Thousands in Berlin call for end to Ukraine war support

Thousands in Berlin call for end to Ukraine war support
Protesters take part in an anti-war demonstration in Berlin on October 3, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 03 October 2024
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Thousands in Berlin call for end to Ukraine war support

Thousands in Berlin call for end to Ukraine war support

BERLIN: Thousands of people in Berlin on Thursday demonstrated against Germany’s military support for Ukraine as it battles to hold back invading Russian troops.
Participants answered a call by a radical left-wing collective to gather in the German capital and brandished placards reading “Negotiations! No weapons!,” “No to war” and “Pacifism is not naive.” Some also held anti-American signs.
One of their main demands was for Germany to stop sending weapons to Ukraine, which Kyiv desperately needs to defend itself from Russian aggression.
The protest came one week ahead of the first state visit by a US president to the European country since Ronald Reagan in 1985.
Joe Biden is also expected to meet with Ukraine’s allies to discuss military support to the war-torn nation, at the US army base in Ramstein, western Germany.
Far-left populist leader Sahra Wagenknecht, who attended the Berlin protest, has long called for an end to weapon deliveries to Kyiv and opposes a plan to deploy US long-range missiles in Germany.
Germany has been the second-largest contributor of military aid to Ukraine after the United States, but plans to halve its budget for that aid next year.
Wagenknecht’s pro-Russia, anti-NATO stance has contributed to her party’s positive results in three eastern state elections, securing 12 percent of the vote in Brandenburg.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in September stunned the political establishment by winning its first-ever parliamentary vote — in the eastern state of Thuringia — and coming a close second in neighboring Saxony.
The AfD’s platform relied on its usual discourse against asylum-seekers, multiculturalism and Islam, but also on critiques of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s policy of unconditional support for Ukraine.
The state leaders of Saxony and Brandenburg, where AfD came in second, as well as the head of the conservatives in Thuringia, have called for a ceasefire in Ukraine, in an article expected to be published on Friday in the Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung newspaper.
Germany and the European Union’s dioplomatic efforts so far have been “too indecisive,” they said, urging Berlin to bring Russia to the negotiating table.


Russian chef and war critic found dead in Belgrade

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Russian chef and war critic found dead in Belgrade

Russian chef and war critic found dead in Belgrade
The death of Alexei Zimin, who has been based in London for years, marks the latest passing of a Russian expatriate critical of the Kremlin’s war
His body was found late on Tuesday in a flat that he was renting in Belgrade while on a visit to promote his latest book, “Anglomania“

BELGRADE: A famed Russian chef who has been highly critical of Moscow’s war in Ukraine has been found dead while on a visit to Serbia’s capital, according to several sources on Wednesday.
The death of Alexei Zimin, who has been based in London for years, marks the latest passing of a Russian expatriate critical of the Kremlin’s war.
Zimin co-founded the ZIMA restaurant in London, served as senior contributor in numerous magazines and has co-authored several books, according to a ZIMA Instagram post.
His body was found late on Tuesday in a flat that he was renting in Belgrade while on a visit to promote his latest book, “Anglomania,” a source close to the investigation told AFP.
Prosecutors told the BBC that the flat was locked from the inside and the death did not appear to be suspicious, but that an autopsy was due to take place.
Born in Russia in 1971, Zimin had opened several restaurants in Moscow before leaving after Russia occupied Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014.
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he posted anti-war messages and stopped his Saturday cooking show on a pro-Kremlin television station.
“Throughout his remarkable life, Alexei accomplished a lot — he served as deputy editor-in-chief of Afisha magazine, founded Afisha.Food, also worked as editor-in-chief of Afisha World, GQ, and Gourmet,” his London restaurant ZIMA said in an Instagram post on Wednesday.
“He hosted several culinary shows, authored numerous books, and launched multiple successful restaurants,” it said.
“To us, Alexei was not only a colleague but also a friend, a close companion with whom we shared many experiences — good, kind, and at times sorrowful.”

Famed Russian chef Alexei Zimin who has been highly critical of Moscow’s war in Ukraine has been found dead while on a visit to Serbia’s capital, according to several sources on Wednesday. (X/@oldLentach)

Senior Russian naval officer killed in car bombing claimed by Kyiv

Senior Russian naval officer killed in car bombing claimed by Kyiv
Updated 13 November 2024
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Senior Russian naval officer killed in car bombing claimed by Kyiv

Senior Russian naval officer killed in car bombing claimed by Kyiv
  • Russia’s state Investigative Committee said an improvised explosive device had detonated in an act of terrorism, killing a serviceman whom it did not identify
  • A source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) told Reuters that the explosion had killed Valery Trankovsky, a Russian naval captain

KYIV: A bomb planted under a car blew up and killed a senior Russian naval officer in occupied Crimea’s city of Sevastopol on Wednesday, in what a Kyiv security source said was a Ukrainian hit on one of its highest-ranking targets to date.
Russia’s state Investigative Committee, which handles probes into serious crimes, said in a statement that an improvised explosive device had detonated in an act of terrorism, killing a serviceman whom it did not identify.
A source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) told Reuters that the explosion had killed Valery Trankovsky, a Russian naval captain and the chief of staff of the 41st brigade of Russia’s missile ships in the Black Sea.
The operation was carried out by the SBU, which saw him as a “legitimate” target in line with the laws of war because of “war crimes” he committed, the source said. The source said he had ordered missile attacks that hit civilian targets in Ukraine, including a deadly strike on the city of Vinnytsia in July 2022.
Reuters could not independently verify Trankovsky’s precise role or his involvement in alleged war crimes.
Russia has used warships from its Black Sea Fleet, as well as strategic bombers, to conduct missile strikes on targets across Ukraine. The attacks have led to hundreds of civilian deaths and extensive damage. Moscow says it does not target civilians or civilian infrastructure.
Russia’s Kommersant newspaper cited two law enforcement sources who also identified the victim as Trankovsky, a first rank captain. It said he was chief of staff and deputy commander of the 41st brigade of Russia’s missile ships in the Black Sea.
Mash, a Telegram channel close to Russia’s security services, said he had been under surveillance for seven days before the attack.
Both the Kyiv source and Mash said the bomb had detonated on Taras Shevchenko street, which is named after Ukraine’s most famous poet.
The Investigative Committee published images of the wreckage of a car.

’LIQUIDATED’
Several pro-war Russian figures have been assassinated since the start of the war in operations blamed by Moscow on Ukraine, including journalist Darya Dugina, war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky and former submarine commander Stanislav Rzhitsky.
All of those people, as well as Trankovsky, were listed in Myrotvorets (Peacemaker), a huge unofficial Ukrainian database of people considered to be enemies of the country.
On Wednesday Trankovsky’s photo on the site was overwritten with the word “Liquidated” in red letters.
Russia’s Federal Security Service, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said last December it had cracked a network of Ukrainian agents in Crimea who were involved in attempts to assassinate pro-Russian figures.
It said the targets included the Moscow-installed head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, and a former pro-Russian member of the Ukrainian parliament, Oleg Tsaryov.
Tsaryov survived despite being shot twice in an attack in October in Crimea, which Russia seized from Ukraine in 2014. A source in Ukraine’s SBU intelligence agency told Reuters at the time that the shooting was an SBU operation.
The city of Sevastopol is the traditional headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and it has been heavily targeted by Ukrainian strikes during the war.


US and Polish officials open missile defense site that Russia has long protested

US and Polish officials open missile defense site that Russia has long protested
Updated 13 November 2024
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US and Polish officials open missile defense site that Russia has long protested

US and Polish officials open missile defense site that Russia has long protested
  • The US missile defense base was originally planned under President George W. Bush as a way to protect Europe from ballistic threats from Iran
  • Russia aggression, fears that have grown since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

WARSAW: US and Polish officials inaugurated a NATO missile defense base in northern Poland on Wednesday, with Polish officials welcoming it as a significant boost to the security of the country as well as of the NATO alliance at a time of war in neighboring Ukraine.
The US missile defense base, which is being integrated into NATO’s defenses, was originally planned under President George W. Bush as a way to protect Europe from ballistic threats from Iran. Poland, however, has always seen it as a form of US protection in case of Russia aggression, fears that have grown since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Kremlin has long protested the plans, and on Tuesday it denounced the base as a challenge to its own military potential that would require measures “to ensure parity.”
Polish officials, who gathered with the US ambassador and other officials, welcomed it as historic step that increases the US commitment to the security of Europe at a time of uncertainty due to the grinding war nearby. There are also concerns about whether Donald Trump will remain committed to Europe’s security when he returns to the White House in January.
“The whole world will see clearly that this is not Russia’s sphere of interest anymore,” Polish President Andrzej Duda said at the ceremony in Redzikowo. “From the Polish point of view, this is strategically the most important thing.”
Poland’s Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz called the opening of the base with its hundreds of US Navy personnel “an extraordinary event in the history of the security of Poland, the US and NATO.” He said the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are showing the importance of air defenses.
“The base in Redzikowo means the eternal presence of American and allied troops on the territory of the Republic of Poland and, strategically for Poland, it is one of the most important events in history after 1989,” he said.
The facility is equipped with the US Navy’s modern Aegis Ashore system, which can detect, track and destroy ballistic missiles in the initial phase of their flight. It is the second land element of Aegis Ashore in Europe after the first such installation went into operation in Romania in 2016.
Asked about the base during a news briefing Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin had expressed his concerns to the US plans even during the Bush administration.
“We then insisted that the Americans saying all these plans are aimed against the ephemeral Iranian threat are in fact a lie, that all these plans were drawn up from the very beginning as an attempt to militarily contain our potential,” he said.
“This is the advancement of American military infrastructure on European territory toward our borders. This is nothing other than an attempt to contain our potential. And, of course, this leads to the adoption of appropriate measures to ensure parity,” Peskov added.


Trump’s top team: who’s who?

Trump’s top team: who’s who?
Updated 13 November 2024
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Trump’s top team: who’s who?

Trump’s top team: who’s who?
  • Donald Trump is building his administration team, handing top roles to his closest allies

WASHINGTON: US President-elect Donald Trump is building his administration team ahead of retaking the White House in January, handing top roles to his closest allies.
While many of his cabinet nominations require approval by the Senate, Trump is trying to bypass that oversight by forcing through so-called recess appointments.
Here are the key people nominated by Trump for positions in his incoming administration:


Billionaire Elon Musk has been named to lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency,” targeting $2 trillion in cuts from the federal government’s $7 trillion budget, according to the businessman — although no one has explained how such drastic cuts would be made.
The world’s richest man has pledged to bring his “hardcore” management style to Washington while promising “fair and humane” transitions for sacked federal workers.
Trump said that another wealthy ally, Vivek Ramaswamy, would co-lead the new department.



Fox News host and US Army veteran Pete Hegseth was nominated to be the next defense secretary, tasked with leading the world’s most powerful military.
Hegseth joined Fox News in 2014 and is a host on Fox and Friends Weekend and Fox Nation. He has also authored several books.
Trump has said that “with Pete at the helm, America’s enemies are on notice.”



Longtime Trump loyalist and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem was selected to head the Department of Homeland Security, a key role in any Trump plan to restrict immigration or deport undocumented migrants en masse as he has promised.
In her memoir, Noem recounted having shot dead an “untrainable” pet dog after a hunting excursion gone awry. The 52-year-old has said her action showed she was able to make tough choices.


New York congresswoman Elize Stefanik, a fierce Trump ally and pro-Israel stalwart, was Trump’s pick for US ambassador to the United Nations.
Stefanik will represent the administration at the UN as the world body grapples with the war in Ukraine as well as Israel’s bombardments of Gaza and Lebanon.


Congressman and former special forces officer Mike Waltz has been named by Trump to be his national security adviser, tasked with handling foreign policy challenges including the wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Lebanon.
Waltz is critical of both China, which he has said is an “existential” threat to the United States, and of Russia — while arguing that Washington should cease supporting Ukraine’s war effort in favor of Trump’s so-far vague promise of a negotiated settlement.



Trump has called on former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee to be US ambassador to Israel, where he has traveled several times over the years.
Trump has said the Christian pastor-turned-politician “loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him.”
In 2017, Huckabee was present in Maale Adumim for the expansion of one of Israel’s largest settlements in the occupied West Bank.
“There’s no such thing as a settlement; they’re communities, they’re neighborhoods, they’re cities. There’s no such thing as an occupation,” he told CNN at the time.


Lee Zeldin has been selected to head the Environmental Protection Agency, with a mandate to slash climate and pollution regulations.
Veteran immigration official Tom Homan will be the country’s “border czar,” with Trump saying Homan would be in charge of “all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin.”


Susie Wiles, Trump’s election campaign chief, has been named as his chief of staff.


Trump also announced he was choosing his former director of national intelligence John Ratcliffe to lead the Central Intelligence Agency.
 


Multiple US media have said Trump is expected to tap Senator Marco Rubio to be his secretary of state, setting the stage for an existential battle against China.
Rubio has said China “doesn’t just seek to be the most powerful nation in the world, they seek to reorient the world.”
He is also a fervent supporter of Israel and a longtime critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Billionaire hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, a key donor and adviser, is viewed as the top candidate for treasury secretary, in charge of pushing through Trump’s agenda of low taxes, less regulation and high tariffs.


Heated debate on Amsterdam violence in Dutch parliament

Heated debate on Amsterdam violence in Dutch parliament
Updated 13 November 2024
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Heated debate on Amsterdam violence in Dutch parliament

Heated debate on Amsterdam violence in Dutch parliament
  • The Netherlands is still dealing with the political fallout from last week’s violence in Amsterdam
  • Far-right MP Geert Wilders said the perpetrators of the violence against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were “all Muslims” and “for the most part Moroccans“

THE HAGUE: Dutch parliamentarians clashed Wednesday in a heated debate to discuss the attacks on Israeli fans after a football match last week, with some lawmakers pointing fingers and others urging unity.
The Netherlands is still dealing with the political fallout from last week’s violence in Amsterdam, when fans of Tel Aviv Maccabi were assaulted by men on scooters in several parts of the capital.
Five Macabi fans were briefly hospitalized after being beaten up following a match with the local Ajax team last Thursday, in what Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof termed an incident of “unadulterated anti-Semitism.”
After the match, groups of men on scooters engaged in “hit-and-run” attacks on Maccabi fans in areas of the city.
Police said the attackers were mobilized by calls on social media to target Jewish people.
Far-right MP Geert Wilders, leader of the biggest party in the coalition government, said the perpetrators of the violence against Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were “all Muslims” and “for the most part Moroccans.”
The anti-Islam Wilders called for the attackers to be prosecuted “for terrorism.”
“For the first time since the Second World War there was a hunt on Jews,” Wilders said, adding “I am sick of being criticized when I tell the truth.”
But the firebrand MP drew the ire of opposition parties, who accused him of “adding fuel to fire.”
While unanimously condemning the violence, left-wing parties have called for dialogue with the Muslim community instead of “dividing the country.”
“I share the condemnation of the violence in Amsterdam and yes, there was indeed anti-Semitic violence,” left-wing opposition leader Frans Timmermans said.
“You are simply stoking the fires while this country has a need for politicians to unite people and find solutions,” Timmermans told Wilders.
Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema on Tuesday called the attacks a “poisonous cocktail” of anti-Semitism and hooliganism.
Events ahead of the match heightened tensions, including anti-Arab chants by Maccabi fans, who also set fire to a Palestinian flag on the city’s central square and vandalising a taxi.
After the match, which passed off peacefully, reports emerged of social media calls to attack Jews, Amsterdam police said.
The violence took place against the backdrop of an increasingly polarized Europe, with heightened tensions following a rise in antisemitic, anti-Israeli and Islamophobic attacks since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
The Dutch PM indicated that the government would present concrete steps to tackle antisemitism on Friday.
Eight people remained in custody over the violence.