Page 103 - Latest Updates on Ukraine peace talks

ICJ set to decide if it can hear Ukraine's genocide case against Russia

The International Court of Justice is ruling Friday on whether it has jurisdiction to hear a case filed by Ukraine in the days after Russia's invasion accusing Moscow of breaching the genocide convention. In the highly-charged case, Kyiv claims that Russia breached the landmark 1948 convention by using trumped-up claims of genocide in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk as a pretext for attacking Ukraine nearly two years ago. Ukraine also accuses Moscow of planning acts of genocide. Moscow rejects the allegations and argued last year that the court should throw out the case before even considering the merits of Kyiv's claims. At hearings in September, the leader of Moscow's legal team, Gennady Kuzmin, called Ukraine's case hopelessly flawed and at odds with the longstanding jurisprudence of this court. In order for the court to have jurisdiction, Ukraine has to establish that it has a dispute with Russia over the genocide convention. A member of Moscow's legal team, Sienho

EU approves $54 bn aid package for Ukraine despite Hungary's threats

All 27 European Union countries have reached consensus on an additional 50 billion euros (USD 54 billion) aid package for Ukraine, overcoming potential vetoes, notably from Hungary

European Union agrees on new 50 billion-euro aid package for Ukraine

European Council President Charles Michel says the 27 EU countries have sealed a deal on aid to Ukraine just over an hour into a summit of the bloc's leaders and despite threats from Hungary to veto the move. We have a deal, Michel said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. He wrote that all 27 leaders agreed on an additional 50-billion-euro (USD 54 billion) support package for Ukraine within the EU budget. The announcement came despite staunch objections from Hungary in December and in the days leading up to Thursday's summit in Brussels. Michel said that the move locks in steadfast, long-term, predictable funding for Ukraine, and demonstrates that the EU is taking leadership and responsibility in support for Ukraine; we know what is at stake.

Swapped 195 prisoners of war with Ukraine on Wednesday, says Russia

Russia's Defence Ministry says Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 195 prisoners of war each. The Russian Defence Ministry said the swap was conducted on Wednesday. The announcement came a week after Russia alleged that Ukrainian forces shot down a military transport plane carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war who were to be swapped for Russian POWs. The Defence Ministry said that missiles fired from across the border brought down the transport plane in Russia's Belgorod region on Jan. 24. Local authorities in Belgorod, which borders Ukraine, said the crash killed all 74 people onboard, including six crew members and three Russian servicemen. Ukrainian officials confirmed last week that a prisoner swap was due to happen that day but said it had been called off.

UN to rule Friday on jurisdiction in Ukraine case over genocide claim

The United Nations' top court will rule on Friday whether it has jurisdiction in a case brought by Ukraine accusing Russia of violating international law by using a false accusation of genocide as the pretext for its 2022 invasion. Kyiv launched the case at the International Court of Justice days after the start of the full-scale war in 2022, arguing that Russia breached the 1948 Genocide Convention by wrongly claiming Ukraine was committing genocide against Russian-speaking people in the country. Russia has flouted an order by The Hague-based court to halt hostilities. Moscow snubbed hearings over provisional measures in 2022 but filed an objection to the court's jurisdiction. During hearings in 2023, lawyers for Russia asked the court to toss out the complaint, calling the legal case an abuse of process. Ukraine is not claiming Russia is committing genocide but rather arguing that the false accusation of genocide is enough to violate the 1948 treaty. Kyiv told judges the neighbor

Ukraine claims to uncover $40 million corruption in weapon procurement

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) said it has discovered a mass corruption scheme in the purchase of weapons amounting to nearly USD 40 million by the country's military, CNN reported

President Biden offers fresh assurances to shut down border 'right now'

Bidding to salvage a border deal in Congress that also would unlock money for Ukraine, President Joe Biden offered fresh assurances Saturday night that he would be willing to close the US-Mexico border if lawmakers would only send him a bill to sign. Biden also eager to disarm GOP criticism of his handling of migration at the border said at a political event in South Carolina that he would shut down the border 'right now if Congress passed the proposed deal. The framework hasn't been formally agreed to by Senate Democrats and Republicans and would face an uncertain future in the GOP-controlled House. A bipartisan bill would be good for America and help fix our broken immigration system and allow speedy access for those who deserve to be here, and Congress needs to get it done," Biden said. It'll also give me as president, the emergency authority to shut down the border until it could get back under control. If that bill were the law today, I'd shut down the border right now and fix

No evidence for Russia's claim that POWs died in plane crash: Ukraine

Officials in Ukraine said Russia has provided no credible evidence to back its claims that their own forces shot down a military transport plane carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war who were to be swapped for Russian POWs. The Ukrainian agency that deals with prisoner exchanges said late Friday that Russian officials had with great delay provided it with a list of the 65 Ukrainians who Moscow said had died in the Wednesday plane crash in Russia's Belgorod region. Ukraine's Coordination Staff for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said relatives of the named POWs were unable to identify their loved ones in crash site photos provided by Russian authorities. The agency's update cited Ukraine's military intelligence chief, Kyrylo Budanov, as saying that Kyiv had no verifiable information about who was on the plane. The Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that missiles fired from across the border brought down the transport plane that it said was taking the POWs back to Ukraine. Local

Putin's opponent offers hope though only few expect him to win election

They have lined up by the thousands across Russia in recent days, standing in the bitter cold for a chance to sign petitions to support an unlikely challenger to President Vladimir Putin. Boris Nadezhdin has become a dilemma for the Kremlin as he seeks to run in the March 17 presidential election. The question now is whether Russian authorities will allow him on the ballot. The stocky, bespectacled 60-year-old local legislator and academic has struck a chord with the public, openly calling for a halt to the conflict in Ukraine, the end of mobilising Russian men for the military, and starting a dialogue with the West. He also has criticised the country's repression of LGBTQ+ activism. The collection of signatures has gone unexpectedly well for us, Nadezhdin told The Associated Press in an interview on Wednesday in Moscow. We didn't expect this, to be honest. Nadezhdin's name is a form of the Russian word for hope, and although he is highly unlikely to defeat the still-popular Putin,

Global trade being disrupted by Red Sea attacks, war in Ukraine, says UN

The UN trade body sounded an alarm on Thursday that global trade is being disrupted by attacks in the Red Sea, the war in Ukraine, and low water levels in the Panama Canal. Jan Hoffmann, a trade expert at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development known as UNCTAD, warned that shipping costs have already surged and energy and food costs are being affected, raising inflation risks. Since attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea began in November, he said, major players in the shipping industry have temporarily halted using Egypt's Suez Canal, a critical waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea and a vital route for energy and cargo between Asia and Europe. The Suez Canal handled 12 per cent to 15 per cent of global trade in 2023, but UNCTAD estimates that the trade volume going through the waterway dropped by 42 per cent over the last two months, Hoffmann said. Since November, the Iranian-backed Houthis have launched at least 34 attacks on

Nato signs key artillery ammunition contract to replenish allied supplies

NATO signed on Tuesday a USD 1.2-billion contract to make tens of thousands of artillery rounds to replenish the dwindling stocks of its member countries as they supply ammunition to Ukraine to help it defeat Russia's invasion. The contract will allow for the purchase of 220,000 rounds of 155-millimetre ammunition, the most widely sought after artillery shell, according to NATO's support and procurement agency. It will allow allies to backfill their arsenals and to provide Ukraine with more ammunition. This is important to defend our own territory, to build up our own stocks, but also to continue to support Ukraine, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters. We cannot allow President (Vladimir) Putin to win in Ukraine," he added. "That would be a tragedy for the Ukrainians and dangerous for all of us. Ukraine was firing around 4,000 to 7,000 artillery shells each day last summer, while Russia was launching more than 20,000 shells daily in its neighbour's territory, ...

Russin missiles strike Ukrainian cities again, killing at least 7

Russian missiles struck three Ukrainian cities on Tuesday, including its two biggest, killing at least seven people and wrecking apartment buildings after Moscow shunned any deal backed by Kyiv and its Western allies to end the nearly 2-year-old war. The barrage included more than 40 ballistic, cruise, anti-aircraft and guided missiles, officials reported, in what the United Nations said appeared to be the heaviest bombardment since early January, when hundreds of Ukrainian civilians were killed. Ukraine's air force, whose defenses include Western-supplied systems, said it intercepted 21 of the missiles. The attacks keep Ukrainians on edge while the 1,500-kilometer (930-mile) front line has barely budged. Both sides' inability to deliver major gains on the battlefield has pushed the fighting toward trench and artillery warfare. Analysts say Russia stockpiled missiles at the end of last year to press a winter campaign of aerial bombardment. The recent Russian bombardment was an ..

Russian missiles target Ukraine's Kyiv and Kharkiv, at least 3 killed

A complex Russian missile attack targeted Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Kharkiv on Tuesday morning, killing at least three people, wounding several others and damaging residential buildings, officials said. In the capital of Kyiv, city administration chief Roman Popko said at least one person was killed. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said nine people were wounded, including a 13-year-old boy. In Kharkiv, the country's second-largest city, two people were killed and at least 11 were wounded, according to the regional governor, Oleh Syniehubov. An entire section of a multi-story residential building was destroyed, trapping an unknown number of people there, Kharkiv mayor Ihor Terekhov said. Recent Russian attacks have tried to find gaps in Ukraine's defences by using large numbers of missiles and drones in an apparent effort to saturate air defence systems. The massive barrages more than 500 drones and missiles were fired between December 29 and January 2, according to officials in Kyiv a

Pentagon holds meeting to raise funds for supply of weapons to Ukraine

For the first time since Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin established the international group to support Ukraine in April 2022, the United States will host the monthly gathering of about 50 countries out of money, unable to send the ammunition and missiles that Ukraine needs to fend off Russia. While waiting for Congress to pass a budget and potentially approve more money for Ukraine's fight, the US will be looking to allies to keep bridging the gap. Tuesday's meeting will focus on longer-term needs, deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters on Monday. Even though we aren't able to provide our security assistance right now, our partners are continuing to do that, Singh said. The meeting will be virtual because Austin is still recuperating at home from complications of treatment for prostate cancer. The Pentagon announced its last security assistance for Ukraine on December 27, a USD 250 million package that included 155 mm rounds, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles an

Russia clashes with US, Ukraine supporters, rules out any peace plan

Russia's foreign minister clashed with the United States and Ukraine's supporters at a UN meeting Monday where Moscow ruled out any peace plan backed by Kyiv and the West, and China warned that further global chaos could impact the slowing global economy. Sergey Lavrov, Russia's top diplomat, claimed that Ukrainian forces have been a complete failure on the battlefield and are incapable of defeating or weakening Russia. He told the UN Security Council that Moscow is always ready to negotiate peace, but he claimed peace plans presented by Ukraine and its Western masters are only used as cover to continue war and continue getting money from Western taxpayers. All of these formulas are a road to nowhere, and the sooner Washington, London, Paris and Brussels realise this the better for Ukraine and the West, he said, warning that their crusade against Russia has already created new, clear, reputational and existential risks. U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood dismissed Lavrov's claims a

A century after death of Lenin, he's an afterthought in modern Russia

Many streets and localities that bore his name have been rechristened

Zelenskyy calls Trump's rhetoric about Ukraine's war 'very dangerous'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was worried by the prospect of Donald Trump returning to the White House, branding Trump's claim that he could stop Ukraine's war with Russia in 24 hours as very dangerous. In an interview with the UK's Channel 4 News that aired Friday, Zelenskyy invited the former president and front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination to visit Kyiv, but only if Trump delivers on his promise. Donald Trump, I invite you to Ukraine, to Kyiv. If you can stop the war during 24 hours, I think it will be enough to come, Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian leader also shared his concern about the US taking unilateral action that failed to consider Ukraine's perspective, noting the dearth of details around Trump's peace plan. Zelenskyy described the former president's rhetoric as very dangerous and appeared to be apprehensive that Trump's idea of a negotiated solution might involve Ukraine making major concessions to Russia. (Trump) is going to make

Ukraine starts to rebuild towns, cities even as war with Russia continues

Badly damaged in fighting with Russian forces almost two years ago, Trostianets is one of six settlements being rebuilt with state funds in a pilot programme

Russian minister rejects US offer to resume talks on nuclear arms control

Russia's top diplomat dismissed the United States proposal to resume a dialogue on nuclear arms control, saying Thursday that it's impossible while Washington offers military support to Ukraine. Speaking at an annual news conference, Sergey Lavrov accused the West of fuelling global security risks by encouraging Ukraine to ramp up strikes on the Russian territory and warned that Moscow will achieve its goals in the conflict regardless of Western support for Kyiv. Commenting on a US proposal to resume contacts in the sphere of nuclear arms control, Lavrov said that Moscow has rejected the offer. He said that for such talks to be held, Washington first needs to revise its current policy toward Russia. Lavrov charged that Washington's push for the revival of nuclear talks has been driven by a desire to resume inspections of Russia's nuclear weapons sites. He described such US demands as indecent in view of Ukraine's attacks on Russian nuclear-capable bomber bases during the ...

France ramps up weapons production for Ukraine, says Russia testing West

French manufacturers have reduced the manufacturing times for some of the weapons systems they supply to Ukraine by half or more, as France increasingly switches away from its previous policy of dipping into its own military stocks to support the war effort against Russia's invasion, France's defense minister said in an interview published on Thursday. The logic of ceding materiel taken from the armies' stocks is reaching its end, the minister, Sbastien Lecornu, said in the interview with Le Parisien. From now on, the solution is to directly connect French defense industries with the Ukrainian army. He cited the Caesar self-propelled 155 mm howitzer, made in France by Nexter, as an example of how French defense contractors are adopting a war footing. Caesars are among an array of Western-supplied artillery systems that have given Ukrainian gun crews an edge, especially when paired with high-precision munitions, against Russian artillery batteries using older Soviet-designed ...