Мир vs Россия

Throughout the West, support for supplying Ukraine with weapons has been wavering. In the US, the share of people who say the government is doing too much for Ukraine is on the rise, and in Germany, a steady majority contends that diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict are insufficient. While the West’s political and security establishment (with a few exceptions, notably Hungary) agrees that Russia must be defeated to uphold the liberal world order, prevent Russian aggression from spreading and teach a lesson to dictators tempted to follow Vladimir Putin’s expansionist example, millions of people outside this establishment are unmoved by such arguments. For many who live in Germany, France or Japan, the liberal world order is at best an abstraction and at worst an attempt to put a favorable spin on American dominance. In any of these countries — and in the US, too — it’s hard to imagine Russia attacking one’s hometown as it has attacked Ukrainian cities. It requires less imagination, however, to fear a Russian nuclear strike on Western “decision-making centers” if Putin faces defeat in Donbass.

 

Токаев всего неделю назад, как ни старались российские дипломаты, пообещал гостям из США многое, - в частности, не ехать на парад, - однако едет. Несмотря на совершенно явно прослеживающийся поворот "от России".

Да и г-н Мирзиеев практически до упора колебался, - и тем не менее. А уж о Николе и говорить нечего.

 

Ukraine war: Pope tells Zelensky he is 'praying for peace'

The pontiff meets Ukraine's leader at the Vatican, pleading for urgent help to victims of Russia's invasion. //  www.bbc.com

 

And last August, Ukraine's ambassador to the Vatican took the unusual step of criticising the Pope after the pontiff referred to Darya Dugina, the daughter of a Russian ultra-nationalist figure, who was killed by a car bomb, as an "innocent" victim of war.

Italy historically has strong ties with Moscow.

Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the conservative Forza Italia party, is an old friend of President Putin. They went on trips together and exchanged birthday gifts.

Matteo Salvini, the deputy prime minister, has frequently voiced pro-Russian sentiments and criticised military assistance to Ukraine. President Zelensky is not expected to meet either Mr Salvini or Mr Berlusconi during his trip.

 

What the leaked Pentagon documents reveal - 8 key takeaways

Ukraine's spring offensive and Chinese hypersonic weapons are among the issues highlighted in the leaks. //  www.bbc.com

 

Egypt secretly planned to supply rockets to Russia
The Washington Post obtained access to another document from mid-February, where they found that Egypt had plans to produce 40,000 rockets for Russia in secret.

The Post said President Abdul Fatah al-Sisi told officials to keep production and shipment secret "to avoid problems with the West".

An official is quoted as saying he would "order his people to work shift work if necessary because it was the least Egypt could do to repay Russia for unspecified help earlier".

It is unclear what the earlier help refers to. In January, Reuters reported that Russia's share of Egyptian wheat imports had risen in 2022, offering one possible explanation.

There is no indication that Egypt - a recipient of US security assistance, worth around $1bn a year - went ahead with the proposed sale to Russia.

An unnamed official quoted on Egyptian news channels described the allegation as "utterly baseless" and said Cairo did not take sides in the war.

The Kremlin called it "just another canard" and the White House said there was "no indication" Egypt was providing lethal weapons to Russia.