A British intelligence expert has said it is impossible to see how Russia’s President Putin will back away from an invasion of Ukraine given his maximalist demands which are impossible for the West to meet.
Sir Alex Younger, a former soldier who led the UK’s secret intelligence service MI6 from 2014 to 2020, spoke of the increasing likelihood of an all-out war between Russian troops and Ukrainians in the former Soviet nation.
He said Mr Putin has effectively dug himself into a trench which makes de-escalating impossible to imagine and said Western leaders “mustn’t underestimate how serious he is”.
“Given the maximal nature of his demands, given that he’s rejected the only reasonable compromise, it’s hard for me to see how he can avoid having to follow through to some extent,” Mr Younger told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
“And at that point you unleash the law of unintended consequences, so it does worry me.
“I, at the moment, cannot see a scenario where he can back down in a way that satisfies the expectations that he has created.”
However, Mr Younger stressed this was not “automatic” and said Mr Putin “may not yet have decided what he’s going to do”.
He said Russia's president was playing a brutal game of making demands on the West that he knows it cannot deliver.
As fears of a Russian invasion increase, the Kremlin has given Nato a list of demands it says are necessary to tone down the crisis.
Mr Putin begrudges what he sees as the military alliance’s expansion eastward and has demanded Nato’s presence be reduced in countries that joined the transatlantic treaty post-1997. These include Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.
He also wants a guarantee that Ukraine will never be allowed to join the alliance.
Mr Younger said the situation was “clearly getting more dangerous” and it has become difficult to see how Russia can back down.
Britain and its allies would be faced with a critical decision if Russia sends its troops over the boundary.
Mr Younger said from his time leading MI6 he had learnt that “if you want to beat the Russians you shouldn’t be the Russians”.
He said the UK needed to double down on measures that “make us strong”, namely strengthening its alliances and spreading the truth about Russia’s actions.
He said there is an information war that needs to be fought, which involves “various covert organs of the Russian state” who have been pushing false narratives aimed at painting Ukraine as an aggressor or an illegitimate nation.
Last week talks between Washington and Moscow on Ukraine failed to achieve a breakthrough.
The talks in Geneva were held after Russia moved troops into Belarus for joint drills.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday joined US President Joe Biden and other world leaders for a virtual meeting to discuss the escalating tension between Russia and Ukraine.
The leaders of Nato, the EU, Italy, Poland, France and Germany attended the summit as they hoped to avert what Mr Johnson said would be a bloody and protracted conflict for Moscow.
The prime minister said an invasion of Ukrainian territory by Russian soldiers could lead to the region becoming the “new Chechnya”.
He warned Mr Putin, who in 2014 led a Russian annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, that a fresh invasion would be a disaster.
“The intelligence is very clear that there are 60 Russian battle groups on the borders of Ukraine, the plan for a lightning war that could take out Kiev is one that everybody can see,” Mr Johnson said.
“We need to make it very clear to the Kremlin, to Russia, that that would be a disastrous step.”
The prime minister said the people of Ukraine would resist any invasion and “from a Russian perspective [it] is going to be a painful, violent and bloody business”, he said.
“I think it’s very important that people in Russia understand that this could be a new Chechnya.”
Earlier on Monday, Mr Johnson said in an interview that “gloomy” intelligence suggested Russia was planning a lightning raid on Kiev, as British staff and their families began leaving the Ukrainian capital.
The Pentagon has placed 8,500 US troops on heightened alert, preparing them for a potential deployment to reassure Nato allies amid rising tensions.
Britain's Foreign Secretary Liz Truss last week urged the UK's allies to reduce their economic dependence on Russia.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
The years Ramadan fell in May
Zidane's managerial achievements
La Liga: 2016/17
Spanish Super Cup: 2017
Uefa Champions League: 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18
Uefa Super Cup: 2016, 2017
Fifa Club World Cup: 2016, 2017
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
How to wear a kandura
Dos
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Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Indoor Cricket World Cup
When: September 16-23
Where: Insportz, Dubai
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
Pakistan T20 series squad
Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shahzad, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Hafeez, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammed Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Amir Yamin, Mohammed Amir (subject to fitness clearance), Rumman Raees, Usman Shinwari, Umar Amin
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Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Sweet%20Tooth
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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Results:
Men's wheelchair 800m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 1.44.79; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 1.45.88; 3. Isaac Towers (GBR) 1.46.46.
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
SERIES INFO
Schedule:
All matches at the Harare Sports Club
1st ODI, Wed Apr 10
2nd ODI, Fri Apr 12
3rd ODI, Sun Apr 14
4th ODI, Sun Apr 16
UAE squad
Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Zimbabwe squad
Peter Moor (captain), Solomon Mire, Brian Chari, Regis Chakabva, Sean Williams, Timycen Maruma, Sikandar Raza, Donald Tiripano, Kyle Jarvis, Tendai Chatara, Chris Mpofu, Craig Ervine, Brandon Mavuta, Ainsley Ndlovu, Tony Munyonga, Elton Chigumbura
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
