Saturday, June 18, 2022

NOTED IN PASSING: Mark Shields

From Politico: "Judy Woodruff, “PBS NewsHour” anchor and managing editor, tweeted that she was ”heartbroken” to share the news and noted Shields’ wife Anne was at his side at his death.

“Mark Shields had a magical combination of talents: an unsurpassed knowledge of politics and a passion, joy, and irrepressible humor that shone through in all his work,” Woodruff said in a statement. “He loved most politicians, but could spot a phony and was always bold to call out injustice. Along with Jim Lehrer and Robin MacNeil, he personified all that’s special in the PBS NewsHour.“

For decades, she said, Shields “wowed us with his encyclopedic knowledge of American politics, his sense of humor and mainly his big heart.”

Obituaries

Political commentator and columnist Mark Shields dies at 85

Shields died at his Chevy Chase, Md., home, from kidney failure, a “PBS NewsHour” spokesman said.

By Associated Press 06/18/2022 06:56 PM EDT

"CHEVY CHASE, Md. — Political commentator and columnist Mark Shields, who shared his insight into American politics and wit on “PBS NewsHour” for decades, died Saturday. He was 85.

Shields died at his Chevy Chase, Maryland, home, from kidney failure, “PBS NewsHour” spokesman Nick Massella said.

Shields was a regular on the show starting in 1987, the year the show began, and stepped down from his regular Friday night discussion segment in December 2020. He had collaborated with David Brooks since 2001 to provide analysis and commentary in their weekly Shields & Brooks segment and during election specials and conventions and before that with David Gergen and Paul Gigot, according to “PBS NewsHour.” His tenure there spanned six presidencies.

The Weymouth, Massachusetts, native graduated from the University of Notre Dame and served in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to “PBS NewsHour.” He began his career in Washington as a legislative assistant and speechwriter for Wisconsin Sen. William Proxmire in 1965, according to “PBS NewsHour.” Three years later, Shields joined New York Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign and later worked on numerous campaigns. In 1979, he began writing a column at The Washington Post that was later distributed by Creators Syndicate.

Shields was a moderator and panelist on CNN’s “Capital Gang” from 1988 to 2005 and a regular panelist on “Inside Washington,” which aired on PBS and ABC, from 2005 until 2013. He also wrote “On the Campaign Trail,” an account of the 1984 presidential campaign. . ."

Please continue reading >> https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/18/political-commentator-columnist-mark-shields-dies-at-85-00040711

From National Public Radio

PBS NewsHour commentator Mark Shields dies at age 85

Updated June 18, 20226:43 PM ET Originally published June 18, 202211:53 AM ET

Juliana Kim

NPR.org | Updated June 18, 2022

Mark Shields, the longtime PBS News commentator known for his weekly political analysis, died Saturday morning at the age of 85, PBS NewsHour confirmed.

Shields died of kidney failure at his home in Chevy Chase, Md., NewsHour spokesman Nick Massella told NPR.

Before he retired in 2020, Shields provided thoughtful insights into the administrations of six U.S. presidents, on the Persian Gulf War, the Iran-Contra affair and 9/11. His tenure lasted for 33 years.

Shields was known for both his sense of humor and his expansive knowledge of American politics, Judy Woodruff, the anchor and managing editor of NewsHour said in a tweet announcing his death.

"I am heartbroken to share this..the @NewsHour's beloved long-time Friday night analyst Mark Shields, who for decades wowed us with his encyclopedic knowledge of American politics, his sense of humor and mainly his big heart, has passed away at 85, with his wife Anne at his side," Woodruff tweeted.

Woodruff also said in a statement: "Mark Shields had a magical combination of talents: an unsurpassed knowledge of politics and a passion, joy, and irrepressible humor that shone through in all his work. He loved most politicians, but could spot a phony and was always bold to call out injustice. Along with Jim Lehrer and Robin MacNeil, he personified all that's special in the PBS NewsHour."

The Wall Street Journal called Shields "the wittiest political analyst around" and The Washington Post described him as "a walking almanac of American politics."

"Mark radiates a generosity of spirit that improves all who come within his light," David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, wrote shortly after Shields retired. The two discussed politics together on NewsHour Friday evenings for nearly two decades. . ."

Reference: https://www.npr.org/2022/06/18/1106054812/mark-shields-pbs-newshour-commentator-dies

The People Have Spoken

Mark Shields has worked in politics for more than 40 years. He started as an assistant to Wisconsin Sen. William Proxmire, then worked on four Presidential campaigns and numerous other races. Shields is a political analyst for NewsHour on PBS. Courtesy of Mark Shields hide caption toggle caption Courtesy of Mark Shields

March 13, 200611:37 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition Mark Shields

NPR.org | March 13, 2006

I believe in politics. In addition to being great fun, politics is basically the peaceable resolution of conflict among legitimate competing interests.

In a continental nation as big and brawling and diverse as ours, I don't know how else -- except through politics -- we can resolve our differences and live together. Compromise is the best alternative to brute muscle or money or raw numbers. Compromises that are both wise and just are crafted through the dedication, the skill and, yes, the intelligence of our elected politicians.

I like people who run for public office. For most of us, life is a series of quiet successes or setbacks. If you get the big promotion, the hometown paper announces your success. It doesn't add, "Shields was passed over because of unanswered questions about his expense account" or "his erratic behavior at the company picnic."

But elections have been rightly described as a one-day sale. If you're a candidate, your fate is front-page news. By 8 o'clock on a Tuesday night, you will experience the ecstasy of victory or you will endure the agony of defeat. Everybody you ever sat next to in study hall, double-dated with or baby-sat for knows whether you won or, much more likely, lost. Politicians boldly risk public rejection of the kind that the rest of us will go to any lengths to avoid.

Having worked on four losing presidential campaigns earlier in my life and having covered the last seven as a journalist, I admire enormously the candidate able to face defeat with humor and grace. Nobody ever conceded defeat better than Dick Tuck who, upon losing a California state senate primary, said simply, "The people have spoken…the bastards."

But I believe in politicians who are courageous. The first time I ever slept in the same quarters with African-Americans or took orders from African-Americans was at Parris Island in Marine Corps boot camp, and it was the political courage of one man, President Harry Truman, who ended the racial segregation of the U.S. military because he believed that fairness is at the heart of our values as a nation.

I admired the courage, too, of Ronald Reagan. In 1978, after voter initiatives discriminating against gays had prevailed in Miami, St. Paul and Eugene, Ore., a conservative-backed ballot measure in California to ban homosexuals from teaching in the state's public schools was favored to win until Ronald Reagan made the difference by campaigning successfully against it.

I believe in the politics that wrote the GI Bill, that passed the Marshall Plan to rebuild a war-devastated Europe, that saved the Great Lakes and that through Social Security took want and terror out of old age. The kind of politics that teaches us all we owe to those who came before us and those who will come after. That each of us has drunk from wells we did not dig; that each of us has been warmed by fires we did not build.

At their worst, politicians -- like the rest of us -- can be petty, venal and self-centered. But I believe politics, at its best, can help to make ours a world where the powerful are truly more just and the poor are more secure."

POETIC PORTENT:Former Comedian Performative Ukraine President Now a Famous Poet?

How low can we go when a line like this "The fight is here. I need ammunition, not a ride." got so much attention? . .The second sentence repeats the urgency in the same meters, its colloquial turn capturing his gift for performative comedy (I need ammunition, not a ride). “Not a ride” is breezy talk—yet also darkly sardonic.

The wording was practically made for Twitter, and the first indication that a special kind of eloquence would become a weapon in this conflict.

The next morning, a Saturday, Zelensky posted a video that stated the case more fully, with no loss of poetic flair or portent:

Catch the succinct, staccato sentences that build with clausal and verbal repetitions, all ready for export. “I am here” is not only a report, but speech activism: This is a president who is present, inspired, determined.

Byron, Shelley, and Now Zelensky

To appreciate the special power of the Ukrainian president, we need to listen closely to his words, and remember the inspiring poets who came before him.

<div class=__reading__mode__extracted__imagecaption>Adam Maida / The Atlantic; Ukrainian Presidency / Handout / Anadolu Agency

(NOTE: Ukrainian Presidency / Handout / Anadolu Agency. Adam Maida / The Atlantic)

By Susan J. Wolfson

The Atlantic

In the early 19th century, the European world had just defeated an imperialist tyrant, Napoleon Bonaparte, only to find the continent’s recently conquered monarchs quickly back in force. Intent on preventing another Napoleon from emerging on their own turf, the monarchies promptly cracked down on dissidents, on peaceful demonstrations, on the forming of unions, on the oppositional press. Standing up to this suppression and sharing a commitment to liberty were two famous poets, Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, celebrated in some circles, a cause for scandal in others. More than anything else, in that moment, they wanted to show how words can change minds. “It is a grand object—the very poetry of politics,” Byron cheered himself on in a journal entry, early in 1821. With Byronic moxie, he also understood the politics of poetry.

We live in different times, but as Russia’s war in Ukraine has shown us, this struggle for self-determination is still present, and the force of words, in a world where we are surrounded by their onrush, has become yet more important. We only have to turn to Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, to see how the poetry of politics lives on.

“The fight is here. I need ammunition, not a ride.” This bit of extemporaneous poetry was reported to have been spoken on February 25, 2022, by Zelensky in response to a supposed offer from the American ambassador to shuttle him and his family to safety out of Kyiv. The English translation rocketed around the world, was even printed on Zelensky-syle olive-green T-shirts. . .

[. ] Zelensky brings it all together as the genuine Byronic hero of our times. Here is a celebrity entertainer who played a fictional president on television, then was himself elected president. . .about how words, pulsed with poetry, can draw thousands, perhaps millions to think about his cause. This is a battle in which Volodymyr Zelensky is willing to take his rest, and for which he has already secured his glory."

MICROSOFT'S DUO FORM FACTOR: A Gift Your MesaZona Blogger Could Cherish and Put to Good Use

Nice - you have to open up the device to use it. . .Even with the recent price cut, it’s still more expensive than an iPad or other small tablet. It’s only ideal for those who will appreciate the ability to take it on the go more places, even if they are already carrying another phone in their other pocket.

Microsoft’s weird Surface Duo 2 has surprisingly become my favorite device of the year

At least nine software updates and a sizable price cut have transformed Microsoft’s dual-screen phone

<div class=__reading__mode__extracted__imagecaption>Microsoft’s Surface Duo 2 has come a long way from where it was at launch last year.

By Dan Seifert@dcseifert Jun 18, 2022, 9:00am EDT

The Verge

It’s exceedingly rare that a product actually gets better months after it was released. But Microsoft’s oft-forgotten Surface Duo 2, which launched back in October 2021 with a steep price tag and a laundry list of bugs and issues that made it very frustrating to use, has bucked that trend. In fact, the Duo 2 has improved so much that it’s now one of my favorite mobile devices, even if it’s still weird and unique enough that I can’t exactly recommend it to most people.

In case you’ve forgotten, the Surface Duo 2 is a folding phone with two big screens joined by a hinge.

A Kindle e-book spanned across both screens of the Microsoft Surface Duo 2

Unlike Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 3, which takes a single tablet-sized display and folds it in half to fit in your pocket, the Duo 2’s two screens make it feel more like two large phones attached together and running the same software. You can easily run two apps side by side as if you were holding two phones at the same time, or you can span a single app across both screens to mimic a small tablet.

The Pocket Android app display an article on both screens of the Surface Duo 2 while it’s held in portrait orientation.

Both halves of the phone are thin enough that it can fold together like a book and fit into a pocket with relative ease. Pair it with Microsoft’s Surface Slim Pen 2, and you have a portable digital notebook that can work just as well for note-taking, reading an ebook, or drafting an email.

When I reviewed the Surface Duo 2 last year, none of its clever design or book-like features mattered. The device was effectively broken, held back by software bugs that made it infuriating to type on, frustrating to use, and ultimately disappointing. It was a $1,500 novelty that could only appeal to the most die-hard Microsoft brand stooges willing to put up with its many faults so they could have the never-launched Courier device they dreamed about over a decade ago.

But, remarkably, Microsoft has not given up on the Duo 2. In fact, the company has consistently issued software updates on a monthly basis to address the many problems the Duo 2 had at launch. Some of these updates consisted of simple security patches and small bug fixes, while others, like the recent June update, included more significant corrections and added new features. Crucially, Microsoft has addressed the touch latency problems that were prevalent at launch and made it very difficult to type on the Duo 2’s virtual keyboard — or even navigate the interface.

Knowing that Microsoft has been attending to many of my original complaints with the Duo 2, I took advantage of a recent price cut (the phone can now be had for $1,000, which is still expensive but significantly less than its launch price) and a generous trade-in offer and bought one of my own. The goal was to see if I could get a better idea of what Microsoft is trying to accomplish with this device when show-stopping bugs aren’t standing in its way.

And reader, I can finally say I get it. The Duo 2 is the most unique mobile device I’ve used, allowing me to do things I just can’t do with a traditional smartphone. It also does certain things, such as multitasking and reading ebooks, better than the Z Fold 3’s single large screen. . . . "

Photography by Dan Seifert / The Verge

CryptoCurrency isn't done bleeding ...

Report from The Verge: ". . .As 3AC demonstrates, a bad loss on one big investment can cause enormous ripple effects, and it can take time to see what they are. Luna collapsed a month ago, and the extent of its damage to 3AC wasn’t obvious until this week. Given the connections between 3AC, Celsius Network, Babel Finance, and the rest of the market, it seems likely cryptocurrency isn’t done bleeding."

Three crypto firms are down bad this week, and things may get worse

By Richard Lawler and Elizabeth Lopatto Jun 17, 2022, 1:04pm EDT

The Verge

This week has revealed to the average investor just how interconnected cryptocurrency firms are. Two firms have frozen withdrawals, and a cryptocurrency hedge fund is in trouble. Celsius Network, Babel Finance, and Three Arrows Capital are floundering, and it’s not yet clear how extensive the damage may be.

This week started with a Sunday night announcement from the Celsius Network, a gigantic crypto lending company, that it would pause withdrawals and transfers. After that, the value of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, already weeks into a slide that some have termed a “crypto winter,” plunged even further, and five days later, the news hasn’t improved much.

All three firms managed other peoples’ money. Celsius Network wooed retail investors. Babel Finance, which CNBC says has 500 clients, raised $80 million in a funding round a month ago. 3AC, which invested in crypto startups, managed $10 billion in assets in March, according to Fortune. The ripple effects from the firms’ woes are likely to affect the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem. . .

[. ] Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, another crypto lender named Babel Finance has announced its own freeze on withdrawals and redemptions, claiming it’s “facing unusual liquidity pressures.” As recently as May 25th, it had closed a round of funding valuing the company at $2 billion. A report by Decrypt collects claims that Babel misused client funds. Genesis Capital, Bitgo, Blockchain.com, and Bitcoin.com are among its better-known clients. . ."

More details go here >> https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/17/23172539/3ac-celsius-babel-crypto-loans-hedge-funds-uh-oh

Next Up In Tech

NEW OPPORTUNITIES IN A NEW WORLD: 25th Annual Saint Petersburg Internationa Economic Forum Sept 15-18 2022

Intro:

SPIEF-2022

Updated at:

Agreements worth almost $100 bln concluded at SPIEF, says organizing committee

Around 14,000 people have participated in the forum

ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. More than 690 agreements totally worth over 5.6 trillion rubles ($99.8 bln) have been concluded at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Adviser to Russian President, Executive Secretary of the SPIEF Organizing Committee Anton Kobyakov told reporters on Saturday.

"By now 691 agreements worth 5.639 trillion rubles have been signed. Of course, we only announce figures that are not commercial classified information," he said.

Around 14,000 people participated in the forum this year, Kobyakov said. "Around 14,000 people representing 130 countries, including Russia, participated in the forum, 79 countries sent official representatives," he said.

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum organized by the Roscongress Foundation is running from June 15 to 18. This year’s forum is dubbed: ‘New Opportunities in a New World’. TASS serves as the event’s official photo hosting agency and the information partner."

Putin’s answers at SPIEF: Ukraine, sanctions and Donbass warfare

TASS has gathered Putin’s answers to various important questions

<div class=__reading__mode__extracted__imagecaption>Russia's President Vladimir Putin<br>© Gavriil Grigorov/TASS Host Photo Agency</div>

(Russia's President Vladimir Put in © Gavriil Grigorov/TASS Host Photo Agency)

TASS

ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. Russia does not mind Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, but is not ready to forget the 2014 state coup in the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, answering to questions during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum’s plenary session on Friday.

The Russian leader explained why the Russian forces do not storm Ukrainian defense lines near Donetsk, but was tight-lipped on the question about red lines whose violation will entail strikes at Ukraine’s "decision-making centers." He also explained that Russia would be producing "hemp and saddles" if it loses its sovereignty. In his opinion, army and fleet will remain the only security guarantors for Russia.

TASS has gathered Putin’s answers to various important questions.

On sovereignty

"Always, when making any decision, you need to identify the main thing. What is the main thing for us? To be independent, sovereign and ensure development for the future, now and for future generations. If we do not have sovereignty, then in the near future we will have to buy everything and we will produce only oil, gas, hemp, saddles."

On Western goods

Russia will learn to produce goods that are now disappearing from the market as a result of Western sanctions. "They will continue to sell to us packaging and other such things, even telephones and smartphone. But they have never shared and will never share critically important technologies with us."

According to Putin, many Western companies, at least from European countries, will return to the Russian market and "will be happy to work here." "I have no doubts about this. Life will make them just do it. And we will not prevent them from doing this, we are open to the whole world."

Western sanctions

"It is pretty clear that the blitzkrieg against our economy has failed. As Mark Twain once remarked, ‘"The report of my death was an exaggeration’," Putin said.

The Russian president pointed out that European politicians had dealt their economies a severe blow with their own hands. Western sanctions are having a serious negative effect on the global situation, primarily on the food market. "European politicians have landed a heavy blow on their economies. They did it themselves, with their own hands," Putin concluded

On Ukraine

Russia does not mind Ukraine’s accession to the European Union: "The EU is not a miliary organization or a military-political bloc, in contrast to NATO. We have always said, and I have always said that our stance is very consistent and clear in his respect: we have nothing against."

However, in this case Ukraine risks becoming a ‘semi-colony’ of the West: "It is unlikely that this [EU membership] will lead to the restoration of the lost aircraft industry, shipbuilding, the electronics industry and other critical industries. It is unlikely because the European "greats" will not create competitors for themselves."

At the same time, Putin criticized the notion that Ukraine’s political elites had made a "civilizational choice" in favor of the West: " What <…> civilizational choice are you talking about? They stole money from the Ukrainian people, hid it in banks and want to protect it. Here’s the best way to protect it: It’s to say that this is a ‘civilizational choice.’ They started to engage in anti-Russian policies in the hopes that whatever they do, their money will be protected there. And that’s, of course, what, in fact, is happening. Whatever they do, they get away with it. That’s the whole point of the ‘civilizational choice.’"

About military operation

Armed hostilities are always a tragedy, but the special military operation in Ukraine was a forced move. "We were simply pushed toward that line."

Storming Ukrainian strongholds near Donetsk created eight years ago is inexpedient and efforts are underway to overtake them from the rear, Putin said. "This is because this will lead to large casualties among the attacking forces," he explained. Systemic work is underway to overtake these strongholds from the rear. "This, of course, will require certain time. Counter-battery fighting is ongoing there," Putin stressed, adding that the Russian forces had "a huge advantage" in artillery. "We talk about conducting a special military operation and even in this special military operation we must not turn those cities and populated localities that we are liberating into something like Stalingrad."

Putin preferred to keep quiet when asked about the red lines beyond which strikes against decision-making centers in Ukraine might follow. "As for the red lines are concerned, I will prefer to keep it to myself, because on our side this would imply rather harsh actions against the decision-making centers that I was talking about that you have mentioned."

On past and future relations with Kiev

Russia will never agree to forget about the bloody state coup in Ukraine in 2014 as it is the root of today’s problems. At the same time, Putin believes that relations between Moscow and Kiev will eventually return to normal. ‘We assume that the situation will normalize sooner or later, and we want all our neighbors to flourish. And then <…> ties will be inevitably restored."

Recognition and future of Donbass

Russia had every right to recognize the Donbass republics under the UN Charter, in accordance with the Kosovo precedent, and will keep defending interests of Donbass residents. "When Kosovo declared independence, the International Court of Justice, pressured by Western countries, ruled that under the UN Charter, when a country declared independence, there was no need to seek permission from the central government," Putin said, adding that a precedent had been set then. "It means that the Donbass republics did not have to ask Kiev for permission."

The region’s future depends solely on its residents: "We will treat their every choice with respect," he said.

Meanwhile, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who was also present at the session, said his country regards the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics as quasi states and is unlikely to recognize their independence.

On relations with Kazakhstan

"We have allied relations with Kazakhstan. One might say, fraternal ones. We are members of the same defense bloc - the CSTO. Also, we are members of the same economic organization. Will it ever occur to anybody in Russia to spoil relations with Kazakhstan on any issues? This is nonsense. We are interested in strengthening such relations."

On nuclear threat and security guarantees

When asked at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum to comment on the West’s allegations about the threat of a nuclear war and the Third World War, the Russian leader noted that Moscow "hears such rhetoric."

"Where does it come from? From their own statements. Now and then irresponsible politicians would blurt out something like that, even high-ranking politicians - say, at the level of foreign ministries, the leaders are ranting and raving about it. Are we supposed to stay silent? We are responding correspondingly. As soon as we respond, they would pick on our words and say: look, Russia is threatening us. We are not threatening anyone, but everyone should know what we have and what we will use to defend our sovereignty. These are obvious things."

Moscow is ready to build relations with all countries, despite of what is happening today, but it will take care about its security on its own: "Solely the Army and the Fleet can be a guarantee of our security."

On those who are ashamed of being Russian

"Some people say they are ashamed of being from Russia. You know, those ashamed are the people who do not link their own future and life, as well as the future and lives of their children, with our country. They are not ashamed, they are afraid of having problems in regions where they want to live and want their children to live."

On optimism in global politics

Putin hopes that the situation in global affairs would finally calm down: "We are not happy that some countries may face any negative consequences. We don’t want it. We hope that common sense will ultimately win the upper hand and the situation in global affairs will finally calm down and everyone will respect each other’s interests, and we will be able to operate normally."

He pointed to a growing controversy in the United States. "If [US] policies remain the same, it will keep growing," Putin said, adding that he had "great respect for the American people."

"At the end of the day, relations will become what they should in these countries, in the United States and on the international stage. I am more of an optimist than a pessimist.".

17 Jun, 2022 13:18

Home Russia & Former Soviet Union

Previous world order won't return – Putin

The changes now happening are fundamental and irreversible, the Russian leader says

"Those who believe that things will go back to the way they were before the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine are wrong, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

"It is a mistake to suggest that the times of turbulent changes can be waited out and that things will return to normal; that everything will be as it was. It won’t,” Putin insisted during his speech at the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Friday.

The changes that the world is going through at the moment are fundamental, radical, and irreversible, he added.

However, the ruling elites of some Western countries refuse to notice this obvious shift and choose to “cling to the shadows of the past,” he added. . ."

SPIEF-2022

Unipolar world order gone forever, Putin says

This era is over despite all the attempts to revive it and hold on to it at any cost, the Russian leader noted

ST. PETERSBURG, June 17. /TASS/. Taking the podium at the plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the era of a unipolar world order has come to an end despite attempts to preserve it at all costs.

"A year and a half ago, when speaking at the Davos Forum, it was stressed again that the era of the unipolar world order was over," the Russian head of state said, noting that now he also would like to begin his address with this, "there is no getting around this."

"[This era] is over despite all the attempts to revive it and hold on to it at any cost. This is a natural process, these changes are a natural course of history because it is difficult to combine the planet’s civilizational diversity, the wealth of cultures with political, economic and other models. These models don’t work here, the models that bluntly, without any alternatives, are being imposed upon from one center," the Russian leader added.

According to him, "the flaw lies in the very idea where there is a single, albeit strong power with a limited circle of close states, or, as they also say, those admitted to it, while all the rules of business and international relations, when necessary, are interpreted exclusively in the interests of this power, that is, it’s a one-way street."

"It’s a one-sided game. A world based on such dogmas is definitely unstable," the president concluded."

British PM Keeping The 'UK' in The Ukraine: Leaders of European Union All-In for a Media Show

Intro: Was BoJo feeling feeling left out in the flurry of diplomats-making-deals ??????

Boris stuns as he makes 2nd surprise trip to Kyiv to hold urgent talks with hero Zelensky

BORIS JOHNSON has arrived in Kyiv to meet Volodymyr Zelensky for the second time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Michael Curzon

Express.co.uk

A video from the Ukrainian Government is reported to have shown Mr Zelensky greet Mr Johnson with a “hi, Boris” as he arrived at the presidential palace.

The President’s Telegram account also released a message reading: “Many days of this war have proved that Great Britain's support for Ukraine is firm and resolute.

"Glad to see our country's great friend Boris Johnson in Kyiv again."

[ ] Shortly after the Kremlin launched its invasion, a senior diplomat, quoted by Spectator Editor Fraser Nelson in the Telegraph, said: “If you look at all the options, our strategic interest is probably best served in a long war, a quagmire that drains [Putin] militarily and economically so he cannot do this again.”

Number 10 made no mention of any efforts to help facilitate negotiations for peace in its statement upon Mr Johnson’s arrival in Ukraine, only of how to boost the Ukrainian Armed Forces to help them “be victorious in their fight for enduring peace”.

The meeting, as in April, was kept secret due to security concerns.

Boris stuns as he makes 2nd surprise trip to Kyiv to hold urgent talks with hero Zelensky. (Image: AFP)

In the published photo of their meeting, Mr Johnson holds a notebook marked “5th April”. . .

In his visit today, Mr Johnson offered to launch a “major training operation for Ukrainian forces”.

Boris Johnson with Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv. (Image: AFP)

Boris Johnson with Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.l (Image: AFP)

The Government said this would have the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days.

The Prime Minister’s office added: “The UK-led programme would train and drill the Armed Forces of Ukraine using battle-proven British Army expertise, allowing them to accelerate their deployment, rebuild their forces, and scale-up their resistance as they continue to defend their nation’s sovereignty against Russian invaders.

“International partners would be invited to host the programme, if the offer is accepted by Ukraine.”

Mr Johnson insisted the UK “will be with you until you ultimately prevail”.

This echoed the message he delivered in April, that “we are in it for the long run”.

But voters in Nottingham earlier this month argued not enough was being done to facilitate peace – that the Government should be talking more with Vladimir Putin, too, to increase, even if just buy a small margin, the likelihood of some form of negotiation.

Boris Johnson with Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv. (Image: AFP)

___________________________________________________________________________

France, Germany, Italy and Romania have all now called for an immediate grant to Ukraine of EU-member candidate status. Becoming a full member of the EU could take years, 15 to 20 years, as Macron’s Minister for European Affairs, Clement Beaune, has said. Macron himself has told the French parliament that it could take “several decades.”

17 Jun, 2022 15:25

Home Russia & FSU

As the bloc faces a looming energy crisis, are EU leaders using potential membership to rein in Ukraine's Zelensky?

Understanding that prolonged fighting will only hurt them, it seems the top EU states want to sway Ukraine to peace

Rachel Marsden is a columnist, political strategist, and host of independently produced talk-shows in French and English.

rachelmarsden.com

When the leaders of the three leading EU countries – Germany, France, and Italy – took a train to Kiev to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky, this week, the public show was one of solidarity and support. But there could be much more to the visit than meets the eye.

The politicians, who were also joined in Ukraine by Romania’s president, represent the bloc’s economic engine, which right now is stalling under the its own anti-Russia sanctions. Themselves a knee-jerk ideological response to the conflict in Ukraine.

Now, it’s their own political interests back home that are now increasingly in peril as this conflict drags on and drives up the cost of daily living for the average EU citizen through record high gas prices and inflation. And the situation just seems to be getting worse as the unforeseen consequences pile up.

This week, Russia’s Gazprom announced an overall reduction of 40% in Russian gas deliveries to Europe via the Nord Stream pipeline, citing Siemens’ failure to return repaired gas pumps. The German company explained that Canadian anti-Russian sanctions prevented the return of the units from a factory in Montreal.

So it’s hardly surprising that French President Emmanuel Macron, whose centrist parliamentary majority is in a tight election race this weekend against a left-leaning coalition, has pivoted his recent rhetoric towards more of an emphasis on negotiated peace over continued armed conflict. “At some point, when we will have done our maximum to help Ukraine resist – when, as is my wish, it will have won and the firing has ceased – we will have to negotiate,” Macron said this week. “The president of Ukraine and its leaders will have to negotiate with Russia.” Macron has come under fire from Ukrainian officials, including Zelensky himself, who accused France of pressuring him to cede disputed territory or to make other concessions to end the conflict.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has also been chastised by Ukrainian officials for dragging his feet in delivering promised weapons. But Scholz is sending a pretty strong message to Ukrainian officials as they wait around for their promised German weapons to arrive and end up feeling and acting like jilted boyfriends who were stood-up on a date. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s foreign minister, Luigi Di Maio, proposed a four-point peace plan last month which served, if nothing else, to at least project his government’s desire for peace rather than continued conflict.

The EU has placed itself in a tough spot. It has promised total support to Ukraine and Zelensky, but seems to have come to the realization that peace can’t realistically be achieved by giving Zelensky everything that he asks for – and that a resolution to the conflict is going much more likely to come via negotiations than through prolonging the fighting in the hopes of a Ukrainian victory. In this sense, they view things differently than Washington, which stands to benefit from the rupture of economic and political relations between the EU and Russia.

Then there's some of the Eastern European EU members, who are vociferous supporters of Kiev. However, they are net recipients of Brussels' largesse and therefore aren’t likely to be stuck footing the bill for the current mess. . ."

CONTINUE READING >> https://www.rt.com/russia/557322-prospect-ukraines-eu-accession/

> Updated 11m ago

Tom Ambrose (now) and Zaina Alibhai (earlier)

Sat 18 Jun 2022 10.46 EDT

First published on Sat 18 Jun 2022 02.44 EDT

It is important Britain continues to show it is supporting Ukraine for the long haul, the prime minister, Boris Johnson, said on Saturday, warning of a risk of “Ukraine fatigue” as the war drags on.

“The Russians are grinding forward inch by inch and it is vital for us to show what we know to be true which is that Ukraine can win and will win,” Johnson told reporters on his arrival back in Britain from a visit to Kyiv.

Some members of his Conservative party had criticised him for making the trip instead of attending a conference in northern England, Reuters reported.

“When Ukraine fatigue is setting in, it is very important to show that we are with them for the long haul and we are giving them the strategic resilience that they need,” Johnson said.

Boris Johnson and Volodymyr Zelenskiy — Boris Johnson met the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, during a surprise trip to Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv. Photograph: Ukraine Presidency/Zuma Press Wire Service

Ukraine can and should host the 2023 Eurovision song contest, the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, said on Saturday, after the organisers said they were in talks to hold it in Britain instead due to the war.

While decades-long tradition dictates that the winner of the contest gets to host it the following year, organisers said the security guarantees required to hold the competition in Ukraine meant discussions would be held with the runner-up, Britain.

“Of course I would love it to be in this country but the fact is they won and they deserve to have it and I believe they can have it and I believe that they should have it,” Johnson told reporters on arrival back in Britain after a visit to Kyiv.

“I believe that Kyiv or any other safe Ukrainian city would be a fantastic place to have it,” he added. “It is a year away, it is going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes round and I hope the Ukrainians get it.”

The comments by organiser the European Broadcasting Union on Friday that it was in discussions with British broadcaster the BBC to host the next event was greeted with disappointment in Kyiv, which demanded further negotiations.

The British prime minister has urged the European Broadcast Union (EBU) to reverse its decision to move the Eurovision song contest from Ukraine to the UK.

The EBU decided to move the popular contest from Ukraine citing security risks and is currently in talks with the BBC.

Boris Johnson: Ukraine deserves to host Eurovision song contest – video

> Boris Johnson has said it is important for the UK to show it stands steadfastly Ukraine amid what he described as ‘Ukraine fatigue’.

Important to show UK is with Ukraine for the long haul, Boris Johnson says – video

MesaZona > Table of Contents : Here's The Menu. Enjoy