Russia

Photo: A cargo crane and grain dryer in Odessa port, Ukraine. Credit: Shutterstock/Unkas

War in Ukraine Raises Global Shipping Costs, Stifles Trade

Jaya Ramachandran with UNCTAD Report

GENEVA (IDN) — UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) says the war in Ukraine is stifling trade and logistics of the country and the Black Sea region, increasing global vessel demand and the cost of shipping around the world.

In a report entitled “Maritime trade disrupted: The war in Ukraine and its effects on maritime trade logistics” published on June 28, UNCTAD says Ukraine’s trading partners now have to turn to other countries for the commodities they import.

: Jaya Ramachandran; UN INSIDER; 28 June 2022

Photo: YouTube Screenshot of Zelensky with Troops. Source. France 24

There’s No Need for War with Russia

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Conflicts have a history of spinning out of control. Trotsky, the one-time close comrade of Lenin, reportedly said, “You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you”. The overwhelming majority of Ukrainians were not interested in war until President Volodymyr Zelensky took his counterproductive stance on NATO membership and President Vladimir Putin subsequently launched his invasion and united most of Ukraine’s people against him.

: Jonathan Power; THE WORLD; Russia; 21 June 2022

Photo: African Union head Macky Sall told Vladimir Putin that Africans were 'victims' economically of the conflict in Ukraine. Credit: Mikhail KLIMENTYEV SPUTNIK/AFP

Western Russia Sanctions Hurting African Economies, Says AU Head

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK | MOSCOW (IDN) — African Union chair Macky Sall, after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has urged western and European “partners” to remove their sanctions hurting African economies.

Senegalese president Sall underscored the pain resulting from the barrage of international sanctions on Russia which have disrupted supplies of fertilizer, wheat, and other commodities, pushing up prices for food and fuel.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Russia; 12 June 2022

Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the First Eurasian Economic Forum on 26 May 2022.

Russia' Move to Reshaping the World Economy

Viewpoint by Dr Ramzy Baroud

WASHINGTON, D. C. (IDN) — Starting on May 31, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov embarked on a tour of Gulf Cooperation Council countries, where he visited Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, among others. Lavrov’s main objective of these visits is to strengthen ties between Russia and GCC nations amid a global race for geopolitical dominance.

: Africa & ME Editor; THE WORLD; Russia; 12 June 2022

Russia Abandons Zimbabwe's Biggest Platinum Project

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW | HARARE (IDN) — Several reports monitored this month confirmed that Russians have abandoned their lucrative platinum project contract that was signed for US$3 billion in September 2014, the platinum mine in the sun-scorched location about 50 km northwest of Harare, the Zimbabwean capital. Reasons for the abrupt termination of the bilateral contract have still not been made public, but Zimbabwe's Centre for Natural Resource Governance pointed to a lack of capital for the project. So, the site has been abandoned since early 2021.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 10 June 2022

Photo: Speaker of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, Valentina Matviyenko.

Russian Delegation Brings Humanitarian Aid to Zimbabwe

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW | HARARE (IDN) — Humanitarian aid issues are increasingly dominating the foreign policy priorities of the Russian Federation, but such charitable supplies are only reaching Soviet-era allied countries where top-level Russian delegations frequently visit in Africa. Early June, the Speaker of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, Valentina Matviyenko, headed a group of Russian senators on a reciprocal inter-parliamentary visit to Harare, Zimbabwe.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 06 June 2022

Photo: National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger and Premier Zhou Enlai ahead of President Richard Nixon's 1972 journey to China. Source: USC US-China Institute

War Monger Henry Kissinger Has Become A Peacenik

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Henry Kissinger used to be a totally different kettle of fish than he is these days. It was Kissinger who helped engineer a coup d'état in democratic Chile that led to a great deal of torture and suffering. Second, turn to the war in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, America's biggest war since World War 2, that ended in an ignominious US retreat and defeat. Its people were ravaged beyond description. It was President Richard Nixon and his national security advisor, Kissinger, who had decided “to bomb the hell out of the North Vietnamese”.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 01 June 2022

Ukraine War: Germany Stops Appeasing Russia

Viewpoint by Franz Baumann

This article was issued by Meer and is being republished with the author's permission.

NEW YORK (IDN) — The “special military operation,” launched on 24th February by the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, did not go as planned. It also had unexpected consequences.

For instance, Ukraine defended itself fiercely, indeed heroically, against the unprovoked, brutal attack. It inflicted gigantic losses in life and equipment on the Russian invaders.

: Franz Baumann; OPINION; 31 May 2022

Photo: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (left) together with Senegal President and African Union chairf Macky Sall. (Source: Bundesregierung/Kugler)

African Union Delegation Plans to Visit Russia and Ukraine

By Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW I DAKAR (IDN) — The African Union (AU), a 54-member continental organisation, is planning to wade into the crisis between Russia and Ukraine with a view to finding a lasting solution and averting the looming food shortage that may hit the continent.

On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded its neighbour, Ukraine, and this action has sent prices of food, especially cereals and fuel higher in the markets, and the worst is the cause of the current global instability.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Africa; 27 May 2022

Image Credit: Diana Ejaita | Zam Magazine

Leading Economies Unequipped to Go After Russian Kleptocrats

By Rita Joshi

BERLIN (IDN) — Despite strong early pledges to sanction and track the illicit wealth of Russian elites following the invasion of Ukraine, the G7 and other leading economies’ rhetoric does not match reality, according to an analysis of Transparency International analysis released on May 24.