By G. P. Rodriguez -- the-sun.com -- ELON Musk has said SpaceX will rescue the International Space Station if Russia tries to drop it from orbit after threats by Vladimir Putin's space chief. Dimitry Rogozin warned that Russian tech and expertise is needed to prevent the ISS from crashing down onto the US or Europe. Elon Musk claimed SpaceX would rescue the International Space Station after threats from Russian leadership "If you block cooperation with us, who will save the ISS from an uncontrolled deorbit and fall into the United States and Europe?" Rogozin tweeted on Friday, following president Joe Biden's announcement of sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But Musk weighed in by replying to Rogozin's threat with the SpaceX logo. When a Twitter user asked the billionaire if this meant SpaceX would keep the ISS from falling onto Earth, Musk replied: "Yes." He also replied to a tweet that showed the ISS without the Russian segment and a SpaceX Dragon attached instead. "Good thread," Musk wrote.

Russia is a key part of the 15-nation partnership that has kept the ISS orbiting Earth for 23 years but relations are at an all-time low because of Russia's decision to invade Ukraine. On Thursday, Joe Biden unveiled new sanctions that he said would "degrade" Russia's "aerospace industry, including their space program." Roscosmos Director General Rogozin then warned that Russian engines control the station's orbit and location. "There is also the possibility of a 500-ton structure falling on India and China," added Rogozin. "Do you want to threaten them with such a prospect? "The ISS does not fly over Russia, therefore all the risks are yours. Are you ready for them?"

By Nick Koutsobinas and Eric Mack -- newsmax.com - The United States Embassy in Moscow made an announcement telling all U.S. nationals to leave Russia "immediately." "An increasing number of airlines are canceling flights into and out of Russia, and numerous countries have closed their airspace to Russian airlines," a U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Russia security alert read Sunday. "U.S. citizens should consider departing Russia immediately via commercial options still available." The alert comes after Vladimir Putin put Russia's nuclear deterrence arsenal at the ready, pointing to the sanctions being put in place by the U.S. and other NATO countries. "This particular decision is not in response to the situation in Ukraine, not even what is going on in Ukraine right now, but as a response to American readiness to apply to sanctions," Andrei Illarionov, senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy in Washington, D.C., told Sunday's "Wake Up America" on Newsmax. "The situation now is unbelievably grave."

The move is "incomparable" to any nuclear threat the world has faced to date, and the U.S. and NATO must respond in kind immediately, Illarionov told co-host Amanda Brilhante. "If the United States will not respond with adequate reaction to this decision, it means not only Ukraine but the whole Europe and at some point the United States will be under nuclear threat, direct nuclear threat," Illarionov said in a dire warning. "That is why United States and NATO countries need to respond immediately, right now, to this nuclear blackmail of Putin." Illarionov made an urgent call for the Biden administration to activate the U.S. nuclear deterrence arsenal. "That should be exactly the same," he said. "It should be putting all nuclear arsenal of the United States and NATO on the highest alert – at least equal response to what Putin has done."

By Najia Houssari - arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: A stone’s throw from the famous National Museum of Beirut, a cornerstone has been laid for a new and unique museum to showcase modern and contemporary art. The launch took place in a ceremony attended by Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati as well as political and cultural figures. The museum is set for completion by 2026. Sandra Abu Nader, who founded the Beirut Museum of Art Association together with Rita Nammour, said that the idea of establishing the museum “was based on the fact that art is not a luxury but a means of peace and a necessity for the integrity of our culture, development, quality of life and role in the world.” Abu Nader added that the museum, which will bear the name of the association, will be a space for science, work, culture and will aspire to show a positive and prosperous future, and a civilized legacy for future generations. She said: “Only the cultural and artistic imprint remains to embody and document civilizations and nations, no matter how much they suffer from wars and turmoil.”

Nammour said that laying the foundation stone was “the culmination of a path that Sandra Abu Nader and I planned for more than seven years to be a platform for artistic, civic and cultural education in close cooperation with artists and cultural institutions.” She added: “We are convinced today more than ever that the museum should be committed to a culture of change and be a platform that takes into account the world we live in, and the values and principles that made Lebanon the beacon of the Middle East.” The prestigious Saint Joseph University in Lebanon, which is located in the cultural square that includes the National Museum, the French Cultural Center and the Museum of Minerals, allocated a piece of land to build the new museum.

By Serenhedd James -- catholicherald.co.uk -- As the BBC reported a mounting death-toll in Ukraine, on Friday afternoon I spoke about the rapidly-developing situation to the Rt Revd Kenneth Nowakowski, the Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of the Holy Family of London. A member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England & Wales, Bishop Nowakowski leads a community of nearly 14,000 Greek Rite Catholics in Great Britain; having previously been Eparchial Bishop of New Westminster in his native Canada, he was appointed to lead the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the UK by Pope Francis in January 2020.

The Major Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, had already urged his worldwide flock to pray urgently for the defence of Ukraine. In a robust letter he stated that “all of humanity has been placed in danger […] we consider the defence of our native land, our historical memory and our hope, [and] our God-given right to exist to be the personal responsibility and sacred duty of the citizens of Ukraine.” Meanwhile the Archbishop of Westminster called it “a precarious moment”, and urged all Catholics to “pray for the people of Ukraine, who are suffering the brunt of this conflict”. Cardinal Nichols went on to state that “the international community must unite in seeking an end to this conflict through peaceful means, including dialogue and negotiation, as the only way forward.” He said that he would remember victims of the conflict at mass on Sunday in Westminster Cathedral.