News from Italy
The News: Short weekly world tour
Vita gazette – From the USA to NATO and the EU, from Russia to China and the Pacific … From energy to arms and hunger … From culture to history and art … From natural disasters to new discoveries and technology … Important history recorded notes … (June 20 – June 27, 2022)
International relations and strategies
The war – Great Britain: Patrick Sanders, the British Chief of Staff, asked his soldiers to be ready to fight Russia. “We now have a strong imperative to build an army that can fight alongside our allies and defeat Russia in battle,” Sanders said in a message to the soldiers. “We are a generation that must once again prepare the military to fight in Europe. I am the first Chief of Staff to take office since 1941 when there is a possibility of waging a ground war against one of the great powers of the continent in Europe.”
Sanctions on Russia – Lithuania – Russia: The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a protest note to Lithuania, which decided to restrict the transit of goods to the Kaliningrad region by rail. In the statement made by the ministry, it was stated that the agreement signed in 2002 between Russia and the European Union (EU) on the transportation of goods to the Kaliningrad region was a hostile violation. In the statement, it was noted that if freight transport between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia is not restored, Russia reserves the right to protect its national interests.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitri Peskov also touched upon the issue of the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline, stating that this line was “damaged” due to the sanctions imposed by the EU. Peskov also said, “The turbines in the pipeline need to be thoroughly repaired. Some turbines cannot be returned. In other words, the Europeans do not replace the turbines. There are no materials needed to send the gas. This crisis was created by the hand of Europe,” he said. 20 June
Sanctions on Russia – Germany – Russia – Germany seized 3 apartments of two Russian citizens. In the statement made by the Munich Prosecutor’s Office, it was reported that the properties in Munich belonging to a member of the Russian Federation Duma and his wife, who are on the sanctions list of the European Commission, were confiscated. 20 June
EU – Libya: The European Union (EU) has announced that it will continue to support Libya until stability is achieved, elections are held and reconciliation is achieved. 21 June
Armament – Germany – Ukraine : The German government announced the list of military supplies they gave to Ukraine for the first time after the start of the Russia-Ukraine War. The list includes various weapons and supplies such as 500 Stinger missiles, 100 thousand hand grenades, 100 machine guns, 16 million bullets, 23 thousand helmets, 178 vehicles, 1 field hospital and 1200 patient beds. 21 June
War – Ukraine – Russian journalist Muratov sold his Nobel medal for helping Ukrainian children for $103.5 million 21 June
Sanctions – Russia: Maria “Masha” Alyokhina, member of the anti-Putin music group Pussy Riot, commented that the sanctions imposed by Western institutions on Russian artists and works were “stupid”. Masha emphasized that artists should unite to create an anti-war discourse. Alyokhina said, “Tchaikovsky did not invade Ukraine. If you really want to impose sanctions, ban Russian oil and gas completely,” he said. June 21
Energy – Russia – China : Russia has overtaken Saudi Arabia to become China’s largest oil supplier. 21 June
Drugs – Czech Republic: Police seized around £70m worth of cocaine, which was mistakenly
Drugs – Czech Republic: Police seized around £70m worth of cocaine, which was mistakenly delivered to supermarkets in a shipment of bananas. “Investigating officers found that goods belonging to the same party were also distributed to other places in the Czech Republic,” Czech police said in a statement. 21 June
Lithuania – Russia: Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that even if Putin leaves, they will still see Russia as a “threat”. 21 June
Russia – America: Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitriy Peskov said that they are in the hands of 2 US mercenaries fighting in the Ukrainian army. 21 June
Armament – Germany – Ukraine : German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that his country will continue to send weapons to Ukraine as long as necessary. 21 June
Mali – The Katiba Macina terrorist organization affiliated with Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb (AQIM) carried out terrorist attacks on villages in the inner parts of Mali. 132 civilians lost their lives. June 22
Finland – RussaFinland’s Chief of Staff, General Timo Kivinen, who has requested to join NATO, announced that his country has been preparing for decades against a Russian invasion and that they will defend themselves if that happens. June 22
Russia – Ukraina Spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mariya Zakharova said that they are ready to ensure that Ukrainian grain is exported by foreign ships. Saharova stated that the necessary conditions for the safe operation of humanitarian corridors in the Black Sea and Azov Seas have been created by the Russian forces, and that Mariupol and Berdyansk ports can be used for the export of agricultural products.
“We confirm that Russia is ready to provide for the extraction of Ukrainian grain by foreign ships. This can happen provided that the ships are controlled for weapons smuggling and Kiev refrains from provocative actions, the threat of mines and the creation of tensions in the Black Sea. Grain, fertilizer, energy,” said Zakharova. And said: “We once again confirm that we are ready to fulfill our obligations regarding the export of other critical products.” 22 giugno
Russia – Nike: US-based sportswear brand Nike also announced that it has decided to withdraw completely from Russia. In March, Nike announced that it could not guarantee delivery of goods to customers in Russia and, as such, purchases on the “Nike.com” website and mobile app have been “temporarily suspended”. In May, the company announced that it would not enter into new contracts with its partners in Russia and would not renew existing contracts. June 23
EU – Ukraine – Moldova – Georgia : The leaders of the European Union (EU) decided to give the status of “candidate country” to Ukraine and Moldova.
Ukraine submitted its candidacy application to the EU on February 28, 2022, and Moldova and Georgia on March 3, 2022. On 17 June, the EU Commission gave its opinion on granting candidacy status to Ukraine and Moldova. For Georgia, the Commission recommended that its situation be reassessed later, provided that it presents a European perspective and meets the criteria. Candidate status is the first step in a country’s long-term EU accession process. After a country is granted candidate status, accession negotiations begin in the following stages, provided that the conditions are met. June 23
America-NATO-EU-Ukraine-Russia-China: the United States sends a new weapons package worth 450 million dollars, including advanced missile systems, to Ukraine. Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, the United States has announced 13 arms packages to Ukraine, and the arms budget allocated to Ukraine alone has reached $ 6.1 billion.
England – Togo – Gabon – The former French colonies of Togo and Gabon officially became members of the Commonwealth. 26 June
NATO – Spain: Thousands of people held an anti-NATO demonstration titled “No to NATO for Peace” in Madrid, the capital of Spain, which hosted NATO’s summit on 28-30 June. 26 June
Australia: The swastika, the symbol of the Nazis, has been banned in the Australian state of Victoria. It is clear that the recent increase in the rate of radicalization is a justification for the law. According to this, those who exhibit the swastika will be punished with penalties ranging from 22,000 Australian dollars to 12 jail terms. June 22
Bulgaria: Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, who could not get a vote of confidence from the Parliament, submitted his cabinet’s resignation letter to the Presidency. 27 June.
Global warming – Climate change
EU – Germany: Rejected plan to ban new petrol and diesel cars by 2035. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said the German government would not accept the European Union’s (EU) legislation banning the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035.
India – Bangladesh : It was announced that at least 59 people died in lightning strikes and landslides caused by severe monsoon storms in both countries. Bangladesh government officials described the latest flooding as the “worst flooding” in the country since 2004. 21 June
Canada – Canada announced that it will ban the production and export of single-use plastic from the end of the year to combat climate change and pollution. The Ministry of Environment said in a statement that most plastic grocery bags, cutlery and straws will be banned, except for medical needs. June 22
Alps: Snow has turned red in the French Alps. This situation, which accelerates the melting of snow, is thought to be caused by climate change. Scientists are investigating the reason for this change in the mountain. June 22
Health
Covid-19 – Taiwan: Another symptom of Covid 19 has emerged. A 6-year-old boy in Taiwan has whitened nails after contracting the Covid-19 virus.
Covid-19 – England : The experts in the UK state that there is an increase in coronavirus cases, they point out that the new BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants derived from Omicron are dominant, and they think that these variants are more resistant to antibodies and target the lung. 21 June
Monkeypox – Nigeria: It has been announced that the virus has spread to 17 states, 41 new cases have been detected, and one person has died. 21 June
Monkeypox: A new study out of the UK has warned that the monkeypox epidemic will grow 10x. The study, during the corona virus (Covid-19) epidemic, is an epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, who was among the SAGE members advising the government in the UK. Dr. Conducted by John Edmunds. June 23
Monkeypox: Cases of monkeypox continue to rise. While the first case of monkeypox was detected in the Republic of South Africa, monkeypox virus was detected in 18 people in a week in Ghana. June 23
Natural Disasters
Earthquake – Iran: An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 occurred in the province of Hormuzgan in the south of Iran. June 22
Earthquake – Afghanistan : A 5.9 magnitude earthquake occurred in the Khost province of Afghanistan. June 22 – The death toll rose to 1200. The approximate number of injured is 2,000 people.
Flood – India: The number of people who lost their lives in floods, landslides and accidents caused by monsoon rains in Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh states in northeast India increased to 131. 22 June
The display of the swastika, also known as the Nazi symbol, has been banned in the Australian state of Victoria. Those who do not comply with the law, which is expected to come into effect within 6 months, can be sentenced to up to 1 year in prison or a fine of 22,000 Australian dollars (approximately 263 thousand liras). June 22
Earthquake – Iran : An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 occurred in the Hormuzgan province in the south of Iran. 25 June
Flood – Bangladesh: The number of people who lost their lives in the flood in Bangladesh reached 73. 25 June
Earthquake – Iran : An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.4 occurred in Kerman province in southeast Iran. 26 June
Animal rights
China – Police in China stopped a truck carrying 386 dogs for a “dog meat festival” in Yulin city, saving dogs from being killed. June 22
Colombia – At least 4 people died and hundreds were injured as a result of the collapse of the tribune where the spectators were present at the “Corraleja” bullfighting festival held in Espinal, Colombia. Authorities said they were worried about the increase in the death toll. June 27
Human rights
Immigrants – England : The British Ministry of Home Affairs is preparing to install GPS tracking devices on some immigrants as part of a 1-year pilot. Refugee Council President Solomon said it was “appalling” to treat people fleeing war and persecution as criminals. 20 june
Immigrant children – Netherlands: In the report prepared by the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports, it was announced that due to the length of the asylum application process, adequate care and education could not be given to the children kept in the asylum centre. In the report, it was stated that due to the length of the application process, children had to wait in these centers for up to 14 weeks. In the report, it was noted that over 10 thousand children were kept in temporary asylum centers and 1450 of them were not with their parents. 21 June
Migrant – Australia : The Australian Ministry of Home Affairs has announced that a Vehicle Tracking System (VMS) will be installed on 4,000 Sri Lankan fishing boats and vessels to prevent human smuggling and the influx of refugees into the country. Britain had previously announced that it would follow the movements of refugees inside the country by installing an Electronic Tracking (EM) device on refugees who entered the country illegally. June 22
The right to abortion – USA : The US Supreme Court annulled the 1973 “Roe-Wade'” decision that constitutionally guaranteed the right to abortion nationwide. Thus, the right to abortion, which had been in effect for 50 years, was ended.
The Vatican – The right to abortion : The Vatican justified the US Supreme Court’s removal of abortion as a constitutional right. The statement said, “The protection of human life is not a problem that can be limited to the use of individual rights. This is a problem of social importance.” 25 June
Spain – Morocco: A Moroccan caravan of 500 people trying to cross into the Melilla region of Spain clashed with the security guards. 18 people died. 25 June
Armament -USA – Biden signed the law restricting the purchase of weapons and allowing the inspection of illegal weapons in order to prevent gun violence. And the new regulation came into effect. 25 June
Art – Culture
Sanctions – Russian artists : Maria “Masha” Alyokhina, member of the anti-Putin music group Pussy Riot, commented that the sanctions imposed by Western institutions on Russian artists and works are “stupid”. Emphasizing that artists should unite to create an anti-war discourse, Alyokhina said, “Tchaikovsky did not invade Ukraine. If you really want to impose sanctions, ban Russian oil and gas completely,” she said. 21 June
Sanctions – Ukraine – Russian culture: In Ukraine, the names of streets and places connected with Russian culture began to be changed. The Ukrainian Parliament has banned the playing of Russian songs in public places and in the media in the country where a significant part of the population speaks Russian. In some cities, statues of the famous Russian poet Pushkin began to be dismantled. Some of the Ukrainian administration wants to do the same in the port city of Odessa. But Odessa is a city identified with Pushkin. Odessa Mayor Truhanov stated that he is against such initiatives. Since the beginning of the war, this was the first significant objection to the efforts to purge Russian culture. 21 June
Science and Technology
Toyota – Japan : Japanese automotive company Toyota has recalled 2700 bZ4Xs, its first all-electric model in mass production, to service shops due to a problem that could cause the wheels to come off. 24 June
Discovery
Greece – The lost marble head of Hercules, one of the best-known heroes of Greek and Roman mythology, has been found from a 2,000-year-old shipwreck near the island of Crete. The body of Hercules, which was found in the Antikythera shipwreck, which is stated to belong to the year 60, was previously found in 1900. Discoveries indicate that the shipwreck, which is supposed to have traveled from the eastern Mediterranean towards Rome, most likely belonged to a merchant ship about 40 meters long.
The world’s largest freshwater fish was discovered in Cambodia: The giant stingray, caught in the Mekong River, weighs 300 kilograms and is 4 meters long. The researchers inserted an electronic chip to monitor the fish’s movements and behavior, and then released Boramy back into the river. 21 June
Baby Mammoth – Canada: Workers at a Yukon state gold mine have found a 30,000-year-old woolly baby mammoth with almost all of its body intact. Experts said the woolly mammoth looked like a female and was the same size as the woolly mammoth “Lyuba” discovered in 2007.
Work life
Rolls Royce : In England, the car brand Rolls Royce will make a one-time payment of £2,000 to its more than 14 thousand employees due to the rising cost of living.
