Ukraine - Russia War: Western Sanctions show the need for a non political economic & sporting order

[cricketjoshila]

Ukraine - Russia War: Western Sanctions show the need for a non political economic & sporting order

The Ukraine Russia war is a political issue. Russia thinks its security is threatened by a expanding NATO to the very borders of Russia.

US had a similar reaction to the Soviet missiles in Cuba.

Otoh Ukraine as a sovereign nation has the right to get into alliances.

Somewhere there should have been a compromise a middle path. Didn't happen and now they are at war.

Ukrainian allies levelled sanctions against Russia. While its the right of a sovereign nation to decide whether they want to have economic or sporting relationship with a country, this is beyond that.

Because of the ability of these countries to control global financial and sporting doorways, they are now forcing other countries to unwillingly toe their line.

The western corporations are an extension of their political will.

Today Russia is cut off from global financial gateways, banned from sporting events, corporations cutting them off from their services.

This illustrates the need of a non political order, not controlled by west or china or Russia or any country or alliance.

Let political issues be settled by individual countries or alliances, they should be free to boycott any country economically or in sports. But they should have no right to cut off a country from global financial services or sporting bodies.

Most of Asia, Africa South America are unwillingly being dragged into this and most such political conflicts. These developing and emerging countries must have their own system , where they are not dragged into political conflicts.

This will also insulate them from blackmail of other big powers.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

Cryptocurrency zindabad.

 

[cricketjoshila]

Cryptocurrency zindabad.

World wide banking transactions may not be possible unless central banks have their own crypto.

Also doesn't address the ban from sporting events.

 

[JaDed]

As i said historic moment on this forum with Joshila Technician Kingkhan on same page .

Irrespective, western countries have also advanced technologically , which has helped countries like India, China etc thats why they call the shots.

Be technologically great and the countries can call the shorts! Japan, S Korea do what they wants to, see how it takes on Western companies

 

[KingKhanWC]

Id go further and suggest the end of the UN and a new form of world court/laws where everyone is treated more fairly.

This division is very dangerous. Nobody wants their family to be nuked because of Ukrainians being Natos lapdogs.

 

[ElRaja]

this was possible generations ago, with the advent of globalism countries and corporations are far to invested in each other to not want to have some form of control. also national tribalism is a manifestation of individual tribalism, countries will naturally stick together if they feel they have mutual interests. and if ur a big enough group you can coerce smaller countries.

 

[KingKhanWC]

this was possible generations ago, with the advent of globalism countries and corporations are far to invested in each other to not want to have some form of control. also national tribalism is a manifestation of individual tribalism, countries will naturally stick together if they feel they have mutual interests. and if ur a big enough group you can coerce smaller countries.

The issue is we cannot continue with the UN due to American policies.

Americans removed a dozen Russian UN officials from New York. The headquaters of the UN must be moved to a neutral country so talking always continues but Im not sure if there is a neutral country left anylonger. Swiss were neutral but yesterday changed their decades old stance to take sides with Ukraine.

 

[ElRaja]

The issue is we cannot continue with the UN due to American policies.

Americans removed a dozen Russian UN officials from New York. The headquaters of the UN must be moved to a neutral country so talking always continues but Im not sure if there is a neutral country left anylonger. Swiss were neutral but yesterday changed their decades old stance to take sides with Ukraine.

the UN is a pointless organisation used to police smaller nations, the existance of the veto is a historic hang up which means the organisation was never really fit for purpose imo.

however a proportionally representative UN would be completely dominated by 4 or 5 countries. so theres needs to be a lot of discussion about how such an institution can be created without building in glaring inequalities like the veto, or giving a handful of large countries all control.

 

[Itachi]

the UN is a pointless organisation used to police smaller nations, the existance of the veto is a historic hang up which means the organisation was never really fit for purpose imo.

however a proportionally representative UN would be completely dominated by 4 or 5 countries. so theres needs to be a lot of discussion about how such an institution can be created without building in glaring inequalities like the veto, or giving a handful of large countries all control.

Not possible. Equality is a utopian dream. UN is still the best model that is realistic and which works in most cases.

 

[Sidilicious]

The Ukraine Russia war is a political issue. Russia thinks its security is threatened by a expanding NATO to the very borders of Russia.

US had a similar reaction to the Soviet missiles in Cuba.

Otoh Ukraine as a sovereign nation has the right to get into alliances.

Somewhere there should have been a compromise a middle path. Didn't happen and now they are at war.

Ukrainian allies levelled sanctions against Russia. While its the right of a sovereign nation to decide whether they want to have economic or sporting relationship with a country, this is beyond that.

Because of the ability of these countries to control global financial and sporting doorways, they are now forcing other countries to unwillingly toe their line.

The western corporations are an extension of their political will.

Today Russia is cut off from global financial gateways, banned from sporting events, corporations cutting them off from their services.

This illustrates the need of a non political order, not controlled by west or china or Russia or any country or alliance.

Let political issues be settled by individual countries or alliances, they should be free to boycott any country economically or in sports. But they should have no right to cut off a country from global financial services or sporting bodies.

Most of Asia, Africa South America are unwillingly being dragged into this and most such political conflicts. These developing and emerging countries must have their own system , where they are not dragged into political conflicts.

This will also insulate them from blackmail of other big powers.

Why?

Economic sanctions are the best tool to make punish a country without military action.

If the west can make the Russians realise that war will lead to dire economic consequences in the long run, the common Russian would turn against Russian attack on Ukraine.

I would rather EU, UK and US used economic sanctions than take direct military action against Russia.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

World wide banking transactions may not be possible unless central banks have their own crypto.

Also doesn't address the ban from sporting events.

Worldwide banking systems are fine as long as you are prepared to be subjugated by those who control them. But as we have seen, if you are a rising power, then you can be throttled by them as well. Sporting events are also subject to the same whims. This is not as simple as it looks, it's a battle over resources, and capturing Ukraine for NATO gives the USA a big slice with a friendly govt installed.

Eastern nations like Russia, China and Iran will need to explore cryptocurrency so they can still trade at some level between themselves even if they are cut off from the western cabal. Otherwise the only alternative is to fall in line and accept becoming a client state, which is still on the table.

 

[MenInG]

Airbus has joined rival planemaker Boeing and oil giant ExxonMobil on a growing list of corporate giants cutting ties with Russia.

The European manufacturer said it had stopped support and supply of spare parts for Russia's aviation industry.

Earlier, Boeing suspended operations and ExxonMobil said it would end a multi-billion dollar joint venture with Russian state-owned company Rosneft.

Firms are exiting Russia after the West imposed sanctions over Ukraine.

Airbus said on Wednesday: "In line with international sanctions now in place, Airbus has suspended support services to Russian airlines, as well as the supply of spare part to the country.

"Services provided by the Airbus Engineering Centre in Russia (ECAR) have also been suspended pending further review."

US aviation giant Boeing said it had suspended "major operations" in Moscow and temporarily closed its office in Ukraine's capital Kyiv.

"We are also suspending parts, maintenance and technical support services for Russian airlines," a Boeing spokesperson told the BBC.

'Act of aggression'

ExxonMobil is the latest oil producer to cut business ties with the country, after similar moves by BP, Shell and Equinor.

"We deplore Russia's military action that violates the territorial integrity of Ukraine and endangers its people," Texas-based ExxonMobil said in a statement.

"We are deeply saddened by the loss of innocent lives and support the strong international response," it added.

ExxonMobil currently operates and holds a stake in the Sakhalin Island oil and gas fields, alongside Rosneft and companies from Japan and India.

It said it would now exit its Russian oil and gas operations, which have been valued at more than $4bn (£3bn), and halt new investments in the country.

Last year, ExxonMobil employed more than 1,000 people across the country, with offices in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Yuzhno-Sakhalinst, according to its website.

Russia is one of the world's biggest energy producers.

The announcement came as Brent crude - the international benchmark for oil prices - hit $113 a barrel, marking the highest level seen in more than seven years.

BBC

 

[cricketjoshila]

Why?

Economic sanctions are the best tool to make punish a country without military action.

If the west can make the Russians realise that war will lead to dire economic consequences in the long run, the common Russian would turn against Russian attack on Ukraine.

I would rather EU, UK and US used economic sanctions than take direct military action against Russia.

Let US UK Europe do whatever they want, why drag other countries into this by expelling Russia from SWIFT?

 

[ElRaja]

Not possible. Equality is a utopian dream. UN is still the best model that is realistic and which works in most cases.

equality is a dream, striving for a more equitable system is not. the UN doesn't really work for anyone other than the big countries, which is exactly the wrong way around.

 

[FearlessRoar]

Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the International Olympic Committee (IOC) of trying to bury the Olympic movement by imposing rules on Russian athletes for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

Last week, the IOC said Russian and Belarusian athletes who qualify in their sport for the Paris Games can take part as neutrals without flags, emblems or anthems.

Russians and Belarusians had initially been banned from competing internationally following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, for which Belarus has been used as a staging ground.

“If they continue to act this way, they will bury the Olympic movement,” Putin said on Thursday.

While he promised to support Russians competing in Paris, he said his country should ponder whether it should compete if the event is designed to portray Russian sport as “dying” and not give a clear answer if Russian athletes should go to Paris.

“To go or not to go? … The conditions must be closely analysed,” Putin said.

“If they are politically motivated, artificial conditions aimed at cutting off our [political] leaders … and to weaken our team, then the Ministry of Sport and the Russian Olympic Committee should make an informed decision,” he added.

Speaking at his annual year-end news conference, Putin said a further assessment was needed of what the neutral status would mean for the country’s athletes.

“They have been training for years … and that’s why I supported our athletes going to such competitions, but we still need to carefully analyse the conditions the IOC has put forward,” Putin said.

“If the IOC’s artificial conditions are designed to cut off the best Russian athletes and portray at the Olympics that Russian sport is dying, then you need to decide whether to go there at all,” Putin said.

The IOC said neutral athletes will compete only in individual sports and no teams for the two countries will be allowed. Athletes who actively support the war in Ukraine are not eligible, nor are those contracted to the Russian or Belarusian military.

Putin accused sports officials of acting “under the pressure of Western elites”.

Russia has vigorously protested against the restrictions on its athletes, arguing that they go against the spirit of the games.

“Everything that international officials do in relation to Russian sports is a complete contradiction and distortion of the ideas of Pierre de Coubertin,” Putin said, referring to the founder of the Olympic movement.

Russian athletes have taken part in successive Olympics without their flag or anthem in the wake of major doping scandals.

During the Cold War, the United States boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the Soviet Union and its allies retaliated with a boycott of the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.

Source: Al Jazeera

IOC’s stance on Russia could ‘bury Olympic movement’, Putin says

Putin remains tight-lipped on Russian athletes’ participation in 2024 Olympics under the conditions imposed by IOC.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

Sanctions for sporting events don't make sense to me. Sports should be separate from politics.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Japan, South Korea anger Vladimir Putin: ‘Don’t be surprised if Russia…'

Japan joined its Western allies in imposing sweeping economic sanctions on Russia as did South Korea which faced the wrath of Russia owing to a new move. Moscow told Seoul not to be surprised if Russia retaliates against South Korea for expanding the list of goods which cannot be exported from the country to Russia without special permission.

The warning comes after South Korea said, earlier this week, that it would add over 600 types of goods which could potentially be used for military purposes to its export control list for Russia amid Ukraine war. The list includes heavy construction equipment, rechargeable batteries, aeronautical components, and some cars, news agency Reuters reported.

Russian foreign ministry said, "This is an unfriendly move taken at Washington's behest. It will damage South Korea's own economy and industry. We reserve the right to take measures in response, and not necessarily symmetrical ones. They (the South Koreans) should not be surprised (if and when we do)."

What's happening on the battlefield?
Russia fired almost 50 Shahed drones at targets in Ukraine and shelled a train station where more than 100 civilians were gathered to catch a train to Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said. At least five people were killed and power was knocked out in most of the southern city of Kherson after Ukrainian warplanes damaged a Russian ship in the Black Sea off Crimea.

Source : The Hindustan Times

 

[FearlessRoar]

Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva has been given a four-year ban for doping after initially being cleared.

A Russian Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada) investigation found the teenager bore "no fault or negligence" for a failed test before the 2022 Winter Olympics when she was 15 years old.

But the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) has upheld an appeal by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada).

"The doping of children is unforgivable," Wada said in response.

News of Valieva's failed test only emerged after she had helped Russia to team gold in Beijing.

The ban has been backdated to 25 December 2021 - the date Valieva took the failed test - and the Cas panel has also ordered "the disqualification all competitive results achieved" from that date.

However, it said the power to strip Russia of the gold medal was "not within the scope of this arbitration procedure and will have to be examined by the sports organisations concerned".

Cas said Valieva, who is now aged 17, did not contest the presence of a banned substance and it was asked to decide what sanctions, if any, she should face.

"Ms Valieva was not able to establish, on the balance of probabilities and on the basis of the evidence before the panel, that she had not committed the Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) intentionally," it said in its ruling.

It added it had no bearing "whether the athlete is an adult or a Protected Person" referring to Valieva's age at the time of the failed test.

The Kremlin has criticised the Cas ruling as a "politicised" decision.

Valieva tested positive for banned heart medication trimetazidine in December 2021.

She had become an instant global star as the first female skater to land a quadruple jump at a Winter Olympics.

Russia won gold in the team figure skating event on 7 February 2022, but it was announced four days later that Valieva had failed a drugs test before the Games.

The sample had been collected on 25 December at the Russian Figure Skating Championships in St Petersburg.

Valieva received a provisional ban but that was lifted by a court and she was allowed to compete in the women's singles event. However, her performance featured a number of falls and stumbles and she left the ice in tears.

A Rusada investigation then cleared her of intentionally doping, but Wada appealed against that finding at Cas, sport's highest court.

Wada and the International Skating Union (ISU) said they were "concerned" by the decision and sought a four-year ban, and for all her results from the date of the sample collection on 25 December 2021 to be expunged.

The ISU also called on Cas to determine the final results of the team gold event in Beijing. Though Cas says that duty will now fall elsewhere, the United States, who finished in the silver medal position, are set to be awarded gold, with Japan elevated to silver and Canada receiving bronze following their fourth-place finish two years ago.

The ISU subsequently raised the minimum age for competitors in senior events from 15 to 17 to protect skaters' "physical and mental health, and emotional well-being".

Wada said it welcomed the decision, saying it had appealed against the earlier decision "in the interests of fairness for athletes and clean sport - and we believe that has been delivered through this decision".

Valieva's team have always insisted the failed test was the result of contaminated cutlery which had been tainted by her grandfather's heart medication.

But Wada went on to say those behind the failed tests should face justice.

"The doping of children is unforgivable," it said.

"Doctors, coaches or other support personnel who are found to have provided performance-enhancing substances to minors should face the full force of the World Anti-Doping Code. Indeed, Wada encourages governments to consider passing legislation - as some have done already - making the doping of minors a criminal offence."

Russian athletes were only allowed to compete at the Beijing Games under the neutral name of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC).

That was after Wada banned Russia from all international sport for four years from 2019 following a doping scandal.

Cas later reduced the ban and ruled that Russian athletes could compete at the Olympics and other international events but the team could not use the Russian name, flag, or anthem.

A Wada investigation in 2016 found Russia operated a state-sponsored doping programme for four years across the "vast majority" of summer and winter Olympic sports.

Last month the International Olympic Committee announced it would allow Russian athletes to compete as neutrals at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris - though that followed a ban on Russian competitors following the invasion of Ukraine.

Source: BBC Sport

Kamila Valieva: Russian figure skater given four-year ban for doping

A four-year ban is handed to teenage Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva following an appeal against an earlier decision to clear her of doping.

www.bbc.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

A group of the Middle East's football associations has asked world football chiefs to ban Israel over the war on Hamas in Gaza, according to a letter seen by Sky News.

But the Israeli Football Association has urged FIFA to keep politics out of sport and allow them to continue trying to qualify for the men's European Championship this summer.

UEFA general secretary, Theodore Theodoridis, said today that the European governing body's administration has had "no such discussion or such intention" to exclude Israeli teams. But a decision would more likely be taken by the executive committee of elected officials.

The bid to banish Israel's footballers is led by Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, half-brother of Jordan's King Abdullah II, in his role as president of the West Asian Football Federation.

That 12-nation grouping also includes the FAs of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

The letter was sent to all 211 national football federations and the six regional confederations, including UEFA, of which Israel is a member and is today holding its annual congress in Paris.

Jordanian FA president Prince Ali wrote: "We, the West Asian Football Federations, encompassing all its members, call upon FIFA, the Football Confederations, and Member Associations to join us in taking a decisive stand against the atrocities committed in Palestine and the war crimes in Gaza, by condemning the killing of innocent civilians including players, coaches, referees, and officials, the destruction of the football infrastructure, and taking a united front in isolating the Israeli Football Association from all football-related activities until these acts of aggression cease."

The Israeli FA called on football authorities to reject the bid to ban them but held out an olive branch for peace by wishing Jordan good luck in its first-ever appearance at the Asian Cup final on Saturday against Qatar.

"I am trusting FIFA not to involve politics in football," Israeli FA CEO Niv Goldstein told Sky News.

"We are against involving politicians in football and being involved in political matters in the sport in general.

"So, we are concentrating only on football matters and our dream is to qualify for the European Championship in 2024 and I'm looking forward to world peace."

FIFA has banned Russia from international football over the unprovoked, full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 - sparking questions in Jordan about inconsistencies in approaches to nations at war.

"This is not for me to decide," Mr Goldstein said. "And obviously we think there is a lot of difference between our situation and other situations that happened in the world."

Israel's government insists it is acting in self-defence and only began the war on Gaza after Hamas launched raids on its territory on 7 October, killing around 1,200 Israelis and other nationalities.

UEFA believes how the Israel-Hamas war started adds a different complexion to a decision on banning teams.

Mr Theodoridis, who leads the UEFA administration, was asked about calls to exclude Israel given they kicked out Russia.

"There was no such discussion or such intention from the UEFA administration," he said after the UEFA Congress in Paris. "They are two completely different situations between the two countries. Don't forget the start of the war, you mentioned Ukraine, and the start of what is happening now, which is regrettable now, in the Middle East."

Prince Ali's letter does not mention the 7 October massacres - the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust - nor the more than 130 people being held hostage in Gaza since being abducted from Israel that day.

But the letter references the "magnitude of suffering endured by women, children, and innocent civilians, including football players and athletes, as well as the indiscriminate destruction of sports facilities" in Gaza.

Israel insists it is acting proportionally and takes care to avoid innocent deaths. More than 27,000 people have been killed in Gaza so far, according to the Hamas-led health ministry there.

"The humanitarian crisis demands an unequivocal and resolute response from the global football community," Prince Ali wrote.

"As members bound by the statutes of FIFA, we stand united in our pledge to uphold all internationally recognised human rights."

Israel began competing in the Asian Football Confederation in 1954 but faced opposition from countries refusing to play them.

They qualified through Asia for the 1970 men's World Cup but the team was then excluded from AFC tournaments from 1974.

They went on to play in Europe and Oceania for future World Cup qualification campaigns before joining the European governing body, UEFA, as a full member in 1994.

Israeli teams also compete in the Champions League and Europa League.

The national team has never qualified for a European Championship but is two games away from the finals in Germany in June.

In March, there is a play-off semi-final against Iceland and the winner plays Bosnia-Herzegovina or Ukraine.

The build-up to the Eurovision Song Contest in May is also seeing pressure to ban Israel as Russia was kicked out of the competition in 2022.

But the European Broadcast Union has said that was a "fundamentally different" situation and backed Israel to remain in the contest.

The Israeli FA also hopes to fend off the latest attempts to expel its teams. FIFA and UEFA provided no immediate comment to Sky News.

But Jordanian royal Prince Ali wrote to FAs, including the UK home nations: "It is with a sense of profound responsibility and commitment to the principles of human rights, justice, and peace that we implore your engagement in this crucial matter."

It was only following the Oslo Accords in 1998 that the Palestinian FA was able to join FIFA and it competes as Palestine.

The men's team reached the round of 16 for the first time at the Asian Cup last month.

Source: Sky News

Israel faces calls for football ban from nations in the Middle East - but urges FIFA 'not to involve politics'

In a letter seen by Sky News, a group of 12 nations has called for Israel to be banned from world football.

www.google.com

 

[The Bald Eagle]

The European Union wants to sanction three Chinese companies due to their ties to Russia, according to reports by Bloomberg and the Financial Times.

It’s also sizing up a business based in India and firms from Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Thailand, the outlets said, citing a draft proposal that hasn’t been made public yet.

The EU reportedly wants to ban companies from doing business with the listed parties, which it believes could be aiding the Kremlin in its war in Ukraine.

Member states voting through the plan would mark the first time that the trading bloc has imposed restrictions on Chinese and Indian businesses since Russia invaded its neighbor in February 2022.

In the aftermath of that attack, the EU, the US, and other Western countries rushed to sanction Moscow, by cutting Russia’s banks out of the SWIFT payments system and capping oil prices. The EU alone has imposed 12 sanctions packages over the past two years.

Meanwhile, China and India are yet to roll out similar restrictions and have instead stepped up their purchases of Russian crude.

In April 2023, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen traveled to Beijing to warn China’s leader Xi Jinping not to support Russia’s war efforts.

"This visit is taking place in a challenging and increasingly volatile context, in particular because of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine," she said in a press conference. "China's position on this is crucial for the European Union."

Source: Business Insider

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Russia's appeal against the International Olympic Committee's decision to suspend its membership has been dismissed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Russia-Ukraine war updates: Russia condemns EU’s frozen assets plan

The Kremlin says EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell’s proposal to use frozen Russian assets to buy weapons for Ukraine would undermine the foundations of international law.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi discuss Ukraine in a phone call, according to the Kremlin.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova says the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC’s) decision to ban Russia’s athletes from the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics in July is unjust and unacceptable.

Zakharova also says a decision by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) to cut cooperation with Russian scientists is politicised, discriminatory and unacceptable.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal welcomes an interim EU deal on Ukrainian farm imports as “good news”, saying it would allow his country to support its producers and maintain its export levels.

Source: Al Jazeera