World

Zelensky Accuses Russia of Atrocities and Criticizes U.N.’s Inaction

Published

2 years ago

April 6, 2022

With proof mounting of atrocities within the Kyiv suburbs, and Russian forces getting ready for a brand new offensive farther east, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine delivered a scathing speech to the United Nations on Tuesday, accusing Russia of a litany of horrors and questioning whether or not a world physique that takes no motion to cease a struggle serves any goal.

Talking through video hyperlink to the U.N. Safety Council, he in contrast Russian forces to the Islamic State, referred to as for a Nuremberg-like struggle crimes tribunal and vented his bitter frustration, understanding that the council — the place Russia is one in all 5 everlasting members with veto energy — would do nothing however speak.

“The place is the safety that the Safety Council wants to ensure?” Mr. Zelensky stated, elevating the query of whether or not Russia deserved to maintain its seat on the council. “Are you prepared to shut the U.N.? Do you suppose that the time of worldwide legislation is gone? In case your reply is not any, then you could act instantly.”

The chamber fell silent as a brief video offered by Mr. Zelensky’s authorities performed, displaying a few of the tons of of corpses discovered strewn across the metropolis of Bucha, northwest of Kyiv, after Russian forces retreated final week — bloated, charred our bodies of civilians, together with youngsters. Some victims, their fingers sure, had been shot within the head.

Mr. Zelensky stated that in Bucha, “they killed complete households, adults and youngsters, they usually tried to burn the our bodies.” Civilians “had been crushed by tanks whereas sitting of their vehicles in the course of the highway,” he added, asserting that “girls had been raped and killed in entrance of their youngsters; their tongues had been pulled out.”

China shunned criticizing Russia in Tuesday’s session, saying that the Safety Council ought to wait till investigations set up the details in Ukraine. A rising world energy, China has drawn nearer to Russia in recent times, united by a shared antipathy to the USA. The divisions on the struggle appeared primarily unchanged since Feb. 26, when 11 of 15 Safety Council members voted for a decision condemning Russia’s invasion, Russia vetoed the measure, and three others abstained — China, India and the United Arab Emirates.

Russia’s U.N. ambassador, Vasily Nebenzya, reiterated his authorities’s claims — rebutted by ample proof — that atrocities in Bucha had been faked, or had not occurred when Russians held the town. He made a variety of different unsupported claims, together with stating falsely that in Ukraine — the place the freely elected president is a Jew who misplaced relations within the Holocaust — Nazis are “working the present.”

After President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia launched the struggle on Ukraine on Feb. 24, his navy turned slowed down on a number of fronts within the face of logistical failures and unexpectedly fierce Ukrainian resistance. Russian forces spent weeks shelling and occupying cities and cities in northern Ukraine, the place they took heavy losses as they didn’t seize Kyiv, the capital. Final week they pulled again from that a part of the nation, getting ready for what Russian officers and overseas analysts stated could be a shift in focus towards jap Ukraine.

“The subsequent pivotal battle of the struggle” is more likely to be for the jap metropolis of Sloviansk, in accordance with a report launched on Tuesday by the Institute for the Research of Conflict, primarily based in Washington.

Revulsion over the obvious executions found in Bucha deepened Russia’s financial isolation, regardless of its denials of duty.

The USA has began blocking Russia from making debt funds utilizing {dollars} held in American banks, a transfer designed to deplete its worldwide forex reserves and doubtlessly push Russia towards its first overseas forex debt default in a century.

And the European Union took a major step towards overcoming resistance to curbing gas imports from Russia, on which its member nations rely closely. The European Fee, the manager physique of the European Union, proposed reducing off imports of Russian coal — oil and pure fuel stay hotly debated — and barring Russian vessels from E.U. ports as a part of a brand new spherical of sanctions.

The measures, which require unanimous approval, are anticipated to go to a vote of E.U. ambassadors on Wednesday. Diplomats stated the sanctions package deal would goal, amongst others, two daughters of Mr. Putin. The European Fee president, Ursula von der Leyen, and the chief E.U. diplomat, Josep Borrell Fontelles, introduced plans to go to Kyiv this week and meet with Mr. Zelensky.

The Ukrainian prosecutor normal’s workplace stated that it, together with the Kyiv police, had found what it referred to as a Bucha “torture chamber,” the place Russian forces had left behind the our bodies of 5 males, their fingers tied, who had been tortured and killed.

Mr. Zelensky strengthened a degree that U.N. officers have made repeatedly: The true extent of Ukraine’s destruction and casualties is unknown however far higher than what has been documented, as a result of outdoors observers have been unable to achieve a few of the most devastated areas. “Now the world can see what Russia did in Bucha, however the world has but to see what it has accomplished in different elements of our nation,” Mr. Zelensky stated.

New York Instances journalists on Tuesday had been in a position for the primary time to achieve the city of Borodyanka, northwest of Kyiv, battered by Russian rockets and airstrikes, the place the mayor estimated 200 useless lay beneath the rubble. Within the besieged port of Mariupol, native officers have put the demise toll within the 1000’s.

Fierce combating continues alongside Ukraine’s southern coast, the place Mariupol, largely decreased to ruins by Russian bombardment, is “the middle of hell,” stated Martin Griffiths, the U.N. chief of humanitarian aid.

Greater than 250 miles west of Mariupol, explosions shuddered by way of the port of Mykolaiv, a day after the mayor stated Russian strikes had killed 10 folks and wounded 46. He stated that Russians had hit residential buildings, faculties, a hospital and an orphanage in his metropolis for the reason that struggle started, and had used cluster munitions. Troopers defending the town stated that more and more, Russian forces had been hitting civilian targets.

After 4 consecutive days of making an attempt and failing to ship an support convoy into Mariupol, the place persons are desperately wanting meals, water, energy, warmth and medicines, the Worldwide Committee of the Pink Cross determined towards one other try on Tuesday.

Ukrainian officers say the Russians have prevented essential provides from reaching the town. Mr. Nebenzya, the Russian U.N. ambassador, stated the Ukrainians had blocked the convoy, and he claimed that Russian forces had evacuated 123,500 folks from Mariupol.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, stated that in actual fact, tens of 1000’s of Ukrainians, together with from Mariupol, had been taken to “filtration camps” in Russia, the place relations had been separated and folks had been stripped of passports and cellphones. “I don’t must spell out what these so-called filtration camps are paying homage to,” she stated. “It’s chilling, and we can’t look away.”

Rosemary A. DiCarlo, a U.N. below secretary normal, stated there was credible proof that Russia had used cluster munitions — shells that burst open to spew many smaller bomblets over a large space — no less than 24 occasions in populated areas of Ukraine. Most international locations have signed a treaty banning cluster munitions as indiscriminate weapons with a excessive threat of civilian casualties, however Russia, like the USA, has not.

Greater than 11 million Ukrainians — about one in 4 — have fled their houses due to the struggle, together with greater than 4 million who’ve left the nation, in accordance with the United Nations, creating Europe’s largest and fastest-growing refugee disaster since World Conflict II.

Russian forces not too long ago captured the jap metropolis of Izyum, and Western analysts say they’re getting ready for a drive to the south and southeast, to bolster efforts to grab extra of the Luhansk and Donetsk areas, the place Russia-backed separatists have been combating for eight years. A lot of Ukraine’s best-equipped and most skilled navy models have been concentrated in that space, often called Donbas.

“Russian forces proceed to make little to no progress in frontal assaults” on the parts of Donbas nonetheless held by Ukraine, the Institute for the Research of Conflict reported.

Whether or not the Russians intention merely to bolster their models in Donbas, or are planning a extra bold effort to encircle the Ukrainian forces, capturing Sloviansk is essential, the institute stated.

Within the Luhansk area on Tuesday, an assault that Ukrainians blamed on Russian forces hit a storage tank containing nitric acid, releasing a poisonous cloud and prompting the regional administrator to induce folks to remain inside and shut their home windows.

The Russian models that withdrew from the area round Kyiv, having suffered heavy casualties, in depth gear losses and poor morale, the institute stated, “are extremely unlikely to be successfully deployed elsewhere in Ukraine and are doubtless a spent drive.”

An intelligence evaluation launched by the British protection ministry was much less definitive, however stated that any Russian forces redeploying from the north would first want appreciable time to restore and exchange gear, and to make up for casualties.

Reporting was contributed by Carlotta Gall in Borodyanka, Ukraine; Andrew E. Kramer in Kyiv, Ukraine; Rick Gladstone, Michael Schwirtz and Farnaz Fassihi in New York; Dan Bilefsky in Montreal; Steven Erlanger and Matina Stevis-Gridneff in Brussels; Megan Specia and Cora Engelbrecht in Krakow, Poland; Anton Troianovski in Istanbul; and Lara Jakes in Washington.

World

Flatulent cows and pigs will face a carbon tax in Denmark, a world first

Published

2 hours ago

June 26, 2024

Press Room

Flatulent cows and pigs will face a carbon tax in Denmark, a world first

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark will tax livestock farmers for the greenhouse gases emitted by their cows, sheep and pigs from 2030, the first country in the world to do so as it targets a major source of methane emissions, one of the most potent gases contributing to global warming.

The aim is to reduce Danish greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 1990 levels by 2030, said Taxation Minister Jeppe Bruus.

As of 2030, Danish livestock farmers will be taxed 300 kroner ($43) per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030. The tax will increase to 750 kroner ($108) by 2035. However, because of an income tax deduction of 60%, the actual cost per ton will start at 120 kroner ($17.3) and increase to 300 kroner by 2035.

Although carbon dioxide typically gets more attention for its role in climate change, methane traps about 87 times more heat on a 20-year timescale, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Levels of methane, which is emitted from sources including landfills, oil and natural gas systems and livestock, have increased particularly quickly since 2020. Livestock account for about 32% of human-caused methane emissions, says the U.N. Environment Program.

“We will take a big step closer in becoming climate neutral in 2045,” Bruus said, adding Denmark “will be the first country in the world to introduce a real CO2 tax on agriculture” and hoped other countries would follow suit.

New Zealand had passed a similar law due to take effect in 2025. However, the legislation was removed from the statute book on Wednesday after hefty criticism from farmers and a change of government at the 2023 election from a center-left ruling bloc to a center-right one. New Zealand said it would exclude agriculture from its emissions trading scheme in favor of exploring other ways to reduce methane.

In Denmark, the deal was reached late Monday between the center-right government and representatives of farmers, the industry, unions, among others, and presented Tuesday.

Denmark’s move comes after months of protests by farmers across Europe against climate change mitigation measures and regulations that they say are driving them to bankruptcy.

The Danish Society for Nature Conservation, the largest nature conservation and environmental organization in Denmark, described the tax agreement as “a historic compromise.”

“We have succeeded in landing a compromise on a CO2 tax, which lays the groundwork for a restructured food industry -– also on the other side of 2030,” its head Maria Reumert Gjerding said after the talks in which they took part.

A typical Danish cow produces 6 metric tons (6.6 tons) of CO2 equivalent per year. Denmark, which is a large dairy and pork exporter, also will tax pigs although cows produce far higher emissions than pigs.

The tax is to be approved in the 179-seat Folketing, or parliament, but the bill is expected to pass after the broad-based consensus.

According to Statistic Denmark, there were as of June 30, 2022, 1,484,377 cows in the Scandinavian country, a slight drop compared to the previous year.

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Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment

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Associated Press writer Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington, New Zealand, contributed to this report.

World

Evan Gershkovich's closed-door trial on espionage charges begins in Russia, where a conviction is expected

Published

3 hours ago

June 26, 2024

Press Room

Evan Gershkovich's closed-door trial on espionage charges begins in Russia, where a conviction is expected

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich’s trial in Russia on espionage charges is starting Wednesday behind closed doors in the city of Yekaterinburg.

Gershkovich, 32, was arrested in March 2023 in Yekaterinburg on espionage charges, with Russian authorities alleging he was gathering secret information for the CIA, a claim he, his employer and the U.S. government deny.

“Evan Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge. … The Russian regime’s smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime,” Wall Street Journal publisher Almar Latour and chief editor Emma Tucker said after his trial date was announced. “We had hoped to avoid this moment and now expect the U.S. government to redouble efforts to get Evan released.”

He is the first known Western journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia.

WSJ REPORTER EVAN GERSHKOVICH SET TO BEGIN ESPIONAGE TRIAL ON JUNE 26

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom in Yekaterinburg, Russia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP)

The journalist appeared in the courtroom Wednesday morning in a glass cage, with his head shaven, according to The Associated Press.

Gershkovich’s appeals seeking his release have thus far been rejected.

“Evan has displayed remarkable resilience and strength in the face of this grim situation,” U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy said on the anniversary of Gershkovich’s arrest.

If convicted, which is expected, Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison. Russian courts convict more than 99% of defendants and prosecutors can appeal sentences that they believe to be light. Prosecutors can even appeal acquittals.

The Russian Prosecutor General’s office said Gershkovich is accused of gathering secret information on orders from the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a plant that produces and repairs military equipment about 90 miles north of Yekaterinburg.

Gershkovich dressed in black in Moscow court box

If convicted, Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison. (NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)

Another American detained in Russia, American corporate security executive Paul Whelan, was arrested in Moscow for espionage in 2018 and is serving a 16-year sentence.

Gershkovich’s arrest came about a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin pushed laws that drew concerns about journalism in the country, criminalizing criticism of the war against Ukraine and statements viewed by officials as discrediting the military.

Foreign journalists largely left the country after the laws passed. Many gradually moved back in subsequent months, but concerns still remained about whether Russian authorities would take action against them.

Several Western reporters have been forced to leave following Gershkovich’s arrest because Russia would not renew their visas.

WSJ REPORTER EVAN GERSHKOVICH ORDERED TO STAND TRIAL IN RUSSIA ON CHARGE OF ‘GATHERING SECRET INFORMATION’

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is escorted from the Lefortovsky court in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Following Gershkovich’s arrest, many feared Russia was targeting Americans amid tensions with the U.S.

Russia has suggested a prisoner exchange for Gershkovich could potentially happen in the future, but such a swap is not possible until a verdict is reached in his case. Putin has floated the idea that he might be interested in freeing Vadim Krasikov, a Russian imprisoned in Germany for the assassination of a Chechen rebel leader.

In 2022, Russia and the U.S. worked out a swap that released WNBA star Brittney Griner, who was serving a 9 1/2-year sentence for cannabis possession in Russia, in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout, also known as “the Merchant of Death.”

The Biden administration would likely be sensitive when negotiating a swap for Gershkovich, not wanting to appear to be giving away too much after intense criticism of trading Bout for Griner.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

World

US journalist Gershkovich on trial in Russia over spying charges he denies

Published

4 hours ago

June 26, 2024

Press Room

US journalist Gershkovich on trial in Russia over spying charges he denies

American journalist Evan Gershkovich went on trial behind closed doors in Russia on charges of espionage 15 months after he was arrested in the city of Yekaterinburg.

The 32-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter appeared in a glass cage in the Yekaterinburg courtroom on Wednesday, with his head shaven clean and wearing a black-and-blue plaid shirt.

Gershkovich is accused by prosecutors of gathering secret information about Uralvagonzavod, a plant manufacturing tanks for Russia’s war in Ukraine, on the orders of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Prosecutor Mikael Ozdoyev claimed there was proof that Gershkovich “on the instructions of the CIA … collected secret information about the activities of a defence enterprise about the production and repair of military equipment in the Sverdlovsk region”.

The court said the next hearing will be held on August 13.

The US Embassy in Russia on Wednesday called for Gershkovich’s release and said the “Russian authorities have failed to provide any evidence supporting the charges against him, failed to justify his continued detention, and failed to explain why Evan’s work as a journalist constitutes a crime”.

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Today, a Russian court began closed-door proceedings in the case of Wall Street Journal reporter, Evan Gershkovich, who has been wrongfully detained by Russian authorities for more than a year. https://t.co/edWy9MGvPm
— Посольство США в РФ/ U.S. Embassy Russia (@USEmbRu) June 26, 2024

The Journal said the “secret trial” will “offer him few, if any, of the legal protections he would be accorded in the US and other Western countries”.

The reporter, his employer and the United States government vigorously deny the allegations, saying he was just doing his job, with accreditation from Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On Tuesday, the Journal’s editor-in-chief, Emma Tucker, wrote in a letter to readers that Russian judicial proceedings are “unfair to Evan and a continuation of this travesty of justice that already has gone on for far too long”.

Tucker said: “This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man.”

If convicted, Gershkovich faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. A verdict could be months away because Russian trials often adjourn for weeks.

Tucker noted that even covering Gershkovich’s trial “presents challenges to us” and other media “over how to report responsibly on the proceedings and the allegations”.

“Let us be very clear, once again: Evan is a staff reporter of The Wall Street Journal. He was on assignment in Russia, where he was an accredited journalist,” she wrote.

The case, the US Embassy wrote on X, “is not about evidence, procedural norms or the rule of law. It is about the Kremlin using American citizens to achieve its political objectives”.

‘Hostage diplomacy’

The American-born son of immigrants from the Soviet Union, Gershkovich is the first Western journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia.

His detention came about a year after President Vladimir Putin pushed through laws that chilled journalists, criminalising criticism of the war in Ukraine and statements seen as discrediting the military.

After his arrest on March 29, 2023, Gershkovich was held in Moscow’s Lefortovo prison. His appeals for release have been repeatedly rejected.

The proceedings will take place behind closed doors, meaning that the media is excluded and no friends, family members or US embassy staff are allowed in to support him.

Putin has indicated that Russia is open to the idea of a prisoner exchange involving Gershkovich and others, claiming that contacts with the US have taken place, but that they must remain secret.

The US has in turn accused Russia of conducting “hostage diplomacy”.

It has designated Gershkovich and another jailed American, security executive Paul Whelan, arrested in Moscow for espionage in 2018, as “wrongfully detained”, thereby committing the government to assertively seek their release.

In its statement, the US Embassy said Russia should stop using people like Gershkovich and Whelan “as bargaining chips”. “They should both be released immediately,” it said.