themoscowtimes--2020-10-03--Anger From Moscow, Minsk as EU, U.S. Sanction Belarus

The United States and the EU hit Belarus officials with long-awaited sanctions over the country 's political crisis on Friday , drawing an angry response from Minsk and its ally Moscow .
After more than six weeks of diplomatic efforts , EU leaders finally persuaded Cyprus to drop its block on sanctions at a summit in Brussels , opening the way for some 40 members of President Alexander Lukashenko 's regime to be listed .
The US Treasury also moved against eight Belarus officials with punitive sanctions Friday for what it called their roles in `` fraudulent '' elections and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The sanctions targeted Interior Minister Yury Karayev and Deputy Minister Alexander Barsukov , public security officials , and election commission officials .
`` The Belarusian people 's democratic aspirations to choose their own leaders and peacefully exercise their rights have been met with violence and oppression from Belarusian officials , '' said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a statement .
The EU targets for its travel bans and asset freezes are officials it blames for rigging the August 9 election that returned Lukashenko to power and for orchestrating the crackdown .
Lukashenko himself @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it does include Karayev , who the EU says was responsible for the `` repression and intimidation campaign '' against protesters , and Central Election Commission chief Lidia Yermoshina .
The EU 's official listing blames Yermoshina for the `` falsification of election results '' in the poll , which Western powers have dismissed as rigged and illegitimate .
Minsk swiftly announced tit-for-tat `` counter sanctions '' against the EU , though it was not clear what form these would take or what they would target .
`` In connection with visa sanctions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Belarusian officials , the Belarusian side from today is introducing a list of reciprocal sanctions , '' Belarus 's foreign ministry said in a statement .
The ministry said that by imposing sanctions the EU had `` alienated '' the country , which western commentators have dubbed `` Europe 's last dictatorship '' under Lukashenko 's strongman rule .
Minsk said it would not disclose which European officials were being targeted , but threatened `` even more serious consequences '' if the EU expands its restrictions .

The United States and the EU hit Belarus officials with long-awaited sanctions over the country's political crisis on Friday, drawing an angry response from Minsk and its ally Moscow.
After more than six weeks of diplomatic efforts, EU leaders finally persuaded Cyprus to drop its block on sanctions at a summit in Brussels, opening the way for some 40 members of President Alexander Lukashenko's regime to be listed.
The US Treasury also moved against eight Belarus officials with punitive sanctions Friday for what it called their roles in "fraudulent" elections and a subsequent violent crackdown on protesters.
The sanctions targeted Interior Minister Yury Karayev and Deputy Minister Alexander Barsukov, public security officials, and election commission officials.
"The Belarusian people's democratic aspirations to choose their own leaders and peacefully exercise their rights have been met with violence and oppression from Belarusian officials," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a statement.
The EU targets for its travel bans and asset freezes are officials it blames for rigging the August 9 election that returned Lukashenko to power and for orchestrating the crackdown.
Lukashenko himself is not on the list, but it does include Karayev, who the EU says was responsible for the "repression and intimidation campaign" against protesters, and Central Election Commission chief Lidia Yermoshina.
The EU's official listing blames Yermoshina for the "falsification of election results" in the poll, which Western powers have dismissed as rigged and illegitimate.
Minsk swiftly announced tit-for-tat "counter sanctions" against the EU, though it was not clear what form these would take or what they would target.
"In connection with visa sanctions adopted by the EU against a number of Belarusian officials, the Belarusian side from today is introducing a list of reciprocal sanctions," Belarus's foreign ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said that by imposing sanctions the EU had "alienated" the country, which western commentators have dubbed "Europe's last dictatorship" under Lukashenko's strongman rule.
Minsk said it would not disclose which European officials were being targeted, but threatened "even more serious consequences" if the EU expands its restrictions.


themoscowtimes--2020-10-03--Armenia Says Facing 'Decisive Moment' as Karabakh Fighting Intensifies

Armenian and Azerbaijani forces were engaged in fierce clashes Saturday as fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region intensified , with Armenia reporting heavy losses and its leader saying it was facing a historic threat .
Armenia 's defense ministry said separatist forces had repelled a massive attack by Azerbaijan , seven days after new fighting erupted in the decades-old dispute over the ethnic-Armenian breakaway province .
Armenian-backed separatist fighters in Karabakh destroyed a `` huge military grouping , '' of Azerbaijan 's forces , defense ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan said , claiming to have inflicted `` serious losses in manpower @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also announced the deaths of 51 more separatist fighters , increasing the number of fatalities on both sides above 240 after nearly a week of fighting .
Azerbaijan 's defense ministry said its forces had `` captured new footholds '' and that the Armenians had `` suffered serious losses in manpower and military hardware . ''
In an address to the nation on Saturday , Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called on Armenians to unite .
`` We are facing possibly the most decisive moment in our millennia-old history , '' Pashinyan said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a singular goal : victory . ''
The clashes took place after the regional capital Stepanakert came under artillery and rocket fire on Friday , with at least one person reported dead .
AFP journalists in the city heard more explosions on Saturday .
Residents hid in shelters and on Saturday were clearing wreckage and sweeping up the shattered glass windows of their homes and shops .
`` This is a great sorrow for our community , for our people , '' Nelson Adamyan , a 65-year-old electrician , told AFP outside his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will stand for our freedom , we will always be free . ''
Both sides have been accused of hitting civilian areas , with Azerbaijan saying Saturday that Armenian artillery had shelled 19 of its settlements overnight .
The new fighting erupted on Sept. 27 and mounting international calls for a halt to the hostilities and a return to negotiations have gone unanswered .
The leader of Karabakh , Arayik Harutyunyan , said he was going to join `` intensive fighting '' on the frontline .
`` The time has come for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' he told reporters .
`` This is our final battle , which we will certainly win . ''
Both sides have repeatedly claimed to be inflicting heavy losses .
The Armenian side has reported 209 military deaths and 14 civilian fatalities .
Azerbaijan has reported 19 civilian deaths but has not confirmed any fatalities among its troops .
On a road between Armenia 's capital Yerevan and Nagorno-Karabakh , an AFP journalist saw ambulances going in both directions and busses carrying families fleeing the fighting .
Volunteers were also traveling to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shelling .
`` We must come to their aid , '' volunteer Ani said , adding that she had dropped everything to help .
`` We help our country as we can . ''
Russia , the United States and France — whose leaders co-chair a mediation group that has failed to bring about a political resolution to the conflict — this week called on the warring sides to immediately agree to a ceasefire .
Armenia said Friday it was `` ready to engage '' with mediators but Azerbaijan — which considers Karabakh @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forces must fully withdraw before a ceasefire can be brokered .
Karabakh 's declaration of independence from Azerbaijan during the collapse of the Soviet Union sparked a war in the early 1990s that claimed 30,000 lives .
Talks to resolve the conflict have made little progress since a 1994 ceasefire agreement .
The breakaway province is not recognized as independent by any country — including Armenia — and Karabakh 's foreign ministry said Saturday that only receiving official status from world leaders could resolve the military flare-up .
International recognition , the ministry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ towards peace and security in the region . ''
The fighting has threatened to balloon into a regional conflict drawing in powerful players like Russia and Turkey .
Iran on Saturday cautioned Armenia and Azerbaijan to keep the conflict within their own borders after reports that several mortar rounds had hit Iranian villages , injuring a six-year-old child .
Armenia is in a military alliance of former Soviet countries that is led by Moscow , which maintains a military base there , while NATO member Turkey has signalled its full support for Azerbaijan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Turkey of dispatching mercenary fighters from Syria and Libya to the conflict — an allegation confirmed and denounced by Russia and France .

Armenian and Azerbaijani forces were engaged in fierce clashes Saturday as fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region intensified, with Armenia reporting heavy losses and its leader saying it was facing a historic threat.
Armenia's defense ministry said separatist forces had repelled a massive attack by Azerbaijan, seven days after new fighting erupted in the decades-old dispute over the ethnic-Armenian breakaway province.
Armenian-backed separatist fighters in Karabakh destroyed a "huge military grouping," of Azerbaijan's forces, defense ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan said, claiming to have inflicted "serious losses in manpower and military hardware."
But Armenia also announced the deaths of 51 more separatist fighters, increasing the number of fatalities on both sides above 240 after nearly a week of fighting.
Azerbaijan's defense ministry said its forces had "captured new footholds" and that the Armenians had "suffered serious losses in manpower and military hardware."
In an address to the nation on Saturday, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called on Armenians to unite.
"We are facing possibly the most decisive moment in our millennia-old history," Pashinyan said.
"We all must dedicate ourselves to a singular goal: victory."
The clashes took place after the regional capital Stepanakert came under artillery and rocket fire on Friday, with at least one person reported dead. AFP journalists in the city heard more explosions on Saturday.
Residents hid in shelters and on Saturday were clearing wreckage and sweeping up the shattered glass windows of their homes and shops.
"This is a great sorrow for our community, for our people," Nelson Adamyan, a 65-year-old electrician, told AFP outside his damaged residential building.
"But we will stand for our freedom, we will always be free."
'Final battle'
Both sides have been accused of hitting civilian areas, with Azerbaijan saying Saturday that Armenian artillery had shelled 19 of its settlements overnight.
The new fighting erupted on Sept. 27 and mounting international calls for a halt to the hostilities and a return to negotiations have gone unanswered.
The leader of Karabakh, Arayik Harutyunyan, said he was going to join "intensive fighting" on the frontline.
"The time has come for the entire nation to become a powerful army," he told reporters. "This is our final battle, which we will certainly win."
Both sides have repeatedly claimed to be inflicting heavy losses.
The Armenian side has reported 209 military deaths and 14 civilian fatalities. Azerbaijan has reported 19 civilian deaths but has not confirmed any fatalities among its troops.
On a road between Armenia's capital Yerevan and Nagorno-Karabakh, an AFP journalist saw ambulances going in both directions and busses carrying families fleeing the fighting.
Volunteers were also traveling to bring Stepanakert residents to safety after the shelling.
"We must come to their aid," volunteer Ani said, adding that she had dropped everything to help.
"We help our country as we can."
Russia, the United States and France — whose leaders co-chair a mediation group that has failed to bring about a political resolution to the conflict — this week called on the warring sides to immediately agree to a ceasefire.
Calls for recognition
Armenia said Friday it was "ready to engage" with mediators but Azerbaijan — which considers Karabakh under Armenian occupation — has said Armenian forces must fully withdraw before a ceasefire can be brokered.
Karabakh's declaration of independence from Azerbaijan during the collapse of the Soviet Union sparked a war in the early 1990s that claimed 30,000 lives.
Talks to resolve the conflict have made little progress since a 1994 ceasefire agreement.
The breakaway province is not recognized as independent by any country — including Armenia — and Karabakh's foreign ministry said Saturday that only receiving official status from world leaders could resolve the military flare-up.
International recognition, the ministry said, "is the only way towards peace and security in the region."
The fighting has threatened to balloon into a regional conflict drawing in powerful players like Russia and Turkey.
Iran on Saturday cautioned Armenia and Azerbaijan to keep the conflict within their own borders after reports that several mortar rounds had hit Iranian villages, injuring a six-year-old child.
Armenia is in a military alliance of former Soviet countries that is led by Moscow, which maintains a military base there, while NATO member Turkey has signalled its full support for Azerbaijan's military operations.
Yerevan has accused Turkey of dispatching mercenary fighters from Syria and Libya to the conflict — an allegation confirmed and denounced by Russia and France.


themoscowtimes--2020-10-04--Activists Fear ‘Ecological Catastrophe’ in Russia’s Far East Kamchatka

Fears are mounting over an environmental disaster in Russia ’ s Far East after locals reported finding dozens of dead sea animals washed onto a beach from the Pacific Ocean .
Greenpeace said tests conducted on water samples taken from around Khalaktyrsky beach in Russia ’ s Kamchatka region showed petroleum levels four times higher than usual , and phenol levels were also 2.5 times higher .
“ The scale of the contamination has not yet been determined , but the fact that dead animals are found all along the coast confirms the seriousness of the situation , ” the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the incident as an “ ecological catastrophe.
” Images shared across social media — including by popular blogger Yuri Dud — over the weekend showed dead octopuses , large fish , sea urchins , crabs , and other marine animals had washed up on the shore .
The cause of the disaster is unknown .
No industrial accidents or oil spills have been officially reported in the area , and environmental activists are demanding an investigation to determine what happened and the extent of the contamination .
Russia ’ s TASS news agency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tanker was the cause of the contamination , citing unnamed sources .
But environmentalists have questioned the idea of an oil leak , telling independent media outlet Novaya Gazeta they fear possibile pesticide contamination from a nearby highly-secretive plant .
Local authorities initially tried to downplay the incident , publishing videos of a spotless beach , stating : “ The color of the water is normal , the smell of the air is normal , the beach is completely clean.
” However , as images continued to resurface , that approach changed over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the beach Sunday , Kamchatka governor Vladimir Solodov said the region was launching investigations into the contamination and would take more samples of the beach , animals and sea water for further testing .
He threatened to fire anybody from the local administration found to have tried to either cover-up or embellish the situation .
Irina Yarovaya , deputy chair of Russia ’ s State Duma , said an administrative case has been opened , alleging that local authorities did not take steps to prevent the incident and questioning the methods used to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ noticed a potential problem three weeks ago when surfers and swimmers started feeling ill after going into the water .
Surfer Anton Morozov reported experiencing “ blurred vision , dry and painful eyes and a sore throat.
” After returning to the ocean this weekend he said the situation had now grown worse , writing on Instagram : “ The water does n't smell like the ocean , it 's sticky , bitter and dirty .
Fish are dead on the shore.
” Environmental issues have become a thorny issue for the Russian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of local protests having broken out over issues such as landfills and garbage disposal .

Fears are mounting over an environmental disaster in Russia’s Far East after locals reported finding dozens of dead sea animals washed onto a beach from the Pacific Ocean. Greenpeace said tests conducted on water samples taken from around Khalaktyrsky beach in Russia’s Kamchatka region showed petroleum levels four times higher than usual, and phenol levels were also 2.5 times higher. “The scale of the contamination has not yet been determined, but the fact that dead animals are found all along the coast confirms the seriousness of the situation,” the organization said in a statement which described the incident as an “ecological catastrophe.” Images shared across social media — including by popular blogger Yuri Dud — over the weekend showed dead octopuses, large fish, sea urchins, crabs, and other marine animals had washed up on the shore.
The cause of the disaster is unknown. No industrial accidents or oil spills have been officially reported in the area, and environmental activists are demanding an investigation to determine what happened and the extent of the contamination. Russia’s TASS news agency reported a leak from a commercial oil tanker was the cause of the contamination, citing unnamed sources. But environmentalists have questioned the idea of an oil leak, telling independent media outlet Novaya Gazeta they fear possibile pesticide contamination from a nearby highly-secretive plant. Local authorities initially tried to downplay the incident, publishing videos of a spotless beach, stating: “The color of the water is normal, the smell of the air is normal, the beach is completely clean.” However, as images continued to resurface, that approach changed over the weekend. Speaking to reporters on the beach Sunday, Kamchatka governor Vladimir Solodov said the region was launching investigations into the contamination and would take more samples of the beach, animals and sea water for further testing. He threatened to fire anybody from the local administration found to have tried to either cover-up or embellish the situation.