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US Warns China Not to Help Russia: Consequences will Follow
China, News, Russia, US

US Warns China Not to Help Russia: Consequences will Follow

China will face repercussions if it helps Russia evade sanctions imposed on it. Jake Sullivan, the adviser to US President Joe Biden, said.   According to US officials, Russia has asked China for military aid. More specifically, this would include drones. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not directly address those allegations, but it did accuse the United States of maliciously spreading disinformation about China. In a CNN interview, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington has "communicated directly and privately to Beijing that there will be absolutely consequences if China makes large-scale efforts to evade sanctions against Russia or provide aid to Russia."
Meta Temporarily Allows Hate Speech to Russian Leaders
News, Russia, Technology

Meta Temporarily Allows Hate Speech to Russian Leaders

Meta, the parent company above Facebook and Instagram, will make a temporary exception to its guidelines on hateful and violent language.   Because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it will not remove calls for violence against Russian leaders in certain countries, the company ruled on Thursday. According to Reuters news agency, posts calling for the death of Russian President Vladimir Putin or his Belarusian ally Alexander Lukashenko, for example, will not be removed in Russia, Ukraine and Poland, among others. According to an internal email sent to Reuters, the temporary relaxation also applies to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovakia. "We are tolerant of certain political statements that normally violate our rules," Meta spoke...
UK Looks at Easing Visa Rules for Ukrainians
News, UK, Ukraine

UK Looks at Easing Visa Rules for Ukrainians

The UK is looking at how to relax visa rules for Ukrainian refugees. The move comes after criticism of the British government, which critics say with bureaucratic red tape is preventing refugees from being helped quickly enough.   Refugee Ukrainians are now only allowed to enter the UK with a visa. Secretary of the Interior James Heappey, who is in charge of the British armed forces, said Home Secretary Priti Patel is exploring options to give Ukrainians easier access to the country. However, according to Sky News, Patel is under pressure from other ministers. The British news channel also reports that about 1,000 Ukrainians have been granted visas. However, it is not clear how many applications have been submitted; on Monday, there were still 17,700. This is because the government...
Apple Unveils New iPhone SE and iPad Air
News, Technology

Apple Unveils New iPhone SE and iPad Air

As expected, Apple presented new versions of its 'budget iPhone' and the iPad Air during an online event. There were no big surprises with these gadgets, except that the iPad Air now also has an M1 processor on board and that the iPhone SE has become significantly more expensive.   In our preview at the Apple event, we wrote that the iPhone SE is so popular, among other things, because of its (for an iPhone). We had expected a bit more storage capacity for that money, but the entry-level model still starts at 64 GB. In addition, there are also versions of 128 and 256 GB. What is new is the A15 Bionic processor, and that is the same power source that resides in the iPhone 13. Also included in the price are 5G, an improved camera of 12 megapixels and a battery that lasts a little lon...
Trade In Nickel on London Stock Exchange Shut Down
Business, News, UK

Trade In Nickel on London Stock Exchange Shut Down

Trading in Nickel was halted on Tuesday on the metal exchange in London. Bloomberg news agency reported that trading would endure suspension for the rest of the day.   Earlier in the day, the nickel price had broken the $100,000 per ton mark for the first time.   Investors fear that Russia will no longer be able to export its production due to sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine.
Nerves Tense in Kyiv: Capital is Preparing for Russian Invasion
News, Russia, Ukraine

Nerves Tense in Kyiv: Capital is Preparing for Russian Invasion

Nerves in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv are tense. According to the Ukrainian army, Russia has started raising funds to storm the city. This is according to the report of the general staff, which was published on Facebook on Monday.   At 7 o'clock UK time, a ceasefire will go into effect to evacuate the civilians. What will happen next is of great concern to observers. The encirclement of Kyiv is slowly nearing completion. Russian troops are massively present near the city limits while at the same time trying to gain full control over the towns of Irpin and Butja, which are just outside Kyiv. From there, it's a few more miles to the northwestern city boundary. According to the report, Russian units also want to gain tactical advantage by reaching the eastern suburbs of Kyiv through Br...
Russian Troops Enter Port City of Mykolaiv
News, Russia, Ukraine

Russian Troops Enter Port City of Mykolaiv

Russian troops enter the Ukrainian port city of Mykolaiv for the first time. The regional governor reports that fighting takes place in several places in the southern city.   "Let's not get nervous," Governor Vitali Kim said in a video message. Nearly half a million people live in Mykolaiv. The city is located tens of kilometres west of Kherson. Kherson was the first major city to be captured by Russian forces earlier this week. Russia is also carrying out an offensive on the other side of Mykolaiv, for example, near Odesa's city. Ukraine is under attack from several sides. In the south, the Russian army has advanced from Crimea.
China Asked Russia Not to Invade Ukraine During the Winter Games
China, News, Russia, Ukraine

China Asked Russia Not to Invade Ukraine During the Winter Games

China allegedly asked Russia not to invade Ukraine during the Winter Games, which took place in Beijing. That reports The New York Times. China denies.   Senior Chinese government officials are said to have asked senior Russian government officials in early February not to invade Ukraine before the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics. The New York Times reported this, citing sources within the Biden administration and a European source. The sources quoted a Western intelligence report. A source familiar with the case confirmed to Reuters news agency that China had indeed requested this but declined to provide details. The source did not want to be identified due to the sensitivity of the case. According to The New York Times, a government official familiar with the information said...
Russian Opposition Leader Navalny from Prison: Putin is Not Russia-Let Us Fight the War
News, Russia

Russian Opposition Leader Navalny from Prison: Putin is Not Russia-Let Us Fight the War

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny calls on Russians from prison via Twitter to protest en masse against the invasion of Ukraine. "Putin is not Russia.   If there's one thing Russia can be proud of right now, it's the 6,824 people imprisoned for taking the streets against the war." Navalny calls on Russians, not only in Russia and Belarus but also elsewhere in the world, to protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine every weekday in the main city squares and at Russian embassies and to do so every weekend at 14 hours to do. "Let's not become a nation of scared silent people. Or cowards pretending not to notice the aggressive war against Ukraine started by our clearly insane czar," Navalny said. "Putin is not Russia. If there's one thing we can be proud of in Russia, it...
London Subway Does Not Run After Failed Collective Labour Agreement
News, UK

London Subway Does Not Run After Failed Collective Labour Agreement

The London Underground is not running due to a strike. However, unions have decided to stop working on Tuesday and Thursday because negotiations on, among other things, pension rights and changing work agreements have failed.   "All underground lines have been suspended," said a Transport for London spokeswoman. However, it is still unclear whether traffic will be restored during the day or not. Other public transport in the British capital, such as bus services, runs normally but is busier than usual. As a result, Londoners are advised to work from home as much as possible. Transport union RMT has urged Mayor Sadiq Khan to support the metro staff who "behaved so heroically during the corona crisis". The unions say that in order to save money, the government is "making a devastati...