The World Blog by humble servant.

While multiple European leaders have publicly proclaimed they won’t buy Russian gas in rubles as Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded, 10 EU countries are technically going along with Putin’s plan, Hungarian official Gergely Gulyas told public radio on Sunday. According to Gulyas, these countries’ leaders aren’t admitting this in order to be seen as “being a good European.” Gulyas said that Hungary has opened a euro account with Russia’s Gazprombank, which then converts payments into rubles before transferring them to suppliers in Russia. This system allows European buyers to comply with Putin’s demand, made in late March, that “unfriendly” countries switch to Russia’s national currency to buy its natural gas. “There are nine other countries using the same payment scheme, but because today the idea of being a good European also means that the leaders of those countries are not honest when speaking either in the international arena or to their own people, the other nine coun...

A hypothesis suggesting that the seeds of life could have been literally brought to Earth from space has received a boost from a study published earlier this week that showed that all five key “ingredients” needed to form DNA can be found on asteroids. A group of scientists has discovered the final two pieces of the DNA puzzle that had previously not been observed in any meteorite samples, according to a paper published this week in the peer-reviewed Nature Communications journal. DNA and RNA, which form the genetic basis of all known living beings on Earth, consist of five key informational components called nucleobases. Until now, scientists had been able to find three out of the five in various meteorite samples, showing that they could have been brought to Earth from space. NASA discovers alien SUGAR on board two fallen meteorites indicating possible origin of LIFE on Earth Read more NASA discovers alien SUGAR on board two fallen meteorites indicating possible origin of LIFE on ...

Thousands of protesters packed the streets of Paris on Sunday to mark May Day, an annual day of demonstration by socialists and trade unions. With masked ‘black bloc’ anarchists among the crowd, violence and vandalism soon followed. At least 5,000 police officers were deployed to the streets of the French capital, backed up by armored cars and water cannons. This year’s protests came a week after French President Emmanuel Macron was re-elected, and with around 250 demonstrations planned in the city alone, trade union boss Philippe Martinez called on citizens to “take to the streets” and make the protests “as massive as possible.” Leftist leader Jean-Luc Melenchon called on his followers to oppose Macron’s planned pension reforms, and marchers held banners decrying the centrist president’s plans to raise the retirement age to 65. Amid crowds of peaceful marchers, groups dressed in black and wearing masks soon scuffled with police. Tear gas was fired and video footage showed office...

Starting in 2025, Russian state-owned entities will be prohibited from using information security tools produced in “unfriendly” countries, a presidential decree has declared. On Sunday, Russian president Vladimir Putin signed a law that aims to boost the country’s information security. The document, which has been published on the government’s website, says that state-controlled entities will be prohibited from using information security tools originating in “foreign states which commit unfriendly actions against the Russian Federation, Russian legal entities or individuals” or produced by manufacturers that are controlled or affiliated with “unfriendly” states. The list of entities subject to the decree includes governmental and regional authorities and organizations, state funds, state-controlled companies, strategically important organizations and “legal entities that are subjects of the critical information infrastructure of the Russian Federation.” The decree orders the heads ...

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Sunday barring the country’s banks from sharing data with government agencies from so-called ‘unfriendly’ nations that have illegally sanctioned Russian entities and individuals. The new law prohibits the country’s financial institutions from responding to requests from foreign agencies, including judicial bodies, for information about their clients and transactions. From now on, banks are instructed to reject such inquiries, citing Russian law as the reason for not processing such requests. They should also notify the Central Bank within three days that a blacklisted country had been seeking data. A request from an ‘unfriendly’ nation can only be fulfilled if the Central Bank receives approval for it from a relevant Russian government agency. Major Russian banks hit by sanctions Read more Major Russian banks hit by sanctions The new rules are being introduced to minimize the risks from foreign bank secrecy legislation that could t...

All-time grand slam wins leader Rafael Nadal has joined generational rival Novak Djokovic in criticizing Wimbledon's ban on Russian tennis stars. Though Russian players are currently allowed to perform on the WTA and ATP women's and men's tours under natural status, Wimbledon organizers the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) recently announced that the likes of Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev will not be able to compete at SW19 this summer as a response to ongoing military operation in Ukraine. Ahead of his return to the tennis courts at the Madrid Masters following a rib stress fracture, however, Nadal has dubbed the action "very unfair" on his "Russian mates" and colleagues. "It's not their fault what's happening in this moment," Nadal stressed to reporters. Furthermore, Nadal also doesn't agree with the possible removal of ranking points, which could affect Medvedev's quest to reclaim the world number one spot from ...

Billionaire investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett has blasted Wall Street, saying that speculative behavior is largely encouraged and that this is turning the stock market into a “gambling parlor.” “Wall Street makes money, one way or another, catching the crumbs that fall off the table of capitalism,” Buffett said during his annual shareholder meeting Saturday. “They don’t make money unless people do things, and they get a piece of them. They make a lot more money when people are gambling than when they are investing.” The Berkshire Hathaway CEO highlighted the short-term uncertainty of the increasingly volatile market. “The interesting thing is, obviously, we haven’t the faintest idea what the stock market is going to do when it opens on Monday,” Buffett said. According to Buffett, large American companies have “became poker chips” for market speculation. He cited the soaring use of call options, saying that brokers make more money from these bets than from simple investin...

Western media coverage of the Ukraine conflict has been so hysterically one-sided, and divorced from reality, that it's probably only a matter of time before Iraq's erstwhile 'Comical Ali' is brought out of retirement to insist that there are no Russians advancing towards the Ukrainian army's front lines. Meanwhile, the actual fighting continues to result in a string of defeats for Kiev's battered forces, who have already lost control of two major cities, despite unprecedented support from the US and its allies. As American officials work with the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to craft a perception of Kiev's victory against the Russian military, Moscow is preparing to counter with a harsh dose of reality. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, on the heels of a dramatic visit to the Ukrainian capital of Kiev where, together with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, he met with Zelensky, testified before Congress that the goal of the ...

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that Berlin won’t take the lead in sending heavy weapons and vehicles to Ukraine. Pressed to do so by officials in Kiev and from within his own government, Scholz insisted that he won’t take any “hasty action” that could broaden the ongoing conflict. “I make my decisions quickly and coordinate them with our allies,” Scholz told German tabloid Bild am Sonntag in an interview published on Sunday. “I am suspicious of hasty action and German solo efforts.” The newspaper noted that Scholz’s phrasing indicates that as long as the United States and Germany’s other major allies are not sending Western-made battle tanks to Ukraine, Germany will not stand out and send such armaments to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s regime. However, Scholz, a Social Democrat in office since December, has drawn intense criticism for not taking such a stand. Zelensky himself has asked Berlin to send armored vehicles and accused the German government of “earning [its] mone...

The Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday that it struck a storage of foreign weapons at a military airfield near the Black Sea port of Odessa in Ukraine. Russian supersonic Oniks missiles destroyed a hangar with “weapons and ammunition received from the US and European states,” Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov told a daily press briefing. He added that a runway was destroyed as well. The ministry also released a video of what it said was the missile launch. It wasn’t immediately clear when exactly it took place, but the Odessa regional governor, Maxim Marchenko, claimed on Saturday that a Russian “Bastion missile, launched from Crimea,” destroyed the runway at a newly constructed Odessa airport. Konashenkov also told the briefing that seven Ukrainian military targets were hit by airstrikes, including two S-300 air defense missile batteries near the cities of Zaporozhye and Artemovsk. Russia claimed last week that it destroyed a logistics hub in Odessa w...

Russian gas supplies to China have increased by almost 60% in the first four months of 2022 compared to the same period last year, Russian energy giant Gazprom announced on Sunday. The deliveries are made through the Power of Siberia pipeline as part of the contract between Gazprom and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), the company said. When Russia launched its military operation against Ukraine in late February, Beijing refused to condemn Moscow or take part in the international sanctions, despite threats from Washington. The energy standoff between Russia and the West has led to gas supplies to countries outside the former Soviet Union dropping by 26.9% since the start of the year. A total of 50.1 billion cubic meters have been delivered over the past four months. Russian energy giant to quit foreign exchanges Read more Russian energy giant to quit foreign exchanges Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered gas payments from “unfriendly countries,” which include the EU...

The Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its military offensive in Ukraine will not be lifted unless Moscow withdraws its troops from the neighboring country, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said. In an intervie w with Bild on Sunday, Baerbock explained that “a ceasefire can only be a first step” when it comes to removing the sanctions. “It is clear to us that the sanctions can only be lifted if Russia withdraws its troops,” she said, adding that “peace on terms dictated by Russia” will not bring security to Ukraine or Europe. “At worst, it would be an invitation to the next war – even closer to our borders.” Baerbock said the Russian attack on Ukraine has “irretrievably shattered” the peace in Europe, and that “there is no going back” to the times before February 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the “special military operation,” despite earlier assurances from his government that no attack against Ukraine was being planned. Serbia promises deci...

The Chinese government reportedly held an internal conference with officials from foreign and local banks as the nation seeks to protect overseas assets from US sanctions over potential military tensions in Taiwan. The meeting between officials from China’s Central Bank and Finance Ministry, as well as executives from foreign and domestic lenders, was held on April 22, FT reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the discussion. “If China attacks Taiwan, decoupling of the Chinese and western economies will be far more severe than [decoupling with] Russia, because China’s economic footprint touches every part of the world,” one of the people briefed on the meeting told the media. Chinese officials are reportedly worried that penalties similar to those imposed on Russia over the military operation in Ukraine could be introduced against China in the event of a regional military conflict or other crisis. Beijing has repeatedly criticized the US for maintaining official contact w...

Forty-six civilians were evacuated from residential buildings adjacent to the Azovstal plant in Mariupol on Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry said. A video released by the military on Sunday shows people leaving in buses marked with the ‘Z’ symbol. Ambulances can also be seen. “On April 30, due to the establishment of a ceasefire and the opening of a humanitarian corridor, two groups of civilians left the residential buildings adjacent to the territory of the Azovstal steel plant,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement. It specified that 25 local residents left the site during the day and 21 left later. “All civilians were provided with accommodation, food and the necessary medical assistance,” the ministry said. On April 21, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin that Mariupol was fully under Russian control except for the Azovstal plant – the last pocket of resistance. Built in Soviet times, the facility has a massive network of underground ...

The Russian ruble has recorded the second biggest gains among emerging market currencies against the US dollar this year. Over the first four months of the year, the Russian currency gained 6.2% against the greenback, while the Brazilian real, which sits atop the leaderboard, surged over 14% against the dollar. The Colombian peso has shown an increase of 2.5%, while the South African rand and Mexican peso rose against the dollar by 1.2% and 0.9% respectively. The Turkish lira dropped by 9.7% against the greenback, the Argentine peso fell by 10.8%, and the Egyptian pound saw a major decline of 14.9%. The Indian rupee and Thai baht fell by 2.3% and 2.7%, respectively. Ruble hits two-year high against euroREAD MORE: Ruble hits two-year high against euro The performance of the ruble is attributed to the flow of export earnings over the first months of 2022, according to Iskander Lutsko of Moscow broker ITI Capital, who also said daily revenue was hovering around at least $1.7 billion ...

Poland is participating in two large-scale multinational drills and is the host nation for one of them, the country’s Defense Ministry revealed on Sunday amid Russia’s allegations that Warsaw is preparing to occupy the western part of Ukraine. The Defender Europe 2022 (DE22) and Swift Response 2022 (SR22) will be conducted in nine countries including Poland between May 1-27, the Polish ministry said. “There will be approximately 18,000 participants from over 20 countries training together in both exercises. The portion of the exercises on Polish soil will see some 7,000 troops and 3,000 pieces of equipment,” the statement reads. Defender Europe is a regularly conducted American-led multinational exercise that aims poised to “build preparedness and interoperability between Allies and partners” of NATO and America. DE22 training will be conducted at several sites in Poland, with Polish soldiers to be joined by personnel from the US, France, Sweden, Germany, Denmark, and UK. Poland a...

The Finnish government and companies across the country are preparing for the end of Russian natural gas supplies, which could happen in less than three weeks, Helsingin Sanomat (HS) reported on Saturday. According to the outlet’s sources, Russian energy giant Gazprom has set a deadline of May 20 for Helsinki to come up with a final response on whether the country will pay for gas in rubles. The new payment mechanism for “unfriendly countries” was announced in March by Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to the sanctions imposed by Western states on Moscow over its military offensive on Ukraine. On April 28, Finnish Minister of European Affairs and Ownership Steering Tytti Tuppurainen, commenting on the demands, said Finland would not agree to “this blackmail” and that its energy company, Gasum, would stick to the previous agreements with Russia. “We are not going to pay in rubles. It is up to the companies to implement this in their own contractual framework with the Russi...

High-ranking US and UK officials held secret talks in early March to discuss greater British involvement on the issue of Taiwan, according to a report by the Financial Times. The negotiations involved Kurt Campbell, the White House's Indo-Pacific coordinator, and Laura Rosenberger, the top US National Security Council China official, and took place amid a broader two-day meeting on Indo-Pacific strategy between the sides, sources told the paper. Campbell and Rosenberger addressed a range of issues from the possibility of London intensifying diplomatic contacts with Taipei to boosting so-called deterrence in Asia, one unnamed official revealed. The role that the UK would play if tensions over Taiwan lead to war between the US and China was also on the agenda, he added. A UK official who talked to the paper said this was the “highest-level” and “most significant” bilateral discussion over Taiwan to date. “Naturally, crisis planning would be a hefty chunk of any such conversation ...

A group of protesters heckled German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during a speech on Saturday, as she defended the government’s decision to send weapons to Ukraine. Many Western states have supplied Kiev with arms since Russia attacked the neighboring country, in February. Around 1,000 people gathered to hear Baerbock speak in the northern German town of Ahrensburg. At the same time, roughly 150 attendees booed the minister and used whistles, sirens, and loudspeakers when she was on stage, police said. Some shouted “warmonger” and “liar” at Baerbock. Police said the situation calmed down after officers intervened. One person was banned from the event. Baerbock, who arrived in Ahrensburg to campaign for the Green Party in the regional elections, defended the decision to send weapons to Ukraine amid the Russian offensive. “We want to help the people of Ukraine so they can defend themselves against Putin’s war of aggression, which is illegal under international law,” she told th...

How will EU countries cover the supply shortfall? The European Union reportedly plans to significantly increase purchases of Russian gas through states that are ready to pay in rubles to compensate for the shortfall in supplies to Poland and Bulgaria. The so-called ‘reverse flow’ mechanism could allow the two countries to boost imports from their neighbors in the short-term. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports could be another option, but there is a limit to how much LNG suppliers can produce and transport. Moreover, the global liquefaction capacity is almost fully utilized, experts say. Some EU countries have no alternative as they are landlocked and therefore unable to receive shipments. According to experts, those options won’t be able to help the EU members replace any missing supplies from Russia. What is Gazprom’s position? The Russian energy giant has made it clear that the suspension of gas supplies would persist until the payments are made in rubles. Gazprom warned both Polan...

The acting premier of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) has expressed deep concerns over London’s plans to assume direct governance of the Caribbean territory, following the arrest of its leader in a US drug sting operation and a highly-critical report into alleged systemic corruption. On Friday, shortly before the premier of the BVI, Andrew Fahie, appeared before a US judge on charges of cocaine smuggling and money laundering, a commission of inquiry led by Judge Sir Gary Hickinbottom hurriedly published its final report, urging the UK to dissolve the islands’ elected government, suspend their constitution, and impose direct rule for at least two years. “What this would mean in real terms is that there would no longer be elected representatives who represent the people of the districts and the territory in the house of assembly where laws are made for our society,” Natalio Wheatley, who assumed the post of acting premier after Fahie’s arrest, said. UK seeks direct control of ex-col...