Page 49 - Ukraine

Russia slams UN nuclear watchdog after trip to plant close to fighting

Russian state news agency RIA quoted Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying in a radio interview that Moscow wanted the IAEA to speak out more clearly on issues of nuclear security

Orban's charge of EU presidency raises questions about Hungary's stance

The European Union traditionally ends its summer slumber in the dying days of August with an informal meeting of its foreign affairs ministers in a political equivalent of a fireside chat. But with Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Hungary holding the presidency of the 27-nation bloc, vacation has already been turned into one long firebrand's shout. Since July 1, and right up to year's end, the EU's arcane rules allow Hungary, a nation of 9.5 million, to represent and often speak for the bloc of 450 million. The problem is that Orban increasingly stands for everything the EU opposes. The first two months of the half-year rotating presidency has already turned into troll diplomacy, said Peter Kreko of the Center for European Policy Analysis. Orban "just wants to provoke more anger from the leaders of the European Union, he said. When Russian President Vladimir Putin is the EU's archenemy because of his war in Ukraine, Orban travels to Moscow and hobnobs with the autocratic leader. When .

Pennsylvania ammo plant boosts artillery production in Russia-Ukraine fight

A Pennsylvania ammunition plant that makes a key artillery shell in Ukraine's fight against Russia has managed to boost production by 50% to meet surging demand, with more capacity set to come on line. Government officials revealed the increase in production this week as they showcased the historic factory's ongoing, $400 million modernization. The Scranton Army Ammunition Plant cuts and forges 2,000-pound (907-kilogram) bars of steel into 155 mm howitzer rounds that are then shipped to Iowa to be packed with explosives and fitted with fuses. From there, many of them make their way to the fight in Ukraine, where they are highly sought. The Scranton plant, along with two other ammunition plants in nearby Wilkes-Barre, recently increased production from 24,000 rounds per month to 36,000 rounds per month. Three new production lines are under development that will allow the Scranton facility to churn out even more of the critical munitions, the factory's top official said. Right now we

Ukraine's drones set oil depot in Russia's Rostov ablaze, says Guv Golubev

Videos posted on Russian social media showed what looked like large tanks ablaze at night. Reuters was able to identify the location of one of the videos as in Rostov's Kamensky district

Ukraine wants less US caution on weapons amid escalating fight with Russia

Ukraine's daring ground offensive has taken the fight to Russia, but not nearly as much as its leaders would like because, they say, the United States won't let them. The U.S. restricts the use of long-range ballistic missiles it provides to Ukraine, which wants to aim them at military targets inside Russia. Ukraine's offensive, along with a barrage of drones and missiles that Moscow launched this week, has intensified pressure on the Biden administration to ease its cautious approach to the use of Western weapons in escalating Ukrainian attacks. The Biden administration says its careful deliberations, including which advanced weapons it supplies to Ukraine and when, are necessary to avoid provoking retaliation from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Some analysts agree Putin would take a Ukrainian strike by an American long-range ballistic missile within Russia as an attack by the U.S. itself. But many other American and European supporters of Ukraine say the White House should see

PM Modi speaks to Putin on Ukraine visit, discusses steps to bolster ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin as he shared his "insights" from his recent visit to Ukraine and reiterated India's firm commitment to supporting an early, abiding and peaceful resolution of the conflict with Ukraine. In a post on X, Modi said the two leaders also discussed measures to further strengthen special and privileged strategic partnership between the two countries. He said, "Exchanged perspectives on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and my insights from the recent visit to Ukraine. Reiterated India's firm commitment to support an early, abiding and peaceful resolution of the conflict." The prime minister had on Monday briefed US President Joe Biden on his visit to Ukraine and conveyed India's full support for early return of peace to the region through dialogue and diplomacy. The Ministry of External Affairs in a statement later said Modi during his telephone conversation with Putin recalled his "successful visit to Russia" las

Ukraine control nearly 500 square miles of Russia's Kursk, says Army chief

The Kursk operation, the largest incursion into Russia since World War II, forced some 130,000 residents to evacuate their homes

News updates: AAP leader Manish Sisodia holds 'padyatra' in Delhi's Mangolpuri area

Latest news updates: Catch all the news developments from around the world here

Russian attacks on Ukraine kill five on 2nd day of major strikes, says Kyiv

Two people were killed when a hotel was "wiped out" by a missile in the central city of Kryvyi Rih, regional officials said

After Joe Biden, his Russian foe Putin-PM Modi discuss his Ukraine trip

Last Friday, PM Modi visited Ukraine after concluding his visit to Poland. He met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and invited Zelensky to visit India during their talks

Russia pounds Ukraine with missiles, drones for second day, says Kyiv

Kyiv region's air defence systems were deployed several times overnight to repel missiles and drones

China calls for more support for its Ukraine peace plan created with Brazil

China called on Tuesday for more countries to endorse its peace plan for Ukraine, after a round of diplomacy with Indonesia, Brazil and South Africa to support its plan. Envoy Li Hui called the three countries representative of the Global South and important forces in promoting world peace" who share similar positions with China. "They have maintained communication with both Russia and Ukraine and stay committed to a political settlement to the crisis through dialogue and negotiation, said Li, China's special envoy for Eurasian affairs. China and Brazil issued a joint peace plan earlier this year that calls for a peace conference with both Ukraine and Russia and no expansion of the battlefield. China and Russia were absent from a peace summit hosted in Switzerland in June. Russia was not invited while China chose not to attend. Initially, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said China had pressured other countries to not attend the peace summit. But since then, Ukraine has ...

Ukraine counts on long-range weapon to bypass West restrictions, hit Russia

Ukraine says it has a new long-range weapon to strike deep into Russia without asking permission from allies a homegrown combination of missile and drone that the defense minister vowed Monday would provide answers to a wave of Russian bombings. The Palianytsia was created due to urgent necessity, Ukrainian officials said, as Russia has dominated the skies since the outbreak of the war in February 2022 and Ukraine's Western allies have placed conditions on use of their long-range missiles in Russia. On Monday, a wave of Russian missiles and drones targeted Ukraine's electrical infrastructure in the largest such attack in weeks. Defenders of life should have no restrictions on weapons, as long as Russia uses all kinds of its own weapons, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a Telegram message following the attacks. Zelenskyy confirmed on Saturday the existence of the Palianytsia, named after a type of Ukrainian bread and a word so notoriously difficult to pronounce correctly that i

Will respond to Ukraine's Kursk attack, ceasefire talks irrelevant: Kremlin

Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers smashed through the Russian border on Aug 6 in a surprise attack that Russian President Vladimir Putin said was aimed at improving Kyiv's negotiating position

Russia's Saratov airport lifts flight curbs after drone attack by Ukraine

A residential complex in the city had been damaged by falling debris from drones destroyed by Russia's air defence systems

Belarus concentrating personnel, weaponry along Ukrainian border, says Kyiv

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry also noted that some former Wagner PMC troops were also present in the area

Shelling kills 5 in Russian border region as hotel housing journos gets hit

Five people died in Ukrainian shelling in Russia's border region of Belgorod, officials said Sunday, while Russian forces struck a hotel in eastern Ukraine, leaving one journalist missing and two others injured. Twelve other people were wounded in the Russian village of Rakitone, 38 kilometres from the Ukrainian border, including a 16-year-old girl reported to be in critical condition, said regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov. Russian forces struck a hotel overnight in the city of Kramatorsk in the eastern Donetsk region, injuring two people and leaving one trapped under the rubble, regional Gov. Vadym Filashkin said. All three were reported to be journalists from Ukraine, the US, and the UK. Reuters news agency said Sunday that their journalist covering the war in Ukraine was missing and two other team members were hospitalised after Hotel Sapphire, where a six-person crew was staying, was hit by an apparent missile strike on Saturday. One of our colleagues is unaccounted for, while .

China opposes US sanctions on firms over 'links to Russia's war efforts'

China on Sunday expressed its opposition to the latest US sanctions on Chinese companies over their alleged ties to Russia's war in Ukraine, saying it will adopt necessary measures to safeguard the rights and interests of the country's businesses. The US on Friday announced sweeping sanctions on hundreds of firms in Russia and across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, accusing them of providing products and services that enable Russia's war effort and aiding its ability to evade sanctions. The US Department of State said it was concerned by the magnitude of dual-use goods exports from China to Russia. The Ministry of Commerce in China in its statement firmly opposed the US putting multiple Chinese companies on its export control list. The move bars such companies from trading with US firms without gaining a nearly unobtainable special license. The ministry said the US action was typical unilateral sanctions," saying they would disrupt global trade orders and rules, as well as affect

Ukraine's operation in Kursk going according to plan, says Zelenskyy

The incursion, which started in early August, was done to protect the Sumy region and also to capture Russian soldiers who could be used for prisoner swaps

Ukraine marks its 33rd Independence anniversary as war against Russia rages

A somber atmosphere pervades Ukraine's 33rd Independence Day Saturday, as the nation's war against Russia's aggression reaches a 30-month milestone. No fireworks, parades or concerts are planned and instead Ukrainians will mark the day with commemorations for civilians and soldiers killed in the war. Ukrainians have flooded social media with messages of gratitude and support, greeting each other and thanking the soldiers on the front lines. In the outpouring of unity, there's a shared acknowledgment that the two-and-a-half years have been tough, with fatigue increasingly setting in. Independence is the silence we experience when we lose our people, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said to the nation. Independence descends into the shelter during an air raid, only to endure and rise again and again to tell the enemy: You will achieve nothing. Zelenskyy pointed out that the war started by Russia has now spread to its own territory. Those who seek to sow evil on our land will reap its ...