Page 20 - Ukraine

Nobel Peace Prize: A look at the peacemakers from Belarus, Russia & Ukraine

For many years, these laureates promoted the right to criticise power and protect the fundamental rights of citizens

Russia seeks secret UN vote on West's condemnation of Ukraine annexation

Russia called for a secret ballot vote next week on a Western-backed resolution that would condemn its attempted illegal annexation of part of four Ukrainian regions and demand that Moscow immediately reverse its actions. Russia apparently hopes it would get more support from the 193 nations in the General Assembly if their votes are not public. Russia vetoed what would have been a legally binding Security Council resolution on Sept. 30 to condemn annexation referendums in the four Ukrainian regions as illegal, declare them invalid and urge all countries not to recognise any annexation of the territory claimed by Moscow. The United States and Albania, which sponsored the resolution, vowed to take the issue to all U.N. members in the General Assembly, where there are no vetoes but resolutions are not legally binding. Unless the international community reacts," European Union U.N. Ambassador Olof Skoog said Wednesday, there can be claims that no one pays attention and this is now a .

56 mn Indians may have turned poor in 2020 due to pandemic: World Bank

"The global goal of ending extreme poverty by 2030 is likely to be missed: by then, about 600 million people will remain in abject poverty. A major course correction is needed," Indermit Gill said.

From tanks to howitzers: Ukraine using Russian arms to repel their invasion

Ukraine has captured 460 main battle tanks, 92 self-propelled howitzers, 448 infantry fighting vehicles, 195 armoured fighting vehicles and 44 multiple-launch rocket systems from Russia since February

Zelenskyy, NATO Secretary-General discuss Ukraine Euro-Atlantic integration

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that he held a phone conversation with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration

Zelenskyy signs decree ruling out holding further negotiations with Putin

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree to put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defence Council, which rules out negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin

Ukraine's war-torn economy will sink 35% in 2022, says World Bank

Devastated by Russia's invasion eight months ago, the Ukrainian economy will plunge 35 per cent this year, the World Bank forecast on Tuesday. The war has destroyed factories and farmland and displaced millions of Ukrainians. The World Bank, a 189-country anti-poverty agency, estimates that rebuilding the country will cost at least USD 349 billion, 1.5 times the size of Ukraine's prewar economy. Ukraine continues to need enormous financial support as the war needlessly rages on as well as for recovery and reconstruction projects,'' said Anna Bjerde, World Bank vice president for Europe and Central Asia. Still, the bank's assessment for Ukraine's economy marks an upgrade from the 45.1 per cent freefall it forecast in June. And it expects that the Ukrainian economy will return to growth in 2023, expanding 3.3 per cent though the outlook is highly uncertain and will depend on the course of the war. Meanwhile, the Russian economy, hammered by Western sanctions, is expected to shrink

Kremlin welcomes Musk's proposal for Ukraine settlement denounced by Kyiv

In a Twitter poll, the Tesla boss proposed Ukraine permanently cede Crimea to Russia, that new referendums be held under UN auspices to determine the fate of Russian-controlled territory

Russian rapper commits suicide to avoid being drafted in Ukraine war

A 27-year-old Russian rapper took his own life to avoid being drafted to fight in President Vladimir Putin's brutal war in Ukraine after tragically declaring he was "not ready to kill for any ideals"

US announces 4 more advanced rocket systems to assist Ukraine in war

The US will soon deliver to Ukraine four more of the advanced rocket systems credited with helping the country's military gain momentum in its war with Russia. The High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, known as HIMARS, will be part of a new USD 624 million package of aid expected to be announced on Tuesday, according to US officials. The decision marks the first time the US has sent more HIMARS to Ukraine since late July, and it will bring the total number delivered so far to 20. The systems have become a key tool in Ukraine's ability to strike bridges that Russia has used to supply its troops, enabling Ukrainian forces to make inroads in Russia-controlled regions. The US in recent weeks also provided funding through a separate program the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative so another 18 HIMARS can be purchased through longer-term contracts. USAI funds are being used as part of the effort by the US and Western allies to ensure Ukraine's forces are trained and equipped to ..

Russia smuggling Ukrainian grain worth $530 million to fuel Putin's war

When the bulk cargo ship Laodicea docked in Lebanon last summer, Ukrainian diplomats said the vessel was carrying grain stolen by Russia and urged Lebanese officials to impound the ship. Moscow called the allegation false and baseless, and Lebanon's prosecutor general sided with the Kremlin and declared that the 10,000 tons of barley and wheat flour wasn't stolen and allowed the ship to unload. But an investigation by the Associated Press and the PBS series Frontline has found the Laodicea, owned by Syria, is part of a sophisticated Russian-run smuggling operation that has used falsified manifests and seaborne subterfuge to steal Ukrainian grain worth at least USD 530 million cash that has helped feed President Vladimir Putin's war machine. AP used satellite imagery and marine radio transponder data to track three dozen ships making more than 50 voyages carrying grain from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to ports in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and other countries. The ongoing theft,

US plans $1.5 billion-a-month aid to crisis-hit Ukraine, says report

EU leaders are expected to discuss Kyiv's financial requirements, which the draft budget for 2023 has placed at $38 billion, at a summit in the Czech Republic this week

Ukraine encircles key eastern city Lyman; Russia intensifies bombing

Ukrainian forces encircled the strategic eastern city of Lyman on Saturday in a counteroffensive that has humiliated the Kremlin, while Russian bombardments intensified after Moscow illegally annexed a swath of Ukrainian territory in a sharp escalation of the war. In the northeast, Ukrainian officials accused Russian forces of attacking a civilian evacuation convoy, killing 20 people including children. In the south, Ukraine's nuclear power provider said Saturday that Russian forces blindfolded and detained the head of Europe's largest nuclear plant. The fighting comes at a pivotal moment in Russian President Vladimir Putin's war. Facing Ukrainian gains on the battlefield which he frames as a U.S.-orchestrated effort to destroy Russia Putin this week heightened his threats of nuclear force and used his most aggressive, anti-Western rhetoric to date. Despite Purtin's land-grab Friday of four regions in Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his military have vowed t

On a wing and a prayer: Only this explains the RBI move to jack up rates

By raising the repo rate, the RBI has sacrificed growth and investment to try and contain inflation, which even the government says, has been driven by external factors

Putin declares captured regions part of Russia; Ukraine denies talks

Putin also urged Ukraine to sit down for peace talks but immediately insisted he won't discuss handing them back, opening a new escalatory phase of his seven-month invasion of the country.

Zelenskyy accelerates NATO bid as Russia annexes 4 Ukraine regions

Ukraine's president says his country is submitting an accelerated application to join the NATO military alliance. The comment Friday by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy came just after Russia said it would annex four region of Ukraine it seized amid its war and held gunpoint referendums viewed as illegitimate by the international community. Zelenskyy said: We are taking our decisive step by signing Ukraine's application for accelerated accession to NATO. It wasn't immediately clear what an accelerated application would mean, as ascension to NATO requires the unanimous support of the alliance's members. De facto, we have already proven compatibility with alliance standards. They are real for Ukraine -- real on the battlefield and in all aspects of our interaction, Zelenskyy said. We trust each other, we help each other, and we protect each other. This is the alliance. Zelenskyy also repeated his pledge to reunite all of the Ukrainian territory now held by Russia. The entire territory

UNSC to vote on resolution against Russia's illegal referendum in Ukraine

The United Nations Security Council has scheduled a vote for Friday afternoon on a resolution that would condemn Russia for its illegal so-called referenda in four Ukrainian regions and declare that they have no validity. The US- and Albanian-sponsored resolution would call on all countries not to recognise any alterations to the status of Ukraine's Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions. It would reaffirm the UN commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence within its internationally recognised borders. The Kremlin has announced plans to move on annexing Russian-controlled areas of the four regions on Friday, and Russia is certain to veto the resolution. US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said earlier this week that if that happens the US and Albania will put the resolution to a vote in the 193-member General Assembly where there are no vetoes. The draft resolution, obtained late on Thursday by The Associated Press, would order Russia

US Senate approves $12.3 billion aid for Ukraine in war against Russia

US Senate approved emergency aid of USD 12.3 billion to Ukraine in its war against Russia; the measure will not only continue government spending but will also help in war to a greater extent

US will never recognise Russia's claims on Ukrainian territory: Joe Biden

In response to Russia's move to formally annex four more areas in Ukraine, US President Joe Biden said that Washington will "never, never, never recognise" Moscow's claims on Kiev's territory

Ukraine pledges to reclaim land that Russia is likely to annex: Official

Ukraine is determined to reclaim territory that Russia is likely to annex following stage-managed voting in occupied areas and takes seriously Moscow's threats to use nuclear weapons in the war with its neighbor, an adviser to Ukraine's president said Wednesday. In an interview with The Associated Press in Kyiv, presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak insisted that nothing would change on the battlefield if Russia moves to incorporate four regions of southern and eastern Ukraine in the coming days, as is widely expected. We will liberate our territory by military means," Podolyak said. And for us, our actions depend not so much on what the Russian Federation thinks or wants, but on the military capabilities that Ukraine has. Ukraine and its Western allies have denounced the Kremlin-orchestrated referendums that ended Tuesday as as illegal and a sham, noting that many residents remain displaced by the seven-month war. They also said Moscow-installed local officials had announced the .