It is day 287 of the war in Ukraine. Follow the latest news about the war and all its aftermath in this live blog.
Ukraine calls for a boycott of Russian culture
1:40 pm | Ukraine’s Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko calls for a boycott of Russian culture. The Kremlin is using that culture to justify war in Ukraine, he argues in an opinion piece for the British newspaper The Guardian.
“We are not talking about canceling Tchaikovsky, but suspending performances of his works until Russia stops its bloody invasion,” he said. Famous works by Russian composer Tchaikovsky include Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.
Rosneft reports billionaire profit, despite sanctions
11:15 am | Russian oil producer Rosneft reported profits in the billions in the first nine months of the year despite Western sanctions against Russia over war in Ukraine. The company was able to maintain sales by selling more oil to Asian countries, which offset the decline in sales to Europe. The group also benefited from rising oil prices.
Rosneft suffered in the third quarter as its operations moved to Germany. In September, the German government took control of parts of the Rosneft country, including three refineries. According to the German government, the company failed to cooperate to stop the import of Russian oil, a goal Berlin set itself because of the war in Ukraine. Rosneft called this “expropriation” of its property by the German government “illegal”.
Rosneft reported net income of 591 billion rubles (about 9 billion euros) for the first nine months of 2022. In the same period of 2021, the company reported a record profit of 696 billion rubles, which represents a decrease of 15% of profits this year.
Ukraine: boycott Russian culture
11am | Ukraine’s culture minister called on the country’s Western allies to boycott Russian culture by urging them to cease performances of the music of Tchaikovsky and other Russian composers until the end of the war.
In the British newspaper The Guardian, Oleksandr Tkachenko argues that such a “cultural boycott” is not the equivalent of “cancelling Tchaikovsky”, but of “suspending the performance of his works until Russia stops its bloody invasion”.
He argues that such a move is justified as the war is “a civilizing struggle for culture and history”, in which Russia is actively “trying to destroy our culture and memory” by insisting that the two states form one nation .
Many cultural celebrities in Ukraine have said that the Russian state is actively exploiting its artistic heritage during the conflict. For example, billboards in Russian-occupied Kherson displayed images of Pushkin, with lyrics referencing the Russian poet’s connection to the city.
Russians holiday en masse in Venezuela due to sanctions
11am | Russian tourists flock to Isla de Margarita, a tropical island off the coast of Venezuela. For two months now, Russian Norwind Airlines has been operating direct flights between Moscow and Isla de Margarita. Income for Venezuelans, a godsend for tourists who have to deal with visas and flight restrictions due to the war in Ukraine.
Russian newspaper: Russia can ban oil sales
10:55 am | Russia is considering a ban on oil sales to some countries in response to caps set by the European Union, G7 countries and Australia for oil from the country. According to insiders, the Russian newspaper Vedomosti reports that Moscow is considering several options, including a ban. Furthermore, the country can also decide to set a minimum price for the sale of its oil. An amount has not yet been indicated.
The price cap, set by Western countries at 60 dollars a barrel, came into force on Monday. The goal of the measure is to reduce Russia’s revenues, giving Moscow the opportunity to supply the world market. The measure means that only oil priced at $60 a barrel or less can be delivered.
As part of the possible ban, sales through intermediaries to countries that support the price cap would also be banned, not just direct sales from Russia. Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak earlier said Russia could cut oil production, but not by much.
Poland deploys German Patriot air defense system
08:00 | Poland is preparing to deploy the German Patriot air defense system on its territory. This is what Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak tweeted.
Germany last month offered Poland the Patriot system to help protect its airspace after a stray missile crashed and killed two people in Poland. Berlin has refused to locate the system in Ukraine, to the dissatisfaction of Poles who are now using the system in their own backyard.
“After speaking with the German Defense Ministry, I was disappointed with the decision to refuse Ukraine’s support. The deployment of patriots in western Ukraine would increase the security of Poles and Ukrainians,” Blaszczak tweeted on Tuesday evening.
“So we are entering into working arrangements to place the launchers in Poland and connect them to our command system.”
Russia considers a stop to oil sales and a minimum price
06:08 | Russia is considering various counter-reactions to the EU and G7 ban on Russian oil. For example, Vladimir Putin’s country is considering, among other things, plans to stop selling oil to countries that boycott Russian oil. Also, a floor price is taken into consideration when selling oil. On Monday, the G7 countries, the EU and Australia introduced a boycott on Russian oil.
The United States does not facilitate Ukrainian attacks inside Russia
06:00 | The United States said on Tuesday it had not “allowed” Ukraine to launch attacks inside Russia, following a series of drone attacks on military facilities inside Russian territory. Kiev did not immediately claim responsibility, but did not criticize the action, which Russian reports said killed three people and damaged long-range bombers and a fuel depot.
“We have not encouraged or allowed Ukrainians to strike inside Russia,” Foreign Minister Antony Blinken told reporters.
Washington has refrained from supplying long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukrainian forces that could strike Russia, fearing that this could lead to a direct confrontation between Russian forces and those of the United States and NATO.
The Americans are allocating another $800 million to Ukraine
04:33 | US politicians agree on an $800 million bailout package for Ukraine. The money is intended for further security support in the war against Russia.
Poland buys weapons from the US and South Korea
03:30 | The US government has approved the sale to Poland of 116 additional US Abrams main battle tanks and other heavy weaponry for a total of $3.75 billion (€3.56 billion), the US State Department said. The deal also includes Hercules rescue vehicles, mobile assault bridges capable of carrying tanks across rivers, around fifty light vehicles, small arms and ammunition. Congress has yet to approve the deal, but that’s a formality, according to observers.
Poland, which borders Ukraine and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad among others, has already bought 250 Abrams tanks and other military equipment from the United States in April for a total amount of $4.74 billion (4 .53 billion euros).
On Tuesday, Polish President Andrzej Duda was in the Polish naval port of Gdynia on the Baltic coast to ceremonially receive the first shipment of tanks and howitzers from South Korea. These included ten Black Panther K2 tanks and 24 Thunder K9 howitzers , which are part of an arms deal with South Korea worth a total of €5.6 billion.
Source: BNR
Sharon Rock is an author and journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. She has a passion for learning about different cultures and understanding the complexities of the world. With a talent for explaining complex global issues in an accessible and engaging way, Sharon has become a respected voice in the field of world news journalism.
