Ukraine Beats Russia In Australian Open And Gets Its Flag Banned As Well

Taking cognizance of a complaint by the Ukraine ambassador to Australia, Tennis Australia banned the flags of Russia and Belarus at the ongoing Australian Open. Russian and Belarus players were already playing under a neutral flag but the audiences were allowed to bring the flags. But now there is a total ban on Russian and Belarus flags.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Tennis Australia bans Russian and Belarus flags onsite at the tournament
• Earlier fans were allowed to bring the flags but couldn’t display
• On Monday, a Russian flag was sighted by the Ukrainian ambassador to Australia

What Action Did The Ukrainian Ambassador Demand On Sighting A Russian Flag In The Australian Open?

Ukraine Beats Russia In Australian Open And Gets Its Flag Banned

Russian and Belarus tennis players competed under a neutral flag but fans were allowed to bring them with the condition that the flags won’t be used for disruption. But on Monday, Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia and New Zealand, Vasyl Myroshnychenko called on Tennis Australia and demanded strict action against Russia and Belarus after seeing the red, white, and blue stripes of Russia at an ongoing match between Ukraine’s Kateryna Baindl and Russia’s Kamilla Rakhimova on day one.

He demanded Tennis Australia enforce its ‘neutral flat policy’ with immediate effect. Last week he urged Tennis Australia to ban Russia and Belarus entirely. Belarus is – the latter for supporting the Russian invasion of Ukraine. While Tennis Australia didn’t bar Russia and Belarus from the tournament, it barred their flags onsite.

Why Tennis Australia Didn’t Bar Russia And Belarus From The Tournament?

Last year Wimbledon barred Russian and Belarusian players but it stripped the tournament of its ranking points by tennis’s governing bodies.

What Happened

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India Remained Absent During Voting On A UNGA Resolution On Russia?

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution condemning the annexation of Ukrainian regions by Moscow. The resolution was passed with 143 members voting in favor while five voted against it.

HIGHLIGHTS

• UNGA passed a resolution condemning the annexation of Ukrainian regions by Russia
• 143 members voted for the resolution by India remained absent from voting
• Earlier India rejected a similar resolution on Monday

What Was The Latest Resolution?

The UNGA members with zero veto power adopted a resolution condemning the annexation of Ukrainian regions by Russia on Wednesday. The resolution had 143 votes in its favor while five voted against it and 35 members including India remained absent from voting.

Voting On A UNGA Resolution On Russia

Why Was The Resolution Moved?

On Monday, Russia called for a secret ballot on a similar draft condemning its “attempted illegal annexation” of Ukrainian territories but was rejected after a fierce clash between Ukraine and Russia in the assembly. India also voted out of the resolution.

After this rejection, Albania moved another proposal for an open vote that received 170 votes in favor, 13 voted against it, and 39 abstentions. But 24 members including China, Iran, and Russia didn’t vote. India supported the proposal.

What Are The Regions Annexed By Russia?

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the documents announcing the formal annexation of four regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia – by Moscow in the last week of September.

Source:- https://bit.ly/3yDrtyB

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What Volodymyr Zelenskiy Wants Moscow To Hear?

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy released a video address in the early hours of Saturday to send his peace message to Russia. He called for comprehensive peace talks with Moscow to end the war. Also, he warned Russia of consequences that Moscow would need generations to cover.

What Was The Video Message Of Volodymyr Zelenskiy?

Zelenskiy said that he wanted everyone, especially in Moscow, to hear him. He further maintained that the time had come for a meeting and start negotiations to restore territorial integrity and justice for Ukraine. Also, there was a hidden warning for the Russians in the message.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned Russia of unprecedented consequences. The losses suffered in the war would be so high that Russia would need generations to cover those losses.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Russia of deliberately blocking humanitarian supplies to cities under attack. He called it a deliberate tactic and a war crime for which Russia would be answerable. He said that he was 100% certain that Moscow would be made to answer for the war crimes.

He maintained that Ukraine had always offered solutions for peace and favored meaningful negotiations on the security of the region.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy Accuses Russia Of Bombing Civilians

Volodymyr Zelenskiy Accuses Russia Of Bombing Civilians

Russian forces bombed a theatre in the city of Mariupol that had sheltered hundreds of civilians. The news of the attack on the theatre came on Wednesday. Zelenskiy said that more than 130 people had been rescued so far and the exact number of casualties would be known after the rescue operation.

Ukrainian Invasion Of Russia

Russian forces started what they call a “special military operation” in Ukraine on 24 February 2022. They are … Read the rest

The US Fears Use Bioweapons In Ukraine

The US warned that Russia could use bioweapons against Ukraine in the ongoing war while rejecting the assumptions that the US was supporting a bioweapons program in Ukraine.

Russia has alleged that Ukraine was working on a bioweapons program with the support of the US. But America has rejected the allegation saying that Moscow could use the bioweapons themselves.

Highlights:

• The US denied that it was supporting any bioweapons program in Ukraine
• America called the allegation a conspiracy theory for using bioweapons by Russia
• White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the disinformation by Russia was a sign that Russians could use the biological weapons
• Psaki hinted that Russia had a track record of accusing the west

Did Russia Find Bioweapons In Ukraine?

US Fears Use Bioweapons In Ukraine

Russian foreign ministry claimed to find evidence of the presence of biological weapons in Ukraine in its 6th March tweet. It said that Russian forces caught Ukrainians erasing traces of a military-biological program allegedly funded by the US.

The US Rejected The Allegation

State Department spokesman Ned Price issued a statement soon after the allegation was made against the US. Ned Price said that the Kremlin was intentionally spreading outright lies that the US and Ukraine were conducting any such activities in Ukraine. The Russians were looking for excuses to justify their horrific actions in Ukraine maintained Ned Price.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called the claim preposterous. He also said that they had also seen Chinese officials echoing those conspiracy theories. Since Russia had made such claims, it could possibly use bioweapons in the war or create a false flag operation to use those weapons, maintained … Read the rest

The US Won’t Send Its Troops To Ukraine Said President Joe Biden

American citizens should leave Ukraine said the US President Joe Biden as the US won’t send its troops to the ex-Soviet state even to rescue its citizens.

Biden said the situation in Russia was different and that he feared things could go crazy anytime. He maintained that the US was dealing with one of the largest armies in the world. If Americans and Russians start shooting one another, the world would be very different, said the president.

Why Is US President So Worried About Americans In Ukraine?

US President So Worried About Americans In Ukraine

Russian tanks are preparing for live drills across Belarus. It has been three decades since the collapse of the Soviet Union that the world is seeing the deployment of missiles, and heavy armory by Russia and NATO called it a “dangerous moment.” Also, six Russian warships are reaching the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov through Bosphorus for naval drills.

But Russia’s defense ministry said that the drills would center around suppressing and repelling any external aggression. Also, Russia has promised that the troops would be taken back after the drills are complete.

What Is The Real Standoff Between Russia And The US?

Real Standoff Between Russia And The US

Russia has been objecting to the extension of NATO to ex-Soviet states for a long time. But this time, Kremlin seems determined to prevent NATO from expanding to ex-Soviet states. Russia needs a written guarantee from NATO that it would withdraw its presence from Eastern Europe and would never expand to Ukraine. The US has offered new disarmament for Europe but Russia sees the idea as insufficient.

How Is The Peace Process Going?

Western leaders want to provide Russia an opportunity to air its … Read the rest

The US Again Warns India of CAATSA Sanction Over S-400 Missile Deal

The US again raised its concern over India buying S-400 missile defense system to India and called Russia is playing a destabilizing role in the region. But it admitted that India’s decision to buy Russian missiles is based on the national interest of the country.

State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said that the US had concerns with the S-400 system and he thought that the deal put the destabilizing role of Russia not only in the region but potentially beyond as well in the spotlight.

Price further maintained that while the US hadn’t decided about the missile deal, it was something the US continued to discuss with the government of India about the risk of CAATSA sanctions for the missile deal with Russia.

Price was speaking to the reporters about the implications of the Russian missile on the Indo-US bilateral ties. The US is analyzing the deal in the shadow of its heightened tensions with Moscow for Russia’s imminent Ukraine invasion.

India closed the S-400 missile deal despite strong objections from the Biden administration and the threat of US sanctions. Also, the US administration has yet to decide on CAATSA sanctions.

Price said that the US continued to urge all countries to avoid buying Russian weapon systems. He further maintained that the US didn’t have a timeline to offer, but the Biden administration continued to discuss those issues with New Delhi.

S-400 Missile System

S-400 Missile System

The first regiment of the S-400 Triumph missile system will be deployed on the Punjab border in February. The Indian government said that the process of deployment had begun and it could take close to six weeks in completing. It would … Read the rest

Russia Fears Fresh Sanctions From US

Russia could face fresh sanctions by the US, based on an American intelligence report released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence leveled serious allegations on Russia for interfering in the 2020 presidential elections.

What was the intelligence report?

It is a bulky 15-page document that details how Russia tried to influence the presidential elections of 2020 in favor of the former president Donald Trump. Also, the report alleged that Russian President Vladimir Putin directed those efforts. Serious claims were made against the then-candidate Joe Biden and his son Hunter by Russian-linked Ukrainian figures.

The report even said that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential elections to help Trump.

The report also alleged that Russia offered bounties to Taliban-linked militia to defeat coalition forces in Afghanistan.

What did the report say about China?

Trump’s allies alleged that China was acting on behalf of Joe Biden but the fresh intelligence report punctured those claims saying that China was looking for stability with the US and that it couldn’t risk blowback if caught.

But the intelligence report raised fingers against Cuba, Venezuela, and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah for influencing the elections.

What did the report say about Iran?

The report alleged that Iran was involved in a multi-pronged covert influence campaign to sway American voters in 2020. But it was to undercut then US President Donald Trump. The US under the leadership of Trump pulled out of a multilateral nuclear deal with Iran and imposed fresh sanctions on Iran.

Source:- https://bit.ly/3r3qYaJ

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