- Moscow said it would push the U.N. nuclear watchdog to conduct an inspection of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant following reports of the shelling.
- Britney Greenner’s lawyers have appealed the American basketball star’s conviction in a Russian court on charges of drug possession and trafficking.
- Amid widespread condemnation in the West, Russian President Vladimir Putin has pledged to expand ties with North Korea.
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Three swimmers killed by explosives that fall on Ukraine’s Black Sea beach
Three civilians were killed by an explosive device while swimming in the Black Sea in southwestern Ukraine’s Odessa region, and two others were injured, according to local police.
Police said the accident happened on Sunday, August 15. At that time, several construction site employees ignored obstacles and warning signs on the beach and entered the waters of Belhorod-Dnistrovskyi to swim.
“Three men aged 25, 32 and 53 were killed in the water due to an explosion of an unknown object,” police said in a written statement. Another man and a woman were injured, the statement said.
Ukrainian authorities blocked the beach this summer due to the Russian invasion. Previously, the Ukrainian military also laid mines along the coast to prevent Russia from launching an amphibious attack. In addition, the entrance to the beach was blocked with red and white tape.
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Russia to ‘take all necessary measures’ to facilitate IAEA visit to Zaporozhye nuclear power plant
A Russian foreign ministry spokesman said Russia would take “all necessary measures” to support a visit by experts from the United Nations nuclear watchdog to the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.
“We will make every effort to work closely with the IAEA and its leadership to bring the agency’s experts to the nuclear power plant and make a real assessment of the damage done by Ukraine,” Mariaza Harova said in a statement.
Zakharova also called on Kyiv’s Western allies, including the United States and the 27-member European Union, to forcibly stop what she called continued Ukrainian shelling of the site and its vicinity.
In March, Russian troops occupied the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest. The nuclear power plant has been shelled in recent weeks, with Moscow and Kyiv both accusing each other of being behind the attacks that risked a major nuclear accident.
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Putin says Russia is ready to sell weapons to allies
President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was ready to provide its allies with modern weapons. He also said that Russia attaches great importance to its relations with Latin American, Asian and African countries.
At the opening of the 2022 Army International Military Technology Forum near Moscow, he said, “We are preparing to assist our allies with the latest types of weapons, from small arms to armored vehicles, from artillery to warplanes and drones. “
“Almost all of these weapons have been used in actual combat more than once,” he said.
In a speech nearly six months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Putin said the operation had resulted in numerous setbacks and heavy losses for Moscow.
Western military analysts say the poor performance of Russian troops and weapons in the war could make its weapons less attractive to potential buyers such as India. These countries have relied heavily on Russian technology in the past.
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Saudi kingdom holding company invests $500 million in Russian firm at start of war
Saudi Arabian Holdings, an investment firm led by billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, quietly invested in three major Russian energy companies between February and March, some regulatory filings show. , totaling more than $500 million.
The company invested 1.37 billion riyals (3.65 billion riyals) in the global depositary receipts of Gazprom and Rosneft in February, according to documents filed on Sunday, August 15. million) and 196 million riyals ($52 million). And that’s just some of the many recent investments that have been disclosed.
The company also invested 410 million riyals ($109 million) in LukOil’s American depositary receipts between February and March. It did not provide any specific reasons for the investment.
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund (PIF), chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, holds a 16.9 percent stake in the company and has not previously disclosed details of its investment.
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What will happen to the “referendum” in the occupied territories of Ukraine?
In occupied Ukrainian territory, officials appointed by Moscow said they were planning to vote on the inclusion of Russia. But Kyiv and its Western allies and observers say such a vote has no legitimacy.
Click here to read more.
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Dutch court to announce verdict on MH17 murder in November
Four suspects shot down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014. The Dutch court handling the murder trial said it would deliver a verdict in the case on November 17.
Prosecutors said a Ukrainian defendant and three Russian defendants, who were still at large, helped provide a missile system. Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine fired rockets at the plane on July 17, 2014. All 298 people on the plane were killed.
Prosecutors are working to sentence all suspects to life in prison.
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Analyst: Moscow and Pyongyang think they ‘have something to offer each other’
Mason Richey, an associate professor of international politics at the Korea University of Foreign Studies in Seoul and an expert on North Korea, said Moscow and Pyongyang seemed to think that “they have needs for each other and they can offer each other something”.
“Both Moscow and Pyongyang have been subject to extensive sanctions,” Rich told Al Jazeera in the South Korean capital. “And North Korea has been sanctioned for a long time. So both countries have limited respect when interacting with the international economic community. “
He also said, “For example, North Korea, they can send workers to Russia, especially its Far East. So Russia will become an additional import and export market. Or if they want to expand economic relations, it will be a bigger market.”
“This is important for North Korea because it can serve not only as a source of fiscal stability and international currency, but also as a source of diversification away from its over-dependence on China. For Russia, its Far East is both a source of diversification. Workers are available, and North Korea can serve as an important import and export market for Russia.”
“After the invasion of Ukraine, Russia was also able to use other partners, not only for direct economic dealings, but also to expand geostrategic influence, that is, the influence of a group of authoritarian states that are fighting back against the West.”
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UK Ministry of Defence maps Russian attacks and troop locations
The British Ministry of Defence has released a new map showing where Russia launched attacks in Ukraine and where troops are located.
The map shows that Russian forces are stepping up their pressure to advance towards the Donbass in eastern Ukraine and the Kharkiv region in the northeast.
The map also shows Ukrainian forces fighting back in the south in an effort to retake territory that Moscow occupied early in the war.
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What would happen if the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant exploded?
Kyiv and Moscow have blamed each other for the recent shelling at and near the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. The incident sparked fears of a potential disaster at the location.
Click here for Al Jazeera’s explanation of the possible consequences of severe damage to a nuclear power plant.
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Report: Britney Greener defense team appeals Russia drug verdict
Jailed American basketball star Brittney Griner has appealed her conviction for drug possession and trafficking, according to her lawyer.
Maria Blagovolina told Reuters that Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison earlier in August. After that, Greener’s defense team appealed.
Greener played for a Russian club. On February 17, a marijuana-infused e-cigarette was found in his luggage, and Griner was arrested at Moscow airport.
She admitted to the charges. She said it was illegal in the country, but it was “unintentional” that she brought marijuana into Russia.
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Mayor says disaster risk at nuclear plants ‘increasing’
The mayor of the city where the plant is located has warned that the risk of a disaster at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in Ukraine, occupied by Russian troops, is “increasing every day”.
The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, was occupied by Russian soldiers within the first days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Since then, the site has been on the front line of operations. Last week, the plant was repeatedly attacked, with Kyiv and Moscow accusing each other of the incident.
The mayor of the southeastern city of Energodar, where the plant is located, said on Sunday 14 August that “the risk is increasing every day”.
Dmytro Orlov, from Zaporozhye, which is still under Ukrainian control, said that “what is going on here is a purely nuclear act of terrorism”, adding that “at any time the Destroyed in unpredictable ways.”
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Russian gas flows to Europe appear to be stable
Russian gas appears to be flowing steadily to Europe via some major pipeline routes, according to operator data.
Physical flow from Russia to Germany via the “Nord Stream 1” pipeline on Monday 15 August 08:00-09:00 CET (07:00-08:00 GMT) It was 14.554412 million kilowatt-hours per hour (kWh/h), which was similar to the flow rate in the previous 24 hours.
Eastbound gas flows from Germany via the Yamal-Europe pipeline to Poland have also been steady, according to operator Gascade. The outlet flow at the Mallnow measurement point on the German border was 2,520,133 kWh, little changed compared to the flow at midnight.
The nominated flow of Russian gas from Ukraine into Slovakia through the Velke Kapusany entry point on the border was about 36.4 million cubic meters (mcm) per day, little changed from the previous day, according to the Ukrainian gas transmission system operator.
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Putin says he will expand bilateral ties between Russia and North Korea
Russian President Vladimir Putin told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that the two countries would “expand comprehensive and constructive bilateral relations through joint efforts,” according to Pyongyang state media.
According to KCNA, Putin called Kim Jong-un on the occasion of North Korea’s liberation day and said that forging closer ties is in the interests of the two countries, while also helping to strengthen the security and stability of the Korean peninsula and Northeast Asia.
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Reuters: Wall Street resumes Russian bond trading
Several major Wall Street banks have started offering Russian bond trading services in recent days, Reuters has seen in banking documents. The bonds are widely considered toxic assets in the West, and this offers investors an opportunity to dispose of them.
The U.S. Treasury Department has barred U.S. investors from buying any Russian securities as part of economic sanctions punishing Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, two sources with Russian securities holdings told Reuters. Since then, most US and European banks have exited the market in June.
Reuters, citing emails from six companies, client notes and interviews with other news agencies, said Wall Street’s biggest firms had been cautious after the Treasury Department issued “guidelines allowing U.S. holders to reduce their positions” in July. return to the Russian government and corporate bond markets.
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New Zealand sends 120 soldiers to UK to train Ukrainian troops
New Zealand will send 120 military personnel to Britain to help Ukrainians train for front-line combat, the New Zealand government said.
The government said the deployment is planned to be divided into two infantry training teams to train some 800 Ukrainian personnel in core skills effective in combat, including weapons handling, battlefield first aid, combat methods and other skills.
In a news conference announcing the deployment, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stressed that New Zealand troops are not and will not be fighting in Ukraine.
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Ukraine says Russia has renewed attacks in east and south
In recent days, Ukrainian troops have reported renewed Russian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region. At the same time, the shelling of more than a dozen towns along the southern front was increased, especially the Kherson area.
On Sunday, August 14, the British Ministry of Defence said in its daily intelligence release that the village of Piski near the Donetsk airport was the epicenter of the fighting.
At the same time, the Russian side said that the village of Udi in the eastern part of Kharkov has been controlled by it.
Click here to read all the August 14th updates.