First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Tass, Agence France Presse, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. — MCM
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Russian strikes force Ukraine to face hours-long power cuts, by John Leicester | AP KYIV — Ukraine’s electricity grid chief warned of hours-long power outages today as Russia zeroed in on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with heavy artillery and missile attacks that have interrupted supplies to as much as 40% of the country’s people at the onset of winter. Freezing temperatures . . . READ MORE . . .
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Bush calls Zelenskyy ‘tough dude,’ says Ukraine can win, by Jamie Stengle | AP DALLAS — “Absolutely they can win, they’re winning,” former President George W. Bush said Wednesday at a conference held at his Dallas institute. “But they won’t win if the United States and the free world says it’s not worth it anymore.” The conference, which . . . READ MORE . . .
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Where’s Putin? Leader leaves bad news on Ukraine to others, by Dasha Litvinova | AP TALLINN, Estonia — Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was once rumored to personally supervise the military campaign in Ukraine and give battlefield orders to generals, appeared this week to be focused on everything but the war. He discussed . . . READ MORE . . .
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Nothing to discuss about Ukraine for U.S., Russia – diplomat. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russia has nothing to discuss with the United States about Ukraine, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said today. “There can be no dialogue or, moreover, talks, since our views are polar opposites,” he . . . READ MORE . . .
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President Putin holds telephone talk with Turkish counterpart Erdogan – Kremlin. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin chatted with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan over the phone and is scheduled to hold another phone-call later in the day, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today. Putin and Erdogan last spoke by phone on November 1. READ MORE . . .
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Russia says fortifying annexed Crimean peninsula. From AFP. MOSCOW — Russia said today it was strengthening positions on the Crimean peninsula, annexed from Ukraine in 2014, as Kyiv’s forces reclaim territory in the neighbouring Kherson region. “Fortification work” is being done “with the aim of guaranteeing the security of all Crimeans ,” the Moscow-appointed governor of the region, Mr Sergei Aksyonov, said on . . . READ MORE . . .
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Even remote corners of Africa are feeling the costly impacts of war in Ukraine. Reported by Willem Marx | NPR The Republic of Chad is a country in north central Africa. The U.N.’s World Food Programme found that prices for sorghum, a common local crop, had risen 40% last spring compared to the same period in 2021, while beans — another common staple of the Chadian diet — had in some parts of the country almost doubled in price. Data from the U.N. published this year indicate that 1.3 million children in Chad lack . . . Click HERE to listen and read.
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Ukraine crisis raises question: Does food aid go equally to ‘Black and white lives’? Reported by Nurith Aizenman | NPR The head of the World Health Organization has a stark message for the world. Millions of people around the globe are being pushed into hunger due to the reduction in exports of wheat and other key food items from Ukraine and Russia. “I don’t know if the world really gives equal attention to black and white lives,” he said. “And . . . the world is not treating the human race the same . . . Click HERE to listen and read.
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MAY BE CONTIN.UED