Spain demands from Russia the immediate end of the military invasion of Ukraine

Courtesy: Free Tribune

Thursday, February 24, 2022 (RPTV NEWS AGENCY). The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, has participated tonight in Brussels in the extraordinary European Council to address the military invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, during which he has held a videoconference with the Ukrainian President, Volodímir Zelenski.

The Heads of State and Government have agreed on a new package of sanctions against the Russian Federation for the attack on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, a neighboring country and, as Pedro Sánchez highlighted, “an attack on the security of the entire European continent”. This is a second package of restrictive measures after the one adopted last Tuesday, February 22.

The President of the Government has underlined: “The situation is very serious. We are facing a flagrant violation of international law that we cannot accept. And the EU must respond along the lines that we have been maintaining in recent weeks: Unity, which is the basis of our strength; and firmness in our position, open to dialogue and diplomatic channels, but very willing to adopt harsh restrictive measures, if Russia opted for force, as it has been».

The Spanish Embassy in Kiev has been in contact for weeks with Spanish residents in Ukraine to provide them with available information on possible evacuation routes. Of the more than 400 Spaniards registered at the Embassy, ​​more than a hundred are already in Spain. In this sense, President Sánchez has guaranteed that the necessary help will be provided to the Spaniards who still remain in Ukraine, just over 200.

Pedro Sánchez has recalled that Spain is a country of solidarity and has highlighted the need for the European Union to prepare for the humanitarian consequences arising from this aggression. “We reiterate our support and solidarity with the Ukrainian people and government at this difficult time. Spain and the European partners are by your side”, stated the Chief Executive.

EU sanctions on Russia

The extraordinary European Council, during the videoconference held with the Ukrainian president, Volodímir Zelenski Moncloa/European Union and Fernando CalvoPedro Sánchez, highlighted that, in this extraordinary European Council, additional restrictive measures have been reached “that we want them to have, as we have come pointing out, a forceful and massive effects against the Russian economy». And all of this, as the president highlighted, has been done “in close coordination with our transatlantic partners, our NATO allies and other international actors.”

The 27 have agreed on a new package of sanctions on Russia that complements those approved on Tuesday. The list of individual sanctions is extended and the sectoral ones are expanded, with restrictive measures that will further reduce the financing capacity of Russian public and private institutions, limiting movements, transactions and deposits and establishing a strict control of exports, in particular of dual-use and technological material.

“This aggression is a frontal attack on European principles and values ​​that opens a multidimensional crisis. Today, we European leaders have reaffirmed our common commitment to confront this clear violation of the international order on the basis of our unity and firmness”, concluded the President of the Government.

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2021

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Eyewitness to the Vives case would not receive the reward he demands - Other Cities - Colombia

Arturo Creus, who witnessed the accident in which the businessman Enrique Vives Caballero ran over seven people and left six of them dead, assures that his life is in chaos since he decided to serve as a witness before the authorities.

He regrets that Governor Carlos Caicedo has not complied with the reward he promised him to deliver his testimony that would clarify what happened the morning of the sinister road in the Gaira sector.

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According to Creus, at first he did not want to talk about what happened, because of the risk that it could mean referring to a case that had taken on a national connotation and that involved a member of a powerful family in the region.

However, due to a call he received directly from Governor Carlos Caicedo, he decided to change his mind and collaborate with his statement.

“On September 15, the governor called me and summoned me to a meeting in his office. I didn’t even know that there was a reward, but there they offered me $25 million and support… that’s why I dared to speak,” Creus said.

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The witness stated that with the accompaniment of the departmental administration he went to the Prosecutor’s Office and delivered his statement.

“Now they tell me that I went alone and voluntarily to talk about what happened,” he said.

judicial instances to receive the money

They wanted to put me in an apartment and take me food there, but not to go out on the street at all. I felt like a prisoner, so I didn’t accept

Arturo Creus says that since he served as a witness he has been ignored by the government of Magdalena.

“They wanted to put me in an apartment and take me food there, but not to go out on the street at all. I felt like a prisoner, so I did not accept, “said the witness.

The only request that Creus has kept since then is that they fulfill the reward they promised him to leave the city.

“I am scared. I live in fear of going out because I think they will hurt me; that they are going to kill me The only thing I want is to go to another place, but I need the money they promised me”, Creus pointed out.

(We invite you to read: In Cartagena there is greater satisfaction with motorcycle taxis than with Transcaribe)

Despite the fact that Antonio Creus has even attended the judicial instances to receive the money he was promised, so far his request has been denied.

The reward claimed by Arturo Creus, as a witness to the accident involving businessman Enrique Vives Caballero, would be about to fall and could end up empty-handed.

The foregoing after the Fifth Civil Court of Santa Marta denied the tutela action filed by Creus through which he intended to be paid the sum of $25 million.

The ruling of the court determined: “Declare the lack of object due to fact overcome within the tutela action promoted by Mr. Arturo Creus Maestre, acting on his own behalf, against the Government of Magdalena, taking into account the preceding considerations.”

What the government says

The head of the legal office of the Government, José Humberto Torres, said that there is currently no direct agreement with Arturo Creus.

“The Prosecutor’s Office heard his version and it must be assessed at a trial stage,” said Torres, who clarified that at no time has the government refused to pay the reward, but it must be distributed among the people who have collaborated to clarify the facts. .

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“The Government maintains the payment but it depends on the evaluation and assessment made by the Prosecutor’s Office,” reported Torres.

He also pointed out that Creus was proposed to enter a witness protection program; however, he refused, insisting that he was only interested in receiving the money.

The case would now be transferred to the Constitutional Court for eventual review and definition of whether or not the payment required by the petitioner should be made.

By Roger Urieles
For THE WEATHER Santa Marta
@rogeruv

Revocation of Daniel Quintero: the committee demands speed from the CNE - Medellín - Colombia

With the numeral #CNEApruebe, the promoters of the recall of the mayor of Medellin, Daniel Quinteroand those who support it, demonstrated on social networks requesting speed from the National Electoral Council (CNE) so that it delivers the certificate of the accounting reports of the recall process.

Andrés Rodríguez, representative of the Recall Committee, stated that this process is already in the final stretch.

“Both the CNE and the Registry are aware that Daniel Quintero’s recall is inevitable. These are the last days, before they approve everything and we will finally go to the polls. Patience and prudence,” Rodríguez said.

The spokesman for the committee added that the officials of the CNE campaign accounts should already have finished the report to pass it on to the plenary room so that the financial statements can be approved.

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See then, who would say that the @CNE_COLOMBIA has not been able to give us the approval for the revocation of Medellin.? What does it depend on? All legal protocols have been met, so when? #CNEAprove

– Margarita London (@mimialr1961) February 9, 2022

Once this stage has been completed, the President of the Republic will be in charge of setting a date for citizens to come out to vote the recall.

For his part, the lawyer Juan Giraldo Mora, asked the magistrates to issue the resolution so that votes can be called.

“I believe that all the steps have been fulfilled, the pertinent explanations have been given and the principle of innocence that accompanies the actions of people must be respected,” said the lawyer.

(Keep reading: Are you looking for housing in Medellín? We explain how to access a subsidy)

MEDELLIN

China Endorses Russia's Key Demands to West in Standoff Over Ukraine

Washington — 

Chinese President Xi Jinping has endorsed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demands to end NATO expansion and get security guarantees from the West, issues that have led to Russia’s standoff with the United States and its allies over Ukraine.

The two leaders met at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guesthouse Friday afternoon, according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV, hours before the beginning of the Beijing Winter Olympics, which diplomats from the U.S., Britain and other countries are boycotting over human rights abuses.

The broadcaster did not provide details of the meeting, but Xi and Putin, both of whom have been criticized by the U.S. for their foreign and domestic policies, issued a joint statement underscoring their displeasure with “interference in the internal affairs” of other countries.

The joint statement proclaimed a new China-Russia strategic “friendship” that “has no limits” and no “forbidden areas of cooperation.”

China’s expressions of support for Russia comes as Moscow’s dispute with Ukraine threatens to escalate into armed conflict.

Service members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces ride atop of a tank during military drills in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, in this handout picture released Feb. 4, 2022. (Press service of the Joint Forces Operation/Handout via Reuters)

On Thursday, a senior Biden administration official said the U.S. has information indicating that Russia has developed a plan to stage a false Ukrainian military attack on Russian territory and leverage it as a pretext for an attack against Ukraine.

Fabricating a video of such an attack is one of several options the Kremlin is formulating to give it an excuse to invade Ukraine, the official said.

“The video will be released to underscore a threat to Russia’s security and to underpin military operations,” said the official, who requested anonymity.

“This video, if released, could provide Putin the spark he needs to initiate and justify military operations against Ukraine,” the official added.

The official said the Biden administration is disclosing specifics about Russia’s alleged plans to “dissuade” Russia from carrying out such plans.

In an interview Thursday with MSNBC, U.S. deputy national security adviser Jonathan Finer said, “We don’t know definitively that this is the route they are going to take, but we know that this is an option under consideration.”

NATO welcomes more US troops

The Biden administration disclosed the intelligence after NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday welcomed U.S. plans to deploy more troops to Europe and said NATO is considering sending additional battle groups to the southeastern part of its alliance amid tensions along the Russia-Ukraine border.

The U.S. on Wednesday announced plans to dispatch 2,000 more troops to Europe, most of them to Poland, and move 1,000 troops from Germany to Romania to bolster NATO’s eastern flank countries.

Military personnel from the 82nd Airborne Division and 18th Airborne Corps board a C-17 transport plane for deployment to Eastern Europe, amid escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Feb. 3, 2022.

Stoltenberg told reporters that while NATO is preparing for the possibility that Russia may take military action, NATO remains ready to engage in “meaningful dialogue” and find a diplomatic resolution to the crisis.

“NATO continues to call on Russia to de-escalate. Any further Russian aggression would have severe consequences and carry a heavy price,” he said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Thursday that the U.S. deployment is heightening tensions in the region.

The United States and other Western allies have been preparing economic sanctions to level against Russia in hopes of persuading Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull back the more than 100,000 troops Russia has near the border with Ukraine. Russia has denied it plans to invade.

Stoltenberg said Thursday there has been a “significant movement of Russian military forces into Belarus,” Ukraine’s northern neighbor, where they are taking part in joint military drills that began Thursday instead of later this month as originally planned.

“This is the biggest Russian deployment there since the Cold War,” Stoltenberg said, referring to what he said were 30,000 troops, fighter jets and missile systems.

Belarusian military helicopters fly during the joint exercises of the armed forces of Russia and Belarus at a firing range in the Brest Region, Belarus, Feb. 3, 2022.

Russia has not disclosed how many troops or the amount of military hardware it has in Belarus.

Thursday’s exercises, which are expected to continue until February 20, involved live fire, according to images released by the Belarusian defense minister. They also showed fighter jets in the sky and tanks firing and maneuvering.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu witnessed the exercises after arriving in Minsk Thursday, and he also met with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Russia has demanded that NATO pull back troops and weapons deployed in eastern European member countries, and to make clear that Ukraine cannot join the 30-member military alliance.

NATO and Ukraine have rejected those demands, saying countries are free to pick their allies.

But Stoltenberg said Thursday that NATO is ready to talk to Russia about relations between the two sides, and about risk reduction, increased transparency and arms control.

EU plans united response

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday the 27-nation bloc is planning a response to letters Russia sent earlier this week to several EU members about its demand for security guarantees.

During a visit to Helsinki, von der Leyen told reporters, “We are united in the European Union and therefore it is clear that the response will mirror, will reflect that unity.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attend a joint news conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, Feb. 3, 2022.

In Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Thursday he welcomed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s offer to mediate the crisis and to host peace negotiations. Zelenskiy’s comments came after the two leaders signed a free trade deal and other agreements while meeting in Kyiv.

Erdogan previously suggested Turkey, a NATO member that also has good relations with Russia, could act as a mediator.

Erdogan’s visit to Ukraine is the latest in a series of visits to Kyiv by world leaders and diplomats to show support for Ukraine and try to advance a peaceful resolution to the crisis.

Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

China Demands US Stop 'Interference' in Winter Olympics

China has accused the United States of “interference” in the Beijing Winter Olympics and is demanding it stop.

“The most urgent priority right now is that the U.S. should stop interfering in the Beijing Winter Olympics,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a statement following a call with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday.

“The U.S. continuously puts forward wrong words and actions toward China, causing new conflicts in relations between the two countries,” Wang was quoted as saying.

China’s accusation of interference likely refers to the so-called diplomatic boycott of the Games, which are set to start next week.

As a result of the boycott, the U.S. will not send diplomatic delegates to the Games. The United Kingdom and Australia have also announced similar boycotts. When the diplomatic boycotts were announced, Beijing responded by saying Washington should “stop politicizing sports.”

The boycott is to protest China’s treatment of the Muslim minority Uyghurs in the northwestern Xinjiang province. China is accused of genocide and forced labor but denies the accusations.

The State Department said on its website that Blinken and Wang discussed managing strategic risk, health security and climate change.

The statement made no reference to the Olympics.

The statement said Blinken “underscored the global security and economic risks posed by further Russian aggression against Ukraine and conveyed that de-escalation and diplomacy are the responsible way forward.” Russia denies it has intentions of invading its neighbor.

Some information in this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.

Lavrov warns Russia will not allow West to 'brush demands under the carpet'

Russia said Wednesday it would not allow Western allies to ‘downplay’ the Kremlin’s demands as tensions continue to escalate on the country’s border with Ukraine.

“There is a distinct trend towards downplaying our proposals and brushing them under the carpet in endless discussions,” foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said at an appearance in the State Duma.

“We will not let this happen. We will not let them emasculate our initiative,” he added.

(…)

US Responds to Russia's Security Demands, Renewing Call for Diplomacy

The United States and NATO have provided written responses to Moscow, addressing Russia’s renewed security demands, following consultations with various European partners as well as Ukraine — the latest moves in diplomatic maneuvering aimed at heading off armed conflict.

U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan delivered the document in person Wednesday to Russia’s Foreign Ministry. NATO transmitted to Russia its own responses regarding European security, described by officials as a few pages in length, separately.

Officials portrayed the responses as a way to address the Kremlin’s concerns while also giving all sides a chance to further pursue diplomacy.

“The document we’ve delivered includes concerns of the United States and our allies and partners about Russia’s actions that undermine security — a principled and pragmatic evaluation of the concerns that Russia has raised, and our own proposals for areas where we may be able to find common ground,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters during a press conference.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks about Russia and Ukraine during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, Jan. 26, 2022.

“We’ve addressed the possibility of reciprocal transparency measures regarding force posture in Ukraine, as well as measures to increase confidence regarding military exercises and maneuvers in Europe,” Blinken said. “We are acting with equal focus and force to bolster Ukraine’s defenses and prepare a swift united response to further Russian aggression.”

U.S. officials declined to elaborate on specifics, though they expressed hope Washington and Moscow still could find consensus and even make progress on issues such as arms control related to missiles in Europe.

Moscow’s security demands include a pause of NATO’s eastward expansion, especially in Ukraine and Georgia, as well as a rollback of NATO troops in Eastern Europe.

The U.S. has dismissed those demands as nonstarters, demanding Russia pull back its forces from the border with Ukraine and instead offering dialogue with Moscow on issues including military exercises and transparency, as well as the placement of missiles.

Russia offered a cautious initial response to the written proposals.

“We will read it. Study it,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told the Interfax news agency when asked about the NATO document. “The partners studied our project for almost a month and a half.”

In contrast, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters there is a growing sense of urgency, calling on Moscow to “withdraw its forces from Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, where they are deployed without these countries’ consent.”

“We face a critical moment,” he said, warning that Russia now has positioned more than 100,000 troops along its border with Ukraine, with additional deployments already underway.

“We see also more troops not only in and around Ukraine, but also now in Belarus, where Russia is in the process of deploying thousands of combat troops, hundreds of aircraft, S-400 air defense systems, and a lot of other very advanced capabilities,” Stoltenberg added.

“We have listened to Russian concerns. We have listened also to the Russian call for a written response,” he said. “This is about whether there’s a will to engage in good faith and to try to sit down and find common ground.”

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Wednesday Kyiv had no objections to the U.S. responses to Russia, acknowledging the threat from the number of Russian troops massed along his country’s borders as well as in Ukrainian territories occupied by Russian forces.

Still, Kuleba insisted there was no need for panic to take hold.

FILE – This handout photo taken and released by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s Press Office Jan. 17, 2022 shows Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba at a news conference in Kyiv.

“The number of Russian troops massed along the border of Ukraine and in the occupied territories of Ukraine is large (and) … poses a threat,” Kuleba said ​during a Wednesday press briefing. “However, at the moment, as we speak, this number is insufficient for a full-scale offensive against Ukraine along the entire Ukrainian border.”

While the U.S. would not rule out an imminent military move by Russia against Ukraine, a senior State Department official noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin may not want to upset China when the country is hosting the opening ceremony of Winter Olympics.

“We certainly see every indication that [Putin] is going to use military force sometime perhaps now and middle of February,” said Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman on Wednesday during a virtual event with Yalta European Strategy, a European security forum.

FILE – U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman holds a news conference at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 12, 2022.

“We all are aware that the Beijing Olympics begin on February 4 — the opening ceremony — and Putin is expected to be there,” added Sherman. “I think that probably President Xi Jinping would not be ecstatic if Putin chose that moment to invade Ukraine. So that may affect his timing and his thinking.”

Some analysts agreed with the assessment, noting Russia’s military logistics “have not yet been fully activated to start massive military operations.”

“The Winter Olympics in China, to be held between 4-20 February, might offer some respite,” said Mathieu Boulègue, a research fellow for the Russia and Eurasia program of London-based Chatham House. “To safeguard relations with Beijing, Moscow may avoid repeating its actions of August 2008, when Russia took military action against Georgia, literally during the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summer Olympics.”

In Kyiv, the U.S. embassy is urging American citizens in the country to consider departing now, citing an “unpredictable” security situation that “can deteriorate with little notice.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Russian officials rejected the prospect of U.S. sanctions against President Putin, one of several proposed responses if Russian forces were to invade neighboring Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that such sanctions would be “destructive” but not politically painful.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday warned of “severe” and “enormous” consequences for Putin — including personal sanctions against Putin himself — if the Russian leader mobilizes troops standing ready to strike along the Ukrainian border. Ukrainian intelligence officials put troop estimates at 127,000.

Since 2014, the United States has committed more than $5 billion in both security and non-security assistance to Ukraine, including more than $351 million in assistance to those displaced or affected by “Russia’s aggression,” according to Deputy Secretary of State Sherman.

Jeff Seldin contributed to this report; some information came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.