TANK DELIVERIES ARE 'DIRECT INVOLVEMENT' BY WEST IN CONFLICT, SAYS KREMLIN

Kremlin announced on Thursday the delivery of Western tanks to Ukraine is proof of escalating direct US and European involvement in the current Russia-Ukraine conflict.

This occurred after the United States and Germany said on Wednesday that they would provide Ukraine with combat tanks to confront Russia.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that providing Ukraine with heavy weapons and ammunition shows the direct involvement of the West in Ukraine’s conflict.

“There are constant statements from European capitals and Washington that the sending of various weapons systems to Ukraine, including tanks, in no way signifies the involvement of these countries or the alliance in hostilities in Ukraine,” he said.

The United States said on Wednesday that it would pay $400 million to provide Ukraine with 31 M1 Abrams tanks to increase the Ukrainian army’s strength on the ground.

On the other hand, before the US, Germany had agreed to send “Leopard 2 Tanks” to Ukraine, in what Kyiv hopes will be a game changer on the battlefield.

The recent decision by the West to support heavy ammunition to Ukraine will enter the Russia-Ukraine conflict into a new escalation phase altogether.

However, the Kremlin spokesperson said earlier that the provision of heavy ammunition would be a “failed plan” and the tank would “burn like all the rest”.

SWEDEN COMPLICIT IN HATE CRIME, NATO TALKS ARE POINTLESS: TURKIYE

Turkiye’s foreign minister on Thursday accused Sweden of being complicit in a “hate and racist crime” for failing to prevent weekend protests in Stockholm by an anti-Islam and pro-Kurdish groups. Mevlut Cavusoglu also confirmed that a meet in Brussels to discuss Sweden and Finland’s Nato membership has been postponed, saying such a meet would have been “meaningless” in the wake of the rallies. Turkiye has been infuriated by a Quran-burning protest by an anti-Islam activist on Saturday.

11 KILLED IN RUSSIAN STRIKES, 24 DRONES SHOT DOWN: KYIV

Kyiv : Russia launched several volleys of missiles at Ukraine on Thursday, with strikes reported across the country killing at least 11 people, the authorities said.

A day after Germany and the US pledged to send dozens of battle tanks to Ukraine, a significant step up in Western military support, large booms shook the capital, Kyiv, at about 10am (local time). Russia fired 55 missiles at targets across the country, with 47 shot down, Ukraine’s air force command said.

Ukraine’s state emergency service said that 11 people were killed in strikes across 11 regions of the country. Another 11 people were wounded in the attacks, which damaged 35 buildings, it said.

The Ukrainian military said it had shot down all 24 drones sent overnight by Russia, including 15 around the capital, and 47 of 55 Russian missiles — some fired from Tu-95 strategic bombers in the Russian Arctic.

Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said that one person had died and that two were wounded when a projectile hit a building in the city’s south. Three people were killed in a strike n Zaporizhzhia, the state prosecutor general’s office said and there were reports of missile strikes in the Vinnytsia region in western Ukraine and outside Odesa.

EU MULLS CAPPING RUSSIAN DIESEL PRICE AT $100 A BARREL

The EU is floating a plan to cap the price of premium Russian refined fuel exports like diesel at $100 a barrel, with a lower $45 cap for discounted products, according to people familiar with the matter. The EU’s executive arm is considering those target levels after the G7 offered a price range based in part on the existing cap on crude oil, but those levels could still change during talks with member states. The bloc is set to ban imports of refined Russian products starting February 5 as part of an effort to sanction Russia for invading Ukraine. The higher price of $100 per barrel would apply to products like diesel, which trade at a premium to crude.

PAKISTANI RUPEE PLUMMETS AS MARKETS ADJUST TO REMOVAL OF UNOFFICIAL CONTROLS

The Pakistani rupee fell 9.6% against the dollar on Thursday, central bank data showed — the biggest one-day drop in over two decades — in a slump that may persuade the International Monetary Fund to resume lending to the country.

The drop comes a day after foreign exchange companies removed a cap on the exchange rate, a key demand of the IMF as part of a program of economic reforms it has agreed on with the cash-strapped South Asian nation.

The currency’s official value closed at 255.4 rupees against the dollar versus 230.9 on Wednesday, the central bank said.

Facing an acute balance of payments crisis, Pakistan is desperate to secure external financing, with less than three weeks’ worth of import cover in its foreign exchange reserves, which fell $923 million to $3.68 billion in the latest data.

Pakistan secured a $6 billion IMF bailout in 2019. It was topped up with another $1 billion last year to help the country following devastating floods, but the IMF then suspended disbursements in November due to Pakistan’s failure to make more progress on fiscal consolidation.

The lender announced on Thursday that it was sending a mission to the country at the end of January to discuss resuming the program.

Aside from wanting the government to take fiscal measures, the IMF is pushing for it to move to a market-determined exchange rate regime, which the IMF highlighted in its statement on Thursday.

The foreign exchange companies said on Wednesday that they had removed the cap for the sake of the country, because it was causing “artificial” distortions for the economy.

Wednesday’s move by foreign currency dealers, whose open market rates are different from the rate notified by the central bank, had a cascade effect on official exchange rates on Thursday.

The drop in the official rate was the biggest since 1999 in both absolute and percentage terms, according to JS Global, a Pakistani brokerage house.

IMF MISSION TO VISIT PAKISTAN THIS MONTH

An IMF mission will visit Pakistan later this month to discuss the stalled ninth review of the country’s current funding programme, the lender’s resident representative said on Thursday. “At the request of the authorities, an in-person Fund mission is scheduled to visit Islamabad January 31st – February 9th to continue the discussions under the ninth EFF review,” Esther Perez Ruiz said. Ruiz said the mission will focus on policies aimed at restoring domestic and external sustainability, including to strengthen the fiscal position while supporting those affected by the floods, as well as power sector reforms. It will also look to discuss re-establishing a market-based mechanism to determine the value of the Pakistani rupee, she said. Such a mechanism is a key prior action for the country to receive IMF support.

IN A FIRST, A US LAWMAKER READS AI-WRITTEN SPEECH ON HOUSE FLOOR

When US Representative Jake Auchincloss decided to deliver a speech on a bill that would create a US-Israel artificial intelligence centre, he opted to let the AI do the talking. The brief two-paragragh speech read by the Massachusetts Democrat on the floor of the US House on Wednesday was generated by the online AI chatbot ChatGPT. His staff said they believe it’s the first time an AI-written speech was read in Congress. Auchincloss said he prompted the system in part to “write 100 words to deliver on the floor of the House of Representatives” about the legislation. He said he had to refine the prompt several times to produce the text he ultimately read. The bill, which Auchincloss is refiling, would establish a joint US-Israel AI Centre in the US to serve as a hub for AI research and development in the public, private and education sectors. The text generated from Auchincloss’s prompt includes sentences like: “We must collaborate with international partners like the Israeli government to ensure that the US maintains a leadership role in AI research and development. ”

PERU FACES FOOD, FUEL SHORTAGES AS BOLUARTE DEFIANT IN FACE OF PROTESTS

Shortages in Peru of basic products, including fuel and food, mounted further on Wednesday, as the President remained defiant in the face of protests. Roadblocks are hindering freight deliveries to the country’s south, where protests demanding the resignation of President Dina Boluarte have been most intense.

META TO REINSTATE TRUMP’S FB AND INSTA ACCOUNTS

San Francisco : Facebook parent Meta is reinstating former President Donald Trump’s personal account, ending a two-year suspension it imposed in the wake of the January 6insurrection. The firm said on Wednesday it was adding “new guardrails” to ensure there are no “repeat offenders” who violate its rules, even if they are political candidates or worldleaders.

“The public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying — the good, the bad and the ugly — so that they can make informed choices at the ballot box,” wrote Nick Clegg, Meta’s vicepresident of global affairs. He said that when there is a “clear risk” to real-world harm, Meta would intervene.

“In the event that Trump posts further violating content, the content will be removed and he will be suspended for between one month and two years, depending on the severity of the violation,” he said. Facebook suspended Trump on January 7, 2021, for praising people engaged rioting at the Capitol a day earlier. The move will allow Trump to resume direct fundraising.

‘ASTEROID TO COME ‘EXTRAORDINARILY CLOSE’ TO EARTH’

Atruck-sized asteroid will pass near Earth on Thursday in one of the closest approaches to our planet ever recorded, Nasa said, emphasising that it poses no danger. Asteroid 2023 BU will zoom by the southern tip of South America at around 4:27pm PST on Thursday (0027 GMT on Friday), Nasa said. It will pass just 3,600km from Earth’s surface, much closer than many geostationary satellites orbiting the planet. But there is no risk that the asteroid will hit Earth, NASA said on Wednesday. Even if it did, the asteroid measuring 3. 5-8. 5 metres across would largely disintegrate in the Earth’s atmosphere, potentially just resulting in a few small meteorites. “The asteroid would make an extraordinarily close approach with Earth,” said the US space agency.