Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba hit back at claims made Thursday by Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, saying the leadership in Moscow “live in their own reality.”

Kuleba’s comments come after Moscow’s foreign minister earlier denied that Russian forces attacking the country had targeted civilians by bombing a children’s hospital and maternity ward on Wednesday, leading to the deaths of three people including a child, and wounding many others.

When asked by CNBC’s Hadley Gamble how Russia could justify such an act, Lavrov said that it was “not the first time we’ve seen shouting in response to so-called atrocities,” repeating a Russian line that the hospital had already been captured by Ukrainian “ultra radicals.”

The Russian foreign minister presented no evidence for this claim, nor did he elaborate on how he knew supposed details about the occupants of a hospital within a city that is being held by Ukrainian forces. Its Russian besiegers are attacking it from a distance with artillery.

Lavrov also said that pregnant women had been taken away from the hospital days ago, despite photographic evidence to the contrary showing pregnant women being carried from the hospital after the missile strike.

Kuleba said Moscow appeared to believe its own claims about the hospital.

“Unfortunately, I can confirm that the Russian leadership, including Minister Lavrov, live in their own reality. In our talks, behind closed doors and in the absence of the media, he told me looking in my eyes that the pictures of pregnant women being taken from under the rubble of the maternity house are fake, that they hit the maternity house as a military target because the Russian military was absolutely sure that it was under the control of Ukrainian army,” he told CNBC.

Talks between Russia and Ukraine’s foreign ministers in Turkey earlier on Thursday ended in failure, with no progress made on establishing a cease-fire or safe passage for civilians trying to flee the besieged city of Mariupol. The discussions, between Lavrov and Kuleba, lasted just 1½ hours.

Following the talks, Kuleba told a news conference that the talks had been “both easy and difficult.”

“Easy because Minister Lavrov basically followed his traditional narratives about Ukraine, but difficult because I did my best to find a diplomatic solution to the humanitarian tragedy unfolding on the battleground and in the besieged cities,” he said.

No progress had been made on Ukraine’s proposal for a 24-hour cease-fire, Kuleba said, nor on the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to and from Mariupol, both for citizens to flee the city, and for humanitarian aid to enter it.

Kuleba told CNBC he had spent a good deal of the talks trying to arrange a humanitarian corridor for residents of Mariupol and that he felt “very bad” that he was not able to achieve this agreement with Lavrov, who he said had told him he was not in a position to agree on this.

Expressing surprise that a foreign minister would not have the power to authorize a humanitarian corridor, Kuleba said Lavrov seemed to “not have a sufficient amount of authority to make any deals today.”

Two weeks into Russia’s invasion and Ukraine’s troops and army of volunteer fighters have been far more successful at resisting Russia’s advance than many anticipated.

For all Ukraine’s bravery in fighting back, there has been a high human price to pay: Thousands of Ukrainians are believed to have been killed, including soldiers and several hundred civilians, and more than 2 million people have fled their homes as cities have been heavily attacked and towns and villages destroyed.

Kuleba said that on the eve of the war, defense analysts had predicted that Ukraine’s forces would only be able to withstand Russia’s military for a maximum of two days, but said, “we have two weeks of war behind us and Russia did not achieve any strategic objective in Ukraine.”

“It comes at a high price … but we fight against them because it’s the people’s war. … And this is why I have no doubts that in the end we shall prevail.”

Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/10/ukraine-foreign-minister-says-russian-officials-live-in-their-own-reality.html

March 10 (Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Thursday that Russia’s economy was experiencing a shock and that measures were being taken to soften the impact of what it described as an “absolutely unprecedented” economic war being waged against Moscow.

The West has imposed sweeping sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

“Our economy is experiencing a shock impact now and there are negative consequences, they will be minimised,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.

He described the situation as turbulent, but said that measures to calm and stabilise it were already being taken.

“This is absolutely unprecedented. The economic war that has started against our country has never taken place before. So it is very hard to forecast anything.”

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source Article from https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/russian-economy-shock-unprecedented-economic-war-kremlin-2022-03-10/

Shortly after Disney CEO Bob Chapek spoke out publicly against Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill today, a very pointed response began circulating internally at the studio. A letter signed by “The LGBTQIA+ employees of Pixar, and their allies” took Chapek to task. It refuted, point by point, an internal memo Chapek sent to employees on Monday and also criticized the fact that the company “did not take a hard stance in support of the LGBTQIA+” at the shareholder meeting.

“Monday’s email, ‘Our Unwavering Commitment to the LGBTQ+ Community,’ rang hollow,” read the LGBTQIA+ letter. It said Chapek’s communication “began with the claim that Disney has a long history of supporting the LGBT community, but Disney Parks did not officially host Pride until 2019, in Paris alone. Disney has a history of shutting down fan-created Pride events in the parks, even removing same-sex couples for dancing together in the 1980’s.”

The letter goes on to say the corporation is “capitalizing on Pride” through merchandising, specifically The Rainbow Mickey Collection.

“It feels terrible to be a part of a company that makes money from Pride merch when it chooses to ‘step back’ in times of our greatest need, when our rights are at risk,” the letter asserts.

The “step back” bit is likely a reference to Chapek’s assertion at a shareholders’ annual meeting today that “we chose not to take a public position on [the bill] because we felt we could be more effective working behind the scenes, engaging directly with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.” It later came out that Chapek had only reached out to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis very recently.

Florida’s controversial bill, officially termed the Parental Rights in Education legislation, would effectively ban discussion of the LGBTQ+ community and “sexual orientation or gender identity” in the state’s public schools from kindergarten to third grade. It passed through the Sunshine State’s Senate this week and is highly likely to be signed by DeSantis. Yet the boss of one of Florida’s largest employers (approximately 80,000 local employees and growing) argued that a public statement would not help.

Chapek sought to bolster his backchannel argument by saying, “corporate statements do very little to change outcomes or minds.” He insisted, rather, that they can be leveraged by opposing forces.

The employees’ letter points out, however, that “the very email making this claim opened with a corporate statement regarding the ongoing situation in Ukraine.” The letter goes on to point out that not only did Disney make that statement, it also paused the release of all future films in Russia. That begs the question why Ukraine merited a public statement — and financial sanctions on Russia — but Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill did not.

Finally, the letter damningly addresses Chapek’s repeated insistence that the best way for Disney to make change is through creating “powerful content that changes hearts and minds.”

It reads:

We at Pixar have personally witnessed beautiful stories, full of diverse characters, come back from Disney corporate reviews shaved down to crumbs of what they once were. Nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney’s behest, regardless of when there is protest from both the creative teams and executive leadership at Pixar. Even if creating LGBTQIA+ content was the answer to fixing the discriminatory legislation in the world, we are being barred from creating it.

The missive ends by demanding immediate action, pointing out that laws like Florida’s are being considered in a number of states. It also reminds Disney brass that “42% of LGBTQIA+ youth seriously considered suicide in 2021,” a statistic that, much like the news out of Ukraine, highlights the daily cost in lives that are the result of silence and inaction.

In another blow to Disney, the donation to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), announced during the shareholder meeting, was swiftly declined by the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer civil rights organization. HRC called on Disney to “build on their public commitment and work with LGBTQ+ advocates to ensure that dangerous proposals, like Florida’s Don’t Say Gay or Trans bill, don’t become dangerous laws, and if they do, to work to get them off the books.”

Disney did not respond to request for comment from Deadline.

Source Article from https://deadline.com/2022/03/disney-chapek-employees-dont-say-gay-1234975078/

Oil prices have surged following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Western sanctions are likely to push up oil prices — resulting in even higher prices at the pump.

In 2019, the world consumed 99.7 million barrels of oil per day (mbpd), according to the International Energy Agency. The United States alone consumes about one-fifth (20.48 mbpd) of the world’s daily oil consumption, followed by China (13.07 mbpd), and India (4.84 mbpd).

Venezuela (303,806 million barrels), Saudi Arabia (258,600 million barrels), and Iran (208,600 million barrels) have half of the world’s 1.55 trillion barrels of proven oil reserves.

Which countries produce the most oil?

Central to the world’s oil production is OPEC – the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Established in Baghdad, Iraq in 1960, this multinational organisation comprises 13 nations that collectively possess about 80 percent of the world’s proven crude oil reserves.

The largest reserves among non-OPEC countries include Russia and the US.

OPEC member countries produce about 40 percent of the world’s crude oil and represent some 60 percent of the total petroleum traded internationally, according to the United States Energy Information Administration.

In 2020, the 10 largest oil producers in the world were the US (18.61 mbpd), Saudi Arabia (10.81 mbpd), Russia (10.5 mbpd), Canada (5.23 mbpd) and China (4.86 mbpd).

How crude oil is produced and used

Petrol, diesel and various other fuels are made from crude oil – a yellowish-black fossil fuel that is pumped out of the ground. Many household products including plastics, detergents and clothing are also derived from the non-renewable resource.

Higher crude prices have a knock-on effect on several industries, from transport all the way through to manufacturing.

Crude oil is graded according to thickness (heavy, intermediate and light) and sulphur content (sweet – low sulphur, sour – high sulphur). Light, sweet crude oil is the highest grade. It is easier and cheaper to refine, making it the most sought after.

Brent and WTI are the global benchmarks for light, sweet crude oil. Brent is drilled out of the North Sea between the UK and Norway while WTI (West Texas Intermediate) is sourced from US oil fields.

Once the oil has been extracted and transported to various oil refineries, it must be heated in a furnace then distilled into various fuels and products. Lighter products including liquid petroleum gases require lower temperatures to extract while the heaviest products, including asphalt, are extracted at much higher temperatures.

Which countries rely most on Russian oil?

In 2019, the world’s top exporters of crude oil were Saudi Arabia ($145bn), Russia ($123bn), Iraq ($73.8bn), Canada ($67.8bn), and the US ($61.9bn).

China bought about one-quarter (27 percent) of Russia’s total oil exports worth $34bn. However, given China’s massive energy needs, this made up only 16 percent of the country’s oil imports.

At least 48 countries imported Russian crude oil in 2019. The countries that rely most on Russian oil include: Belarus, Cuba, Curacao, Kazakhstan, Latvia – each importing more than 99 percent of their crude oil from Russia.

The graphic below shows how much of each country’s total crude oil imports come from Russia.

What does a ban on Russian oil mean?

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a number of other states have imposed sanctions on Russia. The ensuing energy war has caused oil prices to reach unprecedented highs not seen since the 2008 financial crisis.

On Tuesday, the US and UK announced a ban on imports of Russian petroleum. In 2021, the US imported an average of 209,000 bpd of crude oil and 500,000 bpd of other petroleum products from Russia, according to the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers trade association.

This represented three percent of US crude oil imports and one percent of the total crude oil processed by US refineries. For Russia, this represented three percent of its total exports. According to analysts, the ban is something that the US can afford to do.

Earlier this week Brent crude rose to above $140 a barrel before returning to the $120 mark.

With tough sanctions on Russia’s energy sector the effects will be felt worldwide as energy prices rise in an already inflationary environment.

Source Article from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/10/infographic-how-much-of-your-countrys-oil-comes-from-russia-interactive

PRZEMYSL, Poland — As more than 2 million refugees from Ukraine begin to scatter throughout Europe and beyond, some are carrying valuable witness evidence to build a case for potential war crimes.

More and more, the people who are turning up at border crossings are survivors who have fled some of the cities hardest hit by Russian forces.

“It was very eerie,” said Ihor Diekov, one of the many people who crossed the Irpin river outside Kyiv on the slippery wooden planks of a makeshift bridge after Ukrainians blew up the concrete span to slow the Russian advance.

He heard gunshots as he crossed and saw corpses along the road.

“The Russians promised to provide a (humanitarian) corridor which they did not comply with. They were shooting civilians,” he said. “That’s absolutely true. I witnessed it. People were scared.”

Such testimonies will increasingly reach the world in the coming days as more people flow along fragile humanitarian corridors.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday said three such corridors were operating from bombarded areas and, in all, about 35,000 people got out. People left Sumy, in the northeast near the Russian border; the suburbs of Kyiv; and Enerhodar, the southern town where Russian forces took over a large nuclear plant.

“Yes, I saw corpses of civilians,” said Ilya Ivanov, who reached Poland after fleeing a village outside Sumy where Russian forces rolled through. “They shoot at civilians with machine guns.”

More evacuations were announced Thursday as desperate residents sought to leave cities where food, water, medicines and other essentials were running out.

In a staggering measure of displacement, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Thursday said about 2 million people, or “every second person” among the capital’s residents, have left the metro area.

In addition to the growing number of refugees, at least 1 million people have been displaced within Ukraine, International Organization for Migration director general Antonio Vitorino told reporters. The scale of the humanitarian crisis is so extreme that the “worst case scenario” in the IOM’s contingency planning has already been surpassed, he said.

Russian- and Ukrainian-speaking trained psychologists are badly needed, Vitorino said, as more traumatized witnesses join those fleeing.

Nationwide, thousands of people are thought to have been killed across Ukraine, both civilians and soldiers, since Russian forces invaded two weeks ago. City officials in the blockaded port city of Mariupol have said 1,200 residents have been killed there, including three in the bombing of a children’s hospital. In Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv, the prosecutor’s office has said 282 residents have been killed, including several children.

The United Nations human rights office said Wednesday it had recorded the killings of 516 civilians in Ukraine in the two weeks since Russia invaded, including 37 children. Most have been caused by “the use of explosive weapons with a wide impact area,” it said. It believes the real toll is “considerably higher” and noted that its numbers don’t include some areas of “intense hostilities,” including Mariupol.

Some of the latest refugees have seen those deaths first-hand. Their testimonies will be a critical part of efforts to hold Russia accountable for targeting civilians and civilian structures like hospitals and homes.

The International Criminal Court prosecutor last week launched an investigation that could target senior officials believed responsible for war crimes, after dozens of the court’s member states asked him to act. Evidence collection has begun.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday embraced calls for an international war crimes investigation of Russia, expressing outrage over the bombing of the children’s hospital in Mariupol. “Absolutely there should be an investigation, and we should all be watching,” she said.

Some countries continued to ease measures for refugees. Britain said that from Tuesday, Ukrainians with passports no longer need to travel to a visa application center to provide fingerprints and can instead apply to enter the U.K. online and give fingerprints after arrival. Fewer than 1,000 visas have been granted out of more than 22,000 applications for Ukrainians to join their families there.

Ukrainians who manage to flee fear for those who can’t.

“I am afraid,” said Anna Potapola, a mother of two who arrived in Poland from the city of Dnipro. “When we had to leave Ukraine my children asked me, ‘Will we survive?’ I am very afraid and scared for the people left behind.”

———

Associated Press journalists throughout Europe contributed.

———

Follow the AP’s coverage of the Ukraine crisis at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Source Article from https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/shooting-civilians-ukraine-refugees-abuses-83360844

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday voted to rush $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine as it battles invading Russian forces, along with $1.5 trillion to keep U.S. government programs operating through Sept. 30 and avoid agency shutdowns this weekend.

The House approved the wide-ranging appropriations in bipartisan votes, sending the legislation to the Senate which aims to act by a midnight Friday deadline when existing U.S. government funds expire.

The aid for Ukraine is intended to help bolster its military as it battles Russian forces and provide humanitarian assistance to citizens, including an estimated 1.5 million refugees already seeking safety abroad.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicated that the $13.6 billion is likely to be just the tip of a much broader aid effort.

“All of us will have to do more” to help Ukraine in coming weeks or months and over the long-term to help it rebuild, Pelosi told reporters at her weekly news conference.

She was mainly referring to the United States and its NATO allies.

The House also passed legislation, by a vote of 414-17 to ban U.S. imports of Russian oil and other energy in response to its attack on Ukraine. Fifteen Republicans and two Democrats opposed the measure.

Passage of the bill came one day after President Joe Biden used his executive powers to impose such a ban. The House measure put lawmakers on record as firmly supporting the U.S. trade ban. It also calls for reviewing Russia’s participation in some international trade programs, such as the World Trade Organization.

Lawmakers abandoned an effort to attach language revoking Russia’s permanent normal trade relations status, which would have allowed the United States to raise tariffs on Russian imports above levels afforded all WTO members. read more

The U.S. government funding bill passed following a revolt from Pelosi’s own Democrats who objected to a $15.6 billion COVID-19 aid initiative because of the way it would have parceled out money to individual states. The money was to be used for research and to stockpile vaccines for possible future spikes in COVID-19 infections.

Following hours of delay, Pelosi had the provision deleted to clear the way for quick passage of the Ukraine money and the “omnibus” $1.5 trillion in federal funding.

Democrats hope to revisit the COVID aid next week in separate legislation.

‘DESPERATE HOUR’

The huge government spending bill is the first to reflect Democrats’ spending priorities under President Joe Biden, following four years of the Trump administration.

House Appropriations Committee Chair Rosa DeLauro said it increases non-defense domestic spending by 6.7% over last year, the largest rise in four years.

The Ukraine aid package, DeLauro said, would “help the Ukrainian people in their most desperate hour of need.”

Republicans also applauded the measure – a rare display of bipartisanship in the deeply divided Congress.

“We must get this bill to the president’s desk as soon as possible to respond to these acts of aggression,” said Ken Calvert, the top Republican on the defense subcommittee of the appropriations panel.

He was referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and specifically the bombing of a hospital earlier on Wednesday. Failure, he added, “would undoubtedly demonstrate weakness on a global scale.”

With money for the federal government due to run out at midnight on Friday, the Democratic-controlled House also unanimously approved a separate measure to keep the government funded through Tuesday.

This was seen mainly as a housekeeping step so that congressional clerks would have enough time to process the sprawling omnibus bill following House and Senate passage. That clerical work could extend beyond the midnight Friday deadline.

Acting White House budget director Shalanda Young urged Congress to promptly approve the Ukraine aid and government funding measure and send it to Biden for signing into law.

“The bipartisan funding bill is proof that both parties can come together to deliver for the American people and advance critical national priorities,” Young said in a statement.

The omnibus spending plan will boost funding for domestic priorities, including money for infrastructure passed under an earlier bipartisan measure to revamp U.S. roads, bridges and broadband internet.

The plan includes $730 billion in non-defense funding and $782 billion for the U.S. military.

Amid fears that Russia and other “bad actors” could wage cyber attacks against U.S. infrastructure, the government funding bill increases the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency budget by $568.7 million for a total of $2.6 billion for this fiscal year.

In its continuing attempt to unravel the Trump administration’s “Remain in Mexico” immigration policy, the bill provided no additional money for immigration hearing facilities that support the program, which forced tens of thousands of migrants to wait in Mexico pending resolution of their U.S. asylum cases.

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source Article from https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-congress-reaches-govt-spending-deal-including-136-bln-ukraine-2022-03-09/

Moreover, the specific policies cited by Republican lawmakers as evidence of Mr. Biden’s supposed “war on American energy” have had little impact on rising gas prices.

The Keystone XL pipeline, which would have expanded an existing system transporting oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast, has been a political and environmental battleground since its conception in 2008. The Obama administration denied the company behind it, TransCanada, a construction permit in 2015. The Trump administration approved the permit in 2017, but the project stalled in the face of litigation. By the time Mr. Biden rescinded its permit on his first day in office, just 8 percent of it had been built.

Even if Mr. Biden had greenlighted the project and TransCanada, now known as TC Energy, had won its court battles, it is unlikely that the pipeline would have been operational today given that the company estimated in March 2020 that it would have entered into service in 2023. And “even if it were completed overnight, there’s no capacity for oil to be put into this pipeline,” Mr. De Haan said, pointing to supply chain issues and labor shortages that continue to affect American and Canadian oil and gas producers.

Absent the Keystone XL pipeline, crude oil imports from Canada have nonetheless increased by 70 percent since 2008, transported by other pipelines and rail. The Trump administration itself told PolitiFact in 2017 that the pipeline’s impact on prices at the pump “would be minimal.”

The claims about oil and gas leases are even more incorrect.

Though Mr. Biden temporarily halted new drilling leases on federal lands in January 2021, a federal judge blocked that move last June. In its first year, the Biden administration actually approved 34 percent more of these permits than the Trump administration did in its first year, according to federal data compiled by the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group.

“None of these permits are relevant to production right now,” Mr. Rajendran said. “These permits are for production three, four years down the line. If they had approved 10 times as many permits, we would have the same production issues.”

Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/09/us/politics/fact-check-republicans-biden-gas.html

DeSantis’ spokesperson, Christina Pushaw, confirmed that the two men spoke Wednesday but said the governor is not changing his support for the bill, which prohibits educators from leading instruction on sexual orientation or gender issues with students in kindergarten through third grade. DeSantis has not yet signed the legislation.

“The governor’s position has not changed,” Pushaw wrote in a statement to POLITICO.

LGBTQ advocates and Democrats have railed against the bill for weeks in the lead up to the GOP-led Florida Senate’s Tuesday final vote approving the measure, saying it’s a broad attack on the LGBTQ community that will marginalize students and could lead to children being bullied or even committing suicide.

Florida GOP leaders argue the bill will strengthen parental rights in the state and will prevent teachers from keeping vital information about students from parents, especially around gender issues. There are two pending lawsuits in Florida courts filed by parents who accuse educators of secretly meeting with their children over gender identity decisions.

The most contentious piece of the measure, which was dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by opponents, states that classroom instruction surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity is banned outright for young children and prohibited in other grades unless the lessons are “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate.”

Aside from Disney, opposition to the legislation continues to mount locally and throughout the country.

The superintendent of Miami-Dade County, Florida’s largest school district, said Wednesday that the bill “will not deter” the district from “ensuring that we support and value the individuality of students while at the same time respecting the rights of parents and families.”

“Our schools have always been and will continue to be safe spaces for children and employees to be who they are,” Superintendent Jose Dotres wrote on Twitter.

The Biden administration also continues to denounce the legislation, which White House press secretary Jen Psaki said was “discriminatory” and “a form of bullying.” The administration and DeSantis have frequently clashed over the governor’s hands-off approach to Covid-19, including over DeSantis’ order prohibiting mask requirements in schools and over vaccine mandates for businesses.

Opponents, including Florida Democrats who voted against the measure, frequently criticized companies like Disney for donating to lawmakers who backed the bill and not publicly condemning the proposal. Chapek had faced growing pressure from some employees to denounce the proposal, including from Abigail Disney, granddaughter of one the company’s founders.

“I am deeply angered by Disney thinking it can look the other way for this hateful “Don’t Say Gay” bill and it takes a seriously flawed moral compass to not see that funding the people who wrote and passed it is anything less than supporting their ugly agenda,” she posted on Twitter.

To that end, Chapek made the first public statements by Disney decrying the legislation on Wednesday, expressing to shareholders fears that it could be “used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary and transgender kids and families.”

Chapek said that Disney, which employs more than 70,000 people in Florida and has a flagship amusement park in Orlando, was “opposed to the bill from the outset” but decided against taking a public stance to instead work “behind-the-scenes, engaging directly with lawmakers.” Chapek also said that Disney will sign a Human Rights Campaign’s statement opposing similar legislative efforts around the U.S. and pledged $5 million to organizations that advocate for LGBTQ rights.

“I understand our original approach — no matter how well intended — didn’t quite get the job done,” Chapek told shareholders.

The DeSantis administration said that Chapek’s call on Wednesday is the first time they have heard from Disney regarding the bill. And although Chapek told shareholders Disney leaders will meet with DeSantis, it likely won’t affect the governor’s decision to sign the legislation into law.

“Anyone who has questions or concerns about the Parental Rights in Education bill is encouraged to read the bill, rather than the distorted coverage in mainstream media, which regurgitates false partisan talking points,” Pushaw wrote.

Still, the meeting between DeSantis and Chapek was hailed by LGBTQ supporters.

“This is a clearly a step in the right direction, and we commend Mr. Chapek for finally speaking out against “Don’t Say Gay” directly to and with Governor DeSantis,” said Mike Kahane, southern bureau chief for the advocacy organization AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “That said, it took a huge amount of public pressure to get Disney to act. We will be watching and urge Governor DeSantis to NOT sign this hateful and discriminatory legislation.”

Source Article from https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/09/desantis-disney-bob-chapek-dont-say-gay-00015838

  • More than 40,000 civilians were evacuated from across Ukraine on Weednesday but authorities struggled to get people away from conflict zones around the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv and Mariupol, a Ukrainian negotiator said. Ukrainian authorities said earlier that the corridors should allow residents of the heavily bombarded cities of Mariupol, Enerhodar, Sumy, Izyum and Volnovakha, as well as towns around Kyiv including Bucha, Irpin and Hostomel, to leave, calling on Russian forces to respect an “official public commitment” to cease fire.

  • Source Article from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/10/russia-ukraine-war-update-what-we-know-on-day-15-of-the-russian-invasion

    Updated 1:30 AM ET, Thu March 10, 2022

      Source Article from https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/10/china/china-russia-disinformation-campaign-ukraine-intl-dst-hnk/index.html

      The massive $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill currently being debated in Congress contains tens of millions of dollars in spending on programs meant to benefit political adversaries abroad and has been widely criticized by conservatives who say that the legislation is packed full of items on the Democrat Party’s progressive wishlist. 

      The bill, which is over 2,700 pages and was released Tuesday night, provides tens of millions of dollars to programs that appear to benefit Venezuela and Russia, who are currently in the middle of a global oil crisis generated by Russia’s unprovoked invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

      Several buildings in Starobilsk within the Luhansk Oblast region of Ukraine show significant damage because of shelling, according to images shared by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
      (State Emergency Service of Ukraine)

      DEMOCRATS FORCED TO DELAY VOTE ON $1.5T OMNIBUS SPENDING BILL, UKRAINE AID

      “Of the funds appropriated by this Act under the heading ‘Economic Support Fund’, not less than $40,000,000 shall be made available for democracy programs for Venezuela,” the bill states.

      The bill also calls for $6 million in spending on an international leadership fund that includes money going to Russian participants “engaging in free market development, humanitarian activities, and civic engagement” but will “not be used for officials of the central government of Russia.”

      Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to female flight attendants in comments broadcast on state television on Saturday, March 5, 2022. (Image: Reuters Video)
      (Reuters Video)

      The bill provides just under $10 million for improving television and radio broadcasting capabilities in countries across the globe, including in communist Cuba.

      “This funding, championed by Republicans and Democrats alike, supports brave civil society leaders and human rights activists in Venezuela who are opposed to the Maduro regime,” a House Appropriations Committee spokesperson told Fox News regarding the Venezuela funding. “This investment is consistent with House Democrats’ support for democracy and human rights around the world.”

      In a statement released on Wednesday, the Heritage Foundation slammed the bill for its spending priorities and called on Republicans to oppose it. 

      TEXAS REP. ROY SLAMS BOTH PARTIES: NOT ‘GOOD ENOUGH’ TO BAN RUSSIAN OIL WITHOUT OPENING UP AMERICAN OIL, GAS

      “The bill is loaded with the Biden administration’s radical progressive policies,” the foundation said. ” It fails to reverse the COVID-19 emergency or the Biden administration’s vaccine mandates, as conservative leaders have called for, and instead adds even more emergency COVID-19 spending. It would increase annual funding for the IRS to $12.6 billion. It doubles down on the Green New Deal style government subsidies for green energy and climate policies, such as ‘a historic level of funding’ for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). It also includes more than $4 billion in Congressional Direct Spending, or earmarks.”

      Several conservatives on Twitter, including Republican Congressman Chip Roy, slammed the priorities of Democrats in the spending bill. 

      “This bill doesn’t do a THING to open up American oil and gas production,” Roy tweeted. “It does give $14.1 billion to Biden’s Department of Interior, which has not conducted A SINGLE onshore federal oil and gas lease sale this year.”

      CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

      Roy pointed out other controversial aspects of the bill including funding gender studies in Pakistan, services for transgender individuals, and global climate activism.

      WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 22: Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas).
      (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

      “These are only A FEW of the tyrannical ends that this garbage fund,” Roy tweeted. “Not a single member of Congress should vote for this attack on the freedom of the American people.”

      House Democrats‘ plan to take a quick vote to fund the government and provide aid for Ukraine were scuttled Wednesday as leadership didn’t have the votes to advance the $1.5 trillion massive piece of legislation.

      Democrats missed their planned departure to Philadelphia Wednesday for a conference retreat and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., had pushed back her planned news conference as leadership huddled to find a pathway forward on the $1.5 trillion bipartisan legislation to finance federal agencies for the rest of this year.

      Members told Fox News Digital that delays surrounding the bill have to do with major concerns about coronavirus funding, as well as defense spending levels and the short amount of time to review the contents of the 2,741-page measure just hours before they were expected to approve it. 

      After huddling in the speaker’s office for some time, Pelosi announced a path forward Wednesday afternoon to remove the $15.6 billion in coronavirus relief funding from the legislation. Pelosi said it was “heartbreaking” to remove the additional pandemic funding, but it was necessary to move forward with the larger spending bill, known as the omnibus, that included emergency funding for Ukraine. 

      Fox News’ Marisa Schultz contributed to this report

      Source Article from https://www.foxnews.com/politics/omnibus-spending-bill-allocates-40-million-democracy-programs-venezuela

      LVIV, Ukraine, March 9 (Reuters) – Ukrainian’s president accused Russia of carrying out genocide after officials said Russian aircraft bombed a children’s hospital on Wednesday, burying patients in rubble despite a ceasefire deal for people to flee the besieged city of Mariupol.

      The attack, which authorities said injured women in labour and left children in the wreckage, is the latest grim incident of the 14-day invasion, the biggest assault on a European state since 1945.

      The Mariupol city council said the hospital had been hit several times in what the White House called a “barbaric use of military force to go after innocent civilians”.

      The destruction took place despite a Russian pledge to halt firing so at least some trapped civilians could escape the city, where hundreds of thousands have been sheltering without water or power for more than a week.

      “What kind of country is this, the Russian Federation, which is afraid of hospitals, is afraid of maternity hospitals, and destroys them?” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a televised address late on Wednesday.

      Zelenskiy repeated his call for the West to tighten sanctions on Russia “so that they sit down at the negotiating table and end this brutal war”. The bombing of the children’s hospital, he said, was “proof that a genocide of Ukrainians is taking place”.

      Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, asked by Reuters for comment, said: “Russian forces do not fire on civilian targets.” Russia calls its incursion a “special operation” to disarm its neighbour and dislodge leaders it calls “neo-Nazis.”

      Ukraine’s foreign ministry posted video footage of what it said was the hospital showing holes where windows should have been in a three-storey building. Huge piles of smouldering rubble littered the scene.

      The U.N. Human Rights body said it was verifying the number of casualties at Mariupol.

      “The incident adds to our deep concerns about indiscriminate use of weapons in populated areas and civilians trapped in active hostilities in numerous areas,” said spokesperson Liz Throssell.

      The Donetsk region’s governor said 17 people were wounded in the attack.

      Ukraine accused Russia of breaking the ceasefire around the southern port, which aid workers and officials say is running out of food and water after days of Russian bombardment.

      “Indiscriminate shelling continues,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.

      Satellite image company Maxar said images from earlier in the day showed extensive damage to homes, apartment buildings, grocery stores and shopping centres in the port city.

      Russia blamed Ukraine for the failure of the evacuation.

      Among more than 2 million total refugees from Ukraine, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday that more than 1 million children have fled the country since the invasion started on Feb 24. At least 37 had been killed and 50 injured, it said.

      Around 48,000 Ukrainians have been evacuated through humanitarian corridors, Interfax Ukraine news agency said on Wednesday, citing a senior aide to Zelenskiy.

      Ukrainian officials said while some had departed from certain locations, Russian forces were preventing buses from evacuating civilians from Bucha, a town near Kyiv.

      The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said houses had been destroyed all across Ukraine. “Hundreds of thousands of people have no food, no water, no heat, no electricity and no medical care,” it said.

      Thousands continued to flood into neighbouring countries. After hiding in the basement to shelter from Russian bombing, Irina Mihalenka left her home northeast of the Black Sea port of Odessa, she told Reuters in Isaccea, Romania.

      “When we were walking, a bridge was blown up. And when we crossed over the wreckage, because there was no other way out, there were corpses of Russian people (soldiers) lying there,” she said.

      RUSSIA’S ECONOMIC ISOLATION

      Russia has been hit by Western sanctions and the withdrawals of foreign firms. Nestle, cigarette maker Philip Morris and Sony on Wednesday joined the list of multinationals stepping back from the country.

      The United States is weighing sanctions on nuclear power supplier Rosatom, a senior Biden administration official said on Wednesday.

      The World Bank’s chief economist said Moscow was edging close to defaulting on its debt. The Kremlin is taking measures to shore up the economy and planned to respond to a U.S. ban on its oil and energy exports as the rouble dropped to record lows.

      There was not much hope for diplomacy as Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Turkey ahead of talks on Thursday with Kuleba in what will be the first meeting between the pair since the incursion.

      Ukraine is seeking a ceasefire, liberation of its territories and to resolve all humanitarian issues, Kuleba said, adding: “Frankly … my expectations of the talks are low.”

      Moscow demands that Kyiv take a neutral position and drop aspirations of joining the NATO alliance.

      Zelenskiy told VICE in an interview on Wednesday that he was confident Putin would at some stage agree to talks. “I think he will. I think he sees that we are strong. He will. We need some time,” he said.

      The West says Russia is inventing pretexts to justify an unprovoked war. Russian President Vladimir Putin has called Ukraine a U.S. colony with a puppet regime and no tradition of independent statehood.

      The White House on Wednesday said Russia’s claims about alleged U.S. involvement in biological weapons labs and chemical weapons development in Ukraine were false.

      Russian forces hold territory along Ukraine’s northeast border, the east and the southeast. Fighting has taken place in the outskirts of Kyiv, while Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv is under bombardment.

      A Russian assault force is stalled north of Kyiv and Western countries say the Kremlin has had to adjust its plan to swiftly topple the government.

      The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday approved $1.4 billion in emergency financing for Ukraine to help meet urgent spending needs.

      Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

      Source Article from https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-promises-silence-ukrainians-flee-battered-cities-2022-03-09/

      He later backtracked, saying countries would individually decide what to do. The idea picked up traction in Congress. Many looked to Poland, as one of three nations that could provide the MIG fighters — which, by definition, are three decades old and hardly up to modern standards. (The Ukrainians want these planes because they know how to fly them — old MIGs, left over from Soviet days, make up their air force.)

      But then Poland began to think about the Russian threats to attack any country that allowed Ukrainian jets to lift off from their airfields to engage Russian forces.

      So Poland said it wanted to hand the planes over to the U.S. base at Ramstein, Germany, turning it into something of a used-plane lot for Cold War aircraft. It was up to the Americans, they said, to fix them up and give them to Ukraine.

      American officials believe that the jets, given Russia’s increasing anti-air capabilities in Ukraine, would have limited value to Ukraine and that they are not worth the risks they could pose to more effective means of bolstering the Ukrainian military. The move could, for example, prompt Russia to intensify its efforts to stop supply convoys carrying arms from allied countries.

      Daniel Fried, a former senior State Department official and former U.S. ambassador to Poland, said the snafu seemed to have started with a miscommunication and snowballed from there.

      “It feels like a mess. I suspect there is a chain of miscommunication that resulted in mixed signals to the Poles.”

      “Borrell started it,” he said. “Then the U.S. failed to be clear with Poles and inadvertently gave mixed signals,’’ a reference to Mr. Blinken’s initial, seeming openness to the idea.

      Mr. Fried concluded: “The administration needs not to explain why the MIGs are a bad idea. They need to explain what they will do to help the Ukrainians achieve what they wanted to achieve with the MIGs.”

      Michael Crowley and Julian Barnes contributed reporting from Washington.

      Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/09/us/politics/poland-fighter-jets-ukraine-russia.html

      DeSantis’ spokesperson, Christina Pushaw, confirmed that the two men spoke Wednesday but said the governor is not changing his support for the bill, which prohibits educators from leading instruction on sexual orientation or gender issues with students in kindergarten through third grade. DeSantis has not yet signed the legislation.

      “The governor’s position has not changed,” Pushaw wrote in a statement to POLITICO.

      LGBTQ advocates and Democrats have railed against the bill for weeks in the lead up to the GOP-led Florida Senate’s Tuesday final vote approving the measure, saying it’s a broad attack on the LGBTQ community that will marginalize students and could lead to children being bullied or even committing suicide.

      Florida GOP leaders argue the bill will strengthen parental rights in the state and will prevent teachers from keeping vital information about students from parents, especially around gender issues. There are two pending lawsuits in Florida courts filed by parents who accuse educators of secretly meeting with their children over gender identity decisions.

      The most contentious piece of the measure, which was dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by opponents, states that classroom instruction surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity is banned outright for young children and prohibited in other grades unless the lessons are “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate.”

      Aside from Disney, opposition to the legislation continues to mount locally and throughout the country.

      The superintendent of Miami-Dade County, Florida’s largest school district, said Wednesday that the bill “will not deter” the district from “ensuring that we support and value the individuality of students while at the same time respecting the rights of parents and families.”

      “Our schools have always been and will continue to be safe spaces for children and employees to be who they are,” Superintendent Jose Dotres wrote on Twitter.

      The Biden administration also continues to denounce the legislation, which White House press secretary Jen Psaki said was “discriminatory” and “a form of bullying.” The administration and DeSantis have frequently clashed over the governor’s hands-off approach to Covid-19, including over DeSantis’ order prohibiting mask requirements in schools and over vaccine mandates for businesses.

      Opponents, including Florida Democrats who voted against the measure, frequently criticized companies like Disney for donating to lawmakers who backed the bill and not publicly condemning the proposal. Chapek had faced growing pressure from some employees to denounce the proposal, including from Abigail Disney, granddaughter of one the company’s founders.

      “I am deeply angered by Disney thinking it can look the other way for this hateful “Don’t Say Gay” bill and it takes a seriously flawed moral compass to not see that funding the people who wrote and passed it is anything less than supporting their ugly agenda,” she posted on Twitter.

      To that end, Chapek made the first public statements by Disney decrying the legislation on Wednesday, expressing to shareholders fears that it could be “used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary and transgender kids and families.”

      Chapek said that Disney, which employs more than 70,000 people in Florida and has a flagship amusement park in Orlando, was “opposed to the bill from the outset” but decided against taking a public stance to instead work “behind-the-scenes, engaging directly with lawmakers.” Chapek also said that Disney will sign a Human Rights Campaign’s statement opposing similar legislative efforts around the U.S. and pledged $5 million to organizations that advocate for LGBTQ rights.

      “I understand our original approach — no matter how well intended — didn’t quite get the job done,” Chapek told shareholders.

      The DeSantis administration said that Chapek’s call on Wednesday is the first time they have heard from Disney regarding the bill. And although Chapek told shareholders Disney leaders will meet with DeSantis, it likely won’t affect the governor’s decision to sign the legislation into law.

      “Anyone who has questions or concerns about the Parental Rights in Education bill is encouraged to read the bill, rather than the distorted coverage in mainstream media, which regurgitates false partisan talking points,” Pushaw wrote.

      Still, the meeting between DeSantis and Chapek was hailed by LGBTQ supporters.

      “This is a clearly a step in the right direction, and we commend Mr. Chapek for finally speaking out against “Don’t Say Gay” directly to and with Governor DeSantis,” said Mike Kahane, southern bureau chief for the advocacy organization AIDS Healthcare Foundation. “That said, it took a huge amount of public pressure to get Disney to act. We will be watching and urge Governor DeSantis to NOT sign this hateful and discriminatory legislation.”

      Source Article from https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/09/desantis-disney-bob-chapek-dont-say-gay-00015838

      WARSAW—Local governments can’t buy beds fast enough. Poles who offer to host refugees get more than 100 emails from newcomers looking for a place to sleep, often full of details of their ordeal. The flood of people has raised Poland’s population for the first time since 1987.

      Europe is facing its biggest refugee crisis since World War II. In the nearly two weeks since Russia invaded Ukraine, more than two million people have fled to the European Union, with no end in sight. The overwhelming majority are descending on countries in the EU’s east. Officials are scrambling to expand housing, schools and social services for an influx of people expected to grow by millions more.

      Source Article from https://www.wsj.com/articles/waves-of-ukrainian-refugees-overwhelm-poland-11646856187

      In 1915, the ship Endurance became trapped in ice during Ernest Shackleton’s failed expedition to cross Antarctica.

      Hulton Archive/Getty Images


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      Hulton Archive/Getty Images

      In 1915, the ship Endurance became trapped in ice during Ernest Shackleton’s failed expedition to cross Antarctica.

      Hulton Archive/Getty Images

      An expedition that set out in search of the lost ship of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton has found it — 106 years after the vessel sank off Antarctica.

      The wooden ship Endurance has been located remarkably intact about 10,000 feet underwater in the Weddell Sea.

      The find is “a milestone in polar history,” said Mensun Bound, a maritime archaeologist and the director of exploration on the expedition, called Endurance22.

      “This is by far the finest wooden shipwreck I have ever seen. It is upright, well proud of the seabed, intact and in a brilliant state of preservation. You can even see ‘Endurance’ arced across the stern,” Bound said.

      The Endurance was located by an expedition this week, 106 years after it sank into the Weddell Sea.

      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic


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      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic

      The Endurance was located by an expedition this week, 106 years after it sank into the Weddell Sea.

      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic

      The name Endurance is still visible on the ship’s stern.

      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic


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      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic

      Shackleton’s trans-Antarctic expedition went dangerously awry

      As World War I was beginning in 1914, the British explorer Shackleton set out to traverse Antarctica. The plan was for Shackleton to take 27 men on two ships, the Endurance and the Aurora, that would arrive at different locations on the continent to explore two routes by which to sledge across the ice. But in January 1915, the Endurance became trapped in ice off the coast of Antarctica.

      Strenuous endeavors were made to free the Endurance from the ice on Feb. 14 and 15, 1915, but those efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.

      Frank Hurley/Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge/Getty Images


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      Frank Hurley/Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge/Getty Images

      The men lived on the ship for months, but pressure from the ice began to slowly crush it. On Oct. 27, 1915, Shackleton gave the order to abandon the Endurance. The men were told to gather no more than 2 pounds each of personal gear from the ship; much of the ship’s supplies had already become inaccessible because of broken timbers in the hull. The Endurance finally broke up and sank into the Weddell Sea on Nov. 21, 1915.

      The crew made a new camp on an ice floe, and any ambition to cross Antarctica dissipated. The mission was now one of survival, a saga that would stretch into August 1916 before all the men were rescued.

      The Aurora also became trapped in ice. Three men from that voyage died before the final members of the crew were rescued in early 1917.

      The crew of the Endurance poses on the ship’s deck on Feb. 7, 1915.

      Frank Hurley/Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge/Getty Images


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      Frank Hurley/Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge/Getty Images

      The crew of the Endurance poses on the ship’s deck on Feb. 7, 1915.

      Frank Hurley/Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge/Getty Images

      An expedition to find the long-missing ship is successful

      This year’s expedition to find the Endurance set sail from Cape Town, South Africa, on Feb. 5.

      John Shears, the expedition leader, said the hunt for the Endurance was “probably the most challenging shipwreck search ever undertaken.”

      An expedition called Endurance22 set sail from Cape Town, South Africa, on Feb. 5 to find the lost ship Endurance.

      Nick Birtwistle/Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust


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      Nick Birtwistle/Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

      An expedition called Endurance22 set sail from Cape Town, South Africa, on Feb. 5 to find the lost ship Endurance.

      Nick Birtwistle/Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

      The expedition used sonar to find the sunken ship. It was located about 4 miles south of where Capt. Frank Worsley had noted the ship’s location back in 1915.

      Then the team used an autonomous underwater vehicle with a camera on it to swim over the hull and the deck and confirm what the team had found.

      The Endurance’s starboard (right) bow.

      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic


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      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic

      The Endurance’s starboard (right) bow.

      Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust & National Geographic

      “It can only be one ship,” Shears said. “In this area, few ships have ever even been here. We’re only, I think, the fourth ship to ever get into this place in the Wendell Sea. It’s Endurance. It can be nothing else.”

      Shears says he was stunned by the good condition of the vessel: There’s hardly anything living on it, and even some of the original paint is intact.

      “You can see inside the hatchways, the stairs. You can see the ropes and the rigging. It’s as if it sank only yesterday,” he said.

      Marc De Vos (from left), senior meteorologist/oceanographer, shows weather data to Jean-Christophe Caillens, off-shore manager; Nico Vincent, expedition subsea manager; and Lasse Rabenstein, chief scientist, on the bridge of the S.A. Agulhas II, seen here last month during the Endurance22 expedition. The expedition team worked from the South African polar research and logistics vessel.

      Esther Horvath


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      Esther Horvath

      Marc De Vos (from left), senior meteorologist/oceanographer, shows weather data to Jean-Christophe Caillens, off-shore manager; Nico Vincent, expedition subsea manager; and Lasse Rabenstein, chief scientist, on the bridge of the S.A. Agulhas II, seen here last month during the Endurance22 expedition. The expedition team worked from the South African polar research and logistics vessel.

      Esther Horvath

      The wreck will stay where it was found, protected as a historical site and monument under the Antarctic Treaty. That means that though the Endurance is being filmed and surveyed, it won’t be disturbed.

      The expedition crew now returns to Cape Town.

      Mensun Bound (left), director of exploration for the Endurance22 expedition, and John Shears, expedition leader, stand on the ice of the Weddell Sea.

      Esther Horvath


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      Esther Horvath

      Mensun Bound (left), director of exploration for the Endurance22 expedition, and John Shears, expedition leader, stand on the ice of the Weddell Sea.

      Esther Horvath

      Bound, the expedition’s exploration director, said the discovery is not only about the past but also about bringing the story of Shackleton and the Endurance to the next generation.

      “We hope our discovery will engage young people and inspire them with the pioneering spirit, courage and fortitude of those who sailed Endurance to Antarctica,” Bound said. “We pay tribute to the navigational skills of Capt. Frank Worsley, the captain of the Endurance, whose detailed records were invaluable in our quest to locate the wreck.”

      The Expedition22 team worked from the South African polar research and logistics vessel S.A. Agulhas II.

      James Blake/Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust


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      James Blake/Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust

      Source Article from https://www.npr.org/2022/03/09/1085432575/endurance-ship-found-ernest-shackleton

      LIVE UPDATES

      This is CNBC’s live blog tracking Wednesday’s developments on the war in Ukraine. See below for the latest updates. 

      Ukraine has announced its first successful mass evacuation of civilians from the city of Sumy. It follows days of halted evacuations all over the country, with Ukrainian officials accusing Russian forces of violating cease-fire agreements and only opening evacuation routes that led to Russia.

      Meanwhile, the Kremlin said Wednesday that the U.S. is “de facto waging an economic war against Russia,” after the Biden administration announced a ban on Russian oil imports.

      Commerce secretary says China will be punished if it skirts Russia sanctions, reiterates need for domestic chip production

      Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Wednesday that the U.S. will enforce sanctions on all foreign governments that try to skirt U.S. rules against Russia. Her comments to CNBC’s “Closing Bell” came a day after she told the New York Times that the department could take “devastating” action against Chinese companies that continue to export goods to Russia.

      While she noted that there is no evidence to suggest that Beijing is violating U.S. sanctions, she doubled down on her promise to crack down on governments and corporations that aid Moscow in violation of the U.S. penalties.

      “It’s not just Chinese companies,” she said. “We are serious about these export controls. We intend to enforce them against any company and any country.”

      Raimondo also said that the administration continues to focus on developing domestic semiconductor manufacturing to ensure the production of cars, military equipment and medical supplies.

      Thomas Franck

      Commerce secretary says China will be punished if it skirts Russia sanctions, reiterates need for domestic chip production

      Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Wednesday that the U.S. will enforce sanctions on all foreign governments that try to skirt U.S. rules against Russia. Her comments to CNBC’s “Closing Bell” came a day after she told the New York Times that the department could take “devastating” action against Chinese companies that continue to export goods to Russia.

      While she noted that there is no evidence to suggest that Beijing is violating U.S. sanctions, she doubled down on her promise to crack down on governments and corporations that aid Moscow in violation of the U.S. penalties.

      “It’s not just Chinese companies,” she said. “We are serious about these export controls. We intend to enforce them against any company and any country.”

      Raimondo also said that the administration continues to focus on developing domestic semiconductor manufacturing to ensure the production of cars, military equipment and medical supplies.

      Thomas Franck

      Pentagon does not support transfer of more combat aircraft to Ukraine, citing ‘high risk’

      The U.S. intelligence community assesses that a transfer of fighter jets from Poland to Ukraine could be viewed as an “escalatory step” by the Kremlin, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

      “The transfer of combat aircraft right now could be mistaken by Mr. [Vladimir] Putin and the Russians as an escalatory step,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said, referencing a U.S. intelligence report.

      On Tuesday, the Pentagon declined Poland’s proposal to transfer its Russian-made MiG-29 combat aircraft to the U.S. government. The plan would later call for the U.S. to fly the jets into contested airspace in order to deliver the planes to Ukraine.

      “At this time, we believe the provision of additional fighter aircraft provides little increased capabilities at high risk. We also believe that there are alternative options that are much better suited to support the Ukrainian military in their fight against Russia,” Kirby added.

      – Amanda Macias

      Sony suspends PlayStation sales in Russia

      Sony will stop selling its PlayStation consoles and software in Russia, becoming the latest major brand to withdraw from the country over the Ukraine war.

      The company said it has suspended all software and hardware shipments in the country, including the launch of its new racing title Gran Turismo 7. The PlayStation Store will also become unavailable.

      “Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) joins the global community in calling for peace in Ukraine,” the company said in a statement.

      A slew of major brands from McDonald’s to Coca-Cola are suspending their business in Russia amid outcry over the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

      — Ryan Browne

      Seized oligarch yachts present thorny problem for officials

      European governments that seized the yachts and villas of Russian oligarchs now face a more difficult question: What to do with them?

      The sanctions against Russian oligarchs imposed by the European Union, the U.K., the U.S. and other countries unleashed a wave of asset freezes across Europe. Officials impounded a 213-foot yacht owned by Alexei Mordashov in Imperia, Italy, Igor Sechin’s 280-foot yacht in the French port of La Ciotat and Alisher Usmanov’s $18 million resort compound in Sardinia.

      Yet sanctions experts say freezing the assets is the simple part. Deciding what to do with them — and who gets the proceeds — is likely to be more challenging and could touch off court battles that drag on for years.

      — Robert Frank

      U.S., UK resist calls for no-fly zone: ‘Our goal is to end the war, not to expand it’

      The U.S. and UK hardened their opposition to imposing any form of a no-fly zone in Ukraine, despite Kyiv’s pleas for more protection from Russia’s invasion.

      “Our goal is to end the war, not to expand it,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday during a joint press conference alongside U.K. Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss.

      Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called on allies to enact a no-fly zone, which would require shooting down Russian aircraft over Ukraine. Imposing that rule in airspace where Russian planes are already flying would dramatically raise the risk of dragging NATO and the U.S. into direct combat with Russia, which experts fear could precipitate a full-on war between nuclear-armed powers.

      “If I were in President Zelenskyy’s position, I’m sure I would be asking for everything possible, in his mind, to help the Ukrainian people,” Blinken said. But he maintained that putting any U.S. troops in Ukraine, even if on a limited basis, “would expand the conflict.”

      Kevin Breuninger

      As Ukrainians flee west, many soldiers head east to the frontline

      As Ukrainian civilians in the east flee to the relative safety of western cities such as Lviv, and abroad to escape Russia’s assault, many military personnel are heading east to help with the war effort.

      Patriot missile system arrives in Poland

      Two Patriot batteries, capable of targeting incoming ballistic and cruise missiles, have been repositioned in Poland, a senior U.S. Defense official confirmed.

      “We’re not going to talk about where they are and not going to talk about their operational status, but they are in Poland,” the official said, adding that the move took place in close consultation with Polish allies.

      “It is a purely defensive deployment being conducted proactively to counter any potential threat to U.S. and allied forces in NATO territory,” the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said.

      – Amanda Macias

      Volunteers prepare food for Ukrainian troops

      People from the Lviv Volunteer Kitchen prepare food and dry rations for the Ukrainian military on the front lines amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

      U.S. says about 90% of the Kremlin’s combat power remains intact

      A U.S. senior Defense official said about 90% of the Kremlin’s combat power remains intact after two weeks at war in Ukraine.

      “We assess that they no longer have available to them several 100 vehicles of different stripes and sizes. But whether they’ve been captured, destroyed, abandoned, we don’t have that kind of a breakdown,” the official said.

      On Tuesday, the same official said that nearly 100% of the troops that were once staged along Ukraine’s border are now fighting inside the country and slowly advancing on Kyiv in four lines of effort. The official added that the U.S. has no indications that Russian President Vladimir Putin is pulling troops from other parts of Russia to fight in Ukraine.

      – Amanda Macias

      House bill would fund humanitarian aid, military equipment for Ukraine

      A government spending bill the U.S. House aims to pass Wednesday includes $13.6 billion in humanitarian and military aid for Ukraine.

      The money would go toward assistance to Ukrainians displaced by Russia’s invasion, Ukraine’s military equipment and U.S. troop deployments to neighboring countries.

      Leaders from both parties have backed the aid package as the U.S. tries to bolster Ukraine’s defenses and disrupt Russia’s economy without sending its own troops to Ukraine.

      — Jacob Pramuk

      Russian forces inch closer to the northeastern city of Kharkiv

      Russian forces inched closer to the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv overnight, according to a U.S. Defense official.

      The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Russian troops are “just outside the city now.”

      “They appear to have gained about 20 kilometers (12 miles) worth of distance,” the official said. “It’s still heavy, heavy fighting there. We don’t assess that they’ve taken the city by any means,” the person added.

      – Amanda Macias

      Russia has launched more that 710 missiles into Ukraine, U.S. Defense official says

      A U.S. Defense official said Russia has launched more than 710 missiles at Ukraine since the start of the invasion.

      The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the missiles are a mixture of short-range and medium-range as well as cruise missiles.

      The missiles are being fired from both inside Russia and inside Ukraine. A handful of missiles are being launched from Belarus as well as naval platforms in the Black Sea.

      – Amanda Macias

      Ukraine says Russia bombed children’s hospital in Mariupol

      The city council of Mariupol in eastern Ukraine accused the Russian military of deliberately bombing a children’s hospital there.

      “The destruction is enormous,” the city council said in a post from its Telegram account translated by NBC News. The post included a video showing the destroyed exterior of a building surrounded by smoldering rubble.

      Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tweeted shortly after that the bombing in Mariupol was a “direct strike” on the hospital. “Children are under the wreckage,” Zelenskyy said in the tweet, which also called on allies to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine skies.

      Russia has claimed it is not attacking civilian infrastructure, but international organizations have accused Vladimir Putin’s military of doing just that. News outlets have reported on civilian buildings being targeted.

      Ukraine on Wednesday accused Russia of violating a ceasefire in Mariupol, blocking civilians from evacuating the city.

      Kevin Breuninger

      Musicians perform an open-air concert named ‘Free Sky” in Kyiv

      Musicians of the Kyiv-Classic Symphony Orchestra under the direction of conductor Herman Makarenko perform during an open-air concert named “Free Sky” at the Independence Square in central Kyiv, Ukraine.

      —Adam Jeffery

      Lithuanian president warns of World War III if Putin is not stopped in Ukraine

      Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has told CNBC that if Russian President Vladimir Putin is not stopped, Moscow will look to invade other countries, which could trigger World War III.

      “One thing is clear: If [Putin] is not stopped in Ukraine, there will be a second Ukraine,” Nauseda told CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick on Wednesday.

      “Maybe Romania, maybe Moldova, maybe some other countries of NATO, and then it will be the start of the Third World War.”

      He added that he believed NATO’s commitment to collective defense was “really sacred,” which meant a Russian invasion of NATO territory would mean military conflict between NATO and Russia.

      — Chloe Taylor

      State Department partners with GoFundMe to raise money for Ukraine

      The State Department said it is working with the online crowdfunding site GoFundMe to raise money for groups working to help those caught up in the growing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

      The partnership with GoFundMe is “designed to mobilize private-sector donations and individual giving to support relief organizations aiding those impacted” by Russia’s military aggression, the State Department said in a press release.

      That release linked to a page on GoFundMe’s website soliciting donations for the “Ukraine Humanitarian Fund,” which was created on Feb. 24.

      That fund has already raised roughly $1.6 million toward its current goal of $2 million, according to the donation page.

      Kevin Breuninger

      UN nuclear watchdog says Chornobyl power shortage poses ‘no critical impact’ on safety

      The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said the disconnection of Ukraine’s Chornobyl nuclear power plant from the power grid poses “no critical impact on safety.”

      U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Mariano Grossi said, however, that the development “violates [a] key safety pillar on ensuring uninterrupted power supply.”

      Ukrainian officials had earlier warned that the situation was critical, as power was needed to ensure nuclear waste was cooled effectively.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Ukraine foreign minister says 400,000 people ‘held hostage’ in besieged city of Mariupol

      Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says 400,000 residents are being held hostage in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol as a result of “indiscriminate” Russian shelling.

      Kuleba said via Twitter that nearly 3,000 newborn babies lack medicine and food despite efforts to establish a safe evacuation corridor for civilians.

      He urged Moscow to end its “barbaric” war.

      — Sam Meredith

      Officials stage mass walkout from IAEA meeting over ‘unacceptable’ Russian remarks

      EU delegates initiated a mass walkout from an International Atomic Energy Agency meeting on Wednesday, with officials leaving the room in protest over “unacceptable” remarks from Russia on the situation in Ukraine.

      — Chloe Taylor

      ‘Radiation leaks imminent’ if Chornobyl remains disconnected from power grid, Ukraine minister says

      Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has warned that the disconnection of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant from power supplies is putting the entire European continent in danger.

      His comments came as Ukraine’s State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection warned that the nuclear waste at the Chornobyl facility needed “constant cooling” which is only possible with an electricity supply.

      “After that evaporation will occur, that will lead to nuclear discharge. The wind can transfer the radioactive cloud to other regions of Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Europe,” the SSSCIP said on Twitter.

      “All personnel there will receive a dangerous dose of radiation. The fire extinguishing system also does not work, and [there] is a huge risk of fire caused by shelling. The fight still goes on making it impossible to carry out repairs and restore power.”

      NBC News has reached out to the International Atomic Energy Agency to confirm the situation at Chornobyl, and has also asked the Russian government for comment.

      — Chloe Taylor

      There’s a smarter way to sanction Russian energy, Naftogaz CEO says

      Yuriy Vitrenko, CEO of Naftogaz — Ukraine’s state-owned gas company — has told CNBC he believes there is a “smarter” way to sanction Russian energy than simply cutting out gas imports.

      The EU and the U.K. announced plans to phase out Russian energy on Tuesday, while the U.S. said it would place an embargo on Russian oil imports.

      “There is probably a smarter way to do it — that is for the West to say Putin cannot access proceeds from the sale until he withdraws from Ukraine,” Vitrenko told CNBC’s “Street Signs Europe” on Wednesday.

      “There could be a mechanism, a so-called escrow account, similar to what the West used in respect of Iran. Putin’s regime now is a more rogue regime than Iran’s, so this comparison is very relevant.”

      Vitrenko added that Naftogaz may be able to assist European countries scaling back on Russian gas because the company has the biggest gas storages in Europe.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Russia says it didn’t attend UN court hearing over ‘absurdity’ of lawsuit

      Russia’s Foreign Ministry has defended its decision not to attend hearings at the International Court of Justice this week.

      The International Court of Justice held preliminary hearings on March 7 and 8 in a case brought by Ukraine under legislation on the prevention of genocide. Russia did not send any representatives.

      Maria Zakharova, a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman, said Wednesday that the case against Russia was “unsubstantiated.”

      “In light of the apparent absurdity of the lawsuit, we decided not to attend it,” she said.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Kremlin says U.S. has declared economic war on Russia

      The Kremlin has accused the U.S. of waging an economic war against Russia.

      Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday that “the United States is de facto waging an economic war against Russia,” according to an NBC News translation.

      “Systematic, serious and well thought out measures are being taken in the Russian Federation to stabilize the situation in the economy,” he added, noting that Moscow was expecting there to be around 1 million people in Russia left unemployed due to the withdrawal of Western companies from the country.

      “The hostile bacchanalia of the West makes it very difficult for Russia to supply energy resources and forces it to seriously consider the situation,” Peskov also said during the briefing. “Russia has been and will be a reliable guarantor of world-class energy security, and it values this reputation.” 

      — Chloe Taylor

      Chornobyl nuclear power plant disconnected from power grid, Ukraine says

      The Chornobyl nuclear power plant has been disconnected from Ukraine’s power grid, officials have said.

      “Because of military actions of Russian occupiers nuclear power plant in Chornobyl was fully disconnected from the power grid,” Ukraine’s Mining and Energy Ministry said in a Facebook post Wednesday. “Nuclear station has no power supply. The military actions are in progress, so there is no possibility to restore the lines.”

      The ministry added that power was also down in the city of Slavutich.

      Ukraine’s Parliament posted a similar message announcing the disconnection of Chornobyl from the power grid on its official Telegram account.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Russia failing to make significant progress toward Kyiv, UK says

      Russian forces are failing to make “any significant breakthroughs” in their advance toward Kyiv, the U.K. has said.

      In an intelligence update on Wednesday, the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense said fighting was ongoing northwest of the Ukrainian capital, but Russian troops were not making any major progress in reaching the city.

      The update also said that the cities of Kharkiv, Cherniv, Sumy and Mariupol remained encircled by Russian forces and continued to suffer heavy shelling.

      “Ukraine’s air defenses appear to have enjoyed considerable success against Russia’s modern combat aircraft, probably preventing them achieving any degree of control in the air,” the ministry added.

      — Chloe Taylor

      1.3 million Ukrainians have fled to Poland, embassy says

      More than 1.3 million refugees have crossed the Polish border since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, Poland’s embassy in the EU said Wednesday.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Ukraine announces latest civilian evacuation plans

      Ukraine has announced fresh evacuation plans for Wednesday, saying the routes out of several cities have been agreed upon with Russia and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

      Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said in a briefing Wednesday morning that Russia had made a formal public commitment to a cease-fire along the agreed routes — but noted that “in previous attempts to evacuate people from Mariupol and Volnovakha, such commitments were not met.”

      Wednesday’s ceasefire, which will allow the evacuation of civilians from several locations including Sumy, Mariupol, Volnovakha and Izium, is set to be in place from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time.

      Ukraine will also carry out a “separate special operation” on Wednesday to evacuate 55 children and 26 employees from an orphanage in the town of Vorzel on the outskirts of Kyiv.

      — Chloe Taylor

      China says it will give Ukraine almost $800,000 of humanitarian aid

      China’s Red Cross will send humanitarian aid worth 5 million yuan ($791,628) to Ukraine, a Chinese official said Wednesday, according to Reuters.

      China, a close ally of Russia, has not joined the slew of countries imposing sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, but Beijing has called for an end to the hostilities in the country.

      — Chloe Taylor

      Ukraine says 5,000 civilians evacuated from Sumy

      Around 5,000 civilians have successfully been evacuated from the city of Sumy, Ukraine said on Tuesday.

      Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said on Telegram that buses carrying about 5,000 people and 1,000 private vehicles were already safe.

      Previous attempts to evacuate civilians from Sumy and other cities in recent days were halted by Ukrainian authorities, who accused Russia of violating cease-fire agreements and opening exit routes that led to Russian or Belarusian territory.

      “The first convoy of 22 buses has already arrived in Poltava … Now everyone is safe and fed,” Tymoshenko said. “The second evacuation convoy of 39 buses is already in the Poltava region. These are children, women, the elderly, foreign students. If desired, people will be able to stay in Poltava or continue the evacuation to Lviv.”

      — Chloe Taylor

      Read CNBC’s previous live coverage here:

      Russian troops violate another ceasefire that was supposed to let civilians escape, UK says

      Russian forces reportedly inflicted shelling and small arms fire on escape corridors that were designed to let Ukrainian civilians escape the cities of Mariupol and Sumy.

      The U.K. Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update that the violence marks a third consecutive day that Russian forces have violated their own supposed cease-fire agreements.

      Despite the dangers, the ministry said it is likely that some civilians have managed to escape the besieged cities.

      “Those civilians forced to remain continue to suffer from shortages of power, food and water, exacerbated by heavy Russian shelling,” the ministry said.

      —Ted Kemp

      Source Article from https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/09/russia-ukraine-live-updates.html

      It was a bruised Bob Chapek who arrived at Disney’s annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday — and all because of a crisis of his own making.

      Earlier in the week, Mr. Chapek, the company’s chief executive, botched an internal email to Disney employees. He was seeking to explain Disney’s public silence on anti-L.G.B.T.Q. legislation in Florida that activists have labeled the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. There had been growing internal pressure on Mr. Chapek to condemn the bill, especially since his predecessor, Robert A. Iger, had already done so on Twitter and Disney employs 80,000 people in Florida. Instead, Mr. Chapek’s nearly 1,000-word memo poured gasoline on the fire, and the hashtag #boycottDisney was soon trending on social media.

      “I am deeply angered by Disney thinking it can look the other way,” Abigail Disney, a granddaughter of one of Disney’s founders, wrote on Twitter. Employees in some parts of the company — Lucasfilm in San Francisco, Walt Disney World in Florida — complained bitterly to managers. On Tuesday, the Animation Guild, which represents Hollywood animation artists, writers and technicians, called Mr. Chapek’s decision to stay quiet “a momentous misstep” that “defies logic and company ethics.” The Los Angeles Times skewered him in an opinion column headlined in part, “Disney sets a new standard for corporate cowardice.”

      Mr. Chapek addressed the criticism on Wednesday.

      “While we’ve been strong supporters of the community for decades, I know that many are upset that we did not speak out against the bill,” said Mr. Chapek, who made his remarks off camera during the virtual meeting. “We were opposed to the bill from the outset, and we chose not to take a public position because we felt we could be more effective working behind the scenes directly with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.”

      Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/09/business/disney-ceo-florida-lgbtq-bill.html