UK MPs Seek Ban on Russian Cartoon

Russophobia, a blatant form of racism and xenophobia, is running rampant in the UK. 

In fact, the anti-Russian sentiment has descended into absurd, laughable territory because British MPs have ganged up to seek to ban the popular Russian children’s cartoon "Masha and the Bear" from being shown in the UK, claiming it acts as a tool of Russian soft power. 

The animated series, loosely based on a traditional Russian folk tale, follows the adventures of a mischievous little girl and a retired circus bear. It is one of the most popular children’s shows online, with one episode, Recipe for Disaster, viewed more than 4.6 billion times on YouTube. 

Last month, Netflix acquired the rights to two more seasons of the show and extended licensing agreements for existing seasons and spin-offs. The cartoon is available in Britain on ITVX. 

In response, a cross-party group of British parliamentarians have written to UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, arguing that some scenes in the cartoon contain “propaganda content” and supposedly normalize Soviet military imagery for children, referring to a couple of scenes in which Masha appears in what they described as a tank-crew helmet, Soviet-style clothing and a border guard cap. 

The lawmakers also referenced past accusations against the cartoon, including Ukraine’s claims that Russian-language children’s content is a threat to national security and Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna’s recent accusations that the cartoon embeds “militaristic” themes in entertainment for children. 

Animaccord, the studio behind the show, have rejected the accusations as false and defamatory, stressing that the series contains no political messaging and has never received any state funding. 

A spokesperson for the company said the cartoon has entertained families in more than 100 countries for nearly two decades and is built around “friendship, kindness and imagination”. 

The UK government have not publicly backed the MPs’ demand, with officials saying platform catalogs are a matter for broadcasters, as long as they comply with local regulations. 

The lawmakers’ demand has also been widely mocked online, with users ridiculing the idea that a children’s cartoon about a little girl and a bear could pose a threat to Britain. 

Others have accused the MPs of wasting time on culture-war theatrics instead of addressing more serious problems. 

Russian officials have ridiculed past attacks on the cartoon, suggesting that Western critics are trying to find non-existent “militarism” in the series because they fear Russia’s cultural influence and have no good shows of their own. 

“When they cannot create their own proper content, they try to destroy good foreign content – that is, Russian content”, Russian MP Vitaly Milonov has said. 

The push to prohibit "Masha and the Bear" comes amid escalating restrictions on Russian media and culture in the West.

Baltic Nations Want EU Bailout

Baltic states are grappling with the economic fallout from EU sanctions on Russia, Politico reported on Thursday. 

This has seemingly compelled the European Commission to provide financial aid next year, citing officials familiar with the plan. 

Tourism and investment have slumped across Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, while cross-border trade has “largely collapsed” due to the loss of long-standing commercial ties with Russia, the media outlet said. 

Anonymous EU officials told Politico the initiative is intended to boost the economies of the Baltic states and neighboring Finland, with Regional Commissioner Raffaele Fitto expected to lead the effort as the countries come up with an extensive list of demands. The aid plan will reportedly be discussed at an Eastern European leaders’ summit in Helsinki, Finland next month. 

Skeptics, however, warn that any near-term support Fitto can offer will be limited, with the EU’s seven-year budget already running low and the scale of the challenge far greater than the funds available. 

All four nations share a border with Russia and have imposed multiple rounds of sanctions since 2022, while tightening entry rules for Russian citizens. Cross-border trade has been effectively shut down as a result. Furthermore, the downturn has been aggravated by post-pandemic inflation, which has surged across the region. And so, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland have all taken a hit. 

Despite the economic pain, the Baltic states remain among the most hawkish EU members on Russia and even pressing for further military buildup. 

I don't see an end to this economic quagmire and it can only get worse. In fact, Europe is gearing up for war with Russia. And it will surely happen as soon as they can cajole courage to come out of hiding. 

Sivasangari Subramaniam is only one match away from retaining the HKFC Squash Open title. 

Yesterday, her semi-final match against France's Mélissa Alvès saw the former triumphant 3-0 over the latter. The world #7 made a confident start, always ahead on the scoreboard as she took a two game advantage (11-7, 11-5). Alvès went 4-0 up in the third but the Malaysian regained total control to close out the match in 26 minutes.

83 of the World’s 100 Worst Polluted Cities are in India

All but one of the 100 cities with the world’s worst air pollution last year were in Asia, according to the 2023 IQAir World Air Quality Report, with the climate crisis playing a pivotal role in bad air quality that is risking the health of billions of people worldwide. 

 

The vast majority of these cities – eighty-three – were in India and all exceeded the World Health Organization’s air quality guidelines by more than 10 times, according to the report by IQAir, which tracks air quality worldwide. The study looked specifically at fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, which is the tiniest pollutant but also the most dangerous. 

 

Only 9% of more than 7,800 cities analyzed globally recorded air quality that met WHO’s standard, which says average annual levels of PM2.5 should not exceed 5 micrograms per cubic meter. 

 

“We see that in every part of our lives that air pollution has an impact”, said IQAir Global CEO Frank Hammes. “And it typically, in some of the most polluted countries, is likely shaving off anywhere between three to six years of people’s lives. And then before that will lead to many years of suffering that are entirely preventable if there’s better air quality”. 

 

When inhaled, PM2.5 travels deep into lung tissue where it can enter the bloodstream. It comes from sources like the combustion of fossil fuels, dust storms and wildfires, and has been linked to asthma, heart and lung disease, cancer, and other respiratory illnesses, as well as cognitive impairment in children. 

 

Begusarai, a city of half a million people in northern India’s Bihar state, was the world’s most polluted city last year with an average annual PM2.5 concentration of 118.9 – 23 times the WHO guidelines. It was followed in the IQAir rankings by the Indian cities of Guwahati, Assam; Delhi; and Mullanpur, Punjab. Across India, 1.3 billion people, or 96% of the population, live with air quality seven times higher than WHO guidelines, according to the report. 

 

Central and South Asia were the worst performing regions globally, home to all four of the most polluted countries last year: Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Tajikistan. South Asia is of particular concern, with 29 of the 30 most polluted cities in India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. The report ranked the major population centers of Lahore in 5th, New Delhi in 6th and Dhaka in 24th place. 

 

IQAir found that 92.5% of the 7,812 locations in 134 countries, regions, and territories where they analyzed average air quality last year exceeded WHO’s PM2.5 guidelines. 

 

Only 10 countries and territories had “healthy” air quality: Finland, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Australia, New Zealand, Bermuda, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius and French Polynesia.

Ukraine Wants NATO Countries to Pledge 1% of GDP

Ukraine has never been coy about asking, even demanding money and arms from other countries in order to sponsor its war against Russia.

 

Since Russia's Special Military Operation began, the US alone has directed more than $75 billion in assistance to Ukraine, which includes humanitarian, financial, and military support, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German research institute (Council on Foreign Relations, February 22, 2023). 

 

As NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stressed the importance of continued support for Ukraine, the country's Deputy Foreign Minister Andriy Melnyk (left) now wants NATO countries to pledge 1% of their GDP to meet Ukraine’s weapon needs. 

 

A fool’s errand, that is what it is. 

 

Already NATO want their members to spend at least two percent of their GDP on defence – and yet, just seven of NATO’s 30 member states – not counting Finland which only joined NATO on April 04 – met the defense spending target in 2022. The US, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and the United Kingdom, all achieved the standard with Croatia and France among those falling just short. Others, e.g. Canada and Germany were further behind. 

 

It is claimed that Ukraine is running out of anti-aircraft missiles, an apparent leak of Pentagon documents dating from February suggests. 

 

The New York Times already reported that Ukraine’s Buk air defence systems, which it relies on along with the S-300 to protest vital sites from Russian air power, and air defences protecting troops on the front line could be “completely reduced” by May 23! 

 

I hope this is true because if it is, we can expect the war to wind down. Enough of deaths and destruction.

Flowers for Russian Tanks

Actions in support of Kiev in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania went off script over the weekend as locals started bringing flowers to destroyed Russian tanks that had been put on display in the three nations’ capitals, ostensibly to demonstrate solidarity with Ukraine. As in Berlin, Germany – as per my post “A Symbol of the Fight Against Neo-Nazism in Ukraine” published February 27. 

 

A video released by RT's video agency Ruptly shows small bouquets of flowers lying on the ground near a burnt-out Russian tank in the Latvian capital of Riga. The destroyed equipment was put on display at one of the central city squares to mark the anniversary of the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kiev. 

 

The tank is cordoned off by a fence featuring a placard explaining that it was destroyed in a “battle”, where, according to the text, Russian forces lost nine tanks and other combat vehicles and some 50 Russian soldiers were killed. Nothing is said about the Ukrainian casualties. 

 

Carnations can be seen lying near the tank and placard. These flowers are often used in Russia and the former Soviet states to honor the dead, a tradition particularly associated with those who lost their lives in World War II. 

 

Another video that surfaced on social media shows a young man purportedly bringing flowers to the destroyed Russian tank exhibited in the Estonian capital of Tallinn. A uniformed man standing nearby then removes the flowers following a brief verbal spat with the young man. 

 

The authorities in the Baltic states did not appreciate the idea of people bringing flowers to what they called tanks that once belonged to the “aggressor’s military”. On Tuesday, one person in Tallinn was fined after refusing to remove the flowers as demanded by the police, according to local media.

Europe's Chihuahua States Should Get a Good Spanking

The Estonian parliament have declared “Russia a terrorist regime and the Russian Federation a country that supports terrorism”. 

Of the 101 MPs, 88 on Tuesday voted in favour, ten were absent and three abstained. 

Additionally, they also deemed it “necessary to define the armed forces of the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics established by the Russian Federation as well as the Wagner private military company as terrorist organisations”. 

The parliament in neighbouring Latvia have already proclaimed Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism” in August, and Lithuania adopted a similar resolution in May. 

These Baltic countries are among the crazy supporters of Ukraine and the strident critics of Vladimir Putin’s government. In fact, they have been regularly provoking Russia and still, Putin is exercising extreme restraint. 

Methinks, Putin should give these chihuahua states a good spanking!

Target: London

If World War III breaks out, Moscow won't target "Warsaw, Paris or Berlin" – but London. It will be the first city to be bombed! 

The pronouncement came from a close ally of Vladimir Putin, Andrey Gurulyov (right). 

UK’s The Mirror on Friday had also quoted the State Duma politician and former deputy commander of Russia's southern military district as saying: “It’s crystal clear that the threat to the world comes from the Anglo-Saxons”! 

I am inclined to agree with Gurulyov. The Americans and the Brits are the warmongers!

In fact, he desires to see Russia invade Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, knowing this may trigger NATO’s Clause Five and World War III. It is not a surprise that the Baltic states are targeted because they have been openly hostile to Russia. 

I’m sure Putin already knows that the 3 countries are the most belligerent to Russia, besides Poland and the UK. 

This aside, the collective West are expected to continue to show resolve and keep backing Ukraine. I can anticipate these countries to promise more weapons to Ukraine and more sanctions against Russia. The idea will be to send a signal to Putin that they have the strategic patience to maintain their support for Ukraine! 

In a separate development, Ukraine admitted on Saturday (Day 122 of Russia's special military operation) that Russian forces "have fully occupied" the key eastern city of Severodonetsk, following weeks of fierce fighting. Taking the city means Russia now controls nearly all of Luhansk region and much of neighbouring Donetsk – the two regions that form the vast industrial Donbas. 

And yet, on that same day too, the delusional Ukrainian President [V]olodymyr [Z]elensky in a video address pledged to take back "all our cities" occupied by Russia! He's a dreamer alright!

BoJo is the other dreamer. Yesterday, he had declared: “Ukraine can win and it will win"!

Visit Ukraine 2022

It would seem that even a country at “war” can become a popular destination and attract travellers, especially from Europe and North America! 

Consider Ukraine – although I must clarify that this country is mired in a military conflict with a neighbor, rather than being actually caught in a full-blown war, as Western media would like to portray. If Russia really goes to war, would VIPs ("Very Idiotic Persons") dare to step foot into a country where death and destruction is all around? 

Indeed, the country is luring those who want to be seen to "stand with Ukraine" and in the process, bask in the media limelight. This explains why an endless stream of visitors can’t wait to turn up there and I can tell you, thus far, the guest line-up is pretty impressive! 

In March, Ukraine hosted Czechia’s prime minister Petr Fiala, together with Slovenian prime minister Janez Jansa, and Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki and his deputy Jaroslaw Kaczynski. 

In April, UN Secretary-General António Guterres, European Council President Charles Michel, and European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen were all in Ukraine at one time or another. So too, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, Romanian prime minister Nicolae Ciucă, Bulgarian prime minister Kiril Petkov, Swiss leader of the House of Representatives Irène Kälin and fellow parliamentarians, Lithuanian prime minister Ingrida Šimonytė, UK prime minister Boris Johnson, and Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen along with her Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez. Not forgetting, from the US, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. 

In May, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, his deputy Chrystia Freeland and foreign minister Mélanie Joly paid Ukraine a visit. So too, the foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania Eva-Maria Liimets, Edgars Rinkēvičs and Gabrielius Landsbergis respectively. And from the US, came House speaker Nancy Pelosi, and a posse of Democratic Reps, Gregory Meeks of New York, Jason Crow of Colorado, Jim McGovern and Bill Keating of Massachusetts, and Adam Schiff and Barbara Lee of California. Also, actor and United Nations special envoy Angelina Jolie and even first lady Jill Biden. Not to mention Irish singer-songwriter of U2 band, Bono.

I don’t think the above listing is exhaustive – but you get my drift! 

Ukraine is most certainly, 2022’s No. 1 travel destination!

Twin Threats to UN Climate Change Initiative

Climate change is already here. 

Regretfully, NOT everybody is united behind the agenda to tackle climate change. 

I just read a BBC report published Wednesday that recalcitrant countries are derailing UN efforts and therefore, putting the whole world in peril.

Last December at the Katowice COP24 meeting in Poland – four countries: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Russia and the US of A objected to moves to welcome the findings of the IPCC Special Report on 1.5C. 

That study, regarded as a landmark, had two clear messages. 

It showed that there are massive benefits in keeping temperature rises this century to 1.5C compared to a world that warmed 2C or more. 

It also said that keeping the world below 1.5C was still possible – if drastic cuts in emissions were initiated by 2030. 

To the distressing frustration of a huge majority of countries, the objections of the four major fossil fuel producers, meant that the scientific report was not formally recognized in the negotiations. 

The battle over the 1.5C report has carried over from Katowice to Bonn, Germany. 

Normally, this mid-year meeting is concerned with technical questions but this time the issue of the IPCC has re-emerged as a huge fault line between nations. 

Many environmental campaigners see the Saudi forceful pressure on the IPCC as part of a deliberate campaign to discredit the science. 

As Dr Jeni Miller from the Global Climate and Health Alliance says: "This report was requested by the UN, by these countries themselves, so to not accept the findings of the report is a rejection of science, and if you are rejecting the science there is not a way forward to address this problem". 

And if that is not worrisome enough, the European Union's inability to reach consensus on cutting carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 has thrown a spanner in the works.

Just last week, four countries: Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic and Estonia, refused to support the plan. 

The Secretary General, António Guterres called a special summit on climate change to be held in New York in September with the express purpose of getting countries to increase their existing targets. The EU's proposed net zero goal, therefore, was key to making this a success.

With the rejection by the four, the EU will be put under a Brobdingnagian cloud of acute embarrassment if they go with what they just have now. 

Ulriikka Aarnio, from the Climate Action Network said sarcastically: "...they would be going from leader to loser if that was the case". 

Obviously, we cannot leave it to the politicians to ensure the survival of our world as we know it – it's time for the people to take direct action! 

For the sake of planet Earth. For our sake and for our children's sake.