With an estimated 100,000 Russian troops camped on the Ukrainian border, there has never been a more urgent need for Russian and Nato leaders to find a way to resolve their differences.
Even though the Kremlin has consistently denied that it has any plans to invade Ukraine, and that the troops massed on its southern neighbour’s border are undertaking a routine military exercise, concerns persist as to the Russian force’s ultimate objectives.
Speculation has been mounting that Russia is preparing to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine since Moscow first began deploying its forces near Ukraine in November, with some analysts predicting that the offensive would take place this month.
Washington is now warning that the operation has only been delayed because the region has experienced an unusually mild winter, prompting US President Joe Biden to order a team of meteorologists to help forecast when a possible Russian invasion might take place. US officials have reported that the relatively mild weather makes a January invasion now unlikely, with large areas across the border and near the frontline constituting a muddy quagmire, providing less-than-ideal conditions for fighting.
Hopes of de-escalating tensions in the area have not been helped, though, by the Russian decision earlier this week to move helicopters and fighter jets towards the Ukrainian border.
The move follows Russia’s recent military intervention in Kazakhstan, labelled a "peacekeeping" mission by Moscow, which is being seen as a clear demonstration of the Kremlin’s willingness to act in decisive fashion when it comes to defending what it believes to be its overseas interests.
The increased activity on the Ukrainian border has certainly increased tensions at a time when intensive diplomatic efforts are underway to de-escalate the situation, with Russian and Western officials engaging in a series of high-level talks throughout the week.
A satellite image shows a Russian battle group deployment in the Kursk Training Area, Russia, on December 21, 2021. Reuters
Russian forces in Soloti, Russia, on September 7, 2021. Reuters
A satellite image shows Russian forces in Soloti, Russia, on December 5, 2021. Reuters
Russian forces in Soloti, Russia, on September 7, 2021. Reuters
A satellite image released by Maxar Technologies shows Russian armoured units training in the Pogonovo Training Area near Voronezh, Russia, on November 26, 2021. Reuters
A satellite image released by Maxar Technologies reportedly shows Russian ground forces deployed at the Opuk Training Area on December 22, 2021. AFP
Russian ground forces deployed at the Opuk Training Area on December 22, 2021. AFP
A satellite image of a Russian troop location in Soloti, Russia, provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on December 5, 2021. AP
A Russian troop location in Bakhchysarai, Russia. AP
The talks have been convened after Russia set out a contentious set of demands at the end of last year, which sought to limit any extension of Nato influence in nations, such as Ukraine, that were formerly members of the Soviet Union.
Top of Moscow’s demands was that Nato provide a commitment that the likes of Ukraine and Georgia – another former Soviet state – would never be allowed to join the Nato alliance. In addition, Russia is calling on Nato to limit its military operations in eastern Europe, which Moscow views as a direct threat to its own security.
Tensions between Russia and the West have been steadily on the increase since Moscow’s 2014 military action against Ukraine, which resulted in the capture and annexation of Crimea, a move that has resulted in Moscow being subjected to wide-ranging sanctions.
Ukraine currently enjoys partner status with Nato, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has expressed interest in becoming a full Nato member, a move which would commit the alliance to protecting Ukraine’s sovereign integrity.
Another important factor in the dispute is that, under the terms of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum that Ukraine, together with Belarus and Kazakhstan, signed with the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the West agreed to provide the country with security guarantees in return for Kiev giving up its nuclear weapons.
Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brest. AP
But any attempt by Ukraine to press for Nato membership will be fiercely resisted by Mr Putin, who regards Ukraine as historically falling within Moscow’s sphere of influence and is bitterly opposed to the move.
Nor is the Ukraine issue the only one driving the recent increase in tensions between Moscow and the West. Apart from seeking to limit Nato from continuing its expansion in eastern Europe, a process that began with the fall of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Western diplomats believe Russia’s conduct on Ukraine’s border is also aimed at getting sanctions on its economy lifted. Moscow is also pressing for Europe to give approval for the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which runs from Russia to Germany, to become operational.
Hopes of any immediate breakthrough in the stand-off, though, have so far failed to materialise following four hours of talks between Nato and Russian officials in Brussels which ended on Wednesday with Western leaders flatly rejecting Moscow’s demands for no further expansion of alliance membership and the withdrawal of Nato forces from Eastern Europe.
Following the meeting, which followed a previous session of bilateral talks between the US and Russia, Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the allies were adamant they would not accede to Russia’s demand for a guarantee that Ukraine and Georgia never join the alliance, nor would they allow Moscow to dictate where allied countries choose to position their forces.
“We can discuss many issues but we cannot discuss some core principles,” he said. “There is a real risk of a new armed conflict in Europe,” Mr Stoltenberg said. “We are clear-eyed. So we also conveyed a message to Russia that if they use military force there will be severe consequences; economic sanctions; political sanctions.”
During the talks at Nato headquarters in Brussels, Nato officials proposed a series of additional meetings, but the Russians neither accepted nor rejected the offer, Stoltenberg said.
For the moment, diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis are set to continue, with the dispute topping the agenda at Thursday’s OSCE meeting in Vienna, where the permanent council of the world’s largest security body, constituting 57 member states, will seek to break the impasse.
In an interview with the independent Russian TV channel Dozhd, Michael Carpenter, US ambassador to the OSCE, played down any immediate prospects of a breakthrough.
"I don't think there will be any concrete results this week," he said. "Our main goal is, in principle, to establish a dialogue. Yes, our positions are polar, but this does not mean that there are no elements and areas on which we cannot agree."
Nevertheless, with so much at stake, it is clearly in the interests of both sides to resolve their differences if a potentially disastrous conflict in Ukraine is to be avoided.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
Sukuk explained
Sukuk are Sharia-compliant financial certificates issued by governments, corporates and other entities. While as an asset class they resemble conventional bonds, there are some significant differences. As interest is prohibited under Sharia, sukuk must contain an underlying transaction, for example a leaseback agreement, and the income that is paid to investors is generated by the underlying asset. Investors must also be prepared to share in both the profits and losses of an enterprise. Nevertheless, sukuk are similar to conventional bonds in that they provide regular payments, and are considered less risky than equities. Most investors would not buy sukuk directly due to high minimum subscriptions, but invest via funds.
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
WWE TLC results
Asuka won the SmackDown Women's title in a TLC triple threat with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair
Dean Ambrose won the Intercontinental title against Seth Rollins
Daniel Bryan retained the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against AJ Styles
Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women's Championship against Nia Jax
Rey Mysterio beat Randy Orton in a chairs match
Finn Balor defeated Drew McIntyre
Natalya beat Ruby Riott in a tables match
Braun Strowman beat Baron Corbin in a TLC match
Sheamus and Cesaro retained the SmackDown Tag Titles against The Usos and New Day
R-Truth and Carmella won the Mixed Match Challenge by beating Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox
Iran's dirty tricks to dodge sanctions
There’s increased scrutiny on the tricks being used to keep commodities flowing to and from blacklisted countries. Here’s a description of how some work.
1 Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil with stealth is to turn off the Automatic Identification System, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later, masking the location of its load or discharge port.
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight. The vessels will then sail in different directions. For about a third of Iranian exports, more than one tanker typically handles a load before it’s delivered to its final destination, analysts say.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload is another technique. Ships that intend to take cargo from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free places like Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them.
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. The countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar characteristics. Oil from these deposits can be trucked out to another port and documents forged to hide Iran as the origin.
All couples are unique and have to create a financial blueprint that is most suitable for their relationship, says Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial. He offers his top five tips for couples to better manage their finances.
Discuss your assets and debts: When married, it’s important to understand each other’s personal financial situation. It’s necessary to know upfront what each party brings to the table, as debts and assets affect spending habits and joint loan qualifications. Discussing all aspects of their finances as a couple prevents anyone from being blindsided later.
Decide on the financial/saving goals: Spouses should independently list their top goals and share their lists with one another to shape a joint plan. Writing down clear goals will help them determine how much to save each month, how much to put aside for short-term goals, and how they will reach their long-term financial goals.
Set a budget: A budget can keep the couple be mindful of their income and expenses. With a monthly budget, couples will know exactly how much they can spend in a category each month, how much they have to work with and what spending areas need to be evaluated.
Decide who manages what: When it comes to handling finances, it’s a good idea to decide who manages what. For example, one person might take on the day-to-day bills, while the other tackles long-term investments and retirement plans.
Money date nights: Talking about money should be a healthy, ongoing conversation and couples should not wait for something to go wrong. They should set time aside every month to talk about future financial decisions and see the progress they’ve made together towards accomplishing their goals.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
Sole survivors
Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Al Barzakh Festival takes place on Wednesday and Thursday at 7.30pm in the Red Theatre, NYUAD, Saadiyat Island. Tickets cost Dh105 for adults from platinumlist.net
June 3: NZ Provincial Barbarians 7 Lions 13
June 7: Blues 22 Lions 16
June 10: Crusaders 3 Lions 12
June 13: Highlanders 23 Lions 22
June 17: Maori All Blacks 10 Lions 32
June 20: Chiefs 6 Lions 34 June 24: New Zealand 30 Lions 15
June 27: Hurricanes 31 Lions 31 July 1: New Zealand 21 Lions 24 July 8: New Zealand v Lions
