Page 104 - Ukraine

World faces most dangerous decade since WWII: Russian President Putin

Ultimately, Putin said, the West would have to talk to Russia and other major powers about the future of the world.

UN optimistic on Ukraine grain deal; Russia has reservations

A senior UN official said Wednesday he is relatively optimistic the deal for returning Ukrainian grain and Russian grain and fertiliser to world markets will be extended beyond mid-November, but Russia's UN ambassador said Moscow needs to see movement on its own exports first. The deal brokered by the United Nations and Turkey in July has led to more than 8.5 million metric tons of foodstuffs being shipped from three Black Sea ports in Ukraine. But Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia told reporters that Russia needs to see the export of its grain and fertilisers in the world market, which has never happened since the beginning of the deal. The deal has a 120-day limit. U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths, who has focused on the Ukraine side of the deal, and senior U.N. trade official Rebeca Grynspan, who has focused on the Russian side, were in Moscow earlier this month for talks with Russian officials including on an extension. We are keen to see that renewed promptly, now, Griffi

US, West allies insist UN probe use of drone by Russia in Ukraine

The U.S. and its Western allies on the Security Council insisted Wednesday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has the right to investigate if Russia has used Iranian drones to attack civilians and power plants in Ukraine. They dismissed Moscow's argument that the U.N. chief would be violating the U.N. Charter. Russia's U.N. ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, who called the council meeting, argued that only the Security Council can mandate an investigation. He cited Article 100 of the charter, which says the secretary-general shall not seek or receive instructions from any government or from any other authority external to the organisation. U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood called Russia's contention simply dumbfounding and an attempt to deflect attention from its own egregious wrongdoing in Ukraine. French Ambassador Nicolas De Riviere accused Russia of constantly violating the U.N. Charter and trampling on its principles by invading its neighbour and claiming to annex its ...

Russia may again block Antarctic marine protections during Australia meet

Call it a cold war. Delegations from Russia and Ukraine are among those meeting in Australia this week to decide the future of Antarctica's pristine waters. Conservationists say new marine protected areas and rules to prevent overfishing are desperately needed, but that Russia could use its veto-like powers to once again block progress. Achieving the required consensus for action among this diverse group of 27, which also includes China, the United States and the European Union, has always been an immense challenge. And when two of the members are at war and relations between China and many Western nations have deteriorated consensus looms as an even bigger obstacle. Just this month, Russian bombing in Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, partially destroyed Ukraine's Antarctic research center. Yet despite the enormous political hurdles, some remain hopeful that scientific arguments will win through. The U.S. is paying more attention to the region under President Joe Biden, and this year ha

Energy crisis sparked by Ukraine war to speed up green transition: IEA

The IEA's report said the global energy crisis is causing profound and long-lasting changes that could hasten the transition to a more sustainable and secure energy system

Russia, NATO hold nuclear drills as more than 40 Ukraine villages pounded

NATO and Russia's military alike staged planned annual nuclear exercises Wednesday as the Russian president repeated the unfounded claim that Ukraine plans to set off a radioactive dirty bomb. On the battlefront, Russian forces pounded more than 40 Ukrainian villages over the past day. Russian President Vladimir Putin remotely monitored the drills of his strategic nuclear forces, which involved multiple practice launches of ballistic and cruise missiles in a show of force. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to Putin that the exercise simulated a massive nuclear strike retaliating for a nuclear attack on Russia. The Biden administration said Russia provided advance notice of the annual drills. NATO is carrying out its own long-planned annual nuclear exercises in northwestern Europe. Without providing any evidence, in remarks carried by Russian TV, Putin said Ukraine plans to use a so-called dirty bomb' as a provocation and contended the United States was using Ukraine

Russia fires rockets at 40 Ukrainian villages, renews 'dirty bomb' claims

Russia targeted more than 40 villages around Ukraine over the past day, Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday, killing at least two people and sustaining the terror that forces people into air raid shelters each night. Russian forces launched five rockets, 30 air strikes and more than 100 multiple-launch rocket system attacks on Ukrainian targets, the Ukrainian armed forces general staff said. The attacks come as fears are growing that Russia, facing setbacks on the battlefield, could try to detonate a device that uses explosives to scatter radioactive waste in an effort to sow terror. Russia's defence minister called his counterparts from India and China to convey Moscow's concern about a purported Ukrainian plan to use such a so-called dirty bomb, repeating an allegation that Ukraine and the West have strongly refuted. Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu voiced Moscow's concern about possible Ukrainian provocations involving a dirty bomb in the calls with his Indian counterpart, Rajna

Russia recruiting Afghan soldiers trained by US to fight in Ukraine: Report

Afghan commandos who had been trained by Allied forces to fight the Taliban are now being recruited by Russia to fight in Ukraine, a media report said

Russia at UNSC seeks probe of claims on Ukraine's biological labs

Russia is asking the UN Security Council to establish a commission to investigate its claims that the United States and Ukraine are violating the convention prohibiting the use of biological weapons as a result of activities being carried out at biological laboratories in Ukraine. A draft resolution circulated to council members and obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press states that under Article VI of the convention Russia has filed an official complaint alleging that banned biological activities are taking place in Ukraine. Soon after Russia's February 24 invasion of Ukraine, its UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia claimed that secret American labs in Ukraine were engaged in biological warfare -- a charge denied by the United States and Ukraine. The draft resolution would authorize the Security Council to set up a commission consisting of its 15 members to investigate the Russian claims and report to the council by November 30 and to parties to the convention at a review conference i

Indian embassy in Ukraine asks citizens to leave immediately amid hostility

In a fresh advisory, the Indian embassy in Ukraine on Tuesday asked all Indians there to leave the country immediately in view of increasing hostilities. The new advisory came less than a week after a similar advisory was issued following the deteriorating security situation in Ukraine. "In continuation of the advisory issued by the embassy on October 19, all Indian citizens in Ukraine are advised to immediately leave Ukraine by available means," the embassy said. It said some Indian nationals have already left Ukraine pursuant to the earlier advisory. The embassy has asked the Indian nationals to contact it for any guidance or assistance to travel to the Ukrainian border for exiting the country. There has been an intensification of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine with Moscow carrying out retaliatory missile strikes targeting various Ukrainian cities in response to a huge blast in Crimea around three weeks back. Moscow blamed Kyiv for the blast. India has been pressing fo

Ukraine nuclear agency thickens alleged dirty bomb amid Russia's claims

Ukraine's nuclear energy operator on Tuesday offered what it suggested were clues about what might be behind Russia's claims that Kyiv's forces are preparing a provocation involving a radioactive device a so-called dirty bomb. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made that claim to his British, French, Turkish and US counterparts over the weekend. Britain, France, and the United States rejected it out of hand as transparently false. Ukraine also dismissed Moscow's claim as an attempt to distract attention from the Kremlin's own alleged plans to detonate a dirty bomb, which uses explosives to scatter radioactive waste in an effort to sow terror. Energoatom, the Ukrainian nuclear operator, said Russian forces have carried out secret construction work over the last week at the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. Russian officers occupying the area won't let the Ukrainian staff running Europe's largest nuclear plant or monitors from the UN's atomic energy watchdog

Progressive Democrats urge Biden to seek diplomatic solution on Ukraine

The 30 Democrats, led by Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, said in a letter to Biden that it was in the interest of the US and Ukraine to avert an extended conflict

Pope, French President Macron meet at Vatican; Ukraine concerns loom large

Pope Francis on Monday met at the Vatican with French President Emmanuel Macron, with the war in Ukraine looming large in both leaders' concerns. The nearly hour-long private audience was Francis' third with Macron since becoming pontiff. Neither side immediately released details of their talks. On the eve of their meeting, Macron spoke at a conference in Rome about the need for Ukraine to decide the time and terms of peace with Russia, which invaded its neighbour eight months ago. Francis will go to the Colosseum on Tuesday to deliver a speech to the same forum, a conference centered on the need for peace and organised by a Catholic charity close to the Vatican. Accompanying Macron to the Vatican was his wife, Brigitte.

Russian authorities advise civilians to leave Ukraine's Kherson region

Russian-installed authorities in Ukraine told all residents of the city of Kherson to leave immediately Saturday ahead of an expected advance by Ukrainian troops waging a counteroffensive to recapture one of the first urban areas Russia took after invading the country. In a post on the Telegram messaging service, the pro-Kremlin regional administration strongly urged civilians to use boat crossings over a major river to move deeper into Russian-held territory, citing a tense situation on the front and the threat of shelling and alleged plans for terror attacks by Kyiv. Kherson has been in Russian hands since the early days of the nearly 8-month-long war in Ukraine. The city is the capital of a region of the same name, one of four that Russian President Vladimir Putin illegally annexed last month and put under Russian martial law on Thursday. On Friday, Ukrainian forces bombarded Russian positions across the province, targeting pro-Kremlin forces' resupply routes across the Dnieper

Weapons shortages could mean hard calls for Ukraine's allies amid war

Weapons shortages across Europe could force hard choices for Ukraine's allies as they balance their support for Ukraine against the risk that Russia could target them next. For months, the United States and other NATO members have sent billions of dollars worth of weapons and equipment into Ukraine to help it fight back against Russia. But for many of the smaller NATO countries, and even some of the larger ones, the war has strained already-depleted weapons stockpiles. Some allies sent all their reserve Soviet-era weaponry and are now waiting for US replacements. It can be difficult for some European countries to rapidly resupply because they no longer have a strong defence sector to quickly build replacements, with many relying on a dominant American defence industry that has elbowed out some foreign competitors. Now they face a dilemma: Do they keep sending their stocks of weapons to Ukraine and potentially increase their own vulnerability to Russian attack or do they hold back ..

Many witness power outages in Ukraine as Russia intensifies its strikes

Hundreds of thousands of people in central and western Ukraine woke up on Saturday to power outages and periodic bursts of gunfire, as Ukrainian air defence tried to shoot down drones and incoming missiles. Russia has intensified its strikes on power stations, water supply systems and other key infrastructure across the country, the latest phase of the war as it nears the eight-month mark. Ukraine's air force said in a statement Saturday that Russia had launched a massive missile attack" targeting critical infrastructure, hours after air raid sirens blared across the country. It said that it had downed 18 out of 33 cruise missiles launched from air and sea. Several rockets targeting the capital were shot down on Saturday morning, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging service. Similar reports were made by the governors of six western and central provinces, as well as the southern Odesa region on the Black Sea. The presidential office said in its morning stateme

What would retreat from Kherson mean for Russia as Ukraine zeroes in

Ukrainian forces pressing an offensive in the south have zeroed in on Kherson, a provincial capital that has been under Russian control since the early days of the invasion. The possible fall of the city would deal another humiliation to Moscow after a string of battlefield defeats and other setbacks, further cornering Russian President Vladimir Putin and setting the stage for a potential escalation of the nearly 8-month-old war. A look at the military and political importance of Kherson: WHY IS THE CITY SUCH A PRIZE? Kherson, which had a prewar population of 280,000, is the only regional capital to be captured by Russian forces. The city and surrounding areas fell into Moscow's hands in the opening days of the conflict as Russian troops quickly pushed their attack north from Crimea the region illegally annexed by the Kremlin in 2014. Its loss was a major blow to Ukraine because of its location on the Dnieper River, near the mouth of the Black Sea, and its role as a major industr

In rare talks, US, Russian Defence Ministers discuss Ukraine war

In rare talks, US and Russian Defence Ministers spoke on the phone during which they discussed the Ukrainian war, according to official statements issued by Washington and Moscow

Ukraine bombards Russian positions at river crossing; Kherson a fortress

Ukrainian forces bombarded Russian positions in the occupied and illegally annexed southern Kherson region, targeting resupply routes across a major river while inching closer to a full assault on one of the first urban areas Russia captured after invading the country. Russian-installed officials were reported desperately trying to turn the city of Kherson, a prime objective for both sides because of its key industries and major river and sea port, into a fortress while attempting to evacuate tens of thousands of residents. The Kremlin poured as many as 2,000 draftees into the Kherson region one of four Moscow illegally annexed and put under Russian martial law to replenish losses and strengthen front-line units, according to the Ukrainian army's general staff. The Dnieper River figures prominently in the regional battle because it serves critical functions crossings for supplies, troops and civilians; drinking water for southern Ukraine and the annexed Crimean Peninsula; and pow

EU to provide Ukraine with 18 bn euros amid refugee exodus concerns

European Union leaders on Friday gave the green light to a plan to provide Ukraine with 18 billion euros (dollars) in financial support over the next year, after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russia is trying to spark a refugee exodus by destroying his country's energy infrastructure. The plan, endorsed at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, would see the 27-nation bloc match US financial support for war-ravaged Ukraine in monthly installments. Ukraine is telling us that they need approximately 3-4 billion euros per month to have enough resources for the basics, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. She said that figure would be met in equal part by the EU and the US, plus additional money from international financial institutions. It is very important to Ukraine to have a predictable and stable flow of income, von der Leyen told reporters. She said the EU is looking to provide about 1.5 billion euros each month, describing it as a funding amount that