Deutsche Welle (English edition)
Italy detains navy captain and Russian diplomat for spying
An Italian frigate captain and a Russian military official have been caught redhanded during a "clandestine meeting" in Rome. Italy later ordered the expulsion of two Russian officials as the fallout escalated.
An Italian navy officer and a Russian diplomat have been detained, "accused of serious crimes tied to spying and state security," Italy's police said on Wednesday.
The pair were caught swapping confidential documents in exchange for money during a "clandestine meeting" in Rome on Tuesday night.
Italy expels officials, Russia vows to respond
Later on Wednesday, Italy ordered the expulsion of two Russian officials in connection with the spy scandal.
Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said in a statement that Italy had lodged a formal protest with the Russian ambassador and notified him of "the immediate expulsion of the two Russian officials involved in this very serious affair."
The man caught during the meeting with the Italian official was ordered expelled along with another Russian Embassy official allegedly involved, Di Maio said in a Facebook post. Di Maio
didn't provide details about the suspected role of the second Russian.
The Kremlin, meanwhile, promised a reciprocal response to their banishment, according to the Interfax news agency, citing a Russian lawmaker.
What prompted the fallout? Italy's Carabinieri paramilitary police carried out a sting operation, catching a navy officer and diplomat red-handed, immediately after the handover of the documents.
The Italian officer, who is a frigate captain, was arrested, the police said.
The Russian, a member of the armed forces stationed at Moscow's embassy in Rome, was also detained. His status is "under consideration" given his diplomatic position, the statement said.
What we know about the Italian suspect
According toLa Repubblica daily newspaper, the navy captain worked at the office of Chief of the Defense Staff and had access "to a wide range of documents" concerning both Italian defense and NATO activities.
NATO documents were allegedly among the items the navy
captain handed to the Russian official, Ansa news agency said.
He was discovered after long investigations led by Italy's domestic intelligence agency AISI, with support from the Chief of the Defense Staff.
Russia hopes ties won't be affected
The Italian Foreign Ministry said it had summoned Russian Ambassador Sergey Razov following the incident.
The Russian Embassy confirmed the detention of a diplomat but did not comment on the incident.
"In any case, we hope that it wouldn't affect bilateral ties," the embassy said in a statement.
UK backs diplomats' expulsion
In London, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab took to Twitter to support Italy: "The UK stands in solidarity with Italy and its actions today, exposing and taking action against Russia's malign and destabilizing activity that is designed to undermine our NATO ally."
Russian espionage in Europe
If proven, this would be the latest of several recent incidents of Russian spying in Europe.
Bulgaria said this month it had uncovered a group of Bulgarian military members who were allegedly spying for Moscow. It expelled two Russian diplomats from the country.
Prosecutors in Sweden also charged a 47-year-old man with espionage for allegedly providing Russia with information about Swedish companies in return for payment.
And in Germany, a man was charged in February after he allegedly passed on floor plans for the German parliament to a Russian intelligence agent.
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ment.
The protests have been met with a military crackdown that has left more than 500 civilians dead since the coup, in which the government was ousted and most of its members arrested.
Observers assume that many more deaths have not been reported. The brutal response of Myanmar's military and security forces have also resulted in widespread international condemnation.
Aung San Suu Kyi in 'good' health
Meanwhile, Suu Kyi's attorney said her client appeared to be in "good" health when they talked over her legal case in a video meeting on Wednesday.
The junta has leveled a range of charges against Suu Kyi, including violations of importexport, telecommunication and disaster management laws, as well as accusations of incitement.
And Min Min Soe, one of a team of lawyers representing Suu Kyi, recalled an account by
Khin Maung Zaw, another attorney for the 75-year-old Nobel laureate, as she reflected on the positive condition of her client.
Min Min Soe had to report to a police station in order to conduct the online meeting and the attorney had police officers in close attendance throughout the virtual conversation.
Suu Kyi asked the guards who were in the same room as her to leave in order to have a personal meeting with her attorneys. It's not clear how they reacted to this, but lawyers say previous requests have always been turned down.
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vaccines for around 59 million people.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), which financed the distribution of Sputnik V and promotes it abroad, has said more than 50 countries worldwide are waiting for the vaccine. The fact that so many countries have already approved Sputnik V has been celebrated in Russia as an international success. According to RDIF, the populations in those interested nations amount to more than 1.5 billion people.
Russia is outsourcing vaccine production overseas
With all that interest, Russia simply doesn't have the production capacities to meet EU's needs of inoculating an additional 450 million people — and that is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.
The only way out of this dilemma, according to the Kremlin, is to set up production sites outside Russia. "To meet the demand for our vaccine, we are working on a transfer of technology abroad," said Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov in a recent video conference with President Vladimir Putin. "Accordingly, we have deals with more than 10 countries to build production plants."
According to reports, Sputnik V is already being manufactured in Kazakhstan, Belarus, India, South Korea and Brazil. The RDIF has also signed an agreement with the Swissbased pharmaceutical company, Adienne Pharma & Biotech, allowing a subsidiary to begin producing Sputnik V in Italy by July. The site is expected to manufacture 10 million doses by the end of the year.
On March 24, Russian drugmaker R-Pharm announced that it would start production of Sputnik V vaccines in its Bavarian plant in southern Germany. R-Pharm executive Alexander Bykov told German news agency dpa that millions of doses could be produced at the German plant starting in June — once the vaccine is approved by the EMA. France and Spain have also been named as possible sites for Sputnik V production in the EU.
Sputnik V just one piece of vaccine puzzle
That raises the question: Could Sputnik V provide the decisive push needed to speed up the EU's vaccination program? The answer is a clear no. The key breakthrough in Europe's vaccination drive is likely to come earlier — and for several different reasons.
By summer, the production of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine is expected to be significantly increased. The BioNTech factory in Marburg, north of Frankfurt, which began operations in February, has promised to churn out 250 million doses by the end of June. And French drugmaker Sanofi has said it would help bottle and package the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine at a plant in Frankfurt, producing an additional 125 million doses for the EU.
American company Johnson & Johnson will being delivering its one-dose jabs, which have already been approved by the EMA, to the EU starting in April. The approval for the second German mRNA-based vaccine candidate by CureVac — which could provide the EU with a total of 405 million doses — is expected in May and June. And preparations are also underway for the approval of another American jab, Novavax.
At the same time, the EU will also raise pressure on pharma giant AstraZeneca to meet its contractual obligations with the EU. The company had promised 180 million doses for the second quarter of this year.
All this means that Sputnik V will only be deployed toward the end of Europe's mass vaccination campaigns, and in insufficient quantities, meaning it will likely not have any major impact. But production through European companies will allow Russia to raise its vaccine supply for countries around the world, likely making the EU an important production site for Russia's vaccines.