9 minutes ago
China says US intelligence over arms sales to Russia is speculation
The flags of China and Russia
Mladen Antonov | AFP | Getty Images
China’s foreign ministry said any potential information the United States plans to release about arms transfers from China to Russia is only speculation, its spokesman said Thursday.
“As for the so-called intel, this is just speculation and slander against China,” Wang Wenbin said at a regular briefing.
The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the US government is considering releasing information about China considering arms sales to Russia.
– Portal
18 minutes ago
Ukraine believes the Russians are preparing possible “provocations” for the war anniversary
Ukrainian forces in the north of the country said Thursday they believe Russian forces are preparing for possible provocations on the first anniversary of their invasion.
Ukraine’s Northern Operations Command said today on Telegram that Russian forces are “preparing possible provocations for the anniversary of the large-scale offensive, most likely aimed at accusing Ukrainian defenders of violating territorial integrity,” according to a Google translation of the Post Office.
The Northern Task Force said its suspicions were “supported by intelligence data recording the movement of columns carrying military equipment in the border area with the Chernihiv region [in northern Ukraine] without identification marks and worker dressed in a pixel [camouflage]similar to the uniform of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces personnel take part in target practice in Chernihiv region, Ukraine, 22 February 2023.
Roman Pilipey | News from Getty Images | Getty Images
The commando unit issued a later statement, repeating that their warning was about possible Russian provocations and not “any actions that took place”.
CNBC was unable to verify the information in the report, but both sides have accused each other of preparing possible provocations and “false flag” attacks as the one-year anniversary of Ukraine’s invasion approaches on Friday .
— Holly Ellyatt
Before an hour
Moldova rejects Russian report of Ukrainian plot over Transnistria
Moldova on Thursday denied an accusation by the Russian Defense Ministry that Ukraine was planning to invade Moldova’s breakaway region of Transnistria after conducting a false flag operation and called for calm.
Russia’s RIA news agency said Ukraine, which borders Moldova, is planning an attack by alleged Russian forces from Transnistria as a pretext for the invasion. Russia keeps troops in the breakaway region.
The TASS news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin as saying separately that the West had ordered the Moldovan government in Chisinau to stop all interaction with the Moscow-backed Transnistrian authorities.
Flags of Moldova’s breakaway region of Transnistria and Russia flutter in central Tiraspol, in Moldova’s breakaway region of Transnistria, May 5, 2022.
Vladislav Bachev | Portal
The Moldovan government issued a statement via the messaging app Telegram, saying that state authorities “do not confirm” the claims made by the Russian Defense Ministry.
“We demand calm and receipt of information (from the public) from official and credible Moldovan sources,” it said. “Our institutions cooperate with foreign partners and the public is informed immediately in the event of threats to the country.”
Moldova’s foreign minister told Portal on Wednesday that the tiny former Soviet republic, which also borders NATO member Romania, is prepared for a “full spectrum of threats” from Russia.
“Our institutions have planned responses across the entire threat spectrum,” he said. “Of course we have limited resources, but at the same time we are not alone.”
President Maia Sandu, who wants her country to join the European Union, this month accused Moscow of plotting a coup to overthrow Moldova’s leadership. Moscow rejected the accusation.
The predominantly Russian-speaking region broke away from then-Soviet Moldova in 1990. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, pro-Russian separatists waged a war with Moldovan government forces.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week that it was “obvious” that Ukraine would not be Russia’s last stop after invading Ukraine and that the Kremlin was considering ways to “strangle” Moldova.
– Portal
2 hours ago
Ukraine maintains supply routes around Bakhmut despite Russia’s ‘creeping encirclement’
Ukrainian soldiers rest in a dugout at the front near Bakhmut in the Donetsk region on February 21, 2023.
Anatoly Stepanov | AFP | Getty Images
Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Thursday that heavy fighting in the Bakhmut region has continued over the past 48 hours, but that Ukrainian forces “are keeping supply routes to the west open despite the creeping encirclement of Russia over the past six weeks”.
Further south in the Donetsk region, the town of Vuhledar has again come under heavy shelling, the ministry noted, adding there is now “a realistic possibility that Russia, despite costly failed attacks in early February and late February, is preparing for another offensive in this year.” Area prepared 2022.”
Noting that Russia’s eastern force group likely still bears responsibility for the Vuhledar operation, the ministry noted that its commander, Colonel-General Rustam Muradov, “is likely to be under intense pressure to improve results after the Russian nationalist community has been severely criticized after earlier setbacks”.
The ministry added, however, that Muradov was unlikely to have the clout capable of making a breakthrough.
— Holly Ellyatt
3 hours ago
United Nations marks year of Ukraine war with vote to ‘go down in history’
Vasily Nebenzya, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations, speaks during the General Assembly’s eleventh emergency special session on Ukraine February 22, 2023 at the UN headquarters in New York City.
Timothy A Clary | AFP | Getty Images
On a year of war, Ukraine and Russia lobbied the United Nations on Wednesday to support a vote by the 193-member General Assembly that the United States said would “go down in history.”
“We will see where the nations of the world stand on the issue of peace in Ukraine,” US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said before the General Assembly.
The General Assembly on Thursday appeared to pass a resolution tabled by Ukraine and supporters that “emphasizes the need to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace as soon as possible” in line with the United Nations’ founding charter.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the invasion of Russia, saying the charter was “unambiguous” and quoting from it: “All members should refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state in their international relations.”
Ukraine and its supporters are hoping to deepen Russia’s diplomatic isolation by seeking a yes vote from nearly three-quarters of the General Assembly to match – if not better – the support it received for several resolutions last year.
They argue the war is a simple case of one unprovoked country illegally invading another, while Russia presents itself as a “proxy war” with the West, which has been arming Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Moscow since the invasion.
– Portal
13 hours ago
NATO chief sees “some signs” China may back Russia’s war
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has already announced new moves by the alliance, announcing on Monday that it would beef up its rapid reaction force and strengthen its combat formations in Eastern Europe.
Yves Herman | Portal
The NATO chief said the military alliance had seen “some signs” that China might be planning to back Russia in its war in Ukraine and urged Beijing to refrain from violating international law.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also said in an interview with The Associated Press that although the alliance is not a party to the war, it will support Ukraine “for as long as necessary”.
When asked if NATO had any indication that China might be willing to support Russia’s war with arms or other support, Stoltenberg said:
“We’ve seen some signs that they may be planning to do this and of course the NATO ally, the United States, has warned against it because this is something that shouldn’t be happening. China should not support Russia’s illegal war.”
— Associated Press
18 hours ago
Delivering fighter jets to Ukraine is “difficult” because we need them, says Swedish Defense Minister
Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson said it was “difficult” to give fighter jets to Ukraine because Sweden needed them “for maintenance”. [its] territorial integrity.”
“Right now, looking at Russian capabilities, they are heavily downgraded when it comes to land components. But when it comes to air and naval assets, [they] are pretty much unchanged, so for now, [giving Ukraine] Gripen is in the too hard to do box for me,” Jonson told CNBC’s Silvia Amaro, referring to Sweden’s Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets.
Jonson also stressed that Sweden was acutely aware of what he described as Russia’s “low threshold” for using military force.
“[Russia] is taking a huge political and military risk and we are aware of that,” Jonson said, while stressing the importance of Ukraine beating Russia.
“This is a war that Russia started,” Jonson said. “If Russia were to win this war, it would have devastating geopolitical, military and security consequences for Europe and Sweden.”
“We are with Ukraine for as long as it takes,” he added.
Sweden is currently applying with Finland to join the NATO military alliance. It is only a “matter of time” for the country to become a member, the Swedish foreign minister said on Wednesday.
– Hannah Ward-Glenton
18 hours ago
“We have to be prepared,” warns Norway’s foreign minister about nuclear risks
Norway’s Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeld said Wednesday that NATO allies must be “prepared” for rising nuclear risks after Russia decided to suspend its nuclear weapons deal with the US
Huitfeld told CNBC that the geopolitical situation in northern Europe is “stable” at the moment, but warned that Russia’s nearby nuclear arsenal is a concern.
“The situation in the north is stable, but we have to be prepared,” she said to Silvia Amaro.
“Russia has one of its largest nuclear arsenals very, very close to the Norwegian border, and they still have that capacity despite the conventional losses we’ve seen on land,” she said.
President Putin announced on Tuesday that Russia is suspending its participation in the New Start nuclear arms control treaty with the US — a pact that limits both sides’ strategic nuclear arsenals.
Huitfeld added that the region would be “even more secure” if Sweden and Finland were ratified into the NATO military alliance.
“I can’t say for sure when that will happen. But they deliver everything, so they are prepared and we are ready to support them,” she said.
– Karen Gilchrist
20 hours ago
Putin attends a stadium concert to rally public support for the war
People arrive for a patriotic concert dedicated to the upcoming Defender of the Fatherland Day at Luzhniki stadium in Moscow February 22, 2023.
Yuri Kadobnov | AFP | Getty Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin briefly attended a concert in Moscow on Wednesday to celebrate Russia’s national Defender of the Fatherland Day.
Putin delivered a brief speech to the pro-war crowd gathered at the Luzhniki Arena, leading the audience with chants of “Russia!” and said the country was fighting in Ukraine “for lands that were historically ours,” NBC News reported.
“Today, as part of a special military operation… We were actually gathered here for a celebratory event, but I know I was just listening to the country’s top military leaders that right now there is a battle taking place on our historic borders, for our people.” , Putin added, according to further comments from the state news agency Tass.
Putin expressed pride in the Russian armed forces and said every soldier is a defender of the motherland.
— Holly Ellyatt
Wed Feb 22, 2023 3:34 am EST
Moscow is optimistic about the suspension of the nuclear weapons treaty
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers his annual State of the Union address and announces that Moscow is suspending its nuclear arms deal with the US
Mikhail Metzel | AFP | Getty Images
Officials in Moscow on Wednesday expressed optimism about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to suspend Russia’s participation in the New Start nuclear weapons treaty – the last remaining nuclear arms control pact between the US and Russia aimed at limiting both countries’ nuclear arsenals.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday the decision to suspend the treaty was “overdue” and that Russia’s move will have “a great resonance in the world in general and in the United States in particular.”
Medvedev echoed a Russian claim that the US “wants Russia’s defeat” and that the world is on the brink of a new global conflict. “If the United States wants to defeat Russia, then we have the right to defend ourselves with any weapon, including nuclear weapons,” Medvedev said.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told Russian media on Wednesday that Moscow is still able to “fairly reliably assess” US nuclear potential outside of the deal.
“There are national technical means that make it possible to fairly reliably assess what is happening. We’ve also gained experience tracking what’s happening in the United States, and not just the United States, in this area, using other avenues. Yes, this is not the same as an exchange of information under the agreement. But the situation has changed radically, so we will proceed from what is available,” Ryabkov told reporters, according to Russia’s Ria Novosti news agency.
The New Start Treaty allowed reciprocal inspections of each other’s nuclear weapons sites, although in practice these have been suspended since the Covid-19 pandemic and have not resumed since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.
Ryabkov also said Russia will continue to adhere to the “key quantitative restrictions” under the treaty, saying that at this point Moscow considers this “sufficient in terms of ensuring predictability and maintaining strategic stability.”
Medvedev signaled, as did Moscow’s foreign ministry in a statement on Tuesday, that Russia’s suspension of the treaty can be reversed, but that Washington wants to show “political will… for a general de-escalation and creating conditions for the treaty’s resumption.” full functioning” of the treaty. Russia has also said it wants the nuclear arsenals of Britain and France to be included in any future launch treaty.
— Holly Ellyatt
4 hours ago