A Reuters summary of this week’s events related to Ukraine war events leads. Next, the Associated Press reports that Ukrainian officials say Kyiv is under increased artillery bombardment. Both articles link to others. Then, two National Public Radio views of the war; the first is from Kyiv, the second from Moscow on Russian government attempts to control perception. Then, a related AP piece on Russian government partial control of internet traffic. Next, an observer of U.S. foreign policy on how and why he thinks this whole thing got started in the first place. Finally, teleSUR reports on a Russian Foreign Ministry statement repeating its call for an international verification mechanism within the framework of the Biological and Toxic Weapons Convention. — MCM
– – –
Three EU leaders to visit Kyiv to show Ukraine support, by Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets | Reuters * Updates with EU leaders’ trip. * Shells hit Kyiv * Czech, Polish, Slovenian leaders head to Kyiv * Zelenskiy aide says war over by May | LVIV, Ukraine, March 15 (Reuters) – Three European prime ministers were travelling to Kyiv on Tuesday, the first foreign leaders to visit the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its invasion in a striking symbol of Ukraine’s success so far in fending off Russia’s assault. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and Poland’s Mateusz Morawiecki announced plans for the visit, saying they and Slovenia’s Janez Jansa would meet Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Zelenskiy’s office confirmed the plans. “The purpose of the visit is to confirm the unequivocal support of the entire European Union for the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine,” Fiala said, adding the three leaders would present a broad support package for Ukraine. Morawiecki’s aide, Michal Dwoczyk, told reporters the delegation had crossed the Polish-Ukraine border and was heading to Kyiv by train, in what the Polish leader said was a historic mission. READ MORE . . .
– – –
Ukraine’s capital city under fire; 3 EU nation leaders to visit, by Andrea Rosa | The Associated Press | KYIV, Ukraine — Russia’s relentless bombardment of Ukraine edged closer to central Kyiv on Tuesday, with a series of strikes hitting a residential neighborhood as the leaders of three European Union countries planned a bold visit to Ukraine’s embattled capital in a show of support. Shortly before dawn, large explosions thundered across Kyiv from what Ukrainian authorities said was artillery strikes. The shelling ignited a huge fire and a frantic rescue effort in a 15-story apartment building in a western district of the city. At least one person was killed in the blast. Shockwaves from an explosion also damaged the entry to a downtown subway station that has been used as a bomb shelter. City authorities tweeted an image of the blown-out facade, saying trains would no longer stop at the station. READ MORE . …
– – –
A look inside the war in Ukraine from the capital city of Kyiv On NPR’s ‘Morning Edition,’ the program’s co-host Rachel Martin talks with another co-host, Leila Fadel, who was in Kyiv. Listen HERE.
– – –
Amid misinformation, how do Russians perceive Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine? On NPR’s ‘Morning Edition’ program, a segment in which A. Martinez talks with Julia Ioffe of the media company Puck about Russia’s crackdown on free speech. Listen HERE.
– – –
War censorship exposes Putin’s leaky internet controls, by Frank Bajak and Barbara Ortutay | The Associated Press BOSTON — Long before waging war on Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin was working to make Russia’s internet a powerful tool of surveillance and social control akin to China’s so-called Great Firewall. So when Western tech companies began cutting ties with Russia following its invasion . . . READ MORE . . .
– – –
Nuland’s War? The U.S. & Its Secret Biological Weapons Labs, by Michael A. Armstrong | Armstrong Economics There are Biolabs in Ukraine funded by the U.S. There was never any real question if they existed or not. The rumor two days after the Russian invasion began, the claim was that Russia was targeting them for destruction. I wrote on Feb. 26, 2022, that such a rumor was false and I pointed out that Russia would never target those labs for destruction. Instead, they would prefer to capture them to illustrate that people like Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, a notorious Neocon who just wants war has for decades, played the Neocon agenda of offensive war against everyone other than the United States – yes even Europe. Nuland is a strategic player in government for the Neocons who have led U.S. foreign policy from one disaster to another for the past 30 years while avoiding accountability. Nobody really understands that these people are directing the country without Congressional knowledge or the approval of the people. READ MORE . . .
– – –
Russia Calls for Verification Mechanism On Ukrainian BioLabs From TeleSUR For the past 20 years, the U.S. has blocked a Russian proposal on the creation of a verification mechanism within the framework of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. Today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed the importance of establishing a verification mechanism as U.S.-funded biological laboratories in Ukraine have caused concern. “The issue of U.S.-funded biological laboratories in Ukraine must be addressed within the framework of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention,” he said. . . . In addition to over 30 biolabs in Ukraine, the United States has created “hundreds of such laboratories” in other countries, Lavrov noted. READ MORE . . .