Category: General

Bulgaria is investigating allegations that Russian money has been laundered through a financial institution in the country, the state-run BTA news agency reported on Tuesday. The Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office said the State Agency for National Security (SANS) has been asked to conduct the investigation, and approach lawmaker Delyan Dobrev, who recently made the claims. The legal timeframe for such an investigation is three months, after which the supervising prosecutor will determine if there is enough evidence of a general offense to initiate pretrial proceedings. Dobrev said in an interview on Sunday that Sofia was violating EU sanctions imposed on Moscow, with a bank in Bulgaria transferring money to Russian oligarchs in Europe. ‘Through this particular bank, large dubious money transfers to another country in Europe – to Hungary, which are believed to be connected to Russian oligarchs and interests,’ the BTA quoted Dobrev as saying. ‘Our source is reliable, so we believe that this is true,’ Dobrev said, adding that the information came from a ‘partner service.’ The country’s central bank, the Bulgarian National Bank, said no such case had been referred to it, and by law anti-money laundering measures are the responsibility of SANS.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Agriculture Minister Petros Xenophontos called on the European Commission to table proposals that could support all Member States, speaking during a discussion on the measures taken by Russia’s neighbouring countries in relation to agricultural imports, at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council of the EU held on Tuesday in Luxembourg. According to a press release, the main topic of discussion was the situation of the European Union’s agricultural market and of trade with Ukraine as a result of Russia’s invasion of the country. The discussion was held on the occasion of unilateral measures taken by Member States neighbouring Ukraine due to the presence on their territory of significant quantities of Ukrainian agricultural products which caused disruption to their local markets. Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, said that the Commission recognised the scale of the impact of the situation in Ukraine, and that it is preparing additional measures to support farmers in the regions concerned. The Ukrainian Minister of Agriculture Mykola Solskyi also took part in the discussion via teleconference. In his intervention, Xenophontos expressed Cyprus’ solidarity with the affected Member States, while stressing that Cyprus is also facing problems due to the very high increase in production costs and the impossibility of marketing certain products. Given the situation in the European market, he urged the Commission to submit proposals to create possibilities for support for all Member States. The Agriculture Ministers also exchanged views on the agricultural and forestry aspects of the regulation on the certification of carbon sinks. Xenophontos said that Cyprus supports the establishment of a voluntary carbon certification scheme at EU level in the framework of the Green Deal, which would be accessible to smallholder farmers, taking into account local specificities. During a discussion on the implementation of National Strategic Plans, Xenophontos briefed his counterparts about the steps taken by Cyprus, and stressed the need to provide maximum flexibility to Member States for the efficient implementation of the Strategic Plans. During a working lunch, the Ministers exchanged views with Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides on the Commission’s initiative for a proposal for a Regulation on new genomic techniques. The Minister of Agriculture said that Cyprus supports the observance of the “precautionary principle” in the context of the application of new genomic techniques, through the creation of a legislative framework that responds to the concerns of Member States, while protecting the environment and also supporting the sustainability of food systems, food security and food safety and the proper use of new technologies. Finally, the Ministers endorsed Council Conclusions on opportunities created in the field of bioeconomy in the light of today’s challenges, with a particular focus on rural areas.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

April 26th marks the anniversary of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe in Ukraine – the biggest disaster at a nuclear power plant in history. Experts say four nuclear power plants currently operating in Ukraine are at risk due to the war. The one under the biggest threat is the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station, which has been occupied by Russian troops for more than a year. For VOA, Lesia Bakalets reports from Warsaw, Poland. Camera: Daniil Batushchak

Source: Voice of America

Egypt on Monday confirmed the killing of the assistant administrative attaché at the country’s main diplomatic mission in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan engulfed in incessant violence. Mohammad al-Gharrawi was killed while he was driving to the embassy building to take care of the evacuation procedures of Egyptians stranded in Sudan, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Initially, the Sudanese army announced that Egypt’s assistant military attache was killed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces fire. However, later the statement regarding the killing was corrected. More than 400 people have been reported killed and 3,500 injured since April 15, when fighting erupted between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Khartoum and its surroundings. A disagreement had been fomenting in recent months between the army and RSF over military security reform. The reform envisages the full participation of the RSF in the military, one of the main issues in the negotiation process carried out by international and regional parties for the transition to civilian and democratic rule in Sudan.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday presented medals to domestic and foreign teams that contributed to the search and rescue efforts after the powerful Feb. 6 earthquakes hit southern Trkiye, claiming the lives of more than 50,000 people. “Today, we will present medals to domestic and foreign search and rescue teams who made sacrifices during the quakes on February 6th,” Erdogan said at the ceremony of presidential medal and order of distinguished humanitarian service. He said 55,000 people, who became the “symbols of the struggle” after the earthquakes, will be presented with the medal and order. Stressing that twin quakes were one of the “most destructive” natural disasters not only in Trkiye but also in the history of humanity, Erdogan said: “Our prayer is that neither our country nor any other country in the world will face disasters like the one occurred on February 6. We do not want anyone else to go through what we experienced.” Erdogan said 11,320 personnel from 90 countries came to Trkiye after the quakes, and 60 countries and international organizations sent nearly 250,000 tents to the region, adding: ‘We know all of our true friends.” “We will continue our efforts until the wounds are completely healed and the traces of the earthquake are completely erased,” the president stressed.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Russia will increase natural gas exports to China by nearly 50% this year, as Moscow is steering towards greater energy cooperation with Beijing, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak said on Sunday.

In an interview with the Russia-1 TV channel, Novak declared that last year Moscow supplied 15 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas to China and pledged to increase deliveries to 22 bcm this year. Novak also announced that, in the next two years, supplies via the Power of Siberia gas pipeline would reach their full capacity of 38 bcm annually.

China currently gets most of its Russian gas through this mega pipeline, which is a section of the so-called Eastern Route. It was partially launched in December 2019, becoming the first pipeline to supply Russian gas to China. The Eastern Route includes the 3,000km-long Power of Siberia pipeline in Russia and a section in China that extends to 5,111km.

The Power of Siberia is part of a $400 billion, 30-year agreement between Russia’s Gazprom and the China National Petroleum Corporation, which was inked in May 2014.

In February, Moscow and Beijing signed an agreement for additional natural gas supplies to China via the Eastern Route. The countries are now working on the Power of Siberia 2 energy project, which involves the construction of a gas pipeline to China through the territory of Mongolia.

Novak also noted that Moscow has abandoned the US dollar and euro in energy trade with Beijing, with most settlements for oil, gas and other resources conducted in Chinese yuan and Russian rubles.

Source: Russia Today

In the aftermath of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine last year, global attitudes toward Russia’s leadership have shifted dramatically, with large majorities of the population in dozens of countries reporting disapproval of the Kremlin.

Data compiled from surveys of thousands of people in 137 countries and regions showed a marked decline in approval of the Kremlin, according to a report released by the Gallup organization on Tuesday. Globally, 57% of respondents reported that they disapprove of Russia’s leadership in 2022, up from just 38% the year before.

Only 21% of respondents said that they approve of Russia’s leadership, down from 33% in 2021. Both the approval and disapproval figures were the most extreme Gallup has measured since it began asking the question as part of its annual survey tracking attitudes toward global leaders in 2007.

Global Ratings of Russia’s Leadership

Global Ratings of Russia’s Leadership

“It’s incredible,” Zacc Ritter, a senior researcher with Gallup and the lead author of the report, told VOA. “I don’t think we’ve seen a shift like this before in Gallup’s data for any country.”

Negative shift everywhere

While peoples’ impression of Russia’s leadership varied across individual countries in the survey, the overarching result was a worsening of the public image of its leadership across the board.

The shift was most prominent in Latin America and the Caribbean, where the median approval rating fell by 21 percentage points, to 16%, while the median disapproval rating jumped by 30 points, to 61%.

Even in parts of Africa and Asia where Russian influence remains strong, the change was negative. In North Africa and the Middle East, disapproval rates rose by 12 points, to 55%. In sub-Saharan Africa, where Russia maintains active influence operations, disapproval rates still spiked from 21% to 32%, worsening even in countries whose leaders have refused to condemn the war.

Still, sub-Saharan Africa was the only region polled by Gallup in which the median approval rating of Russia’s leadership (35%) remained above the median disapproval rating.

State-level differences

The data collected by Gallup indicates significant regional differences in attitudes toward Russia’s leadership, with disapproval most concentrated in Europe, North America, Australia, South Korea and Japan. Feelings toward Russia were more ambivalent in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Unsurprisingly, Ukraine registered the highest rate of disapproval, at 96%, followed closely by Poland, at 95%. The U.S., Canada and 10 different European countries registered disapproval ratings of 90% or above.

In Taiwan, the self-governing island claimed as a possession by China and itself under constant threat of invasion, the shift against Russia was large. In 2021, just 26% of Taiwanese surveyed expressed disapproval of Russia’s leadership. By 2022, that number had leapt to 72%.

Another outlier was Kazakhstan, the former Soviet republic on Russia’s eastern border. Normally a reliable ally of Moscow’s, Kazakhstan showed a major shift in attitude between 2021 and 2022. Approval of Russian leadership fell to 29% from 55% and disapproval jumped to 50% from just 20%.

Little surprise

Steven Pifer, a former senior U.S. State Department official who also served as ambassador to Ukraine, told VOA that it is no secret that Russia has seriously damaged its international standing, particularly in Europe.

“Certainly when you look at how Europeans now look at Russia, I think it’s a much more negative image than was the case before this war began,” said Pifer, who is now an affiliate of Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation. “Russian actions are so at odds with the fundamental principles that we thought had been the basis for European security… that now, when they talk about security in Europe, it’s not about security that involves Russia. It’s about security against Russia.”

On the broader global stage, he said, it will be difficult for most world leaders to engage meaningfully with senior Russian officials and hard to trust them on the occasions when engagement is possible.

“Start at the top. Vladimir Putin has been indicted for war crime. It’s really difficult to see how any Western leader can sit down with him at this point. There’s a reputational cost to doing that,” Pifer said.

He said the willingness of senior Russian diplomats to parrot obvious lies and distortions about the war that have been put forward by the Kremlin will make re-engagement all the more difficult.

“Russian diplomats who I used to have some respect for are just out there, basically saying the most bizarre things,” Pifer said. “That will come back to bite them. These guys have lost a lot of credibility, and it’s going to be hard to see how they get it back.”

Similar findings

Although its sample size makes the Gallup survey stand out, its findings echo those of a number of other major research firms that have explored the decline in Russia’s global standing, including the Pew Research Center and Ipsos.

Last month, Brand Finance, the U.K.-based consultancy that issues an annual Global Soft Power index, reported that in the previous year, Russia was the only country to see its soft power decline over the previous year.

Soft power, which refers to a country’s ability to affect the behavior of other nations without resorting to force, derives from many things, including economic ties and cultural influences.

“While nations have turned to soft power to restore trade and tourism after a devastating health crisis, the world order has been disrupted by the hard power of the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Brand Finance Chairman and CEO David Haigh said in a statement. “An event that would be hard to believe were it not for the intensity of the images we have been seeing for months and the consequences the conflict is having on politics and the economy alike.”

Source: Voice of America

The President of the House of Representatives, Annita Demetriou, referred to the crucial role that Cyprus, together with Greece, can play in ensuring adequate energy reserves through the development of cooperation mechanisms with countries such as Israel and Egypt, aimed at energy transfer, including liquefied natural gas to continental Europe. Demetriou made the remark during her intervention at the Conference of Speakers of the European Union Parliaments (EUSC) which was held in Prague. According to a statement by the House of Representatives, during her intervention in the discussion on the role of the EU in the framework of global cooperation among democracies, in connection with the issue of dependence of EU member states on totalitarian regimes (misinformation, supply chain security, strategic autonomy), the President of the Parliament noted that since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, 14 months ago, the words “autonomy”, “misinformation”, “security”, “energy”, and “democracy” have dominated the political dialogue in the EU and have taken unpredictable dimensions. She noted that after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it became clear that the issue of energy security is now a strong incentive for the EU to strategically promote its autonomy in this sector and to achieve its independence from conventional sources of energy. Regarding the aspect of strategic autonomy in the field of security, the House President said it is imperative to find ways to implement the EU’s goal of energy self-sufficiency, so that the Union can become an even stronger partner in the field of energy security, agreeing with France’s position that Europe must be able to make its own autonomous decisions when and where needed. Demetriou further referred to the fundamental democratic values of the EU, emphasizing that the EU can play a leading role in protecting and deepening democracy at the global level, through close cooperation and a cohesive common foreign policy aimed at establishing and supporting democratic institutions in third countries. She also agreed with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, on the need to demonstrate strong leadership in this direction. She emphasized the crucial role of national parliaments in the overall process of upholding the rule of law and preserving democracy at national and European level, serving as a shield and protection against totalitarian regimes and the consequences of their policies on the coherence of the EU. The Conference of Presidents concluded its work by adopting a set of Conclusions. On the sidelines of the conference, Demetriou held bilateral meetings with the Vice-President of the French National Assembly Valérie Rabault and the president of the Spanish Parliament Meritxell Batet Lamaña. During the meeting with Rabault, the excellent level of relations between the two countries and their parliaments, which are based on common values and the common Euro-Mediterranean identity of the two countries, was reaffirmed. The importance of strengthening cooperation between them at all levels was also emphasized while issues of gender equality and the EU’s energy independence from countries with totalitarian regimes were also discussed. During the meeting with Batet Lamaña, the mutual willingness to deepen bilateral relations at the inter-parliamentary level was emphasized, particularly in light of the dynamics and cooperation developed through the participation of the two women Presidents of Parliaments in relevant EU inter-parliamentary meetings. They also exchanged views on the priorities of the upcoming Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU during the second half of 2023.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

A majority of Canadians do not support King Charles as head of state and are not in favor of Camilla as queen, according to a new survey released Monday. Canada is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and as such the king or queen of Britain is automatically head of state for Canada, although the position is titular. King Charles assumes that post, replacing his late mother Queen Elizabeth II after his May 6 coronation. But he does not have the backing of Canadians for the post, and they do not want his picture on the country’s currency or to sing ‘God Save the King’ at official ceremonies. According to a poll conducted by the Angus Reid Institute, 60% of respondents do not want to recognize Charles as Canada’s King, and only 28% view Charles in a positive light. Support for Queen Camilla was even dimmer. Originally, she was to be called Queen Consort, a title endorsed by Queen Elizabeth before she died on Sept. 8 of last year. A royal historian told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) that the title Queen could have been misunderstood if bestowed on Camilla during the period of mourning for Elizabeth. “During the period of mourning, there was potential for confusion if the [title] Queen was used to refer to both the late Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Camilla,” Toronto-based Carolyn Harris told the CBC. “With the coronation, there is only one King and Queen, Charles III and Queen Camilla.” Respondents to the poll indicated Camilla is not popular. Two-thirds felt she should not be recognized as Queen of Canada. Only 21% backed her having the title, while 19% said she should be Queen Consort. In fact, a majority said they do not care about the coronation at all. The ruling British monarch has been Canada’s head of state since Canada officially become an independent nation from England in 1867. Over the years, support for the monarchy has gradually eroded. The new poll showed that 52% do not want to continue with the constitutional monarchy. The poll was an online survey conducted April 10-12 with 2,013 Canadians who are members of the Angus Reid Forum. It carries a margin of error of 1-to-2%, 19 times out of 20.

Source: Anadolu Agency

UN member states are against the idea of moving the organization’s headquarters out of New York City mainly due to financial limitations, according to Pyotr Ilyichev, a high-ranking official at the Russian Foreign Ministry.

“[Russia] would, of course, like to relocate [the UN HQ] to some other more neutral spot, like Geneva or Vienna, but many member states don’t want to leave New York,” Ilyichev, who heads the Department of International Organizations at the ministry, said on Monday.

According to the diplomat, there are “a lot of reasons” why national governments are reluctant to leave the largest city in the US, with one of them being that “they have real estate there. It’s hard for them to sustain two [UN] missions, so they have everything situated in New York. Those are more of the financial and economic reflections.”

Russia is “thinking” about moving the UN headquarters out of New York, where it has been located since the formation of the global body in 1951, he said. “The Austrians and the Swiss are more neutral” compared to the Americans, Ilyichev stated.

Besides its New York-based headquarters, the UN also has offices in Geneva, Vienna, and Kenyan capital Nairobi.

A Russian delegation headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had difficulties with obtaining US visas to attend UN Security Council (UNSC) meetings in New York on Monday and Tuesday. The country’s journalists were denied permits to enter the US by the American authorities altogether, without any explanation.

Lavrov argued that such behavior by the US isn’t worthy of a UN host nation. The Americans have just “chickened out,” he suggested, while promising that the move won’t be left unanswered by Moscow.

Russia, which currently holds the presidency of the UNSC, had planned some “major newsbreak events” in New York this week and barring the pool of the country’s reporters from participating was completely unacceptable, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said.

When asked about the possibility of relocating the UN headquarters to another country on Monday, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov replied that it was “an issue of additional thinking, additional analysts.”

Source: Russia Today