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☆ Ukraine war live updates: Belarus starts military drills near EU borders; Russia targets energy infrastructure in drone strikes
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko (R) enter the hall during the plenary session of the Supreme Council of Russia and Belarus, at the Konstantin Palace on January 29, 2024, in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Belarus began military drills on Tuesday in regions along its border with Ukraine, together with European Union nations Lithuania and Poland, the Russian ally's defense ministry said. Russia and Ukraine meanwhile continued to exchange drone strikes in recent days, with Russia on Monday night targeting energy facilities in raids on the Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovograd regions, Ukraine's Operational Command "South" said on Facebook. The head of Ukraine's national grid company said on Monday that while Russian drone attacks have significantly damaged the Ukrainian power system, a total collapse is unlikely. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks on Monday with military and government officials over Kyiv's drone production plans and a project to build an "integrated electronic warfare control system" to protect Ukrainian troops from Russian drone attacks.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Konstantin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Supreme, of, European Union, Command, Facebook Locations: of Russia, Belarus, Saint Petersburg, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Russian, Gomel, Grodno, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovograd

CNN —The final death toll from the Moscow concert hall attack last week could be higher than the 143 confirmed dead, as Russian investigators said they have received more than 100 reports of missing people. Investigators had said earlier that they had also received 143 reports of missing people since Friday. Russian social media channels have since been filled with appeals from friends and relatives to help find the victims still missing. Mourners lay flowers in Moscow on Saturday for the victims of the Crocus City Hall attack. Olga Maltseva/AFP/Getty ImagesDespite ISIS sharing video evidence, Russian President Vladimir Putin has baselessly claimed that Ukraine was in some way responsible for the attack.

Persons: Olga Maltseva, Vladimir Putin, – Putin, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, “, Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, –, Tajikistan – Organizations: CNN, Russia’s, Crocus City, ISIS, Saturday, Kremlin Locations: Moscow, Russia, Crocus, AFP, Russian, Ukraine, Belarus, Soviet, Tajikistan

☆ Russia claimed the West, Kyiv ordered the Moscow terror attack. Now it has the problem of proving it
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-27 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin at an expanded Prosecutor General's Office meeting on March 26, 2024, in Moscow. An investigation into the attack is ongoing, but the latest, outlandish accusations give Moscow a problem: It now has to find the evidence to back up its unsubstantiated claims. What's particularly awkward for the Kremlin is that the Islamic State militant group has already claimed responsibility for the attack. Ukraine denies any involvement in the attack, saying it was "absolutely predictable" that Moscow would look to blame it. The White House said Ukraine had "no involvement whatsoever" in the attack and that any claim to the contrary was "Kremlin propaganda."

Persons: Vladimir Putin, It's, Andrius, Putin, David Cameron, concertgoers, Alexander Bortnikov, Nikolai Patrushev, Sergei Karpukhin, Nikolai Patrushev —, —, Patrushev, Maria Zakharova, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, Moscow, Margarita Simonyan, Putin's, Alexander Lukashenko, Rachabalizoda, Barotovich, Muhammadsobir, Shamsidin Fariduni, Tatyana Makeyevaolga Maltseva, Max Hess Organizations: General's, Getty, Ukraine, Crocus City Hall, Islamic State, West, Kremlin, Russia's Federal Security Service, Russian Security, AFP, Security, Islamic, RIA Novosti, Russian Foreign, U.S, Kremlin's, CNBC Wednesday, Institute for, Afp, Analysts, Foreign Policy Research Institute, CNBC, CIA Locations: Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Crocus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Ukrainian, Europe, Russian, U.S, Kyiv, Belarusian, Belarus, Basmanny, Soviet Union

☆ Lukashenko undermines Putin’s Ukraine claim on Moscow concert hall attack
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko appears to have cast doubt on Russia’s claims that Ukraine was involved in the brutal attack at a Moscow concert hall last week. Putin on Saturday claimed that a “window” had been prepared for the attackers to escape to Ukraine, which Kyiv has denied. But Lukashenko, one of Putin’s most loyal allies, on Tuesday appeared to contradict the Kremlin’s claims, saying that the attackers initially intended to enter Belarus rather than Ukraine. Putin lights a candle on Sunday in memory of victims of the Crocus City Hall attack. Shamil Zhumatov/ReutersA total of 11 people have been arrested in connection with the attack on the concert hall, Russian officials said.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Lukashenko, …, ” Lukashenko, Belta, “, Alexander Bortnikov, Putin “, Dalerdzhon, Shamil Zhumatov, It’s Organizations: CNN, Belarusian, ISIS, Saturday, Kyiv, Crocus City, Central, Monday, Putin, Russia’s Federal Security Services, Reuters Locations: Ukraine, Moscow, Belarus, “, Belarusian, Russia, Crocus, Tajikistan, Russia’s Bryansk, Kremlin, Bryansk, Basmanny

☆ Putin scores a resounding win, but what’s next for Russia?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Sovfoto/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Putin poses for a picture with his wife, Lyudmila, and daughters, Yekaterina and Maria. Brooks Kraft LLC/Corbis via Getty Images Putin rides a horse during a vacation in Southern Siberia in August 2009. Dmitry Astakhov/RIA Novosti/AFP via Getty Images Putin plays with his dogs Yume, left, and Buffy at his home in Novo-Ogaryovo, Russia, in March 2013. Chris McGrath/Getty Images Putin and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend the G20 summit in Buenos Aires in November 2018. Getty Images Putin speaks with American right-wing pundit Tucker Carlson during an interview in February 2024.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Dmitry Kiselyov, Mikhail Mishustin, Ukraine –, Kiselyov, “, Maria Putina, Archivio GBB, ZUMA Press Wire Putin, Laski, Maria, Vladimir, Anatoly Sobchak, Lyudmila, Yekaterina, Boris Yeltsin, Yeltsin, Fidel Castro, Reuters Putin, George W, Bush, Stephen Jaffe, Camp David, Brooks Kraft, Alexey Druzhinin, Alexey Nikolsky, Mikhail Metzel, Ivan Sekretarev, AP Putin, Dmitry Medvedev, Dmitry Astakhov, Buffy, Angela Merkel, Jochen Lübke, Thomas Bach, Medvedev, Vladimir Konstantinov, Alexei Chalyi, Sergei Aksyonov, Sergei Ilnitsky, Kirill Kudryavtsev, Alexander Lukashenko, Merkel, Francois Hollande, Petro Poroshenko, Mykola Lazarenko, Barack Obama, Ban, Chip Somodevilla, Turkey Andrei Karlov, Karlov, Donald Trump, Chris McGrath, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, LUDOVIC MARIN, Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelensky, Eliot Blondet, Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, Biden, Sergey Lavrov, Denis Balibouse, Macron, Sergey Ponomarev, Mikhail Gorbachev, —, Alexander Nemenov, Alexey Danichev, Xi Jinping, Pavel Byrkin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Prigozhin, Pavel Bednyakov, Kim Jong Un, Kim, Tucker Carlson, Zuma Press Putin, Maxim Shemetov, – what’s, Alexey Navalny, Navalny, ” Putin Organizations: CNN, coy, Kremlin, Getty, Russian, ZUMA Press, Putin, KGB, ZUMA Press Wire, Getty Images, Reuters, US, White House, Camp, Brooks, Brooks Kraft LLC, RIA Novosti, AP, AFP, International Olympic, Crimean, Ukrainian, United Nations, UN, Assembly, Russian Foreign Ministry, Sputnik, World, Saudi Arabia's Crown, Macron, SPUTNIK, New York Times, Central Clinical Hospital, AP Putin, Belarus, State Russian Museum, AP North Korean, Vostochny, Tucker Carlson Network, Zuma Press Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Putin Russia, Russian, Bakhmut, St . Petersburg, Leningrad, Germany, Moscow, AFP, Kazan, Cuba, Soviet Union, Southern Siberia, Russia's Tver, Novo, Ogaryovo, Hanover, Sevastopol, Crimea, Belarusian, Minsk, Belarus, France, Turkey, Helsinki, Finland, Buenos Aires, Ukrainian, Paris, Geneva, Switzerland, Taganrog, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Tsiolkovsky, Russia's, North Korea, United States

☆ Analysis: As Putin sails to re-election, Russia’s leader has a succession problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Russian President Vladimir Putin is widely expected to sail to re-election in a nationwide vote that begins on March 15, securing a fifth term in office and a full third decade as Russia’s paramount leader. As Kremlin chairman, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin would become the country's leader temporarily if Putin were to die or be incarcerated while in office. In 2008, Putin reached the end of his second presidential term, and stepped aside for a handpicked placeholder, Dmitry Medvedev. Some Russian political observers speculate that the real competition to succeed Putin is not likely until the 2030s, when Putin reaches his sixth term. Even the former president Medvedev, who lost the number two slot in 2020 when he stepped down in a government shakeup, may still have aspirations.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexey Navalny, Joseph Stalin, Putin, Dmitry Peskov, Putin “, Joe Biden, Putin’s, …, ”, Andreas Umland, “ Putin, ” Umland, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin –, “ It’s, Umland, Mikhail Mishustin, Gleb Schelkunov, Dmitry Medvedev, Medvedev, Irina Buzhor, Leonid Brezhnev, Alexander Lukashenko, Xi Jinping, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Nazarbayev, President Kassym, Tokayev, Andrey Pertsev Organizations: CNN, Stockholm Centre, Eastern European Studies, Russian, Russian Federation, Soviet, Air Force One, United Russia, Russian Security Council, AP, Chinese Communist Party, country’s Security, Kremlin Locations: Soviet, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Russian, Belarusian, Kazakhstan

☆ Alexander Lukashenko: Belarus’ president to stand for re-election in 2025
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( Sophie Tanno | Robbert Iddiols | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko says he will run for another term in elections set to be held in 2025, a move likely to extend the long rule of a key ally of Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Lukashenko, while speaking to journalists at a polling station after voting in parliamentary and local council elections, was asked whether he planned to stand in the next contest. Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, will be confident of winning again, with votes in Belarus widely seen as neither free nor fair. The last presidential vote, in 2020, triggered riots when preliminary results showed Lukashenko had won in a landside victory. Tihkhanovskaya demanded a recount after the country’s Central Election Commission announced Lukashenko had won with 80.23% of the vote, while Tikhanovskaya stood at 9.9%.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko, “, ”, BelTA, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, “ Lukashenka, Putin, –, “ Europe’s, ” Lukashenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin’s Wagner, Tihkhanovskaya, Tikhanovskaya Organizations: CNN, Belarusian, Belarus –, Russian, Observers, Commission Locations: Belarusian, Belarus, Ukraine, Soviet, Kyiv, Moscow

☆ The war in Ukraine in 12 key moments
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-24 | by ( Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

We’ve been taking a look at some of the most significant moments of the war so far. Putin’s announcement signaled the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has so far cost the lives of over 10,300 civilians, according to the United Nations. May 20, 2023: Russia takes control of BakhmutUkrainian army medics treat wounded soldiers at a stabilisation point near Bakhmut frontline. June 2023: Ukraine counteroffensiveUkrainian soldiers shoot rounds into Russian positions with an S60 anti-aircraft canon placed on a truck, outside Bakhmut. February 8, 2024: Ukraine military chief firedCommander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi during an event dedicated to Ukraine's Independence Day on August 24, 2023 in Kyiv.

Persons: Vladmir Putin, Putin, We’ve, ’, Volodymyr Zelensky, Pavel Klimov, ”, Marko Djurica, Russia's, Kolya Serga, Ed Ram, Sefa, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Moscow, Bakhmut, Wojciech Grzedzinski, Wagner, Prigozhin, Reuters Yevgeny Prigozhin, Russia’s Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Mike Johnson, Samuel Corum, Ukraine Valerii, Yan Dobronosov, Zelensky, Ukraine’s, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, CNN’s Jennifer Hauser, Victoria Butenko, Daria Tarasova, Andrew Carey Organizations: CNN, NATO, Reuters, Ukraine, United Nations, Presidential Press, Snake, Social Media, Anadolu Agency, Concord, Putin, Getty, Republican, Armed Forces, Moscow Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia’s, Kyiv, United States, Russian, West, Dnipro, Hroza, Kharkiv, Bucha, Moskva, Crimea, Kherson, Ukrainian, Kremlin, Belgorod, Bakhmut, NATO, Robotyne, Mariupol, Washington , DC, Avdiivka

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russian military chief visits Ukraine after gains; Belarus signals armed patrols could take to streets
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko called on law enforcement agencies on Tuesday to organise patrols with small arms on the streets of Belarusian cities to ensure the safety of people. Lukashenko said that while the crime rate in Belarus was decreasing, the country was at risk of crimes of an "extremist nature." Our patrol guys must be on the streets...Patrols must be armed with small arms, at least pistols." Lukashenko backed Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 by allowing Moscow to use its territory to launch the war and agreed last year to deploy Russian tactical nuclear weapons in his country on Russia's western border. In power since 1994, Lukashenko staged a new crackdown on dissent after stamping out unprecedented demonstrations against what his opponents say was his rigged re-election in 2020.

Persons: Lukashenko, Alexander Lukashenko, — Organizations: of Internal Affairs, KGB Locations: Belarus, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian

☆ Belarus Prepares Law Against 'LGBT Propaganda', State Media Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - Belarus has prepared a draft law punishing the "promotion of non-traditional relationships," referring to LGBT relationships, Belarusian state news agency Belta reported on Monday. The draft law is undergoing an approval procedure, he said. An anti-gay propaganda law has been on the books in neighbouring Russia since 2013 and has effectively outlawed any public expression of the behaviour or lifestyle of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals or transgender people. Photos You Should See View All 33 ImagesHomosexuality was decriminalised in Belarus in 1994, but the country does not recognise same-sex marriages and authorities have cracked down on LGBT pride parades. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has publicly mocked LGBT people, calling gay men "perverts" and "the ultimate abomination" in a speech to politicians last year.

Persons: Belta, Andrei Shved, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, Vladimir Putin's staunchest, Lucy Papachristou, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Reuters, LGBT Locations: Belarus, Russia

In the past, leading opposition figures in Putin’s Russia who stood up to him and who questioned his authority have tended to be dealt with harshly. Life in Putin's Russia View All 14 ImagesThe liberal Boris Nemtsov was killed, for instance, in 2015 outside the Kremlin (supposedly by agents linked to Putin’s FSB). He needs the election to be seen as “clean” as a means of cementing his legacy as Russian state leader. As leader, Putin has regularly been recorded as enjoying popular support. While Putin does appear now to enjoy a high degree of popularity in Russia (albeit largely media-engineered), this may not last.

Persons: Rod Thornton, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Tsar Peter the Great, Nikolai Kharitonov, Putin –, Yekaterina Duntsova, Boris Nemtsov, Alexei Navalny, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, –, Alexander Lukashenko Organizations: Communist, Kremlin, St, International Studies , Defense, Security, King's College Locations: Russia, Soviet, Ukraine, Putin’s Russia, Siberia, Navalny, London, Russian, Moscow, St Petersburg

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — The leaders of Russia and Belarus met Monday to discuss ways to further expand their close alliance that has seen the deployment of some of Russia's nuclear weapons on the territory of its neighbor. President Vladimir Putin emphasized that Russia and Belarus have developed a “strategic partnership” as part of their 25-year union agreement. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesLast year, Russia moved some of its short-range nuclear weapons into Belarus, closer to Ukraine and onto NATO’s doorstep. Their declared deployment was widely seen as part of Moscow's efforts to discourage the West from increasing military support to Kyiv. Lukashenko said last month that the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons was finalized in October.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, ” Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko Locations: PETERSBURG, Russia, Belarus, St . Petersburg, Belarusian, Soviet, Ukraine, Kyiv

CNN —Belarus has conducted mass raids, interrogations and arrests of dozens of friends and relatives of political prisoners, a Belarusian human rights group said, in the regime’s latest crackdown on dissent. The Belarusian KGB reportedly came to the homes and workplaces of the friends and family of political prisoners, interrogating around 100 people and arresting at least 26 others. Maryna Adamovich, the wife of political prisoner and former presidential candidate Mikalai Statkevich, was sentenced to 15 days in prison for “petty hooliganism,” the human rights group said. Norway’s Foreign Ministry said it was “deeply concerned by yesterday’s arrest of Maryna Adamovich, other human rights defenders and their family members.” It called for all political prisoners to be released immediately. “Over the past year, Belarusian authorities doubled down to create an information vacuum around raging repressions by cutting political prisoners off from the outside world and bullying their lawyers and families into silence,” the group said.

Persons: ”, Viasna, ” Viasna, Maryna Adamovich, Mikalai Statkevich, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, ” Tsikhanouskaya, Alexander Lukashenko, “, Maryna Organizations: CNN, Belarusian State Security Committee, Belarusian KGB, Human Rights, Belarusian State Security, Ministry, Dutch Foreign Ministry, Rights Watch Locations: Belarus, Belarusian

☆ Belarus adopts new military doctrine involving nuclear weapons
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Mariya Knight | Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Belarus on Friday adopted a new military doctrine that – if approved – would be the first step toward deploying nuclear weapons across the country. The Union State of Belarus and Russia Treaty sets up a legal basis for a wide-ranging alliance between the two countries. Baltic states reinforce bordersThe move by Belarus came as neighboring Baltic states signed an agreement to reinforce their borders with Belarus and Russia. During an interview with state news agency Belta in August last year, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said his country did not “bring nuclear weapons here in order to scare someone.”“Nuclear weapons represent a strong deterring factor. But these are tactical nuclear weapons, not strategic ones.

Persons: Viktor Khrenin, ”, Khrenin, “, Vladimir Putin, Alexander Lukashenko, Hanno Pevkur Organizations: CNN, ” Belarusian, Belarus ’, Collective Security, Organization, Union State, NATO, The Union, The Union State of, Russia Treaty, Belarusian People’s Assembly, Novosti, UN, OSCE, ” Minsk, Estonian Defense Ministry, Estonian Minister of Defense, Belta Locations: Belarus, Republic of Belarus, Russian, Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, The Union State, The Union State of Belarus, Ukraine, NATO, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Baltic, Estonia, Estonian

☆ China willing to continue strengthening cooperation with Belarus -state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko review the honour guard during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China March 1, 2023. cnsphoto via REUTERS/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsBEIJING, Dec 4 (Reuters) - China is willing to continue strengthening its strategic cooperation with Belarus, President Xi Jinping was cited as saying after meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Monday. Xi also said China is willing to enhance coordination and cooperation with Belarus in multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the official news agency Xinhua said. Xi told Lukashenko that both countries should improve cross-border transport facilitation and promote economic and trade ties as well as people-to-people exchanges, according to Xinhua. The Chinese leader also said Beijing and the Eastern European country should implement projects such as the China-Belarus industrial park and promote industrial cooperation. Reporting by Ella Cao and Liz Lee; Editing by Kim Coghill and Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Alexander Lukashenko, Xi, Lukashenko, Ella Cao, Liz Lee, Kim Coghill, Jamie Freed Organizations: of, People, cnsphoto, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Xinhua, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights BEIJING, Belarus, Xinhua

☆ Belarus President Lukashenko Heading to China Second Time This Year
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko was heading to Beijing on Sunday for talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Belarusian state media reported, the second trip of the close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin to China this year. Lukashenko, who according to Chinese state media was welcomed with a gun salute and military honours during his official Feb. 28 - March 2 visit, was this time heading for "a working visit," BelTA state news agency reported. "Negotiations between the head of the Belarusian state and president of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping will take place in Beijing," BelTA said, citing Lukashenko's press service. Lukashenko, the president of Belarus since 1994 who has been shunned by the West, backed Russia's invasion in Ukraine in February 2022 by allowing Moscow to use its territory to launch the war. After their March 1 meeting, both Lukashenko and Xi called for the "soonest possible" peace deal for Ukraine.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko, People's Republic of China Xi, BelTA, Xi, Lidia Kelly, William Mallard, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Reuters, Sunday Locations: Beijing, Belarusian, China, People's Republic of China, Belarus, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Melbourne

☆ Belarus President Lukashenko heading to China second time this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko delivers a national statement at the World Climate Action Summit during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 1, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDec 3 (Reuters) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko was heading to Beijing on Sunday for talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Belarusian state media reported, the second trip of the close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin to China this year. "Negotiations between the head of the Belarusian state and president of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping will take place in Beijing," BelTA said, citing Lukashenko's press service. Lukashenko, the president of Belarus since 1994 who has been shunned by the West, backed Russia's invasion in Ukraine in February 2022 by allowing Moscow to use its territory to launch the war. After their March 1 meeting, both Lukashenko and Xi called for the "soonest possible" peace deal for Ukraine.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Amr Alfiky, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko, People's Republic of China Xi, BelTA, Xi, Lidia Kelly, William Mallard, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: United Nations, Change, United Arab Emirates, REUTERS, Sunday, Thomson Locations: Dubai, United Arab, Beijing, Belarusian, China, People's Republic of China, Belarus, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Melbourne

☆ NATO's newest member says its shutting down its border with Russia, accusing Moscow of cruelly working to create a migrant crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Finnish officials accused Russia of purposefully sending hundreds of asylum seekers to the Finland. AdvertisementAs waves of asylum seekers surge toward Finland amid freezing temperatures, the country has decided to shut down its border with Russia. The crisis that has been emerging, Finnish officials say, is one that was artificially created by Russia intentionally sending migrants to the Finnish border. "Russia is enabling the instrumentalisation of people and guiding them to the Finnish border in harsh winter conditions. NATO's newest member has highlighted Moscow's involvement, accusing Russian border guards of escorting migrants to the border themselves.

Persons: —, Dmitri Peskov, Petteri Orpo, Mari Rantanen, JUSSI NUKARI, Alexander Lukashenko Organizations: Belarus, Service, NATO, Helsinki, Institute for, European Union, Rights Watch Locations: Finland, Russia, Poland, Moscow, Belarus, Yemen, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Salla, Finnish Lapland, Washington, DC, Russia's

Now, hundreds of migrants from the Middle East and Africa have appeared at Finland's border from Russia, seeking entry into the Nordic country. They accuse Russia of driving the migrants to the border to sow discord as payback for Finland's membership in NATO. Finnish authorities quickly closed four checkpoints and then three more, leaving just one Arctic crossing point open for asylum-seekers. Finland also asked for help from EU border agency Frontex, which said it would send dozens of officers and equipment as reinforcements to the Finnish border. The Kremlin denies encouraging the migrants, and says it regrets the Finnish border closures.

Persons: Elina Valtonen, Petteri Orpo, Maria Zakharova, Valtonen, Russia’s, ”, Klaus Dodds, ” Dodds, Ylva Johansson, Sauli Niinistö, Alexander Lukashenko, Evika Siliņa, Siliņa, Lukashenko, Vladimir Putin, “, Geert Wilders, Orpo’s, Vanessa Gera Organizations: HELSINKI, —, NATO, Nordic, Associated Press, HOW, EU, Frontex, Russian Foreign Ministry, Royal Holloway, University of London, VU EU Home Affairs, Belarus —, Latvian, AP, Poland’s, Guard Locations: Finland, Russia, East, Africa, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Finnish, FINLAND, Helsinki, Belarus, Europe, Moscow, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Baltic, Netherlands, Finns, Lapland, Murmansk, Warsaw

☆ A vengeful Russia is sending streams of migrants to Finland's borders to punish it for working with the US, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Finland has accused Russia of sending undocumented migrants across the border. It says 300 migrants have arrived at the border with the help of Russian officials. AdvertisementA vengeful Russia is attempting to stoke a migrant crisis in Finland by sending hundreds of asylum across the border on bicycles and scooters, authorities in Helsinki say. Finnish officials also said that Russia has been giving out bicycles and scooters to migrants because people are banned from walking between the Russian and Finnish border checkpoints, according to The Telegraph. Finland has an 830-mile-long border with Russia, forming the easternmost boundary of the European Union.

Persons: —, Petteri Orpo, Orpo, Sauli Niinistö, Dmitry Peskov, It's, Alexander Lukashenko Organizations: Experts, Russia, NATO, Service, Reuters, The Telegraph, Kremlin, European Union Locations: Finland, Russia, stoke, Helsinki, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, United States, Europe, Belarus, Russian, Poland

☆ Russia is pushing migrants to create a crisis at a NATO neighbor's border, and it's not the first time they've done it
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia is sending asylum seekers to Finland, creating a migrant crisis on the border, Finnish authorities say. Finland has already closed several border checkpoints and is considering shutting down its entire Russian border. AdvertisementRussia is creating a migrant crisis at Finland's borders, apparently sending hundreds of asylum seekers to the country. Finland has blamed Russia for artificially creating the migrant crisis, with Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo saying last week that Russian border guards were escorting migrants to the border themselves. Finnish border guards escort migrants with bicycles at the international border crossing with Russia at Salla, Finnish Lapland on November 21, 2023.

Persons: —, Dmitri Peskov, Petteri Orpo, JUSSI NUKARI, it's, Alexander Lukashenko Organizations: Service, NATO, Twitter, Business, Finnish, Russian, Getty, Kremlin, The Institute, Washington DC, European Union, Watch Locations: Russia, Finland, Belarus, Poland, Finland's, Yemen, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Russian, Salla, Finnish Lapland, AFP, Washington, Russia's, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland's

LVIV, Ukraine, Nov 19 (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has sanctioned 37 Russian groups and 108 people including a former prime minister and a former education minister and said he aimed to fight wartime abductions of children from Ukraine and other "Russian terror". Zelenskiy did not associate specific individuals or groups with particular wrongdoings. The decrees showed a range of 10-year penalties against individuals and five-year penalties against non-profit groups including one named in English as the "Russian Children's Foundation." Some of the newly-sanctioned people, which included many with Russian citizenship, had previously been punished with separate or similar penalties. The sanctioned Russian groups included several whose names or websites indicate they work with children.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Dmytro Tabachnyk, Mykola Azarov, Viktor Yanukovich, Azarov, Sergei Aksyonov, Leonid Pasechnik, Putin, Kvartal Lui, Maria Lvova, Vladimir Putin, Sofia Lvova, Alexander Lukashenko, Zelenskiy's, Elaine Monaghan, Franklin Paul Organizations: Russian Children's Foundation, Russian, Kyiv, Criminal, Lvova, Yale University, State Department, National Security, Defence Council, Franklin Paul Our, Thomson Locations: LVIV, Ukraine, Russia, Kyiv, Russian, Crimea, Luhansk, Ukrainian, The Hague, Belarus, Putin, Washington

☆ Ukraine's Zelenskiy Slaps Sanctions on 108 People, 37 Russian Groups
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Maria Starkova and Elaine MonaghanLVIV, Ukraine (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has sanctioned 37 Russian groups and 108 people including a former prime minister and a former education minister and said he aimed to fight wartime abductions of children from Ukraine and other "Russian terror". Zelenskiy did not associate specific individuals or groups with particular wrongdoings. The decrees showed a range of 10-year penalties against individuals and five-year penalties against non-profit groups including one named in English as the "Russian Children's Foundation." Some of the newly-sanctioned people, which included many with Russian citizenship, had previously been punished with separate or similar penalties. The sanctioned Russian groups included several whose names or websites indicate they work with children.

Persons: Maria Starkova, Elaine Monaghan, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Dmytro Tabachnyk, Mykola Azarov, Viktor Yanukovich, Azarov, Sergei Aksyonov, Leonid Pasechnik, Putin, Kvartal Lui, Maria Lvova, Vladimir Putin, Sofia Lvova, Alexander Lukashenko, Zelenskiy's, Franklin Paul Organizations: Reuters, Russian Children's Foundation, Russian, Kyiv, Criminal, Lvova, Yale University, State Department, National Security, Defence Council Locations: Elaine Monaghan LVIV, Ukraine, Russia, Kyiv, Russian, Crimea, Luhansk, Ukrainian, The Hague, Belarus, Putin, Washington

☆ Thousands of Ukrainian children taken to Belarus -Yale research
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Anthony Deutsch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

More than 2,000 children Yale identified were transported to the Dubrava children's centre in Belarus' Minsk region between September 2022 and May 2023, it said, while 392 children were taken to 12 other facilities. "Russia's federal government and Belarus' regime have been working together to coordinate and fund the movement of children from Russia-occupied Ukraine through Russia to Belarus." Transports to Belarus through Russia were "ultimately coordinated" between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko, it added. Lukashenko approved the use of state organizations to transport children from Ukraine to Belarus and finance their transportation, the Yale report said. Once in Belarus, children have been subjected to military training and re-education, it said.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Pavel Bednyakov, Vladimir Putin, Russia's Putin, Maria Lvova, Lukashenko, David Ljunggren, Mike Collett, White, Alexandra Hudson, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Commonwealth of Independent States, CIS, Sputnik, Rights, Yale University, Humanitarian, Yale School of Public Health, State Department, Reuters, U.S . State Department, Ukraine, Yale, Transports, Criminal, Thomson Locations: Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Russian, United States, Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Minsk, The Hague

☆ As the West courts Russia's neighbors, Putin shows he won't give up its backyard without a fight
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Eurasian Economic Summit on Nov. 9, 2022, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at a joint news conference at the Kremlin in Moscow, on Feb. 10, 2022. "Central Asia obviously has to keep a fine balance and tread that line," Hess said. Analysts note that while an economically isolated Russia wants and needs to keep Central Asia on side, it is gradually losing its grip on the region. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrive for a working breakfast of the leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States in Moscow, Russia, on May 9, 2023.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Keen, Emmanuel Macron, Putin, Ilham Aliyev, Serdar Berdimuhamedow, Emomali Rahmon, Alexander Lukashenko, Sergei Lavrov, —, it's, Max Hess, Hess, Kassym, Mikhail Klimentyev, Xi Jinping, Florence Lo, they've, Temur Umarov, Tokayev, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Vladimir Smirnov Organizations: Economic, Getty, Russia, Commonwealth of Independent States, Russian, Central Asia —, Central Asian, Kazakh, CIS, West, Georgia, Foreign Policy Research Institute, CNBC, Kremlin, Reuters Central, Central, Central Asia Summit, Afp, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, Commonwealth of Independent, Sputnik Locations: Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, Moscow, Russian, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakh, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, China, Soviet, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Baltic States, Soviet Union, Moldova, Ukraine, U.S, Afghanistan, Asia, Xian, Shaanxi

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