Category: World

Despite the gruesome details of people vomiting on walls, fighting in the corridors of Downing Street, and in many cases there is evidence that those inside the building who know what they are doing are wrong, Johnson’s job is not in immediate danger.

With the next general election not scheduled for 2024 and Johnson currently sitting in a huge majority in parliament, it is only his own conservative MPs who can dismiss the prime minister, something that actually lacks the potential numbers or power of any rebels.

The fact that they are stuck with Johnson, whose personal approval rating has sunk since the scandal began last year, is confusing the Conservatives. They are concerned that Johnson has done irreparable damage to his own image in the eyes of most voters who have finally seen “what he really likes”, as a senior Conservative has said. The only thing left to tarnish the rest of the party now is its reputation – something that opinion polls and recent election results have already begun.

“Ever since he took office, a personality bigger than his life has dominated the political agenda, which is a good thing when people see you as ridiculous and affectionate,” said a conservative MP and former cabinet minister. “The problem now is that the country has learned more about what that personality really is, but it’s still so huge that it dwarfs everything else.”

A minister in the current government told CNN, “There is no doubt that his image has changed from a happy-go-lucky Brexit to a law-breaking liar.”

Numerous conservatives who have spoken to CNN agree that the loss of Johnson’s image is uniquely bad for a man who has been in the public eye for so long and has such a well-established strength and weakness.

Rob Ford, a professor of politics at the University of Manchester, said: “We all have friends we know who probably do bad things, but we don’t see them doing bad things, so we can pretend it’s not really bad.”

“When we see the evidence of how bad they really are, it’s amazing but it still hits the gut. Those who support Johnson are doing the same thing to them. Their worst suspicions are being confirmed.”

Speaking in Parliament after the report was released, Johnson said he was “humble” and “learned my lesson,” adding: “I am fully responsible for what happened to my watch.”

But he also reiterated earlier claims that the parties only grew after his departure, stressing that he was “surprised and disappointed” that several drinking-fuel incidents had taken place – even in the same building as his own office and apartment.

And he suggested that the shrinking quarters of government buildings and his staff’s “extremely long time” to respond to the Covid-19 crisis could explain why a number of parties and social events have occurred.

“I briefly attended such gatherings to thank them for their service, which I believe is one of the essential duties of leadership,” Johnson said.

As trivial as it may seem, Johnson has long held the image of Britain’s troubled partner. He had previously been fired for making quotes, and was accused of having an affair with someone else. During the Brexit referendum, he extended the truth beyond recognition. He comes across as useless and unforgiving. Which is great, unless the public stops forgiving you.

Salma Shah, a former Conservative government adviser, said: “He has always been able to escape the accusations of being conservative and out of touch with conservative leaders. Somehow, he has avoided caricatures.”

“Of course, now there is a strict verification that he is in the highest position in the country,” he said. “The downside to the Partigate report is that it really challenges the Boris brand as a popular hilarious character and makes that clich apply to it.”

In the medium term, Conservatives are concerned that Johnson still has two years left in power. “He’s become more and more divided over time. I hope he will at least try to unite the team, but I’m afraid that if his instincts continue to run against him, his tendency is to dig and hit,” said a senior backbencher.

Others point to the difficult moments before Johnson’s premiership when he sent allies to the news channels to protect him, only to make U-turns on government policy and make them look ridiculous.

“Those who are still going to defend him at the party, in the increasingly ridiculous situation, will be affected by the stains that have fallen on the Conservative Party over time,” Ford said.

“If the poll is to be believed, most voters are now convinced that Johnson’s Downing Street is a place where vomiting and spilling alcohol, then rude treatment of cleaners is seen as acceptable behavior. No MP wants to bind. That,” Ford added. .

Earlier, MPs said they would wait for the Gray report before deciding to take action against Johnson. Now, some say they will wait for an investigation to determine if Johnson lied in Parliament.

The government minister who spoke to CNN said they believed the real moment of truth would come in the two special elections scheduled for June 23. “We could lose these two elections to a vastly different opposition, which I think most of us would accept as one. The condemnable assessment of the party under Johnson. At that point, some of us will start thinking about our seats, I doubt.”

In the long run, team insiders will want a postmortem on how Johnson came to power in the first place, as his flaws are widely known across Westminster.

Several current and former advisers who have worked with Johnson in various positions, inside and outside government, have described him as a man with a small fuse and rarely believed he had done anything wrong.

Almost everyone who has worked for Johnson before and has spoken to CNN has described at least one incident in which he reprimanded his junior staff for putting him in a position where he was open to criticism from the media or his political opponents.

A former employee blamed it on Johnson’s preferred obsession. “It’s no wonder he was a media personality before,” they say

“When you’re a columnist, you can make fun of people by saying whatever you want to say. When you run a country and what you do actually affects people, you can’t claim they like everything you do.” Adds ex-staff

Johnson’s Personality Conflict Box Such observations are rarely new. He wrote a column appealing to conservative rights while playing the role of liberal mayor of London. And for a long time, the game worked on both sides.

And indeed, Partigate could mark the end of Johnson’s Plate-Spinning Act. He may stay in power for some time; He can even fight for re-election and win.

But there are very few who believe that he can play the role of a serious statesman during the global epidemic and preside over a culture where your workers organize illegal parties, vomit in government offices and then treat those who remove it rudely. And be universally popular while doing so.

This week, comedian Ricky Gervais scolded liberals over a routine that targets heterosexual ideology. America needs this kind of comic relief to start discussing controversial issues, but the left can’t take the joke.

There is a rule of thumb that goes, “If you’re going to tell people the truth, it’s better if you make them laugh or they’ll kill you.” (The quote is usually submitted to Bernard Shaw, but its source is disputed.) The same rule was applied hundreds of years ago when the courtiers told the king the painful truth and at the same time no one else would dare to try to keep him smiling. It underscores an unspoken purpose of humor, which is to allow the conversation to highlight serious issues while blunting the pain that might otherwise be invited. Yes, we can agree on a certain point, but at least we are adults enough to make fun of those differences. For at least one-half of the American people, that healthy attitude is long gone.

Entertainment protocol has been reversed for reading today: ‘Although you are funny when you tell people the truth, we [the mob] I will kill you ‘. In other words, America, the land that has given birth to countless comic talents over the years, has lost its sense of humor. This was clearly judged by Ricky Garvey’s Netflix comedy special ‘Supernatural’ followed by an outcry over wrongdoing. Like previous black comedian Dave Chappell, Garvis forced his audience to look at the 900-pound psychedelic elephant roaming the American living room, a heterosexual ideology and the danger it poses to millions of people, mostly women.

“Oh, lady!” British comedian started. “Not all women, I mean old-fashioned. Old-fashioned woman, pregnant. Who are making dinosaurs. I love new women. They’re great, aren’t they? The new ones we’ve been seeing lately. Those who have beards and c ** ks. They are as good as gold, I love them. And now the old men say, ‘Oh, they want to use our toilets.’ ‘Why wouldn’t they use your toilet’? ‘For women’! ‘They are women – look at their pronouns’! What about ‘this person is not a woman’? ‘Well, his penis’. ‘His penis, you’re a fanatic’! ‘If she rapes me’? ‘If he rapes you, you did TERF wh ** e’?

What liberals are found to be so terrible and “Sad” There was no obscenity about the above monologue – let’s face it, progressives are not unfamiliar with obscenity – but the validity of the ‘joke’. Yes, sometimes the truth hurts. Garvis highlights the contradictions of the transgender movement that the mainstream media is in extreme pain to ignore, and the real risks that it poses for biological women.

Let’s remember that the first thing Joe Biden did as president was to sign an executive order that let Americans go about their lives. “Don’t worry about being denied access to their restrooms, locker rooms or school sports.” In other words, American men and women now have the right to use bathroom and changing room facilities, as well as to compete in sports competitions against women. “Whatever their gender identity or sexual orientation.” Incredibly, transgender women are even imprisoned with biological women, all of which have predictable consequences, such as pregnancy behind bars.

Instead of listening to what liberals Gervais was trying to say, which is that the lives of biological women are threatened by this kind of inclusive ‘open door’ policy, the Left did its best: it sent a search and destruction mission to Ricky Garbhais to retire early. To do or, judging by the tone of some tweets, is an early burial.

Such reactions to a comedy routine reveal the main problem with the social justice crowd, which lacks the maturity to discuss and debate controversial ideas in a public forum. Even more insane is the fact that the whole concept of ‘transgender’ is a relatively new phenomenon, and like all new things, it naturally leads to a lot of controversy in court. Yet, those who want to ask some honest questions or warn children and adolescents who are fascinated by such ideas are described as ‘haters’ who suffer from ‘transphobia’. In this age of intellectual darkness that has descended on the United States, where many universities have become the focus of extremist liberal ideology, one of the last places for conservatives to voice their views is through comedy.

“Comedy is a Reflection” American actor and comedian Alan King once said. “We do not create anything. We set no style, no value. We are reflecting. It’s a distorted mirror in the fun house. We see society. We have the ability to make fun of the way society behaves. “

Raja, if he had survived, would have been shocked to see that the important work of comedians to hold the mirror to society is slowly falling by the wayside. While some daring comedians like Dave Chappell and Ricky Gervais are still willing to endure the sling and arrows that come with this dangerous new territory, the consequences could ultimately be considered too high a risk. This would be a loss not only for the American comedy scene, but for the entire nation as it seeks to navigate its path through extremely confusing times.

America, don’t dismiss your Court Jesters, they are the lifeline of your wisdom and civilization.

You can share this story on social media:

Follow RT On

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Ghuneim was rushed to hospital with bullet wounds to the neck and back. The doctors could not save him.

In a statement to CNN, the Israeli military said several soldiers were conducting “regular security operations” in the al-Khad area of ​​Bethlehem when “suspects threw stones and Molotov cocktails at soldiers, endangering their lives.”

As the assailants chased them, soldiers responded with live fire, with one of the suspects wounded, according to the Israeli military. The statement added that soldiers provided first aid at the scene before the wounded were transferred to the Palestinian Red Crescent. The incident is now under review. The statement did not name Zaid Saeed Ghuneim.

According to human rights group B’Tselem, Israeli forces maintain an “open fire policy” in the West Bank, which allows the use of live ammunition in minor security incidents, such as isolated rock throwing. The policy has resulted in several deaths, B’Tselem said, adding that two Palestinian teenagers were shot dead in Bethlehem in February this year.

Two people have been badly beaten outside a luxury hotel in Vienna by a group of apparent Ukrainian citizens. The incident unfolded in the center of the Austrian capital earlier this week, with local police giving some details to the Heute newspaper on Saturday.

The clash erupted when two luxury SUVs, a BMW X5 and a Toyota Land Cruiser stopped at a taxi-reserved area outside the hotel due to a parking lot dispute. At least one vehicle had a Ukrainian license plate, footage of the incident is available online. Police spokesman Christopher Verhanzak told the newspaper that the political motive for the attack had already been blown up.

Two taxi drivers waiting for clients outside the hotel asked the driver of the two vehicles to move away from the restricted parking space, provoking an angry reaction from them and their passengers. Several youths got out of the posh vehicles, cursing the taxi drivers and spitting in their cabs. “Victims are subsequently attacked, as seen in the video.” Says Verhanzak.

One of the taxi drivers was immediately beaten during the collision, according to footage from the scene. A man is seen grabbing the victim by the legs and dragging him out of the way of the SUV, which sped off after the attack.

The taxi drivers sustained multiple injuries in the collision, one of whom was identified as a 47-year-old man who was hospitalized with a broken skull. Another driver, a 48-year-old man, fled the scene with minor injuries, according to a police spokesman.

The clash is under investigation and no arrests have been made so far. “According to the preliminary investigation, the suspect is a Ukrainian citizen. Further investigation is underway,“It simply came to our notice then.

You can share this story on social media:

Follow RT On

The shooting at Uvalade was the deadliest since Sandy Hook School.

Uvalde, United States:

New traumatic accounts of the ordeal of survivors of the Texas school shooting surfaced on Saturday, sparking public outrage over the genocide as the deeply wounded city prepared for U.S. President Joe Biden’s visit on Sunday.

Spooky tales told by young students forced to play the dead as a heavily armed gunman played a systematic game – killing 19 students and two teachers – underscored by details of the police’s slow response during the drama.

Ten-year-old Samuel Salinas was sitting in his fourth-grade classroom when the shooter, later identified as Salvador Ramos, 18, entered with an icy announcement: “You will all die.”

Then he “just started shooting,” Salinas told ABC News.

Texas authorities admitted late Friday that 19 police officers had been in the school hallway for more than an hour without acting, thinking the gunman had finished his murder.

Steven McCrae, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said, “From the perspective of insight … it was the wrong decision, the timing.”

Ramos, who was carrying two assault-style rifles, was eventually killed by police.

Survivors of Uvalade described his desperate, whispered request for help on a 911 phone call during the attack. Many have played Dead to avoid the shooter’s attention.

Eleven-year-old Mia Cerillo even spilled the blood of a dead friend because she spoke of death.

Samuel Salinas said he thought Ramos fired at him, but the bullet hit a chair and sent a knife into the boy’s leg. “I died so he couldn’t shoot me,” he said.

Another student, Danielle, whose mother did not want to be named, said she saw Ramos on fire through the glass in the classroom door and hit her teacher.

The shots were “hot,” he told the Washington Post, and when another bullet ricochet hit a fellow student in the nose, he said he could hear the traumatic sound.

Although his teacher was lying on the floor in a bloody state, he repeatedly told the students, “Stay calm. Stay where you are. Don’t move,” Daniel recalls.

Eventually the police broke the window of his classroom and rescued him. Since then, he has had nightmares over and over again.

A troublesome timeline

President Joe Biden will visit Uvalade on Sunday to sue again for gun control, as activists say he is trying to galvanize voters on the issue in the run-up to mid-November elections.

Despite mass shootings, gun control efforts across the country have repeatedly failed, although the poll shows widespread support from Americans.

Speaking at the opening of a university in Delaware on Saturday, Biden – himself a twice-grieving father – portrayed parents preparing to bury their children in Texas and described “excessive violence. Too much fear. Too much grief.”

“We need to be tougher,” he told graduates in his alma mater.

The Uvalde shooting was the deadliest since 2012 killed 20 children and six staff at Sandy Hook School in Newtown, Connecticut.

McCrae has made a number of emergency calls – including a child begging for help from the police – from two adjoining classrooms where the gunman was barricaded.

He asserted that his confession had been obtained through torture, and that his confession had been obtained through torture.

“I’m not defending anything, but you go back to the timeline, there was a dam, hundreds of rounds were pumped in four minutes, okay, in those two classrooms,” McCrae said.

“Any later shootings were scattered and that was near the door. So it is safe to say that no one else survived.”

McCrae told reporters separately, however, that an eight or nine children who received a call on 911 at 12:16 a.m. were still alive.

According to Macro’s timeline, about 19 officers were outside the classroom door at the time.

A caller – a child who dialed 911 more than once – asked police to come, McCrae said. His last call was cut off as soon as he got out.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told reporters during a testimonial press conference Friday that he had been misinformed about the genocide.

“I was confused,” Abbott said. “The information I was given was partially incorrect and I am very upset about it.”

(Except for the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published from a syndicated feed.)

The Pentagon on Wednesday awarded a 624 million deal to arms giant Raytheon to replenish more than 1,400 Stinger anti-air missiles sent to Ukraine’s military. The agreement comes after President Joe Biden signed a bill approving $ 40 billion in military aid to Ukraine.

According to a notice on the Department of Defense’s website, the agreement must be fulfilled by July 2026, giving Raytheon four years to build a shoulder-fired missile. According to a company statement, Raytheon will produce 1,300 Stingers.

Although Raytheon stopped making these missiles in 2020, the defense agency won a deal to resume production in 2021, primarily for foreign buyers, Reuters reported. Greg Hayes, CEO of Raytheon, said in April that the US military had not bought a Stinger in 18 years, and that some electronic components of the missile needed to be redesigned because some components were no longer commercially available.

Earlier this month, Republican Mike Gallagher (Wisconsin) warned that the United States had run out of stockpiles of Stinger and Javelin missiles in a bid to arm Ukraine’s military since the start of the Russian military operation in February. According to an April report, the Pentagon burned a quarter of its stingers and a third of its javelins at the time.

The deal will be financed by a huge $ 40 billion allocation bill, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden last week. The bill already pays $ 8.7 billion to backfill U.S. military stockpiles sent to Ukraine.

It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post. A U.S. intelligence source told CNN last month that the agency “Almost zero” Describes shipments as a drop where U.S. weapons end up after crossing the border into Ukraine “In a big black hole.”

Russia announces Western arms embargo on Ukraine “Legitimate target” And often carried out air and missile attacks against them.

You can share this story on social media:

Follow RT On

Shanghai has slowly moved towards reopening after a terrible lockdown.

Shanghai:

China’s Shanghai metropolis is slowly reopening after a two-month hiatus from the Kowid-19 lockdown, as Beijing officials prepare to ease control in parts of the capital, the outbreak is under control on Saturday.

Shanghai aims to end its lockdown on Wednesday after easing restrictions last week.

More people have been allowed out of their homes, and more businesses have been allowed to reopen, although most residents are primarily confined to their housing compounds, with stores primarily limited to delivery.

Shanghai officials have called for continued vigilance, although most of its 25 million inhabitants live in areas that are in the least risky “prevention” section.

“Wear a mask in public, do not hold any gatherings and maintain social distance,” Zhao Dandan, deputy director of the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, told a daily news conference.

The video on social media showed several foreigners, including foreigners, drinking and dancing on the streets in a central area of ​​the city on Friday night before being stopped by police and told to go home.

Another video shows a group on the street singing an emotional 1985 pop song called “Tomorrow will be better” with a keyboard player. Police were seen coming and allowing the song to end before people were told to go home, praising officers online for restraint.

The two-month lockdown in China’s largest and most cosmopolitan city has left residents frustrated and angry, with thousands of people often segregated in crowded central amenities.

Many of them struggled to get adequate food or medical care during the first week of the lockdown.

‘Under control’

In Beijing, new cases have been trending lower for six days, with no new infections reported outside the quarantine area on Friday.

The outbreak, which began April 22, is “effectively under control,” a city government spokesman told a news conference.

Beginning Sunday, eight of Beijing’s 16 districts will be allowed to reopen shopping malls, libraries, museums, theaters and gyms with population limitations that have not seen a community case for seven days in a row.

The two districts will end work rules from home, while public transport in all three districts, including the city’s largest Chawang, will be largely reopened. Nevertheless, restaurant food is banned throughout the city.

While the number of cases nationwide is improving, China’s strict adherence to the “zero-covid” strategy has destroyed the world’s second-largest economy and disrupted global supply chains.

Investors are concerned about the lack of a roadmap for exiting the policy signed by President Xi Jinping.

The economic impact was evident in Friday’s data, when April profits in industrial companies fell 8.5% year-on-year, the biggest fall in two years.

China’s approach, which the government says is necessary to save lives and prevent the health care system from being overwhelmed, has been challenged by the hard-to-contain Omicron variant.

The conflict between defeating Kovid’s expansion and supporting the economy comes in a politically sensitive year, with the ruling Communist Party expected to secure an unprecedented third term in Congress in the autumn.

During an emergency meeting on Wednesday, Premier Li Keqiang acknowledged the weak growth and said that the economic woes were worse in some respects than in 2020 when China was initially attacked by COVID-19. His remarks sparked market expectations for further economic support.

Small steps

On Friday, Fengxian District, a suburb of Shanghai, revoked the condition of having a pass for residents to leave.

State-run Shanghai Securities News reported decent steps towards a return to normalcy in the financial sector, with more than 10,000 bankers and businessmen living and working in their offices slowly returning home since the lockdown began.

The country received 362 coronavirus cases a day on Saturday, down from 444 a day earlier. In Beijing, Friday’s new infection dropped from 29 to 24.

When Shanghai officials reported a community-level case in Songjiang District, they expressed confidence in the steps they are taking to identify and control the infection chain.

Sun Xiaodong, deputy director of the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said, “If these measures are implemented effectively, we can prevent the return of the epidemic, even if it is sporadic, so don’t worry.”

(Except for the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published from a syndicated feed.)

Scientists have discovered highly reactive chemical compounds that form under natural atmospheric conditions but can pose a threat to human health and the environment. Although the existence of these compounds – known as trioxide and the binding of three oxygen atoms together – was theoretically created, researchers at the University of Copenhagen confirmed their presence in the air in a study published in the journal Science on Thursday.

Trioxide is highly flammable and explosive. These are formed by atmospheric decomposition of common substances released into the atmosphere, such as isoprene and dimethyl sulfide – in fact “From almost all chemical compoundsAccording to co-author Jing Chen, created by the reaction between two types of radicals, they last anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, during which time they can react with other compounds in the air.

During that time, newly discovered chemicals could be able to break down aerosols, which could cause tiny airborne particles and health risks that could lead to cardiovascular and respiratory disease, the researchers observed. The new compounds that are formed when trioxides combine with aerosols have not been studied and their effects on humans have not been known.

In addition, researchers have noted that trioxides can affect how many aerosol particles are produced. This could potentially affect climatic aspects, such as how much sunlight is reflected in space or absorbed in cloud formation, both affecting Earth’s temperature.

The study’s co-author Kristen Moeller noted that “Most human activity leads to the release of chemicals into the atmosphere“His newly co-author Eva Kezgergard points out that the newly discovered compounds are not a new arrival in the atmosphere.”These compounds are always around – we didn’t know about them“

Researchers, then, are not worried about the potential dangers of their discovery. Instead, they see it as an opportunity. “We now have evidence that compounds are formed and survive for a certain period of time, which means that their effects can be further studied and it is possible to react if they become dangerous.“, Explains senior author Henrik Kessergaard.

Trioxide – specifically hydrotrixide, the type of chemical that researchers at the university initially found – exists in the atmosphere at a concentration of 10 million per cubic centimeter, about one tenth of the concentration of hydroxyl (OH) radicals, considered one of the most important in the atmosphere. Oxidants and 1 million particles per cubic centimeter. According to researchers, 1% of all isoprene – one of the most commonly released organic compounds – decomposes into hydrothroxide released into the atmosphere.

“The discovery suggests that there may be more in the air that we do not yet knowChen noticed, insisting that “As researchers, we need to keep an open mind if we want to do better in finding solutions“

You can share this story on social media:

Follow RT On

China’s foreign ministry has said it supports expanding BRICS Plus cooperation. (File)

Beijing:

According to the Chinese government, for the first time, the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) grouping is expected to begin an expansion process to include members of the new developing countries.

On Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Beijing would actively promote the expansion of the BRICS and would welcome more global partners to join the group.

Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Jiang Yu’s Regular Press Conference on November 26, 2006

“China will work with the BRICS parties to continue in-depth discussions on BRICS expansion and to set standards and modalities for it on the basis of consensus. We look forward to more like-minded partners joining the larger BRICS family.” Said in a statement.

BRICS is a multilateral forum comprising the world’s five major emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Mr Wang emphasized that the recent BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting had supported the expansion of the initiative, and that “BRICS Plus” consultations had been held as part of the ministerial meeting.

On May 23, a BRICS Plus Virtual Conference was held as part of a major meeting with ministers from countries including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Argentina, Nigeria, Senegal and Thailand, according to the report.

BRICS Plus is a new phase in the expansion of BRICS – already known for its combined economic growth potential – aimed at welcoming more countries and improving economic conditions.

China actively supports the launch of the BRICS expansion process and the expansion of “BRICS Plus” cooperation, “the Chinese Ministry said.

“In the face of a century of change and epidemics caused by the international hotspot issue, the BRICS countries agree that it is important to enhance cooperation with other emerging markets and developing countries, further enhance BRICS representation, and create a BRICS voice, major international and regional. To listen more broadly to issues, to meet challenges, and to uphold the common interests and development of emerging markets and developing countries.

(Except for the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published from a syndicated feed.)

Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Saturday with German Chancellor Olaf Schulz and French President Emmanuel Macron. Blaming Ukraine for stalling peace talks, Putin reassured Europeans that Moscow was ready for talks to end the ongoing conflict and condemned the West for flooding the neighboring country with weapons.

According to a readout of a call published by the Kremlin, Putin outlined the latest developments in Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine and described the recent return to normal life in Mariupol and other cities taken from Ukrainian forces.

Putin has confirmed that Russia is open to a negotiated peace deal and is ready to export fertilizers and other agricultural products, but that this would require lifting some Western-imposed sanctions. He added that Russia would ensure that grain exports from Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea could take place. According to Moscow, until recently, such exports were impossible due to the seas in Ukraine. However, the Russian navy has opened two corridors for civilian ships, one through the Black Sea and the other through the Azov Sea.

A readout of the German call on Saturday said that both Schulz and Macron had called on Putin to declare an immediate ceasefire and withdraw Russian troops from Ukraine. Both leaders spoke positively about Putin’s commitment to treating captured Ukrainian fighters. “In accordance with international humanitarian law.” And allowing unrestricted access to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Although both Scholz and Macron have condemned Russia for its military operations in Ukraine and supported EU sanctions on Moscow, the two leaders have maintained direct contact with their Russian counterparts. In contrast, other European politicians have refused to talk to Putin. Polish Prime Minister Matthias Morawiki has compared the Russian president to Adolf Hitler and denounced Macron for talking to him, while British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has compared Putin to one. “Crocodile” And canceled peace talks.

However, while Schulz and Macron have been in regular talks with Putin since February, both leaders have provided arms and other military assistance to Kiev, and Macron has rejected calls from Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to give up some territories in exchange for an agreement with Russia, such as former US Secretary of State Henry Kinzer. Weeks suggested that Kyiv should be done.

Putin addressed the issue of Western military support for Kiev on Saturday, telling Schulz and Macron that “Pumping” Weapons in Ukraine “The risk of further instability of the situation and escalation of the humanitarian crisis.”

At the end of the 80-minute call, all three leaders agreed to stay in touch.

You can share this story on social media:

Follow RT On