WARSAW: Poland’s foreign minister said Tuesday that he is ordering the closure of one of three Russian consulates in the country in response to acts of sabotage including arson attacks that he said were sponsored by Moscow.
Radek Sikorski demanded that Russia stop what he called hybrid war actions against Poland and its Western allies, warning that Poland reserves the right “to take further decisive action” if they don’t stop.
“As the minister of foreign affairs, I have information that the Russian Federation is behind attempts at sabotage, both in Poland and in allied countries,” Sikorski told reporters in Warsaw.
He said he was withdrawing consent for the Russian Consulate in Poznan, and that its personnel would be unwelcome in Poland. Russia also has consulates in Gdansk and Krakow.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova promised “a painful response to yet another hostile act” in comments to state news agency RIA Novosti.
Sikorski cited the arrest in January of a Ukrainian citizen who he said admitted that Russian agents told him to carry out an arson attack in the city of Wroclaw. The attack was foiled, and the 51-year-old man, identified only as Serhii S., is awaiting a court trial.
Sikorski alleged that about 20 such sabotage suspects are under investigation in Poland, and that he has knowledge of other such arson plans in allied countries.
“Putin must be deterred,” the foreign minister said in an interview Monday on the private TVN broadcaster. “We have other such arson attacks all over Europe, all over Europe, and we know about the Russian plans for further arson attacks.”
The pro-European Union government in Warsaw says Russia is pursuing acts of hybrid war against Poland and other Western countries in retaliation for their support for Poland’s neighbor Ukraine in its struggle against Russia’s invasion.
Poland alleges Russian sabotage and is closing one of Moscow’s consulates
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Poland alleges Russian sabotage and is closing one of Moscow’s consulates
- Radek Sikorski demanded that Russia stop what he called hybrid war actions against Poland and its Western allies
- “As the minister of foreign affairs, I have information that the Russian Federation is behind attempts at sabotage, both in Poland and in allied countries,” Sikorski told reporters
Britain and Germany will sign a defense pact to counter Russia’s growing threat
- Britain and Germany are also expected to collaborate on developing new land-based and aerial drones
LONDON: German submarine-hunting planes will patrol the North Atlantic from a base in Scotland under a new Britain-Germany defense pact in response to the growing threat from Russia, officials said.
Defense ministers from Britain and Germany will sign the agreement in London on Wednesday in what officials call the first such defense pact between the two countries to boost European security amid rising Russian aggression.
“The UK and Germany are moving closer together. With projects across the air, land, sea, and cyber domains, we will jointly increase our defense capabilities, thereby strengthening the European pillar within NATO,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in a statement ahead of signing the deal.
“It is particularly important to me that we cooperate even more closely to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank and to close critical capability gaps, for instance in the field of long-range strike weapons,” he added.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Under the deal, German submarine hunter aircraft are expected to operate “periodically” from a Scottish military base to patrol the North Atlantic. The allies will work closer together to protect vital underwater cables in the North Sea.
The two countries say they will also cooperate to prioritize developing long-range strike weapons that can travel farther than the UK’s existing Storm Shadow missiles. German defense giant Rheinmetall is also expected to open a factory producing artillery gun barrels using British steel.
Officials say the pact will mean British and German forces committed to NATO in Estonia and Lithuania will exercise and operate together more closely, ensuring that “land forces on NATO’s eastern flank remain a strong deterrent and are ready to fight and win if required.”
Britain and Germany are also expected to collaborate on developing new land-based and aerial drones.
US plans to contribute $20 bn for Ukraine loan: Yellen
- The loan is part of a G7 loan package for Ukraine
- It will be backed by profits from the interest on Russian assets frozen after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022
WASHINGTON: The United States plans to contribute $20 billion to a G7 loan package for Ukraine and could soon announce new sanctions targeting Russian weapons procurement, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Tuesday.
“We’re very close to finalizing America’s portion of this $50 billion loan package,” she told a press conference, as world financial leaders gather in Washington for the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
G7 leaders are close to finalizing the plan, with policymakers set to meet later this week.
Yellen said leaders intend for the support to go to Ukraine by the end of the year, but there remains some more work in finalizing details.
“We expect to be able to contribute $20 billion to the $50 billion G7 package,” she said.
“What I want to emphasize is that the source of financing for these loans — this is not the American taxpayer,” she added.
The loan will be backed by profits from the interest on Russian assets frozen after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Her comments come two weeks ahead of the US presidential election, in which Republican former president Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris are neck-and-neck in the White House race.
Economic issues are top-of-mind for US voters, as households have been feeling the pinch from higher costs of living after the coronavirus pandemic.
A French finance ministry source told AFP: “We’re still discussing the concrete, practical details of how to implement this scheme.”
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added that leaders are working toward a decision this week, with “a great deal of work at the technical level to reach an agreement.”
Yellen noted Tuesday that although European Union sanctions need to be renewed every six months with a unanimous decision, she feels “good that this is a secure loan that will be serviced by Russian assets.”
The United States is also set to announce new sanctions as early as next week targeting Russia over its war in Ukraine, Yellen said.
“We will unveil strong new sanctions targeting those facilitating the Kremlin’s war machine, including intermediaries in third countries that are supplying Russia with critical inputs for its military,” she said.
It has been more than 2.5 years since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which prompted a series of US actions taking aim at Moscow’s revenues and industrial complex.
Yellen is expected to appear as well at upcoming US-China working group meetings, a platform at which Washington has earlier raised concerns about Chinese industrial overcapacity.
Yellen said she has not heard policy announcements from Beijing that address excess capacity in the way she was hoping.
With IMF and World Bank annual meetings ongoing, Yellen also urged countries to do more for nations struggling with debt.
Rudy Giuliani ordered to turn over NYC apartment, 26 watches to Georgia election workers
- The property Giuliani must relinquish is expected to fetch several million dollars
- Giuliani had asked the judge to bar Freeman and Moss from selling any of his assets
Rudy Giuliani must turn over sports memorabilia and other prized possessions to two Georgia election workers who won a $148 million defamation judgment against him, including his New York City apartment, more than two dozen luxury watches and a 1980 Mercedes once owned by movie star Lauren Bacall, a judge ruled Tuesday.
But US District Judge Lewis Liman in Manhattan also said Giuliani does not have to give the election workers three New York Yankees World Series rings or his Florida condominium — for now — noting those assets are tied up in other litigation.
The property Giuliani must relinquish is expected to fetch several million dollars for Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss. They won the $148 million judgment over Giuliani’s false ballot fraud claims against them related to the 2020 presidential election. They said Giuliani pushed Donald Trump’s lies about the election being stolen, which led to death threats that made them fear for their lives.
Under Tuesday’s order, Giuliani must turn over within seven days his Manhattan apartment, estimated at more than $5 million, as well his interest in about $2 million that he says Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign owes him for his services.
Also on the list of assets that must be given to Freeman and Moss are a 1980 Mercedes-Benz SL 500 previous owned by Bacall, a shirt and picture signed, respectively, by Yankees legends Joe DiMaggio and Reggie Jackson, a signed Yankee Stadium picture, a diamond ring, costume jewelry and 26 watches, including a Rolex, five Shinolas, two Bulovas and a Tiffany & Co.
In court documents filed earlier this year, Giuliani estimated the worth of the Mercedes at about $25,000, and the watches, World Series rings and costume jewelry at about $30,000. He said the value of his sports memorabilia was unknown.
One of those watches was given to Giuliani by his grandfather and he asked that he be allowed to keep it because of its sentimental value. But Liman rejected the request, saying Giuliani could have had it exempted if he proved it was worth less than $1,000 but he did not do so. The judge added, “However painful the circumstances, a party cannot claim that every family heirloom should be exempt.”
Liman wrote that Giuliani’s surrendering of the assets to Freeman and Moss would “ensure that the liquidation of the transferred assets is accomplished quickly and consistently by the Plaintiffs’ chosen counsel, maximizing the sale value of the unique and intangible items and therefore increasing the likelihood of satisfaction of the Plaintiffs’ judgment.”
Lawyers for Giuliani did not immediately return email messages on Tuesday.
To date, Giuliani has not paid Freeman and Moss anything.
“We are proud that our clients will finally begin to receive some of the compensation to which they are entitled for Giuliani’s actions,” Aaron Nathan, a lawyer for Freeman and Moss, said in a statement. “This outcome should send a powerful message that there is a price to pay for those who choose to intentionally spread disinformation.”
Giuliani had asked the judge to bar Freeman and Moss from selling any of his assets until after his appeal of the $148 million judgment is completed. Liman also turned down that request, saying Giuliani could have asked the federal court in Washington, D.C., where Freeman and Moss won their defamation case, to stay any asset sales pending his appeal, but did not.
“The Court also does not doubt that certain of the items may have sentimental value to Defendant,” the judge wrote. “But that does not entitle Defendant to continued enjoyment of the assets to the detriment of the Plaintiffs to whom he owes approximately $150 million. It is, after all, the underlying policy of these New York statutes that ‘no man should be permitted to live at the same time in luxury and in debt.’”
As for the World Series rings, Giuliani’s son, Andrew, filed court documents earlier this month saying he actually is the rightful owner. He said his father gave him four rings — one for each of the Yankees’ championships in 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000 — as gifts in 2018. Rudy Giuliani received the rings during his tenure as mayor of New York City. The younger Giuliani’s claim is pending in federal court in Manhattan.
Freeman and Moss also asked Liman to order Rudy Giuliani to turn over his condo in Palm Beach, Florida, estimated to be worth more than $3 million. But that property is tied up in other litigation, with Giuliani claiming it should be exempt because it is his primary residence. Freeman and Moss have a lien on the Florida property.
Liman said he would take up the Florida condo at a hearing set for Oct. 28, and he barred Rudy Giuliani from selling the property or taking any action that would diminish its value in the meantime.
After the $148 million verdict, Giuliani filed for bankruptcy, which froze attempts by Freeman and Moss to collect the award. But a judge in July threw out the case citing repeated “uncooperative conduct,” including a failure to comply with court orders and disclose sources of income.
Uganda fuel truck explosion kills 11
KIGOGWA: A fuel truck ran out of control and exploded into flames near the Ugandan capital on Tuesday, killing 11 people, including two minors, police said.
The impoverished East African country has witnessed several similar disasters in recent years as people rushed to steal fuel from tankers involved in road accidents.
Ugandan police said the latest tragedy struck at 3 p.m. (1200 GMT) when the tanker overturned and caught fire in the town of Kigogwa, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) north of Kampala.
Eleven people died, including two minors, the Uganda Police Force said in a statement on X, adding: “The victims were burnt beyond recognition.”
The incident took place just days after a fuel tanker exploded in northern Nigeria on October 15, killing more than 170 people.
Images from the scene in Kigogwa showed yellow police tape around the charred wreck of the tanker while forensic specialists and emergency responders inspected nearby properties destroyed in the blast.
Bukenya Jefferson 29, a shopkeeper at Kigogwa trading center who witnessed the blast, said fuel started to spill onto the road after the vehicle rolled over.
“People rushed to the truck. Some people had begun taking fuel in cans. Then we heard a loud sound and smoke started coming toward us,” he told AFP.
“We were confused and saw everyone running and I ran, then saw smoke increasing.”
The police statement said the tanker was traveling from Kampala to Gulu in northern Uganda, a journey of about 650 kilometers.
“Unfortunately, people who rushed to siphon fuel from the tanker were the most affected,” it said.
Four buildings housing nine shops were destroyed in the blaze, it added, saying property worth millions of Ugandan shillings was lost.
“This tragic incident serves as a reminder of the risks associated with fuel tanker accidents and the importance of exercising caution when dealing with hazardous materials.”
Charles Lwanga, resident district commissioner for the area, told AFP that investigations were under way.
He also told reporters that firefighters had brought the blaze under control, preventing the flames from reaching a nearby petrol station.
The town lies on the road between Kampala and the town of Bombo, where the Uganda Land Forces have their headquarters.
In August 2019, 19 people died when a fuel truck barrelled into other vehicles in the busy town of Kyambura in western Uganda and exploded.
In 2002, 70 people were killed when an oil truck rammed into a bus in Rutoto, less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Kyambura.
And in 2013, 33 people died in a blast after a fuel truck overturned in Kampala.
Uganda imports an average of 2.5 billion liters of petroleum a year, according to local media reports.
It is currently developing oil fields in the Lake Albert area of northwestern Uganda in a controversial mega-project with TotalEnergies of France and China’s state-run CNOOC.
The $10 billion project — which also involves building a 1,443-kilometer (900-mile) heated pipeline to ship the crude to Tanzania — has come under fire from rights groups and environmental campaigners.
Uganda’s veteran President Yoweri Museveni says the oil is vital to help economic development in the country, where the poverty rate stood at about 20 percent in 2020-21, according to government figures.
UN group questions France over racial profiling
GENEVA: A United Nations group on Tuesday raised the issue of racial profiling by French police during identity checks.
The UN’s committee responsible for verifying the application of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights said it “continues to receive disturbing information about systemic racism and the persistence of racial and ethnic profiling, and about the inadequacy of complaints handling procedures.”
Yvonne Donders, the committee’s vice president, said during a regular examination of France that the body had been informed that “people of color are subject to identity checks by police approximately 20 times more often than other citizens.”
The French delegation at the meeting responded that the codes governing France’s security forces “explicitly” ban discriminatory identity checks, and that the security forces all receive training on this issue.
Donders replied that there could be a gap between practice and the law, adding that “greater ethnic and racial diversity within law enforcement can help reduce racial profiling.”
The committee’s final observations, covering several countries and subjects, will be released in early November at the end of this year’s session.
