The reason was the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus (Indian strain), which the UK authorities call more contagious. Now it is detected in more than 90% of infected people
The removal of restrictions imposed due to COVID-19 in England is postponed for four weeks-from June 21 to July 19. This was announced at a press conference by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, reports Reuters.
“I think it’s wise to wait a little longer,” he said. The main reason for the delay was the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus (the so-called Indian strain). According to the authorities, it is 40-80% more contagious than the alpha variant (the British strain).
Previously, this possibility was not ruled out in the British government. According to the Financial Times, the country’s chief health officer, Chris Whitty, was able to convince Johnson to postpone “freedom day” from restrictions for a month.
According to the Prime Minister, in two weeks the government will study the statistics and make a final decision on the removal or extension of restrictive measures, Sky News reports. According to Johnson, the authorities expect that by July 19, two-thirds of the adult population will receive both doses of the coronavirus vaccine.
The UK authorities imposed a lockdown in January due to the spread of a new strain of coronavirus. The government then developed a four-step plan to break the restrictions as the number of vaccinated people increased. The first two stages were held in March and April. Catering establishments and service organizations were opened, residents were allowed to walk in the parks in small companies. In May, the third stage came: hotels, theaters, and museums were opened. The authorities also allowed to hold sports events with spectators and return universities to full-time education. The removal of the remaining measures was scheduled for June 21.
On June 14, 7.7 thousand new cases of coronavirus infection were confirmed in the UK. As noted by Sky News, the daily increase is held at this level for the sixth day in a row. According to the head of the Ministry of Health, Matt Hancock, 91% of new cases are infected with the delta variant of the coronavirus. He said that the government plans to modify the vaccines as soon as possible.
According to the medical director of the Health Service of England, now most often infected young Britons who have not yet had time to get vaccinated.
The ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta responded negatively to the question of whether the Belarusian authorities promised him freedom in exchange for cooperation. He explained the work with the investigation with the desire to “help his country”
Roman Protasevich
The former editor-in-chief of the Telegram channel Nexta, Roman Protasevich, said at a press conference in Minsk organized by the Belarusian Foreign Ministry that he was not forced to cooperate with the investigation.
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Answering a question from a RBC correspondent about whether he was promised freedom in return for cooperation, Protasevich said: “I did not have any bargaining with the investigation, any participation in the events is voluntary.”
According to the young man, it also concerns his interview with the program “Markov”. Nothing personal”, which was released on the Belarusian state TV channel ONT in early June. “You know, my conscience is absolutely clear. I don’t betray anyone, I don’t betray anyone. I cooperate with the investigation, I help my country and I intend to help further, ” Protasevich added.
According to the ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta, his cooperation with the investigation is due to the fact that he is aware of the damage he has caused to the country: “Now I want to do everything in my power to correct this situation.”
At this conference, the young man also stated that he had “heard a lot of fakes about his health” and the information that he had been beaten in the pre-trial detention center was not true: “I am all right, I have no complaints about anything, no one has beaten me, no one has touched me.” Protasevich’s words about voluntary participation in the briefing did not convince some EU diplomats who were invited to the conference, and journalists: for example, a BBC film crew left the hall, believing that he was forced to do so.
Representatives of the Belarusian opposition previously called Protasevich’s interview with ONT, in which he admitted guilt in organizing and preparing riots, ” a record of the result of torture.” Nexta founder Stepan Putilo and Protasevich’s parents are also convinced that the ex-editor-in-chief’s statements made in the interview were made under pressure.
Protasevich was among the passengers of the Ryanair plane that flew from Athens to Vilnius on May 23. The airliner was forced to land in Minsk because of a report about a bomb, which was not confirmed. Then the plane was allowed to continue the flight, but without the ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta-he was removed from the flight along with his girlfriend, Russian Sofia Sapega. The Belarusian authorities accuse the girl of inciting social hostility and discord. Now both are in pre-trial detention.
ButLlans pointed to Russia’s “hybrid actions” against NATO member states, but at the same time declared its commitment to dialogue. NATO confirmed its intention to review the strategic concept and not to deploy nuclear missiles in Europe
NATO leaders at a meeting in Brussels
Russia should exclude the United States and the Czech Republic from the list of “unfriendly countries”. This is stated in the final statement of NATO, adopted at the end of the summit held in Brussels.
“We call on Russia to reverse the definition of the Czech Republic and the United States as ‘unfriendly countries’ and to refrain from any other steps inconsistent with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, ” the document says.
The leaders of the countries of the North Atlantic Alliance believe that Russia has stepped up its hybrid actions against its NATO partners. Among them, they named attempts to interfere in the elections, “political and economic pressure”, cyber attacks, as well as “illegal and destructive actions of the Russian special services on the territory of the allied countries”. The Russian side has repeatedly denied these accusations.
Due to Russia’s non-compliance with international obligations, military cooperation between the parties was terminated, but the alliance is open for political dialogue, NATO said. « We & lt;…”We are ready to cooperate on the basis of reciprocity in the NRC (the Russia-NATO Council) in order to avoid misunderstandings, miscalculations and unintentional escalation and to increase transparency and predictability,” the statement said.
The document notes that the North Atlantic Alliance will support new negotiations between Russia and the United States on strategic stability, arms control and prospects for further disarmament.
The summit participants also reported that they had agreed to develop a new strategic concept for the alliance. As previously stated in the White House, it will be revised due to the “aggressive policy” of Russia and challenges from China.
In addition, the alliance said in a statement, NATO does not intend to deploy its ground-based nuclear missiles in Europe. Defense News previously called it a way to defuse political tensions ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 16 in Geneva.
On May 14, the Russian authorities added the Czech Republic and the United States to the list of “unfriendly countries”, which restricts the embassy of the state that has fallen into it from entering into employment contracts with individuals from Russia. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov explained that these states have taken the “most rabid position in the confrontation”with the Russian side, and admitted that in the future the list may be expanded.
Washington and Prague were included in this list amid a diplomatic conflict with Moscow. In April, the United States announced new sanctions against Russia, including the expulsion of ten Russian diplomats. Among them, according to Washington, were employees of the Russian special services. After that, a number of Russian diplomats alsothe Czech Republic, Poland and the Baltic states were expelled. In particular, the Czech Republic said that among the employees of the diplomatic mission were representatives of the special services, and they also suspected Russian intelligence of involvement in the explosions in Vrbetice in 2014. Russia responded by expelling a number of diplomats from these countries. The Czech Foreign Ministry called the accusations absurd.
The European Union called on Russia to reconsider the decision to create a list of foreign states that commit unfriendly actions against Moscow. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrel, said that Russia’s accusations against the United States and the Czech Republic are unfounded and can lead to further deterioration of relations. The Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, said that there are no grounds for revising this list.
Sobol announced her intention to run for the State Duma in March 2020. Due to the recognition of the FBK as an extremist organization, the lawyer stopped her election campaign
Love Sable
The lawyer of the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK, recognized as a foreign agent and extremist organization, the court decided to liquidate it) said in her Facebook that she was stopping her election campaign before the September elections to the State Duma.
This decision was made due to the recognition of the FBK as an extremist organization, ” despite the incredible support of people, the formed headquarters, hundreds of volunteers, the presence of an organizational structure and a clear advantage over rivals.”
According to Sobol, she is going to seek the repeal of laws that deprive her and other independent candidates of the right to vote. The lawyer also intends to focus on supporting the project “Smart Voting”, created by supporters of Alexei Navalny.
Sobol announced her intention to run for the State Duma in March 2020. These plans were voiced by some other employees of the FBK and many former members of Navalny’s regional headquarters (also recognized as extremist, in April their activities were stopped by the decision of the prosecutor’s office).
The Moscow City Court recognized the FBK as extremist, as well as the Foundation for the Protection of Citizens ‘ Rights (the organization was previously recognized as a foreign agent) on June 9. The meeting was held in closed mode, in the absence of the press and listeners: the prosecutor’s office claimed that the materials contain data that constitute state secrets. A few days earlier, President Vladimir Putin signed a law that temporarily prohibits persons involved in the activities of such organizations from holding any elected office.
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Sobol has been under house arrest since January 2021. She is accused of violating sanitary and epidemiological restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus (part 1 of Article 236 of the Criminal Code), the case was opened after an uncoordinated protest in Moscow on January 23 in support of Alexei Navalny. In April, the court changed her measure of restraint to a ban on certain actions. So, Sobol is forbidden to leave the house from 20: 00 to 6: 00, to communicate with the defendants and witnesses in the case, as well as to use means of communication. The measure is extended until November 26.
Pthe resident noted that when another person takes his place, Russia will not collapse. Putin added that he will support his successors if they are really ready to serve the country, despite their criticism of him.
Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that after his departure from the post of head of state, there will be no cardinal events in the country. He said this in an interview with NBC, the text of which was published by the Kremlin press service.
The host asked Putin if he was afraid that after the arrival of a successor, everything would collapse overnight. “What’s going to happen overnight?” <...> There are a lot of problems now, but the situation is completely different. Another person will definitely come to my place sometime. And why does it all have to collapse, what?”the president said.
He recalled that in 2000, when he came to power, Russia was teetering on the brink of preserving its sovereignty, a large number of people lived below the poverty line, and the level of GDP “fell below the plinth”. Now, according to Putin, the situation is different, although there are many problems in Russia.
The Head of State stressed that even despite the criticism against him, he will support the candidates for the post of president if they work for the strengthening of the country. & laquo;If I see that & lt;…”some person is devoted to the country, ready to lay down on the altar of the Fatherland not just years, but his whole life, no matter how he treats me personally, I will do everything to support such people,” Putin said.
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The President added that one day all people will be replaced, and called this process “natural, biological”. At the same time, he expressed confidence that the fundamental foundations of the Russian state will remain the same and the country will “stand firmly on its feet”.
Last summer, Russians voted to amend the Constitution. One of the changes was the actual “zeroing” of the presidential terms of the current head of state. This allowed Putin to run in the elections in 2024 and 2030.
In 2019, in an interview with the Financial Times, the Russian leader said that he had been thinking about a successor since 2000. At the same time, he noted that even despite the support of the new candidate from the former authorities, the voters should have the decisive word.
Later, the general director of MIA “Russia Today” Dmitry Kiselyov at a meeting with students of Moscow State University said that Putin is preparing a successor as president of Russia. The Kremlin then replied that since the beginning of the presidential cycle is underway, it is too early to raise the question of a successor.
Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov then stated that the age limit for the head of state is determined by the Constitution (at that time 70 years).
EAt a briefing organized by the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, the ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta said that “he feels fine, no one has touched him with a finger.” He called the information that he was beaten in the pre-trial detention center rumors and asked not to spread them
Roman Protasevich
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The former editor-in-chief of the Telegram channel Nexta, Roman Protasevich, at a press conference in Minsk on the situation with the emergency landing of the Ryanair plane, called untrue reports that he was beaten in a pre-trial detention center. This is reported by the correspondent of RBC.
Answering the journalist’s question about the traces that were previously noticed on Protasevich’s hands, the young man said that “these are the traces of screeds during the detention”.
According to the ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta, he “heard a lot of fakes about his health”. “I feel fine, I’m fine, I don’t have any complaints, no one has hit me, no one has touched me. I just want to make a request not to spread further rumors, ” he said.
The real hostages of the current situation, Protasevich said, were his girlfriend, a Russian citizen, Sofia Sapega, who was removed from a Ryanair flight with him, and his parents, who are now in Poland “in the conditions of an information vacuum”. “Think about how your mothers would react if you were in the same places as me, and you were talking about your son being beaten up?& raquo; & mdash; he added.
According to Protasevich, the pre-trial detention center is certainly not an apartment in Vilnius,but everything is fine with it. “I understand why I am under investigation, I understand what crimes I will have to answer for,” he claims.
The organization of the next press conference in Minsk dedicated to the emergency landing of the Ryanair airliner did not begin until Friday, when several Russian journalists, including a correspondent of RBC, received an invitation to take part in it. The announced participants were representatives of the Belarusian Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport, the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Defense and the Border Committee. As well as “other relevant speakers”, the announcement said.
Roman Protasevich’s participation in it was kept in strict secrecy-almost until the moment when he personally appeared in the hall. A minute earlier, the press secretary of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, Anatoly Glaz, the moderator of the press conference, placed a sign with his name in front of the only unsigned chair. At the last moment, the composition of the press conference participants changed, he said.
The hall where the press conference was held, the National Press Center, is a small room with six rows of chairs. The first two rows were filled with diplomats, including from the European Union countries-the seats for them were signed-there was also a girl with a British flag on her mask. Most of them quickly left the hall after Protasevich appeared in it. Demonstratively, the BBC film crew also left the hall. The correspondent of the publication Johnfisher wrote on Twitter that he was not going to participate in such a press conference, in which Protasevich was clearly forced to participate.
“Do you not believe that I am sincere? If you don’t believe me, just say so, ” Protasevich said to the audience. There was silence for a few seconds after his question. BelaPAN journalist Tatyana Korovenkova got up from her seat and loudly stated that she did not believe that Protasevich was making statements without pressure. “I can’t imagine what you’ve been through in the last few weeks. I sincerely sympathize with you. Many people in Belarus and many of your colleagues also sincerely sympathize with you. To everything that you hold on to and survive it, ” she said.
Three criminal cases have been opened against the former editor-in-chief of Nexta in Belarus, related to mass riots during the protests after the presidential election. On June 3, in an interview with the state TV channel ONT, Protasevich said that he had pleaded guilty to charges of organizing mass actions.
At the same time, Protasevich’s parents are convinced that this interview was given under pressure. “Everything that Roman says, he does not say himself,” his father Dmitry declared. He believes that his son was intimidated, tortured, psychologically abused, and could have been blackmailed with threats to his life. Nexta founder Stepan Putilo, in turn, believes that Protasevich’s confessions are the result of unbearable torture, coupled with personal experiences and well-inspired beliefs about total betrayal on the part of his former entourage.
European politicians have also claimed that Protasevich was beaten in jail. “You can see the traces of the beating, you can see that the way he speaks signals that he is being subjected to actions contrary to human rights,” said Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Pawel Jablonski, commenting on the footage of the Belarus 1 TV channel, where Protasevich reported no health problems.
On the twenty-third of May, Protasevich and Sapega flew by Ryanair from Athens to Vilnius, but the plane had to land at the Minsk airport. The Belarusian authorities said that the plane landed because of the data about the bomb on board. Ryanair told RBC that the crew received information about the mining from Belarusian dispatchers, who instructed them to land the plane in Minsk. No dangerous items were found on board, but Belarusian security forces detained Protasevich and Sapieha.
The former CEO of Nexta came to a briefing on the emergency landing of a passenger liner in Minsk. On it, the Belarusian authorities stated that “there was no interception and forced u-turn from the state border”
Roman Protasevich (left)
The former editor-in-chief of the Telegram channel Nexta Roman Protasevich became one of the participants of the press conference on the situation with the emergency landing of the Ryanair plane in Minsk, the correspondent of RBC reports.
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The press conference is held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, which is attended by representatives of the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Transport, the Border Service and the Investigative Committee of the republic.
At a briefing, the Belarusian aviation authorities said that they had prepared a map with a minute-by-minute chronology of the flight of the passenger liner. Artyom Sikorsky, head of the Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, said that the Belarusian side had not received objective control data on the incident with the plane from Poland and Ireland. According to Air Force Commander Igor Golub, ” there was no interception, forced U-turn from the state border and forced landing of the Ryanair plane.”
The plane of the Irish low-cost airline Ryanair, which was flying from Athens to Vilnius, was forced to land in Minsk on May 23 due to reports of explosives on board. At the time of receiving this information, he was already close to the Lithuanian border, however, as the Belarusian authorities said, in accordance with international aviation security requirements, the crewI decided to land the airliner at the nearest airport. To accompany the flight, the Belarusian authorities raised a military fighter. As a result, the information about the bomb was not confirmed, and the plane continued on its way, but without two passengers-Protasevich and his girlfriend, a Russian citizen, Sofia Sapega. They were detained at the Minsk airport, and both were arrested.
The actions of the Belarusian authorities were sharply condemned by the leaders of European countries and the United States. On June 4, the European Union banned all Belarusian air carriers from using their airspace. The EU also recommended that European airlines avoid flying over Belarus.
On June 10, the European Parliament adopted a resolution in which it demanded to increase the sanctions pressure on Minsk. Among other things, the parliamentarians proposed to apply sanctions against the oil industry, steel, potash and woodworking industries, to stop financing Belarusian state-owned banks and to consider suspending Belarus ‘ participation in the SWIFT system.
A criminal case has been opened against Protasevich in Belarus on organizing mass riots, and he is also listed as a terrorist. On the evening of June 3, the state channel ONT published an interview with the ex-editor-in-chief of Nexta, in which he admitted guilt in organizing mass actions, spoke about the conflict with the team of the Telegram channel and criticized the opposition and its leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. Nexta founder Stepan Putilo said that these words were the result of “unbearable torture”. Protasevich’s parents are also convinced that their son was forced to make a confession.
Nwhen asked by the host whether he can guarantee that Navalny will get out of prison alive, the head of state replied that “such decisions are not made by the president in our country”.
Alexey Navalny (on screen)
The founder of the FBK (recognized as an extremist organization, the court decided to liquidate it), Alexey Navalny, who is serving a sentence in the case of “Yves Rocher” in the IK-2 in the Vladimir region, will be treated in the same way as other prisoners. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview with NBC.
“He will be treated no worse than anyone else. In no way worse than in relation to others who are in prison, ” the head of state said.
The host asked Putin if he could guarantee that Navalny would get out of prison alive. “Such decisions are not made by the president in our country,” he replied.
When asked whether he had actually ordered the killing of Navalny, Putin said that the Russian authorities “do not have such a custom, to kill someone”.
The NBC host also asked the Russian president about the deaths of some of his political opponents and critics in recent years and the possible involvement of the state.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but it’s like some kind of indigestion, verbal indigestion. You mentioned many people who really suffered and died at different times for different reasons, through the fault of different people, ” the president replied.
According to the Russian leader, for many years in power, he is used to various attacks in his address. And therefore does not worry about the March statement of the American President Joe Biden, who agreed that Putin is a murderer.
“During my time in office, I have become accustomed to attacks from all sides and from a wide variety of areas under different pretexts, reasons, attacks of different caliber and severity. And this does not surprise me, ” Putin stressed.
Navalny’s suspended sentence was replaced with a real one on February 2. The Federal Penitentiary Service considered that he violated the conditions of serving his sentence in the case of Yves Rocher while he was being treated in Germany. There, the opposition leader lay in the Berlin clinic “Charite” after being poisoned in August 2020. In January, after a course of rehabilitation, Navalny returned to Russia, he was detained at the airport.
In December, CNN, Bellingcat and Insider released a joint investigation into what happened with Navalny. The publications claim that the Russian special services are behind the poisoning of the politician with the nerve poison “Novichok”.
In March, Biden, in an interview with ABC, answered in the affirmative when asked by the host if he considered Putin a murderer. The White House host also promised that the Russian president will pay for interference in the US election and cyber attacks on US agencies and companies.
Putin called the investigation “legalization of materials” of the US special services. “This is not some kind of investigation, this is the legalization of the materials of the US special services.”..”And if this is the case, and it is, I assure you, it means that this patient of the Berlin clinic, he has the support of the US special services in this case. But this does not mean that it is necessary to poison him, who needs him-that’s what the president said during a press conference.
According to the president, predictability and stability are considered the main things in international affairs, but in relations between Russia and the United States in recent years, “we have not seen this”
Vladimir Putin
Predictability and stability are most important in international affairs. This statement was made by Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview with NBC.
At the same time, in Russia’s relations with the United States, “we have not seen this in recent years,” Putin said. “He [US President Joe Biden ] says one thing, I say another,” he said, commenting to interviewer Keir Simmons that Biden blames Russia for creating instability in the world.
The Russian leader gave an interview to NBC News ahead of a meeting with the American president in Geneva on June 16. In the fragment shown earlier, he said that the bilateral relations between Russia and the United States ” have sunk to the lowest point in recent years.” Biden agreed with this statement, but indicated that relations between the countries will develop depending on whether Russia acts “in accordance with international norms”. According to him,Washington is not looking for a conflict and wants to cooperate on many issues.
The main goal of the upcoming meeting, Putin called the restoration of personal contacts and direct dialogue, as well as the creation of really functioning mechanisms in areas where Russia and the United States have mutual interests.
Biden said on June 10 that the United States wants a ” stable and predictable relationship.” At the same time, he warned that he would not “hesitate” in responding to Russia’s actions. The Kremlin and the White House have repeatedly asked not to expect any breakthroughs from the negotiations.
On June 13, an NBC source reported that Biden would give him a “tough signal” at his first meeting with Putin, in contrast to the “friendly” approach that previous President Donald Trump demonstrated.
Atthe far-right from the “Alternative for Germany” proposed to the parliament to stop the exchange of sanctions and accusations between Berlin and Moscow and to start building normal relations with Russia
The far-right German Alternative for Germany (AFD) party has submitted a resolution to the Bundestag for consideration with a proposal to “restart” relations with Russia. This is reported by RT with reference to the document.
The deputies noted that relations between the two countries are at an impasse, despite the “fundamental” importance for Berlin. “The ongoing diplomatic ping-pong of sanctions and counter-sanctions, accusations and counter-accusations within the European Union, and the broad involvement of German foreign policy continue to lead to a dead end,” the document says.
Deputies from the AFD (the third largest party in the Bundestag, 91 out of 709 seats) reminded the German parliament of the words of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about the destroyed relations between Russia and the EU, as well as that against the background of deteriorating relations with the West, Moscow is strengthening cooperation with Beijing.
In this regard, the far-right insists on the creation of an interdepartmental working group that should form a new strategy for dialogue with Russia. The Bundestag is being asked to resume the work of the Russia-NATO Council, abandon the idea of disconnecting Moscow from the SWIFT interbank information transfer system, and not extend anti-Russian sanctions.
In February, Lavrov said that relations between Moscow and Brussels have been destroyed since 2014 at the initiative of the European Union. “The breakup has been going on for a long time, and the European Union is consistently breaking the relationship. The EU has destroyed all the mechanisms [of interaction] without exception, ” the minister said.
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German politicians, despite Western anti-Russian sanctions, have repeatedly stated that it is necessary to continue building a dialogue with Moscow and strengthen cooperation. In recent months, such words have often been heard against the background of possible deliveries of the Russian vaccine against the coronavirus “Sputnik V” to the country. At the end of May, the Prime Minister of Bavaria, Markus Zeder, called on the European drug regulator to approve the drug as soon as possible, so that vaccination in Germany and the rest of Europe does not slow down.
Germany and France have come to a joint decision to continue the dialogue with Russia, despite the presence of outstanding issues and “destabilizing behavior and repeated violations of international law” on the part of Moscow.
On June 11, the Bundestag rejected a resolution of the Union-90/Greens faction, which insisted on revising relations with Russia in the direction of tightening and refusing to complete the construction of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline.
