Author: Mirits

Rome — Italy’s justice minister has asked an appeals court to revoke the arrest of an Iranian citizen wanted by the U.S. over a drone attack in Jordan that killed three Americans a year ago.  Mohammad Abedini is scheduled to appear at a Milan court on Wednesday in connection with his bid for house arrest pending the extradition process to the U.S.  He was arrested on a U.S. warrant on Dec. 16, three days before Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was detained while on a reporting trip to Iran. Sala, who was believed held as a bargaining chip for Abedini’s release, returned home last week, giving rise to speculation about Abedini’s fate.  An official note released by the Justice Ministry on Sunday said that under Italy-U.S. extradition treaties, “only crimes that are punishable according to the laws of both sides can lead to extradition, a condition which, based on the state of documents, can’t be considered as existing.”  The ministry said that the potential charge against Abedini — criminal association for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a U.S. federal law — “did not correspond to any conduct recognized by Italian law as a crime.”  The U.S. Justice Department has accused Abedini of supplying the drone technology to Iran that was used in a January 2024 attack on a U.S. outpost in Jordan that killed three American troops.  Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni described a “diplomatic triangulation” with Iran and the United States as being key to securing Sala’s release, confirming for the first time that Washington’s interests in the case entered into the negotiations.  Sala’s release came after Meloni made a surprise trip to Florida to meet U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate. …

STOCKHOLM — Sweden will contribute up to three warships to a NATO effort to increase the alliance’s presence in the Baltic Sea as it tries to guard against sabotage of underwater infrastructure, the government said Sunday.  The Swedish military also will contribute an ASC 890 surveillance aircraft, the government said in a statement. And the country’s coast guard will contribute four ships to help monitor the Baltic, with a further seven vessels on standby.  Sweden became the Western military alliance’s 32nd member in March. It followed neighboring Finland into NATO after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The government said this will be the first time that Sweden as a NATO ally contributes armed forces to the alliance’s defense and deterrence.  The decision comes as a string of incidents in the Baltic has heightened concerns about possible Russian activities in the region.  The undersea cables and pipelines that crisscross the sea link Nordic, Baltic and central European countries, promote trade, energy security and, in some cases, reduce dependence on Russian energy resources.  Ten Baltic Sea cables have been damaged since 2023, affecting Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Germany and Lithuania. At least two incidents involved ships later accused of dragging their anchors.  Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said at an annual security conference Sunday that Sweden is not at war, but there is also no peace, Swedish news agency TT reported. …

KYIV — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on allies on Sunday to honor all promises to supply Ukraine with weapons, including those to counter Russian air attacks. Zelenskyy said that over the past week Russian forces had launched hundreds of strikes on Ukraine and nearly 700 aerial bombs and over 600 attack drones were used. Ukrainian air defenses downed 60 out of 94 drones launched by Russia overnight, the air force said on Sunday. It said that 34 drones were “lost,” in reference to Ukraine’s use of electronic warfare to redirect Russian drones. “Every week, the Russian war continues only because the Russian army retains its ability to terrorize Ukraine and exploit its superiority in the sky,” Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app. He called on Ukraine’s allies to fulfill agreements already made. “The decisions made at the NATO summit in Washington, as well as those adopted during the Ramstein meetings regarding air defenses for Ukraine, have still not been fully implemented,” Zelenskyy said. Ukraine’s leader this week said he had discussed with partners and the United States the possibility of granting Ukraine licenses to produce air defense systems and missiles.   …

ZAGREB, CROATIA — Croatia’s incumbent President Zoran Milanovic was the overwhelming favorite to win reelection as he faced a candidate from the ruling conservative party in a runoff presidential vote on Sunday. The left-leaning Milanovic comfortably won the first round of voting on December 29, leaving his main challenger, Dragan Primorac, a forensic scientist who had unsuccessfully run for presidency previously, and six other candidates far behind. The runoff between the top two contenders was necessary because Milanovic fell short of securing 50% of the vote by just 5,000 votes, while Primorac trailed far behind with 19%. The election comes as the European Union and NATO member country of 3.8 million people struggles with biting inflation, corruption scandals and a labor shortage. Milanovic, 58, is an outspoken critic of Western military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He is the most popular politician in Croatia and is sometimes compared to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for his combative style of communication with political opponents. Milanovic served as prime minister in the past with a mixed record. He has been a fierce critic of current Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and the pair have long sparred with each other. Milanovic regularly accuses Plenkovic and his conservative Croatian Democratic Union party of systemic corruption, calling the premier a “serious threat to Croatia’s democracy.” Plenkovic has sought to portray Sunday’s vote as one about Croatia’s future in the EU and NATO. He has labelled Milanovic “pro-Russian” and a threat to Croatia’s international standing. Primorac echoed this position as he cast his ballot on Sunday. He said the presidential vote was “very important” and “about the future of Croatia, … about the future of our homeland, our citizens, and, really, the direction that it would go from here.” Political analyst Viseslav Raos said the increasingly outspoken Milanovic has no motive to “try to please someone or try to control himself.” “If there was no cooperation with the prime minister for the first five years (of his presidency), why would it be now?” he added. Though the presidency is largely ceremonial in Croatia, an elected president holds political authority and acts as the supreme military commander. Despite limited powers, many believe the presidential position is key for the political balance of power in a country mainly governed by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. During a TV debate ahead of … “Croatia’s President Milanovic overwhelming favorite to win reelection in runoff vote” →

KYIV, UKRAINE — For weeks, Ukrainian troops braced for an unfamiliar enemy: North Korean soldiers sent to bolster Moscow’s forces after Ukraine launched a lightning-fast incursion and seized territory in Russia’s Kursk region over the summer. Their arrival marked a new and alarming phase in the war. And while initially inexperienced on the battlefield, North Korean troops have adapted quickly — a development that could have far-reaching consequences as they gain combat knowledge in the war against Ukraine. Unlike the Russian troops Ukraine has been battling for nearly three years, Kyiv’s forces were uncertain about what to expect from this new adversary, drawn into the war after Moscow and Pyongyang signed an agreement pledging military assistance using “all means” if either were attacked. One Ukrainian soldier who has witnessed North Koreans in battle described them as disciplined and highly methodical, saying they were more professional than their Russian counterparts. The soldier spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the sensitive military issue. However, other soldiers, including Ukrainian special forces, have shared battlefield drone footage on the Telegram messaging app mocking their tactics as outdated. Nevertheless, there is consensus among Ukrainian soldiers, military intelligence and others monitoring developments on the ground: While Pyongyang’s troops lacked battlefield experience when they arrived, that has been changing quickly. With 1.2 million troops, North Korea’s military ranks among the largest standing armies globally. But its post-Korean War foreign engagements have been limited, leaving them inexperienced with modern warfare technologies like drones. “For the first time in decades, the North Korean army is gaining real military experience,” said Andrii Yusov, spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence agency. “This is a global challenge — not just for Ukraine and Europe, but for the entire world.” Identifying the presence of North Korean troops Despite Ukrainian, U.S. and South Korean assertions that Pyongyang has sent 10,000-12,000 troops to fight alongside Russia in the Kursk border region, Moscow has never publicly acknowledged the North Korean forces. While reports of their presence first emerged in October, Ukrainian troops only confirmed engagement on the ground in December. Analysts say that without the influx of North Korean troops, Russia would have struggled to pursue its strategy of overwhelming Ukraine by throwing large numbers of soldiers into the battle for Kursk. While Moscow’s counterattack in Kursk has inflicted thousands of Ukrainian casualties, Kyiv’s overstretched forces have managed … “North Korean troops in Ukraine gain battlefield experience, cementing alliance with Russia” →

MAMOUDZOU, FRANCE — Residents of the French territory of Mayotte braced Saturday for a storm expected to bring strong winds and heavy rain less than a month after the Indian Ocean archipelago was devastated by a deadly cyclone.  Mayotte was placed on a red weather alert from 1900 GMT on Saturday in anticipation of the passage of Cyclone Dikeledi to the south of the territory.  Authorities called for “extreme vigilance” following the devastation wrought by Cyclone Chido in mid-December.   Meteo-France predicted “significant rain and windy conditions,” saying that very heavy rain could cause flooding.  Residents were advised to seek shelter and stock up on food and water.  The storm hit the northeastern coast of Madagascar on Saturday evening around 1630 GMT and was heading straight for the tourist island of Nosy Be.   It is expected to pass to the south of Mayotte on Sunday morning, according to forecasts.  “Nothing is being left to chance,” Manuel Valls, France’s new overseas territories minister, told AFP, referring to forecasts of “heavy and continuous rain” and winds of up to 110 kilometers per hour (kph).  As it hit Madagascar, average winds were estimated at 130 kilometers per hour, with gusts up to 180 kph.  The most devastating cyclone to hit France’s poorest department in 90 years caused colossal damage, killing at least 39 people and injuring more than 5,600 in December.  “We need to be seriously prepared for the possibility of a close passage of the cyclone,” the Mayotte prefecture said on social media platform X.  Prefect Francois-Xavier Bieuville, the top Paris-appointed official on the territory, said Mayotte would be placed on a red weather alert from 1900 GMT on Saturday.   “I have decided to bring forward this red alert to 10 p.m. to allow everyone to take shelter, to confine themselves, to take care of the people close to you, your children, your families,” Bieuville said on television.  Messages in French and two regional languages were broadcast on radio and television to alert the population.  Bieuville told reporters Saturday that the cyclone was forecast to pass within 110 kilometers (70 miles) of the archipelago’s southern coast.   “We even have systems telling us 75 kilometers. So, we have something that is going to hit Mayotte very closely”, he said.  The storm intensified from a tropical storm to a tropical cyclone Saturday morning, but forecasters are not expecting it to further intensify.  … “Cyclone-ravaged Mayotte on red alert as it braces for new storm” →

RIESA, GERMANY — The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party set out a radical program Saturday at a party congress ahead of next month’s snap general election as thousands of protesters took to the streets to voice their opposition to the party.  Demonstrators shouting “No to Nazis” outside the venue in the eastern town of Riesa succeeded in delaying the start of the congress by around two hours.  Once it got underway just after 12 p.m. local time (1100 GMT) the party’s 600-odd delegates approved co-leader Alice Weidel as candidate for chancellor by acclamation ahead of the general election on February 23.  In a fiery speech to the hall afterward, Weidel condemned the protestors outside as “a left-wing mob” and “red-painted Nazis” before going on to present her “plan for the future” for Germany.  She said the first 100 days of a government containing the AfD would see the “total closing of Germany’s borders and the turning back anyone traveling without documents” as well as “large-scale repatriations.”  “I say to you quite honestly, if this must be called remigration, then let it be called remigration,” she said.  Turning to energy policy, Weidel advocated a return to nuclear energy and more coal power stations, as well as relaunching the Nord Stream pipelines for Russian gas.  In keeping with the AfD’s denial of climate science, Weidel also attacked efforts to promote renewable energy.  She branded wind turbines “windmills of shame” and promised to tear them all down.  The AfD is currently in second place in opinion polls, averaging 20%, although one survey Saturday eagerly seized on by the party gave them 22%.  The conservative CDU/CSU is leading at 31% while Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats are fighting it out for third place with their Green coalition partners on 15% and 14% respectively.  Weidel in her speech bashed the CDU/CSU, branding them a “party of cheats” and saying her goal was to overtake them.  The congress caps an eventful week for Weidel, who on Thursday was hosted by Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a key Donald Trump ally, for a wide-ranging livestream on his X social media platform.  Musk also boosted the livestream of Saturday’s congress by sharing it on his own X account, helping it gain a worldwide audience of more than 4 million as of the early evening.  The AfD has also been buoyed by events in Austria in recent … “German far-right outlines radical program as protesters rally” →

ISTANBUL — A delegation from one of Turkey’s biggest pro-Kurdish political parties met a leading figure of the Kurdish movement in prison Saturday, the latest step in a tentative process to end the country’s 40-year conflict, the party said.  Three senior figures from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) met the party’s former co-chairperson, Selahattin Demirtas, at Edirne prison near the Greek border.  The meeting with Demirtas — jailed in 2016 on terrorism charges that most observers, including the European Court of Human Rights, have labelled politically motivated — took place two weeks after DEM members met Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned head of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).  While the PKK has led an armed insurgency against the Turkish state since the 1980s, the DEM is the latest party representing left-leaning Kurdish nationalism. Both DEM and its predecessors have faced state measures largely condemned as repression, including the jailing of elected officials and the banning of parties.  In a statement released on social media after the meeting, Demirtas called on all sides to “focus on a common future where everyone, all of us, will win.”  Demirtas credited Ocalan with raising the chance that the PKK could lay down its arms. Ocalan has been jailed on Imrali island in the Sea of Marmara since 1999 for treason over his leadership of the PKK, considered a terrorist organization by Turkey and most Western states.  Demirtas led the DEM between 2014 and 2018, when it was known as the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and he is still widely admired. He said that despite “good intentions,” it was necessary for “concrete steps that inspire confidence … to be taken quickly.”  One of the DEM delegation, Ahmet Turk, said: “I believe that Turks need Kurds and Kurds need Turks. Our wish is for Turkey to come to a point where it can build democracy in the Middle East.”  The armed conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state, which started in August 1984 and has claimed tens of thousands of lives, has seen several failed attempts at peace.  Despite being imprisoned for a quarter of a century, Ocalan remains central to any chance of success due to his ongoing popularity among many of Turkey’s Kurds. In a statement released on December 29, he signaled his willingness to “contribute positively” to renewed efforts.  Meanwhile, in an address Saturday to ruling party supporters in Diyarbakir, the largest … “Turkey’s Kurdish leaders meet jailed politician; 2 sides inch toward peace” →

PARIS — France starts 2025 with a further drawdown of its military presence in its former African colonies, and fresh tensions ignited this week with controversial remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron. Chad, Senegal and now Ivory Coast have followed Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso in asking France to withdraw its troops from their soil. The reasons vary — from growing anti-French sentiment to calls for greater sovereignty and strengthening ties with other foreign powers. But the impact is the same. “There is a clear collapse of French policy in Africa,” said Thierry Vircoulon, a researcher at the French Institute for International Relations’ Africa Center. “The withdrawal of the French troops and basically the end of the French military presence in Africa is a symbol of that collapse.” French-African relations haven’t improved in recent days. On Monday, Macron suggested some Sahel countries had forgotten to thank French troops for spearheading a decadelong fight against Islamist insurgencies. That drew sharp criticism from leaders in Chad and Senegal. French authorities say Macron’s remarks were taken out of context. Jean-Pierre Maulny, deputy director of the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs think tank, said he believes France needs to be less focused on the immediate fallout and instead concentrate on longer-term ties with francophone African countries. France should think more about development and sharing the future of Africa’s security, he said, and less about adopting a big brother attitude. Macron’s government announced plans last year to reduce its military presence on the continent — where it also has troops in Gabon and Djibouti — and make it more responsive to countries’ demands. France has also expanded ties beyond francophone Africa. Its two biggest trading partners, for example, are Nigeria and South Africa. But analyst Vircoulon predicts France’s long-term influence in Africa will remain limited, at best. “There’s very little that the French government can do, and it’s playing in favor of Russia and other countries that are not Western,” he said. He said he believes France’s strategic priorities will shift to potential conflicts in Europe. …

MOSCOW — Ukraine launched drone attacks across several regions of Russia, striking two residential houses in the Tambov region and injuring at least three people, Russia said on Saturday. The regional head, Evgeny Pervyshov, said on the Telegram messaging app people were treated for injuries resulting from shattered windows as drones hit two houses in the town of Kotovsk, about 480 kilometers southeast of Moscow. He said the buildings were only slightly damaged, the inhabitants were offered temporary housing, and an evacuation was not required. “Three (people) had cuts from fragments of broken windows, another four complained of high blood pressure,” he said. Separately, Russia’s defense ministry said it intercepted and destroyed 85 Ukrainian drones overnight in several regions of the country, including 31 drones over the Black Sea, 16 each in the Voronezh and Krasnodar regions and 14 over the Azov Sea. Russia’s aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said airports in the cities of Kazan, Nizhnekamsk and Ulyanovsk in the Volga River regions temporarily suspended flights. A flight suspension in the city of Saratov was also later declared to ensure safety. Kyiv’s air force said in a statement early on Saturday that Russia launched 74 drones at Ukraine overnight, adding it had downed 47 of them, while 27 others disappeared from radars without reaching their targets. Both sides in the Ukraine conflict have turned cheap commercial drones into deadly weapons and also increased their production. Russian and Ukrainian soldiers alike have reported a visceral fear of drones, and both sides have used video footage of fatal drone strikes in their propaganda. On Friday, Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out a missile strike on a supermarket in the Russian-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.  …

BERLIN — Germany was racing Saturday to secure a heavily loaded tanker stranded off its northern coast, towing the stricken ship it said was part of Russia’s sanctions-busting “shadow fleet” away from shore to avert an oil spill. The 274-meter-long Eventin was sailing from Russia to Egypt with almost 100,000 tons of oil on board when its engine failed and it lost the ability to maneuver, according to Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies. As the vessel drifted in coastal waters Friday, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock slammed Russia’s use of “dilapidated oil tankers” to avoid sanctions on its oil exports, calling it a threat to European security. Three tugs have linked up with the Eventin and are attempting to steer it northeast, away from the coast and toward a “safer” area where there is “more sea space,” the command said. It said it had taken “safety measures” due to rough seas, with 2.5-meter-high waves and strengthening wind gusts. The ship was intercepted off the island of Ruegen, having come within 14 kilometers of the coast. No oil leaks were detected by several surveillance overflights, authorities said Friday, and responders have passed radios and flashlights to the stranded crew. It will take around eight hours to pull the Eventin roughly 25 kilometers to safer waters northeast of Cape Arkona, the command said early Saturday, adding they expected it to arrive by mid-morning. ‘Rusty tankers’ Although the tanker was navigating under the Panamanian flag, the German foreign ministry linked it to Russia’s sanctions-busting “shadow fleet.” Baerbock said that “by ruthlessly deploying a fleet of rusty tankers, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is not only circumventing the sanctions, but is also willingly accepting that tourism on the Baltic Sea will come to a standstill” in the event of an accident. Following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Western countries have hit Russia’s oil industry with an embargo and banned the provision of services to ships carrying oil by sea. In response, Russia has relied on tankers with opaque ownership or without proper insurance to continue lucrative oil exports. The number of ships in the “shadow fleet” has exploded since the start of the war in Ukraine, according to U.S. think tank the Atlantic Council. In addition to direct action against Russia’s oil industry, Western countries have moved to sanction individual ships thought to be in the shadow fleet. The European Union has so far sanctioned over 70 … “Germany races to secure stricken ‘Russian shadow fleet’ oil tanker” →

Russia accused Ukraine of conducting a deadly missile strike Friday on a supermarket in the Moscow-controlled city of Donetsk, while Kyiv reported a massive wave of Russian drone attacks on several regions and fierce fighting near the strategic logistics hub of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine. The fighting on Friday came a day after the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Ramstein, Germany, where Kyiv’s allies vowed no letup in aid to bolster Ukraine’s air defenses amid Moscow’s relentless assaults, including attacks on civilian and infrastructure sites. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who traveled to Rome following the Ramstein gathering, also praised new actions by the United States and Britain to sanction Russia’s oil producers, a major liquefied natural gas project, and more than 100 tankers in its “shadow fleet” as the West looks to deprive Moscow of funds needed to carry on its war. Russian state RIA news agency said investigators were looking into the supermarket attack early Friday, claiming a U.S.-supplied HIMARS missile hit the supermarket, killing two people, in the occupied city. Video on social media, which has been verified by RFE/RL, appears to show a massive explosion in an area where a small market is located. Ukrainian officials have not commented on the Russian accusation. The Ukrainian Air Force, meanwhile, said Russia attacked Ukraine with 72 Shahed-type strike drones in the Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Khmelnytskiy, Vinnytsia and Kherson regions. In Kyiv, bright flashes and explosions were seen as defense systems intercepted several drones in the sky. No deaths were reported, though some damage from debris was seen at a high-rise residential building, military officials said. The Ukrainian General Staff said several small towns east of Pokrovsk and an important highway a few kilometers south of the area had been the site of intense battles on Friday. Pokrovsk has been the target of Russia’s brutal drive in recent months, mainly destroying the city with a prewar population of about 64,000 people. As intense attacks and fighting on the front lines continue, diplomatic efforts to stop the conflict appear to be picking up momentum. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it expects Kyiv to have high-level talks with the White House once President-elect Donald Trump takes office. “We are waiting for a meeting between our presidents because for us the main thing is to work together with America. … We are preparing for contacts … “Russia blames Ukraine for deadly supermarket strike” →

The Famine Review Committee report on Sudan is backed by expert investigation and analysis proving millions are in acute need of food. …

GENEVA — The World Meteorlogical Organization says that preventive action cannot avert natural disasters such as the wildfires raging across Los Angeles, but that it can help save lives and mitigate loss of property. “Land management and prevention, regular clearing of underbrush play a key role in fire management, and evacuation plans are important in saving lives,” the WMO said Friday. “These are all part of effective early warning systems.” In a briefing to journalists in Geneva, Claire Nullis, a WMO spokesperson, stressed the importance of preparing adequate evacuation plans and early warning systems to prevent some of the worst impacts from a natural disaster. While acknowledging the staggering losses from the devastating wildfires sweeping across parts of Los Angeles in the United States this week, she said “The early warnings have, in this instance, been very, very good. “You know, people have been evacuated. It has been impossible to save houses, and the loss of life is still too high, but it has been kept to a relative minimum,” she said. Media reports say at least 10 people have been killed in this week’s Southern California wildfires, although more bodies are expected to be found once the fires have been contained and searchers can go through the debris. More than 10,000 structures reportedly have burned, and 180,000 people are under evacuation orders. While California is no stranger to wildfires, the WMO calls this catastrophic event “extraordinary” in that it is affecting one of the largest cities in the United States. The WMO said that last year’s rainy season for the Los Angeles area as a whole was slightly above normal, but so far, this year it has been dry. “The big compounding factor in this context is the winds. … They cause temperatures to rise, and they cause very low humidity, drying out the ground and vegetation,” Nullis said. The WMO said destructive wildfires have been made worse by climate change. “Climate change, including increased heat, extended drought and a thirsty atmosphere, has been a key driver in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in the western United States during the last decades,” it said, citing data from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The WMO said wildfires require the alignment of a number of factors, including temperature, humidity and the lack of moisture in fuels such as trees, shrubs, grasses and forest debris. “All these factors have … “Preventive action can’t avert wildfires but can save lives, meteorologists say” →

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s administration announced Friday it’s expanding sanctions against Russia’s critically important energy sector, unveiling a new effort to inflict pain on Moscow for its nearly 3-year-old war in Ukraine as President-elect Donald Trump gets set to return to office vowing to quickly end the conflict.  The outgoing Democratic administration billed the new sanctions as the most significant to date against Moscow’s oil and liquefied natural gas sectors, the driver of Russia’s economy. Officials said the sanctions, which punish entities that do business with the Russians, have the potential to cost the Russian economy upward of billions of dollars per month.  More than 180 oil-carrying vessels that are suspected to be part of a shadow fleet utilized by the Kremlin to evade oil sanctions as well as traders, oil field service firms and Russian energy officials are also targeted by the new sanctions. Several of the vessels targeted are also suspected of shipping sanctioned Iranian oil, according to the Treasury Department.  British officials are also announcing complementary sanctions against Russia’s energy sector Friday. Both countries are targeting two of Russia’s major oil producers, Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas, and dozens of the companies’ subsidiaries.  “The United States is taking sweeping action against Russia’s key source of revenue for funding its brutal and illegal war against Ukraine,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement. “With today’s actions, we are ratcheting up the sanctions risk associated with Russia’s oil trade, including shipping and financial facilitation in support of Russia’s oil exports.”  Biden administration officials said that it will ultimately be up to Trump’s administration whether to keep or scrap the new sanctions.  Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the sanctions. But Trump told reporters on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to meet, and we are setting it up.”  Trump’s warm relationship with Putin over the years has come under heavy scrutiny. The Republican president-elect has also balked at the cost of aid to Kyiv, pledging to move quickly to end the conflict upon his return to office on Jan. 20.  Trump added a new layer of doubt about future American support earlier this week when he appeared to sympathize with Putin’s position that Ukraine should not be part of NATO. The president-elect has criticized the Biden administration for expressing support for Kyiv’s eventual membership in the transatlantic military alliance.  The Kremlin … “Biden levies new sanctions against Russian energy sector, but it’s up to Trump whether to keep them” →

London — Britain’s Treasury chief is travelling to China this weekend to discuss economic and financial cooperation between the countries, as the U.K.’s Labour government seeks to reset strained ties with Beijing. The Treasury said Friday that Rachel Reeves will travel to Beijing and Shanghai and will meet with her Chinese government counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng. Reeves’ trip is expected to revive the China-U.K. Economic and Financial Dialogue — annual bilateral talks that have been suspended since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and deteriorating relations in recent years. A series of spying allegations from both sides, China’s support for Russia in the Ukraine war and a crackdown on civil liberties in Hong Kong, a former British colony, have soured ties. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority’s chief executive, Nikhil Rathi, are also in the delegation, according to the Treasury. Representatives from some of Britain’s biggest financial services firms will join the trip. Officials did not provide details, but media reports have said senior executives from HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered were included. Reeves’ visit comes after Foreign Secretary David Lammy travelled to China in October and Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Brazil in November. The meetings form part of a bid by Starmer, who was elected as leader in July, to strengthen political and economic ties with China, the U.K.’s fifth-largest trading partner. Officials said Starmer wanted a “pragmatic” approach to working with Beijing on global stability, climate change and the transition to clean energy. But some in the opposition Conservative Party have criticized his stance and said trade ties should not come at the expense of national security and human rights concerns. British political leaders and intelligence chiefs have warned repeatedly of the security threats that China poses. Calls to tackle the challenge grew louder last month when it emerged that an alleged Chinese spy had cultivated close ties with Prince Andrew and carried out “covert and deceptive activity” for China’s ruling Communist Party, according to officials. Nevertheless, Lammy told reporters in London on Thursday that “there are many areas of trade that don’t impact on national security.” He said Reeves “will repeat many of the messages that I took to China.” “What we’ve said is in this complex relationship with a global superpower, we are guided by three … “UK Treasury chief heading to China to revive suspended economic, financial talks “ →

Russia says it is closely watching the situation with Greenland, following US President-elect Donald Trump’s refusal to rule out military or economic measures to take control of the territory from Denmark. As Henry Ridgwell reports, geopolitical tensions are growing in the Arctic region amid rapid global warming. Camera: Henry Ridgwell …

KYIV, UKRAINE — Ukraine’s air force said on Friday on Russia attacked it with 72 drones overnight though it downed 33 of them while 34 others disappeared from radar without reaching their targets. Five drones struck various buildings in the northern region of Chernihiv, wounding one person, the air force said. One downed drone fell on a building in the capital Kyiv but did not cause casualties. Video footage filmed by Reuters carried the sound of an explosion and showed a fire burning in the distance in Kyiv during the overnight attack. More footage after daybreak showed the charred corner of a high-rise apartment block in Kyiv with windows blown out and a line of cars parked below suffering damage. Massed Russian aerial attacks using long-range drones have been a near-daily occurrence over Ukraine in the past several months, as Moscow looks to exhaust Kyiv’s air defenses almost three years into its full-scale war against its neighbor. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s army struck a supermarket on Friday in the Russian-held city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine in an attack that used U.S.-supplied missiles and wounded two people, a senior Russian-backed official said. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine and Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Unverified photos posted on social media showed a burnt out car in front of a shattered two-story circular building surrounded by debris. Dashcam footage posted by a driver nearby appeared to show the moment the supermarket — called Moloko (Milk) — was struck, with an ensuing large explosion and flames soaring into the sky. Reuters was able to confirm the location from a nearby building’s facades, signages and road layout that matched satellite imagery and street view imagery. The date was verified by a timestamp on the footage. Denis Pushilin, a senior Russian-backed official, accused the Ukrainian army of firing U.S.-supplied HIMARS missiles into the area during the morning rush hour. Russia’s TASS state news agency said other buildings and around 15 cars had been damaged in the same attack. Pushilin said in a statement on his official Telegram account that an apartment building in the city of Svitlodarsk in the Donetsk region had also been struck by Ukrainian forces, killing one woman and wounding four others.  …

WASHINGTON — Russia’s efforts to obtain China’s help in enhancing artificial intelligence is seen as a bid to challenge America’s lead in the field even as the outgoing Biden administration is expected to impose new export control measures to further curb Beijing’s access to AI chips. As the new year began, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s state-owned Sberbank, to work with China in researching and developing AI technology, according to the Kremlin. “The Russian president sees his country in global competition for AI with the United States and has positioned the state resources to try and compete with the U.S. in information and cyberspace – two areas where artificial intelligence is supposed to aid Russia in what they see as Western narratives and influence,” said Samuel Bendett, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. Moscow views Beijing’s success in AI as an example to follow, and its “cooperation with China is viewed as a necessary step towards acquiring artificial intelligence-related skill sets, knowledge and technology,” Bendett told VOA in written comments. The U.S. currently leads in AI innovation, followed by China, which is falling behind by wide margins, according to a November report by the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. Russia ranks 31st out of 83 countries in AI implementation, innovation and investment, according to U.K.-based Tortoise Media’s Global AI Index. Response to sanctions Western sanctions imposed on Russia since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022 have limited the country’s AI development, and Moscow has turned to Beijing to offset the restriction, according to Bendett in his report “The Role of AI in Russia’s Confrontation with the West.” Sberbank, which Putin instructed to collaborate with China, is under Western sanctions. It is Russia’s largest bank and leads the country’s AI development efforts. The outgoing Biden administration is expected to impose a new set of export control measures aimed at further limiting China’s ability to access chips that support AI technology. The new measures could come as early as Friday, according to Bloomberg. Sberbank CEO German Gref said in 2023 that Russia cannot obtain graphics processing units, microchips needed to support AI development, according to Reuters. But the bank’s first deputy CEO, Alexander Vedyakhin, said in December that despite Western sanctions, Russia can improve its AI ranking by 2030 through its own development. Another key area where Russia has sought to further apply AI help … “Russia turns to China to step up AI race against US” →

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK — Denmark acknowledged Thursday that it had long neglected the defense of Greenland, a vast and strategically important Arctic island – and one that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has called vital for U.S. security. Trump, who takes office Jan. 20, said this week that U.S. control of Greenland – a sovereign Danish territory – was an “absolute necessity,” and he did not rule out using military or economic action against Denmark to make it happen. “We have neglected for many years to make the necessary investments in ships and in aircraft that will help monitor our kingdom, and that is what we are now trying to do something about,” Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen told journalists. The U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen said earlier Thursday that the United States had no plans to increase its military presence in Greenland. “There are no plans to increase the United States’ current military footprint in Greenland,” the spokesperson told Reuters. “We will continue to work closely with Copenhagen and Nuuk [Greenland’s capital] to ensure any proposals meet our common security needs.” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said late Thursday that she had asked for a meeting with Trump but did not expect one to happen ahead of his inauguration. US military presence Greenland has been controlled by Denmark for centuries, though its 57,000 people now govern their own domestic affairs. Its security and foreign affairs, however, are still handled by Copenhagen. The U.S. military maintains a permanent presence at the Pituffik Space Base in Greenland’s northwest. Greenland is crucial for the U.S. military and its ballistic missile early-warning system, since the shortest route from Europe to North America runs via the island. “I think that the Americans are quite concerned that Russia could actually launch or initiate a major attack against the United States, and that could be done from the Russian side,” Jens Wenzel at Nordic Defense Analysis told Reuters. “There is no real monitoring of the airspace in Greenland. It is largely a free-for-all,” he said. Greenland is already covered by U.S. security guarantees via Denmark’s membership in NATO. Frederiksen said this week that she could not imagine the United States would use military intervention in Greenland and said it was up to the people of Greenland to decide what they want. ‘Tightrope’ Frederiksen summoned leaders of Denmark’s political parties to a meeting Thursday for a briefing about Trump’s renewed … “Denmark says it has neglected Greenland defense for years “ →

london — Russia has said it is closely watching the situation with Greenland, following U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s refusal to rule out military or economic measures to take control of the territory from Denmark. “We are observing this rather dramatic development of the situation, but so far, thank God, [it remains] at the level of statements,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday. “The Arctic zone is a zone of our national and strategic interests. We are present in the Arctic zone, and we will continue to be there,” Peskov added. The vast territory of Greenland — most of which lies above the Arctic Circle — has been officially part of the Kingdom of Denmark since 1953, although the island has its own government. National security Questioned at a news conference in Florida on Tuesday, Trump said the United States needs Greenland for security purposes, and he refused to rule out using economic or military means to achieve that goal. “People really don’t even know if Denmark has any legal right to it. But if they do, they should give it up because we need it for national security. That’s for the free world. I’m talking about protecting the free world,” Trump said. “You have Chinese ships all over the place. You have Russian ships all over the place. We’re not letting that happen,” he added. Like much of the Arctic, Greenland is rapidly warming. That is changing the geopolitics of the region, said analyst Liana Fix of the Council on Foreign Relations. “The Arctic is increasingly becoming a zone of a great power competition and rivalry. And the United States is concerned it is losing this game,” Fix said. “The Arctic becomes much more accessible, both for trading goods but also for critical minerals, especially for rare earth [minerals],” Fix said. “And also it becomes increasingly a militarized zone,” she added, noting that Russia is cooperating with the Chinese coast guard in the region. Not for sale Denmark has made it clear that Greenland is not for sale. Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen rejected the suggestion that Trump’s comments presented a foreign policy crisis for his government. “I see a president who is on his way into the White House, who has a heightened focus on the Arctic, and I can understand that he has that. We also have that from the Danish side, and we also have that … “Russia ‘observing’ Greenland situation; Europe cautious on Trump remarks “ →

ROME — Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani is traveling to Syria on Friday to encourage the country’s transition following the ouster of President Bashar Assad by Islamist insurgents, and said Europe should review its sanctions on Damascus now that the political situation has changed.  Tajani presided Thursday over a meeting in Rome of foreign ministry officials from five countries — Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the United States — and spoke earlier by telephone with his counterparts from Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The aim, he said, is to coordinate the various post-Assad initiatives, with Italy prepared to make proposals on private investments in health care for the Syrian population.  Going into the meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and their European counterparts, Tajani said it was critical that all Syrians be recognized with equal rights. It was a reference to concerns about the rights of Christians and other minorities under Syria’s new de facto authorities of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, an Islamic militant group that the U.S. and United Nations have long designated as a terrorist organization.  “The first messages from Damascus have been positive. That’s why I’m going there tomorrow, to encourage this new phase that will help stabilize the international situation,” said Tajani.  Speaking to reporters, he said the European Union should discuss possible changes to the sanctions regime on Syria. “It’s an issue that should be discussed because Assad isn’t there anymore, it’s a new situation, and I think that the encouraging signals that are arriving should be further encouraged,” he said.  Syria has been under deeply isolating sanctions by the United States, the European Union and others for years as a result of Assad’s brutal response to what began as peaceful anti-government protests in 2011 and spiraled into civil war.  HTS led a lightning insurgency that ousted Assad on December 8 and ended his family’s decades-long rule. From 2011 until Assad’s downfall, Syria’s uprising and civil war killed an estimated 500,000 people.  The U.S. has gradually lifted some penalties since Assad departed Syria for protection in Russia. The Biden administration in December decided to drop a $10 million bounty it had offered for the capture of a Syrian rebel leader whose forces led the ouster of Assad last month.  Syria’s new leaders also have been urged to respect the rights of minorities and women. Many Syrian Christians, who made up 10% of the population … “Italy’s FM encourages post-Assad transition, calls for EU to review sanctions” →

In an exclusive interview with VOA, former U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss issued a stark warning against China’s authoritarian ambitions and called for the West to adopt a tougher stance to protect global freedom. Truss laid out her vision for an “economic NATO” to deter Beijing, criticized the Labour government’s soft approach to China, and defended her controversial lobbying for a defense export license involving China. Click here to read the full story in Mandarin. …

VIENNA — Talks to form a coalition government led by Austria’s far-right Freedom Party, or FPO, will begin Friday, the party said on Thursday, as thousands protested in Vienna against the prospect of the country’s first FPO-led government. The eurosceptic, Russia-friendly FPO won September’s parliamentary election with around 29% of the vote but was initially sidelined as centrist parties tried to form a ruling coalition without it. That effort failed at the weekend, and FPO leader Herbert Kickl was tasked with forming a government. “First step: negotiations on the budget as of tomorrow,” Kickl said in a statement on Thursday evening while protesters carrying placards reading “Nazis out” and “History is repeating itself” gathered in the square that stands between the offices of the president and the chancellor. Chancellor Karl Nehammer of the conservative Austrian People’s Party (OVP), who had led the centrist coalition talks, said on Saturday he was stepping down because they had collapsed. His successor as head of the caretaker government, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg, is due to take over on Friday. Various nongovernmental organizations that deal with human rights, refugees and the environment called Thursday’s protest. “Our republic is at a crossroads,” the organizers said in a statement. “The threat of an extreme right-wing chancellor looms and with him an attack on democracy, human rights, judiciary, independent media and social cohesion in our country.” More than 10,000 protesters packed tightly together on the square and streets leading into it whistled, jeered and shone their phone lights toward the chancellor’s office, chanting “Kickl out” in a peaceful atmosphere. The OVP, which under Nehammer said it would not govern with Kickl, calling him a conspiracy theorist and a security threat, now says under interim leader Christian Stocker that it prefers to reach a coalition deal with Kickl to holding a snap election. On Wednesday, however, Stocker said he demanded assurances from Kickl that he wants to keep Austria free from Russian interference — a reference to FPO positions including opposing sanctions against Moscow over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Support for the FPO has only increased since September, polls show, and the party now has a lead of more than 10 percentage points over the OVP. “We are entering negotiations with the FPO,” the OVP said in a statement minutes before the FPO’s, confirming that Kickl and Stocker had held initial discussions and that the first issue would be the … “Thousands protest as Austria’s far-right-led coalition talks set to begin” →

GENEVA — U.N. human rights experts have accused Russia of waging a war of attrition against Ukraine by pursuing a policy of mass destruction to crush the spirit of the nation. A report issued by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, or OHCHR, Wednesday says that since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago, there has been “a dangerous escalation of hostilities,” which has had a huge, injurious impact “on the civilian population.” U.N. Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Nada Al-Nashif, who presented the report to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, told the 47- member body that “September, in fact, marked the highest number of civilian casualties since July 2022.” Most civilian casualties, she said, were caused by “relentless attacks with aerial glide bombs, long-range missiles, and drones that contributed to the killing of some 574 civilians — an increase of 30% over the previous year.” “Russian bombardment damaged civilian infrastructure and water, heating and transportation services, including four major attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since mid-November,” she said. The report covers the period from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, 2024. It documents continued and increasing gross violations of international human rights law and serious violations of humanitarian law, “including possible war crimes.” “We are deeply concerned by the impacts on civilians of the increased use of drones and the use of new weapons during the reporting period,” said Al-Nashif. “Russian armed forces launched some 2,000 long-range drones in November alone, killing scores of people,” she said. “We are also concerned about the potential increased use of anti-personnel landmines, due to the threats they pose to civilians, both now and long into the future.” The report documents “credible allegations” of executions of Ukrainian military personnel captured by Russian armed forces, noting that “summary executions constitute a war crime.” The OHCHR has verified the execution of 68 Ukrainian POWs captured by Russian armed forces. The office also has verified the summary executions of 170 civilians since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, in areas controlled by Russian armed forces, including in places of detention. “Accountability for all of these killings is essential. Instead, there is almost total impunity,” Al-Nashif said. The 26-page report also documents torture of POWs at the hands of Russian and Ukrainian armed forces, calling it “a violation of international law.” However, the report says the torture and ill-treatment of prisoners … “UN accuses Russia of waging war of attrition against Ukraine” →

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, GERMANY   — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Thursday told allies and partners in Germany that it would be “crazy to drop the ball now” and end support Ukraine against Russia.  “It’s clear that a new chapter starts for Europe and the entire world just 11 days from now,” Zelenskyy told the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during opening remarks in Ramstein Germany, referring to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration as president. “We have to cooperate even more, rely on one another even more and achieve even greater results together,” he said. “No matter what’s going on in the world, everyone wants to feel sure that their country will not just be erased of the map.” As Ukrainians fight continuing Russian assaults, international support for their fight is uncertain. Trump has not indicated whether he will continue America’s leadership of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group when President Joe Biden leaves office January 20. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the group of about 50 nations has provided Kyiv with more than $126 billion in weapons, training and equipment. The U.S. has provided about $66 billion, slightly more than half of the group’s aid. The group came together under U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s leadership to coordinate security assistance after the invasion. Austin on Thursday announced a $500 million in additional weapons and equipment for Kyiv, which officials say will be the final military aid package before Biden leaves office. He said the package includes additional missiles for Ukrainian air defense, more artillery ammunition, more air-to-ground munitions and equipment to support Ukraine’s F-16 fighter jets. The additional U.S. weapons and equipment are being pulled from the Pentagon’s existing military stockpiles. Austin, who is hosting the group for the last time, said leading the group has been “one of the great honors of my life.” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius thanked Austin for his leadership on behalf of the allies and partners present. “Your personal dedication has made a major difference. Without you, your commitment and your leadership. Ukraine’s fight for freedom would not have yielded the same results,” he told Austin. Austin and defense analysts have warned that failing to continue coordinated support for Ukraine could prove catastrophic. “If tyrants learn that aggression pays, we will only invite even more aggression, chaos and war, but we are still determined to not let that happen,” Austin told the group. Bradley … “Zelenskyy urges coalition aiding Ukraine not to ‘drop the ball’” →