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A quick reminder that any peace deal must include the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.
Addition:
Putin Discusses Child Abduction as Russian Woman Admits to Kidnapping 4-Year-Old From Ukraine
On March 7, during a meeting with employees and beneficiaries of the Defenders of the Fatherland Fund, Russian leader Vladimir Putin had a conversation with Olga Doryokhina, who openly described how she kidnapped a 4-year-old Ukrainian girl from the temporarily occupied Kherson region and was attempting to adopt her.
“In the Kherson region, we found our daughter. She is already with our family, currently under guardianship. We are working on formal adoption, but to us, she is our sunshine,” Doryokhina said.
Putin asked the child’s age, to which she replied, “Four years old.”
She went on to describe the abduction as a joyful event, saying, “A piece of happiness has returned to our family.”
“We consolidated and expanded partnerships across the globe, stayed committed to true multilateralism, and played a positive and constructive role in addressing global challenges and resolving regional and international hotspot issues,” [Chinese PM] Li said.
Does ‘resolving regional and international hotpots issues’ mean China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine? China’s aggression in the South China sea? Against Taiwan? China’s recent military drill near Australia and New Zealand that forced passenger planes to divert flights? The oppression of Uyghurs, Tibetans, and other minorities in China? The transnational repression of exiled dissidents by the Chinese state across the world? The thousands of foreigners wrongfully detained in China? Any of the other issues?
What challenges does he mean?
Soon there willl be not just Eutelsat it seems:
Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile to provide space-based broadband in Europe
Vodafone and AST SpaceMobile have formed a new satellite service business called SatCo to provide secure space-based cellular broadband connectivity for customers all around Europe. With this, customers all over the continent, even in hard to reach areas, could access the internet on any of their devices […] According to the current timetable, the new system is set to go live across Europe in 2025 and 2026. The system has already been tested by Vodafone, when, in January, it made a mobile video call in an area without any reception. Hopefully, this will cut down on the reliance of Starlink, and give European consumers more choice.
Often, the suppliers of nitazenes are listed as Chinese companies. But these organisations are shape-shifting entities. Sellers hide behind opaque business structures: they regularly change addresses, use multiple emails and phone numbers, and promote contact via messaging platforms such as Telegram. Some appear to photoshop their names onto images of large factories. Many use generic photographs of young models or celebrities to market their drugs […]
[An investigation reveals] that a series of entities linked to [online] advertisements match listings for companies on China’s corporate register — including one registered company that is advertising scores of nitazenes online.
Requests for public information, including court files and customs records, uncovered additional evidence linking nitazenes shipments seized in Europe back to China.
[The report reveals Chinese-linked trade in several European countries, e.g., Sweden, Estonia, Norway, UK, …]
No. Here, for example, you can post whatever you want. In these .ml communities, however, everything that is only slightly critical of China or Russia is banned. It’s cheap propaganda.
Your ‘source’ is a propaganda channel.
You are just a 15 or so year old repeating what you read in some propaganda channels with absolutely no own knowledge about the things you are talking about. You could do yourself a favor and stay away there to get a life.
What is a reliable source on this subject?
What does this propaganda rubbish here? Years ago one of my colleagues said that the only thing that is worse than late-stage capitalism we have in Europe and the US is the early-stage capitalism we have in countries like China. The West has a lot of problems, but those who say that China’s system is a better alternative have never been there and never made business there. They are completely disconnected from reality.
Members of several of the organizations involved in our coalition have long been the focus of Chinese state-sponsored menace and harassment. In fact, we documented those serious concerns, along with a number of recommended actions, in comprehensive reports provided to your government in 2017 and 2020 […]
It is important that the Government of Canada cease to tolerate such activities of Chinese diplomats in Canada, which are clearly inconsistent with their legitimate function as defined by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Similarly, the Chinese state’s use of proxies to spread toxic disinformation and intimidate diaspora members in Canada must be much more actively addressed through legal prosecution and other measures.
We are pleased that Canada will be raising concerns that transnational repression undermines sovereignty and democratic values at the upcoming G-7.
[In his meeting with US president Trump and vice-president Vance in the White House]Ukraine and President Zelensky did not have a single chance—I repeat, not a single chance—of receiving real support.
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Because it is absolutely clear—crystal clear—that in this war, Trump has firmly, unequivocally, and completely taken Putin’s side. I emphasize: firmly, unequivocally, and completely. And now, this has simply become evident. Now, there is a certain clarity.
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Since Zelensky had arrived, the goal was to ensure that the meeting ended in a grand scandal. And this scandal was skillfully orchestrated.
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It was obvious that the nature of this pre-negotiation negotiation [which was done publicly in front of the press] was designed to publicly corner Zelensky—humiliating him in front of the press, forcing him into a situation where he had only two choices: either figuratively kneel or respond in a way that would immediately escalate tensions. And as soon as that happened—boom—the scandal would erupt, and Zelensky would be blamed for ruining the negotiations
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Vance’s role was clear—he was the designated provocateur. From the very start, he threw out baseless accusations against Zelensky, claiming that he had campaigned against Trump in Pennsylvania—complete nonsense, a blatant lie. This was a long-circulating narrative meant to discredit Zelensky, even though his visits to various U.S. states were solely to secure support and persuade lawmakers to back Ukraine […] first, Vance provoked Zelensky, then Trump jumped in. And what they were saying.
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The most famous exchange […] was when Trump mocked Zelensky, saying he had no cards to play, to which Zelensky shot back: I didn’t come here to play cards. That remark hit a nerve, triggering visible outrage. From there, things spiraled out of control. After the heated argument, both sides retreated to separate rooms. Then Trump made his final move—he ordered the Ukrainian delegation to leave the White House.
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He [Trump] blamed Ukraine for everything that had happened. His logic? You allowed yourselves to be in a bad position—as if Ukraine was at fault when Putin invaded on February 24, 2022 […] This is a textbook example of victim-blaming—a classic rhetorical trick. The victim is made out to be responsible for their own suffering. And Trump took it a step further, even reviving his old narrative that Ukraine itself started this war and was therefore to blame […] Next came another familiar tactic—accusing Ukraine of ingratitude. Over and over again: We helped you, and you should be grateful. But you’re not. You don’t show enough appreciation.
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When Trump and his team openly humiliated Ukraine, Zelensky had to respond. This was all part of a calculated strategy—to push the narrative that without the U.S., Ukraine would have collapsed in days, as if Ukrainian resistance were meaningless. The claim of one million dead, the insistence that Ukraine has no more soldiers left, all of it was designed to strip Ukraine of its dignity and portray it as a helpless beggar. But if Zelensky had simply accepted this humiliation and stayed quiet, he wouldn’t just have lost the war—he would have lost the trust of the Ukrainian people.
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It’s clear now that Ukraine must win its own peace—with real allies.
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The most important outcome of yesterday’s events is the clarity that has emerged—now that the rare-earth fog has lifted. Clarity is always better than uncertainty […] And that […] is the one positive takeaway from this situation.
The free world needs more direct democracy much more than a leader.
The only person who did something wrong was Trump, supported by his deputy. They did not only verbally attack Ukraine (and, by doing so, Europe), Trump and Vance didn’t even pretend to make a case for American interests, given Vance’s complaint about Zelensky who thanked U.S. ammunition workers in Pennsylvania when he travelled there, because, in the new U.S. administration’s view, this is seen as a support for the Democratic party.
The only positive thing is that the meeting was held in front of TV cameras so the world could witness the self-sabotage of the United States of America. A ‘behind the scene’ treachery would supposedly be much more harmful to Ukraine. The picture becomes more complete if we look that earlier this week, the U.S. had already voted at the United Nations against Ukraine, siding with Russia and China.
But now, the truth is out: The two men now holding the highest office in the White House are ready to sell the U.S. and its allies to the worst dictators on the globe, as Trump literally admires bad persons as he has been saying over and again. This is a signal the world has finally received. In Ukraine and Europe, but also in Taiwan, and the rest of the Asia-Pacific region, in Africa, in Latin America. It’s a tough issue for Ukraine and the democratic world that must now reorganize.
But the toughest long-term challenge is already out for the U.S. Its allies’ lost trust won’t recover, and the world’s dictators will pursue their own goals (maybe even more than ever). The United States are alone in a connected, globalized world. And this means that, with or without Trump at the helm, it’ll become increasingly difficult to make America great again.
I am convinced that this is not what the majority of U.S. people want for their country.
[Edit typo.]
With regard to forced labour accusations, a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) published a couple of days ago criticizes - again - 'China’s system of transferring “surplus” rural workers […] into industries such as the processing of raw materials for the production of solar panels, batteries and other vehicle parts.’
European Reactions to the U.S. Retreat From Democracy
[…] Three levels of concern are emerging.
First, and of most immediate importance, is the issue of international democracy funding. With nearly all U.S. democracy aid dramatically frozen, European donors are already receiving hundreds of requests to provide emergency support to the affected civil society recipients. […] European funding for democratic governance is around €4 billion ($4.2 billion) a year, compared with U.S. funding of around $3 billion, meaning European donors would need to increase funding levels by around 75 percent to cover the shortfall entirely […]
A second concern is more self-protective [as] many in the EU and European governments fear they face a more crucial task of defending European democracy itself from brazen and truculent U.S. assaults. Far from filling the gap left by suspended U.S. funding, the EU seems to be on a trend toward diverting more resources internally—that is, into protecting European democracy from harmful U.S. interventions. The Trump administration has supported the far-right figures who are unsettling European democracy, while U.S. big tech is now seen as a major threat to political pluralism in Europe […]
A third level of putative adjustment relates to the broader shape of global democratic alliances. Beyond the EU’s own funding choices, the question arises of how far international cooperation on democracy can now be built without the United States […] Non-Western democracies have often complained about heavy-handed U.S. leadership of the democracy agenda […] A key question is whether these democracies will want to invest large amounts of resources in a post-U.S. democracy agenda. They will now face a crucial test of whether they are willing to adopt such proactive agency […]
I don’t think so.
The EU should have an own policy without the US (or anyone else) on any issue. It seems clear that the US isn’t a reliable partner anymore with the new Trump administration’s tariff threats and its backtracking on democratic values, the latter being more and more aligned with China than with Western democracies.
I am sure Mr. Albares is focused on both, the Chinese investments Spain has been receiving in recent years and the protection of universal human rights that are increasingly under threat in China.
Portrait of a Nation: How Ordinary Russians’ Lives Have Changed in 3 Years of War
… “Since the special military operation began, I no longer live my life but merely exist in this world. I lost my only son [in the war]. I have my daughters to care for, so I have to keep living and go to work,” said a middle-aged woman from the Mongolia-bordering republic of Tyva.
“My husband started drinking heavily after our son’s death, but he stopped after I once tried to take my own life. Of course, I haven’t told any of this to people around me — I just often cry quietly when no one is around,” she told The Moscow Times on condition of anonymity … “There are many funerals here, and there is much more drinking and aggressive behavior [from men] — that’s how people choose to express their pain and dissatisfaction,” said the Tyvan woman ,
“There is a deep and growing resentment toward the authorities,” a woman from the [Russian] Kursk region whose parents are missing in Kyiv-occupied territory told The Moscow Times. “We are asking for our loved ones to be evacuated from there. But we don’t understand why no one is making any effort to get them out,” she said ,
… “At tea gatherings [a social tradition among Indigenous Bashkirs], people discuss how many buses with coffins they saw arrive, whose sons were killed or taken to the front, recall how soldiers who came back for a short-term leave raped women in villages…There are many of these stories,” Altynay [a native of a village in Bashkortostan’s southeastern Baymak district who asked to be identified by a pseudonym] told The Moscow Times …
… In the Kremlin’s quest to promote “traditional values,” Russian authorities have intensified their crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community, outlawing it as “extremist” and pushing many queer spaces further underground or forcing them to shut down entirely. “A lot has changed since the war began,” a member of Moscow’s LGBTQ+ community told The Moscow Times. “Many clubs, especially gay clubs and sex parties, have either gone deeper into hiding — or disappeared altogether.” …
… The rising food prices might be the one impact of the war that almost every Russian has felt. “Food and fuel prices in our republic have always been higher than in neighboring regions, so I didn’t feel how much the prices have increased right away,” said the man from Tyva. “Six months into the war, I noticed the first sign [of inflation] — car parts became more expensive. Now the cost of everything…is five times more than pre-war,” he told The Moscow Times …
[Edit typo.]
As an addition: Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and the UK also announced new sanctions against Russia at the start of this week.
You may be interested also in https://leave-russia.org/ (list of companies and their operating status in Russia)