Norwegian foreign minister and minister of labour and social inclusion arrive in Kyiv on visit
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide and Tonje Brenna, Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion, have arrived in Kyiv on a visit.
Source: Norwegian tabloid newspaper VG, as reported by European Pravda
Details: The Norwegian ministers arrived in Kyiv on the morning of 26 March, VG reported.
"We've come to Kyiv at a critical time for Ukraine. The war is unfolding at an intense pace and both sides are preparing their positions for negotiations that could lead to peace talks," said Barth Eide.
He stressed the need to start planning for the post-war period now.
"Norwegian support must be long-term and I believe it's important to consider how we will continue to assist Ukraine afterwards. I hope that one day, our support will go beyond large amounts of ammunition," the foreign minister said.
This is Brenna's first visit to Ukraine, during which she plans to discuss preparations for the eventual return of Ukrainians with temporary protection in Norway.
"For me, it's about understanding the needs. We want the 90,000 Ukrainians in Norway to be best prepared to return to their country, which will one day be rebuilt," she noted.
"We want those currently studying to complete their education. Ukrainian youth in Norway should use this time to develop skills that align with Ukraine's future needs. I will discuss with the Ukrainian government what will be required to ensure a functional society after years of war," the minister explained.
Background:
Last week, on 20 March, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Norway following a nearly two-day stay in Helsinki.
In mid-March, the Nordic defence ministers met with their Ukrainian counterpart, Rustem Umierov, in Helsinki.
In early March, Norway agreed to increase aid to Ukraine to almost US$8 billion this year.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Russian strike kills five, including toddler, hours after Trump calls Putin
At least five people, including a one-year-old child, were killed in a Russian drone strike on the northern Ukrainian city of Pryluky overnight, regional governor Viacheslav Chaus said. The attack came just hours after US President Donald Trump spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to Mr Trump, Mr Putin 'very strongly' said that Russia will retaliate for Ukraine's weekend drone attacks on Russian military airfields. Six more people were wounded in the attack and are being treated in hospital, Mr Chaus said. According to him, six Shahed-type drones struck residential areas of Pryluky early on Thursday morning, causing severe damage to residential buildings. Hours later, 17 people were wounded in a Russian drone strike on the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv early on Thursday, including children, a pregnant woman, and a 93-year-old woman, regional head Oleh Syniehubov wrote on Telegram. At around 1.05am, Shahed-type drones struck two apartment buildings in the city's Slobidskyi district, causing fires and destroying several private vehicles. 'By launching attacks while people sleep in their homes, the enemy once again confirms its tactic of insidious terror,' Mr Syniehubov wrote on Telegram.
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Kim Jong Un confirms North Korea's continued support for Russia in war against Ukraine
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has assured Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu during a meeting in Pyongyang that North Korea will continue to support Russia in the war against Ukraine. Source: Korean Central News Agency (KCNA); Deutsche Welle (DW), a German international broadcaster and media outlet Details: According to KCNA, Kim Jong Un confirmed that the North Korean government would continue to unconditionally support Russia's position and its foreign policy on all key international political issues, including the "Ukrainian issue" and would adhere to the provisions of the treaty between the DPRK and Russia. Both KCNA and the statement on the Russian Security Council website mention that Kim Jong Un and Shoigu had discussed the fighting in Russia's Kursk Oblast, where North Korean soldiers fought against the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The Russian Security Council added that the issue of "commemorating the heroism of Korean soldiers" had been discussed. KCNA and the Russian Security Council referred to the treaty on strategic cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, signed in the DPRK capital during a visit by Russian ruler Vladimir Putin on 19 June 2024. It provides for military and other assistance by one country to the other in the event of an armed attack. North Korean servicemen arrived in Kursk Oblast in autumn 2024, where they took part in fighting against the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Initially, the Russian authorities denied their presence, but in April 2025 it was acknowledged by the Russian Defence Ministry and Foreign Ministry and later by Putin himself. At that time, Pyongyang also announced the "victorious completion" of this operation. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Newsweek
34 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Putin Suffers His Worst Week of 2025
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. "God loves the Trinity," said Ukrainian intelligence chief Vasyl Malyuk, in a boast about Kyiv's third Kerch Bridge attack but he could also have been talking about the number of setbacks Russian President Vladimir Putin has been dealt in recent days. Malyuk said Tuesday's strike on the bridge linking Crimea with Russia was months in the planning and came on the heels of a drone operation, which Kyiv said had taken out a third of Russia's aircraft bomber fleet. Ukraine's drone strike had left Kremlin officials "angry and alarmed" over the vulnerability of a nuclear-capable air fleet far from the battlefield, Bloomberg reported. Meanwhile, Russia's investigative committee has launched a terrorism investigation into the collapse of two bridges in the border region following incidents likely to heap pressure on the Russian president. "It's certainly a bad week for the Russian people and for the Russian military," retired U.S. Vice Admiral Robert Murrett told Newsweek. Putin has had several bad weeks during his full-scale invasion, such as the destruction of the Black Sea Fleet flagship Moskva in April 2022, Russia's retreat from Kherson in November that year and Ukraine's incursion into the Kursk region in August 2024. Oleg Ignatov from the International Crisis Group told Newsweek this week's incidents delivered the worst setback for Putin for 2025 in terms of military damage and the impact on public morale. Newsweek has contacted the Kremlin for comment. This image from 2016 shows Russian President Vladimir Putin outside of Moscow. This image from 2016 shows Russian President Vladimir Putin outside of It Matters Ukraine's drone attacks on military airfields deep inside Russian territory and the targeting of the bridge, which serves as a symbol of Moscow's occupation of Crimea, delivers a PR boost and possible leverage for Kyiv amid peace talks that the Russian president has been accused of stalling. What To Know Overnight Saturday, two bridges collapsed in Russia's western regions bordering Ukraine, killing at least seven people and injuring dozens, according to local authorities. It is not clear whether what their causes are or if the two collapses are even linked or but Russia's investigative committee said they were being investigated as potential terrorist attacks. Ignatov, senior Crisis Group analyst for Russia, said Ukraine was likely behind sabotage attacks targeting the bridges although Kyiv has not commented on the incidents. In one incident in Bryansk's Vygonichi district, about 60 miles from the Ukrainian border, a road bridge gave way crushing the moving train underneath and injuring at least 66 people, Russian authorities reported. Bryansk's governor, Alexander Bogomaz, said the bridge had been "blown up." In another incident overnight into Sunday, a bridge collapsed in the Kursk region as a freight train was passing over it, injuring one of the drivers, according to the acting governor of the region. In a third incident that night, a Russian military freight train was blown up near the occupied city of Melitopol in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, according to the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine. Operation Spiderweb On the eve of talks in Istanbul between Russia and Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) launched a drone attack across Russia. Targeted were the Olenya air base in Russia's Murmansk region, the Diaghilev airbase in the Ryazan region, the Ivanovo air base in Ivanovo region and the Belaya air base in the Irkutsk region over 2,500 miles from the Ukraine border. Dubbed Operation Spiderweb, the attacks 18 months in the planning saw 117 drones launched from concealed trucks, hit 41 aircraft, disabled a third of Russia's strategic bomber fleet and inflicted $7 billion damage, according to Kyiv. Zev Faintuch, head of research and intelligence at international security firm Global Guardian, told Newsweek the operation was a huge intelligence coup and probably not a one-off. He said this operation can be seen as an opening move in a strategic campaign involving deception, covert prepositioning and strategic psychological warfare. Ukraine may have many more of these prepositioned containers ready with hundreds or thousands of drones for subsequent attacks, and even if it didn't, the Russians are now on the lookout, Faintuch added. Murrett, deputy director of the Syracuse University Institute for Security Policy and Law, told Newsweek that from a tactical military standpoint, they were very effective attacks that had dealt a significant blow to Moscow's military machine. He said Ukraine is demonstrating new tactics and what he describes as 21st-century war fighting that has an impact far beyond their borders. Sources close to Russian officials told Bloomberg that damage inflicted on the warplanes including targets on Tu-160, Tu-95 and Tu-22 M3 bombers "is likely to rattle decision makers around Putin." Kerch Bridge Attack A day after the Russian drone operation, Malyuk, chief of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), said his agents had mined the supports of the Kerch bridge which is a critical supply and transport route for Moscow's forces. He suggested the structural integrity of the bridge is in a critical condition after 1,100 kilograms (nearly 2,500 pounds) of explosives in TNT equivalent were detonated in the early hours of Tuesday. Imagery captured on June 3, 2025, by the U.S. satellite firm Planet shows Russia's Olenya air base, one of five bomber bases targeted by a Ukrainian drone raid on June 1, 2025. Imagery captured on June 3, 2025, by the U.S. satellite firm Planet shows Russia's Olenya air base, one of five bomber bases targeted by a Ukrainian drone raid on June 1, 2025. Planet Labs PBC The SBU released an image of the bridge which did not indicate damage to the roadway. Russian opposition outlets pro-Russian milbloggers circulated footage which showed another naval drone strike against the bridge on Tuesday afternoon. Yuriy Boyechko, CEO of Hope for Ukraine, which provides aid to the war-torn country said that the drone attacks and the Kerch Bridge explosion had undermined Putin's image. "The damage that was done on Sunday to the Russian Air Force could only be possible with tactical nuclear weapons," he told Newsweek, adding that the biggest headache for the Kremlin now was to figure out if other military sites are vulnerable to further Ukrainian attack. What People Are Saying Ukrainian intelligence chief Vasyl Malyuk: "God loves the Trinity, and the SBU always finishes what it starts. We struck the Crimean Bridge in 2022 and 2023. Today, we continued this tradition—this time underwater." Robert Murrett, retired U.S. Vice Admiral: "Putin's had several bad weeks. It's certainly a bad week for the Russian people and for the Russian military." Yuriy Boyechko, CEO of nonprofit Hope for Ukraine: "For Putin it's personal because he is a former FSB agent, and is being outplayed by a former comic [Volodymyr Zelensky]. Putin will respond by increasing strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine, but that is all he can do at this time." What Happens Next Ukraine's drone attack on Russian airfields was likely intended to disrupt the Kremlin's position that it has the upper hand and can dictate the terms of any peace deal, according to the Crisis Group's Ignatov. "It's an attempt to change the narrative that Ukraine is losing the war gradually," he said.
