(2022-02-27). Putin orders Russian nuclear deterrent forces to be on highest alert. rt.com 
The move comes in response to 'hostile' rhetoric by top NATO officials, Russia's president has explained | President Vladimir Putin placed the country's strategic deterrence forces on "special" alert on Sunday, announcing the move during a meeting with Russia's Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov. | "Western countries are not only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic area. I'm speaking about the illegitimate sanctions that everyone is well aware of. However, the top officials of the leading NATO countries also make aggressive statements against our countr…
(2022-02-27). China lifts all restrictions on wheat imports from Russia. rt.com 
The move could ease the impact of western sanctions against Moscow | China is now fully open to Russian wheat deliveries, as all import restrictions have been lifted, the South China Morning Post has reported, citing the country's General Administration of Customs. | The announcement was made public on Thursday, hours after Russia began its military operation in Ukraine, the paper says, adding that the deal could provide a lifeline to the Russian economy as it faces tough economic sanctions from the EU and the US, and at the same time addresses China's need to enhance food security. | China previously restrict…
(2022-02-27). China speaks out against sanctions over Ukraine. rt.com 
Beijing believes the West should address Moscow's "legitimate security demands" | China said on Saturday that Western sanctions slapped on Russia over its military operation in Ukraine will not solve the crisis. Many countries have imposed sweeping restrictions on Moscow, hitting its banks, trade, and largest airline, among other things. Foreign Minister Wang Yi made his comments during a phone call with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock. | According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Wang said "China doesn't support the use of sanctions to solve problems, and even more so opposes unilateral sanctions th…
(2022-02-27). Russia's vast offshore reserves could roil international money markets. rt.com 
Moscow holds $300 billion abroad, a Credit Suisse strategist estimates | The world's money markets will suffer if Ukraine-related sanctions target Russia's huge offshore reserves, according to Credit Suisse as reported by Bloomberg on Thursday. | The Swiss banking giant says Moscow has about $300 billion of foreign currency held abroad — enough to disrupt money markets if the reserves are frozen or if Moscow is forced to suddenly move them due to sanctions over the crisis in Ukraine, the business outlet quotes Credit Suisse Group AG strategist Zoltan Pozsar as saying. | "When flows change, spreads can gap…
(2022-02-27). Hours After Getting Bail Jammu and Kashmir Journalist Fahad Shah Arrested Again. sputniknews.com The 33-year-old Fawad Shah, the editor of The Kashmir Walla news website, was first arrested on 4 February in Kashmir. His arrest was criticised by at least 50 media agencies and human rights groups.
(2022-02-27). Thursday 3/3: Women Who Are Powering Voting Rights & Democracy w/ LWV. indybay.org Online event…
(2022-02-27). White House: Venezuela Will Feel the Pressure of Sanctions Against Russia (+Missile Crisis). orinocotribune.com Caracas, February 26, 2022 ( "The sanctions on Russia are so robust that they will have an impact on those governments with economic links with Russia," stated González. "And that is by design, so Venez…
(2022-02-27). Bank of Russia responds to Western threats. rt.com 
The regulator pledges to protect the nation's economy | The Bank of Russia (the Central Bank) will provide domestic banks with cash and non-cash liquidity in rubles in order to maintain financial stability and protect the economy from the impact of the latest Ukraine-related Western sanctions, the regulator said in a statement on Sunday. | "The Bank of Russia will continuously provide banks with cash and non-cash liquidity in rubles. The REPO (repurchase agreement) auction on Monday will be held on an unlimited basis, with full satisfaction of all applications received from banks," the statement released by th…
(2022-02-27). EU to 'paralyze' assets of Russian Central Bank. rt.com 
Washington expects the ruble to plunge after it loses the regulator's support | The EU is planning to freeze the assets of Russia's Central Bank, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday, announcing a new round of sanctions against Moscow amid the ongoing military operation in Ukraine. | "We will paralyze the assets of Russia's Central Bank. This will freeze its transactions. It will make it impossible for the Central Bank to liquidate assets," she tweeted. | The head of the EC will offer the measure along with a number of other restrictions on Russia for consideration to the leaders of E…
(2022-02-27). As West Slaps Another Package of Sanctions on Russia, Analyst Mulls Over Their Effectiveness. sputniknews.com Although Western sanctions did harm the Iranian economy, they failed to curb Tehran's nuclear drive. They also failed to result in the overthrow of the current Iranian leadership. Will the same scenario unfold in Russia?
(2022-02-26). Australia suspends RT broadcast. rt.com 
Australia's satellite operator said the move has been made out of "concern about the situation in Ukraine" | Australia's satellite operator, Foxtel, has notified RT on Saturday that it is suspending the channel's broadcast distribution in Australia as part of its services "in view of concern about the situation in Ukraine." The operator will then further "consider" its rights under the channel license agreement, it added, without elaborating on any potential additional measures. | Foxtel is a satellite operator covering all of Australia's territory and has its own over-the-top (OTT) server allowing media servi…
(2022-02-26). The Belmarsh Tribunal Is Demanding Justice For Victims Of War On Terror. popularresistance.org It has been ten years since WikiLeaks began publishing the "Guantanamo Files," documenting the detention and torture of prisoners by the United States government at its prison on Cuba's occupied east coast. But the architects and administrators of the Guantanamo Bay torture camp today walk free. Instead, the journalists, whistleblowers, and publishers have been sent to prison. Assange has now spent over a thousand days in solitary confinement at Belmarsh as the UK courts debate his extradition to face a 175-year prison sentence in the United States. | The Belmarsh Tribunal — which sits today for its third s…
(2022-02-26). Palestinian administrative detainees Hisham Abu Hawwash and Miqdad al-Qawasmeh released. peoplesdispatch.org Two Palestinian administrative detainees who went on hunger strikes against their illegal administrative detention were finally released from Israeli custody on February 24, Thursday, according to a report by the WAFA News Agency. Hisham Abu Hawwash and Miqdad al-Qawasmeh, who were on hunger strike for 141 and 114 days respectively, had forced Israeli authorities to agree to end their detention. They were among the several administrative detainees who launched hunger strikes to bring attention to the injustice and cruelty they faced in Israeli prisons. | According to the report, the two detainees were released fr…
(2022-02-26). Russian ship seized by French authorities. rt.com 
The cargo vessel is suspected of being linked to "Russian interests" hit by Western sanctions | A Russian cargo ship has been intercepted in the English Channel by French authorities on suspicion of violating EU sanctions imposed following Moscow's military offensive in Ukraine. | The vessel, which departed from Rouen, was transporting cars to St. Petersburg when it was redirected to the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer in northern France in the early hours of Saturday morning. | The press office for the Maritime Prefecture of the Channel confirmed to the media that the ship was "strongly suspected of being linked to…
(2022-02-26). Hundreds of Anti-War Protesters Have Been Arrested Across Russia. truthout.org 
Hundreds of anti-war protesters were detained in Russia on Friday following over 1,800 The independent monitoring group OVD-Info…
(2022-02-26). PHOTO: Four Illegal Immigrants Stuffed in Toolbox Like Sardines at Texas Border. sputniknews.com A recent CBS News poll showed only 36% of respondents voiced satisfaction with how US President Joe Biden was handling immigration, as the past year witnessed record levels of illicit border crossings and overflowing detention centres struggling to deal with illegal immigrants on the Southern US border.
(2022-02-26). Protest Canadian rulers' Emergencies Act attack on workers' protests, rights! themilitant.com 
MONTREAL — "The sweeping police operation carried out under the anti-working-class Emergencies Act against the three-week protest in Ottawa, Canada's capital, by truckers and others opposed to vaccine mandates is an assault on the political rights of all working people," said Philippe Tessier, Communist League candidate in a Quebec provincial by-election in the riding of Marie-Victorin. "It is one of the largest acts of police repression in modern Canadian history and should be opposed by all unions and supporters of democratic rights. | "As of today — Feb. 22 — even though the cops have shut do…
(2022-02-26). Russia's space agency responds to Western sanctions. rt.com 
The Russian space agency has turned to China with a collaboration proposal | Roscosmos will cease work on joint space projects with Europe and the United States and instead seek cooperation with China, the head of the Russian space agency Dmitry Rogozin announced on Saturday. | Rogozin told Tass news agency on Saturday that he had given his team an order to start negotiations with Beijing on coordination and mutual technical support of all deep space missions, including the 'Venera-D' project, the first Russian mission to Venus since Soviet times. | "Under the conditions of sanctions, US participation in the p…
(2022-02-26). Canada imposes "severe" sanctions on Russia, puts 3,400 troops on stand-by for deployment to Europe. wsws.org From within Canada's political establishment, including the ostensibly "left" NDP, the only criticism of the Trudeau government's belligerence and war preparations against Russia is that the measures do not go far enough.
(2022-02-26). European Union sanctions Belarusian defense, military officials. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Interfax-UkraineFebruary 26, 2022 EU sanctions Belarusian Security Council secretary, General Staff chief, deputy defense ministers The European Union has applied restrictive measures to Belarusian Security Council Secretary Alexander Volfovich, General Staff Chief Viktor Gulevich, and Deputy Defense Ministers Andrei Zhuk, Sergei Simonenko, and Andrei Burdyko, according to a document published in the Official Journal of …
(2022-02-26). Chinese banks limit financing for Russian purchases — media. rt.com 
The two largest lenders reportedly restricted funding for the purchase of Russian commodities | China's largest public financial institutions are reportedly limiting financing to purchase raw materials from Russia under the threat of sanctions from the US and allies over the military operation in Ukraine. | The step, which might only be temporary, was taken by at least two of China's largest state-controlled banks, ICBC and Bank of China, which are at major risk of secondary sanctions from Washington, Bloomberg news agency reported on Saturday, citing unidentified sources. | ICBC, the world's biggest bank by a…
(2022-02-26). Moscow may nationalize assets of foreigners — former Russian president. rt.com 
Dmitry Medvedev has called for tit-for-tat measures over the freezing of Russian assets abroad | The former Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, hasn't ruled out nationalizing the Russian-based assets of foreigners registered in "hostile jurisdictions." | The harsh step may be taken in response to the seizure of funds of Russian citizens abroad, the ex-leader, who is currently deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, posted on Facebook. | "They also threaten to seize the money of Russian citizens and Russian companies abroad <...> But this will have to be answered quite symmetrically," Medvedev, the p…
(2022-02-26). LIVE: Russia To Reciprocate Sanctions Imposed by West. telesurenglish.net 18: 30 EST Update: | Russia To Reciprocate Sanctions Imposed by West | The Russian Federation announced that they plan to reciprocate and evaluate bilateral relations with those countries imposing measures on them. | 17: 30 EST Update: | West to Disconnect Russian Banks From S.W.I.F.T. System | Western Leaders of the United States, United Kingdom and Canada held discussions to issue the of Russia from S.W.I.F.T. interbank system. The decison to disconnect was agreed upon later this Saturday. | The German government announced that all Russian banks already subjected to Western sanctions will be excluded from S…
(2022-02-26). 'Final review' of Russia's relations with West now possible — former president. rt.com 
Dmitry Medvedev has dubbed European organizations "meaningless almshouses" | Western sanctions could be an "excellent reason for a final review" of Russia's relations with the nations that have imposed the restrictions, the deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council and former president, Dmitry Medvedev, said on Saturday. | Russia's military operation in Ukraine, which was launched on February 24, has prompted outrage in the West and a new wave of harsh sanctions against Russia. In a lengthy
(2022-02-26). Russian Space Agency Suspends Cooperation With Europe on Launches in Kourou Spaceport. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Russian space agency Roscosmos is suspending cooperation with Europe on launches from the Kourou cosmodrome and is recalling its employees from French Guiana in response to sanctions imposed by the European Union, the head of the agency, Dmitry Rogozin, said on Saturday.