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Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago, thousands of Ukrainian infants have been forcibly taken to Russia to give them up for forced adoption. Behind this horrifying human trafficking operation stands the Kremlin, specifically Putin ally Maria Lvova-Belova.

Abducted Ukrainian children's documents are changed to Russian ones, they are adopted while having living relatives in Ukraine, and international organizations are prevented from helping these children return home.

One example was reported by the British BBC. Sergei Mironov, the 70-year-old leader of a Russian political party, and his wife, Inna Varlamova, deported an orphanage in the Kherson region in the fall of 2022 and forcibly adopted a 10 month old girl.. The child, originally named Margarita, was one of 48 who went missing from Kherson Regional Children's Home when Russian forces took control of the city.

Now, Russia is set to 'legislate' its crime against humanity. Anna Kuznetsova, Deputy Chair of the Russian State Duma, said that Russia has prepared 64 proposals and recommendations "aimed to expanding messures to support social services and the resocialization of children [and] protect minors from crimes by foreign states [and] the regime in Kyiv". In other words: Russia officially denies the legal guardians of forcibly deported and adopted Ukrainian children and attempts to prevent the opportunity to repatriate these children.

Here is a video (2 min) of Ms. Kuznetsova's announcment in the Duma, Russia's parliament.

Archived link

Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago, thousands of Ukrainian infants have been forcibly taken to Russia to give them up for forced adoption. Behind this horrifying human trafficking operation stands the Kremlin, specifically Putin ally Maria Lvova-Belova.

Abducted Ukrainian children's documents are changed to Russian ones, they are adopted while having living relatives in Ukraine, and international organizations are prevented from helping these children return home.

One example was reported by the British BBC. Sergei Mironov, the 70-year-old leader of a Russian political party, and his wife, Inna Varlamova, deported an orphanage in the Kherson region in the fall of 2022 and forcibly adopted a 10 month old girl. The child, originally named Margarita, was one of 48 who went missing from Kherson Regional Children's Home when Russian forces took control of the city.

Now, Russia is set to 'legislate' its crime against humanity. Anna Kuznetsova, Deputy Chair of the Russian State Duma, said that Russia has prepared 64 proposals and recommendations "aimed to expanding messures to support social services and the resocialization of children [and] protect minors from crimes by foreign states [and] the regime in Kyiv". In other words: Russia officially denies the legal guardians of forcibly deported and adopted Ukrainian children and attempts to prevent the opportunity to repatriate these children.

Here is a video (2 min) of Ms. Kuznetsova's announcment in the Duma, Russia's parliament.

Archived link

Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago, thousands of Ukrainian infants have been forcibly taken to Russia to give them up for forced adoption. Behind this horrifying human trafficking operation stands the Kremlin, specifically Putin ally Maria Lvova-Belova.

Abducted Ukrainian children's documents are changed to Russian ones, they are adopted while having living relatives in Ukraine, and international organizations are prevented from helping these children return home.

One example was reported by the British BBC. Sergei Mironov, the 70-year-old leader of a Russian political party, and his wife, Inna Varlamova, deported an orphanage in the Kherson region in the fall of 2022 and forcibly adopted a 10 month old girl.. The child, originally named Margarita, was one of 48 who went missing from Kherson Regional Children's Home when Russian forces took control of the city.

Now, Russia is set to 'legislate' its crime against humanity. Anna Kuznetsova, Deputy Chair of the Russian State Duma, said that Russia has prepared 64 proposals and recommendations "aimed to expanding messures to support social services and the resocialization of children [and] protect minors from crimes by foreign states [and] the regime in Kyiv". In other words: Russia officially denies the legal guardians of forcibly deported and adopted Ukrainian children and attempts to prevent the opportunity to repatriate these children.

Here is a video (2 min) of Ms. Kuznetsova's announcment in the Duma, Russia's parliament.

Archived link

- A new petition started last week in Ukraine that aims to block TikTok in the country, arguing that its Chinese parent company Byte Dance is one of Russia’s partners and could pose a risk to Ukraine’s national security.

- The petition says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes, and that it would allow China to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

- The petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.--

On June 10, a petition appeared on the website of Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers calling on the country’s authorities to block the video-sharing app TikTok. The document has already gathered nearly half of the signatures necessary for lawmakers to be required to consider it. It argues that because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is Chinese, and China is one of Russia’s partners, the app could pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security. The initiative comes just two months after Washington gave the Chinese firm an ultimatum, giving it nine months to sell TikTok to an American company if it wants to avoid a block in the U.S. Here’s what we know about the campaign to ban TikTok in Ukraine.

A new petition published on the Ukrainian government’s website calls on the country’s lawmakers to block TikTok for the sake of national security. The document asserts that China openly collaborates with Russia and supports it in its war against Ukraine. It also says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes. Additionally, the author says that China has the ability to influence ByteDance’s content policy, including by using TikTok to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

The petition cites comments made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb about how China has purportedly used its cyber capabilities to steal confidential information from both public and private U.S. institutions, including its defense industrial base, for decades. It proposes blocking TikTok on Ukrainian territories and banning its use on phones belonging to state officials and military personnel.

The signature collection period for the petition began on June 10. The document’s author is listed as “Oksana Andrusyak,” though this person’s identity is unclear, and Ukrainian media have had difficulty determining who she is. Nonetheless, the petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.

This isn’t the first time the Ukrainian authorities have discussed banning TikTok. In April 2024, people’s deputy Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, the head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Freedom of Speech, said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine that such a ban would be well-founded. “If our partner country imposes such sanctions, then so will we,” he told journalists, referring to the possibility of a TikTok ban in the U.S.

It’s currently unclear whether Ukrainian lawmakers already have plans to block TikTok. According to Forbes Ukraine, however, there is legislation in development that would impose new regulations on social media sites and messenger services, including TikTok.

Archived link

- A new petition started last week in Ukraine that aims to block TikTok in the country, arguing that its Chinese parent company Byte Dance is one of Russia’s partners and could pose a risk to Ukraine’s national security.

- The petition says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes, and that it would allow China to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

- The petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.--

On June 10, a petition appeared on the website of Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers calling on the country’s authorities to block the video-sharing app TikTok. The document has already gathered nearly half of the signatures necessary for lawmakers to be required to consider it. It argues that because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is Chinese, and China is one of Russia’s partners, the app could pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security. The initiative comes just two months after Washington gave the Chinese firm an ultimatum, giving it nine months to sell TikTok to an American company if it wants to avoid a block in the U.S. Here’s what we know about the campaign to ban TikTok in Ukraine.

A new petition published on the Ukrainian government’s website calls on the country’s lawmakers to block TikTok for the sake of national security. The document asserts that China openly collaborates with Russia and supports it in its war against Ukraine. It also says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes. Additionally, the author says that China has the ability to influence ByteDance’s content policy, including by using TikTok to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

The petition cites comments made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb about how China has purportedly used its cyber capabilities to steal confidential information from both public and private U.S. institutions, including its defense industrial base, for decades. It proposes blocking TikTok on Ukrainian territories and banning its use on phones belonging to state officials and military personnel.

The signature collection period for the petition began on June 10. The document’s author is listed as “Oksana Andrusyak,” though this person’s identity is unclear, and Ukrainian media have had difficulty determining who she is. Nonetheless, the petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.

This isn’t the first time the Ukrainian authorities have discussed banning TikTok. In April 2024, people’s deputy Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, the head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Freedom of Speech, said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine that such a ban would be well-founded. “If our partner country imposes such sanctions, then so will we,” he told journalists, referring to the possibility of a TikTok ban in the U.S.

It’s currently unclear whether Ukrainian lawmakers already have plans to block TikTok. According to Forbes Ukraine, however, there is legislation in development that would impose new regulations on social media sites and messenger services, including TikTok.

Archived link

- A new petition started last week in Ukraine that aims to block TikTok in the country, arguing that its Chinese parent company Byte Dance is one of Russia’s partners and could pose a risk to Ukraine’s national security.

- The petition says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes, and that it would allow China to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

- The petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.--

On June 10, a petition appeared on the website of Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers calling on the country’s authorities to block the video-sharing app TikTok. The document has already gathered nearly half of the signatures necessary for lawmakers to be required to consider it. It argues that because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is Chinese, and China is one of Russia’s partners, the app could pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security. The initiative comes just two months after Washington gave the Chinese firm an ultimatum, giving it nine months to sell TikTok to an American company if it wants to avoid a block in the U.S. Here’s what we know about the campaign to ban TikTok in Ukraine.

A new petition published on the Ukrainian government’s website calls on the country’s lawmakers to block TikTok for the sake of national security. The document asserts that China openly collaborates with Russia and supports it in its war against Ukraine. It also says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes. Additionally, the author says that China has the ability to influence ByteDance’s content policy, including by using TikTok to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

The petition cites comments made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb about how China has purportedly used its cyber capabilities to steal confidential information from both public and private U.S. institutions, including its defense industrial base, for decades. It proposes blocking TikTok on Ukrainian territories and banning its use on phones belonging to state officials and military personnel.

The signature collection period for the petition began on June 10. The document’s author is listed as “Oksana Andrusyak,” though this person’s identity is unclear, and Ukrainian media have had difficulty determining who she is. Nonetheless, the petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.

This isn’t the first time the Ukrainian authorities have discussed banning TikTok. In April 2024, people’s deputy Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, the head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Freedom of Speech, said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine that such a ban would be well-founded. “If our partner country imposes such sanctions, then so will we,” he told journalists, referring to the possibility of a TikTok ban in the U.S.

It’s currently unclear whether Ukrainian lawmakers already have plans to block TikTok. According to Forbes Ukraine, however, there is legislation in development that would impose new regulations on social media sites and messenger services, including TikTok.

Archived link

- A new petition started last week in Ukraine that aims to block TikTok in the country, arguing that its Chinese parent company Byte Dance is one of Russia’s partners and could pose a risk to Ukraine’s national security.

- The petition says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes, and that it would allow China to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

- The petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.--

On June 10, a petition appeared on the website of Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers calling on the country’s authorities to block the video-sharing app TikTok. The document has already gathered nearly half of the signatures necessary for lawmakers to be required to consider it. It argues that because TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is Chinese, and China is one of Russia’s partners, the app could pose a threat to Ukraine’s national security. The initiative comes just two months after Washington gave the Chinese firm an ultimatum, giving it nine months to sell TikTok to an American company if it wants to avoid a block in the U.S. Here’s what we know about the campaign to ban TikTok in Ukraine.

A new petition published on the Ukrainian government’s website calls on the country’s lawmakers to block TikTok for the sake of national security. The document asserts that China openly collaborates with Russia and supports it in its war against Ukraine. It also says that Chinese law allows companies to collect information about TikTok users that can subsequently be used for espionage and intelligence purposes. Additionally, the author says that China has the ability to influence ByteDance’s content policy, including by using TikTok to spread propaganda messages or launch algorithm-driven disinformation campaigns.

The petition cites comments made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy John Plumb about how China has purportedly used its cyber capabilities to steal confidential information from both public and private U.S. institutions, including its defense industrial base, for decades. It proposes blocking TikTok on Ukrainian territories and banning its use on phones belonging to state officials and military personnel.

The signature collection period for the petition began on June 10. The document’s author is listed as “Oksana Andrusyak,” though this person’s identity is unclear, and Ukrainian media have had difficulty determining who she is. Nonetheless, the petition garnered about 9,000 signatures in the campaign’s first two days, and as of this article’s publication, it has nearly 11,000 supporters. To be officially considered by Ukrainian lawmakers, the document must receive a total of 25,000 signatures within three months.

This isn’t the first time the Ukrainian authorities have discussed banning TikTok. In April 2024, people’s deputy Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, the head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Freedom of Speech, said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine that such a ban would be well-founded. “If our partner country imposes such sanctions, then so will we,” he told journalists, referring to the possibility of a TikTok ban in the U.S.

It’s currently unclear whether Ukrainian lawmakers already have plans to block TikTok. According to Forbes Ukraine, however, there is legislation in development that would impose new regulations on social media sites and messenger services, including TikTok.

Archived link

Jens Stoltenberg added that the bloc must show its nuclear arsenal to the world to send a direct message to its foes in an interview with The Telegraph.

He revealed there were live consultations between members on taking missiles out of storage and placing them on standby as he called for transparency to be used as a deterrent.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I won’t go into operational details about how many nuclear warheads should be operational and which should be stored, but we need to consult on these issues. That’s exactly what we’re doing.”

In a wide-ranging interview at the Nato headquarters in Brussels, he gave a stark warning about the threat from China. He also said he expected a Labour government to be a staunch Nato ally and defended new plans to Trump-proof weapons deliveries to Ukraine.

Mr Stoltenberg said nuclear transparency should be the cornerstone of Nato’s nuclear strategy to prepare the alliance for what he described as a more dangerous world.

A decade ago when the 65-year-old assumed his role at the top of the bloc, nuclear exercises were conducted in complete secrecy.

Now he openly praises a number of its 32 allies for contributing to the deterrent, including most recently The Netherlands for investing in dual-capable fighter jets that can host US nuclear weapons.

“Transparency helps to communicate the direct message that we, of course, are a nuclear alliance,” Mr Stoltenberg said. “Nato’s aim is, of course, a world without nuclear weapons, but as long as nuclear weapons exist, we will remain a nuclear alliance, because a world where Russia, China and North Korea have nuclear weapons, and Nato does not, is a more dangerous world.”

He warned that China in particular was investing heavily in modern weaponry including its nuclear arsenal, which he said would grow to 1,000 warheads by as early as 2030.

"And that means that in a not-very-distant future,” he said, “Nato may face something that it has never faced before, and that is two nuclear-powered potential adversaries – China and Russia. Of course, this has consequences.”

Mr Stoltenberg’s warnings come after the G7 sharply criticised China and Russia in a communique last week that called on Beijing to stop supplying weapons technology to Moscow and opposed China’s “militarisation” in the Pacific.

Both the US and UK have committed their nuclear deterrents to Nato, while other European allies share the burden of the responsibility by storing weapons on their territory and investing in the systems to launch them.

The number of operational nuclear weapons is top secret but estimates suggest the UK has about 40 of 225 deployed at any one time. The US has about 1,700 of 3,700.

France, Nato’s third nuclear power, does not make its atomic arsenal available to the alliance because of a long-held decision to maintain independence over its own deterrence.

Mr Stoltenberg insisted that the US and its European allies were now modernising their nuclear deterrent in the face of increased threat from Russia.

He said: “The US is modernising their gravity bombs for the nuclear warheads they have in Europe and European allies are modernising the planes which are going to be dedicated to Nato’s nuclear mission.

“Then, of course, you have the United Kingdom, which is special because the United Kingdom has its own nuclear weapons.”

On Sunday, the BBC reported that a Russian submarine that is now in Cuba was seen off Scotland’s coast last week.

The Kazan is capable of carrying advanced weapons, according to Russia’s defence ministry, but it did not enter UK waters. The Ministry of Defence nevertheless briefed the prime minister.

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine and has deployed warheads closer to Europe’s borders. However, he has more recently dialled down his threats.

The head of Nato refused to discuss how many warheads should be pulled from storage warehouses and put on standby, but revealed there were live consultations on the issue.

Before the invasion, Nato was struggling to convince the majority of its allies to hit the minimum threshold of two per cent expenditure as a share of their GDP for defence spending.

When the latest figures are released ahead of the Nato summit in Washington next month, Mr Stoltenberg believes more than 20 will hit the goal – a decade since the target was established.

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Britain was put on a trajectory to increase spending on defence to 2.5 per cent of national wealth by 2030.

But with Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives expected to be replaced by the Labour Party, there are doubts whether the pledge will stick.

Sir Keir Starmer has said his party wanted to reach the 2.5 per cent target as soon as resources allow that to happen, rather than a fixed date.

Mr Stoltenberg, who served as the leader of Norway’s Labour Party between 2002 and 2014, would not be drawn on the politics of Britain’s election campaign.

However, he said: “I expect that the UK, regardless of the outcome of the election, will be as strong, staunch Nato ally, and also an ally that will lead by example of defence spending, as the UK has done for many years.

“The reality is that we all reduced defence spending when tensions went down after the end of the Cold War. And now we need to increase defence when tensions are going up again.

“I have been prime minister for 10 years, I know that it’s hard to find money for defence because most politicians always prefer to spend money on health, on education, infrastructure and other important tasks.

“But when we reduce defence spending when tensions go down, we have to be able to increase them when tensions go back up – and that’s exactly what allies now are doing, the United Kingdom, but also other allies.”

Mr Stoltenberg has not always been so reticent to wade into domestic politics in recent months.

When Republicans loyal to Donald Trump held up a $60 billion £47 billion) aid package for Ukraine, the Nato chief repeatedly warned the delays were helping Putin’s Russia seize territory.

He then came out in support of Kyiv over its request to use Western weapons on targets inside Russia.

And now ahead of the next Nato summit, he has tabled proposals for the alliance to play a greater role in the West’s support for Ukraine.

About 99 per cent of the weapons deliveries to Kyiv are done so by Nato allies, he says.

His new Nato security assistance and training for Ukraine scheme – downgraded from the Mission to Ukraine because of German fears over Russian escalation – will have 700 Nato personnel stationed at its headquarters in Wiesbaden, Germany, take over the bulk of the coordination of aid from the Americans.

Mr Stoltenberg said, cautious not to mention the looming prospect of the election of Mr Trump: “This is a proposal which is about making the support for Ukraine more robust, more long term, more predictable, and that’s something which is important regardless of the outcome of the elections in the United States.

“We saw the gaps and delays this winter, where several allies were not able to deliver the support they had promised. We have to minimise the risk of something like that happening again.”

He added: “If we have a Nato support, security assistance and training effort combined with a long-term financial pledge, I think we will give a much stronger message to Moscow that President Putin cannot wait us out.”

But it is not just the US where support for Ukraine could be flipped on its head.

Last week, France’s Emmanuel Macron called snap elections after his party was defeated in the EU voting by far-Right leader Marine Le Pen, who has previously enjoyed close ties with Putin and called for closer relations between Nato and Moscow.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I believe it is in the interest of all allies, including France and others, to keep Nato strong because we live in a more dangerous world.

“In a more dangerous world, it’s even more important that North America and Europe stand together.

“Then, of course, we are 32 democracies and it’s part of democracies that we have different parties, different views, different opinions, but experience over these decades is that despite all these differences, there has always been strong support for Nato.”

And in a call for them to continue arming Ukraine, he concluded: “I strongly believe that if Putin prevails in Ukraine, we will become more vulnerable, and then we will need to invest even more in our defence.”

Archived link

Jens Stoltenberg added that the bloc must show its nuclear arsenal to the world to send a direct message to its foes in an interview with The Telegraph.

He revealed there were live consultations between members on taking missiles out of storage and placing them on standby as he called for transparency to be used as a deterrent.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I won’t go into operational details about how many nuclear warheads should be operational and which should be stored, but we need to consult on these issues. That’s exactly what we’re doing.”

In a wide-ranging interview at the Nato headquarters in Brussels, he gave a stark warning about the threat from China. He also said he expected a Labour government to be a staunch Nato ally and defended new plans to Trump-proof weapons deliveries to Ukraine.

Mr Stoltenberg said nuclear transparency should be the cornerstone of Nato’s nuclear strategy to prepare the alliance for what he described as a more dangerous world.

A decade ago when the 65-year-old assumed his role at the top of the bloc, nuclear exercises were conducted in complete secrecy.

Now he openly praises a number of its 32 allies for contributing to the deterrent, including most recently The Netherlands for investing in dual-capable fighter jets that can host US nuclear weapons.

“Transparency helps to communicate the direct message that we, of course, are a nuclear alliance,” Mr Stoltenberg said. “Nato’s aim is, of course, a world without nuclear weapons, but as long as nuclear weapons exist, we will remain a nuclear alliance, because a world where Russia, China and North Korea have nuclear weapons, and Nato does not, is a more dangerous world.”

He warned that China in particular was investing heavily in modern weaponry including its nuclear arsenal, which he said would grow to 1,000 warheads by as early as 2030.

"And that means that in a not-very-distant future,” he said, “Nato may face something that it has never faced before, and that is two nuclear-powered potential adversaries – China and Russia. Of course, this has consequences.”

Mr Stoltenberg’s warnings come after the G7 sharply criticised China and Russia in a communique last week that called on Beijing to stop supplying weapons technology to Moscow and opposed China’s “militarisation” in the Pacific.

Both the US and UK have committed their nuclear deterrents to Nato, while other European allies share the burden of the responsibility by storing weapons on their territory and investing in the systems to launch them.

The number of operational nuclear weapons is top secret but estimates suggest the UK has about 40 of 225 deployed at any one time. The US has about 1,700 of 3,700.

France, Nato’s third nuclear power, does not make its atomic arsenal available to the alliance because of a long-held decision to maintain independence over its own deterrence.

Mr Stoltenberg insisted that the US and its European allies were now modernising their nuclear deterrent in the face of increased threat from Russia.

He said: “The US is modernising their gravity bombs for the nuclear warheads they have in Europe and European allies are modernising the planes which are going to be dedicated to Nato’s nuclear mission.

“Then, of course, you have the United Kingdom, which is special because the United Kingdom has its own nuclear weapons.”

On Sunday, the BBC reported that a Russian submarine that is now in Cuba was seen off Scotland’s coast last week.

The Kazan is capable of carrying advanced weapons, according to Russia’s defence ministry, but it did not enter UK waters. The Ministry of Defence nevertheless briefed the prime minister.

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine and has deployed warheads closer to Europe’s borders. However, he has more recently dialled down his threats.

The head of Nato refused to discuss how many warheads should be pulled from storage warehouses and put on standby, but revealed there were live consultations on the issue.

Before the invasion, Nato was struggling to convince the majority of its allies to hit the minimum threshold of two per cent expenditure as a share of their GDP for defence spending.

When the latest figures are released ahead of the Nato summit in Washington next month, Mr Stoltenberg believes more than 20 will hit the goal – a decade since the target was established.

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Britain was put on a trajectory to increase spending on defence to 2.5 per cent of national wealth by 2030.

But with Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives expected to be replaced by the Labour Party, there are doubts whether the pledge will stick.

Sir Keir Starmer has said his party wanted to reach the 2.5 per cent target as soon as resources allow that to happen, rather than a fixed date.

Mr Stoltenberg, who served as the leader of Norway’s Labour Party between 2002 and 2014, would not be drawn on the politics of Britain’s election campaign.

However, he said: “I expect that the UK, regardless of the outcome of the election, will be as strong, staunch Nato ally, and also an ally that will lead by example of defence spending, as the UK has done for many years.

“The reality is that we all reduced defence spending when tensions went down after the end of the Cold War. And now we need to increase defence when tensions are going up again.

“I have been prime minister for 10 years, I know that it’s hard to find money for defence because most politicians always prefer to spend money on health, on education, infrastructure and other important tasks.

“But when we reduce defence spending when tensions go down, we have to be able to increase them when tensions go back up – and that’s exactly what allies now are doing, the United Kingdom, but also other allies.”

Mr Stoltenberg has not always been so reticent to wade into domestic politics in recent months.

When Republicans loyal to Donald Trump held up a $60 billion £47 billion) aid package for Ukraine, the Nato chief repeatedly warned the delays were helping Putin’s Russia seize territory.

He then came out in support of Kyiv over its request to use Western weapons on targets inside Russia.

And now ahead of the next Nato summit, he has tabled proposals for the alliance to play a greater role in the West’s support for Ukraine.

About 99 per cent of the weapons deliveries to Kyiv are done so by Nato allies, he says.

His new Nato security assistance and training for Ukraine scheme – downgraded from the Mission to Ukraine because of German fears over Russian escalation – will have 700 Nato personnel stationed at its headquarters in Wiesbaden, Germany, take over the bulk of the coordination of aid from the Americans.

Mr Stoltenberg said, cautious not to mention the looming prospect of the election of Mr Trump: “This is a proposal which is about making the support for Ukraine more robust, more long term, more predictable, and that’s something which is important regardless of the outcome of the elections in the United States.

“We saw the gaps and delays this winter, where several allies were not able to deliver the support they had promised. We have to minimise the risk of something like that happening again.”

He added: “If we have a Nato support, security assistance and training effort combined with a long-term financial pledge, I think we will give a much stronger message to Moscow that President Putin cannot wait us out.”

But it is not just the US where support for Ukraine could be flipped on its head.

Last week, France’s Emmanuel Macron called snap elections after his party was defeated in the EU voting by far-Right leader Marine Le Pen, who has previously enjoyed close ties with Putin and called for closer relations between Nato and Moscow.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I believe it is in the interest of all allies, including France and others, to keep Nato strong because we live in a more dangerous world.

“In a more dangerous world, it’s even more important that North America and Europe stand together.

“Then, of course, we are 32 democracies and it’s part of democracies that we have different parties, different views, different opinions, but experience over these decades is that despite all these differences, there has always been strong support for Nato.”

And in a call for them to continue arming Ukraine, he concluded: “I strongly believe that if Putin prevails in Ukraine, we will become more vulnerable, and then we will need to invest even more in our defence.”

Archived link

Jens Stoltenberg added that the bloc must show its nuclear arsenal to the world to send a direct message to its foes in an interview with The Telegraph.

He revealed there were live consultations between members on taking missiles out of storage and placing them on standby as he called for transparency to be used as a deterrent.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I won’t go into operational details about how many nuclear warheads should be operational and which should be stored, but we need to consult on these issues. That’s exactly what we’re doing.”

In a wide-ranging interview at the Nato headquarters in Brussels, he gave a stark warning about the threat from China. He also said he expected a Labour government to be a staunch Nato ally and defended new plans to Trump-proof weapons deliveries to Ukraine.

Mr Stoltenberg said nuclear transparency should be the cornerstone of Nato’s nuclear strategy to prepare the alliance for what he described as a more dangerous world.

A decade ago when the 65-year-old assumed his role at the top of the bloc, nuclear exercises were conducted in complete secrecy.

Now he openly praises a number of its 32 allies for contributing to the deterrent, including most recently The Netherlands for investing in dual-capable fighter jets that can host US nuclear weapons.

“Transparency helps to communicate the direct message that we, of course, are a nuclear alliance,” Mr Stoltenberg said. “Nato’s aim is, of course, a world without nuclear weapons, but as long as nuclear weapons exist, we will remain a nuclear alliance, because a world where Russia, China and North Korea have nuclear weapons, and Nato does not, is a more dangerous world.”

He warned that China in particular was investing heavily in modern weaponry including its nuclear arsenal, which he said would grow to 1,000 warheads by as early as 2030.

"And that means that in a not-very-distant future,” he said, “Nato may face something that it has never faced before, and that is two nuclear-powered potential adversaries – China and Russia. Of course, this has consequences.”

Mr Stoltenberg’s warnings come after the G7 sharply criticised China and Russia in a communique last week that called on Beijing to stop supplying weapons technology to Moscow and opposed China’s “militarisation” in the Pacific.

Both the US and UK have committed their nuclear deterrents to Nato, while other European allies share the burden of the responsibility by storing weapons on their territory and investing in the systems to launch them.

The number of operational nuclear weapons is top secret but estimates suggest the UK has about 40 of 225 deployed at any one time. The US has about 1,700 of 3,700.

France, Nato’s third nuclear power, does not make its atomic arsenal available to the alliance because of a long-held decision to maintain independence over its own deterrence.

Mr Stoltenberg insisted that the US and its European allies were now modernising their nuclear deterrent in the face of increased threat from Russia.

He said: “The US is modernising their gravity bombs for the nuclear warheads they have in Europe and European allies are modernising the planes which are going to be dedicated to Nato’s nuclear mission.

“Then, of course, you have the United Kingdom, which is special because the United Kingdom has its own nuclear weapons.”

On Sunday, the BBC reported that a Russian submarine that is now in Cuba was seen off Scotland’s coast last week.

The Kazan is capable of carrying advanced weapons, according to Russia’s defence ministry, but it did not enter UK waters. The Ministry of Defence nevertheless briefed the prime minister.

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine and has deployed warheads closer to Europe’s borders. However, he has more recently dialled down his threats.

The head of Nato refused to discuss how many warheads should be pulled from storage warehouses and put on standby, but revealed there were live consultations on the issue.

Before the invasion, Nato was struggling to convince the majority of its allies to hit the minimum threshold of two per cent expenditure as a share of their GDP for defence spending.

When the latest figures are released ahead of the Nato summit in Washington next month, Mr Stoltenberg believes more than 20 will hit the goal – a decade since the target was established.

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Britain was put on a trajectory to increase spending on defence to 2.5 per cent of national wealth by 2030.

But with Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives expected to be replaced by the Labour Party, there are doubts whether the pledge will stick.

Sir Keir Starmer has said his party wanted to reach the 2.5 per cent target as soon as resources allow that to happen, rather than a fixed date.

Mr Stoltenberg, who served as the leader of Norway’s Labour Party between 2002 and 2014, would not be drawn on the politics of Britain’s election campaign.

However, he said: “I expect that the UK, regardless of the outcome of the election, will be as strong, staunch Nato ally, and also an ally that will lead by example of defence spending, as the UK has done for many years.

“The reality is that we all reduced defence spending when tensions went down after the end of the Cold War. And now we need to increase defence when tensions are going up again.

“I have been prime minister for 10 years, I know that it’s hard to find money for defence because most politicians always prefer to spend money on health, on education, infrastructure and other important tasks.

“But when we reduce defence spending when tensions go down, we have to be able to increase them when tensions go back up – and that’s exactly what allies now are doing, the United Kingdom, but also other allies.”

Mr Stoltenberg has not always been so reticent to wade into domestic politics in recent months.

When Republicans loyal to Donald Trump held up a $60 billion £47 billion) aid package for Ukraine, the Nato chief repeatedly warned the delays were helping Putin’s Russia seize territory.

He then came out in support of Kyiv over its request to use Western weapons on targets inside Russia.

And now ahead of the next Nato summit, he has tabled proposals for the alliance to play a greater role in the West’s support for Ukraine.

About 99 per cent of the weapons deliveries to Kyiv are done so by Nato allies, he says.

His new Nato security assistance and training for Ukraine scheme – downgraded from the Mission to Ukraine because of German fears over Russian escalation – will have 700 Nato personnel stationed at its headquarters in Wiesbaden, Germany, take over the bulk of the coordination of aid from the Americans.

Mr Stoltenberg said, cautious not to mention the looming prospect of the election of Mr Trump: “This is a proposal which is about making the support for Ukraine more robust, more long term, more predictable, and that’s something which is important regardless of the outcome of the elections in the United States.

“We saw the gaps and delays this winter, where several allies were not able to deliver the support they had promised. We have to minimise the risk of something like that happening again.”

He added: “If we have a Nato support, security assistance and training effort combined with a long-term financial pledge, I think we will give a much stronger message to Moscow that President Putin cannot wait us out.”

But it is not just the US where support for Ukraine could be flipped on its head.

Last week, France’s Emmanuel Macron called snap elections after his party was defeated in the EU voting by far-Right leader Marine Le Pen, who has previously enjoyed close ties with Putin and called for closer relations between Nato and Moscow.

Mr Stoltenberg said: “I believe it is in the interest of all allies, including France and others, to keep Nato strong because we live in a more dangerous world.

“In a more dangerous world, it’s even more important that North America and Europe stand together.

“Then, of course, we are 32 democracies and it’s part of democracies that we have different parties, different views, different opinions, but experience over these decades is that despite all these differences, there has always been strong support for Nato.”

And in a call for them to continue arming Ukraine, he concluded: “I strongly believe that if Putin prevails in Ukraine, we will become more vulnerable, and then we will need to invest even more in our defence.”

Our response to Yang Hengjun’s jailing is inadequate and chilling. Chinese-Australians are Australians too! - writes Badiucao, a Chinese-Australian artist based in Melbourne.

China’s premier is visiting Australia and Li Qiang’s first stop was the Adelaide zoo, home to pandas Wang Wang and Fu Ni.

Beijing has enjoyed exercising “panda diplomacy” over the years, loaning bears to countries depending on its assessment of how well diplomatic relations are going.

The cute black and white animals present a softer, friendlier image of China – but they also represent something much darker.

They are found in present-day Sichuan province – once Tibetan territory. The national symbol is actually an unapologetic symbol of China’s own dark colonial history of the subjugation of the Tibetan nation.

I don’t expect any Australian official to point this out – despite this country’s special obligation to do so, given its own history with the Indigenous community here. Nor do I expect any official to ask Li about what has happened to the Uyghurs, the Turkic minority within China’s borders who have become targets of a national campaign that some human rights groups call a genocide.

Australians love to express guilt about our own history. We talk about it – then do nothing to speak up against present-day injustices. Instead our government decides trade is more important, despite the fact that China has repeatedly acted like a bully on trade matters, hitting Australian wine or lobsters whenever something upsets the Chinese Communist party.

Economically, Australia is a small country compared with China. But how did it come to this? Surely protecting the integrity of the country and protecting our citizens should be important.

A Beijing court tried the Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun in a one-day, closed-door hearing on espionage charges and handed him a suspended death penalty. Canberra responded by saying it was “appalled”.

Now the Chinese premier is visiting and our government is installing temporary guardrails and isolation fences around the capital to shield CCP officials from seeing pro-democracy protesters. How can we possibly save our fellow citizen if we cooperate so easily with authoritarianism?

This is not just about Yang. This is personal. I’m an immigrant who chose to live in Australia because I believe in this country. For three generations my family were victims of the CCP. I wanted to escape that cycle. Now I am a target of Chinese transnational aggression, as are other Australians of Chinese-speaking origin who have dared to speak out about human rights and democracy and against the dictatorship of Xi Jinping.

I think of the writer and comedian Vicky Xu, the great novelist Murong Xuecun, the Hong Kong rights lawyer Kevin Yam. We do not feel safe exercising our right to free expression when we see our government unwilling to stand up for Yang, unwilling to fight for its citizens. The Australian government’s response to what has happened to Yang is inadequate and chilling. Chinese-Australians are Australians too!

Meanwhile, China is hardly rewarding Australia for our lack of a spine. It is doing what all bullies do – pushing to get away with more. It has changed Hong Kong’s vibrant open society and it keeps making suggestions that it will do the same for Taiwan, including constantly sending fighter jets in its direction. It has been picking fights with the Philippines in the South China Sea. These are unpleasant developments, so the Albanese government prefers to ignore them in the hope they will go away. But China is not going away.

I once drew a political cartoon depicting Anthony Albanese caught in a balancing act, trying to juggle selling wine exports with our Aukus submarine defence strategy. My message was that this approach is increasingly unsustainable – and dangerous. It’s a funny-looking cartoon but I hoped that Australians would see it and understand that if we choose not to be brave, to do the right thing, to stand by our principles, then the joke will be on us.

- One protester has claimed the Australian Federal Police used "brutalising" force in Canberra, as China's premier met with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and dignitaries at Parliament House.

- Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who was freed last year after being detained in China for three years, claims she was blocked by Chinese officials during a signing ceremony during official proceedings.

- "I think the worry is that my being there is a symbol of some sort, and maybe they didn't want that for the domestic audience," Cheng Lei said. "Having dealt with Chinese officialdom on these sorts of events, they are very, very control freak-ish, so they want to know everything and they want to stage-manage everything."--

Critics of the Chinese Communist Party have accused Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers of using "unnecessary" force against demonstrators who were protesting against a visit by a Chinese official on the lawns of Parliament House.

Chinese premier Li Qiang's four-day visit to Australia sparked a face-off between protesters in Canberra on Monday, with pro-China demonstrators colliding with the Australian Tibetan community and the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement, vocally opposing his visit.

Human rights activist and journalist Vicky Xu criticised the AFP after she was filmed being dragged by officers as she held the Chinese flag on Monday.

"A friend of mine had a Chinese Communist Party flag, that he was planning to burn," she told SBS News.

"I saw that the police were trying to forcefully take the flag away from him, so I intervened and tried to understand what was happening.

"Next thing I knew I was being shoved by the police."

She claims an officer had a hand on her neck and that her finger was twisted during the incident.

While she understood the need for the AFP to reduce the temperature and ensure peaceful protesting, she said it was "too much force", labelling it "brutalising" on X.

SBS News has contacted ACT Policing for comment.

In a statement, it said: "The AFP has received no complaint in relation to police conduct in managing protests today at Parliament House".

Police have been forced to intervene from time to time as the protesters confront one another.

One person was arrested at the protests outside Parliament House for what ACT Policing said was "a breach of the peace".

The tense moments contrasted with the official reception for Beijing's second most powerful leader, with the day starting with a ceremonial welcome, including a cannon salute, on the forecourt of Parliament House in Canberra.

Li declared that Chinese-Australian ties were "back on track after a period of twists and turns" when he arrived on the weekend, for the first visit by a Chinese premier in seven years.

Cheng Lei says she was 'blocked' at Parliament House

But another moment during the proceedings has also raised eyebrows.

Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who was freed last year after being detained in China for three years, claims she was blocked by Chinese officials during a signing ceremony during official proceedings.

A video of the signing ceremony appears to show two Chinese officials blocking her from the view of cameras broadcasting the event and refusing to move when asked.

She told Sky News she believes this was done to prevent audiences from seeing her as a symbol of defiance of the Chinese government.

"I think the worry is that my being there is a symbol of some sort, and maybe they didn't want that for the domestic audience.

"Having dealt with Chinese officialdom on these sorts of events, they are very, very control freak-ish, so they want to know everything and they want to stage-manage everything."

China-Australia relations 'on right track'

Premier Li arrived at Parliament House to meet with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and several cabinet members including Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong, Trade Minister Don Farrell and Resources Minister Madeleine King.

The prime minister's November 2023 trip to China followed by Li's current visit to Australia showed both countries attached "great importance" to their relationship, the premier said.

"This relationship is on the right track of steady improvement," he said. "Prime Minister Albanese and I have had a candid, in-depth and fruitful discussion that has reached a lot of common consensus."

Albanese said the bilateral talks were crucial for the Australia-China relationship which had been "renewed and revitalised" by the engagement.

The politicians signed four memoranda of understanding on the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement, climate change, education and research, strategic economic dialogue, and cultural cooperation.

Representatives of both nations then attended a state lunch with business and community leaders where they were served wine, wagyu beef and, most notably, Australian rock lobster - which remains subject to trade restrictions.

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt noted there had been "enormous progress" in restoring trade with China in the past few years after sanctions on coal, wine and barley were lifted.

The remaining trade bans are expected to be lifted within the coming weeks.

Also on the battle agenda of the high-level talks was the case of Australian writer Yang Hengjun, who languishes ill in a Chinese jail, and tensions in the South China Sea.