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Russia said Tuesday it will expel 15 Dutch diplomats, saying they have two weeks to leave the country. The retaliatory move following the Netherlands’ expulsion last month of 17 Russians whom Dutch officials said were intelligence officers posing as diplomats. 

In response to Tuesday’s announcement, Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Wopke Hoekstra said in a statement, “It was to be expected that Russia would take countermeasures. Nevertheless, this is a regrettable step.” The envoys will be leaving the Dutch embassy in Moscow and consulate-general in St. Petersburg.  

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it was also going to expel four Austrians and 12 Belgians, both in retaliation. 

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, some 300 Russian diplomats have had to leave various countries. 

Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Poland and the United States have expelled Russian envoys.  

Russia has taken similar moves against envoys from the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and the European Union.  

Some information in this report came from Reuters.
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As Western sanctions against Russia continue to mount, observers in Azerbaijan are concerned about the potential ramifications in a country with close economic ties to Moscow.

Some experts believe Russia’s worsening economic position will harm Azerbaijan’s trade relations and money transfers with the country, which is Azerbaijan’s main import partner and home to over 2.5 million Azerbaijani migrant laborers.

Economist Natig Jafarli told VOA that economic sanctions on Russia will create problems for the banking sector of Azerbaijan and could create certain obstacles to international money transfers, since Azerbaijan does not have a separate money transfer system with Russia.

“If Russia is completely excluded from the international money transfer system, at the very least, interbank money transfers and transfers between Azerbaijan and Russia will become impossible,” Jafarli said.

According to Gubad Ibadoglu, senior economist and visiting fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science, the State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan will be the most affected by the rapid changes in the Russian economy.

“SOFAZ’s investments in Russia have exceeded $903 million,” he said. “These investments are currently at risk, which will ultimately lead to exchange rate losses for SOFAZ. In other words, there will be an increase in extra-budgetary expenditures, which will increase its foreign exchange earnings,” suggesting that SOFAZ and other Azerbaijani government bodies must sell their assets before “the economic catastrophe” in Russia and withdraw their investments.

In addition to SOFAZ, Ibadoglu said Azerbaijan’s trade relations with Russia will be affected, considering that Russia is Azerbaijan’s main import partner.

Azerbaijan bought $2.1 billion worth of goods and sold $920.8 million on the Russian market in 2021. More than 95% of those goods were non-oil products. Ibadoglu said problems with bank settlements with Russia, which is the traditional market of the non-oil sector, and the devaluation of the ruble this year could create serious difficulties for exporters.

“Those who export goods from Azerbaijan to Russia will face losses due to the sharp depreciation of the ruble against the Azerbaijani manat, which will reduce the income of producers and exporters, especially in the non-oil sector, mainly in agriculture,” he said.

Remittances sent from Russia by the approximately 2.5 million Azerbaijanis living there will be another area affected by the situation in Russia, Ibadoglu said.

In most Azerbaijani districts, Azerbaijani labor migrants play an important role in determining household income. Ibadoglu said tensions in the Russian labor market, as well as the decline and devaluation of earnings as a result of the tensions, matched with the ruble’s depreciation, will result in a decrease in remittances to Azerbaijan.

“According to data, for the first nine months of 2021, about 60% of remittances (handled by) the Central Bank of Azerbaijan came from migrants living in Russia. This means that last year, remittances sent through banks by migrants living in Russia amounted to $680 million. A sharp decline in this transfer is expected this year,” Ibadoglu said.

Azerbaijani parliament member Rasim Musabeyov agrees that remittances will be affected.

“Russia’s sanctions will significantly limit banking operations. With the economic downturn in Russia, it will be difficult to send money to families,” he said.

He also argues that sanctions will have a negative impact on Azerbaijan’s foreign trade with Russia.

“We used to import very important food products from the Russian market. But it is difficult to say to what extent it will be possible to import them now,” Musabeyov said.

Yet the lawmaker says Russia’s economic downturn also creates opportunities. He claims that since communication routes through Russia are restricted, and Ukraine’s borders are closed due to the war, trade that was previously carried out through Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, will now mainly pass through the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars route.

“The importance of our transport routes will increase significantly. Both the Southern Gas Corridor and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline will be heavily loaded. It is estimated that a large part of Kazakh oil will be exported to the markets, not through Novorossiysk, but through Azerbaijan, and it is likely to significantly increase our capacity,” Musabeyov said.

This story originated in VOA’s Azerbaijani Service.
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The world economy will grow at a slower pace because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the International Monetary Fund said in a report Tuesday.

The organization forecasts growth of 3.6% this year, compared to 6.1% last year. Originally, it had predicted 4.4% growth this year.

“The economic effects of the war are spreading far and wide,” the IMF said in its report.

The war has exacerbated negative economic trends such as disrupted commerce and price hikes for fuel and food.

“In the matter of a few weeks, the world has yet again experienced a major, transformative shock,” IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas wrote in the foreword to the fund’s World Economic Outlook report. “Just as a durable recovery from the pandemic-induced global economic collapse appeared in sight, the war has created the very real prospect that a large part of the recent gains will be erased.”

The IMF predicts the Russian economy will shrink by 8.5% this year, and Ukraine’s will fall by a whopping 35%.

The United States, China and Europe were also expected to see slower growth as a result of the war.

Some information in this report comes from The Associated Press.
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U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed Tuesday for a four-day humanitarian pause this week to coincide with Orthodox Easter, as Russia’s war in Ukraine entered a dangerous new phase.

“The onslaught and terrible toll on civilians we have seen so far could pale in comparison to the horror that lies ahead,” he said of the Russian offensive on eastern Ukraine. “This cannot be allowed to happen. Hundreds of thousands of lives hang in the balance.”

Guterres called for a pause in fighting to begin on April 21 – which is Holy Thursday in the Orthodox Christian calendar – through April 24, when they celebrate Easter. Both Ukrainians and Russians celebrate Easter during this period.

The U.N. chief spoke to reporters in front of The Knotted Gun sculpture by Swedish artist Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd. The bronze statue depicts an oversized .357 Magnum revolver with its muzzle tied in a knot and is dedicated to a non-violent world.

Guterres said the brief pause would allow for the opening of a series of humanitarian corridors for civilians who want to leave hostile areas to do so with the assistance of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and it would also allow aid supplies in for people living in hard hit areas, including Mariupol, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk.

“The United Nations is ready to send humanitarian aid convoys during this period to these locations. We are submitting detailed plans to the parties,” but he did not say if the parties, particularly Russia, had signaled a willingness to implement such a temporary truce.

“For all these life-or-death reasons, I call on Russians and Ukrainians to silence the guns and forge a path to safety for so many at immediate risk,” the secretary-general said. “The four-day Easter period should be a moment to unite around saving lives and furthering dialogue to end the suffering in Ukraine.”

Guterres’ humanitarian chief, Martin Griffiths, had been due to fly to Turkey Tuesday to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other senior officials to try to push through local cease-fires. Griffiths had to abruptly cancel his trip late Monday when he tested positive for COVID-19.

The United Nations says 12 million Ukrainians need humanitarian assistance due to Russia’s invasion and war. More than one-third of those most in need are in the besieged cities of Mariupol, Kherson, Donetsk, and Luhansk. The U.N. chief said they anticipate the number of people requiring assistance to rise to 15.7 million — about 40% of all Ukrainians left in the country.
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The World Health Organization says escalating fighting in Ukraine is preventing emergency medical supplies and health personnel from reaching many people in need of help.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly two months ago, the World Health Organization has delivered some 218 metric tons of emergency medical supplies. Roughly two-thirds have reached their intended destinations, mostly in the east and north of the country where the need is greatest.

WHO has released 15 generators from its warehouse in Lviv Tuesday with plans to deliver them this week to hospitals across the country. Speaking from Lviv, WHO spokesman, Bhanu Bhatnagar, says three will be sent to Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. That is where heavy fighting is underway, and the power supply is badly affected.

Other generators, he says are destined for places such as Kharkiv, which has been devastated by Russian shelling, and the besieged city of Mariupol.

“We will only move the generators to their final destinations when we can ensure the safety of our personnel and the precious cargo they are transporting. These generators will help meet the sort of minimum energy needs of medical and surgical units of referral hospitals, where power supply is either limited or non-existent,” he said.

Bhatnagar says access to a reliable power supply is critical, noting even a momentary power failure can have serious consequences for patients. He says providing care in this dangerous environment is becoming ever more difficult.

As of now, he says WHO has verified 147 attacks on health care facilities, ambulances, and medical personnel. He adds at least 73 people have been killed and 52 injured. Attacks such as these, he says are hampering efforts to reach the people who need help.

“An increase in fighting in certain parts of the country could really threaten our supply chains in and out of some of the affected areas. To mitigate this risk, we are ramping up our donations to the Ministry of Health. We are also assessing the possibility of pre-positioning supplies in additional locations to sort of build a network of warehouses to reach affected areas,” said Bhatnagar.

Mariupol has been subjected to heavy bombardment by Russian forces since the start of the war. The city has been demolished, thousands of people reportedly have been killed and thousands more remain trapped.

Bhatnagar says WHO fears the worst for the health system of Mariupol. He says no one has access to the city. But he adds WHO is positioning generators and other supplies nearby. This, so it can bring in life-saving medicines and equipment the moment this becomes possible.
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Ukraine says Russia has begun its offensive to take control of eastern Ukraine while a Russian missile attack hit the western city of Lviv, killing at least seven people.  

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address Monday, “Now, we can already state that the Russian troops have begun the battle for the Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time.”   

He said a “significant part of the entire Russian army is now concentrated on this offensive.” The Donbas region includes Luhansk and Donetsk, two provinces that are already partly held by Russian-backed separatists, along with the port city of Mariupol to the south. Capturing the region would allow Russia to control a land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized in 2014.       

Russia’s withdrawal of its forces from areas around Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, and other parts of the north in recent weeks prompted assessments from Western military officials that Russia was reinforcing and redeploying those assets to eastern Ukraine.

In the western city of Lviv, regional Governor Maksym Kozystkiy said three missiles hit military infrastructure sites, while another struck a car tire repair shop.  Lviv, which is about 60 kilometers from Poland, had previously escaped the worst of the violence of the Russian invasion that began nearly two months ago.    

The city is a major transportation hub in Ukraine, which has been receiving weapons from Western allies.  

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the United States has no indication that any Western aid was targeted in Lviv.    

The new barrage came as Russian President Vladimir Putin contended during a video call with economic officials that the sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies had failed.   

He said the West “expected to quickly upset the financial-economic situation, provoke panic in the markets, the collapse of the banking system and shortages in stores.” However, he added, “The strategy of the economic blitz has failed.”   

Western officials say the sanctions have pushed Russia into a sharp recession that will hurt its economy for years.    

Asked Monday if the Biden administration is considering more sanctions against Russia, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters the United States will “continue to expand our sanctions targets and continue to take steps to both further tighten our sanctions to prevent evasion.” 

U.S. President Joe Biden is holding a video call with allies Tuesday to discuss what the White House called “our continued support for Ukraine and efforts to hold Russia accountable.” 

Russia initially described its aims as disarming Ukraine and defeating nationalists there. Kyiv and its Western allies say those are bogus justifications for an unprovoked war of aggression that has driven a quarter of Ukraine’s 44 million people from their homes.        

 Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse
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Swedish police said Monday that the riots that have shaken several cities and towns in the Nordic country are extremely serious crimes against society and suspect some protesters are linked to criminal gangs that intentionally target police. 

Sweden, a nation of 10 million, has seen unrest, scuffles, arson and violence since Thursday that has left some police officers and protesters injured. It was triggered by Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan’s meetings and planned Quran burnings across the country. 

“We suspect that those involved (in the riots) have links to criminal gangs,” National Police Commissioner Anders Thornberg told a news conference on Monday, adding that some of those “criminal individuals” are known to police. “I have been in touch with the public prosecutor to prosecute these individuals.” 

Sweden’s National Police Commander Jonas Hysing said Monday that 26 police officers and 14 individuals — protesters or other people — have been injured in the riots, and 20 police vehicles have been destroyed or damaged. 

The latest riots broke out Sunday night in Malmo, Sweden’s third-largest city, as an angry crowd of mainly young people set fire to car tires, debris and garbage cans in the Rosengard district. Protesters threw stones, and police responded by firing tear gas into the crowd. A school and several cars were set on fire, but the situation calmed down early Monday. 

A total of 11 people were detained, and three people were arrested in Malmo. No serious injuries were reported. 

Since Thursday, in addition to Malmo, riots, unrest and violent clashes have been reported in Stockholm, the central city of Orebro, the eastern cities of Linkoping and Norrkoping and the southern town of Landskrona. 

Police have been forced to use weapons in self-defense, Hysing said. Three people were hurt in Norrkoping on Sunday as they were hit by ricochets as police fired warning shots into a crowd of protesters. 

“There is a lot to suggest that the police were targeted,” Hysing said, adding that some protesters were suspected of attempted murder, aggravated assault and violence against an official. 

Both Thornberg and Hysing stressed that the main target for the rioters was Swedish police and society, not Paludan — seen by many Swedes merely as an agent provocateur — and his Stram Kurs (Hard Line) Party, which runs on an anti-immigrant, anti-Islam agenda. 

Thornberg, Sweden’s supreme police chief, said “criminal individuals” who took advantage of the situation with Paludan’s Swedish Easter tour and joined the riots, were the main suspects for the violent flare-ups of violence. The unrest escalated quickly after Paludan’s first demonstrations, which were met by counter-protesters in many places last week. 

“We must put an end to this early. What we see here is a very serious crime,” Thornberg said, referring to the riots. 

Justice Minister Morgan Johansson said Monday that he continues to have great confidence in the Swedish police, despite the unrest over the weekend, and pledged more resources to law enforcement. 

“When you end up in these critical and aggressive situations, there’s nothing else police officers can do but to put up a hard fight,” Johansson told Swedish news outlets. “We cannot accept that perpetrators commit this type of violence.” 

Iraq’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday summoned Sweden’s charge d’affaires over Paludan’s planned Quran burnings, reportedly saying that such activity could seriously endanger Sweden’s relations with the Muslim world. 

In Iran, dozens of students gathered Monday at Sweden’s embassy to protest Paludan’s planned Quran burnings. Chanting “Insulters of Quran must be condemned!” they also repeated slogans such as “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!” 
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