Belarus Hands RFE/RL Freelancer Kuznechyk 6-Year Prison Sentence, Relatives Say

• 06, 08, 2022
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The family of RFE/RL freelance correspondent Andrey Kuznechyk say the journalist has been sentenced to six years in prison in Belarus on a charge of creating an extremist group. 

According to the relatives, the Mahilyou regional court in the country’s east took only a few hours to hear the case and hand down its verdict and punishment on June 8 in a closed-door trial.

The 43-year-old father of an 8-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son was initially sentenced to 10 days in jail on November 26 on hooliganism charges that he rejected.

On December 6, when his sentence ended, he was kept in detention and handed another 10-day jail term, also on a hooliganism charge.

After serving that jail term, Kuznechyk remained in jail and subsequently was charged with creating an extremist group, a charge that officials withheld from Kuznechyk’s relatives and colleagues for months.

Kuznechyk’s relatives told RFE/RL at the time that the journalist continues to maintain his innocence.

RFE/RL President Jamie Fly has said Kuznechyk’s previous sentence was based on “absurdly fabricated charges” and should be considered a crime in itself.

Fly has also condemned the Belarusian government’s actions against independent media in the country, saying Kuznechyk is among the “hostages taken by this lawless regime, not criminals. Factual reporting is not an ‘extremist’ activity, and journalism is not a crime.”

Since a disputed August 2020 presidential election sparked mass protests over authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko’s victory, tens of thousands of Belarusians have been arrested for voicing any dissent against the regime.

The crackdown has pushed most opposition politicians, who say the vote was rigged, to leave the country fearing for their safety.

Many Western governments have refused to recognize the results of the election and do not consider Lukashenko to be the country’s legitimate leader. Many countries have imposed several rounds of sanctions against his regime in response to the suppression of dissent in the country.
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Turkey-Russia Talks Make Little Progress on Ukraine Grain Shipments

• 06, 08, 2022
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Millions of tons of grain remain trapped in Ukraine as Russia continues its aggression against the country and world wheat prices soar.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Ankara Wednesday with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu for talks focused on creating shipping corridors to allow Ukrainian grain exports to access world markets. But both sides failed to reach any agreements to avert a looming world food crisis.

At a joint news conference with Lavrov, Cavusoglu said Turkey was ready to work with the United Nations to create a secure shipping corridor to allow Ukrainian ships to transport wheat to world markets.

Cavusoglu said Turkey sees it as a reasonable and implementable plan. But, he said, both Russia and Ukraine must accept the request from the U.N. Cavusoglu said Turkey offered to host a meeting in Istanbul to discuss the details.

Turkish and Russian officials have been talking about a plan for both navies to provide passage for Ukrainian cargo ships. But a key issue remains the removal of mines protecting the Ukrainian port of Odesa. Lavrov laid the responsibility on Kyiv.

Lavrov said that to solve this problem, the only thing needed, in Russia’s view, is for the Ukrainians to let vessels out of their ports, either by de-mining them or by marking out safe corridors. Nothing more, the Russian top diplomat said, is required.

But before removing the mines, Kyiv is looking for guarantees that Russian forces will not launch an amphibious attack on Odesa.

Lavrov pledged Russia would not attack, but Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, dismissed the offer as “empty words.”

Russian officials say soaring food prices have little to do with the Ukraine conflict.

On Wednesday, Cavusoglu backed Moscow’s call to lift international sanctions on Russia if a deal was struck to allow Ukrainian grain to reach world markets.  

But Aaron Stein of the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute said Washington is unlikely to agree.

“One of the main hindrances of this (grain corridor deal), is that the Russians are demanding an easing of sanctions,” he said. It has been their position since this first came up a month or two ago. But the U.S. has no intention of easing sanctions.”

Despite a lack of progress in Wednesday’s talks, Turkish officials say a deal can still be achieved, although they say the current mistrust between Kyiv and Moscow remains a big obstacle.
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OECD Sees Lower World Growth Due to Ukraine War’s ‘Hefty Price’

• 06, 08, 2022
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The OECD warned Wednesday that the world economy will pay a “hefty price” for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as it slashed its 2022 growth forecast and projected higher inflation.

The Paris-based organization, which represents 38 mostly developed countries, is the latest institution to predict lower GDP growth due to the conflict, which has sent food and energy prices soaring.

In its latest economic outlook, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said global gross domestic product would grow by 3% in 2022 — down sharply from the 4.5% estimated in December.

The OECD also doubled its forecast for inflation among its members — which range from the United States to Australia, Japan, and Latin American and European nations — to 8.5%, its highest level since 1988.

“The world is set to pay a hefty price for Russia’s war against Ukraine,” wrote the OECD’s chief economist and deputy secretary-general, Laurence Boone, adding that a “humanitarian crisis is unfolding before our eyes.”

“The extent to which growth will be lower and inflation higher will depend on how the war evolves, but it is clear the poorest will be hit hardest,” Boone said.

“The price of this war is high and will need to be shared.”

Before the war broke out, the outlook had appeared “broadly favorable” for 2022-23, with growth and inflation expected to return to normal after the devastating COVID-19 pandemic, said the OECD.

However, “the invasion of Ukraine, along with shutdowns in major cities and ports in China due to the zero-COVID policy, has generated a new set of adverse shocks,” it said.

Food shortage risk

The OECD was supposed to publish its outlook in March, but it delayed its detailed assessment until now due to uncertainty over the war. At the time, it said the conflict could cut global GDP growth by “over one percentage point.”

The World Bank revised its own figures on Tuesday, lowering its global growth forecast from 4.1% to 2.9%. The IMF cut its forecast by nearly one point to 3.6% in April.

The OECD cut its growth forecast for the United States from 3.7% to 2.5% and that of China, the world’s second biggest economy, from 5.1% to 4.4%. The eurozone’s GPD is now seen growing by 2.6% instead of 4.3% while Britain’s outlook was lowered to 3.6% from 4.7%.

The OECD noted that commodity prices had risen, hitting real income and spending, “particularly for the most vulnerable households.”

“In many emerging-market economies the risks of food shortages are high given the reliance on agricultural exports from Russia and Ukraine,” it said.

The report warned that the “effects of the war in Ukraine may be even greater than assumed”, raising as an example a scenario of Russia cutting gas supplies to Europe.

As central banks tighten their monetary policies to counter inflation, the report said sharp increases of interest rates could also hit growth more than anticipated.

COVID risk

The COVID pandemic, meanwhile, could take another turn for the worse.

“New more aggressive or contagious variants may emerge, while the application of zero-COVID policies in large economies like China has the potential to sap global demand and disrupt supply for some time to come,” the OECD said.

Faced with these challenges, governments needed to protect the most vulnerable from the economic shockwaves, it added.

In the short term, “temporary, timely and well-targeted” fiscal measures would help the poorest households, the OECD said.

Over the medium- and long-term, governments would have to invest more in clean energy and defense spending.

“The world is already paying the price for Russia’s aggression,” wrote Boone.

“The choices made by policymakers and citizens will be crucial to determining how that price will be distributed across people and countries.”
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1 Dead, 8 Injured After Driver Hits Pedestrians in Berlin

• 06, 08, 2022
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A man drove a car into pedestrians in a popular Berlin shopping district on Wednesday, killing at at least one person and injuring at least eight others, rescue services said.

The man drove into people on a street corner at around 10:30 a.m. before getting the car back on the road and then crashing into a shop window around a block further on, police spokesman Thilo Cablitz said.

Fire service spokesman Stefan Salzwedel put the number of injured at eight. Police said more than a dozen were injured. Police said several of them were in serious condition.

The driver was apparently detained by passers-by before being arrested swiftly by a police officer who was near the scene, Cablitz said. He said police are trying to determine whether he deliberately drove into pedestrians or whether it was an accident, possibly caused by a medical emergency.

He said he didn’t have more information on the man, who was driving a small car, or on what if anything he has told police so far.

Large numbers of rescue vehicles and first responders were at the scene.

The incident happened at one end of the Kurfuerstendamm shopping boulevard and next to the Breitscheidplatz square, where an extremist carried out a vehicle attack on a Christmas market in 2016, resulting in 13 deaths.

In a 2019 incident in central Berlin, an SUV plowed into a group of pedestrians, killing four people. The driver had suffered an epileptic seizure and veered onto the sidewalk.
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Latest Developments in Ukraine: June 8

• 06, 08, 2022
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For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine.

The latest developments in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. All times EDT.

3:45 a.m.: In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says “whatever the occupiers plan for themselves, we must prepare for the next winter, in our state, on our land, for all citizens.”

2:30 a.m.: Norway has shipped 22 M109 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine along with spare parts and ammunition. The Norwegian defense ministry said it conducted training sessions in Germany with Ukrainian soldiers on using the weapons.

1:30 a.m.: Britain’s defense ministry said Wednesday morning the previous 24 hours had brought little significant gains for either Russia or Ukraine in the fight for the eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk, with Russia attacking from multiple sides but Ukraine’s defenses holding.

12:01 a.m.: The Associated Press is reporting that Angela Merkel defended her approach to Ukraine and Russia during her 16 years as Germany’s leader, saying that a much-criticized 2015 peace deal for eastern Ukraine bought Kyiv precious time. She won’t apologize for her diplomatic efforts, AP reported.

In her first substantial comments since leaving office six months ago, Merkel said there was no excuse for Russia’s brutal attack on Ukraine and it was “a big mistake on Russia’s part.”

Merkel, who dealt with Russian President Vladimir Putin throughout her chancellorship, rejected a suggestion that she and others engaged in appeasement that ultimately enabled the invasion.

“It is a matter of great sorrow that it didn’t succeed, but I don’t blame myself now for trying,” Merkel said.

Some information in this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
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As Russia Claims Gains, Zelenskyy Says ‘Heroic Defense of the Donbas Continues’       

• 06, 08, 2022
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the work of his troops in the eastern Donbas region and said Russia had not expected to meet much resistance, while Russia claimed to have assumed control of almost all of one of the provinces that makes up the Donbas.

After weeks of focusing its attacks on eastern Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday Russian forces now control 97% of Luhansk province.

Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address Tuesday that “the absolutely heroic defense of the Donbas continues.” He added that Russia had made no significant advances in the region during the past day.

Britain’s defense ministry gave a similar assessment Wednesday morning, saying neither side had achieved significant gains over the course of 24 hours with Russia attacking from multiple sides but Ukraine’s defenses holding. 

The Donbas region also includes Donetsk province and has been the key objective for Russia since it turned away from efforts to advance on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, two months ago.

Fighting has been particularly intense in the key Luhansk city of Sievierodonetsk, where Russian and Ukrainian forces have been engaging in street-to-street battles.

Shoigu said Tuesday that Russian forces seized the residential areas of the city, while Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai said Russia controlled the industrial outskirts.

The battle for Sievierodonetsk is crucial to Moscow’s attempt to assume full domination over Luhansk province. A week ago, Russian forces had captured 70% of the city, but a Ukrainian counteroffensive pushed back Moscow’s troops before Russia mounted another advance.

Both Russia and Ukraine claim to have inflicted huge casualties on each other.

Shoigu said Russian troops were also advancing toward the town of Popasna, and he said they have taken control of Lyman and Sviatohirsk and 15 other towns in the region.

He said 6,489 Ukrainian troops have been taken prisoner since the start of the military action in Ukraine on February 24, including 126 over the past five days.

A spokesman for the U.S. Defense Department said Tuesday the United States had started training Ukrainian soldiers on the use of advanced rocket systems being sent to Ukraine as part of a $700 million aid package approved last week.

Marine Lt. Col. Anton Semelroth said the training was taking place in Germany and elsewhere in Europe for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS. The truck-mounted system can carry six rockets with a range of about 70 kilometers.

Norway said it trained Ukrainian soldiers in Germany on the use of M109 self-propelled howitzers as part of its shipment of 22 of the weapons to Ukraine. 

Norwegian Defense Minister Bjorn Arild Gram said the donation, which includes spare parts and ammunition, is a substantial contribution very much in demand by Ukraine. 

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters
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