DONETSK, Ukraine // The Kremlin plans to send a second aid convoy into Ukraine, heightening tensions on the eve of crunch talks.
Another round of clashes broke out on Monday along the border and around the main rebel-held city.
A Ukrainian military spokesman said troops were battling a contingent of “10 tanks and two armoured personal carriers” flying rebel flags that had crossed a southern part of the border with Russia and was heading towards the government-held city of Mariupol.
About 120 kilometres to the north, heavy fighting erupted to the south of Donetsk, the main rebel bastion, a day after separatist leaders said they had deployed tanks and artillery to the area.
Explosions rang out and smoke rose from towns to the south of the city. Ukraine’s military said four soldiers had been killed and 31 wounded in the past 24 hours.
The latest fighting comes as the Ukrainian president, Petro Poroshenko, and the Russian leader Vladimir Putin prepare to meet for the first time in months alongside top EU officials in Minsk on Tuesday.
There was additional pressure on the talks after the Kremlin said on Monday that it planned to send another controversial aid convoy into east Ukraine “this week”.
Russia sent 230 lorries carrying what it claimed was 1,800 tonnes humanitarian aid to the rebel-held city of Lugansk without Red Cross monitors on Friday after accusing Kiev of intentionally delaying the mission.
Kiev condemned the move as a “direct invasion” but the lorries returned to Russia on Saturday without incident.
“We would like to agree on the conditions to send the convoy on the same route with the same participation of Ukrainian border guards and customs officers as soon as possible,” the Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said.
There were conflicting accounts of Monday’s fighting along the border, which if confirmed could represent a new push by rebels in territory controlled by Kiev.
A resident in a nearby town said explosions could be heard coming from the direction of the frontier.
But Mr Lavrov dismissed the claims, saying: “I haven’t heard about it, but there has been more than enough disinformation about our invasion. No doubt some foreign newspaper will print that news tomorrow.”
More than 2,200 people have died and 400,000 fled their homes after more than four months of fighting that has left residents in some rebel-held cities without water or power for weeks.
Mr Poroshenko has pledged to “talk peace” with Mr Putin when they meet on Tuesday but insists the withdrawal of pro-Kremlin forces is the only way to end the conflict in east Ukraine.
Kiev has accused Russia of ramping up arms supplies to the rebels as government troops have cut deeper into their territory.
Moscow has retorted that Ukrainian forces must cease their punishing offensive.
Mr Lavrov played down hopes for a major breakthrough in Minsk, saying only that the talks would “facilitate the exchange of opinions” about “efforts to start the political process to settle the political crisis”.
Both sides are under pressure from the international community to find a compromise.
The German chancellor Angela Merkel called for a bilateral ceasefire and tighter border controls during a visit to Kiev over the weekend while stressing support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
She said she wanted to find a way out of the crisis “that doesn’t harm Russia” with the EU and US already having slapped the harshest economic sanctions on Moscow since the collapse of Communism.
Anger rose further after rebels on Sunday paraded dozens of captured soldiers past an angry crowd in the centre of Donetsk in an event timed to undermine a military parade taking place in Kiev to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day.
Kiev’s defence minister blasted the rebels and called the parade “a challenge not just to Ukrainian society but to the world”.
Human Rights Watch decried the display as a “a blatant violation of the laws of war” and called on prisoners to be treated with dignity.
But Mr Lavrov stirred further controversy by saying that he “didn’t see anything close to what could be considered as humiliating” in images of the event.
* Agence France-Presse
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Transmission: eight-speed automatic
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Price: Dh155,800
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Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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Results
Stage 7:
1. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal - 3:18:29
2. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep - same time
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4. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep
5. Cees Bol (NED) Team DSM
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1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - 24:00:28
2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers - 0:00:35
3. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep - 0:01:02
4. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:01:42
5. Neilson Powless (USA) EF Education-Nippo - 0:01:45
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Fixture: Ukraine v Portugal, Monday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
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Winner: Sharkh, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
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Winner: Maaly Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro, Abdallah Al Hammadi
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If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
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The Orwell Prize for Political Writing
Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include:
- Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
- Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
- Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
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england euro squad
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Man Utd), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton)
Defenders: John Stones (Man City), Luke Shaw (Man Utd), Harry Maguire (Man Utd), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (Man City), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Reece James (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid)
Midfielders: Mason Mount (Chelsea), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds)
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The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
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Business Insights
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The biog
Hobby: "It is not really a hobby but I am very curious person. I love reading and spend hours on research."
Favourite author: Malcom Gladwell
Favourite travel destination: "Antigua in the Caribbean because I have emotional attachment to it. It is where I got married."
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Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Arrogate's winning run
1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016
2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016
3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016
4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016
5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016
6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017
7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017
UAE and Russia in numbers
UAE-Russia ties stretch back 48 years
Trade between the UAE and Russia reached Dh12.5 bn in 2018
More than 3,000 Russian companies are registered in the UAE
Around 40,000 Russians live in the UAE
The number of Russian tourists travelling to the UAE will increase to 12 percent to reach 1.6 million in 2023
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Second Test
Pakistan v Australia, Tuesday-Saturday, 10am daily at Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Entrance is free
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The specs
Price: From Dh180,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged and supercharged in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 320hp @ 5,700rpm
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The Light of the Moon
Director: Jessica M Thompson
Starring: Stephanie Beatriz, Michael Stahl-David
Three stars
Men's football draw
Group A: UAE, Spain, South Africa, Jamaica
Group B: Bangladesh, Serbia, Korea
Group C: Bharat, Denmark, Kenya, USA
Group D: Oman, Austria, Rwanda
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
