The uk's current affairs and outbreak day on 27 February highlights are:
- The UK began to stop more epidemic data this weekend, with the Omicron subtype BA.2 dominating England
- Boris called Russia's offensive blocked and praised the Ukrainians for their bravery
- The British Foreign Office warned that the Russo-Ukrainian war would last for 10 years and would further expand the list of sanctions against Russia
- The United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union have banned Russia from using the SWIFT international settlement system
- The United Kingdom and the United States announced sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the Russian side responded that it had not opened an account abroad
- Britain, the United States and 27 other countries have pledged military assistance to Ukraine
- Russian billionaires give up control of Chelsea club in the Premier League
- The British Home Office announced the cancellation of the Belarusian men's basketball visa
- The Russian cargo ship was seized by France on the English Channel
- Affected by the Russo-Ukrainian War, the Queen postponed a diplomatic reception at Windsor Castle
Starting this weekend (26 February 2022), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will stop publishing outbreak data for two days over the weekend (this week is 26 and 27 February).
From now on, UKHSA will only update the outbreak data from Monday to Friday, while the daily number of cases and deaths released on Monday will include data for the two days of the weekend, but will not show data on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
Meanwhile, the latest ukhsa data shows that Omicron subtype BA.2 has become the dominant strain in England.
Covid-19 infection with this subtype accounts for 52.3% of all cases in England.
In terms of regional distribution, BA.2 is the most dominant in London, accounting for 62.9% of COVID-19 cases in the region.
In addition, BA.2 is in the south-east of England (57.1%), eastern England (52.6%), north-west England (51.1%) and west Midlands (50%).
UKHSA also said it had detected 32 cases of Deltacron, a hybrid strain made up of genes from Omicron and Delta, within England.
In the past week, there have been only 2 cases of Deltacron in England.
Today (February 27), the front pages of the major British media still give the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
The Daily Telegraph quoted British Prime Minister Boris on its front page as saying that Russia's attack on Ukraine was far from as smooth as Putin expected, and praised the Ukrainians for fighting bravely.
Boris said: Under the leadership of Ukrainian President Zelenskiy, Ukrainian soldiers severely damaged the Russian army and temporarily held the capital Kiev.
Speaking at ROYAL AIR BASE Bryz Norton in Oxford on the evening of February 26, local time, Boris said he had "just concluded" a call with Ukrainian President Zelensky.
"There's no doubt that things won't go exactly like President Putin, far from it," he said. The Ukrainians fought bravely with great success, and this is a great, brave country. ”
"Now that some terrible atrocities have taken place, the days ahead in Ukraine will be very grim. We must do everything we can to change the dire situation facing Ukraine and to help them, which is why we are sending humanitarian, financial and military supplies to Ukraine. ”
At the same time, The British Ministry of Defence Armed Forces Deputy Secretary Hippe also wrote that after three days of fierce fighting, the Russian army's offensive speed lagged far behind the original plan, and was forced to abandon the attack on key cities and take a detour instead.
He also pointed out that the Russian army made a series of strategic mistakes, which led to the well-equipped and well-trained Ukrainian army hitting the rear of the Russian army.
On February 26, local time, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in an interview with British media that she had ordered the Foreign Ministry to draft a new sanctions list, claiming that Putin's rich allies would have "nowhere to hide."
The Uk's Foreign Office will add a new group of Russian oligarchs to the "blacklist" every few weeks, and they are expected to be targeted for sanctions in the coming months.
At the same time, the Home Office may give the National Crime Agency greater powers to enforce the Unexplained Wealth Orders to pinpoint the source of funding.
In addition, a British Foreign Office source said that the Russo-Ukrainian war may last for 10 years, and the British government is prepared for this.
"We can see that they (ukrainians) are very positive, they are determined to protect sovereignty and self-determination, so it will be a protracted conflict," Terras said in the interview. I don't know how things will turn out, but we have to make sure Putin loses. ”
On 27 February 2022, the United Kingdom, the United States, the European Union and Canada issued a joint statement announcing that most banks in Russia are prohibited from using the SWIFT (International Institute of Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications) international settlement system.
On the evening of the 26th local time, European Commission President von der Leyen announced at a press conference that she would propose to member states to exclude a number of Russian banks from the SWIFT system, which would prevent them from carrying out most financial transactions around the world and effectively block Russia's imports and exports.
Founded in 1973, SWIFT, based in Belgium, is a high-security network that connects thousands of financial institutions around the world, which use it to send security messages and payment instructions, according to public information.
Some media pointed out that if a country is excluded from the SWIFT system, it can be compared to a natural person being deleted from social media. SWIFT is therefore considered a 'financial nuclear bomb' in the sanctions process.
According to a joint statement issued by several countries, the latest sanctions will ensure that Russian banks are cut off from the international financial system, "undermining their ability to operate globally."
This means that Russian banks will not be able to communicate safely and effectively with offshore banks.
Other sanctions against Russia in the joint statement include:
- Impose 'restrictive measures' on the Central Bank of Russia to prevent the Central Bank of Russia from deploying its international reserves in a manner that could undermine sanctions;
- Take action against the harmful activities of persons or organizations that facilitated the war in Ukraine and of the Russian Government. Pledges to restrict the golden passports of wealthy Russians and prevent wealthy Russians with ties to the Russian government from obtaining passports from Western countries and thus entering the financial system;
- Establishment of a transatlantic task force to ensure the effectiveness of sanctions;
- Strengthen coordination to combat disinformation and other forms of mixed warfare.
In response, British Prime Minister Boris tweeted: "Together with our international partners, we have taken decisive action to exclude Russia from the global financial system and take the first step in expelling Russian banks from SWIFT." ”
"We will continue to work together to ensure that Putin pays the price for his aggressive acts."
The British Foreign Office said a day ago that the British government would impose sanctions on Russian President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov, freezing their assets, and the United States and the European Union continued to follow up the sanctions.
However, the United Kingdom and the United States and other countries did not specify in the relevant documents which assets were specifically.
In this regard, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova recently said that Russian President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov have not opened accounts anywhere outside the country.
On the evening of Friday (February 25), British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace organized an online military aid conference that attracted 25 countries, including the United Kingdom, other European countries, the United States, and Canada.
Participating countries said they would provide Ukraine with more weapons, medical supplies and other military assistance in response to the Russian offensive. Two other countries that were unable to attend the meeting also indicated their support.
A British Defence Ministry source said: "This assistance includes lethal assistance such as ammunition, anti-tank weapons and anti-aircraft weapons, as well as non-lethal assistance such as medical supplies. The Uk has proposed logistical operations to support the delivery of donated supplies. ”
On the evening of February 26, local time, Boris confirmed on Twitter that he had called with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and thanked him for his strong cooperation in ensuring defensive assistance to Ukraine.
Earlier, the Netherlands announced the supply of 200 Stinger man-portable air defense missile systems to Ukraine.
The latest news shows that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the supply of 1,000 anti-tank missiles and 500 Stinger man-portable air defense missiles to Ukraine.
On the evening of February 26, local time, Chelsea owner and Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich announced that he had handed over the "management" of the football club to the trustee of the Chelsea Charitable Foundation.
Although Abramovich relinquished management and decision-making authority over Chelsea, he continued to hold a stake in the club.
Abramovich said in a statement: "For almost 20 years, I have seen myself as the manager of the club and all I have to do is ensure that we can have the success we have today, while building the future and playing an active role in our community. I always made decisions from the bottom of my heart for the best interests of the club and I still uphold those values, which is why I am now entrusted to the Chelsea Charitable Foundation to manage Chelsea. I think they're doing a good job right now and being able to handle the interests of the club, the players, the staff and the fans in the best possible way. ”
Abramovich, 55, was born in the former Soviet Union and has Russian, Israeli and Portuguese citizenship before taking over Chelsea in 2003.
Sources say Abramović was identified by the British government in 2019 as having links with the Russian government and "having an open link to corrupt activities and practices".
A government source said there were no plans to immediately sanction Abramović.
On February 26, local time, British Home Secretary Priti Patel said that she had cancelled the visa for the Belarusian men's basketball team.
She said Britain does not welcome sports teams from countries that support Russia's military operations in Ukraine.
It is understood that the Belarusian men's basketball team was scheduled to participate in the tournament in Newcastle on February 27.
In the early morning of Saturday (February 26), local time, a Russian cargo ship was seized by the French Maritime Police in the English Channel.
Veronique Magnin, an official at the French Maritime Agency, said the vessel, called the Baltic Leader, was about 130 meters long and set off from Rouen, Normandy, was intercepted near Honfleur and taken to Boulogne-sur-Mer at 3 to 4 a.m.
Because the ship sailed with a Russian flag and headed in the direction of St. Petersburg, it may belong to a Russian company suspected of violating trade sanctions against Russia.
The Russian RIA news agency quoted the Russian Embassy in France as saying that all 19 people on board board went ashore, French customs officials were carrying out inspections for up to 48 hours, and the crew was "very cooperative" with this.
At present, the Russian Embassy is seeking an explanation from the French government for the police seizure.
Britain's Buckingham Palace said a diplomatic reception at Windsor Castle, scheduled for next Wednesday (March 2), was postponed and the Queen was expected to meet with hundreds of members of the diplomatic corps at the event.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement: "The Queen has accepted the Foreign Secretary's proposal to postpone the diplomatic reception at Windsor Castle on 2 March. ”
It is understood that the Queen canceled the online meeting twice in a row after the diagnosis of the new crown, but this postponement was due to the Russo-Ukrainian war.