As Haaretz has reported on numerous occasions, Cellebrite’s clients have included oppressive regimes that were or still are subject to sanctions, including Belarus, China (including Hong Kong), Uganda, Venezuela, Indonesia, the Philippines, Russia and Ethiopia, as well as Bangladesh’s notorious Rapid Action Battalion.
The security forces in Pakistan are known to commit serious violations of human rights and freedom of expression.
The self-proclaimed president of Belarus assigned the task of developing an algorithm for the use of nuclear weapons to Viktor Khrenin, Belarusian Minister of Defence; Viktor Gulevich, Chief of the General Staff of the Belarusian Armed Forces; and Ivan Tertel, Chairman of the Belarusian State Security Committee.
(…)
Both Russian and Belarusian officials have repeatedly emphasised that Belarus will not have the opportunity to control the nuclear weapons deployed on its territory; Russia will be the one to retain control.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has reportedly stressed that the Wagner mercenary group will have no role in guarding Russian tactical nuclear weapons that are being transferred to his country.
A state-run news agency in Belarus cited Lukashenko as saying on Tuesday that a substantial amount of Russian nuclear weaponry has been moved into the country.
(…)
The report said Lukashenko denied such views, saying, „It is our job. And I am personally responsible for the security of the weapons.“
Speaking in depth for the first time about what he said was his role in the negotiations between the Russian president and Mr. Prigozhin, Mr. Lukashenko said that he had convinced Mr. Putin “not to do anything rash,” assuring him that “a bad peace is better than any war.” Mr. Lukashenko’s version of the conversation, reported by Belarusian state news media, could not be verified independently, and the Kremlin did not immediately comment on it.
Bundesverteidigungsminister Boris Pistorius hat angekündigt, zusätzliche 4000 Bundeswehrsoldatinnen und -soldaten in das NATO-Partnerland Litauen zu schicken, um die Ostflanke der NATO zu stärken. „Deutschland ist bereit, dauerhaft eine robuste Brigade in Litauen zu stationieren“, sagte Pistorius in Vilnius.
Wagner private military company boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has left Russian military headquarters in Rostov-on-Don in southwestern Russia, new video, posted to Telegram and geolocated and authenticated by CNN, shows. CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh reports.
The abrupt about-face follows a rare, remarkable challenge to the Kremlin that threatened to plunge the country into crisis and destabilize its already stumbling war efforts in Ukraine.
The threat of civil war leaves the country – and the Putin regime – in a very different place Sunday than it had been just two days prior. And with Russia possessing the world’s largest nuclear arsenal, that instability has other nations on edge, prompting emergency meetings and high-level talks.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov revealed that Prigozhin, a Saint Petersburg tycoon who made his initial fortune in catering, „will go to Belarus.“
He added that Wagner‘s fighters will not be persecuted, taking into account their efforts on the frontlines of the Ukraine conflict. Peskov explained that President Vladimir Putin‘s team „have always respected their exploits.“
PMC contractors who refused to take part in the mutiny – and whole units did not – will be allowed to sign contracts with the Russian Defense Ministry, Peskov stated.
Die Vereinbarung sei vom belarusischen Staatschef Alexander Lukaschenko vermittelt worden, sagte Peskow. Dieser habe seine Hilfe angeboten, da er Prigoschin seit etwa 20 Jahren persönlich kenne. Putin habe dem zugestimmt.
Evgeny Prigozhin agreed to halt his march on Moscow and avert “a bloodbath,“ the Belarusian president said
(May 26, 2023)
Skrzypczak said a potential uprising in Belarus might start from similar operations to those by Russians in Belgorod. He added that they would gain support from society, and Poland should not miss the momentum to support Belarusians.
In such circumstances, Lukashenko could hardly count on Moscow’s help.
“Russia has its own problems,” he insisted.
Western nations have basically been waging an undeclared war against Moscow and Minsk, according to Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who was speaking on 25 May 2023 with his Belarusian colleague Viktor Khrenin. Sergei Shoigu stated, ‚Today we are facing the collective West, which is virtually waging war against our countries‘. (…)
‚In the circumstances of an extremely sharp escalation of threats and activity of NATO joint nuclear missions, we are compelled to take retaliatory measures in the military-nuclear sphere. The deployment of Russian Federation non-strategic nuclear weapons on the territory of the Republic of Belarus has been planned in accordance with the decision of Supreme Commanders-in-Chief of the Russian Federation,‘ Sergei Shoigu stated.
Auf dem Fliegerhorst Büchel in der Eifel sollen noch bis zu 20 US-Atombomben stationiert sein, die im Ernstfall mit Tornado-Kampfjets der Bundeswehr eingesetzt werden sollen.
Russland stationiert keine strategischen Atomwaffen in Belarus, die etwa auch die USA erreichen könnten.
Analysts said that Belarus‘ support for China‘s position on a political settlement to the Ukraine crisis paves the way for future cooperation in multilateral frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), of which Lukashenko said he expects Belarus will become a full member in 2023.
But as a neighbor of Russia and Ukraine, Belarus faces a tough geopolitical situation, and the risks to its security environment are increasing. If the conflict expands, Belarus could be dragged into it, experts said.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will arrive in Beijing on Tuesday, kicking off a three-day trip in which he will meet Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
The state visit by Lukashenko — a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin — comes after Beijing released a position paper on Russia’s war in Ukraine insisting it is a neutral party and calling for dialogue between the two sides.
n addition, eight bilateral exercises are planned to be held at the training grounds of Russia‘s military districts, the ministry noted. According to the ministry, these exercises include Russian-Indian Indra-2023 drills, the joint military anti-terrorist command and staff exercises of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation member states Peace Mission-2023, the joint Russian-Lao military exercises, the joint Russian-Pakistani exercises Friendship-2023, the Russian-Algerian exercises, exercises with units of the collective forces of the rapid deployment of the Central Asian collective security region Frontier-2023, the Russian-Mongolian exercises Selenga-2023 and the Russian-Vietnamese exercises.
(July 27, 2022)
There are documents on cases of S-300 anti-aircraft missiles used by the Russian military for ground attack tests in the air defense systems. Combat training. Even the Belarusian Army has practiced using the S-300 system to attack fixed targets on the ground.
(..)
The Russian Army has long tested the S-300 surface-to-air missile system’s ability to kill ground targets. The missiles, when launched on a ballistic trajectory, can reportedly be used to attack command centers, radar stations, and hangars up to 120 kilometers away, according to the Russian military.
(15.10.2022)
In his exclusive interview with the close ally of Vladimir Putin, NBC News’ Keir Simmons asked President Lukashenko about the war in Ukraine, mass graves, the Russian leader’s state of mind, and the possibility that nuclear weapons could be used.
(15.10.2022)
The Ukraine conflict may be resolved within a week, and that depends on the United States and the United Kingdom, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said in an interview with NBC, excerpts of which were quoted by BelTA news agency on Saturday.
„It all depends on the US and the UK. If tomorrow you realize that we need to sit down at the negotiating table and find a solution, believe me, we will find a solution within a week,“ Lukashenko said.
(Aug 17, 2022)
As per the annual cooperation plan between the Chinese and Russian militaries and the consensus of the two sides, the Chinese People‘s Liberation Army (PLA) will send some troops to Russia to participate in the military exercise in the near future, Chinese Defence Ministry said in a press release.
India, Belarus, Tajikistan, Mongolia and other countries will also participate in the drills, it said.
Es soll auf Truppenübungsplätzen in Ostsibirien und im Fernen Osten sowie im Japanischen Meer stattfinden. Soldaten aus dem Ausland sind den Angaben zufolge bereits auf einem Übungsgelände im Osten Russlands eingetroffen, darunter aus Belarus und anderen Ex-Sowjetrepubliken, aus China und Indien.
“We are being provoked,” Lukashenko was quoted as saying by state news agency Belta on Saturday.
“I must tell you that around three days ago, maybe more, they tried to strike military targets in Belarus from Ukraine.
“Thank God, our Pantsir anti-air systems intercepted all the missiles fired by the Ukrainian forces.”
The claim, which Lukashenko did not provide evidence for, came one week after Ukraine said missiles struck a border region from Belarus, a long-term Russian ally.
On June 25 at night, the Russian army mounted a massive missile attack on several regions of Ukraine, Russia resumed attacks using Iskander missiles from the territory of Belarus, and for the first time used Tu-22M3 long-range bombers from the air space of Belarus, the Command of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has said.
He added that this false-flag attack was allegedly supposed to be carried out using Ukrainian weapons – portable anti-aircraft missile systems. The spies planned to obtain the weapons, used by our troops, through volunteers. To this end, they had been trying to win trust of the latter, giving them real data on the movement of Russian troops, giving away the coordinates of Ramzan Kadyrov’s ethnic Chechen unit.
„There are three components to this story that describe everything that’s happening in the Russian army now. The first is shooting down a passenger plane, the second is deceiving their leadership, and the third is setting up the Kadyrovites,“ Arestovych concluded.
“Direct confrontation between Nato and Russia is World War III – something we must strive to prevent,“ Mr Biden added.
However, he vowed that Russia would pay a „severe price“ if it used chemical weapons in Ukraine.
It comes as Kyiv warned that Belarus could join Russia‘s invasion as early as this evening after Russian fighter jets fired at Belarus from Ukrainian air space in an apparent ‘false flag’ attack to involve Minsk in the conflict.
Moscow did not immediately comment on a statement by Ukraine’s border service that several Belarusian border villages had been bombed by Russian warplanes to create a reason for Belarus to join Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Nach Darstellung der Ukraine will Russland mit Luftangriffen auf belarussische Dörfer einen Kriegseintritt des Nachbarlandes provozieren. Der ukrainische Grenzschutz habe am Nachmittag den Start russischer Kampfflugzeuge von einem Fliegerhorst in Belarus registriert, teilte die ukrainische Luftwaffe heute mit. Die Maschinen seien in den ukrainischen Luftraum eingedrungen und hätten dann das Feuer auf das Dorf Kopani in Belarus eröff
Der belarussische Präsident Alexander Lukaschenko hatte zuletzt einen Stopp von Gaslieferungen an die Europäer ins Gespräch gebracht.
Betroffen wäre die Pipeline Jamal, durch die russisches Gas via Belarus nach Polen und Deutschland fliesst. Der belarussische Teil der Pipeline gehört dem russischen Staatsmonopolisten Gazprom.
Einen Tag nach seinem Verschwinden in Kiew ist der belarusische Aktivist Witaly Schischow tot aufgefunden worden. Mitstreiter Schischows vermuten, dass der belarusische Geheimdienst dahinter steckt.Die Polizei arbeitet mit Hochdruck an dem Fall, der nicht nur in der belarusischen Diaspora für Entsetzen sorgt. Videoaufnahmen von Kameras entlang der Joggingstrecke, von der der Aktivist am Montag nicht zurückkehrte, werden ausgewertet. Mögliche Augenzeugen werden befragt.
He added that the cells‘ activities were coordinated via a Telegram channel dubbed „Self-defence regiments of Belarus“ which had 2,500 subscribers and belonged to a German citizen.
The cells recently tried to detonate a Russian naval communication centre located in the Belarusian town of Vileika, about 100 kilometres northwest of Minsk, according to the Belarusian leader.
Eine Sprecherin des Auswärtigen Amtes hatte am Freitagmittag in Berlin erklärt, sie wolle zu den Vorwürfen, die Lukaschenko »so in den Raum gestellt hat«, nicht Stellung nehmen. Über die mögliche Festnahme deutscher Staatsangehöriger könne sie »an dieser Stelle nichts berichten«.
„The attitude of the [Interior Ministry] employees towards me has been as correct as possible and in compliance with the law,“ Protasevich says in the video, which was posted Monday evening to a pro-government social media channel.
„I continue to cooperate with the investigation and have confessed to organizing mass riots in the city of Minsk,“ he also says. His supporters believe the video was made under duress.
Nach der Notlandung in Minsk sei bei einer Überprüfung des Flugzeugs keine Bombe gefunden worden, berichtete der Oppositionskanal Nexta. Daraufhin seien „alle Passagiere zu einer weiteren Sicherheitskontrolle geschickt“ worden – unter ihnen auch Protassewitsch. „Er wurde festgenommen.“
Protassewitsch sei schon in Athen vor dem Einstieg ins Flugzeug verfolgt worden, hieß es. Lukaschenko habe mit einem Verstoß gegen alle Gesetze ein Flugzeug „gekapert“, kritisierte der Kanal.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday condemned the forced landing of a Ryanair flight by Belarus and the arrest of an opposition journalist on board, calling it a „shocking act“ that endangered the lives of U.S. citizens and everyone else on board.
In a statement, Blinked vowed that the U.S. would respond with its allies in the region, and called for the „immediate release“ of journalist Raman Protasevich, who according to reports, was detained by Belarusian security forces after the flight landed.
On May 10 Poland’s President Duda was in Romania to co-host a virtual conference of the Bucharest Nine (9) group with Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis, The members of the comparatively new bloc are Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia; all former members of the Soviet bloc and of the defunct Warsaw Pact.
Greetings were sent to the meeting by President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Seit der Präsidentenwahl am 9. August gibt es in Belarus regelmäßig Proteste. Das Land steckt in einer schweren innenpolitischen Krise. Lukaschenko hatte sich mit 80,1 Prozent der Stimmen nach 26 Jahren an der Macht erneut zum Sieger erklären lassen.
Brüssel setzte noch am Freitag Strafmaßnahmen gegen 40 Unterstützer von Präsident Alexander Lukaschenko in Kraft. Darunter sind Innenminister Juri Karaeu, Mitglieder der Wahlkommission, des Geheimdienstes KGB und Spezialeinheiten der Polizei. Ihnen wird eine Beteiligung an Wahlfälschungen oder an der gewaltsamen Niederschlagung friedlicher Proteste vorgeworfen.
A Motherboard investigation found that US state police agencies had collectively spent millions of dollars on Cellebrite products. US federal agencies, such as the FBI and Secret Service, are also Cellebrite customers.