Ukraine's Zelenskiy appoints new commander of land forces
June 19 (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Thursday appointed Hennadiy Shapovalov commander of Ukraine's land forces, replacing a commander who resigned over a Russian strike on a training area.
Shapovalov, whose appointment was announced in a presidential decree, had previously acted as a liaison at a NATO coordination centre in Germany.
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Reuters
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- Reuters
UK foreign secretary to attend Geneva talks on Iran nuclear programme
June 19 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary David Lammy will travel to Geneva on Friday for talks with his French and German counterparts, as well as EU High Representative Kaja Kallas and Iran's foreign minister, to push for a diplomatic resolution over Iran's nuclear programme, its foreign ministry said on Thursday. The meeting comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East and follows Lammy's visit to Washington, where he met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. "A window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution," Lammy said in the foreign ministry statement.
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
Loophole that lets terrorists enter UK to be closed
Suspected terrorists will no longer be able to exploit a loophole that allows them to enter Britain despite being stripped of citizenship. Ministers are to pass legislation that will ensure citizenship is not automatically reinstated if terrorists successfully appeal against a decision to strip them of it. The loophole, identified by the Supreme Court, would mean that they could return to the UK while the Government sought to overturn the successful appeal. The terror suspects could then renounce any other citizenship that they had, which would mean that Britain would have no option but to allow them to stay in the UK and could not deport them. Under international law, governments cannot render a person stateless by stripping them of their citizenship if they are not citizens of another country. 'An essential tool' Official data suggests more than 1,000 Britons were deprived of their citizenship between 2010 and 2023, including Shamima Begum, one of three east London schoolgirls who travelled to Syria in 2015 to support the IS group. She fought a series of high-profile legal battles to return to the UK after being stripped of her citizenship in 2019, but has remained unsuccessful. It mirrors the case of two Pakistani members of one of the most notorious grooming gangs in Rotherham, whom the Government stripped of their British citizenship. Qari Abdul Rauf, a 55-year-old father of five and Adil Khan, 54, were jailed for their part in sexually assaulting 47 girls. They subsequently renounced their Pakistani citizenship, effectively declaring themselves stateless. Pakistan is refusing to take them back on the basis that they have renounced their citizenship and are regarded as dangerous criminals. Dan Jarvis, the security minister, said: 'Protecting our national security and keeping the British public safe is the first duty of this government and the foundation of our Plan for Change. The power to deprive someone of their British citizenship is an essential tool, and helps protect us from some of the most dangerous people. 'We must close this gap in the law and prevent British citizenship being reinstated to individuals until all appeals have been determined. This is the right thing to do if we believe someone is a threat to our national security, and it will make Britain safer.' For the public good The Home Office said deprivation decisions on 'conducive to the public good' grounds were taken only in the most serious cases by the Home Secretary, where it is in the public interest to do so because of the individual's conduct or the threat they pose to the UK. About 222 of the those deprived of citizenship between 2010-2023 were for the public good. In 2018, the number of appeals reached a record high of 88 as the UK sought to counter the threat from Islamic state fighters returning home. That was up from just five in 2011. The change in the law follows the similar approach taken in asylum and human rights appeals cases, where asylum is not granted to a person appealing a rejection until all further appeals, up to the Court of Appeal, have been determined. Home Office officials said the narrowly focused Bill, consisting of two clauses, made no change to a person's existing right to appeal any decision to remove their British citizenship, and did not widen the reasons for which a person could be deprived of their citizenship.
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Ukraine's Zelenskiy: Russia's defence of Iran shows need to tighten sanctions
June 19 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday that Russia's defence of Iran's authorities underscored the need for intensified sanctions against Moscow. Zelenskiy said Russia's deployment of Iranian-designed Shahed drones and North Korean munitions was proof that Kyiv's allies were applying insufficient pressure against Moscow. "Now Russia is trying to save the Iranian nuclear programme. There cannot be any other possible explanation for their public signals and their non-public activity on this," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address. "When one of their accomplices loses their capability to export war, Russia is weakened and tries to interfere. This is so cynical and proves time and again that aggressive regimes cannot be allowed to unite and become partners." When Russia deploys weaponry from Tehran and Pyongyang, he said, "it is a clear sign that global solidarity and global pressure are not strong enough." Russia signed a strategic partnership with Iran this year. Moscow has denounced Israeli strikes against Iran and offered to mediate. A Russian deputy foreign minister said Moscow was urging Washington to refrain from direct involvement. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the conflict between Israel and Iran had exposed Russian hypocrisy, with Moscow defending Iran's nuclear programme and condemning strikes against Tehran while "ruthlessly" attacking Ukraine. "The only rational conclusion is that Russia cannot be trusted in any situation, and it is always part of the problem rather than the solution," Sybiha wrote in English on X. Zelenskiy has accused Russia of refusing diplomatic approaches and rejecting an unconditional ceasefire in the war, which has lasted more than three years. In his address, he said he was "very much counting on" U.S. President Donald Trump to consider tougher sanctions and boost diplomatic efforts to end the war. Trump has so far ruled out calls to intensify sanctions against Moscow. Zelenskiy also expressed willingness to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin, though he said the Kremlin leader had stayed on beyond the constitutional limit of his office. That comment was a reference to Russian accusations that Zelenskiy had remained in office without agreeing, under provisions of martial law in Ukraine, to hold an election.
