Latest news with #rejected
Hindustan Times
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Putin's tough stance on a Ukraine peace plan shows his resolve on Russia's demands
At the same time, he has sought to avoid angering U.S. President Donald Trump by praising his diplomacy and declaring Moscow's openness to peace talks — even as he set maximalist conditions that are rejected by Kyiv and the West. Trump, who once promised to end the 3-year-old war in 24 hours, has upended the U.S. policy of isolating Russia by holding calls with Putin and denigrating Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. At the same time, however, Trump warned Putin against 'tapping me along' and threatened Moscow with sanctions if it fails to back his peace proposals. In recent days, Trump signaled he was losing patience with Putin, declaring the Russian leader had gone 'crazy' by stepping up aerial attacks on Ukraine. He also said: 'What Vladimir Putin doesn't realize is that if it weren't for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He's playing with fire!' Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who serves as deputy head of Putin's Security Council, fired back: 'I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!' Fyodor Lukyanov, a Moscow-based analyst familiar with Kremlin thinking, said Putin is engaged in a 'psychological game' with Trump, with both men thinking they understand each other well. 'Putin's tactics is apparently based on an assumption that the issue has a lesser priority for his interlocutor, who wants to get rid of it one way or another, while for the Russian side, nothing compares to it in importance,' Lukyanov wrote a commentary. 'In this logic, the one who sees it as something of lesser importance will eventually make concessions.' While Ukraine's European allies urge Trump to ramp up sanctions against Moscow to force it to accept a ceasefire, some fear that Trump may end up distancing the U.S. from the conflict. If the U.S. halts or reduces military aid to Kyiv, it would badly erode Ukraine's fighting capability. Kyiv already is experiencing a weapons shortage, particularly air defense systems, leaving it increasingly vulnerable to Russian missile and drone attacks. Across the over 1,000-kilometer front line, the exhausted and outgunned Ukrainian troops are facing increasing Russian pressure. This month, Russian forces accelerated their slow push across the Donetsk region, the focus of Moscow's offensive, grinding through Ukrainian defenses at the quickest pace since last fall. Russia also expanded its attacks in the northeastern Sumy and Kharkiv regions following Putin's promise to create a buffer zone along the border. Many observers expect Russia to expand its offensive over the summer to try to capture more land and set even tougher conditions for peace. 'Moscow thinks its leverage over Ukraine will build over time, and since Trump has strongly implied that he will withdraw from negotiations the Russian military is set to intensify its operations,' said Jack Watling of the Royal United Services Institute in London. He predicted Russia would intensify efforts to take all of the Donetsk region while also pressing a bombing campaign. 'The Kremlin will want to suggest a deteriorating situation as negotiations continue and to signal to Europe that the rear is not safe, to discourage European militaries from putting forces in country,' Watling said in an analysis. Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin, Moscow-based analyst, said the long-expected offensive hasn't yet begun in earnest as Russia is cautious not to anger Trump. 'If Kyiv derails peace talks, the Russian army will start a big offensive,' he said. Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its forces from Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — the four regions that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 but never fully controlled. That demand had been rejected by Kyiv and its allies, but the Russian delegation reportedly repeated it during talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 16. Those talks, the first since botched negotiations in the opening weeks of the war, came after Putin effectively rejected a 30-day truce proposed by Trump that was accepted by Kyiv. Russia had linked such a ceasefire to a halt in Ukraine's mobilization effort and a freeze on Western arms supplies. Putin proposed talks to discuss conditions for a possible truce. Trump quickly prodded Kyiv to accept the offer, but the negotiations yielded no immediate progress except an agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners each. Russia offered to hold another round of talks Monday in Istanbul, where it said it will present a memorandum setting conditions for ending hostilities. It refused to share the document before the negotiations. Some observers see the talks as an attempt by Putin to assuage Trump's growing impatience. 'Putin has devised a way to offer Trump an interim, tangible outcome from Washington's peace efforts without making any real concessions,' said Tatiana Stanovaya of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Facing Western accusations of stalling, the Kremlin responded that the conflict can't be resolved quickly and emphasized the need to address its 'root causes.' When Putin invaded Ukraine, he said the move was needed to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and protect Russian speakers in the country -– arguments strongly rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies as a cover for an unprovoked act of aggression. Along with those demands, Putin also wants limits on Ukraine's sovereignty, including the size of Ukraine's military, and for Kyiv to end what Moscow sees as glorification of Ukraine's World War II-era nationalist leaders, some of whom sided with the invading forces of Nazi Germany over the Soviet leadership in the Kremlin. Seeking to underline that Moscow will press home its initial demands, Putin appointed his aide Vladimir Medinsky to lead the Russian delegation in Istanbul. He also led the Russian side in the 2022 talks. Kyiv reportedly has asked the U.S. to encourage Putin to replace him. The soft-spoken, 54-year-old career bureaucrat, who was born in Ukraine, ascended through the Kremlin ranks after writing a series of books exposing purported Western plots against Russia. In an interview with Russian state television after the May 16 talks, Medinsky pointed to Russia's 18th century war with Sweden that lasted 21 years, a signal that Moscow is prepared to fight for a long time until its demands are met. 'History repeats itself in a remarkable way,' he said.
Local Spain
a day ago
- Business
- Local Spain
Inside Spain: Another bid to limit foreign buyers and house brands rule
If foreign property buyers from wealthy Western nations currently feel targeted by the Spanish government, it's not hard to understand why. In April, Pedro Sánchez's administration scrapped the golden visa residency scheme which gave non-EU nationals Spanish residency in return for buying property worth €500,000. Last week, the ruling Socialists officially lodged their proposal to charge a 100 percent tax on non-EU non-resident property buyers, effectively doubling the price they pay for homes in Spain. There have also been proposed foreign property ownership limitations put forward by authorities in the Canaries and the Balearics. And most radical of all was the suggestion submitted by Catalan separatist party ERC to require actual foreign residents to apply for a permit to buy a Spanish property if they haven't become permanent residents yet. In other words, if they haven't officially resided in Spain for five years. This proposal was rejected by Spain's Congressional Housing Committee in late April, but now ERC are trying to get such a law passed only in Catalonia. The idea is the same as that shelved a month ago - a regional authorisation system whereby foreigners planning to buy a home would first have to prove their eligibility by applying for a permit from the housing department of the region where the property is located, in this case Catalonia. The criteria for this would be first proving five years of continuous residence in the country, so it would exclude those with a temporary resident card from being able to buy a home. The initiative will be debated in the Catalan Parliament next week. 'You can't have a situation where a firm on the other side of the world buys real estate for speculation,' ERC MP Mar Besses said. ERC's Secretary General Elisenda Alamany has also defended the proposal by saying that 'we want people who buy to show their commitment to the city (Barcelona), as it's the way to guarantee our identity and communal lifestyle.' Both points made by members of ERC are certainly valid and understandable, but they seem to be more directed at investment companies as opposed to the temporary residents who they are looking to stop from buying homes. Can their residency in the northeastern region and desire to buy a home there be considered 'speculation'? Just as is happening with the crackdown on Airbnbs in Spain, the lines between huge businesses focused just on profits and people with one or two homes in Spain are becoming blurred. Protestors hold a banner reading 'The neighbourhood is not for sale' during a demonstration to demand better access to housing in Barcelona on November 23, 2024. (Photo by Josep LAGO / AFP) In other matters, there was a time not long ago in Spain when buying Mercadona's Hacendado house brand was almost seen as defining one's class or socioeconomic status. The idea for many was that if these marca blanca (house brand) products are cheaper, they must be of a worse quality. It's a silly concept most of us are guilty of at some point, one which doesn't factor in the lower cost of distribution, packaging and marketing for supermarkets who produce their own products. Fortunately, through a combination of necessity and change of mentality, Spanish shoppers have gotten over their prejudices about house brands. Spaniards buy 20 percent more house brands now than they did in 2003, representing 44 percent of their grocery shopping, according to a study by Kantar for Spanish business daily Expansión. In some cases, the percentage is even higher: Lidl (82.1 percent), Mercadona (74.5 percent), Carrefour (40 percent), Día (57 percent). And according to their findings this shift isn't just about tightening one's belt because of the rising cost of living, although they admit that this has been the catalyst. Supermarkets in Spain have developed their own premium differentiation strategy - with different categories of house brands - which has broken the traditional monopoly of the big name brands. Now the marca blanca isn't 'the worst option' but the 'cheapest option', and this change of perception makes a difference. Unfortunately, the downside of improving house brand products - whether in reputation, appearance or actual quality - is that they've been getting more expensive. Then again, what hasn't?
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Committee backs clean energy credit reform estimated to produce $67M yearly in ratepayer savings
Natural gas meter. (Photo by Bill Oxford/ Getty Images) The legislative committee tasked with wading through the many proposals brought forward this session to address the problems with the state's clean energy credit program is advancing a bill that critics say doesn't go far enough. On Thursday night, the Maine Legislature's Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee voted along party lines with the majority in favor of an amended version of LD 1777. The bill Democrats advanced to the full Legislature asks the Governor's Energy Office to develop a successor program for front-of-the-meter net energy billing projects sometime next year. The Public Utilities Commission would need to approve the plan, but only if the benefits to ratepayers outweighs the costs. Net energy billing is a utility program designed to encourage customers to install or participate in small-scale renewable energy projects like solar panels by offering credits to offset their electricity bills. It was expanded in 2019 so customers can use renewable energy generators located outside of their property but within the same utility service territory, such as a community solar project. Front-of-the-meter projects include community solar projects and those included in the state's current tariff rate program, which is used by nonresidential customers. If LD 1777 is enacted, front-of-the-meter projects would no longer be eligible to participate in net energy billing once the successor program is in place. 'I hope that it will lead to the survival in a sustainable way and, perhaps, in a more economically just way for this really important set of programs and for the value that it has produced, as it certainly has,' said Rep. Sophie Warren (D-Scarborough), the bill's sponsor. While the committee rejected other proposals, including those to repeal net energy billing entirely, it carried over some legislation such as LD 1936 that could serve as vehicles for further tweaks to the program in the next legislative session. As LD 1777 advances to the full Maine House of Representatives and Senate, proponents of solar energy fear these changes could harm the future of the industry. During the committee discussion Thursday, Public Advocate Heather Sanborn said if passed the annual savings for ratepayers statewide over the next 16 years are estimated to be an average of $47 million from proposed changes to the tariff rate program and $20 million from changes to the kilowatt hour program. Currently, the kilowatt hour program is open to all customers and provides kilowatt hour credits on participating customers' bills if they install renewable energy generators such as solar panels or join a community solar project, where customers receive a portion of a solar farm's credits. The credits expire after 12 months. This program, in particular, has come under fire for providing generous incentives to solar farm developers that utility customers are helping pay for. LD 1777 creates a monthly charge for kilowatt hour projects starting January 2026 to offset the associated costs currently passed on to ratepayers. There are 1,000 kilowatts in a megawatt and most community solar projects run between one and five megawatts. As of May 20, Maine has 300 community solar projects with a total capacity of just over 1,000 megawatts, according to the Governor's Energy Office's solar dashboard. The proposal outlines a charge of $4.10 per kilowatt of capacity for projects between three and five megawatts and $1.20 per kilowatt of capacity for projects between one and three megawatts. However, Warren said those may be adjusted to whatever number is necessary to achieve $20 million in ratepayer savings in the first year. The tariff rate program for nonresidential customers provides dollar credits for those who use their own projects or share in someone else's. The Public Utilities Commission sets an annual rate for the credits, which also expire after 12 months, depending on the customer's size and utility provider. However, Warren's legislation establishes new, tiered tariff rates for certain projects starting January 2026. The new rates would vary depending on the project's capacity. Republicans on the energy committee opposed the bill, with multiple of them saying it doesn't go far enough to fix the problems net energy billing has created in the state. Sen. Nicole Grohoski (D-Hancock) agreed, but voted in favor because 'doing nothing would be completely irresponsible,' she said. However, she said that if more needs to be done to modify net energy billing in the future to support Maine people who are struggling to keep up with electricity bills, she vowed to 'be loud' about it — whether she's still in office or not. Similarly, Rep. Chris Kessler (D-South Portland) said he was voting in favor 'with a heavy heart.' Admitting it may make him a 'unicorn,' committee co-chair Sen. Mark Lawrence (D-York) said he has been pleased with net energy billing. Though she was disappointed the committee couldn't come to a unanimous vote, Rep. Valli Geiger (D-Rockland) said her fear would be that the legislation goes too far in potentially deterring solar. She said climate change is an existential threat and renewable energy is the only path forward. Maine's clean energy sector has admitted net energy billing can be improved, but has cautioned lawmakers against retroactive changes to the program that could undermine investor confidence. Many of them were disappointed in the committee's decision to advance LD 1777, which they feel includes 'drastic' concessions for the solar industry, according to a news release after the vote. 'The Legislature today chose to both harm participants retroactively and threaten the future of the industry,' said Eliza Donoghue, executive director of the Maine Renewable Energy Association. 'While the program can certainly be improved, it should not occur at the expense of the people and businesses that invested in good faith for our clean energy future.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
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Business Standard
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
IFFCO profit rises 16% to 2,823 cr, revenue up 4.5% to Rs 41,244 cr
Fertilizer major IFFCO on Thursday reported a 16 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 2,823 crore and a 4.5 per cent growth in turnover to Rs 41,244 crore during the last fiscal on higher sales of conventional soil nutrients as well as nano liquid urea and nano liquid DAP. It had posted a net profit of Rs 2,443 crore and turnover of Rs 39,474 crore in the 2023-24 fiscal. Cooperative IFFCO Managing Director U S Awasthi highlighted that sales of nano fertilisers rose 46 per cent last fiscal to 364.41 lakh bottles (of 500 ml each) but rued that "growth in sale volumes is not as per the expectation". Asserting that the nano fertilisers are effective if application is done in prescribed manner, he said the cooperative is focusing on creating awareness about the benefits of the new products. It is investing a lot on purchasing drones for spraying nano liquid. He said the cooperative has got a good response for nano-fertilisers in overseas markets, including Brazil and the United States. "We have invested so far around Rs 2500 crore on nano-fertilisers, which includes Rs 1700 crore on setting up plants," Awasthi said, while committing more investments to bring new nano products in the market and also creating awareness among farmers. He noted that crop productivity increases with the usage of nano fertilisers and rejected any concerns related to efficacy of this product. The IFFCO MD said the cooperative does not mind losing money, if it is for the right cause which is to protect soil health. Awasthi said the IFFCO has already launched nano-liquid zinc and nano-liquid copper in 100 ml bottles, costing Rs 200 each. It also plans to launch nano NPK fertilisers in granular form for soil application in basal dose. Elaborating on financial and operational performances, IFFCO chairman Dileep Sanghani said, the co-operative has "registered a profit (before tax) of more than Rs 3,000 crore for three consecutive financial years". The cooperative has rewarded its members with 20 per cent dividend in the paid up shares capital, he added. Total fertilizer production rose to 93.10 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 from 88.95 lakh tonnes in the preceding year, while sale increased slightly to 113.78 lakh tonnes as against 111.73 lakh tonnes. Nano fertiliser sales were at 364.41 lakh bottles (of 500 ml each) in 2024-25, higher than 249.45 lakh bottles in the previous year. Urea and Di Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) sales remained flat at 67.32 lakh tonnes and 25.62 lakh tonnes, respectively, during 2024-25. IFFCO, which has more than 35,600 cooperative societies as its members, is one of the leading fertilizer manufacturers in the country and has 10 plants in India and abroad.
The Advertiser
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Aust diplomat's husband walks after spitting on woman
A New Zealand court has discharged the husband of an Australian diplomat without convicting him, months after the man pleaded guilty to assault for drunkenly spitting on a teenager during a street altercation on the night of a rugby match in Wellington. The man was granted permanent name suppression. Judge Paul Mabey, presiding at the Wellington District Court, said he didn't accept the man's arguments that the potential harms to him justified the discharge, but the magistrate agreed that his wife's diplomatic career could be curbed by an assault conviction and the publication of his name. The man could be barred from travel abroad to her future postings, the judge said on Thursday, and the family could be split up if the Australian High Commission decided he could not remain in New Zealand to preserve the bilateral relations between the countries. The charges arose after an episode last September after the man attended a rugby match between New Zealand and Australia in the capital. He was drunk when he arrived at Wellington's main nightlife area, where he approached a group of teenagers and became aggressive when they didn't want to engage with him, the judge said. A member of the group punched the man, who responded by spitting on a young woman. He was arrested by police officers who happened to be passing. The case has provoked widespread news coverage in New Zealand and Australia along with mobile phone footage of the man's arrest, in which he verbally abused a police officer and claimed he had diplomatic immunity. He had such immunity, conferred by protocol to the partners of senior envoys to New Zealand, which he later waived voluntarily. He pleaded guilty to New Zealand's lowest level of assault charge in January. It is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $NZ4000 ($A3700). "For the avoidance of any doubt at all, he is not here to be sentenced for abusing the police or rashly claiming diplomatic immunity," Judge Mabey said. "He was right to say he had that immunity," the judge added. "He was completely stupid to say it at all." But the magistrate said he would discharge the man because of his wife's suggestion that the Australian diplomatic service would be unable to ignore the husband's conviction and the widely-distributed mobile phone video of his arrest when considering her future. "If I were not to suppress his name, his offending would be inextricably linked to his wife and she would suffer considerably," the judge said. He rejected a bid by the man's lawyer to suppress the country his wife represented in New Zealand. A New Zealand court has discharged the husband of an Australian diplomat without convicting him, months after the man pleaded guilty to assault for drunkenly spitting on a teenager during a street altercation on the night of a rugby match in Wellington. The man was granted permanent name suppression. Judge Paul Mabey, presiding at the Wellington District Court, said he didn't accept the man's arguments that the potential harms to him justified the discharge, but the magistrate agreed that his wife's diplomatic career could be curbed by an assault conviction and the publication of his name. The man could be barred from travel abroad to her future postings, the judge said on Thursday, and the family could be split up if the Australian High Commission decided he could not remain in New Zealand to preserve the bilateral relations between the countries. The charges arose after an episode last September after the man attended a rugby match between New Zealand and Australia in the capital. He was drunk when he arrived at Wellington's main nightlife area, where he approached a group of teenagers and became aggressive when they didn't want to engage with him, the judge said. A member of the group punched the man, who responded by spitting on a young woman. He was arrested by police officers who happened to be passing. The case has provoked widespread news coverage in New Zealand and Australia along with mobile phone footage of the man's arrest, in which he verbally abused a police officer and claimed he had diplomatic immunity. He had such immunity, conferred by protocol to the partners of senior envoys to New Zealand, which he later waived voluntarily. He pleaded guilty to New Zealand's lowest level of assault charge in January. It is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $NZ4000 ($A3700). "For the avoidance of any doubt at all, he is not here to be sentenced for abusing the police or rashly claiming diplomatic immunity," Judge Mabey said. "He was right to say he had that immunity," the judge added. "He was completely stupid to say it at all." But the magistrate said he would discharge the man because of his wife's suggestion that the Australian diplomatic service would be unable to ignore the husband's conviction and the widely-distributed mobile phone video of his arrest when considering her future. "If I were not to suppress his name, his offending would be inextricably linked to his wife and she would suffer considerably," the judge said. He rejected a bid by the man's lawyer to suppress the country his wife represented in New Zealand. A New Zealand court has discharged the husband of an Australian diplomat without convicting him, months after the man pleaded guilty to assault for drunkenly spitting on a teenager during a street altercation on the night of a rugby match in Wellington. The man was granted permanent name suppression. Judge Paul Mabey, presiding at the Wellington District Court, said he didn't accept the man's arguments that the potential harms to him justified the discharge, but the magistrate agreed that his wife's diplomatic career could be curbed by an assault conviction and the publication of his name. The man could be barred from travel abroad to her future postings, the judge said on Thursday, and the family could be split up if the Australian High Commission decided he could not remain in New Zealand to preserve the bilateral relations between the countries. The charges arose after an episode last September after the man attended a rugby match between New Zealand and Australia in the capital. He was drunk when he arrived at Wellington's main nightlife area, where he approached a group of teenagers and became aggressive when they didn't want to engage with him, the judge said. A member of the group punched the man, who responded by spitting on a young woman. He was arrested by police officers who happened to be passing. The case has provoked widespread news coverage in New Zealand and Australia along with mobile phone footage of the man's arrest, in which he verbally abused a police officer and claimed he had diplomatic immunity. He had such immunity, conferred by protocol to the partners of senior envoys to New Zealand, which he later waived voluntarily. He pleaded guilty to New Zealand's lowest level of assault charge in January. It is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $NZ4000 ($A3700). "For the avoidance of any doubt at all, he is not here to be sentenced for abusing the police or rashly claiming diplomatic immunity," Judge Mabey said. "He was right to say he had that immunity," the judge added. "He was completely stupid to say it at all." But the magistrate said he would discharge the man because of his wife's suggestion that the Australian diplomatic service would be unable to ignore the husband's conviction and the widely-distributed mobile phone video of his arrest when considering her future. "If I were not to suppress his name, his offending would be inextricably linked to his wife and she would suffer considerably," the judge said. He rejected a bid by the man's lawyer to suppress the country his wife represented in New Zealand. A New Zealand court has discharged the husband of an Australian diplomat without convicting him, months after the man pleaded guilty to assault for drunkenly spitting on a teenager during a street altercation on the night of a rugby match in Wellington. The man was granted permanent name suppression. Judge Paul Mabey, presiding at the Wellington District Court, said he didn't accept the man's arguments that the potential harms to him justified the discharge, but the magistrate agreed that his wife's diplomatic career could be curbed by an assault conviction and the publication of his name. The man could be barred from travel abroad to her future postings, the judge said on Thursday, and the family could be split up if the Australian High Commission decided he could not remain in New Zealand to preserve the bilateral relations between the countries. The charges arose after an episode last September after the man attended a rugby match between New Zealand and Australia in the capital. He was drunk when he arrived at Wellington's main nightlife area, where he approached a group of teenagers and became aggressive when they didn't want to engage with him, the judge said. A member of the group punched the man, who responded by spitting on a young woman. He was arrested by police officers who happened to be passing. The case has provoked widespread news coverage in New Zealand and Australia along with mobile phone footage of the man's arrest, in which he verbally abused a police officer and claimed he had diplomatic immunity. He had such immunity, conferred by protocol to the partners of senior envoys to New Zealand, which he later waived voluntarily. He pleaded guilty to New Zealand's lowest level of assault charge in January. It is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $NZ4000 ($A3700). "For the avoidance of any doubt at all, he is not here to be sentenced for abusing the police or rashly claiming diplomatic immunity," Judge Mabey said. "He was right to say he had that immunity," the judge added. "He was completely stupid to say it at all." But the magistrate said he would discharge the man because of his wife's suggestion that the Australian diplomatic service would be unable to ignore the husband's conviction and the widely-distributed mobile phone video of his arrest when considering her future. "If I were not to suppress his name, his offending would be inextricably linked to his wife and she would suffer considerably," the judge said. He rejected a bid by the man's lawyer to suppress the country his wife represented in New Zealand.
