Latest news with #AFUO
Herald Sun
3 days ago
- Business
- Herald Sun
Andrew Forrest calls for end to Russian fuel imports
Don't miss out on the headlines from Victoria. Followed categories will be added to My News. 'Australian mums and dads should not be funding Putin's war machine,' Dr Forrest told the Herald Sun after it was revealed the Kremlin had received $1.85bn in taxes from crude oil exports that have, via Indian refineries, ended up in Australian fuel tanks since 2023. Calls have grown for Australia and other Western nations to close a loophole that allows third-party nations such as India, Turkey and China to refine Russian crude feedstock into petroleum and legally export it as a 'substantially transformed' product. Dr Forrest, recently named one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people, said 'we need comprehensive reform of sanctions law to effectively police Russian fossil fuel imports.' 'The fossil fuel economy will always create dependencies on tyrants. The geostrategic need for green fuel independence is now.' Through his Minderoo Foundation, Dr Forrest has provided $20m in emergency aid to Ukraine for those impacted by the war and committed another $765m to post-conflict rebuilding, focusing on green energy and digital infrastructure. The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations, a peak body for the diaspora, is also calling on major fuel retailers, including BP and Ampol, to prohibit imports from foreign refineries that use Russian crude, in particular the Jamnagar Refinery in India which has exported much of the estimated $3.7bn in fuel to Australia that contains Russian feedstock which generates taxes for autocrat Vladimir Putin. AFUO wants the Albanese government to close the sanctions loophole, mandate transparency on the crude origin of fuel and pursue international co-operation on the issue. The group's chair, Kateryna Argyrou, has also called for consumer labelling to certify 'clean fuel' standards for motorists and other users to provide confidence their purchases are not helping fund Putin's invasion. An Essential Research survey commissioned by AFUO found 60 per cent of Australians back comprehensive import bans on products made from Russian oil and 60 per cent also want petrol retailers to voluntarily commit to only using refineries that refuse Russian crude.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Protest planned against 'Russians at War' documentary screenings in Australia
Members of the Ukrainian diaspora in Australia are set to protest the screening of the controversial "Russians at War" documentary at the Antenna Documentary Film Festival in Sydney, Australia on Feb. 6. Canadian-Russian director Anastasia Trofimova's documentary Russians at War has faced criticism for what many perceive as an attempt to whitewash Russian soldiers involved in Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. The documentary has been criticized for lacking a concrete counter-narrative to Russian propaganda, failing to address documented Russian war crimes, and does not offer a definitive critique of Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime. Earlier in her career, Trofimova worked for Russia Today (RT), a Kremlin-backed propaganda outlet. The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations' (AFUO) planned rally comes as controversy continues to follow the film, after initially appearing on the official list of screenings at the prestigious Venice and Toronto film festivals. Following protest across different cities since the film first raised controversy in September 2024, organizers at various international film festivals have pulled the film from various festivals' schedule. Despite the anticipated protest, the Antenna Film Festival, which is scheduled to begin screening the film on Feb. 10, has not removed its scheduled screening from the festival's . "The Ukrainian community has come together with strength and focus to stop this russian propaganda being screened in Australia," the AFUO said in a statement. "This film is not an independent exposé — it is a carefully controlled narrative that serves the interests of the Russian state." In the most prominent case, the Toronto International Film Festival decided to from the schedule, citing security concerns, but later decided to for the film after the end of the festival in September, drawing widespread criticism. Controversy further spread as it was revealed the Russians at War film received 340,000 Canadian dollars from the Canada Media Fund. On Oct. 7, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) began investigating Trofimova on the charges of justifying and recognizing the legitimacy of Russia's aggression against Ukraine and illegally crossing Ukraine's internationally recognized borders when filming in the Russian-occupied territories. Read also: Is 'Russians at War' propaganda? We asked 7 people in film who saw it We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
