Frends Venezuela's Guaido to Have PABNA Bogura Natore Rajib Kumar Covid Update

 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. (Office of President of Ukraine)

The next winter would be very difficult for Ukrainians, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned during his nightly address on Tuesday.

"In the current situation due to Russia's aggression, this will indeed be the most difficult winter of all the years of independence," he said.

Zelensky said he had discussed in a meeting with government officials and representatives of the largest state-owned energy companies "setting up a headquarters to prepare for the next heating season.”

Former New Jersey state Sen. Tom Kean Jr. won the six-way GOP primary in the Garden State’s closely watched 7th Congressional District on Tuesday, setting up a November rematch with Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski.

With 66% of the expected vote in, Kean led the field with 45%, followed by Phil Rizzo, who unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination in New Jersey’s 2021 gubernatorial race with 23% and District 23 Assemblyman Erik Peterson with 16% .

only makes those of us who are trying hard now to make Arthurdale a wonderful place and to preserve our history, but to me, all those people who came before us, it's a way that even though they're not here with us, it honors them, " said Darlene Bolyard, executive director.

Bolyard said she always tells people they can't forget the community members who sold hot dogs to raise funds to restore buildings or those whose husbands climbed and built roofs in the'70s and'80s.

"It was a really exceptional year for us, but again, success doesn't happen overnight, " Bolyard said. "It's longevity. It's endurance, it's perseverance. It's one of my favorite words, when I talk about Arthurdale—resilience and perseverance."

 

On its Facebook page, the association lists three accomplishments by Arthurdale: — The hosting of the Smithsonian exhibit Crossroads: Change in Rural America in December 2021 and January 2022, which drew hundreds of visitors and featured programs such as weaving, blacksmithing demonstrations and an exhibit on the Richard Mine. — When the Preston County Arts Council dissolved in 2021, Arthurdale absorbed the organization and began offering arts programming to both children and . — Arthurdale was selected as one of 11 sites for the Smithsonian's Coming Home program, which involved working with fourth-to-sixth-grade students on a community project.

Kean’s other challengers in the suburban district, which encompasses Hunterdon County, and parts of Essex, Morris, Somerset, Union, and Warren counties, included Township Mayor John Flora and businessman John Isemann.

National Republicans have eyed the 7th District as a potential pickup opportunity as they try to regain control of the House of Representatives after four years in the minority.

Malinowski, who is going for a third term in Congress, defeated Kean — the son of former New Jersey Republican Gov. Tom Kean Sr. — by just 1.2 percentage points in 2020.

Former state Sen. Tom Kean Jr. blasted President Joe Biden for causing inflation.

AP Photo/Mel Evans, File

Since then, Malinowski has faced repeated ethics complaints over his stock trades. In October of last year, the House Office of Congressional Ethics said there was “substantial reason to believe” he violated federal conflict-of-interest rules by failing to disclose dozens of share transactions during 2019 and 2020.

Malinowski has maintained his failure to come clean about the trades was a careless oversight.

He trounced challenger Roger Bacon Tuesday in the Democratic primary, earning 95% of the vote to Bacon’s 5% with a third of all polling precincts reporting when the race was called.

He said there are "issues of purchasing a sufficient amount of gas for the heating season, coal accumulation, and electricity production."
"At this time, we will not be selling our gas and coal abroad. All domestic production will be directed to the internal needs of our citizens," he added.

Ukraine's energy sources: Zelensky said that in light of "the historical accession of Ukraine to the unified energy network of Europe" it will be possible to reduce Russian energy consumption by the neighboring countries and increase Ukraine's "foreign exchange earnings."

Zelensky also said he was planning to repair heat and power plants damaged or destroyed by Russian attacks. "Implementation of this program in the coming months is one of the top tasks for the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine," he said.

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido will speak to U.S. President Joe Biden over the phone during the Summit of the Americas this week, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols said on Tuesday.

Guaido, who the White House recognizes as Venezuela's interim president, will not attend the summit in person, Nichols said in an interview with Mexican newspaper Milenio.

"I hate them": Ex-Russian president threatens to make unnamed enemies "disappear"

Bruno Mars just wants to keep the party going. After collecting one gilded gramophone after another for his hip-swaying hits — most recently as Silk Sonic with Anderson .Paak — the Grammy-winning musician aims to liven things up with his rum brand, SelvaRey.

Mars (né Peter Hernandez) is more than just a starry face of the spirits company. He co-owns the Los Angeles-based label, which was launched in 2014 by brothers Seth Gold (a former real estate developer) and Marc Gold (a journalist-turned-retail and restaurant entrepreneur) and their longtime friend, Robert Herzig (who previously worked in business development). The “Leave the Door Open” singer also brought on the rest of the Hooligans — his cohort of longtime musical collaborators — to back the brand.

From CNN's Mariya Knight, Zahid Mahmood and Zahra Ullah

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in a profanity-laced Telegram post on Tuesday that his previous entries have been “harsh” because he hates “them” — without specifying who.

"I am often asked why my Telegram posts are so harsh. The answer is — I hate them," Medvedev said. "They're bastards and scum. They want to kill us, Russia. And as long as I'm alive, I'll do everything to make them disappear."

Who does he mean? Medvedev, currently deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council chaired by President Vladimir Putin, did not specify who he was referring to. However, he has previously been critical of Western government sanctions and responses to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

Medvedev has previously warned the United States that Moscow has the "might to put all of our brash enemies in their place," has referred to Polish politicians as “imbeciles”, and slammed reports of war crimes in Bucha as Ukrainian propaganda

Democrat Mike Franken, a retired Navy admiral, will face Republican Chuck Grassley in the race for an Iowa U.S. Senate seat, winning his party nomination Tuesday over two competitors.

Franken beat former congresswoman Abby Finkenauer and physician Glenn Hurst and earned the right to run against Grassley, who is seeking an eighth Senate term and beat back a nominal primary challenge of his own on Tuesday.

shedding tears, Huth testified in a civil trial against Cosby on Tuesday that he molested her when she was 16. She claims Cosby tried to put his hand down her tight pants, exposed himself before he forced Huth to touch him sexually on a bed in a “blue room,” which she says was adjacent to the game room.

“He forced himself on me,” recalled Huth, whose testimony came in the Los Angeles County trial over a lawsuit she filed. Cosby denies her allegations.

“I was shocked to say the least,” she said.

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Huth, 64, said the incident happened after she and her high school friend, Donna Samuelson, accompanied Cosby on a visit to the mansion. She said he gave them a tour of the mansion and game room before they played some games including Donkey Kong, and she went to the restroom. She then said Cosby forced her to perform a sex act in the bedroom.

The trial represents one of the last remaining legal claims against Cosby after his Pennsylvania criminal conviction was thrown out by an appeals court last year, and his insurer settled many other lawsuits against his will. He is not attending the trial, and will not testify, but parts of a video deposition he gave shortly after the 2014 lawsuit was filed will be played.

During Huth’s testimony, she said Cosby kept pursuing her after she told him that she was “15 or 16” years old. She claims to have told Cosby that she was on her menstrual cycle – even though she was not – in hopes that he would stop.

“I was trying to deflect,” she said. “But he didn’t stop. I just closed my eyes. … It was so fast. Maybe five minutes. Quick.”

Afterwards, Huth said Cosby walked out the room before she ultimately followed him to the grotto area of the mansion, where both took a photo – which was shown in court. As Huth looked at the photo, she said felt “mad, duped and foolish.”

“I felt let down. I was hurt,” she said. The photo - which has been shown to jurors several times - has Cosby wearing a red beanie and smiling next to the teenage Huth.

 

Franken’s primary win is something of a surprise, given Finkenauer was better known throughout the state after her 2018 victory over a Republican congressman that made her the second-youngest woman elected to Congress. Finkenauer lost in a reelection bid in 2020 but was a frequent presence on cable television and raised millions of dollars toward her Senate run.

In his campaign, Franken emphasized a need to “dial down the political tension” in Washington. He also called for adding a public insurance option to the Affordable Care Act.

Joyce Mahl of Council Bluffs in western Iowa said she voted for Franken because she was unsure Iowans would vote for a Democratic woman in the general election, though Iowa has elected Democratic women, including Finkenauer, to Congress. Mahl’s top priority is a candidate she views as stronger against Grassley.

“If you want Grassley out, you’ve got to vote for the one that you think can beat him,” Mahl, 66, said after voting at a downtown Council Bluffs church.

Franken will nonetheless face stiff headwinds going into the general election against Grassley, who has served seven terms. A state that Democrat Barack Obama won in two presidential elections has steadily shifted to the right in recent years, part of a broader transformation that has spread through the Northern Plains that has made it increasingly difficult for Democrats to compete statewide.

A well-known state lawmaker before she served a single term in the U.S. House, Finkenauer is one of the most prominent Democrats in Iowa.

Mark Hollander, 47, a marketing professional from West Des Moines said he voted for Abby Finkenauer in part because of her background in Congress, but also because she represents a new generation. Finkenauer stressed limiting the number of terms a member of the Senate can serve.

“I do agree with her on term limits,” Hollander said. “I feel that Grassley has not been especially effective in the last decade-plus and has turned more obstructionist at this point.”

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But Finkenauer’s campaign faced an unexpected stumble in April when she nearly didn’t make the primary ballot. Republican activists claimed she hadn’t gathered enough signatures from enough counties. A district judge ruled Finkenauer hadn’t qualified for the ballot, a ruling she called “deeply partisan.” The Iowa Supreme Court overruled that decision and allowed her to run.

Still, the episode turned off a number of veteran state Democratic activists, former candidates and officeholders, prompting some to give Franken a second look. He posted stronger first-quarter fundraising figures than Finkenauer and earned endorsements from some well-known former Finkenauer supporters bothered by her declining to accept responsibility for the filing mistakes.

Grassley, from New Hartford in northern Iowa, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1980 after serving three terms in the U.S. House.

Bangladesh Online Dhaka Electronic Warfare Turns Raju Sarkar Zonal Officer 2022

 federal judge is considering whether to postpone the execution of an Arizona prisoner who argues the state’s death penalty procedures would violate his rights by subjecting him to unimaginable pain.

Attorneys for Frank Atwood said their client would undergo excruciating suffering if he were strapped to the execution gurney while lying on his back because he has a degenerative spinal condition that has left him in a wheelchair. Atwood is scheduled to be lethally injected Wednesday for his murder conviction in the 1984 killing of 8-year-old Vicki Hoskinson.

At a court hearing Friday, Atwood's lawyers questioned whether the compounded pentobarbital to be used in the execution meets pharmaceutical standards and whether the state has met a requirement that the drug’s expiration date falls after the execution date. They also are challenging Arizona’s protocol for gas chamber executions.

Prosecutors say Atwood is trying to indefinitely postpone his execution through legal maneuvers

Two weeks ago, Atwood declined to choose between lethal injection or the gas chamber, leaving him to be put to death by lethal injection, the state’s default execution method.

Even though he didn’t pick the gas chamber, he is still challenging the state’s lethal gas protocol that calls for the use of hydrogen cyanide gas, which was used in some past U.S. executions and by Nazis to kill 865,000 Jews at the Auschwitz concentration camp alone. His lawyers say hydrogen cyanide gas is unconstitutional and produces agonizing levels of pain in executions.

Without explicitly saying Atwood wants to die by the gas chamber, his lawyers argue he has a right to choose between methods of execution that are constitutional and said the state should switch its lethal gas from hydrogen cyanide gas to nitrogen gas because nitrogen would produce painless deaths.

“They could do that tomorrow,” Joseph Perkovich, one of Atwood’s attorneys, said about nitrogen gas.

Arizona, California, Missouri and Wyoming are the only states with decades-old lethal-gas execution laws still on the books. Arizona, which carried out the last gas chamber execution in the United States more than two decades ago, is the only state to still have a working gas chamber.

In recent years, Oklahoma, Mississippi and Alabama have passed laws allowing executions with nitrogen gas, at least in some circumstances, though experts say it has never been done and no state has established a protocol that would allow it.

Atwood’s lawyers also said Arizona could take up executions by firing squad -- a method of execution not used in the state.

Prosecutors say Atwood’s challenge is not aimed at minimizing the pain he will feel when he is put to death, but rather to delay the execution indefinitely by requesting alternative methods of execution that he knows the state is unable to provide without changes to its execution protocol and the state constitution.

Prosecutors say Atwood can alleviate pain caused by lying on his back by propping himself up with a pillow and using the tilt function on the execution table. They say he will be allowed to continue taking pain medications and will be provided a mild sedative before his execution.

Arizona prosecutors also said nitrogen gas remains untested in executions and that Atwood’s attorneys hadn’t established that nitrogen gas or a firing squad would reduce the risk of severe pain.

Jeffrey Sparks, a lawyer for the state, argued Atwood’s legal claims about lethal gas are moot, saying the execution will be carried out by lethal injection.

 

Authorities have said Atwood kidnapped Hoskinson, whose remains were discovered in the desert northwest of Tucson nearly seven months after her disappearance. Experts could not determine the cause of death from the remains that were found, according to court records.

Atwood maintains that he is innocent.

Last week, a federal appeals court denied a request by Atwood’s lawyers to make new arguments in a bid to overturn his death sentence.

Atwood’s lawyers have said that last summer they discovered an FBI memo describing an anonymous caller claiming to have seen the girl in a vehicle not associated with Atwood, but which could be linked to a woman. A panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said it couldn’t conclude that the disclosure of the unreported anonymous call would have had any effect on Atwood’s trial and conviction.

On Friday, Atwood’s lawyers also asked the Arizona Supreme Court to stay his execution, making similar arguments about what they said was new evidence of his innocence related to the woman.

Mexico’s president has claimed the leftist candidate in Colombia’s presidential race faces “a dirty war” by “conservatives,” leading the Colombian government to tell President Andrés Manuel López Obrador Friday to stay out of its domestic politics.

López Obrador makes a big point of saying he doesn’t interfere in other countries’ internal affairs, and has used that as an excuse to avoid criticizing non-democratic regimes like Nicaragua and Cuba.

But on Friday López Obrador blasted the opposition to front-running presidential candidate, the leftist Gustavo Petro. López Obrador claimed Petro faces a scare campaign, trying to depict him as dangerous radical, something similar to a campaign used against López Obrador in a failed presidential bid in 2006.

“I want to say I'm sending a hug to Petro,” López Obrador. “Why a hug? Because he is facing a dirty war of the most cowardly and undignified kind, everything we suffered in Mexico. All the conservatives are united, unethically."

Colombia's foreign relations ministry shot back on its social media accounts, saying the Mexican president's comments were “an offensive interference in our country's internal affairs.”

“We ask him to respect the autonomy of the Colombian people to choose their next president without interferences that try to influence voters,” the ministry wrote.

Last week Colombian voters chose Sen. Petro, a former rebel, to run in a second round against real estate tycoon Rodolfo Hernández, an outsider populist businessman.

Petro led the field of six candidates Sunday with just over 40% of the votes, while Hernández, who has no close ties to any political parties, finished second with more than 28%.

The petition for information about Daniel Defense, the Georgia-based company that made the firearm, was filed Thursday, according to court papers obtained by NBC News. The filing was on behalf of Emilia Marin, a staff member who had been outside bringing food into Robb Elementary School for an end-of-year party on May 24 when she saw a car crash, her attorney, Don Flanary, told NBC News.

 

Flanary said Marin went inside to grab her cellphone to call 911 about the crash. As she was on the phone with 911, she went back outside and saw the 18-year-old gunman hopping a fence, coming toward the school with a weapon strapped across his chest.

The Justice Department has declined to prosecute two of Donald Trump’s closest White House advisers — former chief of staff Mark Meadows and social media director Dan Scavino — for refusing to cooperate with the Jan. 6 select committee, rejecting the House’s recommendation that the pair be charged with contempt of Congress.

Matthew Graves, the U.S. Attorney for Washington D.C., delivered the news to House Counsel Douglas Letter earlier Friday, according to a person familiar with the correspondence.

After earlier failing to topple Ukraine's government, Russia's military has focused its offensive on the country's eastern Donbas region, which is home to a large population of Russian speakers. New reporting shows Russian forces are increasingly intercepting the Ukrainian military's communications while jamming navigation and guidance systems.

"They are jamming everything their systems can reach," an official with the Aerorozvidka, a Ukrainian agency that develops unmanned aerial vehicles and other military capabilities, told the Associated Press in a report published Friday. "We can't say they dominate, but they hinder us greatly."

 

USA India Covid Today Hold Update Chances of Beating Republicans Rajbari

 Arizona's Democratic Senator Mark Kelly aims to win reelection in November as Republicans see his previously comfortably red seat as a key race to win in their bid to regain control of Congress' upper chamber—with polls currently showing an advantage for the incumbent.

Kelly managed to flip a longtime GOP-held seat blue for Democrats in a special election in 2020. The seat was previously held by Martha McSally, a Republican who was appointed to serve Arizona in the Senate until the special election for the remainder of deceased GOP Senator John McCain's term.

Kelly won in that race by a margin of 2.4 percent. The retired NASA astronaut won the support of 51.2 percent of Arizona voters, compared to 48.8 percent that backed McSally. Prior to the Democratic senator's victory, the Arizona seat had been held by Republicans since 1969. The 2020 election also saw President Joe Biden become the first Democratic presidential candidate to win in the southwestern state since 1996.

 

As Arizona's primary won't be held until August 2, it's still unclear whom Kelly will face off against in November. The leading GOP contenders are Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, businessman Jim Lamon and venture capitalist Blake Masters. Former President Donald Trump officially threw his weight behind Masters on Thursday, endorsing his candidacy in the Republican primary. But recent polls show Masters in third place among the GOP hopefuls.

 

Arizona's Democratic Senator Mark Kelly aims to win reelection in November as Republicans see his previously comfortably red seat as a key race to win in their bid to regain control of Congress' upper chamber—with polls currently showing an advantage for the incumbent. Above, Kelly leads a personal tour through the U.S. Capitol on May 25 in Washington, D.C.CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

The latest survey data shows Kelly well-positioned against all three of the top Republican contenders. Blueprint Polling found the Democratic incumbent leading all of his potential GOP rivals by double-digit margins.

 

Kelly performs best against Brnovich, with a lead of 17 points. The incumbent senator has the support of 50 percent of likely voters while Arizona's attorney general is backed by just 33 percent. The results are about the same when Kelly is pitted against Masters, with an identical lead of 17 points. However, the Democrat is only backed by 49 percent of likely voters in that matchup compared to the Trump-backed candidate's 32 percent.

Lamon does slightly better against Kelly. The Republican hopeful is supported by 34 percent in the matchup and the incumbent Democrat has the backing of 48 percent—a difference of 14 points in favor of Kelly. The poll surveyed 608 respondents and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent.

In a previous poll conducted by Data for Progress in January, Kelly appeared to be in a much closer race with Brnovich. The Democrat incumbent had the support of 49 percent of likely voters compared to 47 percent who backed the GOP hopeful—a lead of just 2 points for Kelly. The poll included 1,469 likely voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.

That survey did not ask respondents about Kelly versus the other two leading Republicans. However, it did show that the Democrat's favorability with Arizonians was underwater. In total, 49 percent of likely voters in the southwestern state held an unfavorable view of their senator. Just 46 percent held a favorable view. Moreover, more than a third (36 percent) said they held a "very unfavorable" view of Kelly compared to only 30 percent who said they held a "very favorable" opinion of him.

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Another January poll carried out by OH Predictive Insights showed Kelly leading when pitted against a generic Republican opponent. That survey found that 42 percent of Arizona's registered voters would back the Democrat's reelection. Meanwhile, 38 percent said they would vote for his GOP challenger. There were 855 registered voters included in the poll with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percent.

With a little more than five months until the midterm election, and with the Republican challenger still unknown, a lot could change between now and November. Overall, the data suggests Kelly is favored to win reelection, but considering Arizona's historic Republican lean and his relatively narrow victory in 2020, the race will likely be close and could swing back in favor of the GOP. Even with Arizona going for Biden and Kelly in 2020, political news and polling analysis site FiveThirtyEight's assessment shows that the southwestern state continues to have a 7.6 percent partisan lean in favor of Republicans.

Iranian security forces on Friday arrested a young man following an assault on a top provincial cleric in the central city of Isfahan, Iranian media reported. The cleric appeared unharmed in a video broadcast after the attack.

According to the semiofficial Fars news agency, the unidentified man accosted prayer leader Yousef Tababaeinejad as he was talking with some worshipers after Friday prayers and attempted to stab him in the neck with a “sharp metal object."

The report said mosque guards quickly detained the him and added that the case is under investigation.

A video on Iranian media later showed Tababaeinejad speaking to a reporter afterward and saying the assailant seemed to be a young man, in his 20s.

Such attacks are uncommon in Iran though in the early 1980s, clerics were targeted by armed opposition groups, mostly during or after Friday prayers. Over the past months, there have been chants against clerics during protest gatherings in Iran over price hikes and the slashing of subsidies by the government.

In early April, a stabbing attack in the revered Imam Reza shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad killed three clerics — a rare act of violence at the major pilgrimage site for Shiite Muslims.

Tababaeinejad, a hard-line cleric appointed by the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is known as a vocal opponent of social media and music, saying they are part of the West's software war against Islamic beliefs.

Princess Anne visited Edinburgh Zoo on the second day of celebrations to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

Street parties were also held across the country to honour the first monarch to reach the milestone.

On Thursday the festivities got under way with a Royal gun salute at Edinburgh Castle, before beacons were lit across the country.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon led tributes in Scotland and hailed the Queen's "selfless commitment to duty".

The Queen was also praised for "staying the course" as royals joined dignitaries at a thanksgiving service for the Platinum Jubilee at St Paul's Cathedral.

 

Referring to her love of horse racing, Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said the 96-year-old monarch was "still in the saddle", even though she was not able to attend.

Biden told reporters that he does not yet have direct plans to make a trip to Saudi Arabia but if he does it would be to try to advance Middle East peace prospects.

Sources familiar with the process say Biden is planning a trip to Saudi Arabia in conjunction with a trip to Europe and Israel in late June.

As recently as Wednesday, the White House said Biden still felt bin 

PABNA BANGLADESH act to cool rising Indo-Pacific temperatures Natore News

 The temperature in the Indo-Pacific region is rising, not only because of global warming but more because of the increasing tensions between the United States and China. Their rivalry is no longer confined to the exchange of harsh words. Both are actively seeking to build alliances, expand their sphere of influence and beef up military strength.

Indonesia, like all other countries in the region, is caught up in this rivalry between the two superpowers, but unlike most of them, it has managed to stay unaligned with either camp. This affords Indonesia the space and opportunity to help cool down tensions.

Now more than ever, Indonesia should use every power and leverage available at its disposal to conduct more aggressive diplomacy to preserve peace in the Indo-Pacific region.

We should not underestimate our credentials as peacemakers but neither should we overrate ourselves. Indonesia is the fourth-largest country in the world and the largest member of ASEAN, and President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is this year’s president of the Group of 20 world’s wealthiest nations.

Without the economic means and military power, these credentials may not be enough for Indonesia to prevail over the two superpowers to tell them to deescalate tensions, but this should not stop President Jokowi and his diplomatic machinery from trying.

The question is, if not Indonesia, who else has the capacity to stop the current cold war from shifting into a hot war? Most countries in the region that could make a difference are already aligning themselves with the US.

This is not the time to finger-point at who began the escalation. Statements and actions by both sides have contributed to the tensions, and unless restrained, they can only get worse.

ohammad Younes Menfi, Head of the Presidential Council of Libya sent a letter to President Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports.

“Your Excellency,

It is my pleasure to extend to you and the friendly people of Azerbaijan my best wishes on the occasion of the national holiday of your country- the Independence Day.

On this remarkable day, I wish the people of Azerbaijan peace, progress and prosperity.

Please accept Your Excellency, the assurances of my highest esteem and consideration,” the letter said.

Egils Levits, President of the Republic of Latvia also sent a congratulatory letter.

“Your Excellency,

On the occasion of the celebration of the National Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan, I extend my most sincere congratulations along with wishes for long years of peace and prosperity for Azerbaijan and its people.

It is my firm belief that the well-established cooperation between Latvia and Azerbaijan will continue to develop and strengthen in the years to come. It is in the long-term interest of our nations to further intensify our political, economic and cultural dialogue.

Today, when Russia’s aggression in Ukraine has shaken the peace and stability in the region, we need to stand in unity to protect the shared values and principles, and the very basis of the international order based on the Charter of the United Nations.

I am confident that through working together we will ensure that our people thrive in peace and security.

Please accept, Your Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration along with the best wishes of health and strength to you and the people of Azerbaijan,” the letter said.

Jose Daniel Ortega Saavedra, President of the Republic of Nicaragua, Rosario Murillo, Vice-president of the Republic of Nicaragua also congratulated President Ilham Aliyev.

“Dear brother,

On the special occasion of commemorating the 104th anniversary of the Independence Day, this coming 28 May, we wish to express on behalf of the People and Government of Reconciliation and National Unity of the Republic of Nicaragua, and on our own behalf, our warmest congratulations to you and to the people and government of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

On this historic and memorable date, we accompany the people of Azerbaijan in celebrating the victories of self-determination, national sovereignty and independence and we reiterate the unwavering determination of the people and government of Nicaragua, to continue working together with the people and government of Azerbaijan, in building a world of peace, solidarity and cooperation, with a multipolar, fair and equitable world order in which the fundamental principles of international law are respected.

From our always blessed and always free Nicaragua receive our fraternal embrace with the love and respect of the Nicaraguan families,” the letter said.

Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, President of the Republic of Maldives sent a letter on the occasion to President Ilham Aliyev.

“Excellency,

On the happy occasion of the Independence Day of Azerbaijan, the government and the people of the Maldives join me in extending warm greetings and sincere good wishes to your Excellency, the government and the people of Azerbaijan.

Let me also extend, Excellency, my personal best wishes for your good health and happiness, and for further progress and prosperity of the people of Azerbaijan,” the letter said.

Andrew Holness, Prime Minister of Jamaica congratulated President Ilham Aliyev.

“On behalf of the government and people of Jamaica, I extend warm congratulations to the government and people of the Republic of Azerbaijan as you celebrate the 104th anniversary of the Independence Day.

Jamaica values greatly the relations, which we have enjoyed since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1995, and looks forward to increased opportunities to strengthen cooperation in the years to come.

Please accept, Excellency, my very best wishes for the continued peace and prosperity of the government and people of the Republic of Azerbaijan,” the letter said.

Ilir Meta, President of the Republic of Albania also extended congratulations to President Ilham Aliyev.

“Your Excellency,

I cherish the special pleasure to convey, also on behalf of the Albanian people the sincere and wholehearted wishes to you and to the Azerbaijani people as well.

On this important day for your country and people, I have the pleasure to point out the very good level of the progress of the excellent and friendly relations between our two countries and peoples, and also to express my conviction that these bilateral relations and cooperation will continue to further grow and strengthen in the future thanks to our joint willingness and engagement.

In an unusual attack on Pakistan's powerful military, ousted prime minister Imran Khan has admitted that his government was a "weak one" which was "blackmailed from everywhere" as the power was not with him and "everyone knows where that is".

Khan was ousted from power in April after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.

In an interview to Bol News on Wednesday, Khan was asked to recall the events of the night of the no-confidence vote against him, who was issuing orders and who had impeded the cases against the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders, the Dawn newspaper reported.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief said his government had been "weak" when it came to power and had to seek coalition partners, adding that if the same situation were to arise again, he would opt for re-elections and seek a majority government or none at all.

"Our hands were tied. We were blackmailed from everywhere. Power wasn't with us. Everyone knows where the power lies in Pakistan so we had to rely on them," the 69-year-old cricketer-turned-politician said, without elaborating any further who he was referring to.

Khan, who came to power in 2018, reportedly with the backing of the military, is the only Pakistani prime minister to be ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament. He was replaced by PML-N's Shehbaz Sharif.

He said it was imperative for the country to have a "strong army" due to the threat posed by the enemies but said there was also the need to strike a "balance" between having a strong army and a strong government.

"We relied on them all the time. They did a lot of good things too but they didn't do many things that should've been done. They have the power because they control institutions such as NAB (National Accountability Bureau), which wasn't in our control," he said.

The former prime minister said while his government had the responsibility, it did not have all the power and the authority.

The Pakistan Army, which has ruled the coup-prone country for more than half of its 73 plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in the matters of security and foreign policy. However, the army has continuously denied its involvement in politics.

According to experts, Khan, who was ousted on April 10 after the National Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him, had apparently lost support of the Army after he refused to endorse the appointment of Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum as the ISI spy agency chief last year. Finally, he agreed but it soured his ties with the Army.

During the interview, Khan said, "No management works if I have responsibility but have no complete power and authority. A system works only when responsibility and authority are in one place."

The PTI chief said the current political situation was a problem for the country as well as the establishment. "If the establishment doesn't make the right decisions then I can assure in writing that (before everyone else) they and the army will be destroyed because of what will become of the country if it goes bankrupt," he said.

"Pakistan is going towards a default. If that happens then which institution will be (the worst) hit? The army. After it is hit, what concession will be taken from us? Denuclearisation," Khan said.

Khan said that if Pakistan were to lose its nuclear deterrent capability, it would be fragmented into three pieces. "If the right decisions aren't made at this time then the country is going towards suicide," he warned.

Prodded further to share his thoughts on the night of the no-confidence vote, Imran declined to go into details and said: "History never forgives anyone. Things come out. If you ask me, I won't go into details, but when history will be written then it'll be counted as such a night in which Pakistan and its institutions were damaged a lot.

Natore Pabna full transparency’ over Champions Jahidul Islam Dhaka Bd 2022

 President Emmanuel Macron urged the French government on Wednesday to investigate with “full transparency” the chaos at this weekend’s Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid, as the interior minister came under increasing pressure over the police’s handling.

Natore Pabna full transparency’ over Champions Jahidul Islam Dhaka Bd 2022

 

PAKISTAN prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has invited Turkish businesses to invest in his country, saying Islamabad “sincerely” seeks to strengthen bilateral ties with Ankara.

The mayhem outside the Stade de France stadium ahead of the match, which saw thousands of Liverpool supporters with tickets struggle to enter and police respond with tear gas, raised questions over the capacity of Paris to host the Olympic Games in 2024.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin has faced growing criticism and accusations of lying after he blamed the chaos on massive ticket scams.

‘At the moment we’re not getting what we payed for and it’s a disgrace. I do a lot of travelling and I have to say my experience with security people is always positive. They’re focused, mature about what they do and methodical.’

Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos

While a listener named Anne blasted the Dublin Airport controversy as she admitted she has no plans of travelling anytime soon.

She explained: ‘I think it’s absolutely shocking and as someone said there “it’s like putting cattle into holding pen before they went to the mart”…

‘I used to believe before all this COVID thing that I was a terrific traveller, travelled all over the world. I wouldn’t dream of travelling at the moment due to the conditions.’

Twitter users flocked to have their say on the Liveline debate, where one woman asked ‘can you imagine asking elderly people to stand in a tent’.

Islamabad and Ankara should achieve an ambitious bilateral trade target of $5 billion which was “difficult but not impossible”, Shehbaz, who came to power amid rising inflation and depleting forex reserves in his country, said.

“Your active participation in investments in Pakistan is highly appreciated. And above all your participation in humanitarian projects in Pakistan is very well-known. Today, we are here to seriously engage ourselves with you because you are very serious-minded business people, and your achievements are outstanding and a shining example for all of us,” he said.

“We genuinely and sincerely want to work with the Turkey Business fraternity to transform our brotherhood into promoting our bilateral trade, investment and culture,” the south Asian country’s information and broadcasting minister Marriyum Aurangzeb quoted the prime minister as saying.

Sharif’s invitation to Turkish investors comes as Pakistan is buckling under crippling debt and a falling currency.

Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had visited its weather ally China recently as Islamabad sought to address its economic headwinds, complicated by the rising fuel costs and a delayed IFM help.

Government spokeswoman Olivia Gregoire said that the matter had been briefly discussed at Wednesday’s regular cabinet meeting chaired by Macron, who has yet to comment publicly.

“What the president wants… is that light is shone on what really happened, in full transparency, and very quickly,” she told reporters, while emphasising Darmanin had Macron’s “full confidence”.

She said Macron also expected action from the government to ensure that this “never happens again”.

“Simply put, could we have done things better, could it have been better managed? Yes,” she acknowledged. “Were there wounded, a tragedy? No. Can we improve things for future sporting events? Certainly.”

She confirmed that 2,700 supporters had been unable to watch the match due to the chaos.

“The president of the republic and all his government are sad and sorry for these people who lost out.”

Despite the public professions of support, French media reports said that Macron was privately furious with Darmanin, 39, a high-flying right-winger.

The Canard Enchaine satirical weekly said that Macron had told Darmanin that what happened was a “heavy blow for France”.

“We can say that he was furious,” BFM TV cited a source close to Macron as saying.

“The minister of the interior was expressly asked to step up and stop insisting that we were not to blame,” the source added.

The Egyptian president has called for EU support for his country’s position on the ‘existential’ Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam as the two sides look to step up political and economic relations against the backdrop of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al Sisi told EU enlargement commissioner Olivér Várhelyi that the fate of the dam was an ‘existential issue’ for Egypt and its people and requested the bloc’s support during a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday (1 June).

The dam across the River Nile in northern Ethiopia is set to generate 5.15 gigawatts of electricity, making the dam the largest hydroelectric power plant in Africa, and one of the largest in the world when completed. However, its implications for the water supply to Egypt and Sudan are vast. In 2020, Ethiopia began filling the dam’s reservoir without the consent of its two neighbours.

Negotiations over the dam, particularly over the distribution of water and energy supplies, between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan mediated at different stages by the United States and the African Union, with the EU as an observer, have been stalled for years.

The European Commission views Egypt as a strategically important country in both the Maghreb region and Africa, and its importance in terms of energy policy and wider geopolitics has increased following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The two sides are expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Israel in the coming weeks to export natural gas to EU countries, Israel’s energy minister confirmed on Monday.

The Israeli gas will go through pipelines from Israel to Egypt, and then be shipped to Europe, she said.

In April, Italian energy company Eni signed a deal with Egypt’s EGAS that will see Egypt expanding gas exports to Europe to three billion cubic metres of liquified natural gas from 2022. The European Commission is expected to launch official talks with gas-producing nations in Africa in the coming days.

“Egypt is the link between the Arab and European worlds, and the axis of maintaining security and stability in the Middle East and the African continent,” said Várhelyi, in a statement following his meeting with al Sisi.

However, Egypt has been hit by the aftershocks of the war in Ukraine. One of the largest importers of wheat from Ukraine, it has been allocated €100 million from a €225 million EU fund to support North African countries facing wheat supply shortages, although EU leaders indicated at the European Council summit this week that this fund’s scope and resources will be increased.

This week, Polish President Andrzej Duda has also been courting al Sisi’s support on his first-ever official visit to Egypt with a view to importing liquefied gas from Egypt to Poland.

Mr Dalton said prior to appearing to the Oireachtas Transport Committee: ‘Passengers that arrive too early for their flights will be asked to wait in a dedicated passenger holding area with special consideration being given to those passengers who require special assistance and those Important Flyers travelling with autism.’

Bad weather cover, seating and toilets will all be provided in the holding area ‘as quickly as possible’, with Mr Dalton adding the ‘trialling of this system’ will take place over the June bank holiday weekend.

Joe Duffy’s Liveline on Wednesday afternoon was full of angry listeners having their say on the announcement.

COVid Update Bonpara Asserts Ukraine's Aim Is To Reoccupy Rasel Vai 2023

  

 

As the ongoing war in Eastern Europe transcended 3 months with Russian forces relentlessly invading Ukrainian cities and the EU announcing an embargo on more than two-thirds of Moscow's oil imports, the raging conflict continues to stir a global response. On Tuesday, during an interview with the US broadcaster Newsmax, embattled President Zelenskyy stated that Ukrainian troops aim to reoccupy the entire territory and that Kyiv also does not care about Russia's plans. During the interview, Zelenskyy also added that he would not order the use of advanced missile systems as expected from the United States to attack neighbouring Russia. 

This came after US President Joe Biden had announced that the country was deploying an advanced rocket system to Ukraine to strike key targets. According to reports, the weapons provided by America are High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), which can destroy the target even from a distance of 80 kilometres. Notably, these weapons were provided to the war-hit nation to hit a target inside Russia.

Pro-Ukrainian hacktivists obtained data from numerous Russian organizations, including its military.

"Major websites of Russian governmental and public institutions have been temporarily taken down, using tools rapidly created at the start of the war by pro-Ukrainian cyber activists that have enabled anyone with a minimum knowledge of cybertech to take part in cyberattacks," Dmytro Dubov, Head of the Information Security and Cybersecurity Department of the National Institute for Strategic Studies in Kyiv, writes.

In his latest analysis of the Russo-Ukrainian war in the cyber realm, he listed five challenges to Russia's cybersecurity and cyberwar capabilities.

"Unless addressed, these challenges will degrade Russia's ability to compete in the highly dynamic sphere of cyberspace – even as the war in Ukraine has shown the extent of its failures to deliver effects in this domain, too," Dubov said.

1. Shortage of specialists. Due to the increasing number of cyberattacks against Russia, the country's best specialists have to focus on defense, decreasing their offensive potential. Russia, facing a massive scope of cyberattacks, needs to allocate its resources and investigate what was taken from them and how far the hackers got in.

 

2. Limited awareness of cybersecurity. The cyberattack on the Russian Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) is a prominent example of the lack of awareness of the need for strong cybersecurity. It was forced to switch to pen and paper after losing 65TB of data.

"Successful cyberattacks on the websites of the Russian government, president, public and security services, and central bank have shown that despite attention to, and public funding of, cybersecurity, the abilities of Russian cybersecurity specialists tend to be limited," Dubov writes.

3. Weak operational skills of mid-level specialists. Dubov claims that Russian hackers have failed to show their supposed mastery in this active cyber confrontation. "Russia's responses in the current cyber conflict have been poorly thought out, and its cyberattacks against Ukraine have been partly supported by data gathered by Russian intelligence agencies through traditional means such as human espionage."

 

4. Withdrawal of foreign expertise. Nearly 40 cybersecurity companies have announced their withdrawal from the Russian market and have suspended service for Russian clients.

This presents long-term challenges, as many software or hardware solutions cannot be replaced by Russian-owned technologies (according to local specialists, replacement may require 6 to 12 months.)

Russia is now on a quest to create a sovereign internet. The Kremlin has actively endorsed any initiative to develop domestic digital services in place of Western competitors.

"A Presidential Decree of 30 March 2022 required all purchases of foreign software for Russian CIFs to be suspended from 31 March and prohibited the use of foreign software from 1 January 2025. Further, by the end of September 2022, the Russian government must develop a plan to replace foreign-made radio, electronic, and telecommunication devices with Russian ones," Dubov writes, doubting this is even possible to achieve.

"In any event, a ban on importing technologies will be a sham, as it will only make the existing practice of purchasing Chinese products and replacing ‘made in China’ labels with ‘from Russian manufacturers’ even more widespread," he added.

5. Brain drain. This March, a Concord group company associated with an oligarch close to Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, urged the government to draft a law to make it harder for IT specialists to travel abroad.

"Both the Russian Ministry of Digital Development and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later denied this, and the information was deleted. State Duma member Alexander Khinshtein suggested establishing 'IT- joints,' similar to the Soviet-era semi- prisons where sentenced specialists worked on R&D projects, supervised by the security service. It seems that this was not a serious proposal, but as many Russian IT specialists have been arrested recently, it may have been a trial balloon intended to test the idea and to mentally prepare the Russian public," Dubov said.

Ukraine's aim is to reoccupy entire territory: Zelenskyy

“Look, we’re not planning to attack Russia, we’re not interested in the Russian Federation, we’re not fighting on their territory,” Zelensky told Newsmax, reported The Moscow Times.

At a time when Ukraine is already fighting a tough battle with the Russian forces, the multiple rocket launchers deployed by the Ukrainian forces represent an important upgrade in the war strategy. According to the official, the Himars are the centrepiece of a $700 million package provided to the war-ravaged country. The military aid provided by the United States to Ukraine also includes air surveillance radars, more Javelin short-range anti-tank rockets, more artillery ammunition, helicopters, vehicles, and spare parts. 

READ | Russia-Ukraine war: Ukraine increases military expenditures by $8.3 billion

The announcement also put a stop to ongoing speculation that Himars were going to Ukraine following continuous pleas from the Ukrainian military. With this development, it has become clear that the US is firmly standing with Ukraine while not taking a step forward to be seen as a direct belligerent. Notably, the new weapons will come from a recently announced fund of $40 billion, out of which the Biden administration has already sent $4.5 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the start of the war.

READ | Russia ready to hold negotiations with Ukraine to restore peace, says Upper house speaker

Russia-Ukraine war

Ever since Kremlin leader Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, hostilities between both nations have led to several thousand deaths and massive destruction in the war-torn nation. Reports have emerged that the situation in the Eastern part of Ukraine is 'difficult'. "The situation on the Eastern Front is currently difficult due to the lack of necessary weapons, but Ukraine will liberate its territories, focusing on the effectiveness of hostilities and the maximum preservation of people's lives," Zelenskyy said on Tuesda

Areport by global policy think tank Rand Corporation said that US’ five main allies in Asia - Japan, South Korea, Australia, Thailand and the Philippines - are unlikely to agree to host US’ ground-based intermediate-range missiles.

The intermediate-range missiles are central to US strategy to infiltrate China’s defenses if it invades Taiwan in near future.

Senior political scientist Jeffrey Hornung who authored the paper pointed out that there is a small chance that Australia and Japan could host the ground-based intermediate-range missiles (GBIRMs), while adding that neither the Philippines or Thailand would give a nod to such an arrangement.

It also points out that the US, once bound by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, does not have any GBIRMs in its arsenal compared to 1,250 ground-based intermediate-range missiles that Beijing has.

The European Union has added its voice to the cautiously positive international reaction to Sunday's announcement of the lifting of the State of Emergency, and pledge to release detainees, by Sudan's Sovereignty Council.

The State of Emergency, which came into effect following the October 25 military coup and was underpinned by the dissolution of the transitional cabinet, initiated nationwide anti-coup protests that have rocked Sudan ever since.

The Sovereignty Council says that they hope this decision will provide "a fruitful and meaningful dialogue that achieves stability during the transitional period".

In a statement via the spokesperson in Brussels, the EU welcomes the announced lifting of the State of Emergency throughout the country and the release of detainees "as commendable first steps in creating the much needed conducive environment for dialogue".

 

The EU also welcomes the decision to allow the Al Jazeera Live channel to resume its operations in Sudan. The Sudanese Ministry of Information and Culture withdrew the license of Al Jazeera Live in January.

'The EU calls upon all parties to engage actively and constructively in the dialogue efforts... '

"Time is of the essence for Sudan's efforts to find an inclusive and sustainable way out of the current crisis, which is severely affecting the population," the EU statement says. "We therefore call upon authorities to continue their efforts to create a truly conducive environment for dialogue, by completing the release of those who were detained since 25 October last, ensuring due process to those detainees who face criminal charges against them, and effectively ending the violence against peaceful demonstrators, allowing them to enjoy their basic human rights of assembly and expression."

 

 

The statement underlines: "It is crucial for alleged violations of human rights to be investigated and for perpetrators to be held to account. The EU calls upon all parties to engage actively and constructively in the dialogue efforts, facilitated by the trilateral mechanism of UNITAMS, AU, and IGAD*. They have our full support," the statement concludes.