MADRID: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Saturday that peace in Ukraine cannot be “imposed,” as he prepares to visit the country.
“Peace in Ukraine and security in Europe cannot be imposed,” said Sanchez, who will embark on a visit to Kyiv on Monday as Ukraine prepares to mark three years since the start of the Russian invasion. He added any “just and lasting peace” required Ukrainian and European participation.
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Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM
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Peace in Ukraine cannot be ‘imposed’: Spanish PM
- He added any “just and lasting peace” required Ukrainian and European participation
Filipino players ready to defend women’s esports title at World Cup in Riyadh
- 4 Philippine teams to compete in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang category
- Largest esports festival, 2025 World Cup features $70m in prize money
MANILA: Philippine competitors are preparing for next month’s Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia, where they aim to defend a title in an all-female tournament of one of the most popular mobile multiplayer strategy games.
Set to take place in Riyadh from July 7 to Aug. 24, the upcoming Esports World Cup will be the globe’s largest esports festival, featuring $70 million in prize money, and 25 professional tournaments.
The event is a part of Saudi Arabia’s broader Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the economy — also by investing heavily in sports and tourism.
Four Philippine teams will be competing in the championship’s MLBB category.
MLBB, or Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, is a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena game by Chinese developer Moonton. It is one of the world’s most popular mobile esports games, especially in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
Keith Medrano, who leads Moonton’s public relations in the Philippines and the region, told Arab News: “Both men’s and women’s rep teams are representing the Philippines in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Mid-Season Cup and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Women’s Invitational.”
He added: “We were given two slots per category, so two slots for the men’s and two slots for the women’s.
“We are actually the defending champions of the Women’s Invitational. So, it’s really important ... to defend our title as the strongest country in MLBB sports gaming for women.”
Duane “Kelra” Pillas, a player from the Onic Philippines team, told sports reporters on Tuesday that they would also try to reclaim the MSC title which Filipino players last held in 2022.
“In the upcoming EWC, we will make sure that one of us will win,” Pillas said.
“We are really preparing to get the MSC again since the Philippines has not been able to get it for several years.”
Filipino players have emerged as strong contenders in mobile esports in recent years — a discipline most popular in Southeast Asia and where they are seen to have their best title hopes at the upcoming Riyadh event.
“In the eSports World Cup, there are different esport titles. They’re all different — it’s like a multisport event,” said Marlon Marcelo, executive director of the Philippine Esports Organization.
“For now, we have a strong chance in Mobile Legends — both in the men’s and women’s category. That’s where our money’s at.”
He also observed an increasing popularity of esports among women, who just a few months after the Riyadh World Cup will be competing at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games.
“We have a strong chance in the women’s category,” he said. “It’s heating up.”
‘No one can stop’ Duterte impeachment trial: Philippine House prosecutors
- Vice President Sara Duterte was impeached in early February
- A guilty verdict would see her removed from office and permanently barred from politics
MANILA: House of Representatives prosecutors said Wednesday that Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial could not be stopped despite the Senate sending the case back to them hours after convening as a court.
Prosecutors told an afternoon press briefing their case had complied strictly with the constitution, adding they would seek clarification over what they called “confusing” Senate orders.
Duterte was impeached in early February on charges of graft, corruption and an alleged assassination plot against former ally and running mate President Ferdinand Marcos.
A guilty verdict would see her removed from office and permanently barred from politics.
“No one can stop this anymore, because jurisdiction has been acquired already by the impeachment court,” said Congresswoman Gerville Luistro, pointing to the Senate’s issuing of a summons for Duterte late Wednesday night.
“There will be no... withdrawal (of the impeachment case) by the House. That is not allowed by the constitution.”
Tuesday night’s 18-5 Senate vote ordered the House to certify it had not violated the constitution by hearing three impeachment complaints before the one that ultimately went to a vote.
The constitution bars subjecting anyone to multiple impeachment proceedings within the same year.
But House member Ysabel Maria Zamora said the final impeachment complaint had “consolidated all the articles” of the first three into one.
A second order to guarantee the case would move forward after new House members take their seats on June 30 was “impossible” to fulfil as they could not speak for a future Congress, prosecutors said.
Outside the Senate, several hundred protesters gathered Wednesday, shouting slogans and pounding on the gates as they called for the body to follow through with the impeachment trial.
The Senate’s vote to remand was as much a matter of “political survival” as anything, lawyer and former senator Leila de Lima said Wednesday.
De Lima, who warned more than a week ago the Senate could move to kill the impeachment, said the specter of a still-powerful Duterte was likely on lawmakers’ minds.
“Loyalty, friendship, political survival. Maybe they are thinking the Dutertes are very much around even if the patriarch (ex-president Rodrigo Duterte) is in The Hague,” she said.
The elder Duterte has been imprisoned since March when he was arrested and transferred to the International Criminal Court to face charges tied to his deadly drug war.
His daughter has been widely mooted as a presidential candidate in 2028 should she survive the impeachment process.
Senators “were trying to protect their political ambitions,” agreed Congresswoman France Castro, who endorsed an early impeachment complaint against the vice president.
Asked at Wednesday’s press briefing if he believed the Senate was deliberately delaying the trial, Congressman Keith Flores said the answer was clear.
“I cannot speak for everyone but for me, yes.”
Russians struggle with ‘crazy’ prices
- Russia’s three-year-long military offensive on Ukraine has caused inflation to surge at home
- Western sanctions have disrupted supply chains and dozens of consumer brands have left the country
MOSCOW: Russian pensioner Roman Paltievich stared at the prices for apricots, tomatoes and watermelons stacked high on stalls at a Moscow market – foods that he now struggles to fit into his budget.
“The prices are crazy,” lamented the 84-year-old, who said he can no longer afford cherries – or even potatoes, a staple that is now three times more expensive than a year ago.
Russia’s three-year-long military offensive on Ukraine has caused inflation to surge at home, a thorn in the side for the Kremlin, which strives to shield Russians from the fallout of its campaign.
Western sanctions have disrupted supply chains and dozens of consumer brands have left the country, while inflation is now running above 10 percent.
Meanwhile, deep labor shortages caused by massive recruitment by the army and arms manufacturers, have seen both salaries and prices jump higher.
Russia’s Central Bank last week cut interest rates from a two-decade high, saying inflation – including food prices – was starting to come under control.
But for many hard-pressed Russians, it does not feel that way.
Paltievich’s wife, Tatyana, stood next to him clutching a small punnet of strawberries – a precious treat for her grandchildren that set her back 400 rubles ($5).
“We survived 1991, so now we’re not afraid of anything,” she said defiantly, in reference to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the economic chaos that followed.
Many of those navigating the aisles at Moscow’s Preobrazhensky market were also worried about high prices.
“I came here to buy chicken for my granddaughter. It’s more expensive in the supermarkets, so I don’t buy there anymore,” Nikolai Kucherov, a 62-year-old freelance artist said.
“I had to forget about traveling. For the past three or four years, I’ve only been thinking about filling up the fridge,” he said.
The Kremlin has hailed Russia’s economic performance since it ordered its troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
A huge surge in spending on the military has helped Moscow defy predictions that sanctions would collapse the Russian economy.
Engineer Konstantin Zelenkov, 38, is one of those who have benefited from rising wages amid the government spending boom.
“Some things are becoming more expensive but salaries are rising too, so it’s staying roughly the same,” he said.
Central bank chief Elvira Nabiullina has also pointed to rising wages and on Friday said inflation was starting to moderate, though it remains well above the institution’s four percent target.
“The high interest rate has led to a significant slowdown in inflation,” she told reporters.
Overall “the rate of increase in food prices has slowed,” she added.
But even Russian President Vladimir Putin was forced recently to address fears over a potato shortage that sent prices for the staple soaring.
For many across Russia, price rises feel never-ending.
“Starting even with bread, everything is getting more and more expensive,” Irina Yakovleva, 68, said.
“We just have to limit ourselves,” she added.
Finland summons Russian diplomat after suspected airspace violation
- The incident comes only weeks after a similar incident, which was also followed by a summoning of Russia’s diplomatic representative
HELSINKI: Finland on Wednesday summoned Russia’s charge d’affaires for talks, a day after a Russian military aircraft was suspected of violating Finnish airspace, the foreign ministry said.
Finland’s defense ministry said on Tuesday that it believed a Russian military aircraft had violated Finnish airspace off the coast of Porvoo, east of the capital Helsinki.
The foreign ministry said it would provide more details after the talks.
The incident came only weeks after a similar incident, which was also followed by a summoning of Russia’s diplomatic representative.
Finland, which joined NATO in 2023 after Moscow’s fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine a year earlier, shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia.
“An investigation into the alleged violation of airspace was launched immediately,” Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen said of Tuesday’s incident, adding that the coast guard would head the inquiry.
Moscow has repeatedly warned Finland of possible repercussions over its decision to join NATO, amid heightened tensions.
Hakkanen said in mid-May that Finland was “closely monitoring and assessing Russia’s activities and intentions.”
He was commenting after the New York Times published satellite images appearing to show an expansion of Russian military infrastructure near the border.
Fans greet K-pop stars Jimin and Jung Kook of BTS discharged from military service
- The pair wore their military uniforms Wednesday, saluted and addressed fans who had assembled to see the pair after their discharge
- The seven singers of the popular K-pop band plan to reunite as a group sometime in 2025 after they finish their service
YEONCHEON: Hundreds of fans gathered in the early morning hours to catch a glimpse of K-pop superstars Jimin and Jung Kook, the latest and final members of BTS to be discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service.
The pair wore their military uniforms Wednesday, saluted and addressed fans who had assembled to see the pair after their discharge.
Jung Kook thanked the journalists and fans who traveled to see him and Jimin after their discharge and acknowledged how different it was to be back in the spotlight. “Actually, it’s been so long since I’ve been in front of cameras, and I didn’t even put on makeup, so I’m a bit embarrassed,” he said. “I don’t know what to say.”
The pair enlisted in December 2023, one day after RM and V did the same. The latter were discharged on Tuesday.
Supporters traveled from around the world to the public sports ground where the meet-and-greet took place. It was moved from the military base’s gate for safety reasons. Color-wrapped buses bearing BTS members’ faces lined the streets while red and yellow balloons floated above and a decorated food truck provided free coffee and water, adding to the festive atmosphere.
Many supporters wore masks, conscious of potential backlash after the band’s label discouraged attendance citing safety concerns. Despite the challenges, fans like Anaesi from Portugal said the 20-hour journey to Yeoncheon, a town near the tense border with North Korea, was worth it.
“Portugal is a small country, but inside of Portugal, BTS is a king,” she said. Anaesi, who discovered BTS on YouTube, said the group “saved” her from depression. “So for me BTS is my angel,” she said. She displayed a colorful upper arm tattoo featuring a golden shield emblazoned with “ARMY” and an eagle above it, complemented by Korean text listing BTS members’ names and those of her friends.
V thanked fans Tuesday for their patience in waiting for him and RM’s return and teased the band’s reunion. “If you can just wait a little bit longer, we will return with a really amazing performance.”
The seven singers of the popular K-pop band plan to reunite as a group sometime in 2025 after they finish their service.
Six of the group’s seven members served in the army, while Suga is fulfilling his duty as a social service agent, an alternative form of military service. He will be discharged later this month.
Jin, the oldest BTS member, was discharged in June 2024. J-Hope was discharged in October.
In South Korea, all able-bodied men aged 18 to 28 are required by law to perform 18-21 months of military service under a conscription system meant to deter aggression from rival North Korea.
The law gives special exemptions to athletes, classical and traditional musicians, and ballet and other dancers if they have obtained top prizes in certain competitions and are assessed to have enhanced national prestige. K-pop stars and other entertainers aren’t subject to such privileges.
However, in 2020, BTS postponed their service until age 30 after South Korea’s National Assembly revised its Military Service Act, allowing K-pop stars to delay their enlistment until age 30.
There was heated public debate in 2022 over whether to offer special exemptions of mandatory military service for BTS members, until the group’s management agency announced in October 2022 that all seven members would fulfill their duties.
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