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Correspondents in the Russo-Turkish War 1877-1878 on the Balkan Peninsula

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The Balkan Peninsula has always been a troubled and politically unstable region. It is a place of interweaving of dangerous conflicts already by virtue of the fact that this region was formed as a space where the East and the West are in direct contact, where the religious systems of Islam and Christianity, Orthodoxy and Catholicism come into contact. This has predetermined the situation that can be characterized as a confrontation between civilizations.

The Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878 was one of the most significant events in the second half of the 19th century. It had a huge impact on the destinies of the peoples of the Balkan Peninsula, on the foreign policy of the great states. The war began in the conditions of a powerful rise of the national liberation movement against the oppression of the Ottoman Empire and a public movement unprecedented in the history of Russia in support of it. It was the latter that led to the birth of Russian military correspondence.

The topicality of the topic under consideration is determined by its lack of development in the scientific literature. The only research on the problem of the correspondence of the Balkan theater of military actions in the pre-revolutionary literature is the cycle of articles by V. Apushkin.[1] But, regardless of the rich factual material, it contains a mass of inaccuracies, obfuscation of facts, especially in relation to official government correspondents.

The object of the present study is the correspondence of the Balkan theater of military operations during the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878. It is necessary to note that in the given work the word “correspondence” is used in two meanings: generalizing, as a synonym of the concept of “journalism”; and specifically, denoting the letters, telegrams, etc. sent by the correspondents. In the indicated case, “correspondence” means everything related to the activities of the correspondents, i.e. the first of the given meanings of the term.

The purpose of the research is to analyze the conditions and results of the work of the correspondents of the Balkan Military Theater in the period 1877-1878. Based on the purpose, the author solves the following tasks:

– to clarify the quantitative and qualitative composition of correspondents of the Russian and foreign press in the Active Army;

– to examine and compare the conditions and quality of work of foreign and Russian correspondents;

– to evaluate the work of the Field Headquarters of the Active Army with the correspondents of the army;

– to illuminate and show the internal differences in the environment of Russian and foreign correspondents;

– to study the war materials contained in the correspondence of Russian correspondents, their submission and direction.

The geographical framework of the work covers the territory of modern Bulgaria, as well as parts of Romania and Turkey. The chronological framework of the work: from the autumn of 1876, when preparations for the war and the formation of the Field Staff began, to the spring of 1878, that is, the end of the war with Turkey.

Speaking of Russian military journalism, it should be noted that it was born precisely in the course of the Russo-Turkish war in 1877-1878. As the late 19th – early 20th century historian V. Pushkin wrote, “as the war begins spontaneously, and equally spontaneously, a “possibility” arose for the Russian periodical press to have its own correspondents in the theater of war … This was conditioned, first of all, by patriotic feelings and the desire to convey the truth about the war during the conduct of the war, and not after her”.[2]

Journalists from Russian publications were admitted to the theater of hostilities at the request of the responsible editors and publishers of the newspapers. They were posted to the Field Headquarters as official correspondents.

The Russian-Turkish war (1877-1878) aroused interest both in Russia and in other European countries. In the Russian Empire, where literacy increased after the reforms of the 1860s, all sections of the population were interested in the affairs of the Slavic peoples (Serbs, Bulgarians, etc.), as well as in hostilities. Russia declared itself as the defender of the “Slavic brothers”, and this affirmation was the basis of the ideology of the empire’s Balkan policy. Concealing the interests of the “fraternal Slavic peoples” through protection, the Russian governments in the 19th – early 20th centuries pursued entirely pragmatic goals: control of the Black Sea coast and the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits. As for the ordinary population of the Russian Empire, they, not seeing in their majority the real reason for the events, sincerely believed that they were helping the related peoples to free themselves from the Ottoman rule. Hence the increased interest in the war and the waves of patriotism associated with it.

In the Western countries in relation to this war and its course were their own interests of a political and military nature, the characteristics of which go beyond the scope of our study. We can only note that they provided support to the Balkan peoples only when it benefited them, and not the oppressed population of the Balkans. As for the military interest, it was completely natural in the light of the military reforms taking place in Russia in the 1860s and 1870s. The military specialists of the great powers needed to see the renewed Russian army in action and practically assess its combat capability.

All of the above is the reason for sending to the theater of hostilities correspondents of periodicals both from Russia and from other European countries. Often, military correspondents were direct participants in the battles, as a rule – officers who combined writing skills with the ability to lead an army.

Already in November 1876, from the beginning of mobilization, at the request of the Minister of Internal Affairs A.E. Timashov was posted to the headquarters of the Active Army in the capacity of a correspondent of the “Government Gazette” newspaper, the lieutenant of the Life Guards of the Ulan Regiment V.V. Krestovsky. It should be noted that the specified edition was an official body of the Ministry of the Interior.

The introduction of correspondents in the army was, from the very beginning of the war, immediately placed under the control of the military authorities. This control, indeed, did not have a strict character. At the headquarters of the Active Army, at the beginning of the war, a special position was created, to which they appointed the former teacher at the Academy of the General Staff, the colonel of the General Staff M.A. Gasenkampf. Attached during the entire war to the Commander-in-Chief, he kept a journal of combat operations, compiled urgent reports to the emperor, participated in the discussion of plans for military operations, deciphered reports from the military agents of Russia in European countries entering the headquarters. His main task was to bring the military correspondents to the Active Army. In order to work in the theater of hostilities, anyone who wanted to was obliged to receive from M.A. Gasenkampf permission, after which he was issued special identification marks, and he could be considered an army correspondent.

On April 17, 1877, M.A. Gasenkampf drew up a report to the Chief of Staff of the Active Army, in which he proposed conditions for the admission of correspondents into the army. Noting that the press has a great influence on public opinion, both in Russia and abroad, M.A. Gasenkampf proposes to allow correspondents at the front, but subject to the following conditions.

– Russian correspondents should be admitted upon request by the editors and publishers of the respective newspapers;

– foreign – on the recommendation of Russian embassies and high-ranking persons;

– preliminary censorship should not be instituted, but all correspondents should be obliged not to report any information about the movement, location, number of troops and their upcoming actions. It was supposed to warn the correspondents that, for failure to fulfill the above-mentioned duty, they would be recalled from the army;

– to monitor the implementation of their commitment to propose to the editors to deliver all issues of the newspapers in which correspondence from the theater of war will be printed;

– to provide the correspondents with the opportunity to receive from the head of correspondents at the headquarters of the Active Army all the information that the chief of the army headquarters recognizes as useful or possible to communicate to them. For the same, it was proposed to appoint certain hours.[3]

M.A. Gasenkampf writes that “requiring a friendly tone from the correspondents, in equal measure, as well as their preliminary censorship, will be to our detriment: both will receive immediate publicity, and will lay a firm foundation for public distrust of these correspondents , which will be admitted”. The colonel notes that “in this case, there may even be a fear that public opinion will rather trust those newspapers that will engage in fabricating false and malicious correspondence about our army. From such newspapers as, for example, “Neue Freie Presse”, “Pester Lloyd”, “Augsburger Zeitung” such behavior could be expected”. “And since public opinion,” the colonel continued in his report, “is such a force at the present time that we must not ignore, the seditious correspondents of the most influential press bodies are powerful movers and even creators of this opinion, it is better to try to arrange the correspondents in our favor”.[4] In general, as observed by N.V. Maximov, influential correspondents who represented company publications were allowed in the army, but at the same time they were made to understand that one cannot enter a foreign monastery with one’s own statute.[5]

On April 19, the Grand Duke approved the note and confirmed M.A. Gasenkampf in the position of leading the correspondents.

 Correspondents began to flock back in April. Their secondment to the army headquarters has begun, to accompany it in the course of hostilities and to give the latest timely reports. The question was raised and identification marks for them. The proposal of the foreign correspondents Mac Gahan and de Westin in such a capacity to use a white armband with a red cross in the army headquarters they found inconvenient. At the suggestion of M.A. Gasenkampf, initially correspondents allowed to accompany the army were required to have a badge on the left sleeve of their uniform. It was a round copper plate on which were engraved an eagle (the coat of arms of the Russian Empire), the number of the correspondent, the inscription “correspondent” and the seal of the Field Commandant’s Office of the Army. To verify his identity, each correspondent had to have a photograph with a written confirmation of his identity, signed by M.A. Gasenkampf, and stamped with the stamp of the Field Commandant on the reverse.[6] Also approved was the Colonel’s proposal to establish reception hours for correspondents at the headquarters of the Active Army from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

On June 7, 1877, however, Order No. 131 was issued for the troops, according to which a new insignia was introduced for distinguishing correspondents. A tricolor (black-yellow-white in color) silk armband was introduced. It depicted the heraldic eagle around which the inscription “correspondent” was placed in a semicircle. The personal number of the correspondent was embroidered under the inscription with gold thread. The seal of the Field Headquarters or the Field Commandant’s Office of the Army had to be placed on the outside and inside of the bandage.[7] Without these insignia, correspondents were not allowed in the positions. The rights of correspondents were also applied and enjoyed by the artists, who were of the same kind as modern photojournalists. The freedom of movement of army correspondents was not restricted, but they were required to report any change in their residence to army headquarters.[8]

Correspondents arrived in the army gradually. This can be judged from the diary entries of M.A. Gasenkampf, immediately after registering them. Thus, on April 22 In 1877 he wrote: “So far only: Mac Gahan, de Westin, Dannhauer (“Militär Wochenblatt” and “Nationalzeitung”) and von Maree (“Über Land und Meer”) have been admitted. The last two are retired officers. Today I presented for the signature of the Grand Duke a telegram from the Ministry of Internal Affairs for permission for Russian correspondents to follow the army and send their correspondence by post and telegraph directly to their newspapers”.[9] On April 24 he was introduced to Daily News correspondent Archibald Forbes.[10] From May 7 is the following note: “Two English artists, correspondents of illustrated magazines, appeared today; both are admitted. The correspondent of “Peterburgski Vedomosti” Mozalevsky and the Bavarian Count Tattenbach-Reinstein, unknown why he ended up among the correspondents of the Prague newspaper “Politik” also appeared.[11] On May 5, M.A. Gasenkampf noted that “the correspondents already number 11 and in addition 5 artists: one French, one German, two English and one Russian (V.V. Vereshtagin)”.[12] Record of May 16: “The number of correspondents reached 23, including 7 Russians: Maksimov, Mozalevsky, Karazin, Nemirovich-Danchenko, Fyodorov, Rapp and Sokalsky. Karazin and Fyodorov are artists at the same time”.[13]

Notes

 [1] Apushkin V., “War of 1877-78 in correspondences and novels”, Military Collection, No. 7-8, 10-12 (1902); Nos. 1-6 (1903).

[2] Apushkin V., “War of 1877-78 in correspondences and novels”, Military Collection, No. 7 (1902), p. 194.

[3] Gasenkampf M., My Diary 1877-78, p. 5.

[4] Ibid., pp. 5-6.

[5] Maksimov N.V., “About the Danube”, No. 5 (1878), p. 173.

[6] Gasenkampf M., My Diary 1877-78, p. 9.

[7] Krestovsky V., Two months in the active army…, item 1, p. 169.

[8] Ibid, p. 170.

[9] Gasenkampf M., My Diary 1877-78, p. 9.

 [10] Ibid, p. 12.

 [11] Ibid., p. 20.

 [12] Ibid., p. 22.

 [13] Ibid., p. 28.

(to be continued)

With abbreviations from: Canadian American Slavic Studies. – 2007. – Vol. 41. – No. 2. – R. 127-186; portal “Russia in colors”: https://ricolor.org/about/avtori/gokov/

Note on the author.: Oleg Aleksandrovich Gokov was born on March 26, 1979 in the city of Kharkiv. After completing his secondary education, he entered the Faculty of History of Kharkiv National University “V.N. Karazin”, who graduated with honors in 2001. In 2004, he defended his candidate’s thesis ahead of schedule “The role of the officers of the General Staff in implementing the foreign policy of the Russian Empire in the Muslim East in the second half of the 19th century.” Since 2004, he has been working at the Kharkiv National Pedagogical University “G.S. Frying pan”. Candidate of historical sciences, associate professor in the Department of World History, with more than 40 scientific and teaching-methodological publications in publications in Ukraine, Russia and the USA. The sphere of his scientific interests is the recent history of the countries of the East and military intelligence.

Source of the illustration: Vinogradov V.I. Russo-Turkish War 1877-1878 and liberation of Bulgaria. – M.: Mysl, 1978. – pp. 8-9.

Pope Francis took control of the Order of Malta

By
Gaston de Persigny
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He abolished its previous governing bodies and appointed an interim Sovereign Council

After years of controversy, Pope Francis took control of the Order of Malta today, removing its previous governing bodies and appointing an interim Sovereign Council, reported AFP.

In a decree published by the Vatican, the pope announced that he had promulgated the order’s “new Constitutional Charter” and it “came into effect immediately.” Francis ordered “the recall of all appointees to high posts, the dissolution of the current Sovereign Council and the creation of a temporary Sovereign Council” with 13 members already appointed by him personally. The latter must organize an extraordinary General Chapter (general meeting, note AFP) in January, which will implement all the Pope’s decisions, the decree specifies.

The Order of Malta, founded in Jerusalem and recognized by the Pope in 1113, is both a state-like entity without territory based in Rome, a religious order and an influential charitable organization. Today, it counts 13,500 knights, among them fifty clergy, who carry out its medical and humanitarian activities with the help of over 100,000 employees and volunteers working in 120 countries.

The crisis in the order itself and in its relations with the Vatican began with a disruption in the leadership of the organization in 2016, when the Grand Master of the Order of Malta – its head – demanded the resignation of its Grand Chancellor. Some knights of the order objected and demanded that the Pope intervene. Francis sent a commission of inquiry and obtained the resignation of the Grand Master; all decisions of the latter were annulled. The Pope appointed his special delegate to the Order of Malta, after which extensive reform of the organization’s Constitutional Charter began to be prepared.

Difficult discussions developed over the issue of the sovereignty of the Order of Malta. The draft reform of the Constitutional Charter, prepared by the papal delegate, provided for the order to be “subject of the Holy See”, that is, of the Vatican, but the knights did not agree because of fears that the order would not be reduced to the scale of a “spiritual association”.

In his decree, Pope Francis recalled a decision made in 1953 by the Court of Cardinals, according to which “the prerogatives of the Order (. . .) do not represent the totality of prerogatives and power rights that sovereign states have.”

“Accordingly, as a spiritual order, it (. . .) is subordinate to the Holy See,” concludes Pope Francis.

Photo by MART PRODUCTION:

The fugitive president of Sri Lanka has returned to his country

By
Gaston de Persigny
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On July 13, the ousted leader, his wife and two bodyguards took an Air Force plane to the Maldives and from there to Singapore

Former Sri Lankan head of state Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country in July after tens of thousands of protesters stormed his home and office to protest the country’s economic crisis.

Rajapaksa flew into Colombo International Airport on Friday from Bangkok via Singapore.

On July 13, the ousted leader, his wife and two bodyguards took an Air Force plane to the Maldives and from there to Singapore. There, the president officially resigned. Two weeks later he left for Thailand.

For months, Sri Lanka suffered a severe economic crisis that sparked extraordinary protests and unprecedented public anger that eventually forced Rajapaksa and his brother, the former prime minister, to step down.

The bankrupt country’s situation has been worsened by global factors such as the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but many hold the once-powerful Rajapaksa family responsible for mismanaging the economy and plunging it into crisis.

The economic collapse has led to months-long shortages of essentials such as fuel, medicine and cooking gas due to a lack of foreign currency.

Although cooking gas supplies have been restored through World Bank support, shortages of fuel, critical medicines and some food items persist.

The island nation has suspended payments on nearly €6.94 billion in foreign debt due this year. The country’s total external debt amounts to more than 50.9 billion euros, of which 27.8 billion euros must be repaid by 2027.

On Tuesday, President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took over after Rajapaksa resigned, reached a tentative agreement with the International Monetary Fund on a bailout package of 2.9 billion euros over four years to help the country recover.

In April, protesters began camping outside the president’s office in the heart of Colombo, calling for the president’s resignation.

Before Rajapaksa resigned, his older brother stepped down as prime minister and three other close family members left their cabinet positions.

The new president of the country suppressed the protests. His first action as a leader involved the dismantling of protest tents in the middle of the night when the police forcibly removed the demonstrators from their place.

Photo by Kanishka Ranasinghe:

Ukraine: ‘Physical integrity’ of Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant ‘has been violated several times’

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United Nations News
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Ukraine: ‘Physical integrity’ of Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant ‘has been violated several times’

Further damage to the embattled Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine “cannot” be allowed to happen, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said.

Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi was speaking on Thursday after he and IAEA experts visited Europe’s largest nuclear plant, which has seen repeated shelling in recent weeks, sparking fears of a catastrophe. 

“It’s obvious that the plant, and the physical integrity of the plant has been violated, several times. [Whether] by chance [or deliberately], we don’t have the elements to assess that. But this is a reality that we have to recognize, and this is something that cannot continue to happen,” he told journalists.  

“Wherever you stay, wherever you stand, whatever you think about this war, this is something that cannot happen, and this is why we’re trying to put in place certain mechanisms and the presence of our people there, to try to be in a better place.” 

The Zaporizhzhia plant houses six of the 15 nuclear reactors in Ukraine. 

It has been occupied by Russian forces since the early weeks of the war in Ukraine, now in its seventh month.  

Both sides have accused the other of shelling the plant. 

Maintaining a presence 

An IAEA expert mission finally arrived there on Thursday, following months of diplomatic negotiations. 

In a video posted on his official Twitter account that day, Mr. Grossi reported that the experts had completed an initial tour of the plant, though there is still more to do.

“My team is staying on,” he said, adding “most importantly, we are establishing a continued presence from the IAEA here.” 

ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw== Ukraine: ‘Physical integrity’ of Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant ‘has been violated several times’
© IAEA – IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi (second left) and the IAEA expert mission team arrive at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine.

The 14-member mission deployed from Vienna on Monday in efforts towards ensuring nuclear safety and security at the plant, undertaking vital safeguard activities, and assessing the working conditions of the Ukrainian staff there. 

Renewed shelling last week hit the area of the plant’s two so-called special buildings, located about 100 metres from the reactor buildings, as well as an overpass area. 

WHO donates ambulances to Ukraine

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has delivered 11 first aid ambulances to Ukraine amid ongoing attacks against healthcare in the country, the UN agency reported on Friday.

The vehicles will be handed over to the Emergency Medical Service Department in Lviv, then distributed throughout Ukraine.

The donations were made possible through support from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which ensures that urgently needed humanitarian assistance reaches people caught up in crises.

Minister of Health of Ukraine, Viktor Liashko (left) receives the keys for eleven ambulances from Jarno Habicht, WHO Representative in Ukraine.
© WHO/Viktor Moskaliuk – Minister of Health of Ukraine, Viktor Liashko (left) receives the keys for eleven ambulances from Jarno Habicht, WHO Representative in Ukraine.

Timely transport saves lives

“These ambulances will save lives and go a step further in ensuring that timely access to emergency care during the war is strengthened and maintained,” said Dr. Jarno Habicht, WHO Representative in Ukraine.

He was speaking at a handover ceremony alongside Ukraine’s Health Minister, Dr. Viktor Liashko, who emphasized that international support is a powerful tool in sustaining the country’s medical system during wartime.

“Emergency healthcare workers are the first ones to arrive at the scene of an accident and do everything they can to save people’s lives,” he said. 

“Thanks to modern ambulances, healthcare workers not only provide timely transport for people who are injured or in critical condition from the accident scene to a medical facility, but also stabilize their condition during transport.”

WHO and partners have donated more than 30 ambulances to Ukraine’s Ministry of Health since the war began on 24 February, with more deliveries expected later in the year.

The agency has also delivered more than 1,300 metric tonnes of life-saving medical supplies to the country, including power generators, oxygen supplies for medical facilities, and medicines to help treat noncommunicable diseases.

Winter support for vulnerable groups

Also on Friday:

A UN Humanitarian Fund has allocated $70 million to kick-start winter assistance and address the needs of people with disabilities, older persons and vulnerable women in Ukraine.

“This is the Fund’s largest single allocation since its creation in 2019. Funding goes directly to local civil society organizations and volunteer groups on the front lines,” said Eri Kaneko, Associate UN Spokesperson, speaking to journalists in New York.

The Fund is managed by the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA.

Some $118 million has been released so far this year to help five million people across Ukraine with food, water, shelter, health interventions and educational support.

Palestine: EU announces €261 million in support of UNRWA’s operations

By
European Commission
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Palestine: EU announces €261 million
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini address the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs in Brussels, Belgium. © 2022 UNRWA Photo 
On 31 August 2022, Commission-General Philippe Lazzarini briefed Members of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs about the deteriorating situation of Palestine refugees in the Middle East, including the impact of the Ukraine crisis and the last escalation in Gaza earlier this month. During the exchange of views in Brussels, the Commissioner-General also addressed the critical financial situation of the Agency and thanked the Members of the European Parliament for playing a key role in the fruitful EU-UNRWA partnership. 

European Commission Brussels, 09 Aug 2022

The European Union confirmed today its role as a long-standing, predictable and reliable partner of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and one of its largest donors.

The European Commission adopted €261 million as the multiannual contribution that will allow to secure predictable financial resources to the Agency for the provision of essential services to Palestine refugees. In line with the EU-UNRWA Joint Declaration 2021-2024, it includes the EU’s three-year funding for UNRWA for a total of €246 million, coupled with an additional €15 million from the Food and Resilience Facility to address food insecurity and mitigate the impact of the Ukraine war.

High Representative/Vice-President, Josep Borrell, said: “The EU as UNRWA’s long-term partner is committed to continue with political and financial support for its activities. UNRWA remains crucial for providing the necessary protection and essential services for Palestine refugees, supporting peace and stability in the region. The EU will continue to support UNRWA in all its fields of operations, including in East Jerusalem. Our support to UNRWA is a key element in our strategy of contributing to the promotion of security, stability and development in the region, which also helps to keep alive the prospects of sustainable peace between Israelis and Palestinians.”

EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Oliver Várhelyi, said: “We remain a reliable and predictable partner, and a top donor of UNRWA. Others need to step up and join the EU in providing predictable multiannual funding. The Agency plays a stabilising role in the region. It must continue to do so, with a clear focus on its core mandate. We will continue to work with UNRWA to strengthen the Agency’s governance systems and help step up transparency and sound management. We remain also firmly committed to promote quality education for Palestinian children and ensure full compliance with UNESCO standards in all education material.”

Background

Since 1971, the strategic partnership between the European Union and UNRWA has been based on the shared objective of supporting human development, humanitarian and protection needs of Palestine refugees and of promoting stability in the Middle East.

On 17 November 2021, UNRWA Commissioner General Lazzarini, HR/VP Borrell, and Commissioner Várhelyi signed the EU-UNRWA “Joint Declaration on EU support to UNRWA (2021-2024)”, marking the 50th anniversary of the EU-UNRWA partnership. In the Joint Declaration, the European Union commits to continue supporting UNRWA politically and securing predictable, multi-annual financial resources. UNRWA is experiencing significant challenges in fulfilling its mandate due to recurrent financial shortfalls.

There is an urgent need for UNRWA to reform and to identify innovative ways to maintain the provision of services to refugees. The EU supports UNRWA in taking forward these internal reform efforts to secure a sound and sustainable financial basis, which includes focusing on core services for the most vulnerable.

In addition to that, the EU continues to do its utmost to reach out to existing and potential donors to put the Agency on a sustainable fiscal model and to ensure fairer contribution sharing.

Astronomers Produce First Full 3D View of Binary Star-Planet System

By
National Radio Astronomy Observatory
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Astronomers Produce First Full 3D View of Binary Star-Planet System
Large Planet Orbiting Binary Star System

From above a planet about twice the size of Jupiter, this artist’s conception shows the star that planet is orbiting and that star’s binary companion in the distance. Credit: Sophia Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF


Astronomers have discovered a Jupiter-like planet orbiting a nearby star, which is one of a binary pair, by precisely tracing a small, almost imperceptible, wobble in that star’s motion through space. Their work produced the first-ever determination of the complete, 3-dimensional structure of the orbits of a binary pair of stars and a planet orbiting one of them. This achievement can provide valuable new insights into the process of planet formation, the astronomers said. This breakthrough was made using the National Science Foundation’s Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA).

Although more than 5,000 extrasolar planets have been discovered so far, only three have been discovered using a technique called astrometry, which was used to produce this discovery. However, the feat of determining the 3-D architecture of a binary-star system that includes a planet “cannot be achieved with other exoplanet discovery methods,” said Salvador Curiel, of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).


“Since most stars are in binary or multiple systems, being able to understand systems such as this one will help us understand planet formation in general,” Curiel said.

Large Planet Orbits Small Star

In this artist’s conception, a small star (orange) is orbited by a Jupiter-like planet (blue), and by a more-distant companion star (red). Credit: Sophia Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF

The two stars, which together are called GJ 896AB, are about 20 light-years from Earth. That makes them close neighbors of ours by astronomical standards. They are red dwarf stars, the most common type of star in our Milky Way galaxy. The larger one, around which the planet orbits, has about 44 percent of the mass of our Sun, while the smaller one is about 17 percent as massive as the Sun. They are separated by about the distance of Neptune from the Sun, and orbit each other once every 229 years.


For their study of GJ 896AB, the astronomers combined data from optical observations of the system made between 1941 and 2017 with data from VLBA observations between 2006 and 2011. They also made new VLBA observations in 2020. The continent-wide VLBA’s supersharp resolution, with its fantastic ability to see fine detail, produced extremely precise measurements of the stars’ positions over time. An extensive analysis of the data performed by the astronomers revealed the stars’ orbital motions as well as their common motion through space.

Artist’s animation illustrates the orbital motions of a binary star pair and a planet orbiting one of the stars. Credit: Sophia Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF

The existence of the planet was revealed by a detailed tracing of the larger star’s motion that showed a slight wobble. The planet’s gravitational effect on the star causes the wobble. The star and planet orbit a location between them called the barycenter, which represents their common center of mass. When that location is sufficiently far from the star, the star’s motion around it can be detectable.

According to calculations by the astronomers, the planet has about twice the mass of Jupiter and orbits the star every 284 days. Its distance from the star is slightly less than Venus’ distance from the Sun. The planet’s orbit is inclined approximately 148 degrees from the orbits of the two stars.


“This means that the planet moves around the main star in the opposite direction to that of the secondary star around the main star,” said Gisela Ortiz-León, of UNAM and the Max Planck Institute for Radioastronomy. “This is the first time that such dynamical structure has been observed in a planet associated with a compact binary system that presumably was formed in the same protoplanetary disk,” she added.

“Additional detailed studies of this and similar systems can help us gain important insights into how planets are formed in binary systems. There are alternate theories for the formation mechanism, and more data can possibly indicate which is most likely,” said Joel Sanchez-Bermudez, of UNAM. “In particular, current models indicate that such a large planet is very unlikely as a companion to such a small star, so maybe those models need to be adjusted,” he added.

The astrometric technique will be a valuable tool for characterizing more planetary systems, the astronomers said. “We can do much more work like this with the planned Next Generation VLA (ngVLA),” said Amy Mioduszewski, of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. “With it, we may be able to find planets as small as the Earth.”

The astronomers reported their findings in the September 1 issue of the Astronomical Journal.

Reference: “3D Orbital Architecture of a Dwarf Binary System and Its Planetary Companion” by Salvador Curiel, Gisela N. Ortiz-León, Amy J. Mioduszewski and Joel Sanchez-Bermudez, 1 September 2022, Astronomical Journal.
DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac7c66

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation, operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.


Liquid Hydrogen Leak on NASA’s Artemis I Moon Rocket – Launch Attempt Scrubbed

By
NASA
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Liquid Hydrogen Leak on NASA’s Artemis I Moon Rocket – Launch Attempt Scrubbed

SLS Artemis 1 ready on the launch pad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, for the first launch attempt on August 29. The launch was later scrubbed due to an issue with engine bleed. Credit: ESA – S. Corvaja


The launch director waived off today’s Artemis I launch attempt at approximately 11:17 a.m. EDT (8:17 a.m. PDT).

Engineering teams encountered a liquid hydrogen leak while loading the propellant into the core stage of the Space Launch System rocket. Multiple troubleshooting efforts to address the area of the leak by reseating a seal in the quick disconnect cavity where liquid hydrogen is fed into the rocket did not fix the issue.

World food prices have fallen for fifth consecutive month

By
United Nations News
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World food prices have fallen for fifth consecutive month
World food prices have fallen for a fifth consecutive month but are still nearly eight per cent higher than a year ago, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported on Friday.

Its latest Food Price Index shows that the prices of five commodities – cereals, vegetable oil, dairy, meat and sugar – were lower in August than in July. 

The Index tracks the monthly international prices of these breadbasket staples. It averaged 138.0 points last month, down nearly two per cent from July, though 7.9 per cent above the value a year before. 

Ukraine exports a factor 

FAO said the decline in cereal prices reflected improved production prospects in North America and Russia, and the resumption of exports from Black Sea ports in Ukraine. 

A landmark agreement to unblock Ukraine grain exports amid the ongoing war was signed in July by the country, Russia, Türkiye and the UN.  

Rice prices on average held steady during August, while quotations for coarse grains, such as maize, increased marginally.   

Vegetable oil prices decreased by 3.3 per cent, which is slightly below the August 2021 level.  FAO attributed this to increased availability of palm oil from Indonesia, due to lower export taxes, and the resumption of sunflower oil shipments from Ukraine. 

High price for cheese 

Although dairy prices saw a two per cent drop, they remained 23.5 per cent higher than in August 2021.  The price of cheese increased for the tenth consecutive month, though milk prices “eased” following expectations of increased supplies from New Zealand, even amid projections of lower production in Western Europe and the US. 

The price of meat declined by 1.5 per cent but remained just over eight per cent higher than the value last August. 

International quotations for poultry fell amid elevated export availabilities, and bovine meat prices declined due to weak domestic demand in some top exporting countries, while pig meat quotations rose.  

Sugar prices also hit their lowest level since July 2021, largely due to high export caps in India and lower ethanol prices in Brazil. 

Outlook for cereals and wheat 

FAO has also issued its global cereal production forecast for this year, which projects a decline of nearly 40 million tonnes, or 1.4 per cent from the previous year. 

The bulk of this decline mainly concerns coarse grains, with maize yields in Europe expected to drop 16 per cent below their five-year average level due to the exceptional hot and dry weather conditions affecting the continent. 

By contrast, FAO expects there will be a “negligible drop” in worldwide wheat production resulting from expected record harvests in Russia and conducive weather conditions in North America.  

Global rice production is also expected to decline by 2.1 percent from the all-time high reached in 2021.

Pakistan floods: The poor paying the price of unprecedented destruction

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Vatican News
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Pakistan floods: The poor paying the price of unprecedented destruction - Vatican News

By Salvatore Cernuzio

“There is water everywhere… dams, roads, houses, infrastructure; everything destroyed.”

Cardinal Joseph Coutts speaks of his Pakistan, brought to its knees after two months of raging floods that have so far caused about 1,130 deaths. More than 380 of the victims, according to the latest figures, are children.

A natural catastrophe

Speaking to Vatican News while in Rome for the Pope’s meeting with the world’s cardinals on the Reform of the Curia, Cardinal Coutts reflected on the natural disaster that has befallen his country, where monsoon rains and floods have affected 33 million Pakistanis and damaged more than a million homes. “They are the ones in the villages,” says Coutts with a bitter smile: “As always, it is the poor who pay the price.

From the mountains to the sea

The Cardinal does not point a finger at anyone noting that “Always during the rainy season, it starts to pour in the country. But now it has been raining regularly almost every day for two months without interruption.”

“We have not had so much rain as this in the past 30 years,” Coutts says, going on to say that  “Pakistan is a big country, about 1500-1600 km in length” and that “in the north, there are very high mountains, K2 is the second highest mountain in the world.”

The rain has reached those mountains, he explains, and the water has flooded all the way down to the sea, flowing over some 1,700 kilometers with incredible force and causing “unprecedented destruction.”

Government, army and Caritas on the front lines

Cardinal Coutts recalls the floods of August 2010, which inundated almost a fifth of the entire nation. “France, Italy, Germany, everyone has helped,” he says, “But the situation now is much worse.”

Poor people, he adds, always bear the brunt of the disaster:  “They have houses with weak structures, and the mud and the water destroy everything and are very dangerous.”

The government, the army and Caritas Pakistan immediately sprang into action, the cardinal says, but the emergency is enormous and “material aid such as clothes and food that does not spoil is urgently needed, for example, grain and oil.”

The Pope’s support

Cardinal Coutts describes Pope Francis’ words during the Angelus last Sunday as a consolation:

“I want to assure the people of Pakistan affected by floods of disastrous proportions of my closeness. I pray for the many victims, the injured and the displaced, and that international solidarity may be ready and generous.”

“The Holy Father is informed of everything,” the Cardinal says, “at the meeting in the New Synod Hall, we greeted each other and I said, ‘Pakistan!’ And he said: ‘Ah, Pakistan. How are you doing now?’ When I go back, I will tell everyone that the Pope is close to us.”

Roberta Metsola: “The world needs Europe at its best because Europe is hope”

By
European Parliament
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In Lisbon, Parliament President Roberta Metsola spoke of the importance of Europe rising to meet today’s global challenges. “The world needs Europe at its best. We need that hope.”

“Europe is a choice – a choice countries made because they understood that our best chance is if we are together. We chose Europe.” This was the message of the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola as she addressed the Estoril Conferences 2022 in Lisbon.

Speaking a few days before the State of the Union, President Metsola emphasised that decisions must be taken, and quickly. “Europe has the power to transform, but we have to find the political bravery to take that leap forward and to change the world. We can and we should. Because if we do not write the future, it will be written by those with a very different narrative and have a very different ending.”

On the illegal invasion of sovereign Ukraine, she said: “I am proud of Europe’s response. We have stood with Ukraine, we have given military aid, political and diplomatic support, we have welcomed millions fleeing, we have provided funding on an unprecedented scale. The most significant political move was to grant Ukraine EU candidate status, because Ukraine needs hope. Ukraine is fighting for Europe and we will not turn away.”

Regarding actions to address inflation, she said: “People are worried about their bills, about getting to the end of the month, about the world they’ll leave for their children. Europe must rise to meet that challenge. Whether it is tackling cost of living, electricity prices, climate change, defence, food security. The only way forward is if we are united. There are decisions that we can take now to limit the impact: capping of bills, fixing our pricing systems, or de-coupling the price of electricity from gas – to offset the immediate pressure while we implement long-term strategies. If ever there was a moment for ‘more Europe’, it is here and it is now.”

“Europe will only survive if we fight for it. If we stop taking it for granted. If we understand and explain its benefits. If we push back against those determined to undermine it. If we are able to reform and to reinvent our project”, she underlined.

Following the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe, the next step should be a Convention. ”It is about ensuring that we continue the conversation to leave Europe fit for the next generation. We cannot risk falling behind because our bureaucracy is too cumbersome to challenge, or allow narrow interests to take precedence. The last major reform took place a generation ago. We know that what once worked for EU15 is at its limits for EU27, and will not be able to work for EU32 or EU36. It is time.”

Despite the many changes and hard truths the world is facing, Metsola concluded, “I am optimistic. I am convinced that because of Europe the world ahead will be better than the one we leave behind. I am full of hope. Hope in the future, hope in the next generation. I am confident in the possibilities of our time and when I look at young people across Europe I know the future is bright”.

President Metsola’s speech in full is available here.

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