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A group of NGOs released a report noting that Indonesia's state-owned power company might use development funds to expand the Suralaya plant. Pollution from this plant costs already the country a billion dollars a year.

As voters in the southern Indian state go to the polls, the local Church is struggling to carry out its outreach programmes. The issue dates back to 2022, following protests over port construction by the Adani group.

Paris is reportedly seeking to use the Greek Crotale air defense system during the summer Olympics

The French government has made an official request to borrow an air defense system from Greece for the duration of the Paris Olympics, Greek daily Kathimerini has reported, citing sources.

France has been calling on its international allies to help it enhance security for the summer games, which will run from July 26 to August 11. Around 45,000 French police and gendarmes, 18,000 troops, and up to 22,000 private security guards are expected to work at the event.

According to Kathimerini, a request for the transfer of a Crotale short-range surface-to-air missile system from the Greek Air Force was submitted on Thursday. Diplomatic negotiations on a possible transfer began last November, the newspaper said, but had yielded no progress until now.

The Crotale system is French-built and has been used by the Greek Air Force since 2003. It has a firing range of 11-20 kilometers and a maximum engagement altitude of 6km, which Kathimerini said was “ideal” for France’s needs.

According to the outlet’s sources, France has been insisting that while it intends to provide anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine, it needs allied assistance to ensure the defense of critical infrastructure in Paris during the Olympics.

The French request to Greece is “clearly yet another very indirect suggestion to Athens to ‘unlock’ part of its anti-aircraft defense, in the general European effort to strengthen Kiev,” Kathimerini wrote.

EU governments have been under growing pressure to supply more protective systems to Kiev, particularly countries such as Greece and Spain that have such systems in their arsenals.

Read more France wants foreign troops to reinforce Olympics security – media

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said late on Thursday that the country cannot offer its air defense systems – which include Patriots and the S-300 – to Ukraine. “We were asked and we explained why we cannot do it,” Mitsotakis told Skai TV, adding that these systems are “critical to our deterrent capability.”

“We have already provided tangible assistance to Ukraine and its people,” he added, saying that no action would be taken “that could even remotely endanger our nation’s deterrent capabilities or air defense.”

According to a report by the Financial Times, during a summit in Brussels last week European leaders personally urged Mitsotakis and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to supply air defense systems to Ukraine.

The US is expected to put further pressure on Greece on Friday during a planned teleconference on assistance to Ukraine.

The capital's biennial car show opened yesterday until May, underscoring China's dominant role in the EV market. In Europe, EU authorities want to stop it, but Chinese vehicles are ready to take on European markets. With competition fiercer as ever, most manufacturers are losing in the price war.

The country can’t part with air defense systems that are crucial for its deterrence capabilities, PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said

Athens will not supply Kiev with US-made Patriot or Soviet-designed S-300 air defense systems, the prime minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has said.

Local media reported earlier this week that the country might provide Kiev with at least one Patriot system, following pressure from the EU and NATO on member states to increase support for Ukraine as it experiences a shortage of air defense systems and munitions.

Read more US begins spending $61bn Ukraine war chest – Politico

However, in an interview with Iefimerida on Wednesday, Mitsotakis made it clear that the delivery is not going to happen. “Greece will not send either S-300[s] nor Patriot[s] to Ukraine,” he said.

“We have said from the start that we cannot provide weapons systems that are critical to our deterrence capability,” the prime minister explained.

Athens has supported Kiev “in various ways,” including by providing weapons, during the conflict with Russia and will continue to do so if it finds “surplus material,” he promised.

But the air defenses in question “are critical systems for the protection of Greek airspace and cannot be ceded to Ukraine,” he reiterated.

Together with Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and Spain, Greece is among six European nations that operate the Patriot systems.

While Berlin has promised to supply another Patriot to Ukraine, Poland said earlier this week that it has no air defense systems to spare. Spanish daily El Pais reported on Friday that Madrid will only provide air defense missiles to Kiev, but not the Patriot systems.

In late March, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said that at least five Patriots operated by Kiev’s forces have been destroyed by the Russian military since the start of the year.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday that the decline in deliveries of Western aid in recent months has left Ukrainian troops “outgunned, allowing Russia to push forward on the front line.”

“Ukraine has lacked air defense, enabling more Russian missiles and drones to hit their targets,” he said. However, the NATO chief claimed that “it is not too late for Ukraine to prevail because more support is on the way.”

READ MORE: Poland doesn’t have Patriots to give Ukraine – Tusk

Russia has warned that deliveries of foreign weapons systems to Kiev will not prevent Moscow from achieving its military goals, but will merely prolong the fighting and could increase the risk of a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO. According to officials in Moscow, the provision of arms, the sharing of intelligence, and the training of Ukrainian troops means that Western nations have already become de-facto parties to the conflict.

The country can’t part with air defense systems that are crucial for its deterrence capabilities, PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said

Athens will not supply Kiev with US-made Patriot or Soviet-designed S-300 air defense systems, the prime minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has said.

Local media reported earlier this week that the country might provide Kiev with at least one Patriot system, following pressure from the EU and NATO on member states to increase support for Ukraine as it experiences a shortage of air defense systems and munitions.

Read more US begins spending $61bn Ukraine war chest – Politico

However, in an interview with Iefimerida on Wednesday, Mitsotakis made it clear that the delivery is not going to happen. “Greece will not send either S-300[s] nor Patriot[s] to Ukraine,” he said.

“We have said from the start that we cannot provide weapons systems that are critical to our deterrence capability,” the prime minister explained.

Athens has supported Kiev “in various ways,” including by providing weapons, during the conflict with Russia and will continue to do so if it finds “surplus material,” he promised.

But the air defenses in question “are critical systems for the protection of Greek airspace and cannot be ceded to Ukraine,” he reiterated.

Together with Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and Spain, Greece is among six European nations that operate the Patriot systems.

While Berlin has promised to supply another Patriot to Ukraine, Poland said earlier this week that it has no air defense systems to spare. Spanish daily El Pais reported on Friday that Madrid will only provide air defense missiles to Kiev, but not the Patriot systems.

In late March, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said that at least five Patriots operated by Kiev’s forces have been destroyed by the Russian military since the start of the year.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday that the decline in deliveries of Western aid in recent months has left Ukrainian troops “outgunned, allowing Russia to push forward on the front line.”

“Ukraine has lacked air defense, enabling more Russian missiles and drones to hit their targets,” he said. However, the NATO chief claimed that “it is not too late for Ukraine to prevail because more support is on the way.”

READ MORE: Poland doesn’t have Patriots to give Ukraine – Tusk

Russia has warned that deliveries of foreign weapons systems to Kiev will not prevent Moscow from achieving its military goals, but will merely prolong the fighting and could increase the risk of a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO. According to officials in Moscow, the provision of arms, the sharing of intelligence, and the training of Ukrainian troops means that Western nations have already become de-facto parties to the conflict.

The country can’t part with air defense systems that are crucial for its deterrence capabilities, PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said

Athens will not supply Kiev with US-made Patriot or Soviet-designed S-300 air defense systems, the prime minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has said.

Local media reported earlier this week that the country might provide Kiev with at least one Patriot system, following pressure from the EU and NATO on member states to increase support for Ukraine as it experiences a shortage of air defense systems and munitions.

Read more US begins spending $61bn Ukraine war chest – Politico

However, in an interview with Iefimerida on Wednesday, Mitsotakis made it clear that the delivery is not going to happen. “Greece will not send either S-300[s] nor Patriot[s] to Ukraine,” he said.

“We have said from the start that we cannot provide weapons systems that are critical to our deterrence capability,” the prime minister explained.

Athens has supported Kiev “in various ways,” including by providing weapons, during the conflict with Russia and will continue to do so if it finds “surplus material,” he promised.

But the air defenses in question “are critical systems for the protection of Greek airspace and cannot be ceded to Ukraine,” he reiterated.

Together with Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and Spain, Greece is among six European nations that operate the Patriot systems.

While Berlin has promised to supply another Patriot to Ukraine, Poland said earlier this week that it has no air defense systems to spare. Spanish daily El Pais reported on Friday that Madrid will only provide air defense missiles to Kiev, but not the Patriot systems.

In late March, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said that at least five Patriots operated by Kiev’s forces have been destroyed by the Russian military since the start of the year.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday that the decline in deliveries of Western aid in recent months has left Ukrainian troops “outgunned, allowing Russia to push forward on the front line.”

“Ukraine has lacked air defense, enabling more Russian missiles and drones to hit their targets,” he said. However, the NATO chief claimed that “it is not too late for Ukraine to prevail because more support is on the way.”

READ MORE: Poland doesn’t have Patriots to give Ukraine – Tusk

Russia has warned that deliveries of foreign weapons systems to Kiev will not prevent Moscow from achieving its military goals, but will merely prolong the fighting and could increase the risk of a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO. According to officials in Moscow, the provision of arms, the sharing of intelligence, and the training of Ukrainian troops means that Western nations have already become de-facto parties to the conflict.

Officers used tear gas to disperse activists at Emory University campus amid a nationwide crackdown

Police officers in the US state of Georgia used tear gas and tasers to disperse a pro-Palestinian student encampment on Thursday, as law enforcement targeted activists at university campuses nationwide.

The clashes took place at Emory University in Atlanta, where protesters – including students from several nearby universities – had set up tents. They were rallying against what they termed “the genocide of Palestinians” by Israel, and against Cop City, a local police and fire department training center currently under construction.

“We are demanding total institutional divestment from Israeli apartheid and Cop City at all Atlanta colleges and universities,” an organizer said. “We are occupying Emory, not because it is the only institution that is complicit in genocide and police militarization, but because its ties are some of the strongest.”

READ MORE: US campus protesters akin to 1930s Nazis – Netanyahu

The university said in a statement that several dozen people had “trespassed” on its campus, and warned that it would “not tolerate vandalism or other criminal activity.” Members of the Emory Police Department, Atlanta Police, and Georgia State Patrol were called to the scene, according to local media.

”Atlanta community members were indiscriminately attacked today with pepper bullets, tear gas, and tasers for the simple act of camping out on a school lawn,” the organizers said.

Extremely disturbing footage. Atlanta cops tasing a restrained student protester at Emory university minutes ago.

pic.twitter.com/Iq9p98za8y

— Read Let This Radicalize You (@JoshuaPHilll) April 25, 2024

A video purportedly filmed at the location shows several officers holding down a handcuffed man, as one of them appears to fire a taser into his leg.

The APD confirmed using “chemical irritants,” but stressed that its officers did not “deploy rubber bullets,” contrary to some reports circulating online.

While the university initially claimed that the activists were “not members of our community,” it later acknowledged that out of 28 people arrested in the raid, 20 were from Emory.

Read more Pelosi insulting Americans – Moscow

Pro-Palestinian activists faced crackdowns across the US this week. The wave of campus demonstrations was triggered last week by a protest at Columbia University in New York, and then spread to some 40 universities and colleges in the US and Canada, according to NBC News. On Thursday, police reportedly targeted encampments at Indiana University Bloomington and Ohio State University.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has welcomed the US police crackdown, branding the protesters “anti-Semitic mobs” and comparing them to Nazi sympathizers in the 1930s.

Jonathan Greenblatt, leader of the US pro-Israel group Anti-Defamation League, claimed in an interview with MSNBC this week that the wave of protests was organized by “campus proxies” of Iran.

Israel attacked Gaza in October last year in retaliation for a deadly incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas, in which 1,200 Israelis were reportedly killed. The death toll in the enclave has since surpassed 35,000, according to Palestinian officials.

Officers used tear gas to disperse activists at Emory University campus amid a nationwide crackdown

Police officers in the US state of Georgia used tear gas and tasers to disperse a pro-Palestinian student encampment on Thursday, as law enforcement targeted activists at university campuses nationwide.

The clashes took place at Emory University in Atlanta, where protesters – including students from several nearby universities – had set up tents. They were rallying against what they termed “the genocide of Palestinians” by Israel, and against Cop City, a local police and fire department training center currently under construction.

“We are demanding total institutional divestment from Israeli apartheid and Cop City at all Atlanta colleges and universities,” an organizer said. “We are occupying Emory, not because it is the only institution that is complicit in genocide and police militarization, but because its ties are some of the strongest.”

READ MORE: US campus protesters akin to 1930s Nazis – Netanyahu

The university said in a statement that several dozen people had “trespassed” on its campus, and warned that it would “not tolerate vandalism or other criminal activity.” Members of the Emory Police Department, Atlanta Police, and Georgia State Patrol were called to the scene, according to local media.

”Atlanta community members were indiscriminately attacked today with pepper bullets, tear gas, and tasers for the simple act of camping out on a school lawn,” the organizers said.

Extremely disturbing footage. Atlanta cops tasing a restrained student protester at Emory university minutes ago.

pic.twitter.com/Iq9p98za8y

— Read Let This Radicalize You (@JoshuaPHilll) April 25, 2024

A video purportedly filmed at the location shows several officers holding down a handcuffed man, as one of them appears to fire a taser into his leg.

The APD confirmed using “chemical irritants,” but stressed that its officers did not “deploy rubber bullets,” contrary to some reports circulating online.

While the university initially claimed that the activists were “not members of our community,” it later acknowledged that out of 28 people arrested in the raid, 20 were from Emory.

Read more Pelosi insulting Americans – Moscow

Pro-Palestinian activists faced crackdowns across the US this week. The wave of campus demonstrations was triggered last week by a protest at Columbia University in New York, and then spread to some 40 universities and colleges in the US and Canada, according to NBC News. On Thursday, police reportedly targeted encampments at Indiana University Bloomington and Ohio State University.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has welcomed the US police crackdown, branding the protesters “anti-Semitic mobs” and comparing them to Nazi sympathizers in the 1930s.

Jonathan Greenblatt, leader of the US pro-Israel group Anti-Defamation League, claimed in an interview with MSNBC this week that the wave of protests was organized by “campus proxies” of Iran.

Israel attacked Gaza in October last year in retaliation for a deadly incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas, in which 1,200 Israelis were reportedly killed. The death toll in the enclave has since surpassed 35,000, according to Palestinian officials.

Washington wants Beijing to disown Moscow so that it is isolated in a potential confrontation

Antony Blinken traveled to China this week to warn Beijing about sanctions for supplying military technology to Russia, according to the Financial Times and Bloomberg in their previews of the US secretary of state’s visit.

They didn’t specify which sanctions might follow, although FT sources suggested that financial and other institutions in China could face restrictions. Meanwhile, the Izvestia newspaper has revealed that several Chinese banks, including the largest, ICBC, are already not accepting payments in yuan from Russia, for fear of secondary sanctions. Almost 80% of payments to China have been returned, the newspaper claimed.

Washington is apparently convinced that China’s support for the Russian defense industry, although not publicized, is genuine and that this is having a significant impact on the course of the Ukraine conflict.

Even with all this in mind, it was hard to imagine that Blinken would communicate in the language of threats and ultimatums. The first experience of this type of rhetoric between the administration of US President Joe Biden and the Chinese showed that hard and fast pressure does not work with the current leadership in Beijing.

In fact, it has the opposite effect. Proof of this was the failed meeting in Alaska in March 2021, when Blinken and National Security adviser Jake Sullivan tried to pressure their Chinese counterparts, only to be met with a harsh rebuke – and a public one at that – which was a far cry from the spirit of Beijing’s traditionally restrained diplomacy.

Blinken subsequently adopted a much more subtle game. He likely tried to drive a wedge between Moscow and Beijing by exploiting the fact that China’s peace initiatives to resolve the Ukraine conflict do not match the maximalist demands of Russian officials (at least in public).

Read more Here’s why Iran decided not to attack Israel again

That may not have worked, considering that the Chinese openly stated on Friday that NATO was responsible for the Ukraine crisis.

Beijing is calling for a cessation of hostilities, in effect a freezing of the conflict, but has made no mention of Ukraine’s demilitarization, denazification,or regime change in Kiev.

Recently, there have been signals that could be interpreted as a willingness by Beijing to distance itself from Moscow.

Specifically, an article in The Economist by Feng Yujun, a professor at Peking University, has caused a stir. This methodical, official expert on Russia and the Ukraine conflict speaks very much in the spirit of Western political thought: he criticizes Moscow, predicts its defeat, praises Kiev for its “strength and unity of its resistance,” and even suggests that if Russia doesn’t change its power structure, it will continue to threaten international security by provoking wars. 

Knowing how Chinese society is organized, it’s hard to imagine that the professor who penned this article was acting at his own risk without the support of responsible comrades in Beijing. The recent refusal of four major Chinese banks to accept payments from Russia, even in yuan, can also be seen as an alarming signal to Moscow. In other words, it may turn out that the Russian-Chinese alliance, so strong in words, is far from being effective and trouble-free in practice. And Blinken would certainly have tried to consolidate this trend.

There is a problem, however: the overall context of US-China relations doesn’t make it any easier for Washington.

The package of military aid to Taiwan recently passed by the US Congress certainly doesn’t create a favorable emotional background for the delicate negotiations that Blinken tried to conduct in Beijing. Washington’s efforts to create anti-Chinese military and political alliances in the region – from the Philippines to Australia, from India and Vietnam to Japan – also aren’t conducive to mutual understanding between the two superpowers. American strategists make no secret of the fact that the main, most dangerous and most principled geopolitical opponent of the United States is not Russia, but China.

If that’s the case, what’s the point of Beijing meeting Washington’s demands and joining its pressure on Moscow? Only so that later, when the US achieves its goals in Russia, Beijing will have to confront it alone? This is hardly in the plans of Comrade Xi and his team.

This article was first published by Kommersant, translated and edited by the RT team

Advisers to the former US president are considering penalties for nations seeking to trade in national currencies, the outlet has reported

Economic aides to former US President Donald Trump are looking for options to stop countries from shifting away from the US dollar as it faces a growing challenge from emerging markets, including BRICS nations, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The presumptive Republican nominee for the November presidential election and his team are discussing penalties against both allies and adversaries who seek to divert their trade from the greenback to other currencies. The options could include export controls, currency manipulation charges, and tariffs, the outlet said, citing people familiar with the matter.

The global trend toward using national currencies in trade instead of the dollar gained significant momentum after Russia was cut off from the Western financial system and had its foreign reserves frozen in 2022, as part of Ukraine-related sanctions.

A bill with provisions authorizing the US to confiscate frozen Russian assets, which Biden signed on Wednesday, could further spur de-dollarization, financial experts have warned. The so-called REPO Act, which was incorporated in the $61 billion military aid package for Kiev, authorized the US president to seize Russian state assets held in American banks.

Read more US seizure of Russian assets would accelerate de-dollarization – ex-IMF official 

As quoted by Bloomberg, Trump warned on Thursday that with US President Joe Biden, “you’re going to lose the dollar as the standard. That’ll be like losing the biggest war we’ve ever lost.”

According to the news agency, Trump’s economic advisers and his campaign team have specifically considered curbing de-dollarization efforts by BRICS countries.

The group – which recently expanded and now comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Ethiopia, Iran, Egypt – is boosting the use of national currencies in mutual trade. It has even signaled the possibility of introducing a new single currency in the coming years.

Trump has repeatedly said that he wants the dollar to remain the world’s reserve currency.

“I hate when countries go off the dollar,” Trump told CNBC in March. “I would not allow countries to go off the dollar because when we lose that standard, that will be like losing a revolutionary war,” he said, adding that it would be a “hit” for the US.

In its latest annual report, Amnesty International calls for full abolition of the death penalty. With the 2018 moratorium Malaysia has made progress, but that's not enough. Between July 2023 and January 2024, the death penalty was pronounced 26 times. For lawyer Michael Kong, 'open public discussions about justice' are needed.

The US secretary of state says Washington is prepared to impose more sanctions on Beijing over the alleged transfer of military components

Washington is ready to introduce more sanctions against China over its alleged transfer of dual-use goods and components, which it claims can be used by the Russia, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.

Speaking at a press conference in Beijing following a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US official recalled that Washington has already imposed sanctions against more than 100 Chinese entities and is “fully prepared to act” and “take additional measures.”

Blinken claimed that China’s alleged support for the Russian defense industry raises concerns not only about the situation in Ukraine, but also about a “medium to long-term threat that many Europeans feel viscerally that Russia poses to them.”

Earlier this week, the Wall Street Journal also reported that the US was drafting sanctions that could cut off some Chinese banks from the global financial system unless Beijing severs its economic ties with Russia.

The outlet claimed that US officials believe trade with China has allowed Russia to rebuild its military industrial capacity and could help it defeat Ukraine in a war of attrition.

Beijing, in turn, has accused the US of hypocrisy for providing billions of dollars in assistance to Ukraine while “unreasonably criticizing the normal trade and economic relations between Russia and China.”

“This is a very hypocritical and irresponsible approach,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters on Friday in response to Blinken’s concerns about Beijing's support of Moscow.

China has also vehemently rejected accusations leveled by NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg of “fueling” the Ukraine conflict. Beijing has instead blamed NATO for instigating the crisis by continuing its expansion in Europe and refusing to respect Russian national security concerns.

Read more NATO responsible for Ukraine crisis – China 

Following his meeting with Blinken, Xi suggested that the US and China “should be partners, not rivals” and should strive towards achieving “mutual success and not harm each other.”

“I proposed three major principles: mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation. They are not only a summary of past experience, but also a guide to the future,” the Chinese leader was quoted as saying.

Beijing has maintained a policy of neutrality on the Ukraine conflict, with Chinese officials repeatedly stating that the country is not selling weapons to either Russia or Ukraine. Earlier this month, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning insisted that China “regulates the export of dual-use articles in accordance with laws and regulations,” urging “relevant countries” not to “smear or attack the normal relations between China and Russia.”

In December last year, US President Joe Biden issued a decree which enabled sanctions on foreign financial institutions that continue to deal with Russia. It targeted lenders outside US and EU jurisdictions that help Russia source sensitive items, which reportedly include semiconductors, machine tools, chemical precursors, ball bearings, and optical systems.

Beijing has flatly rejected the US-led military bloc’s claim that it is “fueling” the conflict

NATO is directly responsible for the Ukraine conflict, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing on Friday, reacting to criticism raised by the US-led military bloc.

On Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg accused Beijing of supposedly supporting Russian weapons manufacturing through the export of dual-use components to the country.

“China says it wants good relations with the West. At the same time, Beijing continues to fuel the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War Two. They cannot have it both ways,” the official warned.

Wang rejected the claim, saying it is based on rumors. China did not start the Ukraine crisis, he insisted, and NATO’s responsibility for it is “unshiftable.” The US-led military bloc “should reflect on its role, stop shifting the blame, and do something practical to promote a political settlement,” he added.

Read more US ‘shooting itself in the foot’ by arming Taiwan – Beijing

According to Beijing, NATO’s expansion in Europe and refusal to take Russian national security concerns into consideration triggered the hostilities. A roadmap to peace that China proposed in early 2023 called for that core problem to be addressed, he noted.

Kiev rejected a potential peace treaty with Moscow which the parties had negotiated in the early weeks of the conflict, and opted to continue armed hostilities. The US and its allies have vowed to stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes” to inflict a “strategic defeat” on Russia. Moscow has claimed that Ukrainian military casualties since February 2022 are approaching 500,000.

In his rebuke of Beijing, Stoltenberg claimed that in 2023, “Russia imported 90% of its microelectronics from China, used to produce missiles, tanks and aircraft.” Wang said Chinese trade was above board, and claimed that “more than 60% of weapons parts and dual-use items imported by Russia come from the US and the West.”

READ MORE: Beijing warns Washington against crossing ‘red lines’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is currently visiting China. He reportedly intends to use the threat of financial restrictions, which Washington is poised to impose on Chinese banks involved in trade with Russia, as leverage. During his meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday, the latter warned that US attempts to infringe on “China’s legitimate development rights” were undermining bilateral relations.

Beijing has flatly rejected the US-led military bloc’s claim that it is “fueling” the conflict

NATO is directly responsible for the Ukraine conflict, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing on Friday, reacting to criticism raised by the US-led military bloc.

On Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg accused Beijing of supposedly supporting Russian weapons manufacturing through the export of dual-use components to the country.

“China says it wants good relations with the West. At the same time, Beijing continues to fuel the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War Two. They cannot have it both ways,” the official warned.

Wang rejected the claim, saying it is based on rumors. China did not start the Ukraine crisis, he insisted, and NATO’s responsibility for it is “unshiftable.” The US-led military bloc “should reflect on its role, stop shifting the blame, and do something practical to promote a political settlement,” he added.

Read more US ‘shooting itself in the foot’ by arming Taiwan – Beijing

According to Beijing, NATO’s expansion in Europe and refusal to take Russian national security concerns into consideration triggered the hostilities. A roadmap to peace that China proposed in early 2023 called for that core problem to be addressed, he noted.

Kiev rejected a potential peace treaty with Moscow which the parties had negotiated in the early weeks of the conflict, and opted to continue armed hostilities. The US and its allies have vowed to stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes” to inflict a “strategic defeat” on Russia. Moscow has claimed that Ukrainian military casualties since February 2022 are approaching 500,000.

In his rebuke of Beijing, Stoltenberg claimed that in 2023, “Russia imported 90% of its microelectronics from China, used to produce missiles, tanks and aircraft.” Wang said Chinese trade was above board, and claimed that “more than 60% of weapons parts and dual-use items imported by Russia come from the US and the West.”

READ MORE: Beijing warns Washington against crossing ‘red lines’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is currently visiting China. He reportedly intends to use the threat of financial restrictions, which Washington is poised to impose on Chinese banks involved in trade with Russia, as leverage. During his meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday, the latter warned that US attempts to infringe on “China’s legitimate development rights” were undermining bilateral relations.

Kiev’s forces have been “outgunned” by Russia due to a decline in Western aid, the chief of the US-led military bloc has said

Insufficient support from the West for Ukraine is the reason for Russia’s advances on the battlefield, but more military aid for Kiev is on its way, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said.

He was speaking in Berlin on Thursday, where he received the Eric M. Warburg Award from the German-American NGO Atlantik-Brucke for “his outstanding dedication to the transatlantic friendship and partnership in turbulent times.”

The deteriorating situation for Kiev in its conflict with Moscow was one of the main topics of his acceptance speech, in which he said Ukraine “is where we are being tested.”

“We have to be honest. The reality is that, in recent months, NATO allies have not provided the support we have promised,” he said. “For months, the US was not able to agree a package. And in Europe, the delivery of ammunition is far below the levels we said we would provide.”

On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden signed a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine following a lengthy standoff between the Democrats and Republicans in Congress. This had reduced deliveries of US weapons and ammunition by almost half.

Read more Biden team doubts US aid will help Ukraine win – Politico

Last year, the EU vowed to supply Kiev with 1 million shells by March 2024. However, the bloc later acknowledged that it would not be able to meet this goal. Ukrainian officials said previously that they had only received around a third of the promised munitions.

“These delays have consequences,” Stoltenberg acknowledged. Without enough Western aid, “Ukraine has been outgunned, allowing Russia to push forward on the front line.”

However, NATO chief insisted that “it is not too late for Ukraine to prevail because more support is on the way.”

He noted that the UK had recently announced more ammunition, air defenses, and deep-precision strike capabilities for Kiev, while Germany promised to supply a third US-made Patriot air-defense system.

On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that the $61 billion US military aid package or any other weapons deliveries to Ukraine would not “change the dynamics on the front line.”

READ MORE: More weapons for Kiev won’t change battlefield dynamics – Kremlin

Earlier this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Moscow’s forces currently hold the initiative everywhere along the front line, and are capturing more settlements from the Ukrainians. He estimated Kiev’s losses since the start of the conflict in February 2022 at around half-a-million troops.

Kiev’s forces have been “outgunned” by Russia due to a decline in Western aid, the chief of the US-led military bloc has said

Insufficient support from the West for Ukraine is the reason for Russia’s advances on the battlefield, but more military aid for Kiev is on its way, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said.

He was speaking in Berlin on Thursday, where he received the Eric M. Warburg Award from the German-American NGO Atlantik-Brucke for “his outstanding dedication to the transatlantic friendship and partnership in turbulent times.”

The deteriorating situation for Kiev in its conflict with Moscow was one of the main topics of his acceptance speech, in which he said Ukraine “is where we are being tested.”

“We have to be honest. The reality is that, in recent months, NATO allies have not provided the support we have promised,” he said. “For months, the US was not able to agree a package. And in Europe, the delivery of ammunition is far below the levels we said we would provide.”

On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden signed a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine following a lengthy standoff between the Democrats and Republicans in Congress. This had reduced deliveries of US weapons and ammunition by almost half.

Read more Biden team doubts US aid will help Ukraine win – Politico

Last year, the EU vowed to supply Kiev with 1 million shells by March 2024. However, the bloc later acknowledged that it would not be able to meet this goal. Ukrainian officials said previously that they had only received around a third of the promised munitions.

“These delays have consequences,” Stoltenberg acknowledged. Without enough Western aid, “Ukraine has been outgunned, allowing Russia to push forward on the front line.”

However, NATO chief insisted that “it is not too late for Ukraine to prevail because more support is on the way.”

He noted that the UK had recently announced more ammunition, air defenses, and deep-precision strike capabilities for Kiev, while Germany promised to supply a third US-made Patriot air-defense system.

On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated that the $61 billion US military aid package or any other weapons deliveries to Ukraine would not “change the dynamics on the front line.”

READ MORE: More weapons for Kiev won’t change battlefield dynamics – Kremlin

Earlier this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said Moscow’s forces currently hold the initiative everywhere along the front line, and are capturing more settlements from the Ukrainians. He estimated Kiev’s losses since the start of the conflict in February 2022 at around half-a-million troops.

The former East Pakistan is watching the election process closely. Especially with regard to the presence of migrants, of Muslim faith, in India. For now, Dhaka is trying to maintain a certain balance between Delhi's pressure and Beijing's influence, explains Fr Sergio Targa, a Xaverian missionary in Bangladesh since 1992, now in Italy.

Earlier this week, Candace Owens announced that she had converted to Catholicism. Posting about her conversion on social media, she wrote: Recently, I made the decision to go home. There is of course so much more that went into this decision and that I plan to share in the future. But for now, praise be to God for His gentle, but relentless guiding of my heart toward Truth.

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