(2022-02-18). Shelling in Donbass brings Europe to brink of war. wsws.org Heavy artillery shelling reported in East Ukraine's Donbass region is the most significant military escalation of the conflict between the US-funded Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists since at least last spring.
(2022-02-18). Lavrov: Russia 'Alarmed' by Escalation of Shelling, Use of Arms Banned by Minsk Accords in Donbass. sputniknews.com The region was thrust into a civil war in the spring of 2014, in the aftermath of a US and EU-backed coup in Kiev.
(2022-02-18). Breakaway Ukrainian region orders evacuation. rt.com 
(2022-02-18). Ukraine's security council chief sees no threat of Russian attack. tass.com Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council Secretary Alexey Danilov said Kiev is registering "provocations by Russia in Donbass"
(2022-02-18). Lavrov labels Western 'Russia invasion' claims 'propaganda, fakes and fiction'. rt.com 
"If they enjoy it, let them," the foreign minister told RT regarding claims from officials and media | Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has lashed out at Western officials who have been peddling the purported threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Apparently, they do it for the sheer pleasure of accusing Moscow, he told RT in an exclusive interview on Friday. | "I am certain that even casual observers of foreign policy have long confirmed to themselves that all of it is propaganda, fake news, fiction," Lavrov said of the accusations. | He suggested that Western officials making such claims simply like…
(2022-02-18). UN received Russian documents about crimes in Donbass. tass.com The Russian Investigative Committee earlier said it had launched a criminal case into the discovery of mass graves of Donbass civilians killed in shelling…
(2022-02-18). Putin to take part in nuclear war drills. rt.com 
The strategic weapons exercises are scheduled to take place on Saturday | Russian President Vladimir Putin will take direct command of scheduled ballistic missile training on Saturday, which will see the country's military test its nuclear capabilities, Moscow has confirmed. | Officials released a statement on Friday, writing, "on February 19, under the supervision of the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, a planned exercise of the forces of strategic deterrence will take place, during which ballistic and cruise missiles will be launched." | The statement goes…
(2022-02-18). US condones forceful assimilation of Russians in Ukraine – Russian ambassador to US. tass.com We see here not just double standards of the United States, but quite a primitive and crude cynicism, Anatoly Antonov said…
(2022-02-18). West bullies world while citing threats from China, Russia. asiatimes.com 
On January 21, Vice-Admiral Kay-Achim Schà∂nbach attended a talk in New Delhi organized by the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses. Schà∂nbach was speaking as the chief of Germany's navy during his visit to the institute. "What he really wants is respect," Schà∂nbach said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "And my god, giving someone respect is low-cost, even …
(2022-02-18). Civil Defence Sirens Sound In Donetsk After Mass Evacuation Announcement. popularresistance.org Loud civil defense sirens have been heard in Donetsk after the announcement of mass evacuation from the self-proclaimed republic to Russia, a Sputnik correspondent reported. | The sirens can be heard in the videos captured by the correspondent, and streets are seen to be completely deserted. Local authorities have yet to announce why the sirens sounded. The civil defence sirens go off in Donetsk regularly (once every two or three months) but, as a rule, the authorities of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) warn the population in advance. | The sirens went off shortly after Denis Pushilin, the DPR…
(2022-02-18). US Doubles Downs On Russian 'Invasion' Rhetoric At UN. popularresistance.org The United States and Russia again clashed at the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, with the U.S. repeating its alarmist message that Russia is poised to invade Ukraine at any time. | The incessant U.S. accusation of Russian aggression against Ukraine was accompanied by reports Thursday by OSCE monitors of more than 500 explosions at the line of confrontation in the Donbass region of Ukraine. | Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin, who chaired the council meeting as this month's president, said 122,000 Ukrainian military forces were lined up at the front with Donbass with the possible intention of la…
(2022-02-18). 'We're Headed For War': Political Observers Say Expected Russian 'False Flag' Operation Has Already Started In Eastern Ukraine. moguldom.com U.S. officials are warning of an imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine in the next few days with weapons that could include cyber warfare, ballistic missiles, fighter jets and tanks. Russian military personnel in Crimea and areas near Ukraine have increased from an estimated 100,000 on Jan. 30 to as much as 190,000, said Michael Carpenter, …
(2022-02-18). Documents Reveal US Gov't Spent $22M Promoting Anti-Russia Narrative in Ukraine and Abroad. mintpressnews.com 
The National Endowment for Democracy can claim it is in the business of democracy promotion. In reality, it does anything but that, unless "democracy" is entirely synonymous with elite U.S. interests.
(2022-02-18). Venezuela Expresses Total Support for Russia on Ukraine Tensions. orinocotribune.com "Russia has the full support of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in the fight it is putting up to dispel the threats from NATO and the Western world," said the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, this Wednesday, February 16, during his meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Yuri Borisov. | During the meeting of the High-Level Intergovernmental Commission (CIAN), where strategic agreements were signed between both nations at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, the Venezuelan head of state stated his position, expressing his belief that Russia will continue to be a peaceful nation. | "
(2022-02-18). Not Another U.S. War! Demo TOMORROW @3PM: Grand Central Terminal, NYC. iacenter.org DANGER! Not Another U.S. War! SATURDAY, February 19, 2022, at 3 PM Inside GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL, At the Clock, Park Avenue & East 42nd Street, NYC Stop the war with Russia Every U.S. war in our life time is based on lies, provocations and false flag operations. We need healthcare and education, not endless US wars. Stop the NATO expansion! Stop sending U.S. weapons to Ukraine, Poland, Romania and throughout the European Union. Fight Racism! Not Russia With participation from: Antiwar, social justice, anti-racist, environmental, human rights and veterans groups. An Emergency Action with activists from groups incl…
(2022-02-18). Canadian junta accuses Russia of shelling kindergarten in Ukraine. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com Several sites have run the Canadian Press account with identical language. Foreign Minister Joly seems alone in blaming Russia for the shelling in question. This is the leader of Canada's martial law regime in characteristic form yesterday. His government has trained the most Ukrainian government troops (over 30,000 as of last autumn) for the intensifying …
(2022-02-18). Iran ready to help resolve crisis in Ukraine peacefully. en.mehrnews.com Referring to the crisis in the relations between Ukraine and Russia, the Iranian Foreign Minister said that Iran is ready to provide any necessary assistance and take any necessary action to resolve the crisis peacefully.
(2022-02-18). Ukraine: Waiting for an 'imminent' war to start. asiatimes.com 
The situation in Ukraine continues to be very tense, fluid and evolving. The Donbas conflict that erupted in 2014 threatens to escalate, while Western media, politicians and analysts speculate about the exact date Russia may invade its neighbor. The very same pundits who claimed Russian President Vladimir Putin would attack Ukraine on February 16 now …
(2022-02-18). Blinken ready to meet with Lavrov late next week. tass.com US–ê ready to accept the proposed dates for late next week, "provided there is no further Russian invasion of Ukraine," US Secretary of State said…
(2022-02-18). US Still Claims Russian Invasion of Ukraine Could Happen in the 'Coming Days'. news.antiwar.com US officials continue to warn that Russia is preparing to invade Ukraine despite Moscow's repeated denials and Ukraine's downplaying of the threat. At a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken Blinken claimed that the US has evidence that Russian forces "are preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine in the coming days." He accused Russia of creating a pretext fo…
(2022-02-18). A Call for Peace: Russian & U.S. Women Push for Diplomacy, Not Military Action, to Resolve Crisis. democracynow.org 
U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have agreed to meet next week as tension remains high over Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia has announced plans to stage massive drills on Saturday of its nuclear forces, including multiple practice missile launches. We speak with Russian journalist Nadezhda Azhgikhina, one of a group of two dozen independent Russian and American women who released an open letter this week calling for peace. The letter reads, "We are united in the belief that diplomacy, dialogue, engagement and exchange are urgently needed to end the current crisis an…
(2022-02-18). Russia Expels US Deputy Ambassador From Moscow, Says It's a Retaliatory Move. news.antiwar.com The State Department said Thursday that Russia had expelled Bart Gorman, who served as the deputy US ambassador in Moscow, amid heightened tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine. Moscow said the move was a response to the US's "unreasonable expulsion" of a senior Russian diplomat by Washington. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova …
(2022-02-18). Zelensky Downplays Ukraine's Chances for Potential NATO Membership. news.antiwar.com On Thursday, Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky downplayed the chance of Ukraine joining NATO Zelensky said that despite Ukraine's desire to join the Western military alliance, the process was not advancing. Some NATO member states would not approve Ukraine's membership, which Zelensky recognized. | "Not only Russia is against [our] membership. Some individual NATO members support Moscow's position. That is an open secret," he told Bild. Z…
(2022-02-18). Headlines for February 18, 2022. democracynow.org Biden Claims Russia Is Plotting a "False Flag" Operation as Pretext for Ukraine Invasion, COVID-19 Cases Hit Record Highs in Asian Countries as Omicron Variant Surges, Donald Trump, Trump Jr. and Ivanka Ordered to Testify in New York Civil Fraud Probe, Florida Lawmakers Advance Bill to Ban Abortions After 15 Weeks, More Than a Quarter of World's Women Worldwide Have Experienced Domestic Violence, Haitian Sweatshop Workers Strike to Demand $15 a Day, Death Toll in Brazil Landslides Rises to 117, with 100+ Still Missing, Canadian Police Investigating Sabotage of Coastal GasLink Pipeline Worksite,…
(2022-02-18). Headlines that cause wars. antibellum679354512.wordpress.com And are designed to do just that. Recent stories picked up and circulated by Yahoo News. The first is only missing the adjectives Young and Innocent before the word Kids. Daily BeastPro-Russian Forces Shell Ukrainian Kindergarten Full of Kids The HillRussia likely to launch 'limited' attack against Ukraine, Estonia foreign intelligence agents say AxiosU.S. warns …
(2022-02-18). How the Russia-Ukraine Conflict is Lose-Lose for Israel. juancole.com By Adnan Abu Amer | — ( Middle East Monitor ) — It is almost 3,000 kilometres from Tel Aviv to Kyiv, and yet the crisis between Ukraine and Russia is having a huge impact on Israel. Why does it seem to be a party to the crisis when it shares no border with either …
(2022-02-18). Mexican Scientist In Miami: I'm A Russian Agent And I Plead Guilty. moguldom.com An internationally-renowned Mexican scientist pleaded guilty to acting as a Russian agent without notifying authorities in the United States. Attorneys for Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes, 37, filed a plea deal on Tuesday, Feb. 15, nearly two years to the day after Fuentes was arrested by FBI agents. The FBI found incriminating information on Fuentes' phone …
(2022-02-18). RUSADA responsible for delayed result in Valieva's doping sample — WADA. tass.com On February 14, the CAS turned down an appeal filed by the IOC, the WADA and the ISU against the decision of the RUSADA to lift a temporary suspension of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva…
(2022-02-18). The vicious US media campaign against Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva. wsws.org Valieva's positive drug test, a tragedy in any case for the young prodigy in the midst of what began as a triumphant Olympic debut, was a stroke of luck for the war propagandists that people the American media.
(2022-02-18). NATO's campaign made European region 'a hotbed of crime' — Lavrov to RT. rt.com 
Russia's foreign minister says the bloc's bombing campaign has not brought prosperity to Kosovo | Russia finds it hard to believe that NATO is a purely defensive bloc, giving its bombing campaign in Yugoslavia in 1999, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told RT on Friday. | The minister made his comments while speaking about the talks between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday. | "Scholz and others NATO officials say that NATO is a defensive alliance. Putin reminded Scholz at a joint press conference about the bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999," Lavrov remar…
(2022-02-18). Olympic chief is 'weaving fiction' — Russian official. rt.com 
Russia's deputy prime minister attacked the comments made by IOC president Thomas Bach | International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach should stop "weaving his own fictional narrative" after he criticized figure skater Kamila Valieva's coaching team, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko has said. | Speaking to journalists in Beijing on Friday, Bach claimed he had been "disturbed" by the reaction from Valieva's trainers — including coach Eteri Tutberidize — after the teenager struggled badly in her free skate routine, finishing outside the medals. | Bach claimed Tutberidize…
(2022-02-18). War in Europe and the Rise of Raw Propaganda. strategic-culture.org Since the first Cold War, NATO has effectively marched right up to Russia's most sensitive border having demonstrated its bloody aggression in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and broken solemn promises to pull back. Having dragged European "allies" into American wars that do not concern them, the great unspoken is that NATO itself is the real threat to European security.
(2022-02-18). Blinken at the UN: A Colin Powell moment. wsws.org Developments over the past 24 hours make clear that the Biden administration, speaking for dominant sections of the American ruling class, is determined to escalate the confrontation with Russia, even to the point of triggering a world war.
(2022-02-18). Trump Slams 'Crooked' Hillary Clinton As 'One of the Most Corrupt Politicians to Run for President'. sputniknews.com Addressing the New York State Democratic Party Convention on Thursday, Hillary Clinton called Special Counsel John Durham's court filing alleging she paid cybersecurity experts to hack into Donald Trump's election campaign to back her false claim that he "colluded" with Russia to defeat her in the 2016 presidential election a "conspiracy theory".
(2022-02-18). Who is the coach at the center of Kamila Valieva's Olympic storm? rt.com 
Kamila Valieva's ordeal at the Beijing Olympics has brought added attention to a prominent Russian figure skating coach | Teenage figure skater Kamila Valieva has faced intense scrutiny at the Beijing Olympics, but the media has also been drawn to coach Eteri Tutberidze — someone who would otherwise have been a much less prominent presence. | Tutberidze is a renowned trainer of Olympic champions, a coach whose conveyor belt of talent has functioned relentlessly in recent years. | But as Tutberidze now faces questions over her methods in light of Valieva's unfortunate situation, we look at some of the key…
(2022-02-18). Video: SGP chairman condemns NATO's war preparations against Russia. wsws.org In this video Christoph Vandreier, the chairman of the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (SGP—Socialist Equality Party), condemns NATO's preparations for war against Russia and explains the need for an international anti-war movement.
(2022-02-18). The Russians Are Coming. Even in Africa, Moscow Beats a Path. strategic-culture.org For those countries who don't think they have a good deal from the EU, their regimes might well consider working more closely with the Russians. | And the cheers from the crowds seeing off the expelled French ambassador must be seen for what Europeans are. | The chicken or the egg? Did the Mali military junta's decision to bring in Russian military contractors create the inertia for Emmanuel Macron to reduce his own troops' presence there and initiate EU sanctions — or did his earlier decision to reduce troop numbers push the regime to take the measure to bring in around 400 Wagner mercenaries to keep it in…
(2022-02-18). With Its Doomsday Clock at 100 Seconds to Midnight, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists calls for escalating U.S. aggression against Russia. mronline.org 
The Bulletin emerged after World War II as a voice for peace, but has since drifted into being an echo chamber for the U.S. imperial project.
(2022-02-18). Report: Draft Iran Nuclear Deal Outlines Mutual Steps for Return. news.antiwar.com On Thursday, Citing unnamed diplomats, the report said the first phase of the draft deal includes the release of Western prisoners in Iran.
(2022-02-18). Nuclear watchdog will get Fukushima water checked. rt.com 
Scientists in Austria and Monaco are to verify if samples from Japan's nuclear facility are safe | Some 50 liters of treated water used to cool down the Fukushima melted nuclear reactors will be sent for analysis to "independent" laboratories in Austria and Monaco, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a
(2022-02-18). Khamenei: Iran Wants Nuclear Energy, Not Nuclear Arms. news.antiwar.com Its far from the first time he's said so, but Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader, said Thursday that Iranian leadership has been saying this for years, but factions hostile to Iran in the region, notably Israel, continue to push the myth of Iran seeking nuclear arms, and have been doing it so much that the reality of Iran's intentions…
(2022-02-18). Foes of a new Nuclear Agreement Demonize Tehran, but what is Iranian Society really Like Today? juancole.com Eau Claire, Wi. (Special to Informed Comment) — The nature and the parameters of power relations in the state-society relations in Iran since the 1978-79 revolution have radically changed. The revolution ended the twenty-five-hundred-year-old monarchical rule in Iran and gave rise to a Shi'a 'ulema-dominated rule. The demise of the old Pahlavi regime saw the …
(2022-02-18). Over 160 House Republicans Threaten to Sabotage Iran Deal. news.antiwar.com Over 160 House Republicans sent a letter to President Biden threatening to do everything they can to sabotage an agreement with Iran if it is not approved by Congress. Iran is seeking guarantees that the next president won't withdraw from the nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA. But since the JCPOA is not a treaty, …
(2022-02-18). European Troops to Be Relocated From Mali to Niger's Border Region, President Says. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) — European forces, whose withdrawal from Mali was announced earlier yesterday, will be redeployed to regions of Niger along the border with Mali, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum said.