Washington, D.C.

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If you’re flying, the FAA recommends checking your airline’s flight status updates for potential delays. As of 9 a.m. ET, the FlightAware website’s “Misery Map” showed some 544 flights had been delayed and five canceled since 6 a.m. Nearly 120 of those delays were at Charlotte, N.C.’s, airport.

Nearly 12.7 million passengers are expected to fly on American Airlines this winter holiday season, comprising more than 118,000 flights, according to the airline. The most-traveled days in that span are both Fridays, ahead of and just after Christmas.

NPR’s Joel Rose contributed reporting.

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Private equity payouts fell 50% short in 2024

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Private equity payouts fell 50% short in 2024

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Private equity funds cashed out just half the value of investments they typically sell in 2024, the third consecutive year payouts to investors have fallen short because of a deal drought.

Buyout houses typically sell down 20 per cent of their investments in any given year, but industry executives forecast that cash payouts for the year would be about half that figure.

Cambridge Associates, a leading adviser to large institutions on their private equity investments, estimated that funds had fallen about $400bn short in payments to their investors over the past three years compared with historical averages.

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The data underline the increasing pressure on firms to find ways to return cash to investors, including by exiting more investments in the year ahead.

Firms have struggled to strike deals at attractive prices since early 2022, when rising interest rates caused financing costs to soar and corporate valuations to fall.

Dealmakers and their advisers expect that merger and acquisition activity will accelerate in 2025, potentially helping the industry work through what consultancy Bain & Co. has called a “towering backlog” of $3tn in ageing deals that must be sold in the years ahead.

Several large public offerings this year including food transport giant Lineage Logistics, aviation equipment specialist Standard Aero and dermatology group Galderma have provided private equity executives with confidence to take companies public, while Donald Trump’s election has added to Wall Street exuberance.

But Andrea Auerbach, global head of private investments at Cambridge Associates, cautioned that the industry’s issues could take years to work through.

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“There is an expectation that the wheels of the exit market will start to turn. But it doesn’t end in one year, it will take a couple of years,” Auerbach said.

Private equity firms have used novel tactics to return cash to investors while holdings have proved difficult to sell.

They have made increasing use of so-called continuation funds — where one fund sells a stake in one or more portfolio companies to another fund to another fund the firm manages — to engineer exits.

Jefferies forecasts that there will be $58bn of continuation fund deals in 2024, representing a record 14 per cent of all private equity exits. Such funds made up just 5 per cent of all exits in the boom year of 2021, Jefferies found.

But some private equity investors are sceptical that the industry will be able to sell assets at prices close to funds’ current valuations.

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“You have a huge amount of capital that has been invested on assumptions that are no longer valid,” a large industry investor told the Financial Times.

They warned that a record $1tn-plus in buyouts were struck in 2021, just before interest rates rose, and many deals are carried on firms’ books at overly optimistic valuations.

Goldman Sachs recently noted in a report that private equity asset sales, which had historically been done at a premium of at least 10 per cent to funds’ internal valuations, have in recent years been made at discounts of 10-15 per cent.

“[Private] equity in general is still over-marked, which is leading to this situation where assets are still stuck,” said Michael Brandmeyer of Goldman Sachs Asset Management in the report.

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