Day: May 17, 2024
By Illia Novikov | Associated Press
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday during a visit to China that Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region aims to create a buffer zone but that there are no plans to capture the city.
The remarks were Putin’s first on the offensive launched May 10, which opened a new front and displaced thousands of Ukrainians within days. Earlier Friday, a massive Ukrainian drone attack on the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula cut off power in the city of Sevastopol, after an earlier attack damaged aircraft and fuel storage at an airbase.
In southern Russia, Russian authorities said a refinery was also set ablaze.
Moscow launched attacks in the Kharkiv region in response to Ukrainian shelling of Russia’s Belgorod region, Putin told reporters while visiting the Chinese city of Harbin.
“I have said publicly that if it continues, we will be forced to create a security zone, a sanitary zone,” he said. “That’s what we are doing.” Russian troops were “advancing daily according to plan,” he said and added there were no plans for now to take the city of Kharkiv.
Ukrainian troops are fighting to halt Russian advances in the Kharkiv region that began late last week. In an effort to increase troop numbers, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed two laws Friday, allowing prisoners to join the army and increasing fines for draft dodgers fivefold. The controversial mobilization law goes into effect on Saturday.
Russia enlisted prisoners early on in the war, and personnel shortages compelled the new measures. The legislation allows for “parole from serving a sentence and further enlistment for military service” for a specific period for some people charged with criminal offences. It doesn’t extend to those convicted of crimes against Ukraine’s national security.
Penalties will be increased to 25,500 hryvnias ($650) for citizens and 51,000 hryvnias ($1,300) for civil servants and legal entities for ignoring draft notices or failing to update the draft board of their information. Fines were previously 5100 hryvnias ($130) for citizens and 8500 hryvnias ($215) for civil servants and legal entities.
Ukrainian authorities have evacuated around 8,000 civilians from the recent flashpoint town of Vovchansk, 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the Russian border. The Russian army’s usual tactic is to reduce towns and villages to ruins with aerial strikes before troops move in.
At least two people were killed and 19 were wounded in the Russian bombing of Kharkiv, regional chief Oleh Syniehubov said on his Telegram posting on Friday. Four of the wounded were in critical condition.
Russia’s new offensive has “expanded the zone of active hostilities by almost 70 kilometers” (45 miles), in an effort to force Ukraine to spread its forces and use reserve troops, Ukraine’s military chief, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, said Friday.
In the Kharkiv region, Russian forces have advanced 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border, Zelenskyy said Friday.
Separately, speaking about Ukraine’s upcoming peace conferences in Switzerland next month, Putin said it was a vain attempt to enforce terms of a peaceful settlement on Russia and stressed that Russia wasn’t invited to the meeting.
He said that Russia was ready for talks but shrugged off Zelenskyy’s peace formula as wishful thinking. Any prospective peace talks should be based on a draft deal negotiated by Russia and Ukraine during their Istanbul talks in 2022, he said.
Ukraine meanwhile carried out drone raids on Crimea in an attempt to strike back during Moscow’s offensive in northeastern Ukraine, which has piled on pressure on outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian forces awaiting delayed deliveries of crucial weapons and ammunition from Western partners.
A Ukrainian intelligence official confirmed to The Associated Press that the country’s intelligence services struck Russia’s military infrastructure sites in Novorossiysk, on the Black Sea coast, and in Russian-occupied city of Sevastopol. The official was not authorized to make public comments and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The operation, carried out by Ukraine-built drones, targeted Russian Black Sea Fleet vessels, the official said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 51 Ukrainian drones over Crimea, 44 over the Krasnodar region of Russia and six over the Belgorod region. Russian warplanes and patrol boats also destroyed six sea drones in the Black Sea, it said.
At least three fighter jets were destroyed in an earlier attack in Crimea a few days ago, according to satellite imagery of the airbase provided by Maxar Technologies.
Mikhail Razvozhayev, the governor of Sevastopol, which is the main base for Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, said the drone attack damaged the city’s power plant. He said it could take a day to fully restore electricity and warned residents of power cuts. He also announced city schools would be closed temporarily.
In the Krasnodar region, authorities said a drone attack early Friday caused a fire at an oil refinery in Tuapse, which was later contained. There were no casualties. Ukraine has repeatedly targeted refineries and other energy facilities deep inside Russia, inflicting damage.
The Krasnodar region’s governor, Veniamin Kondratyev, said fragments of downed drones around the port of Novorossiysk caused several fires, but there were no casualties.
Belgorov Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said a Ukrainian drone struck a vehicle, killing a woman and her 4-year-old child. Another attack there set a fuel tank ablaze at a gas station, he said.
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Recent Russian attacks have also targeted the eastern Donetsk region, as well as the Chernihiv and Sumy regions in the north and in the southern Zaporizhzhia region — apparently seeking to further stretch depleted Ukrainian resources.
Having boosted their forces in northern Ukraine, Russian forces are now pushing to advance near the village of Lyptsi, as well as the town of Vovchansk, according to Syrskyi, the Ukrainian military commander.
Syrskyi also said he inspected units that are “preparing for defense” of Sumy. On Tuesday, the head of Ukraine’s Military Intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, reportedly said Russia’s military planned to launch offensive actions in Sumy.
Russia has also been testing defenses elsewhere along the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, which snakes north-to-south through eastern Ukraine. The line has barely changed over the past 18 months, in what has become a war of attrition.
On 17 May, as part of his state visit to Azerbaijan, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko together with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev visited the country’s territories, being rebuilt after the conflict.
In the morning, Aleksandr Lukashenko flew to Fuzuli. He was met by Ilham Aliyev at the airport. The President of Azerbaijan briefed his Belarusian counterpart on the works carried out to restore and develop these territories and build new infrastructure facilities. Aleksandr Lukashenko got familiar with the new airport, and the heads of state accompanied by an impressive motorcade headed for the city.
Aleksandr Lukashenko and Ilham Aliyev toured the city, saw destroyed facilities and prospective areas for development. The Presidents traveled along the route in one car, with the Azerbaijani leader behind the wheel.
Aleksandr Lukashenko got familiar with the expositions depicting the pace of the reconstruction of the destroyed sites. After that, the two leaders headed for Shusha.
The heads of state visited the residential area of the city, examined housing conditions, memorial sites and museum and exhibition exposition on Heydar Aliyev’s activity. Aleksandr Lukashenko and Ilham Aliyev also inspected tractor equipment presented to the city by the President of Belarus.
“Use them. If you like them, we will add more,” the Belarusian head of state said.
There are many reminders of the city’s tragic past: some houses are unrestorable. Memorial sites and temples have been destroyed.
“Telling ruins,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “Restorable buildings must be fixed.”
In the city, the Presidents met the famous Soviet and Azerbaijani singer, and now the Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Russia Polad Bülbüloğlu, which came as a big surprise for Aleksandr Lukashenko.
“Polad, is this you? You are here, not Moscow?” the President said.
“This is a surprise for you!” Ilham Aliyev said.
“A gorgeous place. This is why you still sing. Air here is amazing! I recently watched a TV show starring you!” Aleksandr Lukashenko said in admiration.
Shusha has restored the house of Polad Bulbul oglu’s father, Soviet and Azerbaijani opera singer, founder of the national musical theater Murtuz Mashadi Rza oglu Mammadov, nicknamed Bulbul (“nightingale” in Azerbaijani).
Now it houses a museum dedicated to the famous performer. Nearby there is the bust of Bulbul. It was erected back in the Soviet years. Later on it was gunned down and dismantled. Until 2021, the bust was kept in the courtyard of the Azerbaijan Museum of Art, and then it was returned to Shusha.
“Those who shoot at icons and monuments are barbarians,” the Belarusian leader said.
By Margaret Brennan, Andres Triay, Nicole Sganga, Olivia Gazis, Camilla Schick, Sam Vinograd
May 17, 2024 / 6:11 PM EDT / CBS News
The State Department on Friday issued a worldwide caution security alert, warning of “the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations, or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests.”
The threat warning is a result of intelligence citing threats by ISIS against Pride events in parts of Europe, three sources told CBS News.
The State Department bulletin cites “increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence against LGBTQI+ persons and events.” The last such global threat warning was issued in October 2023.
Friday’s alert follows one from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security last week that warned of the “potential targeting of LGBTQIA+-related events and venues.”
“Foreign terrorist organizations or supporters may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month,” it said.
June is PRIDE month with events and celebrations in much of the Western world, including the U.S.
While the State Department bulletin is meant for overseas travel, there is concern about a domestic threat from ISIS, two sources told CBS News.
An unclassified intelligence bulletin obtained by CBS News and dated May 10 says, “Since January 2024, ISIS has successfully conducted external operations in Iran, Russia, and Turkey; called for attacks against the West; and has promised to exact revenge on its enemies, which could include the LGBTQIA+ community.”
In May, the Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team — which includes inputs from FBI, DHS and the National Counterterrorism Center — also issued guidance on violent extremist attacks, plotting and messaging against the LGBTQIA+ community. That document flagged an incident from October 2023 in which a user of a well-known U.S. video game company who publicly swore allegiance to Hamas and ISIS posted videos calling for such attacks. The guidance urged greater engagement between the LGBTQIA+ community and public safety officials.
The last significant ISIS attack was in March in Moscow, Russia.
“We continue to work with our partners to evaluate the threat environment, provide updates to the American public, and protect our homeland. We urge the public to stay vigilant and to promptly report suspicious activity to their local law enforcement,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement Friday.
First published on May 17, 2024 / 6:11 PM EDT
© 2024 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
By Margaret Brennan, Andres Triay, Nicole Sganga, Olivia Gazis, Camilla Schick, Sam Vinograd
May 17, 2024 / 6:11 PM EDT / CBS News
The State Department on Friday issued a worldwide caution security alert, warning of “the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations, or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests.”
The threat warning is a result of intelligence citing threats by ISIS against Pride events in parts of Europe, three sources told CBS News.
The State Department bulletin cites “increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence against LGBTQI+ persons and events.” The last such global threat warning was issued in October 2023.
Friday’s alert follows one from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security last week that warned of the “potential targeting of LGBTQIA+-related events and venues.”
“Foreign terrorist organizations or supporters may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month,” it said.
June is PRIDE month with events and celebrations in much of the Western world, including the U.S.
While the State Department bulletin is meant for overseas travel, there is concern about a domestic threat from ISIS, two sources told CBS News.
An unclassified intelligence bulletin obtained by CBS News and dated May 10 says, “Since January 2024, ISIS has successfully conducted external operations in Iran, Russia, and Turkey; called for attacks against the West; and has promised to exact revenge on its enemies, which could include the LGBTQIA+ community.”
In May, the Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team — which includes inputs from FBI, DHS and the National Counterterrorism Center — also issued guidance on violent extremist attacks, plotting and messaging against the LGBTQIA+ community. That document flagged an incident from October 2023 in which a user of a well-known U.S. video game company who publicly swore allegiance to Hamas and ISIS posted videos calling for such attacks. The guidance urged greater engagement between the LGBTQIA+ community and public safety officials.
The last significant ISIS attack was in March in Moscow, Russia.
“We continue to work with our partners to evaluate the threat environment, provide updates to the American public, and protect our homeland. We urge the public to stay vigilant and to promptly report suspicious activity to their local law enforcement,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement Friday.
First published on May 17, 2024 / 6:11 PM EDT
© 2024 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This past week was an eventful one for Russia at war with the West. On May 7, Vladimir Putin was inaugurated for the fifth time as president of Russia in an elaborate ceremony that ended with Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church intoning “God willing, the end of the century will mean the end of your stay in power.” (In the year 2100, Putin would be 148.) On May 9, Russia celebrated Victory Day, where nuclear weapons were paraded, with Putin reminding the admiring crowd assembled in Red Square that, once again, Russia would defeat “Nazis,” this time in Ukraine, and prevail over the hostile West that seeks to dismember it.
After the festivities came the long-awaited cabinet reshuffle. Ever since Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin’s failed mutiny last June, speculation about how long Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu would stay in power has grown. Shoigu has been the minister of defense since 2012, and he presided over the initial full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which failed to achieve its objective of taking Kyiv in three days and deposing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Indeed, the Russian military’s poor performance for the first 18 months of the war fueled debate about how long Shoigu would stay in power. Prigozhin’s increasing attacks on both Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov for incompetence and corruption cemented his popularity among rank-and-file soldiers and military bloggers. He led a failed coup aimed at ousting them. But it was he, and not Shoigu, who was eliminated.
Nevertheless, the recent arrest of Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, a close confidant of Shoigu, also known to be notoriously corrupt, signaled that Shoigu’s position as defense minister could be in jeopardy. Shoigu’s dismissal is the most consequential of the recent cabinet reshuffles. He will become the secretary of the Russian Security Council, replacing Nikolai Patrushev, who has served in this position since 2008. Patrushev has been named an aide to Putin responsible for overseeing shipbuilding. His son, Dmitry Patrushev, has been promoted to deputy prime minister for agriculture. It is important to remember that, in the Putin system, official titles are much less important than one’s relationship with Putin. Nikolai will no doubt retain his close ties to Putin. And Shoigu is likely to be a less influential head of the Security Council than Patrushev was.
The new minister of defense, Andrei Belousov, is, at first glance, a surprising choice. An economist by training, he has held several previous positions as an economic official, including briefly as acting prime minister. He is known to be in favor of greater state control of the economy. His appointment confirms that Russia is now on a war economy footing, corruption within the military remains rife, and there have been rising conflicts between the Ministry of Defense and the military-industrial complex. Belousov will, in effect, act as the quartermaster. He will be responsible for strengthening the war economy as well as dealing with corruption, reducing bottlenecks in the supply chains, and encouraging innovation in the military sector. He will also have to ensure that the military receives the supplies it needs and that money allocated for weapons and training will not continue to disappear into the pockets of corrupt officials. He will oversee the integration of the war economy with the rest of the economy to ensure the flow of weaponry and materiel. He will not make the key military decisions. These will continue to be made by Putin, Gerasimov, and others in the military. He accompanied Putin to Beijing this week to discuss military issues with his Chinese counterpart.
Putin’s main concern as the war with Ukraine continues is for military spending to be under control. And he realized that he needed a competent economic decisionmaker to accomplish that. Belousov’s appointment is in some ways reminiscent of Anatoly Serdyukov’s appointment as defense minister from 2007 to 2012. A former furniture manufacturer and tax official, Serdyukov’s main task was dealing with corruption and inefficiency in the ministry and reforming the armed forces after their less-than-stellar performance in the Georgia war of 2008.
Apart from these personnel changes, much remains the same. Mikhail Mishustin has been reappointed as prime minister. A technocrat who has maintained a low profile during the war with Ukraine, Mishustin’s primary responsibility will remain dealing with the economy and ensuring its continued stability and growth. The power ministries are also staying in the same hands. Sergey Lavrov, who has been foreign minister since 2004, remains in office, despite periodic rumors of his imminent retirement. The heads of the intelligence services—Sergei Naryshkin of the Foreign Intelligence Service and Alexander Bortnikov of the Federal Security Service—retain their positions (despite their intelligence failures prior to the invasion of Ukraine), as does the head of Putin’s Praetorian guard, Viktor Zolotov.
These personnel moves represent a reshuffling of a deck of cards that Putin has meticulously played over his 25 years in the Kremlin. Their message is that Putin intends to win the war with Ukraine with the help of a more efficient military and a sound economy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Wednesday agreed to hold two campaign debates — the first on June 27 hosted by CNN and the second on Sept. 10 hosted by ABC — setting the stage for their first presidential face-off to play out in just over a month.
The quick agreement on the timetable followed the Democrat’s announcement that he would not participate in fall presidential debates sponsored by the nonpartisan commission that has organized them for more than three decades. Biden’s campaign instead proposed that media outlets directly organize the debates between the presumptive Democratic and Republican nominees.
The debate is so unusually early on the political calendar that neither Biden nor Trump will have formally accepted his party’s nomination.
Hours later, Biden said he had accepted an invitation from CNN, adding, “Over to you, Donald.” Trump, who had insisted he would debate Biden anytime and anyplace, said on Truth Social he’d be there, too, adding, “Let’s get ready to Rumble!!!” Soon after that, they agreed to the second debate on ABC.
“Trump says he’ll arrange his own transportation,” Biden wrote on X, working in a jab about the perks of incumbency. “I’ll bring my plane, too. I plan on keeping it for another four years.”
The swiftness with which the matchups came together reflects how each of the two unpopular candidates thinks he can get the better of his opponent in a head-to-head showdown. Trump and his team are convinced the debates will exacerbate voters’ concerns about Biden’s age and competence, while Biden’s team believes Trump’s often-incendiary rhetoric will remind voters of why they voted him out of the White House four years ago.
The presidential debates, always a critical moment on the political calendar, could be particularly important in a year when voters are underwhelmed with their choices and have expressed concerns about the candidates’ advanced ages — Biden is 81 and Trump 77.
Sprightly on social media, the rivals traded barbs — each claiming victory the last time they faced off in 2020.
“Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020, since then he hasn’t shown up for a debate,” Biden said in a post on X. “Now he’s acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, make my day, pal.”
Trump, for his part, said Biden was the “WORST debater I have ever faced – He can’t put two sentences together!”
The June debate is likely to cap a busy and unsettled stretch, following the likely conclusion of Trump’s criminal hush money trial in New York, foreign trips by Biden to France and Italy, the end of the Supreme Court’s term, and the expected start of two criminal trials for the president’s son, Hunter Biden.
CNN said that its debate would be held at 9 p.m. ET in its Atlanta studios with no audience present in a break from recent precedent. Moderators will be anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, CNN said. ABC did not offer details on where its event would be held, but the network said it would be moderated by anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis. Disagreements about moderators and rules were some of the questions that prompted the formation of the Commission on Presidential Debates in 1987.
The two campaigns and television networks had held weeks of informal talks on ways to circumvent the commission’s grip on presidential debates following years of complaints and perceived slights, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke about internal discussions on condition of anonymity.
Biden’s campaign had proposed excluding third-party candidates, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., from the debates outright. Under the debate commission’s rules, Kennedy or other third-party candidates could qualify if they secured ballot access sufficient to claim 270 Electoral Votes and polled at 15% or higher in a selection of national surveys.
Both CNN and ABC announced the same qualification threshold, saying candidates will need to reach at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet their standards.
In response, Kennedy accused Biden and Trump of “trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win.” He said, “Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy.”
The debates will be the first televised general election matchups to be hosted by individual networks. The 1960 debates, which helped show the power of the medium to influence public opinion, were hosted jointly by the leading networks of the day. Before the commission was formed in 1987, the presidential debates of 1976, 1980 and 1984 were organized by the League of Women Voters.
Plans for a vice presidential debate have yet to be announced.
Trump has been pushing for more and earlier debates, arguing voters should be able to see the two men face off well before early voting begins in September. He has even proposed a debate outside the Manhattan courthouse where he is currently on trial. He also has been taunting Biden with an empty lectern at some of his rallies.
In a memorandum to Biden campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon on Wednesday, Trump senior campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles challenged Biden to agree to at least two additional debates, suggesting one be held each month, with events in June, July, August and September, in addition to a vice presidential debate.
“Additional dates will allow voters to have maximum exposure to the records and future visions of each candidate,” they wrote.
Trump later posted on Truth Social that he had agreed to a third debate, this one hosted by Fox.
“Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that I hereby accept debating Crooked Joe Biden on FoxNews. The date will be Wednesday, October 2nd. The Hosts will be Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum. Thank you, DJT!” he wrote.
O’Malley Dillon responded with a statement accusing Trump of having “a long history of playing games with debates: complaining about the rules, breaking those rules, pulling out at the last minute, or not showing up at all.”
“No more games. No more chaos, no more debate about debates. We’ll see Donald Trump on June 27th in Atlanta – if he shows up,” she wrote.
In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt Wednesday morning, Trump had raised his own doubts about whether Biden would show, and offered his own suggestions. He said the debates “should go two hours” with both men standing, and he also pushed for larger venues.
“It’s just more exciting,” he said.
Biden’s campaign has long held a grudge against the nonpartisan commission, accusing it of failing to evenly apply its rules during the 2020 Biden-Trump matchups — most notably when it didn’t enforce its COVID-19 testing rules on Trump and his entourage.
AP Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports President Biden and Donald Trump appear to agree on holding a pair of debates.
O’Malley Dillon on Wednesday sent a letter to the Commission on Presidential Debates to say that Biden’s campaign objected to its proposed debate dates in the fall, which would come after some Americans begin to vote, repeating a complaint also voiced by the Trump campaign. She also voiced frustrations over past rule violations and the commission’s insistence on holding the debates before a live audience.
“The debates should be conducted for the benefit of the American voters, watching on television and at home — not as entertainment for an in-person audience with raucous or disruptive partisans and donors,” she wrote.
There also was little love lost for the commission from Trump, who objected to technical issues at his first debate with Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016 and was upset when a 2020 debate with Biden was canceled after the Republican came down with COVID-19. The Republican National Committee had already promised not to work with the commission on the 2024 contests.
The Trump campaign issued a statement on May 1 that said of the debate schedule offered by the commission: “This is unacceptable.”
The commission said in a Wednesday statement, “The American public deserves substantive debates from the leading candidates for president and vice president.” It said its mission is “to ensure that such debates reliably take place and reach the widest television, radio and streaming audience.”
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2024 election at https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.