MOSCOW – Russia’s Investigative Committee said on Sunday the results of genetic tests confirmed the identities of the 10 people who died in a plane crash last Wednesday, and that they included Wagner mercenary group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Russia’s aviation agency previously published the names of all 10 people on board the private jet that crashed in the Tver region north-west of Moscow. They included Mr Prigozhin and Mr Dmitry Utkin, his right-hand man who helped found the Wagner group.
“As part of the investigation of the plane crash in the Tver region, molecular-genetic examinations have been completed,” the investigative committee said in a statement on its site on the Telegram messaging app.
“According to their results, the identities of all 10 victims were established, they correspond to the list stated in the flight list,” the committee added.
Western politicians and commentators have suggested, without presenting evidence, that the plane appeared to have been downed on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as revenge for Mr Prigozhin’s aborted mutiny two months ago.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said such suggestions were an “absolute lie”.
Mr Prigozhin had sent a column of mercenaries towards Moscow in an attempt to oust the leadership of the Defence Ministry.
Mr Putin described that mutiny as a treacherous “stab in the back”, but later met with Mr Prigozhin at the Kremlin.
He sent his condolences last Thursday to the families of those the aviation agency said died in the crash.
Asked whether Mr Putin might attend Mr Prigozhin’s funeral, Mr Peskov said it was too early to say and also noted the President’s “busy schedule”.
Wagner fighters played a prominent role in the fighting in eastern Ukraine, especially in the months-long siege of the city of Bakhmut, despite Mr Prigozhin’s frequent, profanity-laced attacks on Russia’s military high command over their conduct of the war that culminated in the failed mutiny.
The Wagner fighters have now left Ukraine, and some have relocated to neighbouring Belarus under the terms of a deal that ended their mutiny.
Some are expected to be absorbed into Russia’s armed forces, but many will be angry over the sudden demise of the group’s founder, who inspired a high degree of loyalty among his men.
Mr Putin paid a mixed tribute to Mr Prigozhin on Thursday, describing him as a “talented businessman” but also as a flawed character who “made serious mistakes in life”.
However, his comments did little to stem rising questions and anger over Mr Prigozhin’s death, with makeshift memorials to the mercenary leader springing up across Russian cities.
“He was killed,” said one man outside a makeshift memorial in Moscow.
“He was killed by his enemies. We won’t say who. The investigation will reveal. But we hope that revenge will catch up with those who committed this crime,” he added. REUTERS, AFP
BANGKOK: Myanmar's junta on Sunday (Aug 27) ordered the expulsion of Timor-Leste's top diplomat in the country over a meeting his government held with a banned shadow administration.
The military has designated the shadow administration known as the National Unity Government (NUG) - dominated by exiled lawmakers working overseas to overturn the coup - as a terror organisation.
Last month, Timor-Leste's President Jose Ramos-Horta met with NUG foreign minister Zin Mar Aung in the capital Dili.
On Sunday, Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the "irresponsible actions" of Timor-Leste, ordering the country's Charge d'Affaires in Yangon "to leave no later than Sep 1, 2023".
The ministry said in a Facebook post that Timor-Leste was "encouraging the terrorist group to further committing their violations in Myanmar".
Timor-Leste condemned the expulsion order, reiterating in a statement "the importance of supporting all efforts for the return of democratic order in Myanmar".
Dili also urged the junta to "respect human rights and seek a peaceful and constructive solution to the crisis".
Tokyo's embassy in Beijing has separately urged its nationals there to refrain from speaking loudly in Japanese.
A Fukushima businessperson told the Kyodo news agency that his four restaurants and pastry shops received a total of about 1,000 calls on Friday, mostly from China.
His businesses had to unplug their phones, Kyodo said.
Fukushima city mayor Hiroshi Kohata said in a Facebook post Saturday that the city hall had received around 200 similar calls in two days, while local schools, restaurants and hotels also became targets.
"I will report this to the Japanese government and demand action," he wrote in his post.
Chinese social media users shared videos of themselves making calls to Japanese numbers, including restaurants in Fukushima.
TEPCO is releasing more than 500 Olympic swimming pools' worth of wastewater used to cool Fukushima's damaged reactors, three of which went into meltdown in March 2011 when they were hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami that killed about 18,000 people.
The water has been filtered of all radioactive elements except for tritium.
The Japanese environment ministry said Sunday that a fresh test of Fukushima coastal water showed no elevated levels of tritium.
The ministry added that the water samples did not show signs of gamma radiation that can come from other radioactive materials such as caesium.
WILL THE WASTEWATER RELEASE PUSH DECOMMISSIONING FORWARD?
Not right away, because the water release is slow and the decommissioning is making little progress. TEPCO says it plans to release 31,200 tonnes of treated water by the end of March 2024, which would empty only 10 tanks out of 1,000 because of the continued production of wastewater at the plant.
The pace will later pick up, and about one-third of the tanks will be removed over the next 10 years, freeing up space for the plant's decommissioning, said TEPCO executive Junichi Matsumoto, who is in charge of the treated water release.
He says the water would be released gradually over the span of 30 years, but as long as the melted fuel stays in the reactors, it requires cooling water, which creates more wastewater.
Emptied tanks also need to be scrapped for storage. Highly radioactive sludge, a byproduct of filtering at the treatment machine, also is a concern.
WHAT CHALLENGES ARE AHEAD?
About 880 tonnes of fatally radioactive melted nuclear fuel remain inside the reactors. Robotic probes have provided some information but the status of the melted debris remains largely unknown.
Earlier this year, a remote-controlled underwater vehicle successfully collected a tiny sample from inside Unit 1’s reactor — only a spoonful of the melted fuel debris in the three reactors. That’s 10 times the amount of damaged fuel removed at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island cleanup following its 1979 partial core melt.
Trial removal of melted debris using a giant remote-controlled robotic arm will begin in Unit 2 later this year after a nearly two-year delay. Spent fuel removal from Unit 1 reactor’s cooling pool is set to start in 2027 after a 10-year delay. Once all the spent fuel is removed, the focus will turn in 2031 to taking melted debris out of the reactors. But debris removal methods for two other reactors have not been decided.
Matsumoto says “technical difficulty involving the decommissioning is much higher” than the water release and involves higher risks of exposures by plant workers to remove spent fuel or melted fuel.
“Measures to reduce radiation exposure risks by plant workers will be increasingly difficult,” Matsumoto said. “Reduction of exposure risks is the basis for achieving both Fukushima's recovery and decommissioning.”
MADRID: Football's world governing body FIFA suspended Spanish federation chief Luis Rubiales from all football-related activities for three months on Saturday (Aug 26) as it investigates allegations he gave a player an unwanted kiss on the lips after Spain's women won the World Cup.
FIFA had opened disciplinary proceedings against Rubiales two days ago over the incident with player Jenni Hermoso last Sunday in Sydney that has caused an uproar among players and fans. Rubiales' suspension from national and international activities takes immediate effect, it said on Saturday.
Rubiales said he would use the probe to show his innocence.
The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) issued a statement for him, saying Rubiales "will defend himself legally in the competent bodies, has full confidence in the FIFA bodies and reiterates that, in this way, he is being given the opportunity to begin his defence so that the truth prevails and his complete innocence is proven".
Rubiales, 46, has been defiant over the kiss - which has been condemned as unwanted by Hermoso, her team mates and the Spanish government - arguing it was consensual.
Earlier on Saturday the RFEF had said it would stick by Rubiales as he sought to stay on, but a federation spokesperson said after the FIFA announcement that "We respect all the pronouncements of FIFA".
Gary Lineker, a former England and Barcelona player, summed up much of the public reaction to the FIFA move, posting in Spanish on X, formerly known as Twitter: "Por fin! (At last)."
Rubiales played mainly in Spain's second division in a career spanning 12 years. When he was elected to lead the RFEF in 2018, he promised to modernise its structure, increase turnover and make the federation more transparent.
Feminist groups staged demonstrations in Madrid, Santander and Logrono on Saturday calling for his resignation.
At a federation meeting on Friday where he had been widely expected to resign, Rubiales insteady refused to quit, seeking to defend his behaviour and calling the kiss "spontaneous, mutual, euphoric and consensual".
Hermoso said she did not consent to the kiss and felt "vulnerable and the victim of an aggression".
In a statement hours before FIFA's move on Saturday, the federation said it would show there had been lies told about what happened by Hermoso or people speaking for her and that it would "initiate the corresponding legal actions" to defend Rubiales' honour, without specifying what that would entail.
The Spanish government cannot fire Rubiales but has strongly denounced his actions and said on Friday it was seeking to get him suspended using a legal procedure before a sports tribunal.
FIFA has provisionally suspended Luis Rubiales, the president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF), from all football-related activities for 90 days following his unsolicited kiss of Jenni Hermoso after the Women's World Cup final.
Despite growing pressure throughout the week, including FIFA opening disciplinary proceedings Thursday, Rubiales refused to resign Friday, saying the kiss was "mutual and with consent."
Pachuca forward Hermoso replied in a statement later in the day, disputing Rubiales' version of events and saying she "felt vulnerable and the victim of aggression, an impulsive, sexist act which was out of place and with no consent on my behalf."
FIFA, world football's governing body, said Saturday: "The chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, Jorge Ivan Palacio (Colombia), in use of the powers granted by article 51 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC), has decided today to provisionally suspend Mr. Luis Rubiales from all football-related activities at national and international level.
"This suspension, which will be effective as of today, is for an initial period of 90 days, pending the disciplinary proceedings opened against Mr. Luis Rubiales on Thursday, Aug. 24.
"Likewise, the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee and in order to preserve, among other factors, the fundamental rights of the national team player Ms. Jennifer Hermoso and the good order of the disciplinary proceedings before this disciplinary body, has issued two additional directives (article 7 FDC) by which he orders Mr. Luis Rubiales to refrain, through himself or third parties, from contacting or attempting to contact the professional player of the Spanish national football team Ms. Jennifer Hermoso or her close environment.
"Likewise, the RFEF and its officials or employees, directly or through third parties, are ordered to refrain from contacting the professional player of the Spanish national team Ms. Jennifer Hermoso and her close environment."
UEFA, which oversees football in Europe, has yet to respond to ESPN's requests for a comment on the situation. Rubiales sits on UEFA's executive committee and is one of the body's vice presidents.
In a statement through the federation, Rubiales said: "Luis Rubiales has stated that he will legally defend himself in the competent bodies, he fully trusts FIFA and reiterates that, in this way, he is given the opportunity to begin his defence so that the truth prevails and his complete innocence is proven."
Later on Saturday, the RFEF released another statement in reply to Hermoso's, accusing her of changing her original version of events.
"The facts are what they are and, no matter how many statement you put out to distort reality, it is impossible to change what happened," the statement read.
"The peck was with consent. Consent is given at the moment with the conditions of the moment. Afterwards you can think that you have made a mistake, but you cannot change the reality."
It follows a week of controversy, criticism and widespread condemnation of Rubiales' behaviour after Spain's World Cup win over England in Sydney.
As well as kissing Hermoso, Rubiales was also seen effusively hugging other members of the Spanish national team and kissing them on the cheek.
Before that, immediately following Spain's confirmation as World Cup champions, Rubiales was seen grabbing his crotch in a victory gesture, with 16-year-old Infanta Sofia and Queen Letizia of Spain standing nearby.
Everything accelerated on Friday when Rubiales announced he would not resign in a remarkable 30-minute speech, which was applauded by those present at the RFEF's headquarters.
Following his intervention, Spain's government started legal proceedings seeking to "suspend him from his functions."
Later, all 23 players who won the World Cup with Spain, in addition to more than 50 other players, denounced Rubiales' "bewildering speech" and said they "will not return to the national team if the current leaders continue."
In a separate statement, Hermoso then called Rubiales' version of events "false," said his behaviour constituted an "aggressive, sexist act" and added that the RFEF had put pressure on her and others to make public comments to calm things down.
Following that, six members of coach Jorge Vilda's staff stepped down on Saturday with a further five coaches who work with the country's youth teams also announcing their resignations.
Vilda said later on Saturday that he regretted the "inappropriate behaviour" of Rubiales.
The fallout has dominated headlines in Spain and was the focus of Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez's news conference ahead of Sunday's trip to Villarreal.
"Before taking questions, I just want to comment on the situation," Xavi said. "Firstly, I want to offer my unconditional support for Jenni and players in the women's game.
"Secondly, I want to condemn the behaviour of the RFEF president, which was totally unacceptable. And, thirdly, I want to express sadness that it has taken away from a historic World Cup win."
However, Xavi grew irritated as he was asked multiple times about the matter, with the press officer eventually requesting that journalists focus on other questions.
"That's seven questions now," Xavi said. "It's a shame we're not talking about Cata Coll, Aitana Bonmatí, Alexia Putellas and the hurdles they have overcome.
"We are talking about unacceptable conduct [instead]. I like how the team bounced back after losing to Japan, how they suffered in the semifinal to make the final. We have to put value on the players."
Rubiales has been a controversial figure throughout his tenure as head of Spanish football's governing body.
The RFEF also faced criticism over its handling of the complaints of 15 Spain women's national team players over Vilda and the federation's support for the team.
Rubiales' response was to back Vilda. Three of the 15 featured at the World Cup after some changes were made, while seven refused to participate and five were not selected.
Information from Reuters was included in this report.
MOSCOW : Russia hopes to increase its marine product exports to China in the wake of China's ban on Japanese seafood imports after the release of treated radioactive water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea.
Russia is one of the biggest marine product suppliers to China, with 894 Russian companies allowed to export seafood, Rosselkhoznadzor, the Russian food safety watchdog, said in July.
In a statement late on Friday (Aug 26), Rosselkhoznadzor said it was seeking to increase the number of exporters.
"The Chinese market in general is promising for Russian fish products. We hope to increase the number of certified Russian companies and ships, the volume of products and its range," the Rosselkhoznadzor statement said.
To aid that effort, Rosselkhoznadzor plans to continue dialogue with China on seafood safety issues and finish negotiations with China on regulations for Russian marine products supply to the country, the statement said.
China has already banned some food imports from Japan but Thursday's total ban was prompted by concerns about the "risk of radioactive contamination" after it started releasing the treated water.
China was the destination for over a half of Russian aquatic products exports between January and August, the statement said without providing figures, dominated by pollock, herring, flounder, sardine, cod and crab.
Russia exported 2.3 million metric tons of marine products last year worth about US$6.1 billion, around half of its overall catch, with China, South Korea and Japan being the biggest importers, according to Russia's fisheries agency.
Japan said criticism from Russia and China was unsupported by scientific evidence and pollution levels in the water will be below those considered safe for drinking under World Health Organization standards.
Still, Rosselkhoznadzor said it has tightened the screening of Japan seafood imports, though the volumes are insignificant.
The regulator also said the direction of currents in the Russian Far East, where about 70 per cent of Russia's seafood is caught, "would prevent contamination" of marine products caught by Russian ships.
It has also tightened the radiological control of seafood caught in Russian waters which are relatively close to Fukushima and would test selected samples for radiation levels, Interfax reported on Thursday, citing Rosselkhoznadzor's Pacific office.
