Ukraine says captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia

Ukraine says captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia
An image published on the official Telegram channel of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday allegedly shows one of two Chinese soldiers he said were captured by Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk region. (AFP)
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Updated 08 April 2025
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Ukraine says captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia

Ukraine says captured two Chinese nationals fighting for Russia
  • President Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukrainian troops captured two Chinese citizens fighting alongside Russian forces
  • Kyiv says it will demand an explanation from Beijing and a reaction from its allies

KYIV, Ukraine: President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Ukrainian troops had captured two Chinese citizens fighting alongside Russian forces, adding Kyiv would demand an explanation from Beijing and a reaction from its allies.
Moscow and Beijing have in recent years boasted of their “no limits” partnership and deepened political, military and economic cooperation since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
“Our military captured two Chinese citizens who fought in the Russian army. This happened on the territory of Ukraine — in the Donetsk region,” Zelensky said in a post on social media.
“We have the documents of these prisoners, bank cards, and personal data,” Zelensky said in a post that included a video of one of the alleged Chinese prisoners.
The video showed a man wearing military fatigues with his hands bound, mimicking sounds from combat and uttering a small number of words in Mandarin, during an apparent interview with a Ukrainian official not pictured.
At one point he is heard saying the word “commander.”
A senior Ukrainian official told AFP that the prisoners were likely Chinese citizens who were enticed into signing a contract with the Russian army, rather than being sent by Beijing.
They were captured “a few days ago,” the source said, adding there may be more of them.
“Nothing is completely clear yet. When they are delivered to the SBU (Ukraine’s security service) and at least interrogated, we will understand,” the source added.
The source sent images of ID cards linked to one of the prisoners, which showed the date of his birth as June 4, 1991 and said he belonged to the Han ethnicity — the majority ethnic group in China.
There was no immediate response to the claims from either Moscow or Beijing, but Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said on social media that China’s charge d’affaires had been summoned for an explanation.
“Chinese citizens fighting as part of Russia’s invasion army in Ukraine puts into question China’s declared stance for peace and undermines Beijing’s credibility as a responsible permanent member of the UN Security Council,” Sybiga said.
China presents itself as a neutral party in the conflict and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations.
But it is a close political and economic ally of Russia, and NATO members have branded China a “decisive enabler” of Moscow’s invasion, which Beijing has never condemned.
US President Donald Trump has been pushing for a speedy end to the war since taking office, but his administration has failed to reach a breakthrough.
Kyiv has repeatedly urged Beijing to pressure Moscow to end its invasion, which has cost tens of thousands of lives and so far failed to achieve the Kremlin’s core objectives.
Zelensky said Kyiv had evidence that “many more Chinese citizens” are fighting alongside Russian forces and that he had instructed his foreign minister to find out how China intends to respond.
He said the capture of the two men and Moscow’s involvement of China in the conflict were “a clear signal that Putin is going to do anything but end the war.”
Zelensky also demanded “a reaction from the United States, Europe, and everyone in the world who wants peace” in his post online.
“I think the United States should pay more attention to what is happening today,” he said separately at a press conference in Kyiv.
The war in Ukraine, now grinding through its fourth year, has attracted thousands of foreign fighters to both sides.
Ukraine has been urging its Western partners to respond to the Russian deployment of thousands of North Korean troops to the western region of Kursk.
Ukraine has been struggling to hold ground after launching an offensive on the border region last year.
“The North Koreans fought against us in the Kursk region, the Chinese are fighting on the territory of Ukraine. And I think this is an important point that we need to discuss with our partners, I think urgently,” Zelensky added in the press conference.
Kyiv, which dispatched its then-foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba to China last year, has been seeking to deepen ties with Beijing.
Zelensky appointed a new ambassador to China this week.


Judge suspends the dismantling of US Education Department

Judge suspends the dismantling of US Education Department
Updated 7 sec ago
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Judge suspends the dismantling of US Education Department

Judge suspends the dismantling of US Education Department

WASHINGTON:  A US federal judge on Thursday suspended President Donald Trump’s executive order that effectively eliminates the country’s Education Department and ordered the reinstatement of hundreds of fired employees.
In March, the department announced that it was slashing staff numbers by nearly half, shortly after Trump issued an executive order instructing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to “put herself out of a job.”
That move was hailed by Trump’s supporters on the right, but by law, the department created in 1979 cannot be shuttered without the approval of Congress.
Around 20 states, along with teachers’ unions have challenged the decisions in court, arguing that the government is violating the principle of separation of powers by encroaching on Congress’s prerogatives.
A federal judge in the northeastern city of Boston agreed with the plaintiffs, suspending the executive order and ordering the reinstatement of hundreds of dismissed employees.
“This court cannot be asked to cover its eyes while the Department’s employees are continuously fired and units are transferred out until the Department becomes a shell of itself,” Judge Myong Joun said in his ruling.
Traditionally, the federal government has had a limited role in education in the United States, with only about 13 percent of funding for primary and secondary schools coming from federal coffers, the rest being funded by states and local communities.
But federal funding is invaluable for low-income schools and students with special needs. And the federal government has been essential in enforcing key civil rights protections for students.
The Education Department cannot be completely dismantled without Congress’s approval, including 60 votes in the Senate where the ruling Republicans currently hold 53 seats.


G7 to ‘maximize pressure’ on Russia if it resists Ukraine ceasefire

G7 to ‘maximize pressure’ on Russia if it resists Ukraine ceasefire
Updated 22 May 2025
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G7 to ‘maximize pressure’ on Russia if it resists Ukraine ceasefire

G7 to ‘maximize pressure’ on Russia if it resists Ukraine ceasefire
  • Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have stepped up in recent weeks
  • The Kremlin said Thursday that new peace talks with Ukraine had “yet to be agreed“

BANFF, Canada: G7 finance ministers agreed Thursday to “maximize pressure” on Russia, including through further sanctions, if it resists efforts toward a ceasefire in Ukraine.

“If such a ceasefire is not agreed, we will continue to explore all possible options, including options to maximize pressure such as further ramping up sanctions,” a final communique following the group’s meeting in Canada said.

Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have stepped up in recent weeks, with Russian and Ukrainian officials holding their first face-to-face talks in more than three years last week in Istanbul.

But the Kremlin said Thursday that new peace talks with Ukraine had “yet to be agreed,” disputing reports the two nations would soon hold negotiations at the Vatican.

US President Donald Trump spoke with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday in a call aimed at ending the “bloodbath,” but neither his contact nor the earlier talks in Istanbul resulted in Russia offering any concessions.

The communique from the Group of Seven advanced economies condemned “Russia’s continued brutal war against Ukraine” and said any entity that supported Russia during the conflict would be barred from Ukrainian reconstruction contracts.

“We agree to work together with Ukraine to ensure that no countries or entities, or entities from those countries that financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be eligible to profit from Ukraine’s reconstruction,” it said.


Federal judge blocks immigration authorities from revoking international students’ legal status

Federal judge blocks immigration authorities from revoking international students’ legal status
Updated 22 May 2025
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Federal judge blocks immigration authorities from revoking international students’ legal status

Federal judge blocks immigration authorities from revoking international students’ legal status
  • Students could still be arrested for other reasons and their legal status can still be revoked
  • Most courts hearing these types of cases have granted protections to the person suing

SAN FRANCISCO: A judge in California blocked the Trump administration Thursday from terminating the legal status of international students nationwide while a court case challenging previous terminations is pending.

The order by US District Judge Jeffrey S. White in Oakland bars the government from arresting, incarcerating or moving students elsewhere based on their legal status until the case is resolved.

Students could still be arrested for other reasons and their legal status can still be revoked if they are convicted of a violent crime carrying a prison term of more than a year.

Most courts hearing these types of cases have granted protections to the person suing, but White said the government’s actions “wreaked havoc” not only on the lives of plaintiffs but other nonimmigrants in the US on student visas.

White, who was nominated by President George W. Bush, a Republican, issued the nationwide injunction sought by attorneys for about two dozen students who sued after their legal status was abruptly terminated in early April by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

More than 4,700 international students had their permission to study in the US canceled this spring, with little notice or explanation, as part of President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigrants and foreign nationals. In court hearings, Department of Homeland Security officials said they ran the names of student visa holders through an FBI-run database that contains the names of suspects and people who have been arrested, even if the charges were dropped or they were never charged with a crime.

Some students left the US rather than risk being deported to a third country.

Government lawyers say the administration is exercising its prerogative to administer the Immigration and Nationality Act. They say students do not need the court’s protections because ICE reinstated legal status and was mailing status reactivation letters to affected students.

But White found those actions insufficient. He said that the erroneous revocation remained in the students’ record, impacting their ability to obtain a new visa or change their nonimmigrant status. Some students are still dealing with fallout from the previous terminations and there is no guarantee they won’t have their legal status revoked again on a whim.

He also chastised the administration for unveiling new policies or new actions in an apparent attempt to satisfy the courts’ concerns.

“It is unclear how this game of whack-a-mole will end unless Defendants are enjoined from skirting their own mandatory regulations,” White wrote.

A survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs research found that even the visa revocations for students who participated in pro-Palestinian protests are more unpopular than popular. About half of US adults oppose this policy, and only 3 in 10 are in support.

Among college educated adults, 6 in 10 strongly oppose, compared with 4 in 10 who aren’t college graduates.


Panama resumes flights to Venezuela, allowing for migrant returns

Panama resumes flights to Venezuela, allowing for migrant returns
Updated 22 May 2025
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Panama resumes flights to Venezuela, allowing for migrant returns

Panama resumes flights to Venezuela, allowing for migrant returns
  • Venezuela suspended air links with Panama in July 2024
  • The resumption of flights is expected to facilitate the repatriation from Panama of Venezuelan migrants deported from the US

PANAMA CITY: Panama’s civil aviation authority on Thursday announced that it would resume flights with Venezuela after nearly a year, facilitating the repatriation of Venezuelan migrants expelled from the United States.

Venezuela suspended air links with Panama in July 2024 over its refusal to recognize Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s victory in presidential elections.

The two countries at the time also suspended diplomatic relations.

The resumption of flights is expected to facilitate the repatriation from Panama of Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States.

Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino said earlier he had received a proposal from Caracas to resume flights between the two countries.

“I will evaluate it very carefully right away,” he told his weekly press conference, adding “it is in Panama’s best interest to open commercial flights to Venezuela.”

Mulino however ruled out restoring diplomatic relations with the Caribbean nation.

Panama is one of a handful of countries that has agreed to act as a stopover for migrants expelled from the United States by President Donald Trump’s administration.

Under the plan, Panama holds the migrants in closed shelters while waiting for them to be repatriated to their homelands.

Many of those expelled so far have been from Venezuela and other South American countries.

Panama has also been grappling with a reverse flow of thousands of migrants returning home through Central America after failing to gain entry to the Untied States.

In the absence of flights between Panama and Venezuela, many of the migrants were left to organize their own transport home, either by boat or overland through the treacherous Darien jungle on Panama’s border with Colombia.


Homeland Security blocking Harvard’s ability to enroll international students

Homeland Security blocking Harvard’s ability to enroll international students
Updated 22 May 2025
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Homeland Security blocking Harvard’s ability to enroll international students

Homeland Security blocking Harvard’s ability to enroll international students
  • Kristi Noem: ‘This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus’
  • Harvard: ‘We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University’

US President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students, and will force existing students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status, the Department of Homeland Security said on Thursday.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the department to terminate Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification, the department said in a statement.

Harvard called the action illegal.

The move comes after Harvard refused to provide information Noem had previously demanded about some foreign student visa holders who attend the university, the department said.

“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said.

“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments.”

Harvard said the move a retaliatory action that threatens serious harm to the university.

“The government’s action is unlawful. We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University – and this nation – immeasurably,” the university said in a statement.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The move marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump’s most prominent institutional targets.

The Republican president has undertaken an extraordinary effort to revamp private colleges and schools across the US that he says foster anti-American, Marxist and “radical left” ideologies.

He has criticized Harvard in particular for hiring prominent Democrats to teaching or leadership positions.