Jul 7 Buonasera Mag
Day 134 War vs Ukraine: Zaporozhe nuclear power plant, Donetsk, Greece-Bulgaria pipeline, Belarus military base, Iran, Scholz, Finland NATO protocol, North Macedonia, Wagner, Disinfo Africa
Catching up…
EA Worldview’s Ukraine Up-date- hop over to Scott’s amazing hourly Ukraine up-date page. I’ll fill in with some bits and bobs.
Stories we’re following…
WSJ: Russia has turned the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant into a military base. The Russians have deployed heavy artillery batteries on the territory of the plant and mined the coast of the reservoir. Currently there are about 500 troops there.
President Zelensky: Ukrainian forces are advancing in several tactical directions, including in the south - in the Kherson region, in the Zaporizhia region.
Over 21,000 war crimes allegedly committed by Russian forces are being investigated by Ukrainian authorities, according to Ukraine’s prosecutor general Irina Venediktova.
The Turkish authorities have released the Russian cargo ship Zhibek Zholy, which they had initially detained upon request from the Ukrainiain authorities. The Turkish Ambassador to Ukraine has been called in for a meeting.
More than 150 cultural sites in Ukraine have been partially or totally destroyed as a result of Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to a tally compiled by UNESCO.
The Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria gas pipeline has been completed: the pipeline which links Komotini to Stara Zagora plays a key role in bringing gas from Azerbaijan to Southeastern Europe.
Putin, has warned Russia has not started its campaign in Ukraine “in earnest”. In a hawkish speech to parliamentary leaders, Putin said the prospects for any negotiation would grow dimmer the longer the conflict dragged on.
Russia earns $24 billion from selling fossil fuels to China and India. As energy prices have skyrocketed due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russia sold nearly $19 billion worth of oil, gas and coal to China by the end of May, doubling last year's figure.
Russian court orders “temporary closure” of Novorossiysk oil terminal, key for exporting Kazakh oil, 2 days after Kazakh Pres Tokayev told EU Council Prez Michel that Kazakhstan is ready to send more oil to the EU.
According to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and intelligence, Russians are building a missile base in Belarus and recruiting Belarusian ex-military personnel to train for the private military unit "Liga"(former Wagner). There's no official confirmation of this from Belarus or Russia.
"Putin is bluffing a lot" - head of Ukraine's state-owned energy company calls on Canada not to accede to a German request to bend sanctions after Russia cuts gas flows through Nord Stream-1.
Iranian security forces reportedly arrest several foreign nationals among them the British deputy ambassador. If true, this is almost unprecedented. Could the Iranians be taking advantage of the UK’s internal chaos at this time?
Chancellor Scholz told the broadcaster ARD that Germany is discussing with allies giving Ukraine security guarantees, but these will not be the same as for a member of NATO.
The ratification of Finland's NATO membership has started swiftly. So far, six #NATO allies have ratified the Accession Protocol: Canada, Denmark, Norway, Estonia, Iceland, UK.
Deborah Haynes: The heads of MI5 and the FBI have used an unprecedented joint speech to warn that China is their biggest “game-changing challenge”, with the UK doubling efforts to combat Chinese "activity of concern". Christopher Wray, the FBI director, said Beijing is drawing lessons from Russia’s war in Ukraine.
North Macedonia, multiple countries in Africa and Latin America have had riots in previous weeks. As the economy global worsens, expect more unrest.
Poland is focusing its initial Ukraine reconstruction investments on Kharkiv Heavy industry and high-tech development are Poland's main areas of focus, even as the threat of a renewed Russian assault on Kharkiv remains alive.
The former employee of Channel One Marina Ovsyannikova, who went on air with an anti-war poster, left the German news channel Welt. Ovsyannikova returned to Moscow yesterday.
Insider, PMC "Wagner" recruits prisoners of the colonies of St. Petersburg to go ahead and "look for the Nazis" in the Donbass
The prisoners of the colonies of St. Petersburg are promised freedom and 200 thousand rubles for six months, if they agree to go to fight in the Donbass and remain alive after that. Relatives of prisoners serving sentences in IK-7 "Yablonevka" and IK-6 "Obukhovo" reported this to the publication "Important stories ".
Atlantic Council, Goodwill gestures and de-Nazification: Decoding Putin’s Ukraine War lexicon
While the official Russian version of events is self-evidently absurd, an understanding of the true meaning behind Moscow’s preferred terminology is essential for international audiences looking to make sense of the often bizarre statements coming out of the Kremlin. From “goodwill gestures” to “de-Nazification” and “reclaiming Russian lands,” here are some of the key phrases from the lexicon of Putin’s Ukraine War decoded into plain English.
Decode39, How online Russian propaganda makes it through to Italy
Even though News-Front does not offer Italian content, there are at least 34 Italian “alternative information” blogs that translate and publish its contents. Dataroom’s analysis tallied their pageviews, March through May: over 18 million. And that’s without considering their social media reach.
African Center for Strategic Studies, Mapping Disinformation in Africa
Russia has been the leading purveyor of disinformation campaigns in Africa with at least 16 known operations on the continent. Drawing on a legacy dating back to Joseph Stalin (who coined the term dezinformatsyia), the targeted tactics of disinformation in Africa are adapted from the Russian military strategy of “ambiguous warfare.” This strategy amplifies grievances and exploits divisions within a targeted society, fostering fragmentation and inaction—all while affording the perpetrators plausible deniability.
Cepa, Foes or Partners: The Transatlantic Chip Question
Manufacturing has concentrated in fewer and fewer high-capacity plants, mainly in Asia, and especially in Taiwan. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) currently has a 54 percent global market share. Samsung has 17 percent. UMC, another Taiwanese foundry, has seven percent. Global Foundries created when AMD split off its manufacturing has seven percent and China’s CSMC has four percent.
Report: The insurrectionists’ clubhouse: Former Trump aides find a home at a little-known MAGA hub
Founded in 2017, CPI is little-known outside Trump circles, yet it has quickly become among the most powerful political messaging forces in the MAGA universe. The group did not respond to questions submitted by Grid for this article.
Boris Watch…
13: 13— Boris Johnson resigns as Prime Minister. He has yet to communicate his intention to the Queen.
Johnson spoke with president Zelenskiy “to reiterate the United Kingdom’s steadfast support”, Downing Street said. In his resignation speech outside No 10, Johnson addressed the people of Ukraine directly and promised that “the UK will continue to back your fight for freedom for as long as it takes”.
We’re signing off. Thanks for reading…
Mo & Scott
Bye Boris