Europe

KYIV, Jan 26 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian film director who was jailed by Russia after opposing Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea said on Wednesday Russian President Vladimir Putin will wreak chaos and destabilisation further west if Ukraine falls.

Russia arrested Oleg Sentsov in Crimea, his native Black Sea peninsula, and sentenced him to 20 years in a maximum security prison over terrorist charges he says amounted to a political vendetta.

BERLIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 100 of the 390 planned trade fairs in Germany have already been postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) said on Wednesday.

The economic damage to the German trade fair industry already amounted to around 5 billion euros (5.6 billion U.S. dollars) this year, according to AUMA.

"COVID-19 regulations of the federal states, which are valid for four weeks or less, are no basis for business," said Joern Holtmeier, managing director of AUMA.

BERLIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 100 of the 390 planned trade fairs in Germany have already been postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) said on Wednesday.

The economic damage to the German trade fair industry already amounted to around 5 billion euros (5.6 billion U.S. dollars) this year, according to AUMA.

"COVID-19 regulations of the federal states, which are valid for four weeks or less, are no basis for business," said Joern Holtmeier, managing director of AUMA.

MOSCOW (AP) — The United States on Wednesday delivered a written response to the Kremlin’s security demands on Ukraine and NATO amid soaring tensions that Moscow is planning to invade its neighbor, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

U.S. Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan handed over the response to Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko.

The U.S. hasn’t made its response public, but already has warned that Russia’s top demands are unacceptable.

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Boris Johnson was braced for the conclusions of an investigation into allegations of lockdown-breaching parties, a document that could help him end weeks of scandal and discontent, or bring his time in office to an abrupt close.

Senior civil servant Sue Gray could turn in her report to the government as soon as Wednesday. Johnson has previously promised to publish it in full and to address Parliament about its findings.

MOSCOW (AP) — The United States on Wednesday delivered a written response to the Kremlin’s security demands on Ukraine and NATO amid soaring tensions that Moscow is planning to invade its neighbor, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

U.S. Ambassador to Moscow John Sullivan handed over the response to Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko.

The U.S. hasn’t made its response public, but already has warned that Russia’s top demands are unacceptable.

26 Jan 2022; MEMO: A German federal court has described as "unconstitutional" the city of Munich's refusal to allow a public venue to be used for a debate on its 2017 anti-Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions resolution, The Electronic Intifada has reported. The court ruled that the resolution "violates the fundamental right to freedom of expression."

26 Jan 2022; MEMO: A Regional Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) who investigated Israel's conflict with Hamas in Gaza and the Beirut port explosion had her phones hacked with spyware made by the Israeli company NSO, the group said on Wednesday, and reported by Reuters.

MOSCOW, January 25./TASS/: Moscow’s further position will be determined after it gets the US response to the Russian proposals on security guarantees, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Tuesday.

MOSCOW, January 25. /TASS/: The European countries will not be able to receive gas, oil and metals from Russia in case Russia is disconnected from the SWIFT international payment system, Nikolay Zhuravlev, Vice Speaker of the Federation Council, told TASS on Tuesday. The Federation Council is the upper house of the Russian parliament.

Earlier, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the UK government is discussing with the United States the possibility of disconnecting Russia from SWIFT in case of the country’s allegedly possible invasion of Ukraine.