A second attempt to evacuate Ukrainians from the port city of Mariupol has failed as Russian shelling continued despite a planned local ceasefire, according to a new report. Ukrainian military officials said planned evacuations from the southern city were scheduled to begin at noon local time during a 10 a.m. …
Read More »Turkey’s Erdogan Speaks With Putin, Urges Cease-Fire With Ukraine
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke Sunday by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. During the call, Erdogan reportedly called for Russia to move toward a cease-fire in Ukraine, to open humanitarian corridors for the Ukrainians and to sign a peace agreement. The conversation during which Erdogan offered to mediate …
Read More »Russian Banks to Switch to Chinese Card System after Visa, Mastercard Suspend Operations in Russia
Multiple Russian banks on Sunday announced plans to begin issuing cards using a Chinese card operator’s system with Russia’s Mir network after Visa and MasterCard pulled out of Russia. Sberbank, Alfa Bank and Tinkoff all said they would begin using the Chinese UnionPay system, according to Reuters. The announcement comes …
Read More »As ‘La Françafrique’ Comes to an End, Russia is Ready To Replace France in West Africa
Finally, France will be leaving Mali, nearly a decade after the original military intervention in 2013. The repercussions of this decision will hardly be confined to this West African nation, but will likely spread to the entirety of the Sahel Region; in fact, the whole of Africa. France’s decision to …
Read More »Putin says Ukrainian statehood in jeopardy
Media reports said: Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Saturday that Ukrainian statehood is in jeopardy and likened the West’s sanctions on Russia to “declaring war,” while a promised cease-fire in the besieged port city of Mariupol collapsed amid scenes of terror. Putin continued to pin the blame for the war …
Read More »India’s Russia Choices: A Narrowing Path To Strategic Hedging
Russo-Indian relations have been historically stable. A carryover from the Cold War era, a warm bilateral relationship has led to the development of a Strategic Partnership that has included defense deals, such as India buying Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets, Mil Mi-17 helicopters, and more recently the S-400 missile defense system …
Read More »War Is Never Inevitable
Anyone who has worked in the news media over the past 20 years has seen many ‘Ukraine’s.’ They know, as I do, that the past perpetrator was rarely named, let alone punished. I worked as a digital researcher and archivist for two major networks for over 20 years, including almost …
Read More »The Impact Of The Russia-Ukraine Conflict On Global Financial Markets
Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, the global capital markets had experienced the initial plunge on February 24, and then stabilized and rebounded in the second trading day on February 25. The three major U.S. stock indexes closed up collectively, with the Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500, …
Read More »Five Scenarios For Ukraine After Russia Invasion
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February shocked the world but President Vladimir Putin shows no sign of pulling back. Here are possible scenarios for the weeks and months ahead, according to Western government sources and think-tank experts. 1) Military quagmire Ukrainian forces have resisted Russia’s invasion so far, defeating …
Read More »Israeli PM Bennett In Moscow, Offers Mediation Between Russia And Ukraine
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met on Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss the Ukrainian crisis, Reuters news agency reported. Israel reportedly offered to mediate in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Since the beginning of the Russian military operation on February 24, Bennett has urged …
Read More »