#eu withdrawal agreement

[izooks]

Some of Joe Biden’s accomplishments:

**Domestic policy**

* **American Rescue Plan (2021)**: Provided $1.9 trillion in COVID-19 relief, including direct payments, enhanced unemployment benefits, and funding for vaccines and testing.

* **Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (2021)**: Allocated $1.2 trillion for infrastructure projects, including roads, bridges, broadband, and clean energy initiatives.

* **Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (2022)**: Expanded background checks for gun purchases and provided funding for mental health services.

* **Child Tax Credit Expansion (2021-2022)**: Temporarily expanded the Child Tax Credit to provide up to $3,600 per child in monthly payments.

* **Affordable Care Act Expansion (2021)**: Made health insurance more affordable for low- and middle-income Americans by reducing premiums and expanding subsidies.

**Foreign Policy**

* **Withdrawal from Afghanistan (2021)**: Ended the 20-year war in Afghanistan.

* **Re-joining the Paris Agreement (2021)**: Re-committed the United States to global efforts to address climate change.

* **Strengthening Alliances with NATO and the EU (2021-present)**: Repaired relationships with key European allies after strained relations during the Trump administration.

* **Supporting Ukraine in the Ukraine-Russia War (2022-present)**: Provided military, humanitarian, and diplomatic support to Ukraine in its defense against Russia's invasion.

* **Nuclear Deal with Iran (2023)**: Revived negotiations with Iran on a comprehensive nuclear deal, aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

**Other Notable Accomplishments**

* **Appointing Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court (2022)**: Made history by being the first Black woman appointed to the nation's highest court.

* **Signing the Respect for Marriage Act (2022)**: Ensured federal recognition of same-sex and interracial marriages.

* **Establishing the Office of the National Cyber Director (2021)**: Coordinated federal efforts to combat cybersecurity threats.

* **Creating the COVID-19 National Preparedness Plan (2021)**: Developed a comprehensive strategy to respond to future pandemics.

* **Launching the Cancer Moonshot (2022)**: Re-energized the government's efforts to find a cure for cancer.

[zvaigzdelasas]

The EU plans to launch a new military mission in West Africa. According to reports prior to the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Toledo yesterday (Thursday [31 Aug 23]), soldiers and police officers are to be deployed in the northern regions of four countries at the Gulf of Guinea (Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin). [Salafist extremist] insurgencies threaten to spread to these regions, against which EU states have been fighting for nearly a decade in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger – without any success. The deployment aims at securing an EU military presence in the central Sahel in case France and the EU are forced to withdraw from Niger. Major forces within the Nigerien population are planning to demonstrate their support for the withdrawal – beginning this Sunday near the French military base in Niamey. In its new military mission, the EU is cooperating with governments, which are calling for a military intervention in Niger to overthrow the junta. Berlin and the EU have had a presence in the Gulf of Guinea, for quite a while. The EU is deploying ships against piracy, while Berlin is providing finances for training military personnel for deployments abroad. Withdrawal from the Sahel

The new EU mission planned for West Africa is intended to prevent European governments from soon being forced to abandon their military presence in the Sahel’s main hotspot. Mali is lost to them for the foreseeable future. France has long since withdrawn its troops, which had been stationed there in accordance with a bi-lateral agreement. Units from the EU, deployed within the framework of the UN MINUSMA force – including more than a thousand German soldiers – must leave Mali by the end of the year.[1] France has also had to withdraw its troops from Burkina Faso. The original plan to have Niger serve as a major substitute deployment location – for the French and EU troops – is about to canceled due to the putsch in Niamey. [...]Abrogation of EU deployment agreements have not yet been announced. Troops from the EU and Germany depend on the French military presence for their security.

The EU wants to take advantage of the fact that [Salafist extremist] militia attacks are now beginning to spread in the Sahel to countries to the south of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. It seeks to station its troops in the north of four countries at the coast of the Gulf of Guinea – in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo and Benin – under the pretext of seeking to halt the advance of the [Salafist extremists]. Considering the record of the European countries and the EU’s missions in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, there are little grounds for hoping that especially the EU will be able to effectively help with this new mission. Nowhere in the Sahel has it proven capable, over the past few years, of weakening the [Salafist extremists]. On the contrary, the [Salafist extremists] are stronger now than before. Specifically, the new EU mission is supposed to train and advise local security forces of the four countries, according to an EU spokeswoman. Soldiers from EU member countries will help prepare for “anti-terror operations,” giving technical support and allegedly “to enhance social and economic conditions of the local population.”[2] The mission is expected to initially last two years. However, traditionally EU missions are always prolonged. The number of deployed police officers and soldiers is still to be determined. The mission is set to be formally launched by EU foreign ministers at their next regular meeting in October.

The EU’s new deployment plans are primarily relying on two countries playing central roles in the discussion of a military intervention to overthrow the junta in Niger – Côte d’Ivoire and Benin. Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara had announced his intention to prepare around a thousand soldiers for the possible intervention in Niger. In the course of disputed election results in the spring of 2011, Ouattara, a former Vice Director of the IMF,[3] had, himself, been heaved into power by a French military intervention. The French military reduced the presidential palace to rubble in the overthrow of the incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo. Ouattara ran for a third term in 2020, even though the Ivorian constitution only allows two terms of office. The election was boycotted by the opposition, after the Ivorian judiciary banned the main opposition candidates Gbagbo and Guillaume Soro from running. Benin, on the other hand, has also promised troops for the possible ECOWAS war on Niger. Its common border with Niger is considered one of the possible launching positions for the invasion. Currently, by maintaining the closure of its border to Niger, as a means of imposing sanctions, Benin is withholding vital supplies for Niger’s needy population.[4]

Militarily, Germany and the EU would be blazing no new trails in West Africa. Ghana, for example, is home to the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center (KAIPTC), where soldiers and police from West Africa are being trained for foreign missions. The KAIPTC was inaugurated in January 2004 in the presence of the German Chancellor, at the time, Gerhard Schröder and has been co-funded by the German government ever since.[5] In addition, Germany has helped train and equip Ghana’s military. From 2009 – 2017 Germany had funded the creation of a Ghanian engineer unit with nearly €11 million and accorded Accra another €8.2 million from 2017 – 2020 for the creation of a mobile command post.[6] The EU is also engaged in anti-piracy combat in the Gulf of Guinea. Thus, in early 2021, it began dispatching warships into those waters. Then in early 2022, the initially one-year Coordinated Maritime Presences (CMP) pilot program was granted a two-year extension.[7] On the one hand, this naval presence provides exclusive knowledge of what is happening in that maritime region for the troops involved, and on the other, it contributes to developing ties to neighboring West African militaries. It remains uncertain, whether the coup in Gabon will have an impact on the plans for the EU’s military operation in West Africa. Gabon’s overthrown President Ali Bongo is considered one of Africa’s most corrupt partisans of France. It is not yet clear whether the coup that removed Bongo from power – to the jubilation of large portions of the population – following a presumably heavily rigged election victory will have an impact on relations between Libreville and Paris. According to allegations in Paris, the coup may merely be the result of a power struggle between rival sectors of the ruling elite, without having an impact on the foreign policy.[8] However, it is not at all certain that the strong West African opposition to the former colonial power, France, has not also taken root in Gabon. In the meantime, to maintain a margin of maneuver, EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner Josep Borrell has declared that the coup d’état that was carried out in Gabon cannot be equated with that in Niger. Bongo’s return to the presidency is not really being demanded. Should the junta in Libreville reach an agreement with Paris, Paris and the EU could at least somewhat consolidate their positions on Africa. If that does not happen, Europe’s withdrawal from its former African colonies will have proceeded another step further.

1 Sep 23

[rubinaitoart]

Today’s anxiety-driven political post is about The Paris Agreement.

In 2015, 190+ individual parties (countries, and the EU) made a pledge to try and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prevent global temperatures from rising above 1.5°C, and try to prevent it from reaching a total increase of 2°C.

(For my fellow Imperial System users, a rise of 1.5°C = a rise of 2.7°F, and a rise of 2°C = a rise of 3.6°F)

It doesn’t seem like a lot and I think that’s part of why not a lot of people are taking it seriously. Thing is, it’s just going to keep getting worse, and scientists already believe that a mere global increase of 2°C / 3.6°F will cause a lot of problems. More frequent flooding, more wildfires, and the massive loss of delicately balanced ecosystems like the coral reefs are just a few of the nasty effects we’ll be seeing.

I mean, we’re already seeing some bad effects. Look at the UK, which is experiencing more heatwaves than they’re used to, and their current infrastructure isn’t developed for that kind of constant heat. Look at the United States, which is experiencing hotter summers and a decrease in snowfall. Look at Australia, and India, and China, and everywhere else.

And the current policies in play aren’t going to let us reach that goal by 2100, much less 2050. The pledges that have been made might get us closer, but aren’t quite enough either.

It’s only going to get worse from here. For the US, Trump’s already promised that he’ll withdraw from the Paris Agreement again upon his reelection.

I’d like to see this get reblogged and spread around more, maybe with people chiming in with resources and tips about what all of us can do to try and put more pressure on our governments to do better. I’m really not comfortable with the fact we’re globally staring down the barrel of a gun and there’s barely been any progress to try and resolve it.

(This post is meant to be a short read and doesn’t include all the information. I’m not intentionally withholding anything, just trying to keep it short and relatively simple. If you have any additions, I would love to see reblogs with them—I’m actually counting on the Internet’s love to correct and add on to things, so this can be spread further out.)

[coochiequeens]

About time that forced marriage, illegal adoption and surrogacy is recognized for what it is, human trafficking

by Matthew Vella 24 January 2024

MEP negotiators and the Council have reached a provisional agreement to add forced marriage, illegal adoption and surrogacy as types of exploitation covered by the EU’s anti-trafficking law.

The update of the directive on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings will now require EU countries to make sure that people knowingly using services provided by victims of trafficking, can face sanctions.

In 2011, the EU adopted a directive on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting the victims of this crime, setting minimum rules concerning the definition of criminal offences and sanctions.

According to European Commission data, sexual and labour exploitation are the main purposes of trafficking in human beings. However, begging or organ removal – already explicitly mentioned in the 2011 directive – and forced marriage and illegal adoption – which are not explicitly mentioned – now represent 11% of all victims in the EU in 2020.

The provisional agreement will be submitted to member state representatives in the Council for confirmation, and be formally adopted by both the Council and the EP.

The agreement foresees that member states must make it a criminal offence if a person who uses the service provided by a trafficking victim knows that the person is a victim of trafficking. In such cases, member states need to ensure that this offence is punishable by effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties.

Under the current law member states should only consider making the use of services of persons exploited by human traffickers a criminal offence.

Council and European Parliament negotiators agreed to explicitly mention in the directive that the exploitation of surrogacy, forced marriage and illegal adoption are types of exploitation which fall under the scope of the definition of trafficking. The trafficking for the exploitation of surrogacy, which is when a woman agrees to deliver a child on behalf of another person or couple to become the child’s parent(s) after birth, will target those who coerce or deceive women into acting as surrogate mothers.

Including these forms of trafficking in the EU anti-trafficking law will take into account the prevalence and the relevance of these forms of exploitation.

As is the case in the current directive, the new types of exploitation – forced marriage, illegal adoption and surrogacy – will be punishable by a maximum penalty of at least five years of imprisonment, or of at least ten years of imprisonment in case of aggravated offences.

A new aggravating circumstance in the law will take into account the amplifying effect that information and communication technologies (ICT) can have as regards trafficking. This includes the fact that the perpetrator facilitated or committed the dissemination, by means of ICT, of images, videos or similar material of a sexual nature involving the victim.

Sanctions on legal persons, such as companies, held accountable for trafficking offences will also be beefed up. They will from now on cover the exclusion from access to public funding, including tender procedures, grants, concessions and licences, and the withdrawal of permits and authorisations to pursue activities which have resulted in committing the offence.

“I’m happy with this agreement. It strengthens the protection of victims of trafficking, with a special focus on the most vulnerable victims including persons in need of international protection, women and girls and children,” Swedish MEP Malin Björk (Left) said.

“It requires the member states step up their response to trafficking in human beings including mandating national anti-trafficking coordinators. We have agreed to tackle exploitation of trafficking victims in its most obvious forms. Even though I would have liked to have a more extensive ban on exploitation including sexual exploitation, this is already an improvement on current legislation. It can never be okay to take advantage of trafficking victims.”

[beardedmrbean]

The Netherlands' right-wing coalition government announced on Wednesday plans to opt out from EU-wide rules on asylum and migration.

It comes after the Dutch government unveiled stricter immigration policy.

What did the Dutch government say about the exemption request?

"I have just informed the European Commission that I want a migration 'opt-out' on migration matters in Europe for the Netherlands," Asylum and Migration Minister Marjolein Faber said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

"We have to handle our own asylum policy once more!" she said.

Faber belongs to the far-right Freedom Party (PVV) led by Geert Wilders.

Denmark has managed to negotiate an agreement to stay outside of the EU's common asylum policy. The EU Parliament approved the bloc's new migration pact in April.

The Dutch coalition government took power in July after an election in which the PVV became the largest party in parliament. While the PVV nominated independent Dick Schoof as prime minister, the party remains the dominant force in the coalition.

For the Netherlands to be given an opt-out, all 27 member states would have to agree to a revision of the EU's migration treaty.

In parliament, Wilders said of the planned exemption request: "I know this will take a long time, but it is a sign that new wind is blowing."

Government pushes for stricter asylum regime

The Netherlands' four-party coalition government has announced it plans to impose its "strictest-ever asylum regime," with stronger border checks and harsher rules for arriving asylum-seekers.

Besides the PVV, which is the largest force in the coalition, the government also includes the liberal-conservative VVD, the anti-corruption NSC and the agrarian BBB party.

As part of the stricter measures, the government also plans to declare a state of emergency to suspend parts of the country's asylum law without the parliament's approval.

Legal experts have expressed doubts as to the legality of the measure and the NSC has said it would withdraw support for the emergency law if there is no legal basis for it.

[mariacallous]

The frozen conflict between Serbia and Kosovo has come dangerously close to heating up again in recent weeks. First, an armed standoff between  Serb gunmen and Kosovo authorities in the north of the country left three assailants and one police officer dead. Then, just a few days later, the White House warned of an unprecedented buildup of Serbian troops along the border with Kosovo, raising concerns that war might be about to return to the Balkans.

Washington vaguely warned Belgrade that it could face possible punitive measures if it didn’t withdraw its forces. Fortunately, the response was immediate and Serbia’s often stubborn president, Aleksandar Vucic, wasted no time in pulling back his military.

This wasn’t the first time that the Serbia-Kosovo dispute led to a troop surge, and Vucic often uses this as a scare tactic when the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina isn’t going his way. But what was noteworthy this time was how quickly he followed orders when they came from Washington, which is a stark contrast from the foot-dragging and feigned compliance that he usually shows Brussels, which doesn’t tend to issue threats and warnings the way Washington does. What this shows is that, when the United States slams its fist on the table, Vucic listens.

Although this proved useful last month, this episode should set off alarm bells in the European Commission. Over the course of this year, Brussels has sought to inject greater urgency in the stalled Serbia-Kosovo dialogue and push the two sides toward normalizing their relations, which would in practice require Serbia to de facto recognize Kosovo’s independence and cease campaigning against its entry into international organizations in exchange for a degree of self-rule for ethnic Serbs in the north of the country.

The bloc’s newfound determination seemed to initially yield results, when Vucic and his Kosovar counterpart, Prime Minister Albin Kurti, agreed on how to implement an 11-point EU plan setting out a process for normalization in March. But it didn’t take long for intransigence to set in on both sides, and while Brussels showed some authority by sanctioning Pristina for failing to honor its commitments to the agreement and for stoking tensions with ethnic Serbs in the north of the country, it ultimately failed to force compliance, and recent events suggest that the dialogue has actually gone backward.

This should worry the EU for a number of reasons. First, it doesn’t seem to have much control over events in its own backyard. Second, the next U.S. presidential election is fast approaching, and Brussels could end up finding itself completely sidelined in the Balkans if the Republicans end up retaking the White House. Indeed, this came dangerously close to occurring three years ago, when rumors emerged that the Trump administration was open to approving a controversial land-swap proposal between Belgrade and Pristina that would see the Serbia-Kosovo border redrawn along ethnic lines by transferring the Serb-majority north of Kosovo to Serbia in exchange for an ethnic Albanian portion of southern Serbia.

The EU managed to torpedo the proposal by bringing war crimes charges against Kosovo’s then-president, Hashim Thaci, but it was fortunate in that then-U.S. President Donald Trump failed in his reelection bid several months later. The Biden administration has been happy to take a back-seat role—compared to the Trump administration—and allow Europe to take the lead in Balkan affairs. But this is unlikely to be the case if Trump or any other norm-defying MAGA Republican wins next year’s election.

Border corrections will undoubtedly be back on the table, and although this would be the most straightforward solution to the conflict that would also make Kosovo a more politically coherent state, it would almost certainly prove more divisive than the status quo in practice. So, for that reason, Brussels and Washington would be well advised to move quickly, while the Democrats are still able to control events. But this might require a drastic change of approach.

The main reason the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue remains stalled is because Belgrade prefers the status quo to any other proposed solution barring, perhaps, border corrections. Indeed, Vucic has made this very clear, and there is no sign that the new plan agreed to this year has actually changed anything. In fact, Vucic has openly mocked the EU on Serbian television, claiming that he didn’t sign the aforementioned proposal, termed the Ohrid Agreement, because he has an “excruciating pain” in his right hand that is “expected to continue for the next four years.”

Inevitably, there have been calls to sanction Belgrade, but Vucic’s critics tend to overestimate how much leverage Brussels has over him. Whenever Vucic is seen as undermining Western values and interest in the Balkans, Serbia hawks usually propose that the EU suspend the country’s accession process and cut the significant financial support it receives from Europe. But it’s questionable how effective such an approach would be, and neither method is a silver bullet that would yield quick results.

Firstly, there is little reason to believe that Vucic’s government is serious about leading his nation into the bloc anymore. His decade in power has been marked by constant democratic backsliding, and Serbia, which has become increasingly authoritarian, looks less like an EU-style state with every passing year.

The country’s opposition has been completely neutered, while almost all media outlets come under the control of government-aligned oligarchs. This drift shows no signs of abating, and the government is currently in the process of amending public information and media laws in a way that would allow state-owned entities like the national telecoms provider, Telekom Serbia, to issue its own media licenses, which would inevitably lead to the emergence of even more pro-government voices in a country that barely has a free press anymore.

Ending Serbia’s long-stalled accession process is also unlikely to lead to any sort of public backlash that might put pressure on Vucic. Committed pro-Europeans make up only 13 percent of the national electorate, and even the country’s moderate opposition attacks Vucic for having conceded too much ground over Kosovo. As things stand, an overwhelming majority in the country has no interest in normalizing ties along the terms currently being pushed by the West, and the only button that it has left to push is economic sanctions. But this, too, is unlikely to elicit a radical rethink in Belgrade because the inconvenient truth is that Vucic can easily ride out any sort of sanctions until the 2024 election and arguably much longer.

Although Europe is Serbia’s main trading partner and its biggest source of international aid by some distance, Belgrade has reduced its dependency on the bloc over the last decade by diversifying the list of countries that it does business with. The most notable of these include China, Russia, Israel, and the Arab Gulf states. It’s also worth remembering that, unless Vucic invades Kosovo, he’s unlikely to face anything nearing the sort of sanctions that were imposed against Serbia in the 1990s.

These had a crippling effect on the country, yet then-President Slobodan Milosevic still managed to ride out the economic storm for almost a decade before being deposed. Cuts to economic grants and development funds are likely, but there won’t be sanctions that prevent EU members trading with Serbia. Unlike 15 years ago, Serbia has developed new international partners, so the economic situation is unlikely to get so dire that Serbs will protest en masse and threaten Vucic’s rule. This makes Vucic incredibly difficult to coerce.

There aren’t any easy solutions for the Kosovo-Serbia problem. Border corrections remain the quickest path toward resolving the conflict, but even if such a solution were achievable, the window of opportunity has undoubtedly closed now that Thaci has been replaced by a committed nationalist like Kurti who has shown zero appetite for even moderate compromise.

Kurti has consistently resisted Belgrade’s central demand, which is the establishment of an Association of Serb Municipalities (ASM) that would give Serb-dominated areas in the north of the country a degree of autonomy. Pristina initially agreed to this in 2013, but it has dragged its feet on implementation. This has been made even more difficult with Kurti in power because he opposes the ASM in principle, fearing that it would give Serbs the power to act as a fifth column and undermine the central government in much the same way that Republika Srpska, the ethnic Serb entity in Bosnia, obstructs federal leaders in Sarajevo.

There will be no movement from the Serbian side until the ASM is established, a move that the EU supports. The inconvenient truth for Kurti is that Kosovo’s dream of economically viable statehood and U.N. recognition ends the moment that either Brussels or Washington decides to turn off the life support. The West has incredible power to coerce Kurti into compliance, and it would be well advised to use it if it wants to see progress before next year’s election. Pristina should therefore be presented with an ultimatum: Establish the ASM if you have serious ambitions to become a fully independent state.

Such a move would undoubtedly invite strong criticism from the loud chorus of pro-Kosovo voices, who would no doubt argue that Vucic is being “rewarded” for his belligerent behavior in recent weeks. But these people can be easily ignored. Kosovo has no inherent right to exist, and its claims to nationhood are no more valid than those of other unrecognized states around the world. The only difference between them is that Pristina enjoys Western support. If Kurti wants international recognition, he should be forced to accept the risk of Bosnia-style dysfunction as the price of getting it.

Of course, there is every possibility that Belgrade would continue to pursue its usual policy of obstruction even if the West were to do this. With 2024 fast approaching, Vucic is probably gambling on a Republican victory in the hope that it could reopen the possibility of border corrections or other terms more favorable to Serbia. But even if the Democrats do manage to hold on to the White House, there is an argument to be made that Washington should take the lead in the Balkans, even if that would mean quite openly stepping on the Europeans’ toes.

By putting all its bets on Vucic as the solution to the Kosovo dispute, the EU has allowed itself to be painted into a corner. It’s done this by muting criticism of Vucic and standing idly by as he has dismantled the fledgling democracy that was emerging in Serbia in the first decade of this century. That sort of passivity is profoundly useful to Vucic and has allowed him to entrench himself.

The president’s control over state institutions and the media in Serbia has made it impossible for any potential challengers to emerge, which means that there aren’t any alternative partners that the international community can turn to. Changing this will require long-term and potentially quite aggressive action like the sanctioning of Vucic’s inner circle or actively incubating the emergence of a viable political opposition, like the National Endowment for Democracy did in Serbia in the late 1990s.

Civil society effectively needs to be rebuilt from the bottom up after being eroded over the last decade, and the country’s independent media needs help fighting off the threat posed by Telekom Serbia if the free press is to survive. In many ways, what is required amounts to a total state-building project of the sort undertaken in Kosovo. Brussels has shown that it is incapable of doing this, so it might be time for Washington to slam its fist on the table if anything is to change.

[williamkergroach55]

How Washington sold out Ukraine to take on Moscow…

Ten years ago, former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych signed an agreement with the opposition Euromaidan to resolve Ukraine's political crisis. The very next day, the opposition tore up the agreement and seized power by force. Behind Ukraine, the American Empire wanted to take over Russia. The story of a determined war.

After months of rioting, sparked by the Euromaidan movement, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych agreed to reform the constitution, form a "government of national unity" and hold early elections in December 2014. The Ukrainian president agreed to pardon rioters and launch investigations into abuses by law enforcement agencies. The February 21 agreements aimed at ending the political crisis in Ukraine were signed by Yanukovych and opposition leaders Vitaly Klitschko (Udar Party), Arseniy Yatsenyuk (Batkivshchina) and Oleh Tiagnybok (Svoboda Nationalist Party) in the presence of German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski and Eric Fournier, Director of the Continental Europe Department at the French Foreign Ministry. The day after the agreement, on February 22, 2014, the buildings of the presidential administration, the Verkhovna Rada and the Cabinet of Ministers were stormed by violent demonstrators. Maidan leaders appointed Oleksandr Turchynov as head of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, in violation of the country's constitution. Yanukovych was ousted. Speaking on television from Kharkiv, Yanukovych refused to resign: "I am a legally elected president. What is happening is blatant vandalism, banditry and a coup d'état", he declared. Nevertheless, EU leaders immediately declared that they would work with Ukraine's "new government", sweeping aside the agreements they had just secured the day before. February 2014. Yanukovych left Ukraine and fled to Russia.

Washington was behind the coup

Officially, the opposition was supported by the Europeans, but as Russian President Vladimir Putin declared in 2015, "We knew perfectly well that the real puppeteers were our American partners and friends."

In early February 2014, an intercepted conversation between US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, a descendant of Ukrainian Jewish immigrants on her father's side, and US Ambassador to Ukraine, now US Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources since 2022, Geoffrey Pyatt, spoke of bringing opposition leader Arseniy Yatseniouk to power, and putting Tiagnybok and Klitschko "on the sidelines". Nuland dropped: "Fuck the EU…" On February 27, 2014, Yatseniouk was appointed Prime Minister of Ukraine. Klitschko became mayor of Kiev on June 5, 2014. Tiagnybok was kept out of government.

Russia was the target.

After the coup, Arseniy Yatsenyuk's government brutally repressed its political opponents, promoting an openly Russophobic agenda, and sent the army against civilians in the Donbass, opposed to the coup against legitimate President Yanukovych. Larry Johnson, a former CIA intelligence officer and State Department official, believes that the West had simply decided to take control of Russia and its formidable natural wealth. "They were looking for a long-term strategy to isolate Russia. And the key to that was to get Ukraine into NATO, into the EU, and thus isolate Russia." At least, American strategists thought they could isolate Russia.

Broken agreements

Russia had hoped to put an end to the bloodshed in the Donbass thanks to the Minsk agreements. The Minska Protocol was signed on September 5, 2014 in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, by representatives of Ukraine, Russia, the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), with the aim of ending the war in Donbass. The agreements called for a cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the front line, the release of prisoners of war and constitutional reform in Ukraine to grant autonomy to the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former French President François Hollande have since acknowledged that the Minsk agreements were maneuvers to buy time to arm and train the Ukrainian army. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, himself, admitted in an interview with Spiegel in February 2023 that he had never intended to observe the Minsk agreements; nor had the Euromaidan putchists intended to respect the agreements signed on February 21, 2014 with President Viktor Yanukovych.

Washington wants war.

The United States could have refused to integrate Ukraine into NATO, refrained from conducting military exercises with Ukraine, reopened discussions with Moscow on reviving the ABM Treaty and the INF Treaty on intermediate nuclear forces. The ABM Treaty (Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty) was signed in 1972 between the United States and the Soviet Union. The aim of this treaty was to limit the deployment of missile defense systems in order to discourage an arms race in this field. Both parties undertook to deploy only a limited number of missile defense systems, thus limiting the possibility of defense against intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), signed in 1987 between the USA and the Soviet Union, prohibited the production, stockpiling and deployment of ballistic and land-based cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. This was a key element in reducing tensions during the Cold War, as it prohibited the deployment of an entire class of short- and medium-range nuclear weapons in Europe. These two treaties were seen as pillars of strategic stability between the USA and the Soviet Union, then Russia after the dissolution of the USSR. However, in 2002, under the George W. Bush administration, the United States announced its unilateral withdrawal from the ABM Treaty. The development of missile defense systems resumed. Similarly, in 2019, under Donald Trump's first term in office, the United States unilaterally withdrew from the INF Treaty. Russia announced its own withdrawal from the INF Treaty, and arms control no longer existed. President Biden repeatedly voiced his opposition to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, claiming that it would increase Europe's energy dependence on Russia and weaken Europe's "energy security". The United States has threatened sanctions against companies and entities involved in the pipeline's construction, as well as against countries supporting the project. On February 6, 2022, at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, US President Joe Biden warned: "If Russia invaded Ukraine, there would be no Nordstream 2. We will stop it. Asked how he would go about it, he replied, "I promise you we'll be able to do it." The sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines actually took place on September 26, 2022 in the Baltic Sea, resulting in major gas leaks. The first, on Nord Stream 2, was discovered southeast of the Danish island of Bornholm. Several hours later, two further leaks were discovered on Nord Stream 1 to the north-east of the island. This was a deliberate act, as traces of explosives had been found. In an article published on his blog on February 8, 2023, Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist Seymour Hersh asserts that the USA and Norway are behind the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines, citing a single anonymous source with direct knowledge of operational planning.

The Russian Bear is patient.

Russia has always been open to negotiations. Moscow has maintained a dialogue with the Poroshenko and Zelensky governments to implement the Minsk agreements in order to respect the rights of Ukraine's Russian speakers while preserving the nation's territorial integrity. Petro Poroshenko's government was in office in Ukraine from June 7, 2014 to May 20, 2019. Poroshenko was elected President of Ukraine in May 2014, succeeding Viktor Yanukovych who had fled to Russia. As for Volodymyr Zelensky's government, it has been in office since May 20, 2019. Zelensky won the Ukrainian presidential election in April 2019, succeeding Petro Poroshenko as President of Ukraine. His government was formed shortly after his presidential inauguration and remains in office to this day. The Western press is silent on the fact that, before launching the military operation in Ukraine, Moscow sought to conclude agreements with the USA and NATO to ensure common European security. Draft agreements providing for NATO guarantees against eastward expansion and for Ukraine's neutral status were deliberately ignored by Washington, Brussels and, of course, the NATO leadership.

A month after the start of the special military operation, Russian and Ukrainian representatives signed preliminary peace agreements in Istanbul in March 2022. Davyd Arakhamia, who headed the Ukrainian delegation at the March 2022 Istanbul talks with Russia, told Ukrainian TV channel 1+1 in November 2023 that Moscow was ready to end the conflict if Ukraine committed to neutrality and refused to join NATO. However, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson forced President Volodymyr Zelensky to fight to the bitter end. Ex-Prime Minister Johnson was backed by European Commission Vice-President Josep Borrell Fontelles, in April 2022, who promised hundreds of millions of euros for Kiev: "This war will be won on the battlefield", he tweeted… US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin declared that Washington wanted to see "Russia weakened." The U.S. has spent over $100 billion, the European Union has given around €85 billion, to support Ukraine's military effort. The result is inconclusive.

worldnewsdigest@protonmail.com Source : Ekaterina Blinova https://sputnikglobe.com/20240221/euromaidan-was-part-of-wests-proxy-war-against-russia--cia-

[theculturedmarxist]

We are entering the end stage of the 30-year US neocon debacle in Ukraine. The neocon plan to surround Russia in the Black Sea region by NATO has failed. Decisions now by the US and Russia will matter enormously for peace, security, and wellbeing for the entire world.

Four events have shattered the neocon hopes for NATO enlargement eastward, to Ukraine, Georgia, and onward. The first is straightforward. Ukraine has been devastated on the battlefield, with tragic and appalling losses. Russia is winning the war of attrition, an outcome that was predictable from the start but which the neocons and mainstream media deny till today.

The second is the collapsing support in Europe for the US neocon strategy. Poland no longer speaks with Ukraine. Hungary has long opposed the neocons. Slovakia has elected an anti-neocon government. EU leaders (Macron, Meloni, Sanchez, Scholz, Sunak, and others) have disapproval ratings far higher than approvals.

The third is the cut in US financial support for Ukraine. The Republican Party grassroots, several Republican Presidential candidates, and a growing number of Republican members of Congress, oppose more spending on Ukraine. In the stop-gap bill to keep the government running, Republicans stripped away new financial support for Ukraine. The White House has called for new aid legislation, but this will be an uphill fight.

The fourth, and most urgent from Ukraine’s point of view, is the likelihood of a Russian offensive. Ukraine’s casualties are in the hundreds of thousands, and Ukraine has burned through its artillery, air defenses, tanks, and others heavy weapons. Russia is likely to follow with a massive offensive.

The neocons have created utter disasters in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, and now Ukraine. The US political system has not yet held the neocons to account, since foreign policy is carried out with little public or Congressional scrutiny to date. Mainstream media have sided with the slogans of the neocons.

Ukraine is at risk of economic, demographic and military collapse. What should the US Government do to face this potential disaster?

Urgently, it should change course. Britain advises the US to escalate, as Britain is stuck with 19th century imperial reveries. US neocons are stuck with imperial bravado. Cooler heads urgently need to prevail.

President Joe Biden should immediately inform President Vladimir Putin that the US will end NATO enlargement eastward if the US and Russia reach a new agreement on security arrangements. By ending NATO expansion, the US can still save Ukraine from the policy debacles of the past 30 years.

Biden should agree to negotiate a security arrangement of the kind, though not precise details, of President Putin’s proposals of December 17, 2021. Biden foolishly refused to negotiate with Putin in December 2021. It’s time to negotiate now.

There are four keys to an agreement. First, as part of an overall agreement Biden should agree that NATO will not enlarge eastward, but not reverse the past NATO enlargement. NATO would of course not tolerate Russian encroachments in existing NATO states. Both Russia and the US would pledge to avoid provocations near Russia’s borders, including provocative missile placement, military exercises, and the like.

Second, the new US – Russia security agreement should cover nuclear weapons. The US unilateral withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in 2002, followed by the placement of Aegis missiles in Poland and Romania, gravely inflamed tensions, which were further exacerbated by the US withdrawal from the Intermediate Nuclear Force (INF) Agreement in 2019 and Russia’s suspension of the New Start Treaty in 2023. Russian leaders have repeatedly pointed to US missiles near Russia, unconstrained by the abandoned ABM Treaty, as a dire threat to Russia’s national security.

Third, Russia and Ukraine would agree on new borders, in which the overwhelmingly ethnic Russian Crimea and heavily ethnic Russian districts of eastern Ukraine would remain part of Russia. The border changes would be accompanied by security guarantees for Ukraine backed unanimously by the UN Security Council and other states such as Germany, Turkey, and India.

Fourth, as part of a settlement, the US, Russia, and EU would re-establish trade, finance, cultural exchange, and tourist relations. It’s certainly time once again to hear Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky in US and European concert halls.

Border changes are a last resort, and should be made only under UN Security Council auspices. They must never be an invitation to further territorial demands, such as by Russia regarding ethnic Russians in other countries. Yet borders change, and the US has recently backed two border changes. NATO bombed Serbia for 78 days until it relinquished the Albanian-majority region of Kosovo. In 2008, the US recognized Kosovo as a sovereign nation. The US similarly backed South Sudan’s insurgency to break away from Sudan.

If Russia, Ukraine, or the US subsequently violated the new agreement, they would be challenging the rest of the world. As JFK observed, “even the most hostile nations can be relied upon to accept and keep those treaty obligations, and only those treaty obligations, which are in their own interest.”

The US neocons carry much blame for undermining Ukraine’s 1991 borders. Russia did not claim Crimea until after the US-backed overthrow of Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014. Nor did Russia annex the Donbas after 2014, instead calling on Ukraine to honor the UN-backed Minsk II agreement, based on autonomy for the Donbas. The neocons preferred to arm Ukraine to retake the Donbas by force rather than grant the Donbas autonomy.

The long-term key to peace in Europe is collective security as called for by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). According to OSCE agreements, OSCE member states “will not strengthen their security at the expense of the security of other States.” Neocon unilateralism undermined Europe’s collective security by pushing NATO enlargement without regard to third parties, notably Russia. Europe — including the EU, Russia, and Ukraine — needs more OSCE and less neocon unilateralism as key to lasting peace in Europe.

[7-bcc-news-press]

Hungary quits IIB Bank after US sanctions

The Hungarian government decided to exit the Russia-controlled International Investment Bank (IIB) after the United States imposed sanctions on three senior officials of the financial institution. Russian nationals Nikolay Kosov, the bank's former chairman, Georgy Potapov, and Imre Laszloczki a Hungarian citizen, were named on the sanctions list.

Before Budapest's decision the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania have already quit or started the withdrawal process from the bank that is often referred to as Moscow's trojan horse' in the European Union.

US Ambassador David Pressman held a press conference on Wednesday where he announced the sanctions. "The presence of this opaque Kremlin platform in the heart of Hungary threatens the security and sovereignty of the Hungarian people, their European neighbors, and their NATO allies," Pressman said. “Unlike other NATO allies, Hungary has dismissed the concerns of the United States government regarding the risks its continued presence poses to the alliance,” the ambassador added.

Pentagon leaks: Orban called the U.S. one of his main adversaries

Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban was also mentioned in the recently leaked CIA assessment. Orban reportedly called the US one of the top three adversaries of his party. According to the leaked document the comment was made during a Fidesz parliamentary meeting in February. The leaked CIA document states that Orbán’s statement “constitutes an escalation of the level of anti-American rhetoric in his discourse.”

Relations between Washington and Budapest are tense, many because of Orban's close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Hungary was the only EU member state without an invite to US President Joe Biden's Summit for Democracy last month.

Hungary signs new energy deal with Russia 

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto signed new agreements in Moscow to ensure Hungary's continued access to Russian energy. The Hungarian FM met Russian Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Alexander Novak and Alexey Likhachev, chief executive of Rosato, AP reports. Szijjarto said Russian state energy company Gazprom had agreed to allow Hungary, if needed, to import quantities of natural gas beyond the amounts agreed to in a long-term contract that was amended last year.

Szijjarto is one of the only EU officials that have met Russian officials in Moscow since Russia invaded Ukraine. “As long as the issue of energy supply is a physical issue and not a political or ideological one, like it or not, Russia and cooperation with Russia will remain crucial for Hungary’s energy security,” Hungary's top diplomat said.

Belarusian Foreign Minister holds talks with Szijjarto in Hungary

On Tuesday, Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik arrived in Hungary, to meet with Minister of Agriculture István Nagy and Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Szijjarto. Szijjarto has just arrived back from Moscow where he sealed new energy deals with Russia, despite EU criticism. Alenik took part in an intergovernmental meeting where economic cooperation was discussed between the two countries.

In March the European Parliament adopted a resolution that underlines the importance of strengthening EU unity concerning Belarus, including the diplomatic isolation of the current regime. The resolution includes a paragraph on Szijjártó's recent trip to Minsk.

[thoughtlessarse]

The European Commission proposed on Thursday to start negotiations with the United Kingdom to allow young people to move freely, work and study in both regions after Brexit. According to the EU, the withdrawal of the UK from the EU following a referendum in 2016 has damaged mobility between the two areas. “This situation has particularly affected the opportunities for young people to experience life on the other side of the Channel and to benefit from youth, cultural, educational, research and training exchanges,” the Commission said. When the UK was still a member of the economic and political bloc, its nationals had the right to live and work freely in the EU, with reciprocity for EU nationals in the UK. Under the agreement proposed by the EU's executive arm, EU and UK citizens between 18 and 30 years old would be eligible to stay up to four years in the destination country.

continue reading

Both Tories and Labour rejected the proposal.

[willcodehtmlforfood]

"Under the current EU settlement scheme, EU citizens who had been in the country for less than five years before Brexit and who had “pre-settled status” are obliged to reapply to upgrade their status to “settled status” after being in the country for five years.

If they did not, they would automatically lose their rights to reside, work, rent property or access services including the NHS, under Home Office rules.

But in a ruling handed out on Wednesday in the high court, Justice Lane described the rule as “wrong in law and that the EU settlement scheme is accordingly unlawful” as it “purports to abrogate the right of permanent residence”."

"The Home Office minister Lord Murray said ..."

“We are disappointed by this judgment, which we intend to appeal.”

"The campaign group the3million said: “We strongly welcome this judgment, which stands to protect vulnerable citizens who are granted pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme, and who could lose their right to work, rent, travel, benefits, healthcare and more – just for not making a further application in the years ahead.

“We are pleased that the judge agrees with the3million that the point of the EU settlement scheme is to create a clear distinction between those who are beneficiaries of the withdrawal agreement and those who are not. Once a beneficiary, people cannot lose their rights just by forgetting to make a second UK immigration application – the withdrawal agreement does not allow it.”

The group, which supported the case, said such a rule would impact some of the most vulnerable in society including children and elderly in care, victims of domestic abuse who did not have paperwork and those who for one reason or another led chaotic lives."

[ukrainenews]

Daily Wrap Up December 13-14, 2022

Under the cut:

European Union member states have agreed plans to provide a $19 billion aid package for Ukraine in 2023 after Hungary dropped its opposition in return for funding from the EU.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's air defense shot down “all 13” drones used to strike Kyiv on Wednesday, as Moscow launched a barrage of attacks on the capital.

Russian forces firing multiple rocket launchers hit the regional administration building on the central square of the recently liberated southern Ukrainian city of Kherson on Wednesday, a senior Ukrainian official.

Pentagon source confirms US will send Patriot system to Ukraine

Russian-installed administrators in the city of Melitopol in southern Ukraine claimed on Tuesday that "two explosive devices" of 15-20 kilograms of TNT were used to blow up a portion of a bridge used for supplying Russian armed forces.

Ukrainian investigators have uncovered a “torture chamber“ in Kherson city where children were allegedly detained and abused by Russian occupying forces, Ukraine’s human rights chief, Dmytro Lubinets, said.

“European Union member states have agreed plans to provide a $19 billion aid package for Ukraine in 2023 after Hungary dropped its opposition in return for funding from the EU.

Hungary had initially blocked the package last week, amid a long running standoff over EU aid. Brussels had called for EU funds for Hungary be frozen due to concerns over corruption and insufficient reforms to strengthen the rule of law.

On Monday evening, the EU struck a deal with Hungary. Under the new agreement, Brussels will give Budapest $6.1 billion in grants to "enable Hungary to foster its economic recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic and finance the green and digital transitions."

It will still freeze some funds, around $6.9 billion, but that is less than the near $8 billion the EU had previously planned on suspending.

The Czech Presidency of the European Council tweeted about the deal and the aid package for Ukraine Monday evening.”-via CNN

~

“President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's air defense shot down “all 13” drones used to strike Kyiv on Wednesday, as Moscow launched a barrage of attacks on the capital.

“This morning terrorists started with 13 Shaheds … All 13 were shot down by our Ukrainian air defense. Well done. I am proud. Dear citizens, we thank the air defense, and do not forget about the sirens," Zelensky said.

The assaults were “aimed at the critical infrastructure of the region and capital," according to Oleksii Kuleba, the head of Kyiv regional military administration.

Russia has targeted power facilities across Ukraine in recent months, using missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, in an attempt to wipe out the country's energy infrastructure amid a grueling winter season.”-via CNN

~

“Russian forces firing multiple rocket launchers hit the regional administration building on the central square of the recently liberated southern Ukrainian city of Kherson on Wednesday, a senior Ukrainian official.

Ukraine recaptured Kherson from Russian forces on Nov. 11, prompting days of celebrations on the square that President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited days later to hail the end of the Russian occupation.

Russian forces have been shelling Kherson from the opposite side of the Dnipro River since leaving the city and withdrawing from the western bank of the river.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of Zelenskiy's office, said two floors of the building had been damaged, but that no one was reported hurt.

He posted images on the Telegram messaging app showing debris by the building and the ceiling of a corridor inside that had collapsed, bringing down rubble. Some windows appeared to have been smashed, though the structure of the building looked intact.

An unconfirmed video circulating on Telegram showed a huge plume of smoke pouring up from the top of the administration building.”-via Reuters

~

“According to Voice of America’s Pentagon correspondent citing an unnamed U.S. defense official, the decision to send a Patriot missile system to Ukraine could be announced this week.

This report follows similar reports from CNN and Reuters on Dec. 13, citing undisclosed defense officials.

According to CNN, the arrangement has yet to be approved by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and signed by U.S. President Joe Biden.

Ukraine has repeatedly asked the U.S. to provide Patriot systems amid devastating Russian missile strikes on the country’s energy infrastructure.

The Biden administration had previously refused the request due to logistical challenges and difficulties in operating the systems. However, “the reality of what is going on the ground” changed the White House’s opinion, the CNN sources said.

CNN earlier reported that if Ukraine receives Patriot missiles, it will be the most effective long-range defense system delivered by NATO members since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion.”-via Kyiv Independent

~

“Russian-installed administrators in the city of Melitopol in southern Ukraine claimed on Tuesday that "two explosive devices" of 15-20 kilograms of TNT were used to blow up a portion of a bridge used for supplying Russian armed forces.

Yevgeny Balitskyi, the Russian-appointed head of Zaporizhzhia region, said on Telegram “unknown persons blew up two reinforced concrete supports of the road bridge, after which the bridge received a subsidence.”

He stressed that the damage to the bridge “did not affect cargo traffic in anyway” and claimed that the bridge “had no strategic significance.”

He finished his message by saying that the perpetrators are being pursued and they will “be punished to the fullest extent of the law”. More background: The bridge connects the main part of the city of Melitopol to a suburb Konstantynivka.

The bridge is part of the M14 highway that runs along Ukraine’s southern coastline and connects Melitopol to Berdyansk to the east and then onto to Mariupol and then into the Russian Federation.”-via CNN

~

[WARNING: Mentions of abuse and torture of children.]

“Ukrainian investigators have uncovered a “torture chamber“ in Kherson city where children were allegedly detained and abused by Russian occupying forces, Ukraine’s human rights chief, Dmytro Lubinets, said.

Russian security services kept the children in what they called “the children’s cell” where they were given little water and almost no food, Lubinets said, citing local residents’ testimonies.

According to the testimonies, the children were subjected to psychological abuse at the hands of their Russian captors, who told them that their parents had abandoned them and that they would never return home.

One 14-year-old boy was arrested and later tortured just for taking a picture of broken Russian equipment, Lubinets said.

The Ukrainian ombudsman said, “We recorded the torture of children for the first time. I thought that the bottom could not be broken after Buchi, Irpin... but we really reached the bottom in Kherson.”

It has not been possible to independently verify these claims. The Guardian has visited a separate “torture room” in Kherson city where Ukraine says dozens of men were detained, electrocuted, beaten and some of them killed by Russian soldiers.”-via The Guardian

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Lula slips on withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Wednesday acknowledged for the first time the importance of the withdrawal of Russian troops for peace in Ukraine — then proceeded to add his usual caveats on the issue.

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels after the EU-CELAC summit, Lula said that “the withdrawal is part of the peace agreement.” Lula reminded reporters that Brazil voted earlier this year in favor of a UN resolution demanding that Russia immediately withdraw all its military forces from Ukraine.

Although Brazil did vote in favor of the resolution, Lula himself and his top diplomats Mauro Vieira and Celso Amorim never publicly emphasized the withdrawal of Russian troops, instead pushing for peace negotiations without naming preconditions.

Lula reiterated that point today: “We need to build a group of countries capable of, in the right moment, convincing Russia and Ukraine that peace is the best path.” 

“What we want is for the war to stop,” he added.

Since taking office on January 1, Lula has tried to play both sides of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, changing the focus of his message depending on the audience. Nevertheless, he has more often echoed Russian talking points.

Continue reading.

[the-sayuri-rin]

Elon Musk pulled Twitter from the EU's anti-disinformation agreement and continues to troll with alt-right memes and dogwhistles. It could be a sign he'll close the site to Europe completely.

Twitter has pulled out of the European Union's voluntary code of practice regarding online disinformation as the company's owner continues posting content that could be flagged under a forthcoming EU law.

The social media site's withdrawal from the EU's agreement on disinformation could signal owner Elon Musk is preparing to cease operations in Europe entirely, Euractiv reported, as a new law — the Digital Services Act (DSA)— is set to take effect in August. The law, which establishes requirements for monitoring and flagging disinformation, would make the now voluntary agreement mandatory for large social media sites.

An EU official told Euractiv they were "waiting for this" and "it was purely a matter of time" before Musk withdrew from the agreement.

"Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation. But obligations remain," European Commissioner Thierry Breton tweeted on Friday. "You can run but you can't hide. Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under #DSA as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement."

[maaarine]

The Chancellor: The Remarkable Odyssey of Angela Merkel (Kati Marton, 2021)

"At the root of the crisis was Putin’s goal of restoring Russia to its historic place among the world’s powers.

To achieve this, he needed first to restore its old empire. He needed Ukraine, its immediate neighbor to the east and northeast, inside Russia’s orbit, loyal not to Washington or Brussels but to Moscow.

The trouble began in February, when Ukraine was on the brink of signing a wide-ranging political and economic agreement with the European Union that would open up favorable trade with the rest of the Continent, and pull Ukraine closer westward politically—while holding out the prospect of eventual EU membership.

Determined to block the deal, Putin pressed Ukraine’s corrupt president, Viktor Yanukovych, to instead join Russia’s own Eurasia Economic Union— a political, military, and economic alliance he’d established as a countermeasure to both the EU and China.

Assuming he would be able to buy off the restive population with a $15 billion check, Putin promised to bail out Ukraine’s faltering economy.

In return, the country was to withdraw from the EU trade deal. But events took an unexpected turn.

Fearless, youthful demonstrators flooded the ancient streets of Kiev, demanding, “Yanukovych must go!”

Over the next days, the crowds swelled and grew bolder, and their calls to end the corruption that had long sapped their country’s future grew louder.

They demanded that Yanukovych sign the pro–European Union treaty, as he had promised.

Putin observed these protests, reminiscent of the traumatic events he’d witnessed in Dresden in 1989, with alarm; mob rule was spreading within a territory he deemed Russia’s “sphere of interest.”

His worst nightmare seemed to have jolted him awake."

[beardedmrbean]

"The Black Sea is very important for NATO, we are monitoring the situation there carefully", the Secretary General of the pact, Jens Stoltenberg, told the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs today.

"We condemn Russia's withdrawal from the grain deal and welcome Turkey's efforts to restore implementation of the agreement", he added. Stoltenberg noted that the allies' air surveillance over the Black Sea had been expanded, and pact battalions were deployed in Bulgaria and Romania. "We have doubled the number of battalions on the eastern flank, we will do what is necessary to protect every inch of the alliance's land", the Secretary General indicated.

According to him, there are no signs of deliberate actions by Russia in the case of the fall of debris from a drone in Romania. An investigation is underway, Romania has informed NATO allies about the case, he added.

Stoltenberg insisted that the Ukrainian counteroffensive was progressing and exceeding expectations. He warned that it would be a bloody and difficult battle. According to him, it is impossible to predict how events will develop. The Secretary General did not rule out losses on the Ukrainian side and insisted that support for Kyiv should continue under all circumstances. Support for Ukraine is not an option, but a necessity, Stoltenberg summarized.

He announced that he expects NATO allies to increase defense spending by eight percent this year, which would be the biggest increase in decades.

According to him, Russian President Vladimir Putin made at least two mistakes with the invasion of Ukraine - he underestimated the Ukrainians and the alliance's response. NATO and EU countries are providing unprecedented assistance to Kyiv with artillery, long-range missiles, air defenses, ammunition and training, he noted. Stoltenberg welcomed Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway for their expressed readiness to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighters, as well as the countries where Ukrainian pilots will be trained.

"The Ukrainians are gradually regaining captured lands, it is a difficult battle, but they broke through the Russian defense lines and are advancing", Stoltenberg summarized. He pointed out that Ukraine's path to NATO had been shortened by the decisions of the pact's summit in Vilnius in July, and Kyiv would not have to implement a Membership Action Plan.

"In 2021, Putin proposed that NATO sign a document saying it would not expand any further – as a precondition for Russia not to invade Ukraine. Naturally, we did not sign such a document and did not follow his demand that NATO withdraw its infrastructure from the countries that joined the alliance after the end of the Cold War. With the war in Ukraine, Putin expected to limit NATO, but achieved the opposite - the pact has expanded its presence on the eastern flank, accepted Finland and soon expects to welcome the accession of Sweden. I expect Turkey's parliament to ratify Sweden's membership later this fall, as soon as possible", added the secretary general, quoted by BTA.

Bulgaria's prime minister announced today that the state has started equipping the coast guard with missiles and will respond to the Russian threat: "force is answered with force".

Read more from the 561th day of the war in Ukraine.