Russia Ukraine war Russian

2022 - 5 - 20

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Image courtesy of "The Washington Post"

Russia-Ukraine war live updates: Fighting in Donbas is 'hell ... (The Washington Post)

Ukrainian troops in the country's east are fighting on in the face of intense Russian bombardment, under conditions in the Donbas region that President ...

The weapons: Ukraine is making use of weapons such as Javelin antitank missiles and Switchblade “kamikaze” drones, provided by the United States and other allies. Shishimarin said he was ordered by other soldiers to shoot the man because the man was talking on his phone and they feared he would report their location. The fight: A slowly regenerating Russian army is making incremental gains in eastern Ukraine against valiant but underequipped Ukrainian forces. Kharkiv: Russian forces had sought to encircle this northeastern city, the second-largest in Ukraine, but they have been forced to retreat after Ukrainian troops in recent weeks mounted a successful counteroffensive. Severodonetsk is one of a few Ukrainian strongholds standing in the way of Russia seizing full control of the Donbas region. A court in Kyiv on Thursday approved a request from the prosecutor general’s office to arrest former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych for allegedly smuggling people across the border into Russia in 2014. According to a statement from a court in Kyiv’s Pechersk District, Ukrainian investigators accused Yanukovych and several Ukrainian government employees of illegally transporting at least 20 people into Russia using three Russian military helicopters. This is their contribution to their own security.” The State Department suspended the embassy’s operations to ensure the safety of its staff days before Russian forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. “Standing together today, we reject the bloody creed that might makes right, and we declare a more powerful creed, all for one and one for all,” Biden said. “I am grateful to the United States for approving a new $40 billion package of support for Ukraine and democracy in our region,” Zelensky said in a Thursday evening address. The Pentagon said Thursday it had observed “a lot of kinetic activity,” or active fighting, in between the cities of Kherson and Mykolaiv, but that there were no major changes on the battlefield.

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Image courtesy of "Aljazeera.com"

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 86 (Aljazeera.com)

Russian forces are likely to shift focus to reinforcing their operations in the Donbas once they have secured Mariupol, the UK's defence ministry said. The ...

We look forward to the signing of the law by@POTUS $ 40 billion is a significant 🇺🇸 contribution to the restoration of peace and security in Ukraine, Europe and the world. - Russia will fight attempts to steal its assets abroad after discussions by EU leaders to use the frozen assets of Russian oligarchs to fund the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war. - Kherson will “soon become part” of the Russian Federation, the Russian-appointed head of the Kherson region said. - The White House is working to put advanced anti-ship missiles in the hands of Ukrainian fighters. - In a sign of Russia’s urgent need to bolster its war effort, parliament will consider a bill to allow Russians over 40 and foreigners over 30 to sign up for the military.

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Image courtesy of "Aljazeera.com"

Ukraine war boosts Europeanism in border-wary Greece (Aljazeera.com)

Despite the government's pro-Western policy, everyday Greeks remain wary of both the US and Russia.

In reality, both Russia and Turkey have weaponised minorities to undermine the sovereignty of independent states for geopolitical and ideological reasons,” Karagiannis told Al Jazeera. Many Greeks believe then-secretary of state Henry Kissinger actively encouraged it. “European defence is a dream for some of us … the Ukraine war taught us that there is no European security without the US and NATO. The [membership bids] by Finland and Sweden underline that,” Filis said. Russia’s navy helped secure Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire a thousand years later. “If we want Europe to be independent on the international stage, it will have to show strategic autonomy and European sovereignty … [we want] a Europe that will be an international player with a balancing role,” he said. And Turkey has been accused of violating Greek airspace as a way of showing it disputes Greek sovereignty in the east Aegean. Turkey has also recently claimed that Greece has entered its airspace. “The Russians have nothing to offer Greece in terms of controlling Turkey, and wouldn’t want to if they could,” said Constantinos Filis, who directs the Global Affairs Institute at the American College of Greece. “The red line of the Americans [vis-à-vis Turkey] seems to be the avoidance of war [with Greece]. But that is not enough for Greece. It means Turkey has a wide scope for doing things to Greece it shouldn’t do.” “We took sides. “Even the US … has actually reduced its support for Greek positions,” he told Al Jazeera. “They withdrew support for the East Med [gas pipeline], and even from the East Med Act of 2019 which provided for the US monitoring Turkish violations of Greek airspace.” The East Med, a pipeline Greece has pledged to build with Cyprus and Israel to transport Israeli and Cypriot gas to the EU market, has been a major irritant to Turkey. Three-fifths of the Greek parliament recently ratified a much-expanded defence agreement with the US, which allows Washington to use the Greek port of Alexandroupolis as a logistics hub for the supply of NATO allies Romania and Bulgaria. A mid-March survey by Politico showed that 60 percent of Greeks found Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “unacceptable”, compared with 88 percent, 86 percent, 82 percent and 78 percent in the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and France respectively.

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Image courtesy of "Newsweek"

Russian State TV Says Ukraine War Is 'Rehearsal' for Conflict with ... (Newsweek)

A panelist said on a show on Russia-1—a channel that has relentlessly pushed Kremlin propaganda about the invasion of Ukraine—that Russia can learn from the ...

"This may be a learning experience for our future conflicts," he said before 60 Minutes anchor Olga Skabeyeva interrupted with the observation that it was a "scary experiment." Alexei Fenenko, a research fellow at Moscow's Institute of International Security Studies, was weighing in on Russia-1 on how the invasion of Ukraine could provide a testing ground for Moscow to wage even bigger wars. A guest on Russian state television has said that the war in Ukraine could simply be a stepping stone to bigger conflicts.

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Finnish gas supplies from Russia to be halted; Russia considers bill ... (CNBC)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russian forces have completely destroyed the eastern Donbas region, describing the area where the Kremlin has ...

This is what will be qualified as the genocide of the Ukrainian people and for which the occupiers will definitely be brought to justice," he added. "Food pricing is our number one problem right now, as a result of all this perfect storm for 2022," Beasley said. Experience shows that they become such by the age of 40–45," the State Duma said, according to a Reuters translation. This can be a lengthy process when done thoroughly," the ministry said. Speaking during his nightly address, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces continue to liberate the northeast Kharkiv region. Borrell said it's up to Ukraine to decide the terms of any negotiations. "Starting from tomorrow, during the upcoming summer season, Gasum will supply natural gas to its customers from other sources through the Balticconnector pipeline. Destroy as many houses, social facilities and enterprises as possible. "It is highly regrettable that natural gas supplies under our supply contract will now be halted. It also comes just two days after Finland formally applied to join NATO. There's hell, and that's not an exaggeration." He said that he hopes that "when the time comes for negotiations to take place, Ukraine will be able to negotiate from a position of strength."

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Image courtesy of "Aljazeera.com"

As the Ukraine war rages, Montenegro's juggling act gets harder (Aljazeera.com)

Close historic ties with Russia and deep internal divisions are undermining a unified national stance on the conflict.

“The question of a pro-Russian or pro-Western alignment feeds into a longstanding fissure in Montenegrin politics and identity. In 2019, Russia accounted for 26 percent of foreign investment in the Montenegrin economy. So did the alleged Russian-backed coup attempt of 2016 and Montenegro’s entry into NATO the following year. The war in Ukraine has shrunk the room for geopolitical neutrality in Europe, leaving Montenegro in a difficult spot. Montenegrins have demonstrated in support of Ukraine while Serb nationalists in Montenegro have demonstrated in support of Russia,” said Marco Attila Hoare, a historian and associate professor at the Sarajevo School of Science and Technology. “With Montenegro’s population split between supporters of independence who identify as Montenegrin or who belong to ethnic minorities, and those who opposed independence and identify with Serbia, it’s primarily the former that have emerged as the pro-Ukrainian and the latter as the pro-Russian camp.”

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Image courtesy of "Globalnews.ca"

Russia's barrage of Donbas has turned Ukrainian region into 'hell ... (Globalnews.ca)

As the war neared its three-month mark, the Ukrainian general staff said massive artillery barrages, including multiple rocket-launchers, had hit civilian ...

Russian Defence Minister Shoigu put the number of those laying down their arms at about 2,000. The war has caused global prices for grains, cooking oils, fuel and fertilizer to soar. “The Donbas is completely destroyed,” President Zelenskyy said in an address on Thursday night. In a sign of Russia’s need to bolster its war effort, the parliament in Moscow said it would consider a bill to allow Russians over 40 and foreigners over 30 to sign up for the military. “Groupings of the Russian Armed Forces, together with units of the people’s militia of the Lugansk (Luhansk) and Donetsk people’s republics, continue to expand control over the territories of the Donbas,” Shoigu said in a speech. British military intelligence said on Friday Russia is likely to further reinforce its operations in the Donbas once it finally secures the southern port city of Mariupol – scene of a weeks-long siege and Russia’s most significant success in a campaign of mixed fortunes for the Kremlin.

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Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Russian soldier says he will accept punishment for Ukraine war crime (The Guardian)

Tank commander Vadim Shysimarin, 21, tells court he was 'nervous' and 'didn't want to kill' unarmed civilian.

One of the men in the car told Shysimarin “to kill a civilian so he would not report them to Ukrainian defenders”, according to prosecutors. Shysimarin comes from Ust Illyinsk in the south-east Irkutsk region of Russia and was a commander in the Kantemirovskaya tank division on the day of the killing. Shysimarin opened fire out of the car window. The person who gave the instruction was aware of that. “There is an absence of intent here,” he said. On Thursday, during the second hearing, Shysimarin asked Shelipov’s widow to forgive him for the murder of her husband.

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Image courtesy of "CNN International"

Live Updates: Russia's war in Ukraine (CNN International)

Russia claims almost 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers have surrendered at the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, which became a symbol of Ukrainian resistance in an ...

“Lieutenant General Serhiy Kisel, who commanded the elite 1st Guards Tank Army, has been suspended for his failure to capture Kharkiv," the MOD said on Twitter. Russian Chief of General Staff Valeriy Gerasimov “likely” remains in his post, but it's “unclear” whether he retains the confidence of President Vladimir Putin, the statement continued. Russia has fired senior commanders who were considered to have “performed poorly” during the initial stages of the Ukraine invasion, an intelligence update by the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) said on Thursday.

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Image courtesy of "Newsweek"

Russia Official Has Rare Excuse for War Failure: Ukraine's Elite ... (Newsweek)

Frants Klintsevich, who made the remarks recently during an appearance on Russian state TV, said Ukraine has an elite military made up of "Russian soldiers and ...

But President Vladimir Putin and other high-ranking Russian officials have continued to assert that the invasion is achieving its goals and that Russia will ultimately defeat Ukraine. Donetsk and Luhansk are two self-declared, Russian-backed separatist republics in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region. A Russian senator attempted to justify what he described as the Russian military's "difficulty" in Ukraine by saying that his country is fighting against one of the "strongest and best-trained armies."

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Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Russia may scrap age limits for soldiers to bolster Ukraine invasion ... (The Guardian)

Senior Russian officials have proposed a new law that would eliminate age limits for military contract soldiers, in another sign the country is facing a ...

Some large government-run companies have received letters urging them to sign up their staff for the army. Russia initially put about 80% of its main ground combat forces – 150,000 men – into the war in February, according to western officials. Experience shows that they become such by the age of 40-45,” it said.

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Image courtesy of "Associated Press"

West rushes more aid as Mariupol teeters and fighting rages (Associated Press)

POKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — The West moved to pour billions more in aid into Ukraine on Friday, as Russia shifted troops freed up by the imminent fall of the ...

“There was smoke everywhere.” She grabbed the children and ran toward the home’s entrance, “but the corridor wasn’t there anymore. “The road is extremely important because it’s the only connection to other regions of the country,” he said via email. In the U.S., President Joe Biden was expected to sign a $40 billion package of military and economic aid to Ukraine and its allies. But the effort by Putin’s troops to take more territory there has been slow-going. “There were flashes everywhere,” she said. Roof timbers splintered and windows shattered, sending shards of glass into a wall near three sleeping children. Russian forces shelled a vital highway and kept up attacks on a key city in the Luhansk region, hitting a school among other sites, Ukrainian authorities said. Also remaining at the plant were the bodies of soldiers who defended it while tying down Russian forces. Twelve people were killed in Severodonetsk, Haidai said. Natural gas accounted for just 6% of Finland’s total energy consumption in 2020, Finnish broadcaster YLE said. An undisclosed number of Ukrainian soldiers remained at the Azovstal steel plant. Every inch of this path is deadly.”

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Image courtesy of "Daily Mail"

Ukraine war. Ex-Russian commander says it is 'meaningless to hope ... (Daily Mail)

Igor Girkin, an ex-FSB agent who led fighting in Donbas in 2014, says there is no path to victory for Russia's forces currently fighting in the region, ...

'Thus, it will be necessary to try and defeat the enemy in field battles. Russia is also a major exporter of fertiliser. Things don't work like that, we're not idiots,' he said on Telegram. Will this end the war? The ramifications could be far-reaching. Russian forces are trying to surround the two - split by a river marking a central front of the war - and are bombarding them to try and wear down resistance and starve residents of supplies. And? What will this achieve? A destroyed Russian tank is seen in a village to the north of Kharkiv after the area was recaptured by Ukrainian forces As long he remains shielded from reality 'nothing will change, and when it does change... Writing on Telegram late Thursday, Strelkov said: 'Let's imagine for a second, that in the next few weeks the enemy will be after all defeated through continuous frontal and flank attacks, and completely pushed out of [Donbas] borders. Ukraine is known as the 'breadbasket of Europe' because it exports up to a fifth of the world's barely and rapeseed, a tenth of global wheat and up to half the world's sunflower seeds. It is 'meaningless to hope for victory' without a general mobilisation of Russia's army, Strelkov argues, which Putin refuses to do because he is being molly-coddled by his inner circle into believing victory is still possible.

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Image courtesy of "NPR"

Russia-Ukraine war: What happened today (May 20) (NPR)

As Friday draws to a close in Kyiv and in Moscow, here are the key developments of the day: Russia said it completed its takeover of the Ukrainian port city ...

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Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Russia-Ukraine war: what we know on day 87 of the invasion (The Guardian)

Last group of Ukrainian soldiers in Azovstal steelworks surrendered, Russia's defence ministry said late Friday.

Dmitry Medvedev, a former president of Russia,warned that Russia would not continue food supplies unless the west eased its sanctionson the Kremlin. The missile hadtargeted “the newly renovated House of Culture” in Lozova,Zelenskiy said in a statement on social media. Erdoğan told reporters he had discussed the issue with the Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte,and that he would also be speaking to Britain tomorrow. Moody’s on Friday cut Ukraine’s debt rating for the second time in three months and lowered the outlook to negative due to the growing risk the Russian invasion will affect the nation’s debt sustainability. Zelenskiy proposed a formal deal with the country’s allies to secure Russian compensation for damage its forces have caused during the war. Russia has taken control of the Azovstal steel plant, the country’s defence ministry said on Friday evening.

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Image courtesy of "CNN"

May 20, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news (CNN)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Donbas is "completely destroyed" and accused Russia of a "deliberate and criminal attempt to kill as many ...

Konashenkov said the Azov Regiment commander “was taken out of the territory of the plant in a special armored car.” CNN cannot independently verify that all Ukrainian troops have vacated the steel plant. Russia claimed Friday that its troops have “completely liberated” the besieged Azovstal steel plant in the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol.

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Image courtesy of "Aljazeera.com"

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 87 (Aljazeera.com)

Get the latest updates here. Fighting. Russia's defence ministry said the last group of Ukrainian forces holed up in Mariupol's Azovstal steelworks had ...

Ukraine did not comment on the figures. - The Institute for the Study of War says Russian forces appear to be “digging in” around Kharkiv and along the southern axis in preparation for Ukrainian counteroffensives and a protracted war. - Russia’s defence ministry said the last group of Ukrainian forces holed up in Mariupol’s Azovstal steelworks had surrendered, marking an end to a weeks-long attack that left the city in ruins.

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Image courtesy of "CBC.ca"

Russia claims full control of Mariupol, 'complete liberation' of holdout ... (CBC.ca)

Russia claimed to have captured Mariupol on Friday in what would be its biggest victory yet in its war with Ukraine, following a nearly three-month siege ...

"The road is extremely important because it's the only connection to other regions of the country," he said via email. Instead, we saw the starry night." But the effort by Putin's troops to take more territory there has been slow-going. In addition, more than 60 houses were destroyed across the region, he said. Roof timbers splintered and windows shattered, sending shards of glass into a wall near three sleeping children. "There were flashes everywhere," Martsyniuk said. Earlier in May, hundreds of civilians were evacuated from the plant during humanitarian ceasefires. The steelworks had been the site of fierce fighting for weeks. It would also deprive Ukraine of a vital port. Three adults were killed, he said on messaging app Telegram. An estimated 100,000 people remained from a prewar population of 450,000, many trapped without food, water, heat or electricity. Constant bombardment has left behind shattered and charred buildings in row after row of destroyed apartment blocks and ruined neighbourhoods.

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