INDONESIA: Now is the time to end Russia’s “destructive” war and “save thousands of lives,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the G20 summit in Bali via video address on Tuesday.
“I am convinced now is the time when the Russian destructive war must and can be stopped,” he said, according to a speech obtained by AFP. “It will save thousands of lives.”
Wearing his now-familiar army green T-shirt and speaking in Ukrainian, Zelensky addressed leaders including China’s Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was not in the room, however, having shunned the gathering and sent his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to Bali in his place.
Zelensky slammed “the crazy threats of nuclear weapons that Russian officials resort to,” referring to dark rhetoric by Putin that has made even Beijing uncomfortable.
“There are and cannot be any excuses for nuclear blackmail,” he added, pointedly thanking the “G19” — excluding Russia — for “making this clear.”
The Ukrainian leader also called for the expansion and indefinite extension of a grain deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkiye that will expire on November 19.
Ukraine is one of the world’s top grain producers, and the Russian invasion had blocked 20 million tons of grain in its ports until the deal was reached in July.
“I believe our export grain initiative deserves an indefinite extension — no matter when the war ends,” Zelensky said, urging its expansion to other ports.
The Ukrainian leader also accused Russia of an “attempt to turn the cold into a weapon” with a campaign of strikes against key infrastructure ahead of the coming winter.
Zelensky also backed a US-led push for a price cap on Russian oil exports “so that energy resources are no longer used as weapons.”
“If Russia is trying to deprive Ukraine, Europe and all energy consumers in the world of predictability and price stability, the answer to this should be a forced limitation of export prices for Russia.”
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Zelensky tells G20 ‘now is the time’ to end Russia’s war
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Zelensky tells G20 ‘now is the time’ to end Russia’s war
- Zelensky addressed leaders including China’s Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden
- Russian President Vladimir Putin was not in the room
France seeks probe after diplomat cited in Epstein files
- France’s foreign minister has requested a probe after the name of a French diplomat on leave appeared in numerous emails to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein
PARIS: France’s foreign minister has requested a probe after the name of a French diplomat on leave appeared in numerous emails to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“I was appalled,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday.
In an X post late on Tuesday, he said he was referring allegations against Fabrice Aidan to the public prosecutor, and launching an internal inquiry.
The ministry described Aidan as a “principal foreign affairs secretary on leave for personal reasons and holding positions in the private sector.”
A mere mention in released files from the investigation into the disgraced New York financier, who killed himself in prison 2019 while charged with sex trafficking underage girls, does not imply wrongdoing.
But French media, after unearthing his name in the files, reported he had shared email correspondence with Epstein from 2010 to 2017.
Investigative website Mediapart late Tuesday reported that the FBI had flagged Aidan as having consulted child sexual abuse websites while he was working at the New York-based United Nations from 2006 and 2013, leading to an internal probe and his resignation.
Aidan was during that time adviser to Norway’s Terj Rod-Larsen, who Norwegian police said on Monday they were investigating over his ties to Epstein.
Mediapart also reported that Aidan sent UN documents and reports to Epstein.
AFP was not immediately able to contact Aidan for comment, who appeared on Wednesday morning to have deleted his Linkedin professional networking profile.
After the UN headquarters in New York, Aidan then went on to work for the UN cultural agency UNESCO.
Energy group Engie, for whom he had been working more recently, told AFP it had let him go.
“In light of the information brought to our attention and reported in certain media, which would concern a period prior to his joining the group, Engie has decided to relieve Fabrice Aidan from his duties,” it said.
The fallout of the latest Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice has led to former minister Jack Lang resigning from his position as the head of a top cultural body called the Arab World Institute.
He has however denied any wrongdoing, saying he was “shocked” that his name appeared in the statutes of an offshore company that Epstein founded in 2016.
His daughter Caroline, who allegedly owned half the shares in the company, has resigned from two positions.
“I was appalled,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday.
In an X post late on Tuesday, he said he was referring allegations against Fabrice Aidan to the public prosecutor, and launching an internal inquiry.
The ministry described Aidan as a “principal foreign affairs secretary on leave for personal reasons and holding positions in the private sector.”
A mere mention in released files from the investigation into the disgraced New York financier, who killed himself in prison 2019 while charged with sex trafficking underage girls, does not imply wrongdoing.
But French media, after unearthing his name in the files, reported he had shared email correspondence with Epstein from 2010 to 2017.
Investigative website Mediapart late Tuesday reported that the FBI had flagged Aidan as having consulted child sexual abuse websites while he was working at the New York-based United Nations from 2006 and 2013, leading to an internal probe and his resignation.
Aidan was during that time adviser to Norway’s Terj Rod-Larsen, who Norwegian police said on Monday they were investigating over his ties to Epstein.
Mediapart also reported that Aidan sent UN documents and reports to Epstein.
AFP was not immediately able to contact Aidan for comment, who appeared on Wednesday morning to have deleted his Linkedin professional networking profile.
After the UN headquarters in New York, Aidan then went on to work for the UN cultural agency UNESCO.
Energy group Engie, for whom he had been working more recently, told AFP it had let him go.
“In light of the information brought to our attention and reported in certain media, which would concern a period prior to his joining the group, Engie has decided to relieve Fabrice Aidan from his duties,” it said.
The fallout of the latest Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice has led to former minister Jack Lang resigning from his position as the head of a top cultural body called the Arab World Institute.
He has however denied any wrongdoing, saying he was “shocked” that his name appeared in the statutes of an offshore company that Epstein founded in 2016.
His daughter Caroline, who allegedly owned half the shares in the company, has resigned from two positions.
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