Risks of “miscalculation and escalation” are rising in the Black Sea after Russian attacks against Ukrainian ports, a Nato-Ukraine council said on Wednesday, as the military alliance boosts its presence in the area.
Russia's recent attacks against Ukrainian ports “pose substantial risks to the stability of the Black Sea region, which is of strategic importance to Nato”, said the alliance's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in a statement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week requested a meeting of the council as the security situation in the Black Sea sharply deteriorated after Russia's withdrawal on July 17 from a UN-Turkey brokered deal.
The agreement had enabled the export of 32 million tonnes of Ukrainian food via three of its Black Sea ports in the past year, according to the UN.
Russia has since intensified its attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure. On Monday, Russian drones destroyed Ukrainian grain warehouses on the Danube River.
Nato is also “stepping up surveillance and reconnaissance in the Black Sea, including with maritime patrol aircraft and drones", according to the Nato-Ukraine council statement.
Nato allies noted that “Russia’s new warning area in the Black Sea, within Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone, has created new risks for miscalculation and escalation, as well as serious impediments to freedom of navigation".
Russia has issued a Notice to Air Missions warning of naval military exercises in the Black Sea in an area that includes the exclusive economic zone of Bulgaria, a Nato member.
The notices are alerts sent to pilots of changes that could affect their flight route.
"Although this does not represent a formal breach of the international legal norms, it is not considered good practice," the information service of the Bulgarian government told The National.
Moscow has warned that ships heading to Ukraine's Black Sea ports could be considered military targets and is getting ready to enforce a blockade on Ukraine, according to the UK's Ministry of Defence.
The Sergey Kotov patrol ship “has deployed to the southern Black Sea, patrolling the shipping lane between the Bosphorus and Odesa,” said the Defence Ministry in a tweet.
“There is now the potential for the intensity and scope of the violence in the area to increase.”
The Nato-Ukraine council did not publicly address calls for the alliance to protect ships carrying Ukrainian grain with a “humanitarian flotilla.”
Sir John Chipman, director general of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based think tank, has argued for “a peaceful escort of ships taking grain and fertiliser to Africa and Asia.”
“Putin would not dare threaten it,” said Sir John.
Food security at risk
Tensions in the Black Sea have put food security across the world in jeopardy because many vulnerable countries rely on Ukraine's grain exports.
Before Russia's invasion last year, Ukraine exported 45 million tonnes of grain to the global market annually, a quarter of which went to low-income countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, according to the UN.
The Nato-UK council welcomed Turkish efforts at revitalising the grain deal and attempts made by other parties, such as the EU, to boost Ukraine's land exports.
Its statement said that Nato and Ukraine "strongly condemned Russia's decision to withdraw from the Black Sea grain deal and its deliberate attempts to stop Ukraine’s agricultural exports on which hundreds of millions of people worldwide depend".
In a tweet, Mr Zelenskyy welcomed the alliance's "clear and unequivocal condemnation" of Russia's exit from the deal.
The Nato-Ukraine council meeting, which was held at ambassadorial level at Nato's Brussels headquarters, was also attended by Sweden, which hopes to join the alliance after a Turkish Parliament vote in the coming months.
Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister, Oleksandr Kubrakov, and the Deputy Chief of Ukraine's General Staff, Oleksii Hromov, joined the meeting by video.
The Nato-Ukraine council allows Ukraine to hold equal status during meetings.
It was offered by Nato to Kyiv to boost its status within the alliance after Ukraine's request to become a full member was refused out of fear of entering an all-out war with Russia.
Its first meeting was held in Vilnius on July 12 in Mr Zelenskyy's presence. The Group of 7 countries in parallel offered long-term security commitments to Ukraine.
Later this week, Mr Putin is set to hold talks in Moscow about Ukraine with African leaders, many of whom are concerned by the impact of the war on global food security.
Moscow has suggested that it can help Africa with both commercial and free shipments of Russian grain.
The%20specs
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
The five pillars of Islam
The chef's advice
Troy Payne, head chef at Abu Dhabi’s newest healthy eatery Sanderson’s in Al Seef Resort & Spa, says singles need to change their mindset about how they approach the supermarket.
“They feel like they can’t buy one cucumber,” he says. “But I can walk into a shop – I feed two people at home – and I’ll walk into a shop and I buy one cucumber, I’ll buy one onion.”
Mr Payne asks for the sticker to be placed directly on each item, rather than face the temptation of filling one of the two-kilogram capacity plastic bags on offer.
The chef also advises singletons not get too hung up on “organic”, particularly high-priced varieties that have been flown in from far-flung locales. Local produce is often grown sustainably, and far cheaper, he says.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
When December 14-17
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Matrix Resurrections
Director: Lana Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jessica Henwick
Rating:****
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The specs: 2017 Maserati Quattroporte
Price, base / as tested Dh389,000 / Dh559,000
Engine 3.0L twin-turbo V8
Transmission Eight-speed automatic
Power 530hp @ 6,800rpm
Torque 650Nm @ 2,000 rpm
Fuel economy, combined 10.7L / 100km
The essentials
What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
When: Friday until March 9
Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City
Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.
Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.
Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
More on Quran memorisation:
The biog
Name: Atheja Ali Busaibah
Date of birth: 15 November, 1951
Favourite books: Ihsan Abdel Quddous books, such as “The Sun will Never Set”
Hobbies: Reading and writing poetry
UAE finals day
Friday, April 13
Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
3pm, UAE Conference: Dubai Tigers v Sharjah Wanderers
6.30pm, UAE Premiership: Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Results
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EElite%20men%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Amare%20Hailemichael%20Samson%20(ERI)%202%3A07%3A10%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Leornard%20Barsoton%20(KEN)%202%3A09%3A37%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Ilham%20Ozbilan%20(TUR)%202%3A10%3A16%0D%3Cbr%3E4.%20Gideon%20Chepkonga%20(KEN)%202%3A11%3A17%0D%3Cbr%3E5.%20Isaac%20Timoi%20(KEN)%202%3A11%3A34%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EElite%20women%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Brigid%20Kosgei%20(KEN)%202%3A19%3A15%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Hawi%20Feysa%20Gejia%20(ETH)%202%3A24%3A03%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Sintayehu%20Dessi%20(ETH)%202%3A25%3A36%0D%3Cbr%3E4.%20Aurelia%20Kiptui%20(KEN)%202%3A28%3A59%0D%3Cbr%3E5.%20Emily%20Kipchumba%20(KEN)%202%3A29%3A52%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
How to invest in gold
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.
A Cat, A Man, and Two Women
Junichiro Tamizaki
Translated by Paul McCarthy
Daunt Books
