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Archived

• Russia has devised a plan to intervene in elections in Moldova and disrupt the government’s efforts to keep the country on the path toward European Union membership, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg.
• The plan includes tactics such as recruitment of Moldovans abroad to vote, deploying others to stage disruptive protests, and a widespread disinformation campaign on social media, the documents show.
• The goal of the plan is to undermine the chances of President Maia Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity and ultimately see her removed from power, according to the documents citing the internal Russian plans.

[...]

Moldovan police, meanwhile, have been cracking down on disinformation campaigns and attempts to buy votes. Last month, the authorities officially asked to block 443 TikTok channels.

On Monday, officers mounted an operation against what they said was a Russian-backed plot to destabilize the election, according to presidential adviser Stanislav Secrieru. Authorities in Chisinau detained 74 people and conducted more than 250 searches across the country, dismantling a network allegedly run with support from the Russian intelligence service GRU, police told a news conference.

[...]

A former Soviet state, Moldova has a significant Russophone minority among its 2.4 million population. The breakaway state of Transnistria is under Russian occupation, according to the Council of Europe, while the leader of the region of Gagauzia was convicted by a Moldovan court of illegally funneling Russian money to a political party.

“The Kremlin’s goal is clear: to capture Moldova through the ballot box, to use us against Ukraine and to turn us into a launchpad for hybrid attacks on the European Union,” Sandu told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg on Sept. 9. “That is why this election is very important. By defending it, we protect not only Moldova, but also regional security and stability.”

[...]

Sandu’s party, known as PAS, is promising to kick off the EU accession process and win access to much-needed funds after Moldova began entry talks last year. But the latest polls suggest PAS may lose its parliamentary majority, raising the prospect of an uneasy coalition.

PAS faces stiff opposition from several groups. They include the nominally pro-EU Alternative bloc and a pro-Russian one led by former President Igor Dodon, who a separate set of documents seen by Bloomberg suggests asked security services to track political opponents when he was in office. Dodon said in an email to Bloomberg that he always acted legally and in the interests of Moldova.

[...]

Russia has dedicated significant resources to influencing elections in the region, according to the European government officials. In Georgia, a vote last year saw accusations of widespread interference and paved the way to ongoing protests.

Then came the presidential election in Romania, where judges ordered a rerun following allegations of Russian meddling that had propelled a fringe far-right candidate to a first-round victory.

A months-long investigation found that Russia had been targeting Romania as part of a hybrid campaign stretching back to 2022, according to the country’s chief prosecutor, Alex Florenta. Four companies with ties to Russia orchestrated fake social media accounts and AI bots that reached at least 1.3 million citizens, he said on Sept. 16.

[...]

The votes of Moldovans residing abroad were crucial in the 2024 votes. As part of its plans for these elections, one of the documents showed Russia intended to recruit members of the Moldovan diaspora and pay for them to travel and vote.

The plans also included a disinformation campaign on Telegram, TikTok and Facebook, as well as via more traditional channels and call centers. Messaging in Romanian, Moldova’s official language, and Russian accuses Sandu of being a foreign puppet who is pushing the country into misery and war.

Moldova’s police have sought to stop fake news spreading on social media and said groups were also illegally bringing in money to buy votes and for political parties to undermine the outcome of the election. Officers seized 5 million Moldovan lei ($302,000) on Sept. 16 alone during raids to take down an alleged money-laundering operation, police said in a statement.

Russia plans to recruit young men from sports clubs and criminal networks to stage violent provocations during the vote and protests after it, the documents show. That would include demonstrations calling for Sandu to resign if her party loses the election or to paint the result as tainted if it wins.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42814064

Archived

A Chinese cargo ship has visited the Russian-occupied port of Sevastopol in Crimea — making an unprecedented series of stops by a major foreign vessel to one of the Ukrainian ports seized by Russia.

The use of Sevastopol has been barred by western sanctions since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Allies of Kyiv have sought to prevent Moscow from exploiting the occupied regions and third parties from treating the territories as part of Russia.

While China has not adopted the western sanctions regime against Russia, its commercial ships have previously avoided Russian-held ports.

The Heng Yang 9 — a Panama-flagged ship that is owned and operated by the Guangxi Changhai Shipping Company, based in Guangxi — has been spotted docking in Crimea at least three times in the past few months, according to Ukrainian officials.

The Financial Times has been able to independently verify the most recent of these trips in September using optical satellite imagery, radar imagery, transponder data and conventional photographs.

[...]

The Heng Yang 9 made at least two visits to Sevastopol this summer, according to the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The container ship was in the port from June 19 to June 22 — its first stay in Sevastopol, the president’s office told the FT. According to Ukrainian officials, the vessel also requested entry to load 101 containers on August 15.

After those previous alleged calls to the Crimean port, it called at ports in Turkey before travelling to Alexandria in Egypt.

“Ukraine has made it clear that such actions are unacceptable and expects all international partners and companies to strictly avoid contacts with the occupied territories,” Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the Ukrainian president’s commissioner for sanctions policy [said].

[...]

During the two-week voyage in the Black Sea in September, the vessel appears to have falsified its tracks, using its transponder to report false positions and disguise its movements. The vessel appears to have sailed to Novorossiysk, a Russian port on the east side of the Black Sea where it was caught on a satellite image on September 6.

[...]

However, a European Space Agency Sentinel-1 satellite took radar images of the port on September 9 just 10 minutes after the vessel reported its position in the harbour. No ship was at the reported location.

Similarly, the ship was passed by two Sentinel-2 satellites, which take optical photographs, on September 11 and 15. In both cases, the passes came within an hour of the vessel reporting a position. There was no vessel present in the location where its transmissions implied it should be.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42814064

Archived

A Chinese cargo ship has visited the Russian-occupied port of Sevastopol in Crimea — making an unprecedented series of stops by a major foreign vessel to one of the Ukrainian ports seized by Russia.

The use of Sevastopol has been barred by western sanctions since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Allies of Kyiv have sought to prevent Moscow from exploiting the occupied regions and third parties from treating the territories as part of Russia.

While China has not adopted the western sanctions regime against Russia, its commercial ships have previously avoided Russian-held ports.

The Heng Yang 9 — a Panama-flagged ship that is owned and operated by the Guangxi Changhai Shipping Company, based in Guangxi — has been spotted docking in Crimea at least three times in the past few months, according to Ukrainian officials.

The Financial Times has been able to independently verify the most recent of these trips in September using optical satellite imagery, radar imagery, transponder data and conventional photographs.

[...]

The Heng Yang 9 made at least two visits to Sevastopol this summer, according to the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The container ship was in the port from June 19 to June 22 — its first stay in Sevastopol, the president’s office told the FT. According to Ukrainian officials, the vessel also requested entry to load 101 containers on August 15.

After those previous alleged calls to the Crimean port, it called at ports in Turkey before travelling to Alexandria in Egypt.

“Ukraine has made it clear that such actions are unacceptable and expects all international partners and companies to strictly avoid contacts with the occupied territories,” Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the Ukrainian president’s commissioner for sanctions policy [said].

[...]

During the two-week voyage in the Black Sea in September, the vessel appears to have falsified its tracks, using its transponder to report false positions and disguise its movements. The vessel appears to have sailed to Novorossiysk, a Russian port on the east side of the Black Sea where it was caught on a satellite image on September 6.

[...]

However, a European Space Agency Sentinel-1 satellite took radar images of the port on September 9 just 10 minutes after the vessel reported its position in the harbour. No ship was at the reported location.

Similarly, the ship was passed by two Sentinel-2 satellites, which take optical photographs, on September 11 and 15. In both cases, the passes came within an hour of the vessel reporting a position. There was no vessel present in the location where its transmissions implied it should be.

[...]

Archived

A Chinese cargo ship has visited the Russian-occupied port of Sevastopol in Crimea — making an unprecedented series of stops by a major foreign vessel to one of the Ukrainian ports seized by Russia.

The use of Sevastopol has been barred by western sanctions since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Allies of Kyiv have sought to prevent Moscow from exploiting the occupied regions and third parties from treating the territories as part of Russia.

While China has not adopted the western sanctions regime against Russia, its commercial ships have previously avoided Russian-held ports.

The Heng Yang 9 — a Panama-flagged ship that is owned and operated by the Guangxi Changhai Shipping Company, based in Guangxi — has been spotted docking in Crimea at least three times in the past few months, according to Ukrainian officials.

The Financial Times has been able to independently verify the most recent of these trips in September using optical satellite imagery, radar imagery, transponder data and conventional photographs.

[...]

The Heng Yang 9 made at least two visits to Sevastopol this summer, according to the office of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The container ship was in the port from June 19 to June 22 — its first stay in Sevastopol, the president’s office told the FT. According to Ukrainian officials, the vessel also requested entry to load 101 containers on August 15.

After those previous alleged calls to the Crimean port, it called at ports in Turkey before travelling to Alexandria in Egypt.

“Ukraine has made it clear that such actions are unacceptable and expects all international partners and companies to strictly avoid contacts with the occupied territories,” Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the Ukrainian president’s commissioner for sanctions policy [said].

[...]

During the two-week voyage in the Black Sea in September, the vessel appears to have falsified its tracks, using its transponder to report false positions and disguise its movements. The vessel appears to have sailed to Novorossiysk, a Russian port on the east side of the Black Sea where it was caught on a satellite image on September 6.

[...]

However, a European Space Agency Sentinel-1 satellite took radar images of the port on September 9 just 10 minutes after the vessel reported its position in the harbour. No ship was at the reported location.

Similarly, the ship was passed by two Sentinel-2 satellites, which take optical photographs, on September 11 and 15. In both cases, the passes came within an hour of the vessel reporting a position. There was no vessel present in the location where its transmissions implied it should be.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42803448

[...]

No one had heard from Dong Yaoqiong, a young Chinese woman, since January 2021. That was when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forcibly locked her up in a psychiatric hospital for the third time.

[...]

To this day, the CCP still uses psychiatric detention on their perceived enemies – petitioners fighting injustice in their villages, activists speaking out for freedom and rights. It is one of the most chilling ways the CCP uses to disappear critics – forced hospitalization in a mental facility without medical justification. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of victims.

[...]

In the summer of 2018, Dong Yaoqiong splashed ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, sparking a tragic chain of events that have left at least two people dead and another disappeared, presumed dead.

In her memory, the rights group Safeguard Defenders published an open letter ...

[...]

You gained notoriety more than seven years ago when you splashed black ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, streaming it for all the world to see on 4 July 2018. At a time when the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] does not suffer any criticism, this was a truly courageous act. We believe you accomplished something which many longed in their hearts to do yet did not dare.

Overnight, you became famous. Did you know the world started calling you “ink girl” after that?

The video of that morning still exists, although its quality is grainy. We see a young woman, with long dark hair, and wearing a yellow t-shirt with the words “New York, New York” printed on the front. You speak firmly into the camera. You tell us it’s around 6.40 in the morning, then swing the lens round to show us a high-rise building in the background – it’s the HNA tower in Shanghai. Then you stand in front of a wall with a large Xi Jinping poster and your tone becomes more serious.

“I oppose Xi Jinping’s dictatorship, autocracy and tyranny. I oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s brain-control oppression against me!”

And then you walk over to the wall and from what looks like a red plastic jug you splash black ink over Xi’s face, while saying: “I hate him to the bone.”

That night police came to your home and disappeared you into psychiatric detention.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42803448

[...]

No one had heard from Dong Yaoqiong, a young Chinese woman, since January 2021. That was when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forcibly locked her up in a psychiatric hospital for the third time.

[...]

To this day, the CCP still uses psychiatric detention on their perceived enemies – petitioners fighting injustice in their villages, activists speaking out for freedom and rights. It is one of the most chilling ways the CCP uses to disappear critics – forced hospitalization in a mental facility without medical justification. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of victims.

[...]

In the summer of 2018, Dong Yaoqiong splashed ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, sparking a tragic chain of events that have left at least two people dead and another disappeared, presumed dead.

In her memory, the rights group Safeguard Defenders published an open letter ...

[...]

You gained notoriety more than seven years ago when you splashed black ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, streaming it for all the world to see on 4 July 2018. At a time when the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] does not suffer any criticism, this was a truly courageous act. We believe you accomplished something which many longed in their hearts to do yet did not dare.

Overnight, you became famous. Did you know the world started calling you “ink girl” after that?

The video of that morning still exists, although its quality is grainy. We see a young woman, with long dark hair, and wearing a yellow t-shirt with the words “New York, New York” printed on the front. You speak firmly into the camera. You tell us it’s around 6.40 in the morning, then swing the lens round to show us a high-rise building in the background – it’s the HNA tower in Shanghai. Then you stand in front of a wall with a large Xi Jinping poster and your tone becomes more serious.

“I oppose Xi Jinping’s dictatorship, autocracy and tyranny. I oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s brain-control oppression against me!”

And then you walk over to the wall and from what looks like a red plastic jug you splash black ink over Xi’s face, while saying: “I hate him to the bone.”

That night police came to your home and disappeared you into psychiatric detention.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42803448

[...]

No one had heard from Dong Yaoqiong, a young Chinese woman, since January 2021. That was when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forcibly locked her up in a psychiatric hospital for the third time.

[...]

To this day, the CCP still uses psychiatric detention on their perceived enemies – petitioners fighting injustice in their villages, activists speaking out for freedom and rights. It is one of the most chilling ways the CCP uses to disappear critics – forced hospitalization in a mental facility without medical justification. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of victims.

[...]

In the summer of 2018, Dong Yaoqiong splashed ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, sparking a tragic chain of events that have left at least two people dead and another disappeared, presumed dead.

In her memory, the rights group Safeguard Defenders published an open letter ...

[...]

You gained notoriety more than seven years ago when you splashed black ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, streaming it for all the world to see on 4 July 2018. At a time when the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] does not suffer any criticism, this was a truly courageous act. We believe you accomplished something which many longed in their hearts to do yet did not dare.

Overnight, you became famous. Did you know the world started calling you “ink girl” after that?

The video of that morning still exists, although its quality is grainy. We see a young woman, with long dark hair, and wearing a yellow t-shirt with the words “New York, New York” printed on the front. You speak firmly into the camera. You tell us it’s around 6.40 in the morning, then swing the lens round to show us a high-rise building in the background – it’s the HNA tower in Shanghai. Then you stand in front of a wall with a large Xi Jinping poster and your tone becomes more serious.

“I oppose Xi Jinping’s dictatorship, autocracy and tyranny. I oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s brain-control oppression against me!”

And then you walk over to the wall and from what looks like a red plastic jug you splash black ink over Xi’s face, while saying: “I hate him to the bone.”

That night police came to your home and disappeared you into psychiatric detention.

[...]

[...]

No one had heard from Dong Yaoqiong, a young Chinese woman, since January 2021. That was when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) forcibly locked her up in a psychiatric hospital for the third time.

[...]

To this day, the CCP still uses psychiatric detention on their perceived enemies – petitioners fighting injustice in their villages, activists speaking out for freedom and rights. It is one of the most chilling ways the CCP uses to disappear critics – forced hospitalization in a mental facility without medical justification. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of victims.

[...]

In the summer of 2018, Dong Yaoqiong splashed ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, sparking a tragic chain of events that have left at least two people dead and another disappeared, presumed dead.

In her memory, the rights group Safeguard Defenders published an open letter ...

[...]

You gained notoriety more than seven years ago when you splashed black ink on a poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai, streaming it for all the world to see on 4 July 2018. At a time when the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] does not suffer any criticism, this was a truly courageous act. We believe you accomplished something which many longed in their hearts to do yet did not dare.

Overnight, you became famous. Did you know the world started calling you “ink girl” after that?

The video of that morning still exists, although its quality is grainy. We see a young woman, with long dark hair, and wearing a yellow t-shirt with the words “New York, New York” printed on the front. You speak firmly into the camera. You tell us it’s around 6.40 in the morning, then swing the lens round to show us a high-rise building in the background – it’s the HNA tower in Shanghai. Then you stand in front of a wall with a large Xi Jinping poster and your tone becomes more serious.

“I oppose Xi Jinping’s dictatorship, autocracy and tyranny. I oppose the Chinese Communist Party’s brain-control oppression against me!”

And then you walk over to the wall and from what looks like a red plastic jug you splash black ink over Xi’s face, while saying: “I hate him to the bone.”

That night police came to your home and disappeared you into psychiatric detention.

[...]

Archived

[...]

Reade worked briefly as a Senate aide for Biden in the early 1990s before accusing him in 2020 of sexually assaulting her in a Capitol office building in 1993 — allegations Biden categorically denies. Her accusations surfaced during Biden’s presidential campaign but did not result in formal charges.

[...]

Reade moved to Moscow in 2023, claiming she faced threats in the U.S. after repeating her accusations when Biden announced his re-election bid. She appeared at Russian state media events and granted an interview to Tucker Carlson during his visit to Moscow in February 2024. Since relocating, she has worked with Russian propaganda outlet RT.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42786144

Archived

Russia has asked the UN’s aviation body to ease sanctions on spare parts and overflights that were imposed over the invasion of Ukraine

[...]

In a working paper [...] Russia argued to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that the sanctions go against global rules.

[...]

Archived

Russia has asked the UN’s aviation body to ease sanctions on spare parts and overflights that were imposed over the invasion of Ukraine

[...]

In a working paper [...] Russia argued to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that the sanctions go against global rules.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/42785623

Archived

China is positioning itself as the world’s champion for renewable energy and has been heavily investing in the sector for the last 20 years. On the other hand, in order to support its renewables sector and consolidate the supply chain, it has also been financing mega-projects that exploit natural resources such as coal and oil — particularly in Africa.

Between development, dependence, and the energy transition, some environmentalists worry that China is playing a double game that is harming Africa in its fight against environmental injustice.

[...]

Some scholars have raised concerns that under the current model, large loans from China are further increasing its debt and putting some African countries in impossible financial positions.

In an analysis published in November 2023, Jana de Kluiver, a researcher specializing in Africa at the Institute for Security Studies, warned of growing concerns about Chinese loans in Africa: Research by AidData has shown that Chinese public lenders, motivated by profit, often include conditions in their loan agreements that can put a strain on already fragile African economies. These include bans on collective restructuring and strict confidentiality clauses. Such conditions can limit the ability of borrowing countries to make independent and sovereign financial decisions.

[...]

The numerous projects implemented with Chinese support have enormous consequences and local impacts. Massive population displacements benefit Chinese companies that set up shop to carry out projects. Deforestation and environmental degradation are detrimental to the livelihoods of local and vulnerable communities. Between inequalities and responsibilities, climate injustice is becoming increasingly glaring.

The FILIMBI citizen movement, a Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)-based pro democracy movement, spoke out against this dynamic in November 2024. According to an article by Projet AfriqueChine, the movement points the finger at Chinese illegal gold miners in the region for polluting the Arwini River in the northeast of the country.

[...]

Between promises of a greener Africa and the continued exploitation and use of carbon, coupled with the vulnerability of populations who, in addition to suffering the consequences of climate change, face social damage such as famine and lack of housing, the continent finds itself caught in the middle of conflicting interests.

[...]