Yahoo News

Beijing said Wednesday it will provide war-torn Ukraine with about $790,000 in humanitarian aid, with the first shipment already on its way, though China has yet to condemn Russia's invasion of the country.

China has repeatedly blamed NATO's "eastward expansion" for worsening tensions between Russia and Ukraine, echoing the Kremlin's prime security grievance while refusing to criticise Moscow's decision to send troops across the border.

But a day after Chinese President Xi Jinping told his French and German counterparts China was "deeply grieved" by the outbreak of war in Europe, the first shipments of aid to the country of 44 million had been sent, the foreign ministry said Wednesday.

"At the request of the Ukrainian side, the Red Cross Society of China will provide a batch of humanitarian aid... including food and daily necessities, worth five million yuan ($792,000)," ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters.

https://news.yahoo.com/china-ukraine-790-000-aid-121534049.html

Source: CNN

(CNN)A jury in Washington, DC, on Tuesday found January 6 rioter Guy Reffitt guilty of all five charges he faced related to the US Capitol attack, in the pivotal outcome of the first federal trial related to the riot.

Reffitt was charged with five counts -- wanting to obstruct the congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election, transporting guns into DC, carrying a Smith & Wesson handgun onto the restricted grounds of the Capitol, interfering with Capitol Police protecting the Upper West Terrace and obstructing justice by threatening his son and daughter when he returned to Texas.

The jury of six men and six women in DC's federal court deliberated for just under 4 hours Tuesday.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/08/politics/january-6-reffitt-verdict/index.html

However the U.N. itself has not banned it.

According to Snopes, the U.N. Regional Information Centre for Western Europe at the Department of Global Communications issued internal guidance via email on March 7, 2022, to avoid using the word "war" until the U.N. had an official policy.

Snopes also reported that the U.N. as an entity did not ban the word “war.” The Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General at the United Nations in New York told Snopes that no such email had been sent to staff from U.N. headquarters, and provided multiple examples of senior U.N. officials using the word "war" in reference to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

From the internal memo, there are some specific examples of language to use/not use at the moment:

“conflict” or “military offensive” and NOT “war” or “invasion” when referring to the situation in Ukraine [please note we are waiting for updated guidance on specific terminology following the General Assembly resolution, which notably uses the word “aggression.]
“Ukraine” and NOT “the Ukraine”
“Kyiv” and NOT “Kiev” in English
Zelenskyy” and NOT “Zelensky”

More are link:

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/un-ban-word-war-russia-ukraine/

I still can't believe this! The UN iegional Information Centre for Western Europe apparently is tiptoeing around the delicate sensitivities of a murderous psychopathic dictator?

So what are they calling this criminal invasion? A birthday party? a scuffle?

Is Putin a murderous psychopath, or merely a concerned citizen?

https://twitter.com/uawarinfo/status/1501138291348934657

Washington Post

For a few seconds every hour, WZHF-AM interrupts its round-the-clock schedule of talk to air a curious disclaimer: “This radio programming is distributed by RM Broadcasting on behalf of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency, Moscow, Russia. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.”

The cryptic notification masks a larger story. WZHF, a former Spanish-language station 11 miles east of the White House in Maryland’s Capitol Heights, is the flagship of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s effort to harness America’s radio airwaves to sell the Kremlin’s point of view. Despite periodic legal and political challenges, and the imposition of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, the station has stayed on the air, broadcasting its Kremlin-approved message.

The station at 1390 AM is one of only five outlets in the United States that air English-language broadcasts of “Radio Sputnik,” produced in Moscow and Washington under the Russian government’s supervision.

Sputnik is the radio and digital arm of Rossiya Segodnya (Russia Today), the same Kremlin-controlled media agency that directs RT and RT America, the better-known TV and digital media operations founded by Putin’s regime in 2005.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/03/07/radio-sputnik-wzhf/?utm_source=reddit.com

BBC

Pressure is growing on Western food and drink giants to pull out of Russia due to the invasion of Ukraine.

McDonald's and Coca-Cola have been criticised on social media for failing to speak out about the attacks and continuing to operate in the country.

Well-known firms including Netflix and Levi's have already suspended sales or stopped providing services in Russia.

McDonald's and Coca-Cola have not responded to the BBC's request for comment.


https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60649214

BBC says there are calls for other well-known Western firms such as KFC, Pepsi and Starbucks and Burger King to close their outlets and stop sales in Russia.

Daily Beast

Beltway 3, Convoy 0

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia—After taking a single lap around the Beltway on Monday afternoon, the so-called “People’s Convoy” once again failed at its goal of being a “huge pain” for the D.C. metro area. After their short-lived Sunday effort failed, on Monday morning, the anti-vaccine mandate trucker convoy’s organizer Brian Brase pledged to “escalate” the group’s tactics, calling on the truckers to take up two entire Beltway lanes. But that heightened plan did not come to fruition. Instead, the truckers and a bevy of upside-down American flag-bearing support vehicles quickly became separated for the second day in a row. Adding insult to injury, near the Temple Hills and Landover exits, both a semi-truck and pickup truck in the convoy had broken down. A white pickup truck with its hood flipped open caused traffic to reduce to stop-and-go on the outer loop up to the Greenbelt area around 3 p.m. on Monday. Nevertheless, organizers remained optimistic, pledging on Telegram, “We will hold the line!” as the group remained split over whether they should enter into Washington, D.C. proper.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/peoples-convoy-truckers-escalate-dc-tactics-but-fail-yet-again?ref=home

Washington Post

PARIS — Russia did not show up for a hearing Monday at the United Nations’ top court, effectively boycotting Ukrainian efforts to seek an immediate end to the fighting.

The proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague went ahead, but Russia’s absence cast doubts over the extent to which established international legal mechanisms can be effective tools in efforts to stop the war in Ukraine, or could pose serious risks for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

...

The case centers on Russia’s official explanation for its invasion of Ukraine, which President Vladimir Putin has said is intended to end a “genocide” against pro-Russian separatists in the country’s east. There is no evidence to support Russia’s claims.

“Ukraine comes to this court because of a grotesque lie, and to seek protection from the devastating consequences of that lie,” said David Zionts, one of the attorneys for Ukraine. “The lie is the Russian Federation’s claim of genocide in Ukraine. The consequences are unprovoked aggression, cities under siege, civilians under fire.”


https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/03/07/ukraine-russia-hague-icj-hague/

https://twitter.com/Podolyak_M/status/1500815176773341188