(2022-02-18). Shelling in Donbass brings Europe to brink of war. wsws.org Heavy artillery shelling reported in East Ukraine's Donbass region is the most significant military escalation of the conflict between the US-funded Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists since at least last spring.
(2022-02-18). Lavrov: Russia 'Alarmed' by Escalation of Shelling, Use of Arms Banned by Minsk Accords in Donbass. sputniknews.com The region was thrust into a civil war in the spring of 2014, in the aftermath of a US and EU-backed coup in Kiev.
(2022-02-18). Breakaway Ukrainian region orders evacuation. rt.com 
(2022-02-18). Ukraine's security council chief sees no threat of Russian attack. tass.com Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Secretary Alexey Danilov said Kiev is registering "provocations by Russia in Donbass"
(2022-02-18). Lavrov labels Western 'Russia invasion' claims 'propaganda, fakes and fiction'. rt.com 
"If they enjoy it, let them," the foreign minister told RT regarding claims from officials and media | Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has lashed out at Western officials who have been peddling the purported threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Apparently, they do it for the sheer pleasure of accusing Moscow, he told RT in an exclusive interview on Friday. | "I am certain that even casual observers of foreign policy have long confirmed to themselves that all of it is propaganda, fake news, fiction," Lavrov said of the accusations. | He suggested that Western officials making such claims simply like…
(2022-02-18). UN received Russian documents about crimes in Donbass. tass.com The Russian Investigative Committee earlier said it had launched a criminal case into the discovery of mass graves of Donbass civilians killed in shelling…
(2022-02-18). Putin to take part in nuclear war drills. rt.com 
The strategic weapons exercises are scheduled to take place on Saturday | Russian President Vladimir Putin will take direct command of scheduled ballistic missile training on Saturday, which will see the country's military test its nuclear capabilities, Moscow has confirmed. | Officials released a statement on Friday, writing, "on February 19, under the supervision of the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, a planned exercise of the forces of strategic deterrence will take place, during which ballistic and cruise missiles will be launched." | The statement goes…
(2022-02-18). Ukraine's Prospects of Joining NATO Were Never Strong, Ex-MI6 Chief Reveals. sputniknews.com Ukraine switched from a policy of bloc neutrality toward aspiring to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 2014, after a US and EU-backed coup overthrew the country's democratically elected government.
(2022-02-18). US condones forceful assimilation of Russians in Ukraine – Russian ambassador to US. tass.com We see here not just double standards of the United States, but quite a primitive and crude cynicism, Anatoly Antonov said…
(2022-02-18). West bullies world while citing threats from China, Russia. asiatimes.com 
On January 21, Vice-Admiral Kay-Achim Schà∂nbach attended a talk in New Delhi organized by the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses. Schà∂nbach was speaking as the chief of Germany's navy during his visit to the institute. "What he really wants is respect," Schà∂nbach said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "And my god, giving someone respect is low-cost, even …
(2022-02-18). Documents Reveal US Gov't Spent $22M Promoting Anti-Russia Narrative in Ukraine and Abroad. mintpressnews.com 
The National Endowment for Democracy can claim it is in the business of democracy promotion. In reality, it does anything but that, unless "democracy" is entirely synonymous with elite U.S. interests.
(2022-02-18). Venezuela Expresses Total Support for Russia on Ukraine Tensions. orinocotribune.com "Russia has the full support of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in the fight it is putting up to dispel the threats from NATO and the Western world," said the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, this Wednesday, February 16, during his meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Yuri Borisov. | During the meeting of the High-Level Intergovernmental Commission (CIAN), where strategic agreements were signed between both nations at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, the Venezuelan head of state stated his position, expressing his belief that Russia will continue to be a peaceful nation. | "
(2022-02-18). U.S. Labor Against War opposes U.S. moves towards Ukraine combat. peoplesworld.org 
(2022-02-18). Canadian junta accuses Russia of shelling kindergarten in Ukraine. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Several sites have run the Canadian Press account with identical language. Foreign Minister Joly seems alone in blaming Russia for the shelling in question. This is the leader of Canada's martial law regime in characteristic form yesterday. His government has trained the most Ukrainian government troops (over 30,000 as of last autumn) for the intensifying …
(2022-02-18). Russia Expels US Deputy Ambassador From Moscow, Says It's a Retaliatory Move. news.antiwar.com The State Department said Thursday that Russia had expelled Bart Gorman, who served as the deputy US ambassador in Moscow, amid heightened tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine. Moscow said the move was a response to the US's "unreasonable expulsion" of a senior Russian diplomat by Washington. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova …
(2022-02-18). Headlines that cause wars. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com And are designed to do just that. Recent stories picked up and circulated by Yahoo News. The first is only missing the adjectives Young and Innocent before the word Kids. Daily BeastPro-Russian Forces Shell Ukrainian Kindergarten Full of Kids The HillRussia likely to launch 'limited' attack against Ukraine, Estonia foreign intelligence agents say AxiosU.S. warns …
(2022-02-18). Headlines for February 18, 2022. democracynow.org Biden Claims Russia Is Plotting a "False Flag" Operation as Pretext for Ukraine Invasion, COVID-19 Cases Hit Record Highs in Asian Countries as Omicron Variant Surges, Donald Trump, Trump Jr. and Ivanka Ordered to Testify in New York Civil Fraud Probe, Florida Lawmakers Advance Bill to Ban Abortions After 15 Weeks, More Than a Quarter of World's Women Worldwide Have Experienced Domestic Violence, Haitian Sweatshop Workers Strike to Demand $15 a Day, Death Toll in Brazil Landslides Rises to 117, with 100+ Still Missing, Canadian Police Investigating Sabotage of Coastal GasLink Pipeline Worksite,…
(2022-02-18). Wednesday 2/23: Roundtable Discussion: Ukraine Crisis. indybay.org On Zoom! Link: rb.gy/bxhzue…
(2022-02-18). US Still Claims Russian Invasion of Ukraine Could Happen in the 'Coming Days'. news.antiwar.com US officials continue to warn that Russia is preparing to invade Ukraine despite Moscow's repeated denials and Ukraine's downplaying of the threat. At a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken Blinken claimed that the US has evidence that Russian forces "are preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine in the coming days." He accused Russia of creating a pretext fo…
(2022-02-18). A Call for Peace: Russian & U.S. Women Push for Diplomacy, Not Military Action, to Resolve Crisis. democracynow.org 
U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have agreed to meet next week as tension remains high over Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia has announced plans to stage massive drills on Saturday of its nuclear forces, including multiple practice missile launches. We speak with Russian journalist Nadezhda Azhgikhina, one of a group of two dozen independent Russian and American women who released an open letter this week calling for peace. The letter reads, "We are united in the belief that diplomacy, dialogue, engagement and exchange are urgently needed to end the current crisis an…
(2022-02-18). How the Russia-Ukraine Conflict is Lose-Lose for Israel. juancole.com By Adnan Abu Amer | — ( Middle East Monitor ) — It is almost 3,000 kilometres from Tel Aviv to Kyiv, and yet the crisis between Ukraine and Russia is having a huge impact on Israel. Why does it seem to be a party to the crisis when it shares no border with either …
(2022-02-18). Zelensky Downplays Ukraine's Chances for Potential NATO Membership. news.antiwar.com On Thursday, Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky downplayed the chance of Ukraine joining NATO Zelensky said that despite Ukraine's desire to join the Western military alliance, the process was not advancing. Some NATO member states would not approve Ukraine's membership, which Zelensky recognized. | "Not only Russia is against [our] membership. Some individual NATO members support Moscow's position. That is an open secret," he told Bild. Z…
(2022-02-18). Ukraine: Waiting for an 'imminent' war to start. asiatimes.com 
The situation in Ukraine continues to be very tense, fluid and evolving. The Donbas conflict that erupted in 2014 threatens to escalate, while Western media, politicians and analysts speculate about the exact date Russia may invade its neighbor. The very same pundits who claimed Russian President Vladimir Putin would attack Ukraine on February 16 now …
(2022-02-18). Second Ukrainian tests positive for banned drug at Olympics. rt.com 
The bobsledder's Winter Olympics sample contained a steroid, doping chiefs announced in the wake of a Ukrainian skier testing positive for three banned substances | Strongwoman-turned-bobsledder Lidiia Hunko has become the second Ukrainian to fail a drugs test at the Beijing Winter Olympic Games this week, the International Testing Agency (ITA) has announced. | The 28-year-old, who is a former world champion deadlifter, was tested by the ITA during an in-competition anti-doping control check on Monday, when she finished 20th in the women's monobob. | A World Anti-Doping Agency-accredited (WADA) laboratory in B…
(2022-02-18). Blinken ready to meet with Lavrov late next week. tass.com US–ê ready to accept the proposed dates for late next week, "provided there is no further Russian invasion of Ukraine," US Secretary of State said…
(2022-02-18). Iran ready to help resolve crisis in Ukraine peacefully. en.mehrnews.com Referring to the crisis in the relations between Ukraine and Russia, the Iranian Foreign Minister said that Iran is ready to provide any necessary assistance and take any necessary action to resolve the crisis peacefully.
(2022-02-18). Who is the coach at the center of Kamila Valieva's Olympic storm? rt.com 
Kamila Valieva's ordeal at the Beijing Olympics has brought added attention to a prominent Russian figure skating coach | Teenage figure skater Kamila Valieva has faced intense scrutiny at the Beijing Olympics, but the media has also been drawn to coach Eteri Tutberidze — someone who would otherwise have been a much less prominent presence. | Tutberidze is a renowned trainer of Olympic champions, a coach whose conveyor belt of talent has functioned relentlessly in recent years. | But as Tutberidze now faces questions over her methods in light of Valieva's unfortunate situation, we look at some of the key…
(2022-02-18). Olympic chief is 'weaving fiction' — Russian official. rt.com 
Russia's deputy prime minister attacked the comments made by IOC president Thomas Bach | International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach should stop "weaving his own fictional narrative" after he criticized figure skater Kamila Valieva's coaching team, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko has said. | Speaking to journalists in Beijing on Friday, Bach claimed he had been "disturbed" by the reaction from Valieva's trainers — including coach Eteri Tutberidize — after the teenager struggled badly in her free skate routine, finishing outside the medals. | Bach claimed Tutberidize…
(2022-02-18). NATO's campaign made European region 'a hotbed of crime' — Lavrov to RT. rt.com 
Russia's foreign minister says the bloc's bombing campaign has not brought prosperity to Kosovo | Russia finds it hard to believe that NATO is a purely defensive bloc, giving its bombing campaign in Yugoslavia in 1999, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told RT on Friday. | The minister made his comments while speaking about the talks between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday. | "Scholz and others NATO officials say that NATO is a defensive alliance. Putin reminded Scholz at a joint press conference about the bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999," Lavrov remar…
(2022-02-18). The Russians Are Coming. Even in Africa, Moscow Beats a Path. strategic-culture.org For those countries who don't think they have a good deal from the EU, their regimes might well consider working more closely with the Russians. | And the cheers from the crowds seeing off the expelled French ambassador must be seen for what Europeans are. | The chicken or the egg? Did the Mali military junta's decision to bring in Russian military contractors create the inertia for Emmanuel Macron to reduce his own troops' presence there and initiate EU sanctions — or did his earlier decision to reduce troop numbers push the regime to take the measure to bring in around 400 Wagner mercenaries to keep it in…
(2022-02-18). The vicious US media campaign against Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva. wsws.org Valieva's positive drug test, a tragedy in any case for the young prodigy in the midst of what began as a triumphant Olympic debut, was a stroke of luck for the war propagandists that people the American media.
(2022-02-18). War in Europe and the Rise of Raw Propaganda. strategic-culture.org Since the first Cold War, NATO has effectively marched right up to Russia's most sensitive border having demonstrated its bloody aggression in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and broken solemn promises to pull back. Having dragged European "allies" into American wars that do not concern them, the great unspoken is that NATO itself is the real threat to European security.
(2022-02-18). Video: SGP chairman condemns NATO's war preparations against Russia. wsws.org In this video Christoph Vandreier, the chairman of the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (SGP—Socialist Equality Party), condemns NATO's preparations for war against Russia and explains the need for an international anti-war movement.
(2022-02-18). Blinken at the UN: A Colin Powell moment. wsws.org Developments over the past 24 hours make clear that the Biden administration, speaking for dominant sections of the American ruling class, is determined to escalate the confrontation with Russia, even to the point of triggering a world war.
(2022-02-18). Trump Slams 'Crooked' Hillary Clinton As 'One of the Most Corrupt Politicians to Run for President'. sputniknews.com Addressing the New York State Democratic Party Convention on Thursday, Hillary Clinton called Special Counsel John Durham's court filing alleging she paid cybersecurity experts to hack into Donald Trump's election campaign to back her false claim that he "colluded" with Russia to defeat her in the 2016 presidential election a "conspiracy theory".
(2022-02-18). RUSADA responsible for delayed result in Valieva's doping sample — WADA. tass.com On February 14, the CAS turned down an appeal filed by the IOC, the WADA and the ISU against the decision of the RUSADA to lift a temporary suspension of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva…
(2022-02-18). Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa. wsws.org Baggage handlers hold three-day wildcat strike in Copenhagen Airport, Denmark over pay and conditions, ruled illegal and condemned by union; thousands of teachers in Belgium walk out over pay, conditions and class sizes; South African Clover food workers' strike over pay and job cuts continues into week twelve, tens of thousands of Sibanye-Stillwater gold miners vote to strike over pay…
(2022-02-18). European Troops to Be Relocated From Mali to Niger's Border Region, President Says. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) — European forces, whose withdrawal from Mali was announced earlier yesterday, will be redeployed to regions of Niger along the border with Mali, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum said.
(2022-02-18). Germany's federal and state governments decide to scrap pandemic measures. wsws.org At the high point to date of the Omicron wave, the representatives of the German "traffic light" federal coalition government and the state minister presidents have agreed to eliminate all remaining restrictions apart from mask mandates in certain public places.
(2022-02-17). Belarus' Decision on Recognition of DPR, LPR Will Be Joint With Russia, Lukashenko Says. sputniknews.com Earlier, the Russian Parliament, the Duma, voted in favour of requesting the president to recognise the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics. Commenting on the request, Putin said that Russia will always act in Donbass' interests and stressed the importance of the Minsk agreements.
(2022-02-17). Ukrainian Forces Shell Outskirts of Donetsk, DPR Says. sputniknews.com Earlier on Thursday, the militia of the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) in eastern Ukraine stated that the situation in the region has deteriorated significantly over the past day, as Kiev is trying to escalate the conflict.
(2022-02-17). Kiev suggested meeting with Putin, but topic of discussion remains unknown — Kremlin. tass.com Earlier, the Russian president, commenting on the words of the Ukrainian leader about a personal meeting, noted that if they were to discuss the problems of Donbass, the Ukrainian leadership should first meet with the heads of the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics…
(2022-02-17). UK makes new Russia allegation. rt.com 
The two regions of Donetsk and Lugansk have been ravaged by fierce fighting since 2014 | Reports of heavy shelling and explosions in war-torn regions of eastern Ukraine are merely Russian attempts to create a pretext for ordering an offensive against its neighbor, Britain's top diplomat has claimed, as Kiev and separatists blame each other for the attack. | On Thursday, leaders from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) reported that government troops had fired at several towns and villages using mortars, hand grenades, and rifles. | The Ukrainian Armed Forces subsequently disclosed that an area…
(2022-02-17). India Lifts Flight Restrictions With Ukraine After Call for Its Citizens to Leave European Country. sputniknews.com The situation in eastern Ukraine remains tense, with the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic saying on Thursday that the Ukrainian military fired mortar shells and grenades at four localities in Donbass.
(2022-02-17). Military Situation In Eastern Ukraine On February 17, 2022 (Map Update). southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | The UAF shelled DPR positions near Kominternovo with 120 mm mortar launchers; | The UAF shelled DPR positions near Novolaspa with 120 mm mortar launchers; | The UAF shelled DPR positions near Nizhneye Lozovoye with 120 mm mortar launchers; | The UAF shelled DPR positions near Zaitsevo with 120 mm mortar launchers; | The Ukrainian army command is preparing to move Tochka-U missile systems deployed in Khmelnitsky in western Ukraine to Donbass for combat mission…
(2022-02-17). Kiev makes no secret Minsk-2 is not on its agenda — Russian Foreign Ministry. tass.com Sergey Vershinin recalled a recent statement by Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk Kiev was not considering any new bills regarding the status of Donbass…
(2022-02-17). Russian diplomat blasts statements made at UN Security Council about State Duma appeal. tass.com "This is about proposing to consider the issue, although it does reflect the sentiment in the Russian society and in Donbass," Sergey Vershinin said…
(2022-02-17). Kiev stubbornly refuses to hold dialogue with Donbass — Russian Foreign Ministry. tass.com Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin stressed that over the past seven years Ukraine had failed to implement at least one provision of the package of measures to enforce the Minsk Agreements…
(2022-02-17). BREAKING: Decisive Night For Eastern Ukraine (Videos, Photos). southfront.org 
Click to see full-size image | The failure of the information campaign aimed at provoking an armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine on February 15-16 did not bring the Ukrainian regime and its patrons to their senses. | Since the night of February 16, the shelling of the DPR and LPR by the UAF has sharply intensified. By the afternoon of February 17, the frequency of the attacks reached the intensity of 2014-2015. |