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Ukraine Crisis: Biden Declares That “Freedom Will Triumph Over Tyranny”

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US Vice President Joe Biden told Congress that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, miscalculated how the West would respond when he invaded Ukraine.

Mr. Biden promised in a primetime speech that “freedom will always triumph over tyranny.” His State of the Union address comes at a time when pandemic-weary Americans are grappling with skyrocketing inflation. At this point in his presidency, Mr. Biden is almost as unpopular as Donald Trump.

Mr. Biden announced that the United States would prohibit Russian aircraft from flying in American airspace, following similar bans imposed by Canadian and European authorities.

The US president threatened Russia with more economic retaliation, saying, “He has no idea what’s coming.”

Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova, who was sitting in US First Lady Jill Biden’s VIP box for the event, was also welcomed by the US president.

Mr. Biden’s State of the Union address, an annual event that pushes a president’s agenda, comes at a time when his personal popularity is at an all-time low.

According to the RealClearPolitics polling average, only 40.6 percent of Americans approve of the job he is doing. Despite the fact that the unemployment rate in the United States has fallen to 4%, inflation has reached a 40-year high.

The homicide rate in the United States has reached a 25-year high.

According to polls, Americans are dissatisfied with Mr. Biden’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan last year.

On Tuesday night, the president attempted to empathise with hard-pressed working families, saying: “Inflation is robbing them [Americans] of gains they thought they would be able to feel otherwise. I understand.”

However, the invasion of Ukraine, his most serious foreign policy crisis, dominated the opening of his speech.

Mr. Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hours before his speech to discuss what US assistance he could provide his country after six days of a Russian assault.

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Ukraine Conflict: Disney, Warner Bros., and Sony have halted the release of films in Russia

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Following the invasion of Ukraine, Warner Bros., Disney, and Sony have halted the release of films in Russian theatres.

The announcements mean that major films such as The Batman, Turning Red, and Morbius will not be released in the country as planned. They come at a time when governments around the world are tightening sanctions against Moscow.

Global corporations, including automakers and energy behemoths, have severed ties with Russia in recent days.

The Batman, a Warner Bros. blockbuster, was set to be released in Russia on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Russian release of the Pixar animated film Turning Red has been postponed by Disney.

The entertainment conglomerate also stated that it would collaborate with its non-governmental organisations to provide “urgent aid and other humanitarian assistance to refugees.”

Sony has also halted the release of Morbius, its Marvel adaptation, in the country.

Meanwhile, Netflix has stated that it will not comply with new Russian regulations requiring it to carry state-sponsored channels.

Tech platforms Twitter and Facebook have also moved to limit the presence of Russian state-backed news outlet information on their platforms as these have been accused of spreading misinformation about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Meta, which owns Facebook, said it would restrict access in the European Union to state-owned media outlets RT and Sputnik.

Twitter also said it would add warnings to tweets that share links to Russian state-affiliated media.

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Why Ukraine: Know The Back Story…..

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By invading Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has provoked one of Europe’s worst security crises since World War II, with missiles and artillery barrages accompanying troops as they entered the nation from various directions. In a video by WION YouTube Channel, Palki Sharma Upadhyay pointed out her view point about the matter ‘Why putin wants Ukraine’.

The Ukraine-Russia problem does not begin in 2021 or 2014; rather, it begins in the ninth century. Once these two countries were united. Ukraine used to hand over its nuclear weapons to Russia. But what happened now that they ready for the war.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin initiated a military assault against Ukraine. The armies entered Ukraine from multiple routes, sparking fears of a European conflict over Russia’s demands for a stop to NATO’s eastward expansion.

WHAT IS NATO

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, often known as the North Atlantic Alliance, is a military alliance made up of 28 European and two North American countries. The organisation was founded in the aftermath of World War II to carry out the North Atlantic Treaty, which was signed on April 4, 1949.

For months, Putin denied that he was plotting an invasion. In a televised statement, he said he had ordered “a special military action” to safeguard Russian citizens who had been victims of “genocide” in Ukraine.

Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have existed for many years. Tensions rose in 2021, however, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pushed US President Joe Biden to allow Ukraine to join NATO. Ukraine is a democratic country with a population of 44 million people and a history dating back over 1,000 years. It is also, after Russia, the largest country in Europe by area.

It voted for independence from Moscow after the demise of the Soviet Union. Putin sees Ukraine as a man-made country ripped out of Russia by adversaries. He has also referred to Ukraine as a Western puppet. Russia was enraged by Zelensky’s request to join NATO, and it began stationing troops along the Ukraine border. The US observed unexpected Russian army movements near the Ukrainian border on November 10, 2021. On November 28, Ukraine announced that Russia has amassed about 92,000 troops in preparation for an attack in late January or early February.

Moscow, on the other hand, denied it and accused Kyiv of conducting its own military build-up. President Biden warned in December that if Russia invaded Ukraine, he would face heavy consequences. Putin has insisted on assurances from the West and Ukraine that the country will not join NATO.

This isn’t the first time that relations between Russia and Ukraine have risen. In 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine and occupied the Crimean peninsula. President Putin’s backed rebels captured significant swaths of eastern Ukraine and fought the army. When its pro-Russian president was overthrown, the attack began. Since then, the battle has taken the lives of over 14,000 people.

He claims that contemporary Ukraine was totally built by communist Russia and that it is now a puppet state under Western influence. President Putin has also said that if Ukraine joins NATO, the alliance will attempt to reclaim Crimea.

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Ukraine Invasion: Facebook Access Restricted by Russia

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During the invasion of Ukraine, Russia has restricted access to Facebook due to the platform’s stance on the accounts of several Moscow-backed news outlets. Roskomnadzor, Russia’s communications regulator, accused the network of “censorship” and violating “Russian citizens’ rights and freedoms.”

Facebook stated that it would not stop fact-checking and labelling content from state-owned news outlets. The announcement came just one day after Russia launched its attack on Ukraine. It’s unclear what the regulator restrictions mean or how much Facebook parent company Meta’s other platforms – WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram – are affected. The regulator had demanded that Facebook remove the restrictions it imposed on state news agency RIA, state TV channel Zvezda, and pro-Kremlin news sites Lenta.Ru and Gazeta.Ru on 24th February.

Many state-owned Russian media outlets have painted a largely positive picture of Russia’s military advances in Ukraine, describing the invasion as a “special military operation” forced on Moscow. On 24th February, Meta announced the establishment of a “special operations centre” to monitor content related to the Ukrainian conflict.

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Russians Close In on Kyiv but Are Met With Stiff Resistance

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Russian assaults on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, have been met with fierce resistance, with the Ukrainian military claiming to have repulsed several attacks. In a Facebook post early 26th February, the military stated that an army unit was able to repel Russian forces near its base on a major city street.

President Zelensky had previously warned that Russia would attempt to “storm” Kyiv. The city government confirmed that there was fighting on the streets and urged residents to remain at home. According to Interfax-Ukraine, the government issued a statement urging people to stay in shelters and away from windows if they were at home. However, Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, told Ukrainian news site Lb.ua that the army was “in control” of the situation.

Late last night, the sound of artillery fire could be heard in the distance, indicating that Russian forces were attempting to weaken the city’s defences. However, the attack on Kyiv, which President Zelensky predicted last night, does not appear to have occurred. As the sun rises this morning, the city appears mostly silent, with few sounds to indicate the fierce battles that have been going on in more than one direction.

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Ukraine: Russia Accused of Imposing Sea Blockade

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Ukraine has accused Russia of obstructing its access to the sea, as Russia prepares for naval exercises next week amid rising regional tensions. According to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, Russian forces have completely blocked the Sea of Azov and have cut off almost all access to the Black Sea.

Despite amassing more than 100,000 troops at the border, Russia has repeatedly denied any intention of invading Ukraine. However, it has only recently begun massive military drills with neighbouring Belarus. Belarus is a close Russian ally with a long border with Ukraine. The drills, which are believed to be Russia’s largest deployment to Belarus since the Cold War, were dubbed a “violent gesture” by France. Ukraine claims they are the result of “psychological pressure.”

The US urged Americans in Ukraine to leave immediately due to “increased threats of Russian military action” on 10th February. Meanwhile, amid the tensions, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that Europe was facing its worst security crisis in decades.

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Winter Olympics: Kamila Valieva’s Failed Drug Test Has Been Confirmed

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Kamila Valieva, a teen Russian figure skater, failed a drugs test in December, according to the International Testing Agency (ITA). The 15-year-old assisted the Russian Olympic Committee in winning team figure skating gold on Monday, but the medals were not awarded due to a “legal issue.”

The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada) lifted her suspension, allowing her to compete in the Olympics in Beijing. According to the ITA, Valieva, the first female skater to land a quadruple jump in competition, had a sample taken on Christmas Day at the Russian Figure Skating Championships in St Petersburg. It was sent to a laboratory accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) in Stockholm, Sweden.

The result was only announced on February 8, the day after she won team gold but before the medal ceremony. Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, which is used to prevent angina attacks but is prohibited by Wada because it is classified as a cardiac metabolic modulator and has been shown to improve physical efficiency.

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A journalist arrested in Turkey is accused of insulting the president

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Journalist jailed in Turkey for insulting the country’s president. Turkish journalist Sedef Kabas has been jailed by a Turkish court. Kabas was arrested in Istanbul on Saturday and ordered by a court to be jailed before the trial.

The proverb quoted by Kabas in a live broadcast on a TV channel affiliated with the opposition was allegedly aimed at President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Kabas, however, denied this. The journalist faces up to one to four years in prison.

“There is a very famous saying that a crowned head belongs to a wise man, but we see that it is not true. The bull will not be king only if he enters the palace, the palace will be a barn,” she told Tele11. Later, they tweeted the same words. Erdogan’s spokesman Fahretin Alton called their comments irresponsible.

He tweeted that a so-called journalist on a television channel that had no other purpose than to spread hatred was nakedly insulting our president. Kabas, however, denied that he had insulted the president in court. She said she had no such intention. Mardan Yanardag, editor of Tele1 channel, criticized Kabas’ arrest.

“It is unacceptable that they were detained at two o’clock in the morning for a proverb,” ​​he said. He said the move was an attempt to intimidate journalists, the media and the community. Erdogan was prime minister for 11 years before becoming the country’s first directly elected president in August 2014. His silencing of critics has caused concern in EU countries. This cooled relations with the European Union and prevented Turkey from attempting to join the EU. Erdogan has been charged with insulting thousands of people since he became president. By 2020, more than 31,000 inquiries have been filed in connection with the crime, Reuters news agency reports.

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The Tonga Volcano’s Plume Has Reached Half-Way Into Space

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The height attained by the plume of last Saturday’s volcanic eruption in Tonga is an indication of its immense force. Scientists in the United Kingdom studying weather satellite data estimate it to be about 55 kilometres (35 miles) above the Earth’s surface.

This is where the stratosphere and mesosphere layers of the atmosphere meet. According to Dr. Simon Proud of RAL Space, these are “unheard-of altitudes” for a volcanic plume. Mount Pinatubo erupted with the greatest force in the second half of the twentieth century in 1991. Its plume is estimated to have reached a height of 40 kilometres.

However, Dr. Proud, who is linked with the UK National Centre for Earth Observation, cautioned that today’s more accurate satellites could have provided a greater altitude for the Philippines occurrence.

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Benjamin Briere, a French Tourist, on Trial in Iran for Espionage

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According to his lawyers, a French tourist who has been detained in Iran since 2020 on suspicion of espionage has gone on trial. Benjamin Brière, 36, was arrested after flying a drone near the Iran-Turkmenistan border.

If convicted, he faces prison time, however, his Iran-based lawyer has hinted that officials are considering putting him in a prisoner exchange. Mr. Brière has been on hunger strike since December, which has left him quite fragile, according to another of his lawyers.

Mr. Brière’s lawyer in Paris, Philippe Valent, and Mr. Brière’s sister both stated that a verdict might be given on 22nd January. He is being prosecuted behind closed doors in the Revolutionary Court in Mashhad, Iran’s easternmost city.

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