Deutsche Welle (English edition)
Ukraine: NATO slams Russia's troop buildup on border
NATO has vowed to back Ukraine amid tensions in the in eastern Donbass region. The Kremlin accused the US and NATO of turning Ukraine into a "powder keg."
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called on Russia to withdraw troops from Ukraine's borders on Tuesday.
Stoltenberg's comments came ahead of an emergency meeting of allied foreign and defense ministers over the conflict in the eastern Ukraine region.
"In recent weeks, Russia has moved thousands of combatready troops to Ukraine's borders, the largest massing of Russian troops since the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014," Stoltenberg said at a news conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.
Stoltenberg said Russian troops' movement at Ukraine's borders was "unexplained, unjustified and deeply concerning."
"Russia must end this military buildup in and around Ukraine, stop its provocations and deescalate immediately," Stoltenberg said.
Ukraine calls for sanctions against Russia
Kuleba flew to Brussels for talks with Stoltenberg on Tuesday, a day after Ukraine accused the Kremlin of ignoring a request for top-level negotiations.
Russia and Ukraine have traded accusations about the increasing tensions in the eastern Donbass region.
Kuleba called for further economic sanctions on Russia and more military support for Ukraine.
"At the operational level, we need measures which will deter
Russia and which will contain its aggressive intentions. This could be ... a new round of sanctions, which would raise the price of Russian aggression," Kuleba said.
Russia shifts the blame
The Kremlin accused the United States and other NATO countries of turning Ukraine into a "powder keg."
"If there is any aggravation, we of course will do everything to ensure our security and the safety of our citizens, wherever
they are," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
"But Kyiv and its allies in the West will be entirely responsible for the consequences of a hypothetical exacerbation," he said.
He said that training activities have been conducted on Ukrainian territory for many years and have lead to a negative impact on Russian security.
"Training activities have been intensified, a network of biolaboratories has been deployed that are engaged in activities that, to put it mildly, cause us alarm and concern."
Russia has not denied the troop buildup along the border but officials said it was not planning on going to war with Ukraine.
Officials insisted that the Kremlin is entitled to move troops "within Russian territories" and pledged to protect Russian speakers in the region.
The West backs Ukraine
In recent weeks, Western officials have expressed concerns about Russia's military buildup close to Ukraine's eastern border and the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to hold talks with Kuleba. He recently said Russia could face "consequences" if it acted "aggressively" against Ukraine.
Ukraine is a close partner to NATO, although it is not one of the 30 member states.
According to Ukraine, the conflict has killed at least 14,000 people since 2014.
fb/aw (AFP, dpa, Reuters)
and via messaging apps, but also held regular meetings in person.
The trial, which is expected to last until August, comes amid growing concerns in Germany over a surge in violent right-wing extremism.
Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has said far-right extremism is Germany's "biggest security threat."
According to provisional police data released in February, in 2020 the number of crimes committed by far-right suspects in Germany surged to its highest level in at least four years.
In January, German neo-Nazi Stephan Ernst was sentenced to life in prison for killing pro-migration politician Walter Lübcke.
In February 2020, a far-right extremist killed nine people and injured five others when he opened fire on two shisha bars in the central German city of Hanau. The slaughter marked the single deadliest racially motivated attack in post-war Germany.
In October 2019, a neo-Nazi murdered two people in an attack on a synagogue in the city of Halle on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.
mvb/aw (AFP, dpa, AP)
was unceremoniously renamed Jiangsu FC. Not surprisingly, this did not please the financier, the Suning Holding Group, one bit. It was not long after that that the license of the reigning champions was revoked. Five other clubs have also been excluded from the professional leagues.
The issue could also have a major impact on the game in Europe. One example is Inter Milan, which is owned by the Suning Holding group, operated by the billionaire Zhang family. The Renhe Group, whose Beijing club also lost its license, owns a majority stake in English second tier club Reading.
There are also other investors who wanted to focus primarily on Europe, such as Gao Jisheng with Premier League club Southampton, Guo Guangchang at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Zhong Naixiong at Sochaux in France.
"There was a group that was being opportunistic," Chadwick said. "Think about someone like Tony Xia at Aston Villa. Essentially, what he was trying to do was to create favor with the government by engaging in what he thought was an acceptable overseas investment." Xia resold his majority stake in Aston Villa in 2018 after the club failed to win promotion to the Premier League.
Some have already left
In 2017, there were 20 European clubs owned by major Chinese investors, today there are just 10. The first domino to fall was Wang Jianlin, who resold his shares in Atletico Madrid. A little later, Ye Jianming, the founder of CEFC China Energy, was driven to sell off Slavia Prague. Ye is now in prison for his economic activities.
"As you know, Jack Ma [cofounder of the Ali Baba Group] also disappeared for a while. This is a very common pattern," Chadwick explained. "If the state doesn't like something, they will step in. And very often, (the) individual involved will disappear for a short while. They will come back later, and they will say: 'I made a mistake and now I understand what it is I am supposed to be doing.'"
China's Communist Party has a clear vision of where it wants to take the country economically. In its new five-year plan, Xi Jinping's leadership called for investment to return to China and for the focus to be placed on the domestic market.
"If you can document an investment case that would benefit the development of the Chinese football industry, it would still be allowed," said China expert Christina Boutrup, who advises the Danish government, among others.
Rumored Inter Milan sale
The Communist Party, however, has made it known that it believes the Europeans have taken advantage of the willingness of the Chinese investors to finance their football clubs without offering anything in return.
"What China is trying to do is flex its muscles and trying to change the balance of power in the relationship between, let's say, the Premier League and China, because up until now, China for the Premier League is something like a cash cow," Chadwick said.
There are also rumors that the remaining Chinese investors that remain either want or need to get out of European football. The Italian daily La Repubblica reported in mid-January that Suning was in talks with London-based investment firm BC Partners in search of backers for Inter Milan. Inter president Steven Zhang, who heads the Suning Holding Group, has not commented on the report and did not respond to a DW query.
Fan frustration
There is no question that European football will carry on despite the departure of Suning and others. However, things look a lot bleaker when it comes to football in China, where many active fans are visibly frustrated by the government's interference. Because the football culture is still so young, they are not bothered by the fact that their clubs are backed by large corporations. They have simply grown up with these clubs, which are now being targeted.
"We've had the five biggest ultras groups standing together to oppose (the) FA's decisions," said Joe, a fan from northern China.
Supporters in Henan Province and elsewhere marched outside Henan Jianye Stadium to voice their displeasure.
"The fans were triggered, burning their shirts; they were rallying up in their stadiums. And some of their angriest fans went even to Beijing. They were trying to catch the president of the FA," Joe said.
The government may have underestimated the anger the decision to divest from football would cause among some fans. Meanwhile, the organizers of the protests have been visited by local police authorities to warn them not to cause public trouble. After all, in China, whether you are a billionaire club owner or an average citizen and football fan, everyone without exception is meant to bow to the will of China's state leadership.