• English
  • 简体中文
  • 繁體中文
  • Tiếng Việt
  • ไทย
  • Indonesia
Subscribe
Real-time News
According to Saudi media Hadas, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard warned ships not to deviate from the "designated route" to South Lark Island.June 20th - According to Russian media reports, starting September 1st, the Russian government will impose an 8% export tax on certain diamonds in an effort to protect its domestic diamond cutting and processing industry. The policy stipulates that the Russian government will levy an 8% export tax on uncut and partially cut diamonds weighing between 0.45 carats and 10.8 carats, as well as diamonds of special sizes exceeding 10.8 carats. However, this measure will not apply to member states of the Eurasian Economic Union.On June 20, the Consulate General of the Peoples Republic of China in Mandalay issued a statement saying that recently, several Chinese citizens were arrested by Myanmar police after entering Myanmar through Mandalay Airport for illegally traveling to areas prohibited or restricted to foreigners. Simultaneously, several Chinese citizens using entry and exit permits to enter northern Myanmar through relevant land border crossings were also arrested by Myanmar police for suspected illegal entry while en route to other inland areas. The Consulate General of the Peoples Republic of China in Mandalay reminds Chinese citizens traveling to Myanmar to fully understand Myanmars national conditions and laws and regulations, and not to travel to areas prohibited or restricted to foreigners. They should also strictly abide by the scope of use of their travel documents, especially those entering Myanmar through China-Myanmar border crossings with entry and exit permits, who are limited to activities in relevant border cities on the Myanmar side and should not cross the border into inland areas to avoid violating Myanmar law.According to Syrian state television, the Syrian Ministry of Defense stated that an attack by unidentified gunmen in northeastern Aleppo resulted in the deaths of two soldiers.On June 20th, Tencent customer service stated that WeChat Xiaowei (intelligent assistant) is a native AI assistant being tested on a small scale by the WeChat team and is currently still in the testing phase. The customer service representative stated that WeChat Xiaowei supports operating native WeChat functions via text or voice dialogue, such as adjusting settings, sending messages, and making phone calls. Xiaowei currently uses multiple AI models, including Tencents self-developed and high-quality open-source models. "Currently, WeChat Xiaoweis gray-scale testing covers multiple systems; please refer to the actual page display for specific participation eligibility," the customer service representative said.

Ukraine Will Block A Crucial Russian Gas Transit to Europe, Blaming Russia

Charlie Brooks

May 11, 2022 09:46

G2.png


Ukraine said on Tuesday that it will cease the flow of gas via a transit point that, according to Kiev, sends over one-third of the fuel piped from Russia to Europe through Ukraine. Kiev blamed Moscow for the action and said it would redirect the flows elsewhere.


Even after Moscow's invasion, Ukraine has remained a significant transit route for Russian gas to Europe.


The operator of Ukraine's gas infrastructure, GTSOU, has declared "force majeure" and will cease shipments through the Sokhranivka route as of Wednesday. "Force majeure" is a provision triggered when a firm is affected by circumstances beyond its control.


However, Gazprom (MCX:GAZP), which has a monopoly on Russian gas pipeline exports, said that it was "technologically impossible" to move all volumes to the Sudzha connecting point farther to the west, as GTSOU requested.


GTSOU CEO Sergiy Makogon told Reuters that Russian occupation troops have begun transporting gas flowing through Ukraine to two rebel territories supported by Russia in the country's east. He failed to provide proof.


The company stated that it was unable to operate at the Novopskov gas compressor station due to "the interference of the occupying forces in technical processes," adding that it could temporarily redirect the affected flow to the Sudzha physical interconnection point, which is located on Ukrainian territory.


Ukraine's suspension of Russian natural gas shipments via the Sokhranivka route should have no effect on the local Ukrainian market, according to Yuriy Vitrenko, the president of the state-owned energy business Naftogaz.


The national gas company of Moldova, a tiny country on Ukraine's western border, said that neither GTSOU nor Gazprom had notified them of a supply interruption.


Russian army and separatist militants have controlled the Novopskov compressor station in the Luhansk area of eastern Ukraine since shortly after Moscow launched a "special military operation" in February.


GTSOU said that it is the first compressor in the Ukraine gas transit system in the Luhansk area, the transit route for about 32,6 million cubic metres of gas per day, or a third of the Russian gas transported to Europe through Ukraine.


To fulfill its "transit responsibilities to European partners in full," GTSOU said that it will "temporarily move unavailable capacity" to the Sudzha interconnection point.


Gazprom said it had received information from Ukraine that the nation will cease gas transit to Europe through the Sokhranivka interconnector at 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday local time.


The Russian corporation said that it observed no evidence of force majeure or impediments to business as usual. Gazprom emphasized that it was fulfilling its commitments to European gas purchasers.


As punishment for the invasion of Ukraine, the United States has pushed other nations to reduce their reliance on Russian energy and has prohibited Russian oil and other energy imports.


Ned Price, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, said that Tuesday's declaration does not alter the "as soon as feasible" schedule for reducing global dependency on Russian oil.