Headlines

 Moscow, Aug. 31 (DP.net).– Mikhail Gorbachev's death is being mourned by the West as the loss of a champion of freedom who helped end the Cold War. He passed away in Moscow on Tuesday at a time when his legacy of reconciliation with the West and domestic reform has been left in tatters in the wake of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine. However, from Washington to Brussels, Gorbachev was widely acclaimed after the news of his death. His real strength was his charm and decency. He may have changed the world, but he was a real human being first and foremost according to those who knew him personally. Among many others, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher found in Gorbachev someone she could "do business with." Then, through her, U.S. President Ronald Reagan came around to the view that Gorbachev was indeed an authentic partner in the peace and rapprochement process.

Nevertheless, Mikhail Gorbachev was a contradictory figure; his legacy complex. Hailed in the West as a democrat and liberator of his people –which he genuinely was– he increasingly became despised by many within Russia for dismantling the Soviet Union as a Great Power.

Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev, (born March 2, 1931, Privolnoye, Stavropol kray, Russia, U.S.S.R.), Soviet official, general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1985 to 1991, and president of the Soviet Union in 1990-91. Once he achieved the highest position in the party in 1985 he embarked on a pell-mell program of reform. It was centered on two ideas, that of "perestroika" –the restructuring of the political and economic system– and "glasnost" –the end of censorship and the introduction of freedom of speech and the press. Ultimately, his efforts to democratize his country's political system and decentralize its economy led to the downfall of the Soviet Union as an imperialist and expansionist power.

Kyiv, Aug.30 (DP.net).– According to British Intelligence reports, the Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine has stalled because of strong Ukrainian counter-attacks that have pushed back Russian troops on Kharkiv's Northern and Eastern fronts (see map). However, they were repulsed on the rest of the Eastern front, allowing Russia to consolidate its control over most of Luhansk and Donetsk until their offensive recently stalled northwest of Slovyansk, southeast of Bakhmut, and southeast of Donetsk City.

A large zone of partisan guerrillas remains to the northeast of Crimea distracting considerable Russian troops, thus allowing Ukrainian offensives north of Mariupol, albeit without success. However, the Ukrainian offensive has penetrated with greater success on the southwestern front to the suburbs of Kherson and have recovered the city of Sukhyi about 80 km northeast of Kherson.

Ukrainian military officials announced the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in Kherson Oblast on August 29^th. Ukrainian officials reported that Ukrainian forces have broken through the first line of defenses in some areas of Kherson Oblast and are seeking to take advantage of the disruption of Russian ground lines of communication caused by Ukrainian HIMARS strikes in recent weeks.

Christopher Wray finds whistleblower allegations about FBI'S Hunter Biden investigation 'Deeply troubling'.

Washington DC, Aug. 4.– FBI Director Christopher Wray said disciplinary action against agents involved in the bureau’s Trump-Russia investigation has been “slowed down” due to ongoing cooperation with special counsel John Durham.

An FBI analyst whose assessment was used to label Hunter Biden evidence as "disinformation" wrongly in 2020, according to whistleblower disclosures, was referred for disciplinary action for his role in Crossfire Hurricane just months before doing so, but Wray confirmed during Senate testimony on Thursday that the process has largely paused.

• Security forces’ve been given full freedom to deal with terrorists

• Nigeria had been working with other member-states of ECOWAS and other regional blocs to deal with the problems of terrorism, trans-border crimes, maritime crimes such as piracy

Abuja, Aug.3.– President Muhammadu Buhari has called for more international collaboration to tackle terrorism, banditry and insurgency in the country. This is as he has called on diplomats to monitor political developments in the country, leading to the 2023 elections, but remain true to their professional ethics of non-interference.

He stated this, yesterday, in Abuja when he received Letters of Credence of Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, James Christoff and Ambassador of Mexico to Nigeria, Juan Miranda Oritz.