DRussian President Vladimir Putin has criticized Western sanctions against his country as a “threat to the whole world”. They are short-sighted and a danger to the entire world, Putin said at an economic forum in Vladivostok, eastern Russia. The West is hollowing out the global economy in an “aggressive” bid to assert its international hegemony. Putin says the world is now turning to Asia.
Moscow continues to say that the West has suffered more from its sanctions than Russia. Global demand for Russian energy supplies is high. Despite the sanctions, Russia will have no problem finding buyers worldwide. All the cornerstones for selling gas to China via Mongolia have already been agreed. However, Putin acknowledged that there are difficulties in some sectors and regions. Companies that rely on imports from Europe are struggling.
Putin described the idea of a price cap for Russian gas circulating in Europe as “stupid”. It will only lead to price rise.
Current situation in Ukraine
Source: Infographic World
All Improvements in Live Ticker:
10:40am – Merz accuses Scholes of reluctance to prolong war in Ukraine
Union leader Friedrich Merz has accused President Olaf Scholz (SPD) of prolonging Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine with the traffic light government’s reluctance. This reluctance is one of the reasons the war has dragged on and caused more casualties, Merz criticized on Wednesday in a public debate on the next federal budget in Bundestag. In a sort of general solution, he blamed Scholz’s economic policy for failing to deal with the crisis and inflation resulting from the war in Ukraine.
Merz also attacked Scholz over his announcement of a 100 billion euro package to strengthen the Bundeswehr. Decisions were taken together, including an amendment to the Basic Law. But this ended the common ground between the Union and the government. For example, Scholz did not fulfill his own promise to make more than two percent of GDP available to the Bundeswehr with immediate effect. Instead, the defense budget will be cut by 300 million euros. “We can’t trust your promises,” Mers criticized.
Scholz and the traffic light government have no compass in terms of economic policy, Merz said. The government’s decisions to support citizens are “an obsession with compromises at the level of the lowest common denominator.”
He also insisted on stopping the planned gas tax from October. He tells parliament that the union will put an application to the Bundestag for a vote this week. Taxation means new burdens for consumers and companies and is “bad design from the start”.
Friedrich Merz criticizes the traffic light government
Source: dpa/Kay Nietfeld
9:55 am – Coal-fired power generation has increased significantly in the first half of the year
Due to the war in Ukraine, coal is regaining importance for energy supply in Germany. Nearly a third (31.4 percent) of electricity generated and fed to the grid in the first half of the year came from coal-fired power plants, the Central Statistics Office explained on Tuesday. This is an increase of 17.2 percent in one year. The importance of coal power for energy supply continued to grow, while the amount of electricity generated from conventional energy sources fell to 51.5 percent after 56.2 percent in the first half of 2021. Increased production from renewable sources. Twelve percent to a share of 48.5 percent, as wind power and photovoltaics increased significantly.
Because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Germany is no longer dependent on the enormous energy supplies from Russia. It is more difficult with gas. That’s why the Traffic Light Alliance is again focusing heavily on coal and nuclear power.
0800 – Ukraine attacks seven Russian command posts
Ukraine reports attacks on seven Russian command posts. In addition, 13 “objects where Russian forces were concentrated” were hit, the Ukrainian military reported in its regular situation report. Where these targets are remains an open question. In addition, Russian offensives were repulsed in several cities in the eastern Donetsk region, including Pakmut.
Earlier, a senior pro-Russian separatist in Donetsk said Ukrainian forces had attacked the Russian-held town of Balaglia in the Kharkiv region. Daniil Besonov explained in Telegram that if Balaklia fell, the Russian forces in Issia would suffer in their northwestern sector. Balaklia is located between Kharkiv and Isium, an important rail junction for Russian supplies.
7:50 am – Biden rejects classification of Russia as a “terrorist sponsor”.
US President Joe Biden’s administration rejects the classification of Russia as a “state sponsor of terrorism”. “This move is not a very effective or strong way to hold Russia accountable,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Conversely, being classified as a “terrorist state” is counterproductive because it could block aid to war-torn Ukraine or interfere with United Nations negotiations with Turkey to export grain from restricted Ukrainian ports, Jean-Pierre said.
Asked by a journalist on Monday if he would put Russia on a “blacklist of countries that support terrorism,” Joe Biden said “no,” rejecting repeated requests from Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described Russia as a “state sponsor of terrorism” in late June after a rocket attack on a shopping center in the city of Kremenchuk killed at least 20 people. Ukraine has repeatedly asked the West to agree with this classification.
The US currently has four countries on its “terrorist list”: Iran, Syria, North Korea and Cuba.
07:00 – Atomic Energy Agency requests safety zone around Zaporizhia NPP
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has called for swift action to address the “protracted” situation at the site, given the ongoing armed conflict at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which is occupied by Russian troops. In a statement released Tuesday on the situation surrounding Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, the IAEA warned of a “nuclear accident” and called for the establishment of a “safe zone.”
“We are playing with fire and something very, very bad could happen,” warned IAEA chief Raffaele Croci. The organization also wrote of the “extremely stressful conditions” in which Ukrainian nuclear personnel work under the control of Russian soldiers.
Ukraine and Russia reacted cautiously to the appeals and found the other side responsible.
In early March, Russian assault troops occupied Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. Ukrainian technicians operate the nuclear power plant. Shelling continued around the factory premises on Tuesday. Russian-backed officials accused Ukrainian forces of shelling Enerhodar near the power plant, while Ukraine reported Russian attacks on the town of Nikopol on the opposite bank of the Dnipro.
Earlier in the day, the power supply to the nuclear power plant was cut off, so that it could only maintain its safety systems with its own electricity. Cooling, which protects nuclear reactors from overheating, is particularly important. “It’s a very worrying time for radiation safety experts, for the Ukrainian and Russian people, for the people in Central Europe – and it’s an understatement,” said Paul Dorfman, a British nuclear safety expert.
06:00 – More than 370 children have been killed since the war began
According to the aid organization Save the Children, hundreds of children have been killed in the war since the Russian invasion of Ukraine – and the number is rising every day. “Innocent children are injured and killed every day in Ukraine,” said Sonia Kush, Save the Children Ukraine country director. “The world must act now.” Many children have taken refuge in buildings that have been attacked. Even if they survive, there will be physical and mental injuries, the organization stressed.
Data released Monday by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said more than 370 children were killed between the start of the war on February 24 and September 4. Nearly 640 boys and girls were injured. Save the Children also refers to these numbers.
04:34 – Presidential Adviser in Kiev: Attack in two places in Ukraine
According to security expert Oleksiy Arestovych, the Ukrainian army launched a counter-offensive in two locations in the east and south of the country attacked by Russia. An adviser at the president’s office in Kyiv did not name the locations. This is a matter for public servants, the opposition told a Russian lawyer in a video interview. The dual offensive was intended to build up Russian reserves and prevent the Russian Army from strengthening one sector of the front at the expense of the other. “Puts the pressure on us, really puts the pressure on them,” Arestovich said.
His information could not be verified. However, Russian state television’s war correspondents pointed to the town of Balaglia, in the eastern Ukrainian region of Kharkiv, as the target. The Ukrainian army recaptured areas there, including the town of Verbivka. Ukraine’s counter-offensive has been ongoing since last week in the Cherson region in the south of Ukraine. The official side of Ukraine has so far provided little information on this. The US and Great Britain are talking about Ukrainian progress there.
Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyj again discussed the situation with his top military leadership. In his video address every evening, he did not comment on the situation in detail, but instead thanked the Ukrainian soldiers for their commitment.
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