Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmed as first Black woman Supreme Court justice
President Joe Biden’s first Supreme Court nominee, Ketanji Brown Jackson, has been confirmed by a vote on the Senate floor. Having garnered the support of three Republican senators – Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Mitt Romney – she also received the support of all 50 Democrats, becoming the court’s first Black woman justice.
The vote comes after a seven-week nomination process that saw her heavily criticised by Republicans who focused on her supposed record of leniency towards sexual offenders who targeted children. That criticism was in turn widely rejected as a distortion of her past decisions.
Earlier, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced she has tested positive for Covid-19, this just having appeared next to President Biden, Chuck Schumer, and other senior figures at a bill signing.
Ms Pelosi’s diagnosis means that three of the top 10 people in the presidential line of succession are currently known to be infected with the virus. The speaker’s team say she is currently asymptomatic.
Meanwhile, in Thursday’s White House press briefing, Jen Psaki dismissed Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s plan to bus migrants from the southern border to Washington DC as a “publicity stunt”.
Voices: The most ridiculous questions asked of Ketanji Brown Jackson during her confirmation hearings
Andrew Feinberg recalls some of the mystifyingly absurb questions asked in Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Senate hearings, including: “Do you think we should catch and imprison more or fewer murderers?”
Congress votes to suspend trade relations with Russia and Belarus and ban energy imports
In a 420-3 vote, the House of Representatives passed legislation suspending permanent normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus amidst Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The Senate passed the bill unanimously 100-0 earlier on Thursday and it now heads to the desk of President Joe Biden, who plans to sign it.
The three no votes in the House were: Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga), Thomas Massie (R-Ky), and Matt Gaetz (R-Fla).
In addition, in a 413-9 vote, the House passed legislation to ban imports of Russian oil, gas, and other energy products to the US.
The Senate also unanimously passed the bill 100-0 earlier in the day and Mr Biden is likewise planning to sign it into law.
The nine no votes were Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie, Matt Gaetz, Dan Bishop, Andy Biggs, Chip Roy, and Paul Gosar; and Democrats Ilhan Omar, and Cori Bush.
US warns Xi Jinping of ‘what might come his way’ if China supports Russia
A top US state department official has warned president Xi Jinping of “what might come his way” if China supports Russia’s Ukraine invasion.
China could face sanctions similar to Russia if it supported Russian president Vladimir Putin’s invasion, said Wendy Sherman, the state deparment’s deputy secretary and second-most senior official, to the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
Senator Susan Collins of Maine has tested positive for Covid-19 shortly after casting her vote to confirm Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson on the floor of the Senate.
Biden applauds UN kicking ‘international pariah’ Russia off Human Rights Council
The White House released the following statement from President Joe Biden after the vote by UN member states to remove Russian from the body’s Human Rights Council.
I applaud the overwhelming vote today in the General Assembly of the United Nations to kick Russia off the UN Human Rights Council. This is a meaningful step by the international community further demonstrating how Putin’s war has made Russia an international pariah.
The United States worked closely with our Allies and partners around the world to drive this vote because Russia is committing gross and systemic violations of human rights. Russian forces are committing war crimes. Russia has no place on the Human Rights Council. After today’s historic vote, Russia will not be able to participate in the Council’s work or spread its disinformation there as the Council’s Commission of Inquiry investigates Russia’s violations and abuses of human rights in Ukraine.
The images we are seeing out of Bucha and other areas of Ukraine as Russian troops withdraw are horrifying. The signs of people being raped, tortured, executed—in some cases having their bodies desecrated—are an outrage to our common humanity. Russia’s lies are no match for the undeniable evidence of what is happening in Ukraine. That’s why nations in every region condemn Russia’s unprovoked and brutal aggression against Ukraine and support the brave people of Ukraine in their fight for freedom. And we will continue to work with responsible nations around the world to gather evidence to hold Russia accountable for the atrocities being committed, increase the pressure on Russia’s economy, and isolate Russia on the international stage.
Alabama legislators pass nation’s first bill making gender-affirming care for trans youth a felony
Alabama’s state legislators gave final approval to a bill that could imprison doctors for up to to a decade for prescribing medical treatments to transgender youth.
The bill criminalising gender-affirming care for transgender people younger than 19 years old is the first in the US to make healthcare for young transgender patients punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Man accused of posing as federal agent mentioned ties to Pakistani intelligence
A man accused of impersonating a federal agent mentioned ties to Pakistani intelligence and had visas for Pakistan and Iran .
One of the two men arrested for allegedly impersonating federal officials and giving real Secret Service agents gifts and free apartments in Washington, DC claimed to have links to Pakistani intelligence.
He also had visas showing that he travelled to Pakistan and Iran, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.
Gustaf Kilander has been following the story in Washington, DC.
Biden says Ukraine should attend G20 meetings if efforts to expel Russia unsuccessful
President Joe Biden wants Russia removed from the G20, but stressed that it is the organisation’s decision adding that an alternative would be for Ukraine to attend as an observer.
Mr Biden was speaking at a press conference at Nato Headquarters following meetings with leaders of both the alliance and the G7 in an extraordinary day of summits in Brussels over the invasion of Ukraine.
The president also said that he warned China not to help Russia or risk its economy; there would be an appropriate response to the use of chemical weapons; and that he will likely be visiting refugees at the Polish border tomorrow.
Mr Biden is now meeting with the European Council in a day focussed on allied unity.
Thursday’s meetings are to coordinate with Nato allies on military assistance for Ukraine, new sanctions on Russia, and the boosting of defences in Eastern Europe. The US has also now officially accused Russian forces of war crimes in Ukraine.
The US also announced it will welcome 100,000 refugees displaced by the Russian invasion — one of the country’s biggest refugee intakes in years.
At home, the latest polling shows the majority of Americans want the president to take a tougher stance on Russia, while his approval rating remains unchanged since the beginning of the conflict in Europe.
White House forms team to plan for possible use of chemical, biological, nuclear weapons by Russia
A senior administration official has confirmed reporting by The New York Timesthat the White House has set up a team of national security officials to plan for what happens if Russia uses chemical, biological, or tactical nuclear weapons in its war on Ukraine.
The US and allies are concerned the Kremlin might resort to such a move as its invasion struggles against Ukrainian resistance and Moscow’s own issues. The Biden administration has been warning of such a possibility since the early days of the war — perhaps as a false flag operation.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan sent a memo on 28 February detailing how the “Tiger Team” would examine what might happen over the next three months of conflict, NBC News reports a senior administration official as saying.
The team is looking at scenarios including: Russia using chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons; Russia targeting allied convoys carrying weapons to Ukraine; the implications of a disruption to the global food supply; and the growing refugee crisis as millions of Ukrainians flee the country, the official said.
Mr Sullivan’s memo also established a second “strategy group” responsible for looking at the longer-term major geo-political shifts that have been triggered by the invasion.
The use of such lethal weapons of mass destruction would dramatically escalate the conflict. Russia has already increasingly attacked civilians.
Given the possibility that the impact of these types of weapons might spill into Nato countries, the alliance would have to consider whether it would respond.
GOP official refuses to say Biden was ‘duly elected’
A Democrat on the committee pressed the attorney general of Alabama, a vocal supporter of the former president’s falsehoods about the 2020 election, on Thursday whether Mr Biden was the “duly elected” president; the Republican official, Steve Marshall, repeatedly dodged his questions until the senator moved on.
Today, the European Council was joined by President Joseph R Biden, Jr of the United States. The leaders discussed the coordinated and united response of the European Union and the United States to Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression in Ukraine. They reviewed their ongoing efforts to impose economic costs on Russia and Belarus, as well as their readiness to adopt additional measures and to stop any attempts to circumvent sanctions.
Leaders discussed the urgent needs caused by Russia’s aggression, committed to continuing providing humanitarian assistance, including to neighboring countries hosting refugees, and underscored the need for Russia to guarantee humanitarian access to those affected by or fleeing the violence.
Leaders welcomed the opening of international investigations, including by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, and ongoing efforts to gather evidence of atrocities.
In addition, leaders discussed EU-US cooperation to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels, accelerate the transition to clean energy, as well as the need to respond to evolving food security needs worldwide.
The leaders also concurred on the importance of strengthening democratic resilience in Ukraine, Moldova, and the wider Eastern partnership region.
Finally, leaders underscored the importance of enhancing transatlantic security and defense, including through robust Nato-EU cooperation as described in the EU’s Strategic Compass.
Possibility of return of Trump ‘concerns our allies’ says ambassador
Marie Yovanovitch, a key witness during Mr Trump’s first impeachment trial, was speaking to former Obama adviser David Axelrod on the Axe Files podcast.
Mr Axelrod said Mr Trump was “emboldened by his acquittal” after Democrats launched the impeachment process following revelations that Mr Trump had tried to withhold military aid to Ukraine to get them to investigate President Joe Biden and his family. Mr Biden was a potential presidential candidate at the time.
Biden: Ukraine should be able to attend G20 meetings if US efforts to expel Russia are unsuccessful
President Joe Biden has called for Ukraine to be welcomed at future G20 summits should US attempts to expel Russia be unsuccessful.
After meeting with European allies on Thursday in Brussels, Mr Biden told a press conference it was time to step up efforts to isolate Russia from the international community.
He said if G20 member countries blocked his request to remove Russia, then Ukraine should be invited to attend the meetings.
Biden snaps at reporter over Russia sanctions question
Joe Biden snapped at a CBS News reporter who questioned why new sanctions would have an impact on Russia changing course in Ukraine when previous sanctions failed to deter an invasion.
Biden evokes rise of Nazis as he’s asked whether Nato should fear Trump’s possible re-election
Addressing reporters at a Nato conference in Brussels on Thursday, Joe Biden said he had no concerns about a potential face-off against his 2020 Republican opponent, Donald Trump.
A reporter for the German magazine Der Spiegel pointed out that there was a presidential election – to which Mr Biden quipped “you’re kidding?”
After a small shuffle of laughter, the reporter continued and posed, without stating the former president’s actual name, what the Biden administration is doing now to prevent all the work he’s doing here with Nato, at the alliance’s headquarters, from “coming undone two years from now”.
Full remarks by President Joe Biden at Nato Headquarter press conference
Today marks one month since Russia began its carnage in Ukraine, the brutal invasion of Ukraine. And we held a Nato summit the very next day. At that time, my overwhelming objective, wanting that summit, was to have absolute unity on three key important issues among our Nato and European allies.
First was to support Ukraine with military and humanitarian assistance.
Second was to impose the most significant — the most significant sanctions — economic sanction regime ever, in order to cripple Putin’s economy and punish him for his actions.
Third was to fortify the eastern flank of our Nato Allies, who were obviously very, very concerned and somewhat at — worried what would happen.
We accomplished all three of these. And today, we’re determined to sustain those efforts and to build on them.
The United States has committed to provide over $2bn in military equipment to Ukraine since I became President — anti-air systems, anti-armor systems, ammunition. And our weapons are flowing into Ukraine as I speak.
And today, I’m announcing the United States have prepared to commit more than $1bn in humanitarian assistance to help get relief to millions of Ukrainians affected by the war in Ukraine.
Many Ukrainian refugees will wish to stay in Europe, closer to their homes. But we’ve also — will welcome 100,000 Ukrainians to the United States with a focus on reuniting families.
And we will invest $320m to bolster democratic resilience and defend human rights in Ukraine and neighboring countries.
We’re also coordinating with the G7 and the European Union on food security, as well as energy security, and I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow.
We’re also announcing new sanctions of more than 400 individuals and entities aligned with — in alignment with the European Union: more than 300 members of the Duma, oligarchs, and Russian defense companies that fuel the Russian war machine.
In addition to the 100,000 US forces now stationed in Europe to defend Nato territory, Nato established, as you already know, four new battle groups in Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Slovakia to reinforce the eastern front.
Putin was banking on Nato being split. In my early conversation with him in December and early January, it was clear to me he didn’t think we could sustain this cohesion.
Nato has never, never been more united than it is today. Putin is getting exactly the opposite of what he intended to have as a consequence of going into Ukraine.
We built that same unity with our European — the European Union and with the leading democracies … in the G7.
Congressional candidate quits campaign to join fight in Ukraine
A candidate for US Congress quit his campaign to join foreign mercenaries fighting in Ukraine.
Mark Lindquist, the only Democrat running in Minnesota’s 7th Congressional District, defied White House advice and is joining Ukraine’s “International Legion of Defence”.
Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Pat Toomey offers his choose on Biden’s Federal Reserve nominees on ‘Kudlow.’
Sarah Bloom Raskin, President Biden’s embattled select for the Federal Reserve’s major banking regulator, withdrew her nomination on Tuesday, in accordance to a source common with the make any difference, just after Republicans and just one crucial Democrat opposed her nomination.
Her withdrawal will come a single working day immediately after Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat who usually serves as a vital swing vote in the 50-50 Senate, claimed that he could not assist her nomination, citing her stance on vitality in the era of sky-substantial inflation.
FED Predicted TO HIKE Costs THIS Week, Irrespective of UKRAINE VOLATILITY
Biden tapped Raskin earlier this yr to provide as the Fed’s vice chair for supervision, a strong position that oversees yearly worry exams designed to evaluation financial institution safety and liquidity. Her nomination was welcomed by progressive senators and advocacy groups, who hoped she would take a harder stance towards Wall Avenue than her predecessor, Randal Quarles, a Trump nominee who stepped down in late December.
In a letter to Biden acquired by the New Yorker, Raskin blamed “relentless attacks by special pursuits” who opposed her check out that weather modify could pose a danger to financial balance for derailing her nomination.
Sarah Bloom Raskin, nominee to be vice chairman for supervision and a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, speaks ahead of a Senate Banking, Housing and City Affairs Committee affirmation listening to on Capitol Hill on February 3, 2022 in W (Ken Cedeno-Pool/Getty Photos / Getty Illustrations or photos)
“It was — and is — my considered perspective that the perils of weather improve must be included to the list of severe threats that the Federal Reserve considers as it will work to ensure the steadiness and resiliency of our economy and economic process,” Raskin wrote in the letter to the president.
Biden echoed that sentiment in a statement pursuing her withdrawal, accusing GOP lawmakers as perfectly as the oil and fuel sector of lobbing “baseless assaults” at Raskin.
“Sad to say, Senate Republicans are more targeted on amplifying these false claims and shielding unique passions than having important actions towards addressing inflation and reducing fees for the American individuals,” Biden reported in a assertion. He urged the Senate Banking Committee to shift ahead with confirming the 4 other Fed picks, including the renomination of Jerome Powell as chair.
Republicans united in opposition in opposition to Raskin simply because of her earlier remarks on local climate polices. They also expressed problem in excess of her ties to a Colorado-primarily based fintech company, Reserve Rely on, that acquired a Federal Reserve learn account when she served on its board.
Reserve Trust is the only fintech to hold a Fed learn account.
Accessibility to Federal Reserve providers is sought following by several fintechs and other nontraditional money solutions firms, because there are a amount of benefits, which includes the capability to borrow from the Fed’s price reduction window and to earn interest from deposits at the central lender. Without the need of a master account, nonbank money establishments ought to lover with banking companies insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance plan Corp. in get to tap those people providers.
SARAH BLOOM RASKIN GRILLED Over CONTROVERSIAL Climate REGULATORY Views
Reserve Have faith in had its grasp account application denied in June 2017 a person year later, the application was authorised. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., has noted that Raskin phoned Kansas Town Fed President Esther George to advocate for the fintech organization.
“Critical queries about Ms. Raskin’s use of the ‘revolving door’ continue being unanswered mostly because of her repeated disingenuousness with the Committee,” Toomey stated in a statement right after Republicans boycotted a vital vote on her nomination in the Senate Banking Committee.
Sarah Bloom Raskin, nominated to be vice chairman for supervision and a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, is greeted by U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) ahead of testifying just before a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee conf (REUTERS/Ken Cedeno/Pool / Reuters Photos)
The Kansas City Fed statements that its reversal in 2018 was not the consequence of Raskin’s simply call, but relatively that of Reserve Trust’s adjusted organization product “and the Colorado Division of Banking reinterpreted the state’s regulation in a manner that meant RTC satisfied the definition of a depository establishment,” the Fed lender explained last thirty day period.
Republicans did not suggest that Raskin’s steps ended up unlawful. Alternatively, they consider it an illustration of the “revolving door” concerning politics and corporate pursuits in which former government officers use their connections and clout in government to later on lobby on behalf of enterprises for a payout.
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Raskin, a law professor at Duke University, served on the Fed’s board from 2010 to 2014 and was tapped by previous President Barack Obama to serve as assistant Treasury secretary.
The end of her candidacy comes as the Fed grapples with the best inflation in 4 decades.
Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, experienced refused to individual Raskin’s nomination from Biden’s other Federal Reserve picks.
Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) issues Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve Chairman Powell through a Senate Banking, Housing and City Affairs Committee hearing on the CARES Act, at the Hart Senate Office environment Developing in Washington, DC, U (Kevin Dietsch/Pool by using Reuters / Reuters Photos)
In a assertion on Tuesday, he slammed Republicans for tanking Raskin’s candidacy, accusing them of participating in a “disingenuous smear marketing campaign” that distorted her views “beyond recognition.”
“Sadly, the American persons will be denied a considerate, seasoned public servant who was prepared to fight inflation, stand up to Wall Avenue and company special interests, and guard our financial system from foreign cyber assaults and local weather transform,” he claimed.
Brown said the banking committee will continue with a markup on the remaining nominees, which include Powell, at a “criticial moment in our financial restoration” as the nation stares down sky-large inflation and a worsening war amongst Ukraine and Russia.
FOX Business’ Edward Lawrence contributed to this report.
Biden said the move will be another “crushing blow” to Russia’s economy.
“The free world is coming together to confront (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” he said. “We’re going to continue to squeeze Putin.”
Biden’s proposal, which would require congressional approval, would put Moscow’s trade relationship with the U.S. in the same category as North Korea and Cuba. The country was the United States’ 26th largest goods trading partner as of 2019, according to the U.S. Trade Representative, with nearly $6 billion in exports and about $22 billion in imports.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Friday said the U.S. House will vote next week on a bill revoking normal trade relations with Russia. The change has support from both Democrats and Republicans. But the White House asked lawmakers earlier this week to wait until Biden could coordinate with allies.
European Union and G7 allies are also expected to act as the toll on Ukrainians continues to mount. Among the most recent attacks is an airstrike on a maternity hospital that killed at least three people, including a child. Russian leaders have denied bombing the hospital.
The moves came as Russia expanded its attacks on Ukrainian cities to include new targets in Western Ukraine, moving its convoy north of Kyiv and continuing its siege in Mariupol. The targets included airports and parts of Ukraine’s military infrastructure. Fighting also intensified closer to Kyiv, with apartment buildings hit about 45 miles away in the town of Baryshivka and a school damaged by a missile strike in Dnipro.
The crisis in Mariupol has sparked humanitarian concerns with the mayor of the southern city saying they are going through an “armageddon” with constant bombings, including in civilian areas.
Mayor Vadym Boichenko said Russian forces are surrounding the city, trapping residents in the warzone without food or running water. Doctors Without Borders said their teams on the ground are seeing families without enough food, water and medicine living in crowded conditions as they hide from explosions in the area. “There is hardly any safe place and the sound of gunfire, shelling and aerial bombardment is ever present,” Kate White, an emergency manager for the organization said.
Mariupol officials said Friday that 1,582 people had been killed in the 12 days since the siege began.
Full coverage:Updates, analysis, commentary on Ukraine
Latest developments:
►Interpol is restricting Russia’s ability to input information directly into the global police organization’s vast network, deciding that communications must first be checked by the general secretariat in France. The French Foreign Ministry said Friday that the beefed-up surveillance measures follow “multiple suspicions of attempted fraudulent use” of the Interpol system in recent days, but it did not elaborate.
►Ukraine told the International Atomic Energy Agency that technicians have started repairing damaged power lines at the decommissioned Chernobyl power plant in an effort to restore power supplies, the U.N. nuclear agency said.
► YouTube announced it has started blocking access globally to channels associated with Russian state-funded media.
► The World Health Organization said Friday it verified 29 attacks on health care facilities, workers and ambulances in Ukraine, which have killed 12 people and injured 34. The U.N. human rights office confirmed 564 civilian fatalities and 982 civilian injuries in the conflict, which is likely an undercount, the office said.
►The U.K. on Friday expanded its economic sanctions against Russia, targeting the 386 Russian lawmakers who recognized two regions of eastern Ukraine as independent.
►Russia’s media regulator said Friday it was restricting access to Instagram. The regulator last week banned access to Facebook, which is owned by the same parent company, Meta.
►Congress passed $13.6 billion in humanitarian aid money for Ukraine and allies as part of a larger spending package that received bipartisan support in the Senate on Thursday.
►The U.N. refugee agency says more than 2.5 million Ukrainians have fled the country, over 1.4 million of them through Poland. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said late Thursday that about 100,000 people have fled over the last two days through evacuation corridors.
The mayor of the Ukrainian city of Melitopol – which was seized by Russian forces late last month – was abducted Friday, according to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“They have transitioned into a new stage of terror, in which they try to physically liquidate representatives of Ukraine’s lawful local authorities,” Zelenskyy said in a video posted Friday.
The mayor, Ivan Fedorov, was seen being led across a square by armed men in a video posted by Ukraine’s presidential office on Telegram.
The prosecutor’s office of the Luhansk People’s Republic, a Moscow-backed rebel region in eastern Ukraine, said there was a case against Federov for “terrorist activities.”
“The fact of the abduction of the Mayor of Melitopol, along with hundreds of other facts of war crimes by Russian occupiers on the Ukrainian soil, are being carefully documented by law enforcement agencies. The perpetrators of this and other crimes will be brought to the strictest responsibility,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Facebook.
The State Department’s chief spokesman, Ned Price, said Friday that Russia’s reported efforts to recruit Syrian mercenaries and other foreign fighters to help with Moscow’s assault on Ukraine would be a dangerous escalation of the conflict – and a sign of how flawed Russia’s military planning has been.
“If true, this would represent an even further escalation in Russia’s unjustified, unprovoked, premeditated aggression” against Ukraine, Price said at a press briefing. “This also speaks, I think, to the fundamental miscalculations that Putin has made” in deciding to invade Ukraine.
A senior Defense Department official said Monday that Russia had started recruiting Syrian mercenaries to fight in Ukraine but did not give estimates on the scale of that effort.
Price would not comment when asked if the U.S. had seen evidence that Syrians or other foreign fighters were heeding Russia’s call.
“That is not something I could speak to from here,” Price said.
Russian shelling in the southern city of Mykolaiv caused windows to blow out in a cancer hospital, according to Ukrainian officials. Several residential buildings were also damaged from the shelling, officials said, as Russian forces have attempted to circle the city.
Maksim Beznosenko, head doctor at the cancer hospital, said there were no fatalities, but several hundred patients were inside the hospital at the time of the shelling.
The news came two days after Russian forces bombed a maternity hospital in Mariupol, killing three, including a child.
The newly established enforcement unit, known as KleptoCapture, is poised to bring a raft of potential criminal charges against known “aiders and abettors” to Russian oligarchs, including money laundering and fraud charges to “cut off funding to the Russian war machine,” a senior Justice official said Friday.
Outlining the task force’s mission, the official said authorities will target “actors who stick their heads in the sand,” as the wealthy allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin attempt to sidestep a sweeping set of sanctions, export restrictions, and economic countermeasures the United States has imposed, along with allies and partners, in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine.
The “facilitators,” the official said, have often been key to erecting “layers of sham corporations” used to disguise the accumulation and movement of assets.
The “landscape of assets” includes real estate, bank accounts, private aircraft and yachts.
The United States’ ambassador to the United Nations on Friday accused Russia of using the Security Council for “lying and spreading disinformation” about the use of chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine.
Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield also said Russia may be planning a false-flag operation to “fabricate allegations about chemical or biological weapons to justify its own violent attacks against the Ukrainian people.”
Russia requested the U.N. Security Council meeting Friday after its claims of U.S. “military biological activities” in Ukraine, which U.S. and Ukrainian officials said were false accusations.
The U.N.’s disarmament chief, Izumi Nakamitsu, also told the Security Council she was aware of the recent allegations but was not aware of any biological weapons programs.
Russians won’t have access to high-end watches and luxury vehicles from the United States and Americans won’t be able to buy caviar, diamonds and vodka imported from Russia under an executive order President Joe Biden signed Friday.
Biden said the actions – intended to squeeze the Russian economy over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine – are “the latest steps we’re taking, but they’re not the last steps.”
The new actions include:
Ending the exportation of luxury goods frequently purchased by Russian elites, covering a value of nearly $550 million in annual exports.
Prohibiting the import of goods from signature sectors of Russia’s economy, including seafood, alcohol and diamonds. That will deny Russia more than $1 billion in export revenue, according to the White House.
Working with the G7 to deny Russia the ability to borrow from leading multinational institutions, such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Expanding the list of elite Russians and their families being sanctioned to include executives of banks and Russian legislators.
Allowing the U.S. to extend the previously announced ban on investments in Russian energy to include other sectors of the economy.
Russian airstrikes Friday hit near airports in western Ukraine, including one at Lutsk airfield that left two Ukrainian servicemen dead and six people wounded, according to the head of the surrounding Volyn region, Yuriy Pohulyayko.
Air raid alerts were also sent residents in Ivano-Frankivsk seeking shelters, Mayor Ruslan Martsinkiv said. The eastern city of Dnipro was also targeted for the first time. One person was killed as three strikes hit early Friday, Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Anton Heraschenko said.
The strikes came after Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian city Mariupol as civilians face increasingly dire conditions with scarce food, fuel, and electricity. Bodies are being buried in mass graves.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday the country had “reached a strategic turning point,” but did not clarify what he meant. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin said there are “certain positive developments” in talks between the two countries.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday said the rise in inflation and gas prices are a “price to pay for democracy,” as recent energy sanctions on Russia are causing prices to rise globally.
“Gotta stand with your friends,” Harris said when asked how long Americans should brace for the high prices. “And as everybody knows, even in your personal life, being loyal to those friendships, based on common principles and values, sometimes it’s difficult. Often it ain’t easy, but that’s what the friendship is about, based on shared values.”
President Joe Biden earlier this week announced a ban on U.S. import of all Russian energy products. Biden during remarks Tuesday said that while the move would deal a “powerful blow to Putin’s war machine,” Americans will likely see gas prices rising.
Gas prices have reached all-time highs, with the national average at $4.33, according to AAA.
Harris’ comments came after a bilateral meeting with Romania President Klaus Iohannis, where the two discussed concerns in the eastern flank over Russia’s war with Ukraine and the United States’ commitment to protecting NATO countries.
During the press conference, Harris noted that the United States in recent weeks sent a 1,000 member striker squadron “to stand in defense of our commitment to the NATO Alliance and the eastern flank.” She said the new striker squadron brings the total force of 2,000 American troops in the region.
Harris was also asked whether she believes that Russia has committed war crimes in Ukraine, to which she responded: “I’ll say it again, we are clear that any intentional attack or targeting of civilians is a war crime. Period.”
“The biggest problem we need to think about is a mass casualty situation,” said Krylyuk, who serves at the Ukrainian Scientific and Practical Center of Emergency and Disaster Medicine, a division of Ukraine’s Ministry of Health. “We’ve never had a mass casualty situation. We know this theoretically, not practically.”
Emergency planners have sought to address gaps that would emerge if the number of people with life-threatening wounds outstripped the hospital’s capacity to care for them. They sought to figure out which hospital entrance to direct ambulances to quickly get patients to hospital beds. Government planners have drafted documents on how to prioritize patients, ensure patients can breathe, secure blood transfusions or notify family members if a loved one is killed or wounded.
The 40-mile Russian military convoy that had been stalled outside Kyiv amid reports of food and fuel shortages moved into the forest and towns, new satellite images showed.
The line of vehicles, tanks and artillery was outside the Ukrainian capital but had been stalled for days before the new movement. The images from Maxar Technologies showed armored units near the Antonov Airport and vehicles in forests with towed howitzers in position to open fire, Maxar reported.
Jack Watling, a research fellow at a British defense think-tank, the Royal United Services Institute, said it appeared the convoy was moving west around the city toward the south as Russian forces likely aim for a “siege rather than assault” in Kyiv. The British defense ministry said Russian troops were likely trying to “reset and re-posture” with new operations in Kyiv probable.
On a night two weeks ago in southwest Ukraine, children inside a Jewish orphanage felt the ground shake and watched lights eerily flicker. Bombs were falling just a mile from their home, shattering their safe world and sending them fleeing into the darkness.
The children, most in their pajamas and without shoes, rushed out of the orphanage and squeezed onto buses to make their way to the Moldova border as the Russian military launched its invasion of Ukraine.
The journey, which eventually took the children to Romania, left them in tears and confusion: Where would they call home now? Read more.
The United States has seen “very credible reports” of deliberate attacks by Russians on Ukrainian civilians that would qualify as a war crime under international law, State Department spokesman Ned Price said Thursday.
That could include the recent assault on the maternity and children’s hospital complex that killed 3 people as well as strikes on schools, residential buildings, public buses and ambulances, he said.
Price said the U.S. will do everything possible to hold accountable every Russian political leader, military commander, and service member who participates in a war crime. “Criminal prosecutions are one possibility,” he added.
The U.S. has the ability to conduct its own in-depth investigations and will support the appropriate international investigations, Price said.
News broke last week that WNBA star Brittney Griner had been detained by Russian authorities and was facing drug-smuggling charges.
Like many WNBA stars, Griner has played overseas in the offseason to earn as much as four times the salary she gets playing for the Phoenix Mercury. She was returning to her team in Russia, UMMC Ekaterinburg, when she was allegedly found with vape cartridges in her carry-on luggage at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport. The Russian Customs Service said the cartridges contained oil derived from cannabis, which could lead to a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Friends, family and U.S. officials are trying to get Griner out of Russia, but diplomatic relations between the countries are said to be nearly non-existent since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is unknown if Griner’s stature as a well-known international sports figure from the U.S. will help or hurt her situation.
At a State Department press briefing on Friday, spokesman Ned Price did not directly answer a question about whether U.S. diplomats stationed in Moscow have had access to Griner.
“We’ve been working very diligently on this case,” Price said, adding that U.S. officials have been “in close touch” with people around Griner and are providing “all forms of appropriate support.” Read more.
— Deirdre Shesgreen, USA TODAY; Jenna Ortiz, Dana Scott, and Emily Horos, Arizona Republic
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President Biden on Tuesday announced a ban on all imports of Russian oil, gas and vitality to the United States, focusing on “the primary artery” of Russia’s economic climate amid President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine.
Biden, though, warned Americans that the ban would charge American people. People are encountering the maximum gasoline prices considering that the 2008 financial disaster, with the national gas price typical reaching extra than $4 per gallon – the greatest typical to date, according to AAA.
“Putin’s war is now hurting American households at the fuel pump given that Putin commenced his navy buildup on Ukrainian borders,” Biden warned. “And with this motion, it’s heading to go up further. I’m going to do almost everything I can to decrease Putin’s price tag hike here at household and coordination with our partners.”
The president, talking from the White House on Tuesday, reported the ban has “robust bipartisan aid in Congress and, I believe, the nation.”
“Americans have rallied to assistance the Ukrainian folks and designed it crystal clear we will not be element of subsidizing Putin’s war,” Biden stated.
Author Ben Mezrich discusses the sanctions imposed on Russia and the have an impact on the steps will have on oligarchs, arguing it truly is a ‘viable tactic’ to counter Putin’s aggression.
But not all of Europe will be on board with a similar ban for the reason that they deficiency domestic oil creation, Biden claimed.
“The United States provides much much more oil domestically than all of Europe and all the European international locations blended,” he reported, adding that the U.S. is a “web exporter of vitality.” “So, we can choose this stage when some others are not able to, but we are performing intently with Europe and our associates to acquire a long-term system to lessen their dependence on Russian strength as well.”
Russia is the third-largest producer of oil in the entire world, but the impact to U.S. oil imports would be “minimal” in comparison to allies, administration officers instructed Fox News.
President Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Place of the White Home in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, March 8, 2022. (Oliver Contreras/Sipa/Bloomberg through Getty Visuals / Getty Pictures)
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Monday, termed for “boycotts” of Russian oil imports to the U.S. and European nations around the world.
Russian oil exports account for about one particular-third of Europe’s oil imports, nonetheless, for the United States, Russian exports are just less than 10{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of U.S. over-all imports.
Biden touted the $1 billion in stability aid to Ukraine, expressing that “shipments of defensive weapons are arriving in Ukraine each and every working day from the United States.”
“We are also giving humanitarian aid for the Ukrainian people today, each to those even now in Ukraine and these who have fled safely to neighboring country,” Biden stated, incorporating the administration is functioning with organizations to deliver “tens of thousands of tons of food, drinking water and medical materials into Ukraine.”
Biden also claimed the U.S. and allies are “imposing the most sizeable package deal of economic sanctions in history,” and explained all those sanctions are harming Russia’s economic system.”
“It has triggered the Russian financial state to, quite frankly, crater,” Biden reported, noting that the Russian ruble is down 50{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} given that Putin announced his war on Feb. 24.
“One particular ruble is now worth much less than 1 American penny,” he claimed, including that the U.S. and allies have also reduce Russia’s most significant banking companies from the international SWIFT economical program, which has “crippled their ability to do business enterprise with the rest of the earth.”
“In addition, we’re choking off Russia’s obtain to know-how, like semiconductors, that sap its economic strength and will weaken its military for many years to arrive,” Biden said.
Pointing to the personal sector, Biden said key companies, like Visa, Mastercard, American Convey, Ford, Nike, Apple are suspending operations and pulling out of Russia “totally, with out even staying requested.”
“The U.S. Stock Exchange has halted trading in several Russian securities, and the non-public sector is united versus Russia’s vicious war of alternative,” Biden claimed.
President Biden sits in the Oval Business of the White House, on March 4, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photograph/Patrick Semansky, File / AP Newsroom)
The Biden administration declared this 7 days that it is releasing “60 million barrels of oil from our joint-oil reserves,” with Biden noting that fifty percent of that is “coming from the United States.”
Biden also taken care of that his administration is getting steps to ensure the “trusted source of world electricity,” and is doing the job with “each and every device in our disposal to defend American families and enterprises.”
“We recognize Putin’s war against the individuals of Ukraine is creating rates to rise—we get that,” Biden mentioned, directed at “oil and gasoline companies and the finance corporations that again them.”
“But it is no justification to exercising excessive selling price will increase or padding revenue or any type of effort to exploit this situation or American buyers,” Biden mentioned. “Russia’s aggression is costing us all, and it’s no time for profiting or price gouging.”
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He warned that he desired “to be obvious about what we will not tolerate,” but also wished to “acknowledge individuals firms and oil and gas industries that are pulling out of Russia and signing up for other firms that are leading by instance.”
“This is a time when we have to do our component and make confident we are not taking gain,” Biden said.
The president, even though, went on to say that it is “basically not legitimate” that his administration or his guidelines “are holding again domestic energy manufacturing.”
“Even amid the pandemic, businesses in the United States pumped far more oil during my to start with 12 months in place of work than they did during my predecessor’s very first yr,” he reported.
“We’re approaching document stages of oil and fuel manufacturing in the United States and we’re on monitor to established a file of oil manufacturing next,” he claimed, adding that in the U.S. “90{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of onshore oil production can take put on land that is not owned by the federal authorities.”
“And the remaining 10{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} that happens on federal land, the oil and gas field has hundreds of thousands of acres leased—they have 9,000 permits to drill,” he stated. “Now, they could be drilling suitable now. Yesterday, previous 7 days, last year, they have 9,000 to drill onshore that are now accredited.”
“So allow me be very clear: they are not working with them for generation. That is their selection,” he stated. “These are the specifics. We ought to be trustworthy about the points.”
Biden went on to say that this “disaster” is a “stark reminder” that, in purchase to “protect our financial state about the lengthy expression,” the United States needs “to turn into vitality unbiased.”
Biden mentioned that he has had “many conversations” with European allies in excess of the last various months “about how they have to wean on their own off Russian oil.”
“It is just not tenable,” he said.
Biden included, though, that the disaster “ought to encourage” the United States to “accelerate the transition to clean up power.”
For American family members, even though, Biden admitted investments in cleanse electricity “will not reduce electrical power selling prices for families,” but claimed that reworking the financial state to “operate on electric vehicles run by cleanse power with tax credits to help American people winterize their properties, and use less vitality, that will support.”
“If we do what we can, it will suggest that no a person has to worry about the price tag of fuel in the long run,” Biden said.
“That will mean tyrants like Putin will not be equipped to use fossil fuels as weapons versus other nations, and it will make The usa a environment leader—manufacturing and exporting clear power systems of the long run to countries all close to the globe.”
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Biden included: “This is the intention we should really be racing toward.”
The president, shifting to the people of Ukraine, stated they have “encouraged the planet” in a “literal feeling.”
U.S. Secretary of Condition Antony Blinken speaks all through a joint information conference with Estonian Primary Minister Kaja Kallas on the celebration of their meeting, in Tallinn, Estonia, on Tuesday, March 8, 2022. (AP Picture/Raul Mee / AP Newsroom)
“They’ve impressed the globe with their bravery, their patriotism, their defiant willpower to dwell absolutely free,” he mentioned, introducing that Putin’s war has “brought about an tremendous suffering and pointless reduction of daily life of women of all ages, little ones, everybody in Ukraine.”
Biden reported that Ukrainian leaders, and leaders close to the planet, have “frequently known as for a ceasefire,” for humanitarian relief, and “for true diplomacy.”
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“But Putin would seem decided to carry on on his murderous path, no make a difference the price,” Biden mentioned.
But the president preserved that “Ukraine will under no circumstances be a victory for Putin,” stating he “may well be capable to acquire a city, but he’ll under no circumstances be in a position to maintain the state.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a flag boosting ceremony by means of a video backlink at a state residence exterior Moscow. (ALEXEY NIKOLSKY/SPUTNIK/AFP by means of Getty Visuals / Getty Visuals)
“If we do not answer to Putin’s assault on international peace and security these days, the value of freedom and to the American folks will be even better tomorrow,” Biden stated. “So we’re heading to carry on to assistance the brave Ukrainian persons as they fight for their place.”
Biden called on Congress to move the $12 billion Ukraine support package deal he has requested, stating the Ukrainian folks will “defend their flexibility, their democracy, their lives.”
Biden reported the United States is likely to proceed “providing security assistance, economic help, humanitarian help,” and will assistance Ukrainians “versus tyranny, oppression, violent functions of subjugation.”
“Putin’s war on Ukraine will have left Russia weaker and the relaxation of the earth stronger,” Biden explained. “And God bless individuals heroes in Ukraine.”
Typical Motors, which halted function at a Michigan car plant on Thursday due to the fact of the border issues, stated it trimmed manufacturing at auto vegetation in Michigan and Ontario Friday.
GM explained generation was reduce for the duration of the 1st change at its Flint Assembly plant exactly where it builds pickup trucks and its CAMI Assembly in Ontario where it builds the Chevrolet Equinox. Creation was scheduled to resume usually in the course of the next shift.
4 vehicles made up of parts for GM’s Spring Hill Assembly in Tennessee crossed the Ambassador Bridge on Thursday, according to a human being acquainted with generation plans. The parts will support creation at the plant Friday.
“We’re in good shape,” the person said.
Personnel at Spring Hill worked an 8-hour shift Thursday compared with their regular 10-12 hour shift. The plant, which builds the Cadillac XT5 and XT6 and the GMC Acadia crossovers, will get doorway handles and other modest parts from suppliers in Canada, the human being mentioned.
Honda Motor Co. said it will suspend output from a person production line on Friday at its plant in Alliston, Ontario, signing up for Toyota Motor Corp. and the Detroit 3 automakers in saying different output losses stemming from the weeklong bridge blockade by protesters at the U.S.-Canada border.
The Japanese automaker mentioned late Thursday that the non permanent halt arrives as it monitors “the disruption of transportation in between Canada and the U.S.”
Honda described the predicament as “fluid” but that it has no options to curtail output at any of its U.S. car plants.
The enterprise builds its Civic compact sedan and CR-V compact crossover at its plant in Alliston, Ontario. Honda previously verified the plant also quickly suspended production on Wednesday evening because of to border delays.
Ford Motor Co. mentioned its Canadian crops in Oakville and Windsor are working at diminished ability. The company’s Ohio Assembly Plant is “down as a final result of a section lack related with this scenario.”
“This interruption on the Detroit/Windsor bridge hurts buyers, auto employees, suppliers, communities and companies on both equally sides of the border that are by now two decades into pieces shortages ensuing from the world wide semiconductor issue, COVID and far more,” the firm claimed in a assertion. “We hope this scenario is settled immediately since it could have prevalent impact on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
Toyota on Friday stated its North American crops proceed to confront “shortages impacting production.”
“Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, and Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia have recently been impacted by concerns similar to the Ambassador Bridge blockade. We count on disruptions by means of the weekend, and we’ll keep on to make adjustments as desired. Although the situation is fluid and adjustments commonly, we do not anticipate any effects to work at this time.”
The automaker mentioned its teams are “carefully checking the scenario and doing work diligently to limit the impression on creation.”
On Thursday, a Toyota spokesman informed Reuters the automaker was suspending manufacturing as a result of Saturday at plants on the two sides of the border, in Ontario and Kentucky. The major Japanese automaker claimed it was “suffering from multiple dropped logistics routes” and it is “not isolated to only just one or two sections at this place.”
The shortages affected Toyota’s output of the RAV4 — the finest-advertising non-truck motor vehicle in the U.S., Camry, Avalon, Lexus RX and Lexus ES, the automaker said.
Chrysler mother or father Stellantis, in a Friday statement, explained all its North The united states plants begun output Friday early morning, “but this continues to be an exceptionally fluid problem. We carry on to do the job intently with our carriers to get parts into the crops to mitigate more disruptions.”
Also Thursday, Common Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis explained they experienced been pressured to terminate or scale back again some creation at North American vegetation mainly because of areas shortages stemming from Canadian trucker protests towards pandemic mandates.
The demonstrators, who oppose, amid other matters, a vaccinate-or-quarantine need for cross-border truck motorists, have made use of huge rigs and other autos to snarl traffic at the entrance of the Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit and Windsor — which accounts for about 25 percent of U.S.-Canadian trade.
Ford claimed it was running its plants in Windsor and Oakville, an additional Canadian metropolis, at lowered ability. It added that it hoped for a speedy resolution “for the reason that it could have prevalent affect on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
Stellantis claimed some U.S. and Canadian vegetation reduce short shifts on Thursday following lots of shortened shifts Wednesday night “owing to pieces shortages triggered by the closure of the Detroit/Windsor bridge.”
GM mentioned it was pressured to halt creation Thursday at a Michigan plant where by it builds crossovers immediately after the protests. The automaker claimed it experienced canceled a change on Wednesday and two shifts Thursday at its Lansing Delta Township plant.
Shilpan Amin, GM’s vice president for worldwide getting and provide chain, told suppliers on Thursday in a concept witnessed by Reuters that “whilst we may well have intermittent stoppages, we intend to continue to keep generation working and fulfill current schedules at all of our production functions in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.”
The corporation extra it was “encouraging suppliers to assess option options in order to sustain your operations to fulfill our production schedules.”
