Page 64 - Ukraine

Nato proposes $100 billion package over five years to aid Ukraine

Allies are still discussing Stoltenberg's proposal and any mechanics of the accounting, including whether to factor in bilateral aid to Ukraine into the overall sum

Will deliver hundreds of armoured vehicles to Ukraine: French minister

French Defence Minister Sbastien Lecornu said France is to deliver hundreds of armoured vehicles by the beginning of next year to Ukraine as part of a new package of military aid for the country that just entered its third year since the Russian invasion. In an interview with the French newspaper La Tribune's Sunday edition, Lecornu said that to hold such an extensive front line, the Ukrainian army needs, for example, our armoured personnel carriers. It's absolutely key for troop mobility. The French military is currently replacing its old VAB armoured personnel carriers that started being used in 1979 by a new generation of armoured vehicles. This old equipment, still operational, is going directly to Ukraine in large quantities. We're talking about hundreds (of vehicles) in 2024 and early 2025, Lecornu said. Lecornu also said France will provide Ukraine with more anti-aircraft missiles. The move comes as France's government is pushing its military industry to boost its production

Russia vetoes UN resolution on N Korea sanctions amid Ukraine war

The dynamics have shifted amid the Ukraine crisis, leading to increased reliance on North Korea for munitions by Russian President Vladimir Putin

S Jaishankar meets Ukranian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in New Delhi

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Ukraine's Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba in New Delhi on Friday as part of a bilateral engagement. Kuleba, who arrived here on Thursday, is on a two-day visit to India. "Welcome FM @DmytroKuleba of Ukraine to Hyderabad House. Look forward to our discussions today," Jaishankar posted on X ahead of their talks. The external affairs minister also shared a photograph of him shaking hands with his Ukranian counterpart at the Hyderabad House. Kuleba's visit comes amid efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the over two-year-old Russia-Ukraine conflict. On Thursday, Kuleba had posted on X, "I began my visit to New Delhi upon @DrSJaishankar's invitation. The Ukrainian-Indian cooperation is important and we will be reinvigorating ties. Building on the dialogue between @ZelenskyyUa and @NarendraModi, we will pay specific attention to the Peace Formula." During his weekly press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson

Ukraine requests India to reconsider 'Soviet legacy' of Russia ties

Ukrainian foreign minister has urged India to support it in its war against Russia. India-Russia ties are based on Soviet legacy that is evaporating, he said

We call for peaceful resolution of Ukraine conflict via dialogue: MEA

India on Thursday said it continues to encourage a peaceful resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict through "dialogue and diplomacy". MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said this in response to a query during a press meet on India's stand on the inaugural Peace Summit in Switzerland. "We continue to encourage peaceful resolution of Russian-Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy," he said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 20 had separate conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and asserted that dialogue and diplomacy were the way forward for the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Modi had spoken to Putin over telephone to congratulate him for winning a fifth term in office in the recent elections and followed it up with a phone call to Zelenskyy to convey India's "consistent support" for all efforts for peace and bringing an early end to the ongoing conflict. During the telephone conversation, the Ukraini

House Speaker Mike Johnson committed to advancing assistance to Ukraine

For over a month, House Speaker Mike Johnson has sat on a funding package that would send desperately needed ammunition and weaponry to Ukraine, mulling how best to gain a grasp of what is expected to be a difficult lift in the House. The Republican speaker has indicated he will attempt to push for approval of tens of billions in wartime funding for Ukraine, as well as Israel, once the House returns in April. Yet it will be perhaps his most difficult task since he took the speaker's gavel late last year. We'll turn our attention to it and we won't delay on that, the Louisiana representative said of the Ukraine package at a news conference last week. Still, Johnson has waited to act at a time when Russia is renewing its missile attacks on Kyiv. In Ukraine's eastern regions, soldiers are running low on ammunition as they attempt to hold off a surge of Russian soldiers to the frontlines. European leaders and analysts are warning that the conflict could grow into a much larger clash tha

Russia strikes Ukraine's Kharkiv with aerial bombs; 1 killed, 17 injured

Russia struck the northeastern city of Kharkiv with aerial bombs on Wednesday for the first time since 2022, killing at least one civilian and wounding 16 others, local officials said. The airstrikes caused widespread damage, hitting several residential buildings and damaging the city's institute for emergency surgery. Russia has escalated its attacks on Ukraine in recent days, launching several missile barrages on the capital Kyiv and hitting energy infrastructure across the country in apparent retaliation for recent Ukrainian aerial attacks on the Russian border region of Belgorod. Such sporadic attacks, however, have been common throughout the war. The Kharkiv region cuts across the front line where Ukrainian and Russian forces have been locked in battles for over two years since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The region is frequently attacked with missiles and drones. Sergey Bolvinov, head of the investigative police department in Khakiv, said in a .

India has spoken with Russia 'frankly and bluntly' on Ukraine conflict: EAM

Jaishankar, who is on a visit to Malaysia, was interacting with the Indian community during an event

Death toll in Moscow concert attack rises to 140 after another victim dies

The death toll from last week's Moscow concert hall attack rose to 140 on Wednesday after another victim died in a hospital, Russian officials said. That person was one of five still hospitalized in extremely grave condition, and the doctors did everything they could to save them, Russia's Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said. A total of 80 people injured in the attack remain hospitalized, the official added, and 205 others have sought outpatient medical assistance. The Friday night massacre in Crocus City Hall, a sprawling shopping and entertainment venue on the northwestern outskirts of Moscow, was the deadliest terrorist attack on the Russian soil in nearly 20 years. At least four gunmen toting automatic rifles shot at thousands of concertgoers and set the venue on fire. An affiliate of the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the violence, while US intelligence said it had information confirming the group was responsible. French President Emmanuel Macron said France

Ukraine foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba to visit India on Thursday: MEA

Ukraine's Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba is slated to arrive here on Thursday for a two-day official visit during which he will have meetings with his Indian counterpart and others to discuss matters related to the bilateral relationship. His visit comes at the invitation of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement. During his visit, Kuleba will have "a number of engagements, including official meetings with External Affairs Minister and Deputy NSA to discuss matters pertaining to the bilateral partnership and cooperation on regional and global issues of mutual interest," the statement said. He is also expected to interact with the business community. Kuleba's visit comes amid the Russia-Ukraine war. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 20 had held separate conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and asserted that dialogue and diplomacy were the way forward

Two of four Kerala youth forced into Russia-Ukraine war to return home

Two of the four Kerala-based youths who fought in the war against Ukraine after being recruited into the Russian army by private agencies will soon return home to their families, Union Minister of State (Mos) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan has said. The MoS said on Tuesday evening that the Indian Embassy was readying their travel documents to return from Russia. "We expect that they will soon return home," Muraleedharan, who is contesting from the Attingal Lok Sabha constituency in the upcoming 2024 general elections, told reporters. Regarding the remaining two residents of the state, the MoS said the External Affairs Ministry was in talks with the Russian government to bring them back as well. "Rest assured we are taking strong measures to ensure their return," he said. According to the relatives of the three men, he said that they were taken to Russia by a recruitment agency with the promise of a whopping salary of Rs 2.5 lakh. Earlier, Muraleedharan had said that authori

Ukraine ramps up spending on locally-produced weapons to repel Russia

Ukraine needs any edge it can get to repel Russia from its territory. One emerging bright spot is its small but fast-growing defence industry, which the government is flooding with money in hopes that a surge of homemade weapons and ammunition can help turn the tide. The effort ramped up sharply over the past year as the US and Europe strained to deliver weapons and other aid to Ukraine, which is up against a much bigger Russian military backed by a thriving domestic defence industry. The Ukrainian government budgeted nearly USD 1.4 billion in 2024 to buy and develop weapons at home 20 times more than before Russia's full-scale invasion. And in another major shift, a huge portion of weapons are now being bought from privately owned factories. They are sprouting up across the country and rapidly taking over an industry that had been dominated by state-owned companies. A privately owned mortar factory that launched in western Ukraine last year is making roughly 20,000 shells a month

Kyiv endures 3rd bombardment in 5 days as Russia steps up attack on Ukraine

Russia launched missiles against Kyiv for the third time in five days Monday as Moscow escalated its aerial bombardment of Ukrainian cities while the front line in the war remains largely stationary. Nine people were injured in the strike on the Ukrainian capital, the Ukraine Rescue Service said. The Pecherskyi district was the hardest hit. Missile debris damaged homes in two districts and a local college gym in another district, Ukraine's National Police said. Russia fired two ballistic missiles at Kyiv from occupied Crimea in the daylight attack, but both were intercepted above the city, said Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration. On Thursday, Russia attacked Kyiv for the first time in six weeks, firing more than two dozen missiles before dawn. On Friday, Russia unleashed a massive attack against Ukraine's energy sector, calling the assault retaliation for recent strikes on Russian soil. Days of intense Ukrainian shelling of the Russian border region of ...

Poland activates aircrafts after Russian cruise missile enters its airspace

It came after Ukrainian officials reported Russia had launched about 20 missiles and seven Shahed attack drones targeting the western Ukrainian region of Lviv, which is near the Polish border

Gunmen who raided hall tried to escape to Ukraine, says Putin; Kyiv denies

The suburban Moscow music hall where gunmen opened fire on concertgoers was a blackened, smoldering ruin Saturday as the death toll in the attack surpassed 130 and Russian authorities arrested four suspects. President Vladimir Putin claimed they were captured while fleeing to Ukraine. Kyiv strongly denied any involvement in Friday's assault on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Krasnogorsk, and the Islamic State group's Afghanistan affiliate claimed responsibility. Putin did not mention IS in his speech to the nation, and Kyiv accused him and other Russian politicians of falsely linking Ukraine to the assault to stoke fervor for Russia's war in Ukraine, which recently entered its third year. US intelligence officials confirmed the claim by the IS affiliate. "ISIS bears sole responsibility for this attack. There was no Ukrainian involvement whatsoever, National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement. The US shared information with Russia in early March ab

Gunmen who raided Moscow concert hall tried to escape to Ukraine: Putin

Russian authorities arrested the four people suspected of taking part in the attack on a suburban Moscow concert hall that killed at least 133 people and believe they were headed to Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin said Saturday during an address to the nation. Kyiv, meanwhile, strongly denied any involvement in Friday's attack on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Krasnogorsk, which the Islamic State group's affiliate in Afghanistan claimed responsibility for in a statement posted on social media channels linked to the group. Kyiv accused Putin and other Russian politicians of falsely linking Ukraine to the assault in order to stoke fervor in Russia's war in Ukraine, which recently entered its third year. A U.S. intelligence official told The Associated Press that U.S. agencies had confirmed that IS was responsible for the attack. Putin said authorities have detained a total of 11 people in the attack, which also injured scores of concertgoers and left the venue a smoldering ruin

Deadliest terror attack in decade shakes Russia after Putin's vote triumph

Some Russian state-media commentators suggested Kyiv may be to blame, but Ukraine denied any role, calling it a false-flag operation by the Kremlin

Gunmen with automatic weapons fire at crowds at Moscow concert hall

Several gunmen in combat fatigues burst into a big concert hall in Moscow on Friday and fired automatic weapons at the crowd, injuring an unspecified number of people, Russian media said. Russian news reports said that the assailants also used explosives, causing a massive blaze at the Crocus City Hall on the western edge of Moscow. Video posted on social media showed huge plumes of black smoke rising over the building. Russia's state RIA Novosti news agency reported that at least three people in combat fatigues fired weapons. The state Tass news agency also reported the shooting. Extended rounds of gunfire could be heard on multiple videos posted by Russian media and Telegram channels. One showed two men with rifles moving through the mall. Another one showed a man inside the auditorium, saying the assailants set it on fire, with incessant gunshots ringing out in the background. Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, said he was heading to the area and set up a task .

Ukraine sees power outages after largest missile barrage of the year

Moscow's goal is to disable Ukraine's power system via the same means as last year, Energy Minister German Galushchenko said in an emailed statement