RT News - November 2nd 2022 Late

Russia resumes participation in the Black Sea grain deal after Ukraine gives the necessary written guarantees that it will not use the corridor for military purposes.

India says it has no moral concerns about buying oil from Russia, claiming the US media is simply whipping up hysteria over the issue. That's as Russia becomes the country's largest oil supplier.

The Canadian online video platform Rumble blocks its French users after it rejects demands by Paris to censor Russian media outlets.

Preserving US hegemony - the cost to us all, in so many respects.

Groundbreaking peace talks between Ethiopia, Tigray have happened in South Africa (QueenStreet comment - this is wondrous). However, Eritrea have not been mentioned in the discussions and nobody can tell what is actually going to happen or whether peace can happen without their involvement. Fingers crossed.

Venezuela and Columbia are in talks. (QueenStreet comment - there are a lot of British and US .gov (military) planes which fly in and out of Columbia on a very regular basis... make of that what you will)

In Odessa, someone has tried to smuggle a helicopter out in a container (honest) this at a time when US troops have allegedly been sent to Ukraine to make sure military goods are going to where they are supposed to be going. Report.
========================

Via RT website 2 Nov, 2022 15:34

Whole world suffers from Western propaganda – Russia

Moscow’s UN envoy compared the barrage of ‘fake news’ about the Ukraine conflict to city shelling

Amid the Ukraine conflict, Western countries are waging an information war not only against Russia but also the entire international community, Vassily Nebenzia, the nation's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a presentation at the UN of the RT documentary ‘Journalists Under Fire,’ the top diplomat noted that Russia had found itself under massive media pressure after it launched its military operation in Ukraine in late February.

Nebenzia noted that Western coverage of the conflict is typified by “a huge number of ‘fakes’ about the activities of the [Russian] military, as well as about the goals, objectives and motives” of its campaign in Ukraine.

“It’s no secret that the West has launched a real information war against us, which affects not only the residents of Russia and Ukraine but also people around the world,” he reiterated.

He went on to compare Western media coverage with actual Ukrainian bombings of civilian infrastructure. “Just as Western weapons are now targeting cities in the Donbass and the liberated territories, Western propaganda is firing ‘information shells’ at its own citizens,” he claimed.

According to Nebenzia, the media onslaught is harmful to ordinary people, who “are losing touch with reality, become distressed and confused” when being overwhelmed with an endless barrage of falsehoods. They also lose the ability to think critically, he claimed.

After Russia launched its military operation against Ukraine, Western countries unleashed an unprecedented crackdown on Russian media abroad, with the European Union banning RT and Sputnik channels. Moscow has repeatedly criticized the move, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova claiming that it has shown the world the true worth of so-called Western values.
https://www.rt.com/news/565804-western-propaganda-ukraine-conflict/
======================

Via RT website 2 Nov, 2022 17:44

No sign Russia preparing to use nuclear weapons – US

The comments from the White House came as the New York Times claimed the Russian military had been discussing potential nuclear strike options

The US does not see any indications that Russia is getting ready to use its nuclear arsenal in the conflict in Ukraine, White House spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday. However, he added that Washington considers such a possibility “deeply concerning” and takes it “seriously.”

Earlier on Wednesday, the New York Times published a piece citing “multiple senior American officials,” who claimed some Russian generals had been discussing “when and how Moscow might use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine.” Russian President Vladimir Putin was not involved in these discussions, the paper said. The conversations took place at some point in mid-October, it added.

This is not the first time the White House has made such a statement. Last month, Kirby said that Washington saw no indications that Russia was preparing to deploy a nuclear weapon.

The threat of a nuclear war has been a hot topic recently after Putin vowed to defend Russia’s territory and people using “all the forces and resources we have” in late September. His remarks were then widely interpreted by Western pundits and officials as a veiled nuclear warning, which prompted US President Joe Biden to caution about a potential “nuclear Armageddon.”

Putin clarified his statement later by saying that Moscow has not even mentioned tactical nuclear weapons, let alone threatened to use atomic weapons. His words, however, did not alleviate fears in Washington, as Biden continued to wonder why Russia keeps “talking about” nuclear weapons if it does not plan to use them.

Meanwhile, top Western diplomats and defense ministers largely brushed off Russia’s concerns about Kiev potentially using a so-called ‘dirty bomb’ to frame Moscow. Such a munition uses conventional explosives to scatter radioactive material over a wide area.

Moscow also raised the issue in the UN Security Council, prompting the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to send inspectors to several Ukrainian facilities to investigate the claims.
https://www.rt.com/news/565832-us-no-indication-russia-nuclear-weapons/
=========================

Via RT website 2 Nov, 2022 15:53

Twitter labels Ukrainian ‘state media’

The platform applied the branding shortly after Elon Musk’s acquisition was finalized

Fresh off its acquisition by billionaire Elon Musk, Twitter has begun labeling tweets from Ukrainian state-backed media in the same way it does with a number of Russian outlets. The labels appeared on accounts like United24.media – a platform set up by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky – starting on Tuesday.

Twitter began not only labeling all tweets linking to Russian state-affiliated media but reducing their visibility in February, announcing the policy following the start of Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine. The platform claimed at the time that it planned to add labels to other countries’ state-backed media, something it has been pledging to do since 2020. While some Chinese and Iranian outlets have been thus labeled, French, British, and American outlets have not, despite being listed as high priority.

Musk, a vocal supporter of the Ukrainian government, nevertheless came under fire from Kiev last month when he proposed a peace deal with Moscow that included Ukraine relinquishing all claims to Crimea and committing to neutrality.

At one point, the billionaire was even allegedly briefly included on the notorious Mirotvorets “kill list” after reports surfaced that he was threatening to cut off the Ukrainian military from free access to his Starlink satellite internet service if the Pentagon did not cover the cost. The SpaceX CEO has since reassured Kiev that he will not turn off Starlink even if the US government refuses to provide funding.

Musk has not been shy about making changes at Twitter, firing four of its top executives – including CEO Parag Agrawal – and liquidating its entire board of directors earlier this week amid reports he plans to cut the workforce by as much as a quarter. The world’s richest man plans to charge users $8 to receive or keep the coveted blue check of verification, which will come with higher search rankings, fewer ads, and the option to post long-form video. Musk paid $44 billion for Twitter last week after months of wrangling with company management over the terms of the deal.
https://www.rt.com/news/565823-twitter-labels-ukrainian-state-media/
===========================

Via RT website 2 Nov, 2022 15:15

Zelensky speaks on risk of nuclear war (Queenstreet: truly clown world)

There’s no need to fear Russia's ultimatums or take them seriously, the Ukrainian president has said

The threat of a nuclear conflict does exist, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky told Czech Television (CT) on Wednesday, adding, though, that he does not see it as a likely possibility. There is no need to be afraid of Russia, the Ukrainian leader added.

“I do not think we should be afraid of that,” he told journalist Michal Kubal when asked about the possibility of a nuclear war. “We must not take their [Russian] ultimatums and pressure… seriously.”

Kiev will not make any compromises with Moscow, Zelensky added. “We will just settle for victory,” he said, adding that “the Russians must retreat” from all the territories Kiev considers a part of Ukraine, “including Crimea.”

“If they [the Russians] do not leave Donbass and Crimea, it would not mean the end of the war,” the Ukrainian president stated, adding that “each side” would just amass their forces in preparation for a new conflict instead of ending it through “diplomacy and negotiations.”

Zelensky also said the fact that Ukraine had not created a “strong security” and defense system in over 30 years of its independence was Kiev’s “biggest mistake.” At the same time, he noted that there are nations that still push Ukraine toward a compromise with Russia. He did not name the countries but said that “it is not a new situation to us,” and that Kiev would not give in to their “pressure.”

Moscow has repeatedly signaled that it was ready for negotiations with Kiev to end the conflict. In October, however, Zelensky signed a decree officially rejecting peace talks with the Russian president.

In late September Putin vowed to defend Russia’s territory and people using “all the forces and resources we have.” The remarks were widely interpreted by Western pundits and officials as a veiled nuclear threat.

The Russian president later pointed out that Moscow had never threatened to use nuclear weapons. His words, however, did not alleviate fears in the West. US President Joe Biden, who had previously warned of a “nuclear Armageddon” continued to question why Russia keeps “talking about” nuclear weapons if it does not plan to use them.
https://www.rt.com/russia/565820-zelensky-ukraine-risk-nuclear-war/