CNN NEWS:
“ 38 min ago
US has asked 12 Russian UN diplomats to leave the country, Deputy Ambassador confirms
From CNN’s Richard Roth
The United States has asked 12 Russian United Nations diplomats to leave the country due to their alleged engagement in “activities that were not in accordance with their responsibilities and obligations as diplomats,” Ambassador Richard Mills, Deputy Representative of the United States to the United Nations, said during a UN Security Council meeting Monday afternoon.
Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia responded by saying Mills’ explanation of the expulsions was “not satisfactory.”
The US Mission to the UN also said in a statement that the 12 Russian diplomats were “intelligence operatives…who have abused their privileges of residency in the U.S. by engaging in espionage activities that are adverse to our national security.”
“We are taking this action in accordance with the headquarters agreement. Today’s action has been in the works for several months,” US Mission spokesperson Olivia Dalton said.
·
The U.S. has informed the Russian Mission that we are beginning the process of expelling 12 intelligence operatives from the Russian Mission who have abused their privileges of residency in the U.S. by engaging in espionage activities that are adverse to our national security.
We are taking this action in accordance with the headquarters agreement. Today’s action has been in the works for several months.
“ Nebenzia first announced the news of the expulsions during an earlier press briefing at the UN Monday afternoon. He said he did not know which 12 diplomats were among those asked to leave, but said US officials visited the Russian Mission to the UN and delivered a letter demanding that they leave the country by next Monday, March 7.
“I’ve just received information that the US authorities have undertaken another hostile action against the Russian Mission to the United Nations grossly violating their commitments on the host country agreement that they undertook,” Nebenzia told reporters. “They just visited the Russian Mission and gave us a note prescribing us to do what they demand.”
CNN has also reached out to the State Department for more information.
CNN’s Kylie Atwood and Pooja Salhotra contributed to this report “
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-28-22/index.html
CNN NEWS:
“ 33 min ago
UK communications regulator launches 15 investigations into Kremlin-backed news channel
From CNN's Niamh Kennedy “
The UK's communication regulator is launching 15 investigations into Russia Today (RT), the Kremlin-backed news channel.
The announcement same Monday via a statement.
Ofcom — the UK's communications regulator — said it had "observed a significant increase in the number of programs on the RT service that warrant investigation under our Broadcasting Code."
Last week, UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries asked Ofcom to review RT's operation in Britain. The regulator replied to Dorries saying it had “stepped up our oversight" in light of the "serious nature of the crisis in Ukraine."
The investigations "relate to 15 editions of the hourly News program broadcast on RT on 27 February 2022 between 05:00 and 19:00 inclusive" and will be – "expedited, given the severity and urgency of the current crisis," Ofcom said Monday.
Ofcom's Chief Executive Melanie Dawes added that "given the serious, ongoing situation in Ukraine, we will be concluding our investigations into RT as a matter of urgency."
The regulator acknowledged that "when reporting on an armed conflict" it can be "difficult for broadcasters to verify information and events" but that it is "imperative that they make every effort to do so."
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-28-22/index.html
CNN NEWS:
“ 1 hr 35 min ago
Putin placing Russian nuclear weapons on high alert is "as unnecessary as it is escalatory,"
Pentagon says
From CNN's Ellie Kaufman “
“ After Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia's deterrence forces — including its nuclear weapons — have been placed on high alert, the Pentagon responded by calling the announcement “as unnecessary as it is escalatory.”
The response was issued by Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby during a briefing on Monday.
Kirby went on to note that the Pentagon is “reviewing and analyzing” Putin’s announcement.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is “comfortable with the strategic deterrent posture of the United States, and our ability to defend our homeland and our partners,” Kirby also said. “
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-news-02-28-22/index.html
AP NEWS:
“ Live updates: Meta restricts access to Russian state media
By The Associated Press
11 minutes ago “
“ The latest developments on the Russia-Ukraine war:
WASHINGTON — The parent company of Facebook and Instagram says it is restricting access to Russia’s RT and Sputnik in Europe over concerns the two state-controlled media outlets are being used to spread disinformation and propaganda.
Monday’s action by Menlo Park, Calif.-based Meta came after its announcement over the weekend that it was banning ads from Russian state media and had removed a network of 40 fake accounts, pages and groups that published pro-Russian talking points. The network used fictitious persons posing as journalists and experts, but had yet to create much of an audience. Facebook began labelling Russian state-run media in 2020.
RT and Sputnik are part of Russia’s sprawling propaganda machine, spreading information that supports Russia’s invasion while seeking to undermine and criticize the response by other nations.
___
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian Orthodox bishops are calling on their superior in Moscow to urge Russia’s leadership to stop the war in Ukraine.
The Holy Synod – the governing body of bishops of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church -- asked Moscow Patriarch Kirill to call on Russian leaders to stop hostilities. The appeal shows a growing chasm between Patriarch Kirill, leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, and his own bishops in Ukraine over the war.”
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-live-updates-ee7cdf19bdab43a22cb1391c98c62b4d
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