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Published by Reuters KYIV/BEZIMENNE, Ukraine (Reuters) -Around 50 Ukrainian civilians reached the relative safety of a temporary camp in Russian-held territory on Sunday after being evacuated from a ruined steelworks in Mariupol, where the United Nations said a “safe passage operation” was in progress. With fighting stretching along a broad front in southern and eastern Ukraine, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi pledged continued U.S. support for Ukraine when she met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in an unannounced visit to Kyiv. Russia said it had destroyed a stock of Western-supplied weapons at an airfield near Odesa, in southern Ukraine. Mariupol, a strategic port city on the Azov Sea, has endured the most destructive siege of the war, with Pope Francis, in an implicit criticism of Russia, telling thousands of people in St Peter’s Square on Sunday it had been “barbarously bombarded”. Moscow has turned its focus to Ukraine’s south and east after failing to capture Kyiv in the early weeks of a war that has flattened cities, killed thousands of civilians and forced more than 5 million to flee the country. In Mariupol, Russia declared victory on April 21 even as hundreds of holdout Ukrainian troops and civilians took shelter in the city’s Azovstal steel works, a vast Soviet-era complex with a network of bunkers and tunnels, where they have been trapped with little food, water or medicine. Negotiations to evacuate the civilians had repeatedly broken down in recent weeks, with Russia and Ukraine blaming each other. But on Sunday, more than 50 civilians arrived at a temporary accommodation centre after escaping from Mariupol, a Reuters photographer said. The civilians arrived on buses at the village of Bezimenne, around 30 km (18 miles) east of Mariupol, where a row of light blue tents had been set up, in a convoy with U.N. and Russian military vehicles. A spokesperson for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said a “safe passage operation” had started on Saturday and was being coordinated with the International Committee of the Red Cross, Russia and Ukraine. He said no further details could be released so as not to jeopardise the safety of evacuees and the convoy. U.S. ‘STANDS WITH UKRAINE’ Footage posted by Zelenskiy on Twitter on Sunday showed him, flanked by an armed escort and dressed in military fatigues, greeting a U.S. Congressional delegation led by Pelosi outside his presidential office the previous day. “Our delegation travelled to Kyiv to send an unmistakable and resounding message to the entire world: America stands firmly with Ukraine,” Pelosi, the highest ranking U.S. official to visit Ukraine since Russia invaded on Feb. 24, said in a statement. Moscow calls its actions a “special military operation” to disarm Ukraine and rid it of anti-Russian nationalism fomented by the West. Ukraine and the West say Russia launched an unprovoked war of aggression. Western nations have imposed broad economic sanctions on Russia and have been shipping increasing quantities of weapons to help Ukraine defend itself. Russia’s defence ministry said on Sunday it had carried out a missile strike on a military airfield near the port city of Odesa, destroying a runway and a hangar containing weapons and ammunition supplied to Ukraine by the United States and European countries. On Saturday, Ukraine said Russian missiles had knocked out a newly constructed runway at Odesa’s main airport. It was unclear if they were referring to the same incident and Reuters could not immediately verify the reports. EASTERN PUSH In the east, Moscow is pushing for complete control of the Donbas region, where Russian-backed separatists already controlled parts of Luhansk and Donetsk provinces before the invasion. On Sunday, Kharkiv region governor Oleh Synehubov warned residents in the north and east of the city of Kharkiv to remain in their shelters due to heavy Russian shelling. Reuters could not immediately verify reports of shelling in the area. Serhiy Gaidai, the governor of the Luhansk region, in a post on social media, urged people to evacuate while it was still possible. Zelenskiy said in a video address on Saturday night that Russia was “gathering additional forces for new attacks against our military in the east of the country”. Russia’s defence ministry accused Ukraine’s forces of shelling a school, kindergarten and cemetery in villages in the occupied southern Kherson region, the Russian RIA news agency said on Sunday. The ministry said civilians had been killed and wounded but gave no further details. There was no immediate response from Ukraine and Reuters could not independently verify the report. Russian forces captured the town of Kherson, 100 km (60 miles) north of Russian-annexed Crimea, in March. Ukraine’s military said in a bulletin on Sunday that Russian forces were fighting to push north from Kherson to the cities of Mykolayiv and Kryvyi Rih. (Reporting by Hamuda Hassan and Jorge Silva in Dobropillia, Ukraine, and Natalia Zinets in Kyiv; Additional reporting by Reuters journalistsWriting by Rami Ayyub, Clarence Fernandez, Frances Kerry and Alex Richardson; Editing by David Goodman and Alexandra Hudson and Angus MacSwan) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis on Sunday paid tribute to journalists who have died or been jailed in the line of duty, defending a free press and praising those in the media who courageously report on “humanity’s wounds”. Speaking to thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square for his weekly address and blessing, Francis noted that May 3 will be the United Nations World Press Freedom Day. “I render homage to journalists who pay in person for this right,” he said, citing statistics that 47 journalists were killed and more than 350 jailed last year. He did give the source of the statistics. UNESCO, the U.N. organisation that sponsors World Press Freedom Day, said earlier this year that 55 journalists and media workers were killed in 2021. “A special thanks to those who, with courage, keep us informed about humanity’s wounds,” the pope said. Last month Francis honoured journalists killed covering the Russia-Ukraine war, saying he hoped God would reward them for serving the common good. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists says it has confirmed that at least seven journalists have died while covering the war in Ukraine and is investigating whether others were killed because of their work. Reporters Without Borders, which is based in Paris, says it has documented a number of attacks directly targeting journalists wearing “Press” arm bands in Ukraine. (Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Angus MacSwan) View the full article

Published by New York Daily News The U.S. Department of Justice is challenging a recently enacted Alabama law that criminalizes certain forms of medically necessary gender-affirming care for transgender youth.The department is also asking the court to issue an immediate order to prevent the law from going into effect on May 8. The complaint, issued Friday, alleges that Alabama’s Senate Bill 184, which was signed into law by Republican Gov. Kay Ivey earlier this month, violates the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause by discriminating on the basis of sex and transgender status. SB 184 not only punishes parents or legal gu… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Paul Mescal is thought to be engaged to his girlfriend Phoebe Bridgers. A partygoer claims that the singer introduced the ‘Normal People’ star as her fiancé as she attended a bash at the Coachella festival in California recently. Phoebe performed at the event while Paul was also seen mingling with his ‘Normal People’ co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones at the festival. The pair were first romantically linked in 2020 when the American singer referred to Paul as “the cute boy” during an interview and revealed she “got a little pitter-patter” in her heart when she noticed the actor was following her on Instagram. Mescal then landed a role in her music video for the track ‘Saviour Complex’ before the pair went Instagram official at the end of last year. The 26-year-old actor hasn’t publicly confirmed the relationship but has spoken about the positive aspects of having a girlfriend. Paul said: “To have someone too lean on through such a mad, mad time has been invaluable. Really, I don’t know where I’d be without her.” Phoebe, 27, came out as bisexual when she was in high school and previously suggested that she “doesn’t believe in” straight people. The singer said: “I don’t know — I actually don’t believe that anyone is, like, entirely straight. “I just don’t believe in straight people! It’s like, how? It’s 2021!” Phoebe explained that she found coming out “was kind of the opposite of an issue” as she was attracted to both “innocent indie boys” and “bombshell” movie characters. She said: “I feel like I love little innocent indie boys, and then my most seminal female crushes were always the bombshells in ‘Transformer’ movies, or Jessica Rabbit, or whatever.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Walt Disney Co’s head of corporate affairs, Geoff Morrell, is leaving the company three months after joining from oil and energy company BP Plc, according to an email on Friday from Chief Executive Officer Bob Chapek. Morrell’s brief tenure has been marked by controversy over the company’s response to Florida’s law barring classroom instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity for some younger students. “It has become clear to me that for a number of reasons it is not the right fit,” Morrell wrote in a separate email to his staff. “I have decided to leave the company to pursue other opportunities.” Both emails were seen by Reuters. Kristina Schake will lead the company’s communications efforts, Chapek said in the email. Her 30-plus years of experience include heading up President Joe Biden’s vaccine education program, as well as communications for Instagram and work in the Obama administration. Government relations and global public policy will be led by Disney’s general counsel, Horacio Gutierrez. Disney became the focus of criticism for initially failing to speak out publicly against the Florida legislation, which critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The company said it worked behind the scenes to influence the legislation, an approach Chapek admitted had failed. He later voiced disappointment with the measure and apologized to the company’s LGBTQ employees for failing to be a “stronger ally in the fight for equal rights.” When Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education bill into law on March 28, Disney issued a statement saying it “should never have passed” and said that it should be repealed. Disney’s public condemnation opened a new front in the nation’s culture wars, with DeSantis signing a bill on April 22 that would strip the company of its self-governing authority at its Orlando-area parks in apparent retaliation. The company has yet to issue a statement on the new law, which would take effect on June 1, 2023. (Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Editing by Chris Reese and Matthew Lewis) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Golda Rosheuvel was told not to come out by a lesbian director. The 52-year-old actress – who is best known for her role as Queen Charlotte in Netflix hit ‘Bridgeton’ – was advised against disclosing her sexuality publicly and was left feeling “confused” because she was already out to family and friends. Without naming the director, she said: “I really admired her and I was really confused. This is really bizarre. How come I can be out privately to my family, to my friends every day, but there’s something about being professionally out and publicly out. We were talking about being out and proud and representation and whether I should say I was gay in interviews. And it was an absolute no.” The West End star – who is in a long term relationship with writer Shireen Mula – claimed that the director told her she would “ruin her career” if she revealed her sexuality to the world but insisted that she would “rather not be” in showbusiness if it meant not being true to herself. Speaking on the ‘Just For Variety’ podcast, she added: ” [She said to me] ‘You absolutely shouldn’t do that. It could or it would ruin your career as an actor. “I would rather lose a job than not be true to who I am. I’d rather not work in an industry that doesn’t accept me. It just wasn’t how I was raised. And then her being out as a female director, as a lesbian director, I was like, ‘I don’t understand this advice. I just don’t understand. It just doesn’t track!” Golda explained that “representation” in whatever form is important as she insisted that she is “out and proud” and is just as important as anyone else. She said: “Representation is really important, whether its race whether its sexuality whether its men whether its women — whatever it is. Representation is important. I’m out and proud. My sexuality is really important to me, in terms of existing, in terms of being around the campfire and knowing that I’m important. I’m as important as anyone on the planet.” View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince Charles has backed an initiative to put face masks on cows. The 73-year-old royal – who is a passionate environmentalist – is a supporter of Francisco Norris’ start-up company Zelp (Zero Emissions Livestock Project) which wants to fit methane-catching devices to the creatures in order to reduce emissions of the powerful greenhouse gas as the animals emit around 95% of their methane from their mouth and nostrils. Zelp have been working with ABP, one of the UK’s largest meat producers, to trial the devices to help cut the carbon footprint of British beef and their tests showed a 53% reduction in methane emissions, with the company hoping to reach 60 per cent next year when they launch their commercial rollout. The masks pass the gases released by cows through a catalyst where they are released into the air as carbon dioxide and water vapour and they “comfortably” fit around the animals’ heads without impacting on their movement or habits. Zelp’s invention was one of four to win a £50,000 from the Terra Carta Design Lab, a prize for students and alumni of the Royal College of Art, which forms part of Charles’ Sustainable Markets Initiative. The Prince of Wales was among the panelists selecting the winners, alongside the RCA’s chancellor, Sir Jony Ive, who was also former chief design officer at Apple. On Wednesday (27.04.22), Charles – who is also the Royal Visitor at the RCA – hailed the cow face masks as “fascinating” as he toured an exhibition showcasing the designs. He told the winners: “I can’t tell you how proud I am to be associated with the Royal College of Art, particularly as a result of seeing the remarkable ideas presented by many of them alumni and existing students. “May I say that it is critical because of the urgency we face in terms of the crisis confronting us in all directions and just how important is what their ideas represent in terms of finding solutions rapidly. “I can only hope as a result of this and drawing more attention to what you are doing that we will have a better chance of winning this battle in shorter time. I can only wish you every possible success. Many congratulations, marvellous.” A total of 125 inventions were submitted for the competition, with recyclable textile AMPHITEX, Aerseeds – artificial seed pods made from food waste – and The Tyre Collective, a device which collects particles from tyre wear. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Alan Cumming has offered a $10,000 reward to find his missing chimpanzee co-star. The 57-year-old actor has teamed up with animal rights organisation PETA to help track down Tonka, a creature he became “good friends” with after filming 1997 family comedy ‘Buddy’ – which was based on the real-life story of 1920s socialite Gertrude Lintz, who raised monkeys as part of her family – because the primate has mysteriously disappeared. Alan said in a statement “During the months we filmed together, baby Tonka and I became good friends, playing and grooming each other and just generally larking about. “It’s horrible to think he might be in a cage in a dark basement somewhere or have met some other fate, so I’m appealing to whoever knows what has become of him to please come forward and claim the reward.” The ‘Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion’ actor has pledged to match PETA’s $10,000 reward for information as to the whereabouts of the animal, raising the total to $20,000. According to the organisation, Tonka was last seen at a cage at the former Missouri Primate Foundation – which was previously known as Chimparty – which they described as a “notorious, now-defunct breeding facility in Festus, Missouri that bred baby chimpanzees, rented them out for movies and parties, and sold them to private owners.” PETA had previously sued the Missouri Primate Foundation over the living conditions of the chimpanzees houses there and were given permission to rescue seven chimps, including Tonka, and transfer them to a sanctuary. But when they went to take the animals last July, Tonka had vanished and owner Tonia Haddix claimed he had “died”. In January, a judge ruled the owner’s testimony was not credible and so the organisation have embarked on a hunt to track down Tonka. PETA Foundation Deputy General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet said in a statement: “If you know where Cumming’s former co-star may have been shipped to, sold, or hidden away, PETA wants to hear from you. “If he’s still alive, Tonka deserves to live out the rest of his days surrounded by chimpanzee friends at a lush sanctuary, as ordered by the court, and someone out there might be able to help PETA get him there.” Anyone with pertinent information should call PETA at 757-622-PETA or submit their tip at PETA.org/Tonka. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Joe Exotic is planning to marry his fiancé John Graham wearing a specially designed wedding suit costing $11.500. The ‘Tiger King’ star – who is currently doing time after being found guilty of a murder-for-hire plot against rival Carole Baskin and violations of animal welfare law – is preparing to met John Graham, who he met in prison in February 2021 when they were both behind bars in Fort Worth, Texas, and he’s enlisted the services of Odain Watson of Otaingerous to create outfits for himself and his partner. According to TMZ.com, the $11,500 white suits will be made in Italy and feature a custom silk lining with a tiger print. Joe’s will feature the pattern in pink while John – who has been released from prison – will reportedly be sporting a more traditional look and the suits will take around four to six weeks to make. The star, 59, previously worked with Odain back in 2020 releasing his own line of clothes, shoes and underwear. Joe can’t marry John until his divorce from Dillon Passage is finalised. His estranged husband is asking for both parties to walk away with what they owned before they married, and also wants to secure a restraining order so Joe is ordered to stay away and not contact him directly. Dillon’s attorneys, Chris Kirker and Holly Davis explained the pair started negotiating the terms of their divorce in September but paused the proceedings when Joe was diagnosed with cancer. Joe’s new attorney, Autumn Blackledge, says the star is open to a deal so long as the terms are “reasonable”. However, his estranged husband’s team say when they offered the same terms in September, Joe’s response was: “It will be a cold day in hell before I sign these papers … You’re out of your f****** mind.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Gauthier-Villars, Steve Stecklow and John Shiffman (Reuters) – By his own account, Ilias Sabirov, a Moscow businessman, had supplied Russia’s military with high-performance computer chips made in the United States for years. Then, in 2014, Russia seized the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, and the U.S. government began imposing a series of new sanctions and export controls on Russia, including severely restricting sales of such chips. But that didn’t stop Sabirov from obtaining more, according to U.S. authorities and a Reuters review of Russian customs records. In the spring of 2015, a parcel containing more than 100 memory chips specially hardened to resist radiation and extreme temperatures – critical components in missiles and military satellites – arrived at Sabirov’s business address in Moscow, according to the Russian customs records and a U.S. federal indictment. American prosecutors allege that the “rad-hard”chips were sourced from a company in Austin, Texas, called Silicon Space Technology Corp, or SST, but shipped to Russia via a firm in Bulgaria to evade U.S. export law. After Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, the United States and more than 30 other nations responded with an unprecedented barrage of additional sanctions and export restrictions. But the story of how the American chips made it from Texas to Moscow back in 2015 shows how sensitive Western technology can still end up in Russia despite strict U.S. export controls. This account of the criminal case against Sabirov and two Bulgarian businessmen, which remains open, contains new details from interviews with U.S. officials and several of the main actors, including two fugitives. And it points to the challenges of imposing a rigorous export-control regime, especially on so-called dual-use components that can serve both civilian and military purposes. The Texas scheme and other U.S. criminal cases involving sensitive technology that ended up in Russia, reviewed by Reuters, reveal a chain of willing suppliers, front and shell companies and false claims on export forms that specialized Western components were intended for civilian rather than military use. Sought-after parts have included microelectronics and precision tooling for the Russian military. During war, said U.S. Department of Defense spokeswoman Sue Gough, rad-hard chips play an essential role for communications, intelligence and surveillance. “Acquisition of radiation-hardening technology by nuclear-capable aggressive states, like Russia, could embolden them, increasing international security destabilization,” Gough said. “Therefore, protection of these chips is extremely important to U.S. national security.” Today, Russia’s efforts to circumvent U.S. restrictions on military and other sensitive technology are on the rise, according to U.S. Homeland Security Investigations officials. A specialized unit of 25 U.S. counter-proliferation analysts, whose objective is to spot suspicious shipments, shifted their sole focus from China to Russia in late February, the HSI officials said. “China doesn’t dominate our attention like they used to, and it’s Russia where we’ve seen the biggest increase lately,” said Greg Slavens, who recently retired after 30 years as a HSI counter-proliferation supervisor. “The Russians have steadily increased their attempts to get chips for missile and space technology.” The Kremlin did not respond to questions about U.S. accusations that it uses deceptive schemes to bypass Western sanctions and trade restrictions. Russia has previously cast Western sanctions as a hostile act. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, who met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal in Washington on April 21, said in a statement the same day that her department is “laser focused on depriving Russia the items and technologies it needs to sustain its war machine.” Complicating matters for U.S. law enforcement: Since 2018, Russia no longer authorizes U.S. export-control officers to conduct on-the-ground checks to ensure that sensitive goods are used for their officially declared purposes, according to people familiar with the matter. Even when suspects are identified, cases can take years to investigate and adjudicate while accused Russian nationals remain beyond the arm of U.S. law. In the Texas matter, it took about five years for U.S. authorities to bring criminal charges and impose a penalty. Sabirov, as well as the two Bulgarian businessmen, Dimitar and Milan Dimitrov, were indicted in 2020 on charges of illegally exporting rad-hard chips to Russia and money laundering. And SST, which changed its name to Vorago Technologies in 2015, was fined $497,000 last year by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security in a separate enforcement action. The bureau oversees export licenses for goods that can be used for both civilian and military purposes. The Texas company, which had been repeatedly warned by its own lawyers that it couldn’t ship rad-hard chips to Russia without a license, admitted that from 2014 to 2019, it had conspired with the three men to do just that. Reuters couldn’t determine whether the chips ultimately were used for a military purpose. The U.S. attorney’s office in the western district of Texas declined to comment. In a statement, Vorago said it “is, and always has been, committed to zero tolerance compliance with all U.S. laws, including export controls.” It said it “has been fully cooperative” in the U.S. investigations and “has implemented strengthened compliance procedures and training to prevent a recurrence.” The company also said it was “deliberately misled into believing that shipments were going to Bulgaria for use in Europe – a legal export. These customers provided a seemingly valid end-user certificate to Vorago certifying that the end user of Vorago’s products was not in Russia.” Sabirov denied any wrongdoing in an interview with Reuters and said the rad-hard chips never went from Bulgaria to Moscow, contradicting evidence gathered by U.S. prosecutors and customs records reviewed by Reuters. He said he always complied with U.S. export rules and never laundered money. “The sanctions they applied on myself, on my companies and on my friends are absolutely unfair, absolutely fake and absolutely wrong,” he said. Milan Dimitrov also denied any wrongdoing. The accusations of export violations are “nonsensical,” he told Reuters. “The whole thing is a misunderstanding. “His father, Dimitar Dimitrov, couldn’t be reached for comment. Sabirov, who is in Russia, and the two Bulgarians remain fugitives in the criminal case. COLD WAR ECHO A review by Reuters of U.S. court and other federal records shows that the Texas case isn’t unique. Between 2008 and 2014, a father-and-son team smuggled more than $65 million worth of sensitive microchips from New Jersey to Moscow-area companies directly associated with Russian military, intelligence and nuclear-warhead design programs, according to U.S. authorities. Alexander Brazhnikov Jr. of New Jersey, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Russia, pleaded guilty in federal court in 2015 to purchasing microelectronics inside the United States, repackaging and relabeling them, and then shipping the goods to Moscow apartments and vacant storefronts linked to his father, a Russian national. There were 1,923 shipments in all, and the son admitted that the money to pay for it was laundered from Russia through 50 foreign shell companies, registered in countries stretching from the Marshall Islands in the Pacific to Panama and Belize in Central America, court records show. “We believe that the microchips were all going to the military-industrial complex because Russia doesn’t produce anything else that would have required that level of chips,” said Peter Gaeta, one of the prosecutors on the case, which remains open. The son, whose field of study was listed as “nuclear physics” in court records, was sentenced to 70 months in prison and was released in December 2018. His father, Alexander Brazhnikov Sr., owner of a Moscow-based microelectronics import-export firm, was charged with conspiracy and remains a fugitive. The company allegedly distributed the components acquired in the United States to Russian defense contractors licensed to procure parts for the Russian military and security service, and Russian companies involved in the design of nuclear weapons. “The scale of this case is just daunting,” Gaeta told Reuters. “But this was not a lone wolf operation. This is happening across the board with Russia.” Alexander Brazhnikov Jr. declined to comment on the case. His father couldn’t be reached. In another case, Alexander Fishenko, a dual citizen of the United States and Russia, ran a years-long scheme to procure and ship sensitive microelectronics from U.S.-based companies to Russian government customers, including its military and intelligence services. Fishenko owned a Houston, Texas-based export company and also was an executive in a Moscow-based procurement company, according to federal prosecutors. Between 2002 and 2012, his export company shipped goods through New York to contacts in countries including Finland, Canada and Germany who would send them onto Russia. Among the items were electronics with applications in radar and surveillance systems, weapons guidance systems and detonation triggers. Fishenko and 10 other people were indicted in 2012 for participating in a conspiracy to sell controlled technology to Russia without required licenses. He later pleaded guilty to, among other charges, acting as an agent of the Russian government. Seven others were convicted either through pleas or at trial. Fishenko spent more than seven years behind bars. New York lawyer Richard Levitt, who represented Fishenko in the case, declined to comment, and Fishenko himself couldn’t be reached. “It is common for illegal exports of controlled technology to go through middlemen overseas to hide the true destination of the goods,” said Daniel Silver, a former federal prosecutor in Brooklyn who handled the Fishenko case. “These global networks can shield U.S. exporters by making it harder for law enforcement agents to connect the dots.” In recent years, Russia has tried to blunt Western export restrictions by making more parts at home or shifting to suppliers located in allied countries, such as China. Still, Russian companies remain heavily reliant on the West for high-precision machinery and some high-performance semiconductors like the radiation-hardened chips Sabirov imported. “If a Russian satellite orbits around the Earth without a glitch, you can definitely assume that it contains Western electronics,” an executive with a U.S. semiconductor maker said, asking not to be named. Russia doesn’t make such chips and China, despite heavy investment, has yet to bridge the gap with rivals, the person said. To supply its military, Russia has found high-tech suppliers in the U.S. and other Western countries. Between 2015 and 2018, Almaz-Antey, a state-owned manufacturer of Russia’s sophisticated air-defense missile systems, managed to bypass German export restrictions and procure nearly $10 million worth of high-precision metalworking machines, according to a person familiar with the matter and an official case summary filed with a Hamburg court. Export-license papers claimed the machinery was destined to various Russian producers of civilian goods in the city of Yekaterinburg when, in fact, they were delivered to a nearby Almaz-Antey facility, according to the person familiar with the matter and the case summary. Almaz-Antey didn’t respond to a message seeking comment. Suzette Grillot, a professor of international studies at the University of Oklahoma, said Western trade restrictions on Russia worked during the Cold War because the West then dominated world trade. “When you went from the U.S. to Russia in the early 1990s, it was a different world technologically speaking, the place was definitely behind the times in communications and other technologies,” she said. But replicating Cold War sanctions to squeeze the Russian economy and military industry today seems like an elusive goal, Grillot said, because Russia has had almost unlimited access to Western technology for the past 30 years and can now also rely on alternative suppliers such as China and India. “You can’t unring a bell,” she said. TOP SECRET Trained as a physicist and chemist, Wesley Morris had developed solutions to harden semiconductors against heat and radiation. In 2004, he founded SST (now called Vorago Technologies) in a bid to monetize his patented inventions. Morris told Reuters that his techniques caught the attention of the U.S. military, and SST received millions of dollars in research grants from the U.S. Department of Defense, including from top-secret missile programs, to hone its technology. But 10 years later, in the spring of 2014, SST was still chasing its first significant commercial order. That’s when Morris, the company’s chief executive, said he learned from a newly recruited salesman that a Russian businessman, Sabirov, was interested in buying rad-hard chips from SST. Sabirov, the salesman said, wanted to purchase them for Russia’s space agency, making him an attractive customer prospect because Russia relies almost entirely on imports for its rad-hard requirements. The Russian space agency, Roscosmos, said it had no information about Sabirov’s involvement in procuring electronic components for Russia. Sabirov arrived at a meeting at SST’s office in Austin in May 2014, accompanied by a Bulgarian associate, Dimitar Dimitrov. The two men formed an odd pair, Morris and several other people who dealt with them said. The Russian spoke English fluently and projected the confidence of a man with solid connections in his country’s state bureaucracy. The Bulgarian appeared to be a brilliant scientist whose scuffed shoes suggested that he didn’t worry too much about his attire. Both men seemed to have solid technical backgrounds. According to Morris, Sabirov told him that one of his Russian companies, Kosmos Komplekt, had been buying rad-hard chips from SST’s bigger U.S. rival, Aeroflex, since 2011, and was interested in transitioning to SST’s products. “I wanted to get the business,” Morris recalled thinking at the time. A spokesman for Cobham Group, which acquired Aeroflex in September 2014, said Aeroflex had stopped shipping rad-hard chips to Sabirov in Russia prior to the acquisition. A week after the May 2014 meeting in Austin with Sabirov, SST’s outside lawyer dampened Morris’s expectations of quickly clinching a lucrative contract. “Anything that requires a license to Russia is currently subject to a presumption of denial,” the lawyer told Morris and other executives, according to Commerce Department documents. Morris told Reuters he wasn’t ready to abandon what could be the transformational contract SST had longed for. From his conversation with Sabirov, Morris said he had grown hopeful the Russian would order $10 million worth of goods. He said he believed that the chips would be used in satellites, not in missiles. Morris said that in July 2014, he and Sabirov discussed their options upon meeting on the sidelines of a nuclear-technology conference in Paris. Morris said his ideas hinged on obtaining one of the few export licenses U.S. authorities were still granting as part of Washington’s cooperation with Russia on joint space programs. Days after the Paris meeting, however, Morris lost hope. Geopolitical tension with Moscow had escalated after a Malaysian airliner flying through Ukrainian airspace was downed by a Russian-made missile, killing 298 people. Even though Moscow denied involvement in the tragedy, obtaining an export license to Russia was now virtually impossible, Morris concluded after conferring with SST’s lawyer. “We can’t send you anything,” the American CEO said he told Sabirov. But Morris said Sabirov proposed to him an alternative solution: how about using Bulgaria, a country for which an export license wasn’t necessary, as a transit point? To avoid the need for a U.S. license, chips could be mounted on electronic boards in Sofia, effectively changing the product’s designation in export documents before they were shipped to Moscow. In early August 2014, Morris again conferred with SST’s lawyer, who said the plan wouldn’t fly. Unless Sabirov could prove he was “adding substantial value in Bulgaria,” a license for export to Russia likely would be required, the lawyer advised in an email, according to Commerce Department documents. The documents don’t name the lawyer. That same month, Sabirov told SST that since sanctions had disrupted his business of procuring parts for Russia, he had set up a Bulgarian company that would target civilian markets in Europe, according to former SST employees and the Commerce Department documents. The plan was to assemble modules with chips and sell them to car makers for use in engines and exhaust systems. Rad-hard chips aren’t commonly used in automobiles because of their cost. Sabirov’s Bulgarian business – Multi Technology Integration Group EOOD, or MTIG – was set up by a relative of a business partner in Sofia. The next month, September 2014, MTIG ordered a silicon wafer of rad-hard memory chips from SST for $125,000, according to interviews and federal court documents. Sabirov told SST that MTIG would test the chips and that more orders would follow, according to interviews and Commerce Department documents. The wafer, which had been produced using SST’s hardening process at a Texas Instruments Inc foundry, was shipped to MTIG at the end of January 2015, according to former SST employees. Four months later, after the eight-inch wafer had been cut into 115 memory chips, the semiconductors were shipped to one of Sabirov’s companies in Moscow, Sovtest Comp, where a 4.6-pound parcel arrived on May 25, according to Russian customs records, interviews and Commerce Department documents. Texas Instruments said it “complies with applicable laws and regulations in the countries where we operate. At this time, we are not selling into Russia or Belarus.” By the time SST shipped the wafer to MTIG, the U.S. company had undergone a change in management. In early January 2015, Morris had been stripped of his CEO title after losing a battle for control with the firm’s main investor, New Scientific Ventures. NSV declined to comment. The new CEO, Bernd Lienhard, learned of the shipment to Bulgaria in March 2015, according to the Commerce Department documents. Vorago declined to comment about Lienhard being informed about the deal. The company rebranded itself as Vorago Technologies that August, but its fortunes continued to rely on Sabirov. In the fall of 2015, Lienhard learned that the Russian was planning to order five more wafers. Lienhard sent Sabirov an email saying it was “the most important biz opportunity for us this year and we are very committed to do whatever necessary to help you,” according to the Commerce Department documents. In November 2015, the two men exchanged more emails. Lienhard offered a steep discount if Sabirov ordered more wafers before year end. “How would you feel about the following scenario? Could you buy only 3 wafers this quarter and we would reduce the price per wafer from currently $125,000 to $100,000?” Lienhard emailed Sabirov. “You would help us a lot.” Five days later, Sabirov asked if there were “any obstacles for direct shipment to Moscow?” Lienhard responded that the wafers would have to be sent to Bulgaria to comply with export regulations, according to the Commerce Department documents, which contained excerpts from the communications. In December 2015, a new Vorago sales executive, Anne Joubert, met with Sabirov and Dimitar Dimitrov in Munich to discuss additional wafer purchases, according to interviews and Commerce Department documents. Days later, MTIG sent Vorago a purchasing order for five more wafers. Federal documents show that Vorago shipped two of them to MTIG in December 2015. In July 2016, Joubert flew to Bulgaria where she met with Sabirov and the two Dimitrovs. During the meeting, Joubert asked if MTIG was shipping Vorago’s rad-hard chips to Russia, according to interviews and federal court records. “Maybe,” Sabirov replied. When Joubert said this would violate U.S. export regulations, Dimitar Dimitrov assured her that all of the chips the Texas company previously had shipped to MTIG had remained in Bulgaria. According to the federal indictment, this claim was false because some chips had been sent to Russia. The indictment says that the “Ship to” address on an MTIG invoice was Sabirov’s company, Sovtest, in Moscow. Joubert declined to comment. Sabirov continued discussing ordering more wafers, including during a meeting with Lienhard in Sofia in August 2018, according to the Commerce Department documents. That December, an export control officer from the Commerce Department went to Sofia to verify that Vorago chips had been used by MTIG in Bulgaria. The officer met with the younger Dimitrov, Milan, who denied the semiconductors had been sent to Russia and said they were still in Bulgaria, according to the federal indictment. By then, Vorago, Sabirov and the Dimitrovs were under investigation by both the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Commerce Department for alleged export violations, according to interviews. In early 2016, the company’s founder, Morris, informed the FBI about what he viewed as alleged irregularities at the firm, including the sales involving Sabirov, according to people familiar with the matter. Weeks after the tip-off, in April 2016, FBI agents raided Vorago’s head office in Austin, searching the premises while staffers were told to remain in one room, according to the people familiar with the matter. “It was a very disruptive day,” one former employee recalled. According to people familiar with the matter, the federal investigations made slow progress. In July 2019, the FBI raided the third floor of an office building, also in Austin, where Vorago had relocated. That same month, arrest warrants were issued for Sabirov and the Dimitrovs. Seventeen months later, in December 2020, the U.S. Justice Department announced the indictment of the three men on charges of illegally procuring rad-hard chips and money laundering. Then, last September – six years after the Texas company first began shipping the specialized chips to Bulgaria – the Commerce Department announced a settlement in which Vorago agreed to pay a penalty: $497,000, the proceeds of its sales. Neither Vorago nor its executives were charged in the criminal case. ((David Gauthier-Villars reported from Istanbul, Steve Stecklow from London and John Shiffman from Washington. Additional reporting by Karen Freifeld in New York and Tsvetelia Tsolova in Sofia. Editing by Janet McBride)) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Andrew Garfield plans to take a break from Hollywood because he needs to “just be a bit ordinary for a while”. The ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ star has insisted he needs some time off following a whirlwind awards season this year. Andrew, 38, was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his role in Netflix hit ‘Tick, Tick … Boom! ‘and he is now planning to enjoy some time to himself. He told Variety: “I’m going to rest for a little bit. “I need to re-calibrate and reconsider what I want to do next and who I want to be and just be a bit of a person for a while. “Because, as you know, that is a washing machine, that awards season. I need to just be a bit ordinary for a while.” Andrew is currently promoting his latest TV project, an adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s best-selling true crime book ‘Under The Banner of Heaven’. The drama is based around a murder within Utah’s Mormon community and Andrew plays a detective charged with investigating the killing. He stars opposite Daisy Edgar-Jones and Gil Birmingham, and Andrew has said he immersed himself in Mormon culture to tackle the role. The actor told Us Weekly: “I prepared heavy in the lead up to shooting. I researched a lot, and I did all of my preparation in a really deep way. “I went to Utah. I spent a lot of time with Mormons, ex Mormons, gay Mormons, Bishop Mormons, detective Mormons. I really love that aspect of preparation and worked really heavily on the script with Lance to make sure it felt authentic. I just immersed myself in that culture.” View the full article

Published by Reuters (Corrects name in first para) By Jason Lange WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A bipartisan majority of U.S. voters oppose politicians punishing companies over their stances on social issues, a cold reception for campaigns like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ against Walt Disney Co, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. The two-day poll completed on Thursday showed that 62% of Americans – including 68% of Democrats and 55% of Republicans – said they were less likely to back a candidate who supports going after companies for their views. DeSantis signed a bill last week that strips Disney of self-governing authority at its Orlando-area parks in retaliation for its opposition to a new Florida law that limits the teaching of LGBTQ issues in schools. For DeSantis, a rising star in the Republican Party, it was an attempt to bolster his conservative credentials as a culture warrior ahead of a possible run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. But even when prompted along the lines of DeSantis’ own argument for his action – that laws should remove benefits of government tax breaks from corporations that push a “woke” agenda – 36% of Republicans nationally said they would be less likely to support a candidate with such a view. The Reuters/Ipsos poll still showed that DeSantis, 43, is a potential force in national Republican politics. Presented with a list of prominent politicians, a full 25% of Republican respondents said DeSantis best represents the values of their party, second only to former President Donald Trump who was favored by 40% of Republicans. Texas Governor Greg Abbott garnered 9%. But the poll also showed a nation deeply divided on how schools teach about sexual orientation and gender identity — the subject of the controversial Florida law. Half of U.S. voters support laws banning classroom discussion on sexual orientation or gender identity for children age 5-11, including 69% of Republicans and 36% of Democrats. The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online, in English and throughout the United States. It gathered responses from 1,003 adults and had a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of about 4 percentage points. (Reporting by Jason Lange; Editing by Scott Malone and Daniel Wallis) View the full article

Published by PopCrush One man is literally putting his best foot forward, revealing that he is making big bucks — nearly $2,000 per month — by selling his stinky, sweaty, used socks online. According to the Mirror, Billy-Joe Gray, 25, runs his OnlyFans account alongside his fiancée, and while the pair are used to receiving odd requests from fans, the idea to sell used socks came after a DM from a follower who requested a set pungent, worn socks. Gray is now dominating the niche sock market and is happy to overshare his experience on social media. He even makes $2,000 per month by selling the socks he wears daily, o… Read More View the full article

Published by uPolitics.com Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) signed a bill that outlaws nonbinary gender markers on birth certificates on Tuesday and it will go into effect immediately. The law is the first of its kind in the U.S. “The biological sex designation on a certificate of birth issued under this section shall be either male or female and shall not be nonbinary or any symbol representing a nonbinary designation including but not limited to the letter ‘X’,” the legislation reads. Other states and the federal government have gone the opposite direction, allowing for nonbinary gender markers, but Oklahoma’s new law jo… Read More View the full article

Published by The Kansas City Star TOPEKA, Kan. — Efforts to ban transgender athletes from girls sports and establish a “parents bill of rights” failed in the Kansas Legislature on Thursday, but Republicans have pledged to make the issues a hallmark of campaigns this August and November. The Kansas House failed to override Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto on both issues, falling short of the needed two-thirds majority. The Senate easily passed the overrides on Tuesday, but attempts in the House were a long shot. The House’s original votes on the bills fell several votes short of the needed majority. Earlier this week, House Speaker Ron … Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Ellen DeGeneres has filmed the final episode of her talk show and has thanked fans for their support over the years. The 64-year-old presenter – who announced in May 2021 she was ending her eponymous daytime programme this year – reflected on how much the world has changed since she shot her first episode back in 2003 as she revealed she had taped the show for the final time. She wrote on Instagram: “Today we taped the final episode of The Ellen Show which airs on May 26th. “When we started this show in 2003, the iPhone didn’t exist. Social Media didn’t exist. Gay marriage wasn’t legal. “We watched the world change, sometimes for the better, sometimes not. But whatever was happening, my goal was always for the show to be a place where we could all come together and laugh for an hour. “Being invited into your lives has been the greatest privilege of my life and has brought me incredible joy. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” The end of the show comes after it was engulfed in scandal following allegations the set had become a “toxic” place to work. Ellen faced accusations of being “mean” and the furore prompted an internal investigation by bosses at Warner Bros. parent company WarnerMedia. The presenter issued a statement addressing the reports when the show returned to TV in September 2020 and insisted changes were being made. Elle said: “I know that I’m in a position of privilege and power and I realise that with that comes responsibility, and I take responsibility for what happens at my show. “We have had a lot of conversations over the last few weeks about the show, our workplace, and what we want for the future. We have made the necessary changes and today we are starting a new chapter.” Ellen also admitted she’s not perfect and stressed she was “working” on her behaviour, adding: “The truth is I am that person that you see on TV. “I am also a lot of other things. I get sad. I get mad. I get anxious. I get frustrated. I get impatient. And I am working on all of that.” She announced the series would be coming to an end in May 2021, saying in an episode of the show: “You may wonder why I’ve decided to end after 19 seasons. “The truth is, I always trust my instincts. My instinct told me it’s time.” View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Megan Foxis teaching her sons about gender identity after her oldest, Noah, 9, expressed repeated interest in wearing dresses. The 35-year-old actress opened up about her parenting style in an interview with Glamour U.K., revealing she and her ex-husband, Brian Austin Green, are doing everything they can to make sure nobody in their family “feels like they are weird or strange or different.” “So they know that their parents are famous, but their knowledge of it is very limited. I knew when they were very young, I wanted to try to protect them however I could, especially limiting their exposure to the internet. So far, we’ve done a really good job and we maintain their innocence in a lot of ways, but I know I can’t protect them forever, though I do have a child that suffers,” she told the outlet. “So I have a lot of worries about that, because I just wish that humanity was not like this,” Fox admitted. “Although my kid is so brave and my child is so brave and I know that they’ve chosen this journey for a reason. It’s just hard as a mom.” Mega Noah “started wearing dresses when he was about two,” and Fox immediately began educating her family. The Transformers star told Glamour U.K. that she “bought a bunch of books that sort of addressed these things and addressed a full spectrum of what this is.” Revealing that some of the literature was written by transgender children, Fox added, “Some of the books are just about how you can be a boy and wear a dress; you can express yourself through your clothing however you want. And that doesn’t even have to have anything to do with your sexuality.” While Fox has been doing everything to educate her children at home, the actress confessed she has to let go when they step out into the world. “I can’t control the way other people react to my children. I can’t control the things that other children – that they go to school with – have been taught and then repeat to them. That’s also why I don’t really put my children on Instagram or social media,” Fox explained. Mega Still, she expressed her desire for others to look beyond gender identity. “I’m so proud of my kids. Noah is an unbelievable pianist. He can learn Mozart’s concerto in an hour,” Fox said. “I want people to see that, but I also don’t want the world to have access to this gentle soul and say all the things that we all know they’re going to say.” In 2019, she discussed Noah’s desire to wear dresses, adding he had started incorporating them into his school wardrobe. “He just wore one two days ago to school, and he came home and I was like, ‘How was it? Did any of the friends at school have anything to say?’ ” Fox recalled at the time. “And he was like, ‘Well, all the boys laughed when I came in, but I don’t care, I love dresses too much.'” Fox shares three sons with Green. Besides Noah, the divorced duo also shareJourney River, 5, Bodhi Ransom, 8. The ex’s finalized their divorce earlier this year. Fox is already engaged to Machine Gun Kelly.Green revealed he’s expecting a baby with his girlfriend, Sharna Burgess. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Spread Pictures / MEGA Madonna shared a cryptic message about “karma” and finding the “right” people in life after reports surfaced that she split from boyfriend Ahlamalik Williams. “Karma said: When somebody in your life is not right for you….. god will continuously use them to hurt you until you become strong enough to let them go,” the Material Girl singer, 63, posted via her Instagram Stories on the same day the breakup rumors swirled. @madonna/Instagram Now that she and her much younger beau, 28, have apparently gone their separate ways, “Madonna has thrown herself into a busy social life and has been seeing her friends and family,” an insider told The Sun of their amicable choice to call it quits. She’s been “working on her upcoming biopic, new music and looking after her family.” “They spent months together on tour and in lockdown, but now he has moved out of her home,” the source, mentioning they are both working on their own goals at this time. “It was hard to keep their romance alight.” KCS Presse / MEGA Madonna and Williams first sparked romance rumors when they were spotted cozying up on a balcony together in December 2019. The pair crossed paths long before that, according to Williams’ dad, Drue, who said they hit it off in 2015 when his son auditioned for Madonna’s Rebel Heart Tour. The dancer’s father said she even invited them all to her lavish suite in Las Vegas and had her private chef cook his family dinner. Will / MEGA Madonna also invited his loved ones to her shows in London and France in early 2020 and things continued to heat up from there. In August 2021, the couple was seen touring Italy and packing on PDA while celebrating her 63rd birthday. During the trip, the Like A Virgin songstress was also spotted grabbing a meal with her kids Lourdes Leon, Rocco Ritchie, and her twins, Stella and Estere. Madonna and Williams appeared to be in relationship bliss when they were last photographed together on a romantic dinner date in January. They were joined by her son David. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jan Wolfe WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A member of the far-right Proud Boys group on Wednesday pleaded guilty to obstructing police officers when he joined the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by President Donald Trump’s supporters in their attempt to overturn his election defeat. The plea agreement filed in federal court in Washington calls for Louis Enrique Colon of Missouri to admit to a single felony charge and cooperate with prosecutors. Colon admitted to crossing police barricades during the riot before climbing a wall to gain access to a higher level of the Capitol. While inside the Capitol building, Colon used his hands and a chair to obstruct police officers who were trying to lower retractable doors to stop rioters from streaming into the building. Colon, 45, was charged in February 2021 along with four other members of the Kansas City metro chapter of the Proud Boys. He is the first defendant in that case to plead guilty. A judge had imposed monitoring conditions on Colon while he awaited trial. Colon will be sentenced later this year, and he faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He will likely receive a reduced sentence because of his admission of responsibility and cooperation. Colon was not charged in the same conspiracy case as Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman and one of the most high-profile of the 800 people facing criminal charges relating to the riot. Colon’s plea comes two weeks after a Proud Boys leader, Charles Donohoe, pleaded guilty to obstructing an official proceeding, and assaulting and impeding police officers. (Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Editing by Scott Malone and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Brendan O’Brien (Reuters) – Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has appealed his conviction and sentence for the murder of George Floyd, arguing that the judge in his case abused his discretion and made multiple errors during the trial. In the appeal filed in Minnesota Court of Appeals on Monday, his lawyers raised 14 separate issues, including Judge Peter Cahill’s decision to deny Chauvin’s request to move the trial out of Hennepin County, which includes Minneapolis, because of the intense pretrial publicity. “The overwhelming media coverage exposed the jurors —literally every day – to news demonizing Chauvin and glorifying Floyd which was more than sufficient to presume prejudice,” the appeal said. Chauvin, a white man, was convicted in April 2021 of killing Floyd by kneeling on the Black man’s neck during a 2020 arrest. Chauvin was sentenced to 22-1/2 years. In December, Chauvin pleaded guilty in federal court to charges he violated George Floyd’s civil rights. A jury found Chauvin guilty of unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Floyd. The verdict was widely seen as a landmark rebuke of the disproportionate use of police force against Black Americans. The 82-page appeal asked the court to reverse the conviction and hold a new trial in a new venue or re-sentence Chauvin. It also raised legal arguments against prosecutors, accusing them of misconduct by not disclosing all evidence they had and belittling the defense during closing arguments. It also said that prosecutors improperly prepared witnesses for testimony. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison was not immediately available to comment. (Reporting by Brendan O’Brien; Editing by Tomasz Janowski) View the full article