Maritime operator Dynagas LNG says authorities have taken over the vessels’ charters
Germany has assumed control of three liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers that belong to Russian energy major Gazprom, Britain’s Telegraph newspaper reported on Thursday citing maritime operator Dynagas LNG.
Gazprom has not confirmed the seizure at the time of writing this article.
According to the report, the firm said that the German government confiscated the charters of its three LNG tankers which were previously fixed to Gazprom’s German subsidiary, Gazprom Germania.
Two of the three ships, the Amur River and the Ob River, had previously been chartered to Gazprom Germania until 2028. The contract for the third tanker, the Clean Energy, was valid until 2026. All three are now effectively under the control of the German government for “an indefinite period of time,” Monaco-based Dynagas said.
Gazprom Germania, which used to operate some of Germany’s largest natural gas storage facilities, was taken over by Berlin several weeks ago as part of Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia. In response, Gazprom stopped supplying gas to the company, which resulted in liquidity problems and jeopardized the work of key gas retailers in Germany and the UK, which work with the unit.
Germany’s energy regulator stepped in and took over the company to protect it from insolvency, renaming it Securing Energy for Europe. In mid-June, reports emerged that Berlin would provide the firm with a loan of €10 billion ($10.4 billion) to help it stay afloat.
A protracted military conflict is the most likely of three possible scenarios, according to intelligence chief Avril Haines
Hostilities in Ukraine will most likely continue for the foreseeable future unless Ukrainian forces collapse and Russia achieves its goals, a US intelligence assessment said on Wednesday. A peaceful resolution is currently impossible, American officials believe.
The gloomy prediction was made by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines during a discussion in Washington hosted by tech giant Google. In her first public remarks on Ukraine since May, she said US intelligence had considered three possible scenarios for the conflict in Ukraine.
The most likely one is a grinding war in which Russia makes “incremental gains, with no breakthrough.” Another scenario involves Russia succeeding in crushing “one of [Ukraine’s] most capable and well-equipped forces” in the east, leading to “a slump in the Ukrainian resistance.” The third possibility involves Ukraine managing to stabilize the front line, and possibly achieving minor gains in Kherson Region, which is currently dominated by Russian forces.
“We also, to be clear, don’t see right now an opportunity for both sides to come to a peaceful agreement,” she said.
Haines said her agency continues to believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to capture “most of Ukraine,” but added that the country’s forces have been degraded by four months of fighting in Ukraine.
“We perceive a disconnect between Putin’s near-term military objectives in this area and his military’s capacity, a kind of mismatch between his ambitions and what the military is able to accomplish,” she said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reportedly told G7 leaders earlier this week that he wanted to wrap up hostilities with Russia before the end of the year. He called on the Western powers to ramp up supplies of weapons to his country, according to European government sources familiar with his private video-link address.
Ukrainian officials claim that foreign weapons are necessary for fighting Russia, but that their country would not surrender even if none were sent. Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba told German media this month that Ukrainian soldiers will “fight with shovels” if they have to.
The Russian leadership has declined to set any timetable for the Ukraine operation and has repeatedly claimed it was going as planned and would ultimately achieve all its objectives. Moscow has described its goals as ensuring security for itself and for the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, which it recognized as sovereign states days before launching the offensive.
Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, which were designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”
In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.
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June 29, 2022 at 11:07PM
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Nick Kyrgios said he had reacted to ‘disrespect’ from fans in London
Nick Kyrgios has said he suffered “disrespect” from the Wimbledon crowd and defended his actions after spitting in the direction of one fan following an ill-tempered first-round victory.
Kyrgios was forced to dig deep before overcoming British wildcard Paul Jubb in a five-set battle on Tuesday, with the Australian frequently clashing with spectators and a line judge.
Kyrgios, 27, accused the match official of being a “snitch” and was heard remonstrating with umpire Marija Cicak about controlling noisy members of the crowd on Court Three, even demanding that some of them be removed. At one point Kyrgios also fired a ball over the stands in a fit of frustration.
At the conclusion of the match, Kyrgios turned in the direction of the crowd and appeared to spit towards them.
When asked at a press conference if he had been spitting in the direction of a spectator, Kyrgios replied: “Of one of the people disrespecting me? Yes.”
“I would not be doing that to someone who was supporting me,” Kyrgios added.
The former Wimbledon quarterfinalist claimed that hostility towards players was “happening more and more in sport.”
“I don’t go into Argos and just start smashing someone at the counter when they’re doing their job,” said the world number 40.
“I’ve never done that in my life. I just think spectators think there’s just no line there anymore. They can just say something and they film it and then they laugh about it.”
Kyrgios could face punishment from Wimbledon organizers over his actions, which would be far from the first time he has been sanctioned for his antics.
That came one month after he was slapped with a $113,000 fine for a meltdown in Cincinnati in which Kyrgios insulted the umpire and obliterated two rackets.
Despite the reprimands, Kyrgios continues to be involved in combustible scenes almost each and every time he takes to the court.
Earlier this month, he accused fans in Stuttgart of racially abusing him during a match in the German city.
Kyrgios is set to face Serbia’s Filip Krajinovic in the second round at SW19 on Thursday, and is back in action on Wednesday in the men’s doubles, where he is teaming up alongside countryman Thanasi Kokkinakis.
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June 28, 2022 at 11:19PM
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The FDA made abortion pills available by mail permanently, but many state bans include telemedicine abortion. Patients and providers now navigate a legal grey area.
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June 29, 2022 at 12:00AM
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A Soviet-era Tu-141 was shot down over Kursk region
Russian defense forces have shot down a Soviet-era drone over the southwestern Kursk region, which borders Ukraine, the area’s governor reported on Wednesday.
Roman Starovoyt posted on his official social media channel that the unmanned aircraft was a Ukrainian Tu-141 Strizh. It was shot down east of the regional capital Kursk overnight, he added. There were no casualties or damage on the ground from the crash, the official reported.
The governor published photos from the crash site and said Russian authorities were investigating the incident.
The Tu-141 is a six-ton drone with a range of about 1,000km (621 miles), which places Kursk easily within its reach from almost anywhere in Ukraine.
Ukraine inherited several Tu-141s during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In March, a drone of this type crashed in the Croatian capital Zagreb, after flying through Romanian and Hungarian airspace.
Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”
In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.
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June 28, 2022 at 11:04PM
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Spartak Moscow had some farewell words for Jordan Larsson
Russian football club Spartak Moscow couldn’t resist a dig at striker Jordan Larsson after it was confirmed that the Swedish star’s contract had been terminated.
Spartak announced on Monday that Larsson – who is the son of former Celtic and Barcelona icon Henrik Larsson – would be walking away from the club ahead of the new campaign.
The 25-year-old recently told the media in Sweden that he was hoping to avoid going back to Russia after spending the backend of last season on loan at AIK in his homeland.
Larsson had taken advantage of a FIFA ruling which allowed foreign players to unilaterally suspend their contracts at Russian clubs in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine – a policy which the global football governing body announced last week that it was extending to cover the 2022/23 season.
Spartak said in their statement that agreement had been reached with Larsson to terminate his contract by mutual consent, making him a free agent.
The club’s brief announcement on its website thanked Larsson for his time in the Russian capital, where he played 83 matches and scored 27 times.
Larsson enjoyed a positive first two seasons at Spartak after joining from IFK Norrkoping in 2019, helping the team to a second-place finish in the Russian Premier League in 2021 and netting 15 times in the process.
However, his impact faded badly last season, with Larsson failing to find the net in any of his 17 Russian Premier League outings before his loan move to AIK in April.
That paltry output was picked up on by the Spartak social media team in a mocking message on Telegram after his exit was confirmed.
The James Bond-style post cruelly pictured Larsson as ‘Agent 007’ – breaking down the numbers as ‘0 goals’, ‘0 assists’, and ‘7 interviews’, seemingly in a jab at Larsson’s recent spate of public comments that he wanted out of Spartak.
The ‘007’ reference was infamously first used by Sky Germanyto taunt Jadon Sancho’s tough start to life at Manchester United after the English winger moved from Borussia Dortmund last year.
Meanwhile, there is ongoing uncertainty at Spartak over the fate of another foreign star after it was reported that ex-Chelsea ace Victor Moses had not reported for pre-season training.
Russian football officials have reacted angrily to FIFA’s decision to allow foreign players and coaching staff to unilaterally suspend contracts at Russian clubs because of the conflict in Ukraine.
In a joint statement, the Russian Football Union (RFU) and Russian Premier League suggested they could take legal action, calling the ruling “discriminatory” and arguing it sets a dangerous precedent for the rights of clubs and the validity of contractual obligations.
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June 27, 2022 at 11:40PM
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