Germany Urges EU to Impose Sanctions Against Russia Over Navalny Case

Quad Foreign Ministers to Discuss CCP Virus Pandemic in Japan

The Quad alliance made up of foreign ministers from Australia, the United States, India, and Japan will convene a meeting in Japan on Oct. 5-7, a move that has drawn the displeasure of the Chinese Communist Party. Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne will fly to Tokyo to meet with counterparts U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. They will discuss support for regional responses to the pandemic along with vaccines for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, supply chains, and quality infrastructure investment. The CCP virus is commonly known as novel coronavirus. “The Quad meeting comes at an important time in the Indo-Pacific, when our shared interests are under unprecedented pressure, including as the region responds to COVID-19,” Payne said…

BERLIN鈥擥ermany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has called for new European Union sanctions against Russia over the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny with an internationally banned nerve agent.

Navalny emerged in recent weeks from a coma after suddenly falling ill during a flight in Siberia and being air-lifted to Berlin for treatment. German doctors say he was poisoned with Novichok, a Russian nerve agent.

Germany, France, and other Western countries have demanded an explanation from the Kremlin for Navalny’s illness. Russia says it has seen no firm evidence he was poisoned and denies involvement in any attack on him.

Germany Urges EU to Impose Sanctions Against Russia Over Navalny Case

“I am convinced that there will be no longer any way around sanctions,” Maas told news portal t-online in an interview on Saturday.

“Sanctions must always be targeted and proportionate. But such a grave violation of the International Chemical Weapons Convention cannot be left unanswered. On this, we’re united in Europe,” Maas added.

Germany currently holds the rotating presidency of the 27-member bloc. EU leaders will discuss their reaction and possible sanctions against Russia at their next summit on Oct. 15-16.

“If the result of the German, Swedish and French laboratories is confirmed, there will be a clear response from the EU. I’m sure about that,” Maas said.

The Navalny case has worsened relations between Moscow and a number of Western countries. Germany has faced calls to halt the nearly-completed Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which is meant to bring more Russian gas directly to Germany.

Asked if European sanctions against Russia should include Nord Stream 2, Maas said there were more than 100 European companies involved in the project, half of them in Germany.

“So many European workers would suffer from a construction freeze,” Maas said.

Nord Stream 2 is led by Russia’s state gas giant Gazprom, with half of the funding provided by Germany’s Uniper and BASF’s Wintershall unit, Anglo-Dutch company Shell, Austria’s OMV and France’s Engie.

By Michael Nienaber

Focus News: Germany Urges EU to Impose Sanctions Against Russia Over Navalny Case

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A leaked document revealed that some Chinese politicians, billionaires, and criminals obtained Cypriot passports by investing over $2 million in the country. In fact, Chinese people from different social classes are trying to flee China. Besides immigration through family or work visas, wealthy Chinese have invested their money abroad, while ordinary Chinese or those with less financial resources take the illegal route. The U.S. Migration Policy Institute reported on Jan.15 that 2.5 million mainland Chinese immigrated to the United States legally in 2018. Meanwhile, more and more mainland Chinese immigrated to Canada, Japan, Australia, South Korea, Singapore, European countries, and many developing countries, according to the United Nations Population Division. “In fact, both rich and poor mainland Chinese are trying to immigrate overseas legally and illegally in recent years, based…