Tehran: The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman has said that three Iranian diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia have resumed operations.
Nasser Kanaani made the remarks on Monday at a weekly press conference when asked to comment on the progress by Iran and Saudi Arabia to reopen their diplomatic missions following an agreement that was reached between the two countries in March on the normalisation of their bilateral ties, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a report by Mehr news agency.
The three diplomatic missions are Iran’s embassy in Riyadh, a consulate general in Jeddah and a representative office to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Jeddah, Kanaani was quoted as saying.
Kanaani stressed that the two countries are in the early stages of resuming their bilateral relations and reopening their embassies, adding that Iran’s technical team is currently based in Saudi Arabia and laying the groundwork.
He said he is optimistic that the two countries’ embassies will start their full operations as planned in accordance with their agreement.
The two countries had carried out good coordination in a humanitarian issue in their first steps toward the resumption of the bilateral diplomatic activities, said Kanaani, adding that the evacuation of 65 Iranian nationals from Sudan and their transfer to Iran via the Saudi port city of Jeddah was a positive development.
Regarding an upcoming visit by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Saudi Arabia, Kanaani said Tehran has received an official invitation from Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and has responded to it officially.
At a press conference held in the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Friday, Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian confirmed that he and his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud have also invited each other for official visits.
Saudi Arabia and Iran reached a deal in March to resume diplomatic relations and reopen embassies and missions in the two countries within two months.
On April 6, the two countries announced the resumption of diplomatic relations with immediate effect.
KYIV — From the glass cage in a Kyiv courtroom, Roman Dudin professed his innocence loudly.
And he fumed at the unusual decision to prevent a handful of journalists from asking him questions during a break in the hearing.
The former Kharkiv security chief is facing charges of treason and deserting his post, allegations he and his supporters deny vehemently.
“Why can’t I talk with the press?” he bellowed. As he shook his close-cropped head in frustration, his lawyers, a handful of local reporters and supporters chorused his question. At a previous hearing Dudin had been allowed during a break to answer questions from journalists, in keeping with general Ukrainian courtroom practice, but according to his lawyers and local reporters, the presence of POLITICO appeared to unnerve authorities.
Suspiciously, too, the judge returned and to the courtroom’s surprise announced an unexpected adjournment, offering no reason. A commotion ensued as she left and further recriminations followed when court guards again blocked journalists from talking with Dudin.
***
Ukraine’s hunt for traitors, double agents and collaborators is quickening.
Nearly every day another case is publicized by authorities of alleged treason by senior members of the security and law-enforcement agencies, prosecutors, state industry employees, mayors and other elected officials.
Few Ukrainians — nor Western intelligence officials, for that matter — doubt that large numbers of top-level double agents and sympathizers eased the way for Russia’s invasion, especially in southern Ukraine, where they were able to seize control of the city of Kherson with hardly any resistance.
And Ukrainian authorities say they’re only getting started in their spy hunt for individuals who betrayed the country and are still undermining Ukraine’s security and defense.
Because of historic ties with Russia, the Security Service of Ukraine and other security agencies, as well as the country’s arms and energy industries, are known to be rife with spies. Since the 2013-14 Maidan uprising, which saw the ouster of Viktor Yanukovych, Moscow’s satrap in Ukraine, episodic sweeps and purges have been mounted.
As conflict rages the purges have become more urgent. And possibly more political as government criticism mounts from opposition politicians and civil society leaders. They are becoming publicly more censorious, accusing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his tight-knit team of using the war to consolidate as much power as possible.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said authorities were investigating more than 650 cases of suspected treason and aiding and abetting Russia by officials | Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
Last summer, Zelenskyy fired several high-level officials, including his top two law enforcement officials, prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova and security chief Ivan Bakanov, both old friends of his. In a national address, he said authorities were investigating more than 650 cases of suspected treason and aiding and abetting Russia by officials, including 60 who remained in territories seized by Russia and are “working against our state.”
“Such a great number of crimes against the foundations of national security and the connections established between Ukrainian law enforcement officials and Russian special services pose very serious questions,” he said.
***
But while there’s considerable evidence of treason and collaboration, there’s growing unease in Ukraine that not all the cases and accusations are legitimate.
Some suspect the spy hunt is now merging with a political witch hunt. They fear that the search may be increasingly linked to politicking or personal grudges or bids to conceal corruption and wrongdoing. But also to distract from mounting questions about government ineptitude in the run-up to the invasion by a revanchist and resentful Russia.
Among the cases prompting concern when it comes to possible concealment of corruption is the one against 40-year-old Roman Dudin. “There’s something wrong with this case,” Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a former Ukrainian deputy prime minister and now opposition lawmaker, told POLITICO.
And that’s the view of the handful of supporters who were present for last week’s hearing. “This is a political persecution, and he’s a very good officer, honest and dignified,” said 50-year-old Irina, whose son, now living in Florida, served with Dudin. “He’s a politically independent person and he was investigating corruption involving the Kharkiv mayor and some other powerful politicians, and this is a way of stopping those investigations,” she argued.
Zelenskyy relieved Dudin of his duties last May, saying he “did not work to defend the city from the first days of the full-scale war.” But Dudin curiously wasn’t detained and charged for a further four months and was only arrested in September last year. Dudin’s lead lawyer, Oleksandr Kozhevnikov, says neither Zelenskyy nor his SBU superiors voiced any complaints about his work before he was fired.
“To say the evidence is weak is an understatement — it just does not correspond to reality. He received some awards and recognition for his efforts before and during the war from the defense ministry,” says Kozhevnikov. “When I agreed to consider taking the case, I told Roman if there was any hint of treason, I would drop it immediately — but I’ve found none,” he added.
The State Bureau of Investigation says Dudin “instead of organizing work to counter the enemy … actually engaged in sabotage.” It claims he believed the Russian “offensive would be successful” and hoped Russian authorities would treat him favorably due to his subversion, including “deliberately creating conditions” enabling the invaders to seize weapons and equipment from the security service bases in Kharkiv. In addition, he’s alleged to have left his post without permission, illegally ordered his staff to quit the region and of wrecking a secure communication system for contact with Kyiv.
But documents obtained by POLITICO from relevant Ukrainian agencies seem to undermine the allegations. One testifies no damage was found to the secure communication system; and a document from the defense ministry says Dudin dispersed weapons from the local SBU arsenal to territorial defense forces. “Local battalions are grateful to him for handing out weapons,” says Kozhevnikov.
And his lawyer says Dudin only left Kharkiv because he was ordered to go to Kyiv by superiors to help defend the Ukrainian capital. A geolocated video of Dudin in uniform along with other SBU officers in the center of Kyiv, ironically a stone’s throw from the Pechersk District Court, has been ruled by the judge as inadmissible. The defense has asked the judge to recuse herself because of academic ties with Oleh Tatarov, a deputy head of the presidential administration, but the request has been denied.
According to a 29-page document compiled by the defense lawyers for the eventual trial, Dudin and his subordinates seem to have been frantically active to counter Russia forces as soon as the first shots were fired, capturing 24 saboteurs, identifying 556 collaborators and carrying out reconnaissance on Russian troop movements.
Roman Dudin is facing charges of treason and allegations that he eased the way for Russian invaders | Jamie Dettmer for POLITICO
Timely information transmitted by the SBU helped military and intelligence units to stop an armored Russian column entering the city of Kharkiv, according to defense lawyers.
“The only order he didn’t carry out was to transfer his 25-strong Alpha special forces team to the front lines because they were needed to catch saboteurs,” says Kozhevnikov. “The timing of his removal is suspicious — it was when he was investigating allegations of humanitarian aid being diverted by some powerful politicians.”
***
Even before Dudin’s case there were growing doubts about some of the treason accusations being leveled — including vague allegations against former prosecutor Venediktova and former security chief Bakanov. Both were accused of failing to prevent collaboration by some within their departments. But abruptly in November, Venediktova was appointed Ukraine’s ambassador to Switzerland. And two weeks ago, the State Bureau of Investigation said the agency had found no criminal wrongdoing by Bakanov.
The clearing of both with scant explanation, after their humiliating and highly public sackings, has prompted bemusement. Although some SBU insiders do blame Bakanov for indolence in sweeping for spies ahead of the Russian invasion.
Treason often seems the go-to charge — whether appropriate or not — and used reflexively.
Last month, several Ukrainian servicemen were accused of treason for having inadvertently revealed information during an unauthorized mission, which enabled Russia to target a military airfield.
The servicemen tried without permission to seize a Russian warplane in July after its pilot indicated he wanted to defect. Ham-fisted the mission might have been, but lawyers say it wasn’t treasonable.
Spy hunt or witch hunt? With the word treason easily slipping off tongues these days in Kyiv, defense lawyers at the Pechersk District Court worry the two are merging.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.eu )
The EU will send a civilian mission to Moldova to help the Eastern European nation combat growing threats from abroad, officials have confirmed, following a string of reports that the Kremlin is working to destabilize the former Soviet Republic.
In a statement issued Monday, the bloc’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said that the mission, under the Common Security and Defence Policy, would step up “support to Moldova [to] protect its security, territorial integrity and sovereignty” against Russia.
Officials confirmed that the mission will focus on “crisis management and hybrid threats, including cybersecurity, and countering foreign information manipulation and interference.”
In February, the president of neighboring Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Kyiv’s security services had intercepted Russian plans to “break the democracy of Moldova and establish control over Moldova.” The country’s pro-EU leader, President Maia Sandu, later alleged that “the plan included sabotage and militarily trained people disguised as civilians to carry out violent actions, attacks on government buildings and taking hostages.”
According to Vlad Lupan, Moldova’s former ambassador to the U.N. and a professor at New York University, Brussels’ move comes after “multiple signals Moldova would not be able to deal with Russian influence operations alone.” He told POLITICO that the mission would now have to focus on “communicating why the EU’s rule of law and democracy brings both respect and prosperity to the people compared to the Russian autocratic model.”
Home to just 2.6 million people, Moldova was for decades one of Moscow’s closest allies, and 1,500 Russian troops are currently stationed in the breakaway region of Transnistria. Elected in 2020, Sandu has repeatedly condemned the Kremlin for invading Ukraine and called for the withdrawal of its forces from her country. In June last year, EU leaders announced Moldova, as well as Ukraine, would be granted candidate status, beginning the process for its accession to become a new member state.
However, Moscow still maintains a significant hold on the country, operating several popular Russian-language state media outlets and supplying almost all of its natural gas. After the Russian energy giant Gazprom announced last year it would raise prices, as well as turn off the taps unless past debts were paid in full, Moldova, one of the Continent’s poorest countries, has turned to Brussels for support in diversifying its supplies.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.eu )
The Russian government is kicking several German diplomats out of the country in an alleged tit-for-tat move, its foreign ministry said on Saturday.
“The German authorities have decided on yet another mass expulsion of employees of Russian diplomatic missions in Germany. We strongly condemn these actions of Berlin, which continues to defiantly destroy the entire array of Russian-German relations,” the ministry said in a statement, arguing that Germany’s actions were “hostile.”
The foreign affairs ministry did not specify how many diplomats it would expel, although ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told state-run television Zvezda that Moscow had decided to expel “more than 20,” according to AFP.
Russia said it took the decision in response to Germany ordering a “mass expulsion” of Russian diplomats, without specifying further details. The German foreign ministry confirmed to German outlet Deutschlandfunk only that it had been in contact with Russian authorities regarding personnel questions.
Germany had been informed of the move at the beginning of the month, the Russian foreign ministry added in the statement.
Since the war in Ukraine began, tensions between Moscow and Berlin have increased. In April last year, the German government expelled some 40 Russian diplomats from the country.
Washington: As many as 44 Indian-American organisations have condemned the repeated attacks and instances of vandalism at various Indian institutions and the recent attacks on Indian diplomatic missions in San Francisco, London, and Brisbane, which they said have left the community in a state of shock and fear.
Under the banner of “Indian Diaspora Against Hate,” several eminent Indian-Americans and organisations from diverse backgrounds — cultural, linguistic and religious — across the country issued a signed letter condemning the violent attacks in which they called on all civic officials and federal, state and local law enforcement to take measures to ensure the safety of the Indian-American community.
Last month, a group of pro-Khalistan protesters attacked and damaged the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, prompting sharp condemnation from Indian-Americans who demanded immediate action against those responsible for it.
A group of protesters carrying pro-Khalistan flags and banners in support of radical Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh gathered at the Parliament Square in London last month.
Representing Indian Americans from various cities and geographical locations, the organisations and community members urged citizens to be cautious of hate groups and report them to the administration.
They have also urged the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice to monitor extremists’ activities, prevent hateful attacks and take decisive action against these perpetrators of hate.
“Many Hindu community leaders have been threatened and they even attacked my residence recently,” said Dr Romesh Japra, cardiologist and community leader.
Madhu H, Social activist from Southern California said: “Khalistani extremists have a long and tragic track record of violence, including being responsible for the downing of an Air India jet in 1985, killing more than 300 people.” Venu M, a Hindu Leader from California State Capitol Sacramento was remembering the desecration of Gandhi statue in the City of Davis, said “Indian-Americans are increasingly concerned about the lack of safety for Indian- American institutions in the wake of these attacks.” The letter welcomed the statement of the State Department condemning the attack against the Indian Consulate at San Francisco.
It also welcomes the statement of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, rejecting hatred and attacks on Hindu temples.
It said that the community is concerned that the failure to check the violence by people who are motivated to disrupt peace and create a condition of fear is only encouraging an escalation in aggression, a media release said.
“Indian Diaspora Against Hate” is a forum to collaborate with Indian-American organisations, institutions, and Hindu temples who are concerned about the safety, security and well-being of the Indian diaspora and voice their opinion to the civic and law enforcement agencies.
London: The British government takes the security of the Indian High Commission in London “extremely seriously” and robustly responds to criminal incidents at diplomatic missions, the House of Commons has been informed.
In response to a written parliamentary question by Indian-origin Labour MP Navendu Mishra, UK Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said on Monday that the government finds the criminal damage and assaults on staff at the Indian High Commission in London last month “unacceptable”.
“The government takes the protective security of the Indian High Commission extremely seriously,” said Tugendhat.
“The government remains committed to protecting the security of missions throughout the UK, including preventing and rapidly and robustly responding to incidents such as this. The criminal damage and assaults on staff from the India High Commission at the incident on the weekend of the 18th March were unacceptable. The police have powers to deal with such acts,” he said.
The Home Office minister said the follow ups in the case were an operational matter for the police, with decisions on possible criminal proceedings to be made in conjunction with the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
“As stated in our previous response, it is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on diplomatic security arrangements. To do so could compromise the integrity of those arrangements and affect the security of the individuals and locations concerned,” he added.
Mishra had tabled his question at the end of last month to seek further information about the security assessments assured by the British government in the immediate aftermath of the attack on the High Commission premises and what steps were being taken “to ensure the safety and security of diplomatic missions”.
It comes as it emerged that India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) will take over the case of the attempted vandalisation of India House in London during last month’s protest, as it involves unlawful activities carried out by certain people holding Indian nationality abroad.
Indian officials have said that the NIA will take over the investigation from the special cell of the Delhi Police, which had registered a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
A group of pro-Khalistani protestors shattered windows at the London mission and pulled down the national flag during protests on March 19, a day after the local police launched a crackdown against radical preacher Amritpal Singh in Punjab.
Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has issued instructions to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to slash down a number of foreign missions abroad and reduce their offices, staff, and other measures to cut down expenditures by 15 per cent.
“The Prime Minister is pleased to direct that a well-considered proposal/plan in this respect may please be submitted to this office within two weeks positively,” The News quoted a directive issued by the PMO as saying.
This official communication titled “Rationalisation of Foreign Mission Abroad” states that in view of the ongoing economic constraints and the consequent need for fiscal consolidation and control of external deficit, the Prime Minister was pleased to constitute a National Austerity Committee (NAC).
The committee has recommended, inter-alia, that the expenditure on Pakistan Missions abroad may be reduced by 15 per cent.
“This may be achieved by curtailing the number of Foreign Missions, reduction in the number of officers and staff posted there and other suitable measures,” it further stated.
There have been increasing frustrations among the political-cum-technocratic members of the federal cabinet for reluctance on the part of the government not to implement the recommendations given by the NAC which was constituted by the premier himself but so far no action got implemented, The News reported.
For instance, one federal minister consumes 1,000 liters of petrol on monthly basis. He possesses a luxurious vehicle and three other official cars, The News reported.
Another minister demonstrating austerity has written a letter to return a vehicle to the government and also made the letter public.
But he didn’t disclose that he had utilised his ministry’s limit on petrol just in a couple of months of the ongoing financial year.
There is another practice in the Federal Secretariat as hiring was being done in name of specialists, experts, and young fellows without consideration of actual requirements and well-defined Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
The majority of bureaucrats is taking the monetisation of vehicles but is also using official cars and petrol through different heads, The News reported.
KYIV — Pete Reed, an American volunteer medic and founder of the NGO Global Response Medicine, was killed while helping to evacuate civilians in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.
Reed, a former U.S. Marine, died on Thursday in the besieged city in the Donetsk region of the country, GRM said late Friday.
“In January, Pete stepped away from GRM to work with Global Outreach Doctors on their Ukraine mission and was killed while rendering aid,” the NGO said. “Pete was the bedrock of GRM, serving as Board President for 4 years,” it said.
Bakhmut has been one of the major hot spots during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In the ongoing attempts to seize the city, Moscow has been throwing thousands of troops at the Ukrainian positions in Bakhmut in tactics that have gained the name “meat waves.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the city in December, calling it the “hottest spot” in the war.
“Pete was just 33 years old, but lived a life in service of others, first as a decorated U.S. Marine and then in humanitarian aid,” GRM said. “We fully support Pete’s family, friends, and colleagues during this devastating time.”
Global Outreach Doctors also confirmed the death of Reed, who was the organization’s Ukraine Country director. “Pete was actively aiding in the evacuation of Ukrainian civilians when his evacuation vehicle was hit with a reported missile in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on Feb. 2,” the group said in a statement.
Reed’s wife, Alex Kay Potter, wrote on Instagram that her husband apparently died saving another team member’s life, CNN reported. “He was evacuating civilians and responding to those wounded when his ambulance was shelled,” her post said, according to the CNN report.
“Pete Reed, a volunteer medic, was killed by shelling in Bakhmut, Ukraine, yesterday while trying to evacuate civilians. One of the most selfless people I’ve ever met,” documentary photographer Cengiz Yar wrote in a tweet.
The same day Reed was killed, two other foreign volunteer doctors were injured in a bombing in Bakhmut. The medics — Norwegians Sander Sørsveen Trelvik and Simon Johnsen — were working for Frontline Doctors. They were taken to a hospital in Dnipro for surgery.
They both are recovering and preparing to return to Norway on Tuesday, Grethe Sørsveen, Sander’s mother, wrote on Facebook.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.eu )
Los Angeles: NASA and the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) have announced a collaboration to demonstrate a nuclear thermal rocket engine in space, the key steps for sending the first crewed missions to Mars.
NASA and DARPA will partner on the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) programme, Xinhua news agency reported.
Using a nuclear thermal rocket allows for faster transit time, reducing risk for astronauts, according to NASA.
Reducing transit time is a key component for human missions to Mars, as longer trips require more supplies and more robust systems.
“NASA will work with our long-term partner, DARPA, to develop and demonstrate advanced nuclear thermal propulsion technology as soon as 2027. With the help of this new technology, astronauts could journey to and from deep space faster than ever – a major capability to prepare for crewed missions to Mars,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
