♲ @mlansbury@despora.de:> ## Opinion: The West should launch a new economic Cold War against Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to revive the Soviet Union, but two can play this game. To complete the Kremlin’s grotesque historical reenactment, the West should launch a new economic Cold War in response.
In addition to the war of aggression waged against the civilians and cities of Ukraine, Russia has also waged an asymmetrical economic war against the global economy and the international trade system that underpins it.
Russia’s #weaponization of trade, particularly of energy supplies, has caused massive disruptions in international markets and triggered a cascade of economic setbacks globally.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 Russian forces appear to have executed at least 15 Ukrainian soldiers as they attempted to surrender, and possibly six more who were surrendering or who had surrendered, since early December 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. These incidents should be investigated as war crimes.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 A Russian missile attack on an educational institution in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odesa on Monday killed four people and injured 28, local officials said.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 #Russia has deported more than 19,000 Ukrainian children over the past two years, says Olena Kondratiuk, vice speaker of #Ukraine’s parliament, Verkhovna Rada, citing official Ukrainian data.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 The Russian Federation uses sexual violence as a weapon against civilians and prisoners of war, #Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Sergiy Kyslytsya said during a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on April 23.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 The tendency of Russian troops to use munition with prohibited chemicals grows and has become "systemic," the command of #Ukraine's Support Forces reported on April 5.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 Russia's war and occupation of large swaths of #Ukraine have led to hundreds of churches being damaged or destroyed, dozens of priests killed or kidnapped, and entire religious groups that don't conform to Moscow's brand of Orthodoxy being banned.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 A Ukrainian energy provider said Friday that three thermal power plants had been damaged in an overnight barrage of Russian missiles and drones, the latest aerial assault to target #Ukraine's critical infrastructure.
Behold! Once again another war crime. Far away from frontline positions, Ukrainian civilians are facing the brunt of russia’s wanton destruction of their homes. A grave breach of the Geneva Convention that is clearly not justified by military necessity.
🇷🇺 Mediazona's new report uncovers how Russian museums are now displaying war artefacts and stolen items from Ukraine. The effort is wide-ranging and follows the federal government guidance about presenting a uniform narrative of the “special military operation”
Russian missiles crashed into #Kharkiv, flattening a residential building and destroying other civilian infrastructure. Ten people, including a child, were killed, and dozens of others were wounded... #ArmUkraineToWin#RussianWarCrimes https://wapo.st/3HxUobC 🎁
A Ukrainian drone has struck an oil storage depot in western Russia, causing a massive blaze, officials said, as Kyiv’s forces apparently extended their attacks on Russian soil
4 oil reservoirs were set on fire after the drone reached #Klintsy, a city about 60 kilometres from the Ukrainian border, according to the local governor and state news agency Tass.
🇩🇰 🇺🇦 Ambassador of Denmark to Ukraine Ole Egberg Mikkelsen has assured Ukrainians of support after Russia's massive missile attack on Tuesday morning.
🇷🇺 🇺🇦 Western leaders largely viewed the massive Russian strike as evidence that Putin’s maximalist goals in Ukraine remain unchanged, in line with ISW’s long-standing assessment that Putin is not genuinely interested in a ceasefire or any sort of negotiated settlement in Ukraine.