Clayton Larcombe, the founder of PAC Capital, an investment fund focusing on esports, has bought a $33.5m house on Victoria Road in Sydney's Bellevue Hill. It is opposite Ros Packer’s Cairnton family home, and the property features a pool and tennis court, and is expected to require a major renovation, if not a knock-down rebuild, by Larcombe and his wife, interior designer Kyara Larcombe.
German police are investigating the possible poisoning of two Russian exiles, who attended a conference in Berlin at the end of April organised by Russian Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Two women reportedly showed symptoms that suggested possible poisoning after attending the conference, according to Russian investigative media group Agentstvo, which was cited by German newspaper Welt am Sonntag. No further details have been disclosed by the police.
Two Russian exiles are suspected to have been poisoned while attending a conference in Germany organized by Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Detectives in Berlin have opened a file after two women complained of symptoms suggestive of poisoning, according to German newspaper Welt am Sonntag. One of the women, a journalist, reported symptoms that may have pre-dated the conference, but she also attended the hospital in Berlin. The second woman, Natalia Arno, director of the NGO Free Russia Foundation, found the door to her hotel room ajar and later complained of sharp pain and strange symptoms.
Berlin police are investigating after two Russian exiles fell ill following a conference organised by Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Natalia Arno, director of the NGO Free Russia Foundation, reported feeling unwell after waking to find her hotel room door ajar. One of the women had symptoms prior to the event, according to reports citing Russian investigators. Berlin police said “a file had been opened” but did not comment further. Russia has been accused of carrying out numerous poison attacks on its opponents in Russia and abroad in recent years. Alexei Navalny, an opposition figure, was treated for a nerve agent attack although the Russian government denied any involvement. Navalny returned to Russia in January 2021 from Germany, where he had been treated for the effects of the attack, and has been imprisoned since his arrival. Arno declined to speculate who might have been responsible for her incident although she has previously experienced harassment from Russian agents.
Last year, when Germany was abruptly cut off from Russian energy supplies, the economy proved it could cope, according to a study by economists. Some economists had predicted a significant loss of economic output and job losses when Russia blocked gas supplies to Germany after invading the Ukraine; however, the country found substitute sources of energy and no business closures or layoffs occurred. The authors also found that temperatures remained the same despite the notion Germany benefited from an unusually mild winter. The report states that Germany's resilience is something to celebrate, and it is important to learn from the experience.
What drives visual artist Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas to tell stories through comics?
CBC
23-05-21 13:00
Visual artist and storyteller Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas will release his latest graphic novel, JAJ, on May 27. The novel explores the story of Johan Adrian Jacobsen, a Norweigian explorer who travelled along the coast of British Columbia, Canada, in the 1880s. Yahgulanaas drew inspiration from the historical figure, and his work speaks to Yamgulanaas’s Haida family legacy, colonial history, the smallpox epidemic, and the resettlement of both Indigenous and European people. In an interview ahead of the book’s release, Yahgulanaas explains how he used the language of graphic novels to bring Indigenous narratives closer to a wider audience, in order to improve understanding between different cultures and help counter the misunderstandings that have historically been entrenched in Canada’s dealings with its Indigenous populations.
Sangeeta Lerner is a Berlin-based Indian yoga teacher who argues that much of the western yoga industry involves cultural appropriation of an ancient Indian philosophy. Lerner offers Decolonize Yoga workshops throughout Germany to educate practitioners about the roots of yoga. She believes that yoga has become commercialized and superficial, particularly in Western countries, where it is often dissociated from its spiritual roots and used as a form of exercise. The global yoga industry earns about €35bn ($38bn) annually through classes, retreats, publishing and merchandising, yet advertising frequently reinforces negative stereotypes of Indian culture. Lerner runs her classes outside of the traditional yoga studio, focusing on creating a non-judgmental ‘listening environment’ for her students. Her aim is to give people an understanding of cultural diversity within the yoga practice and to broaden its appeal so that it is no longer exclusively associated with privileged classes.
German police launch probe into possible poisoning of two Russian exiles
CNN
23-05-21 16:16
Berlin police are investigating the possible poisoning of two Russian exiles who attended a conference in the German capital, according to reports. The investigation comes after Russian exile Natalia Arno, president of activist group the Free Russia Foundation, spoke publicly this week about falling ill after a trip to Europe and said that she was “poisoned, probably by some nerve agent”. In 2020, Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny fell ill on a return flight from Siberia and was later confirmed to have been poisoned with a nerve agent from the Novichok group, the same poison used on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in the English city of Salisbury in 2018.
Russian private military contractor the Wagner Group has claimed victory in the east Ukrainian town of Bakhmut after eight months of fighting. The Ukrainian President, Zelenskyy, has denied that the town has fallen, but the Wagner boss claimed otherwise, stating the Ukrainian military had all been killed. Russian television shows and Telegram channels showed the Russian flag being hoisted over the ruined city, though some have suggested that this particular victory was only achieved as part of a Kremlin goal of “freezing the conflict through a compromise agreement” promoting a weary enemy.
Berlin police investigate report of Russian exiles falling ill
The Toronto Star
23-05-21 18:49
German police are investigating reports that two Russian exiles fell ill around the time they attended a conference in Berlin last month, linked to opposition figure Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Police are being tight-lipped about details, but the probe is being conducted by a team that handles politically-motivated crimes. There is speculation that the pair may have been poisoned with a nerve agent, but this has not been corroborated.
Diplomats from Northern Ireland who are serving all over the world have expressed their admiration for the city’s/Belfast’s Good Friday agreement and have spoken of how this has influenced their work in countries such as North Korea, Hong Kong, Turkey and Afghanistan. Jill Gallard, UK’s ambassador to Germany spoke of the tears of relief she shed whilst in Madrid when she heard the Troubles were coming to an end, while Brian Davidson, the UK’s consul general to Hong Kong, said that talking about the Good Friday agreement was crucial to his job.
A book by Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writers Reinhard Bingener and Markus Wehner examines why German politicians were so accepting of Russia and Vladimir Putin. The authors describe Gerhard Schröder, the former German chancellor, as Putin's "apologist-in-chief", while his Social Democrat compatriots, Sigmar Gabriel and Frank-Walter Steinmeier, also described by the authors as villains, drove Germany dependancy on Russia, partly through the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The Greens are depicted more favourably as they opposed the project from the start. German chancellor, Angela Merkel, also receives criticism for her support for Nord Stream 2.
Sébastien Haller has gone from testicular cancer patient to playing a central role in Borussia Dortmund's pursuit of a Bundesliga title. Despite being diagnosed with the disease last summer, he has scored crucial goals for the team to leave them within one game of ending Bayern Munich's decade-long streak. The Ivory Coast striker has nine goals in 18 Bundesliga matches since his return to club football in January. He featured in the squad as Dortmund claimed their first title in nine years with a 3-1 victory over Mainz 05 on Saturday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has criticised climate activists for the recent protests in Germany, including blocking roads and gluing themselves to famous paintings in several museums. Scholz called them "nutty" and said their actions would not help their cause, and would instead make people angry. Activist group Last Generation aims to put pressure on the German government to take action against climate change, including phasing out use of all fossil fuels by 2030 and adding a general speed limit of 100km/hour to reduce transport emissions.
Efforts by the Group of Seven (G7) to contain China's growing influence with emerging economies in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific are unlikely to alter the Global South's deepening economic ties with Beijing or encourage the nations to switch sides, according to former Singaporean diplomat and ex-UN Security Council President Kishore Mahbubani. Despite US attempts to rally countries to the Americans' cause, economic development is the prime concern for most state and ASEAN governments, driving many of them to seek close ties with both the US and China and discouraging them from taking sides, said Mahbubani, now a distinguished fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Asia Research Institute. Europe will continue its strong trade ties with China; developing nations do not want to choose sides; Russia and China are not yet a bloc; and the consequence of the US-China trade war could be severe for many of these emerging nations, Mahbubani said.
The European Union's (EU) use of the Temporary Protection Directive for the first time to cope with Ukrainian refugees from Russia's invasion of Ukraine in March 2022 could provide lessons for dealing with contentious refugee issues amidst the current refugee crisis. The directive grants temporary protection whereby refugees receive immediate access to housing, welfare, healthcare and education, almost the same as local nationals, and fast-tracks residency rights by waiving the need to examine applications individually, thus avoiding bottlenecks, overwhelmed asylum systems and deterrent conditions. Despite largely being regarded as a success, it has led to a two-tier system. Some Member States feared activating temporary protection in other cases would attract more migrants to Europe. Further, geography plays a significant role in migrant policy debates, with countries of origin having different perspectives on border countries versus destination countries, which tend to be preferred by refugees.
Germany’s Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, has favoured a pragmatic approach to foreign policy, balancing principles with realpolitik. Praised by political rivals for her performance, Baerbock has taken a strong stance on human rights, environmental matters, and confronting Russia. Active in the fight against climate change, Baerbock attended a conference in Saudi Arabia where she praised the nation’s efforts to solve crises in Yemen and Sudan and extolled its “incredible potential” for renewable energy. However, she also left a copy of her 80-page handbook on feminist foreign policy, as there are still “many things that divide us” in the realm of human rights. Baerbock’s ambition to be chancellor was stalled after embroiling herself in a plagiarism scandal in 2021, but after serving as Green Party leader, she has rebranded herself and risen to become one of Germany’s most popular politicians. Political supporters argue that her pragmatic approach makes Baerbock a perfect fit for her role in Germany’s decentralised coalition government, even if it leads to friction with other parties.
