Astra Enters Obesity Drug Race With Chinese Biotech Deal
AstraZeneca Plc clinched a deal to develop a drug from the pharma industry’s hottest class of medicines, agreeing
1970-01-01 08:00
France and Germany Ramp Up Efforts to Reach EU Fiscal Deal
France and Germany are ramping up efforts to find a joint agreement on new fiscal rules that could
1970-01-01 08:00
Adyen Surges as New Targets Ease Investor Concerns
Adyen NV’s shares surged the most since its trading debut after the payments giant unveiled new growth targets
1970-01-01 08:00
UBS’s Ermotti Says Demand for AT1 Bond Shows Market Confidence
The strong demand for UBS Group AG’s hotly-anticipated sale of additional tier 1 bonds is a positive sign
1970-01-01 08:00
Ping An Slump Shows Why a Country Garden Deal Would Be Dangerous
A $5.5 billion selloff in Ping An Insurance Group Co. is underscoring why a mooted takeover of distressed
1970-01-01 08:00
Russia ‘forcing Ukrainian POWs to fight against their homeland’ in possible war crime
Russia is deploying Ukrainian prisoners of war to fight on its behalf against their own country, according to state media reports. The move has attracted concern from experts, who have argued it could amount to a war crime. Russia’s state-run news agency RIA Novosti aired a video purporting to show captured Ukrainian soldiers being voluntarily inducted into the Russian army. They were seen swearing allegiance to Russia, holding rifles and dressed in military fatigues. The authenticity of the report or videos aired by RIA Novosti could not be immediately confirmed. Human Rights Watch said this could be a violation of the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war (POWs). Captured soldiers are exempt from being exposed to combat or unhealthy and dangerous conditions regardless of coercion, according to the convention. It is “hard” to confirm if these Ukrainian soldiers have genuinely switched allegiance to Russia out of their own free will, said Yulia Gorbunova, a senior researcher on Ukraine at Human Rights Watch. “Russian authorities might claim they are recruiting them on a voluntary basis but it is hard to imagine a scenario where a prisoner of war’s decision could be taken truly voluntarily, given the situation of coercive custody,” she said. The soldiers were reportedly made a part of a battalion that went into service last month. The battalion is named “Bogdan Khmelnitsky”, after a 15th century medieval nobleman and Russian fighter who brought parts of Ukraine under Moscow’s control. The report said Russian officials have completed training of the battalion and the POWs would soon be deployed into battle. The group comprises about 70 imprisoned Ukrainian fighters from various penal colonies. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said the Ukrainian troops will operate under the larger “Kaskad” formation of the Donetsk People’s Republic, the name for the Russia-backed breakaway region of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. This suggests the POWs will be fighting on the frontlines in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions where Kaskad has been active, the ISW said. The entire scenario is “laced with the potential for coercion”, said Nick Reynolds, research fellow for land warfare at the Royal United Services Institute in London. A POW does not have a “huge amount of agency” and is in a “very difficult situation,” he said. According to the US-based think-tank ISW, this is not the first time Ukrainian POWs have been asked to “volunteer” for the battalion. They were housed in the Olenivka prison, which was blown up in July 2022. Russia said Ukraine had destroyed the prison in the country’s east with a rocket, but Kyiv blamed the blast on Moscow to cover up what it alleged was abuse and killings of the POWs. Russia is also trying to bolster its forces with a “conscription campaign in occupied Ukraine,” said the ISW’s Karolina Hird. Read More Blinken arrives in Seoul for talks focused on North Korea and its military cooperation with Russia Russia-Ukraine war: Putin’s ‘third wave’ advance stalls as Zelensky shows confidence Azerbaijan's president addresses a military parade in Karabakh and says 'we showed the whole world' Ukraine moves step closer to EU membership as European Commission backs talks Ukraine takes credit for the car bomb killing of a Russia-backed official in Luhansk Russia seeks an 8-year prison term for an artist and musician who protested the war in Ukraine
1970-01-01 08:00
How Tottenham could line up vs Wolves despite key injuries and suspensions
How Tottenham could line up against Wolverhampton Wanderers despite their long list of injured and suspended absentees.
1970-01-01 08:00
China Lays Out Grievances With US Before Yellen-He Meeting
China laid out its grievances with the US just before meetings between economic czar He Lifeng and Treasury
1970-01-01 08:00
Airbus Sees Higher Output in 2024 Amid Surging Demand
Airbus SE said it will significantly increase aircraft output next year as the European planemaker ramps up production
1970-01-01 08:00
Scores Killed in Sudan’s Darfur Region as Militia Routs Army Base
About 200 people may have been killed by Sudanese militias allied with the Rapid Support Forces, after the
1970-01-01 08:00
Africa Phone Giant MTN Expects Nigeria Reform Recovery Mid-2024
MTN Group Ltd. expects Nigeria to overcome the short-term “pain” of President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms by the
1970-01-01 08:00
London Rental Demand Falls as Tenants Struggle to Meet Costs
London’s home rental cost showed signs of easing, with a drop in demand and evidence that tenants are
1970-01-01 08:00