Latest news with #ArmedForcesofUkraine
Novaya Gazeta Europe
3 days ago
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Zelensky announces fresh Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul on Wednesday — Novaya Gazeta Europe
Russia and Ukraine will hold a new round of peace talks in Istanbul on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Monday. Zelensky said in his nightly address that he and National Security and Defence Council Secretary Rustem Umerov had discussed a prisoner exchange with Russia and another meeting in Türkiye with the Russian delegation. Umerov, who served as Ukraine's defence minister until a government reshuffle last week, headed Kyiv's delegation in the previous two rounds of negotiations with Russia in Istanbul in May and June. At a meeting with the heads of Ukraine's foreign diplomatic missions earlier on Monday, Zelensky said that Kyiv's priorities in the fresh talks would be 'the return of prisoners of war, the return of children abducted by Russia, as well as the preparation for a meeting between Zelensky and Vladimir Putin, as 'truly effective talks can only take place at the level of national leaders'. Zelensky has previously voiced his frustration at the 'low level' of the Russian delegation, led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, during the first two rounds of negotiations, arguing that 'none of them are people who actually make decisions in Russia' and calling on Putin to meet with him personally. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Monday that Russia's delegation would be unchanged for the upcoming talks, which Russian state news agency TASS reported would take place on Thursday and Friday. He also played down the chances of a breakthrough on any peace deal with Ukraine, stressing that Moscow and Kyiv's positions on a settlement were 'diametrically opposed' and that 'a lot of diplomatic work' would be required to make progress. Following the last round of talks, Russia presented a draft memorandum demanding Ukraine agree to punishing peace terms, including the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Russian-occupied regions and their international recognition as part of Russia, limits on the size of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and a commitment from Kyiv to remain 'neutral' by renouncing its bid to join NATO. Ukraine, meanwhile, seeks an immediate ceasefire and the return of all prisoners of war and children forcibly removed by Russia, as well as 'no restrictions on its military strength after any peace deal, no international recognition of Russian sovereignty over parts of Ukraine taken by Moscow's forces, and reparations' as terms for ending the war.
Dubai Eye
5 days ago
- Politics
- Dubai Eye
Russia Intercepts Hundreds of Drones
The past 24 hours have witnessed a military escalation on the Russian-Ukrainian front. The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Sunday that it had repelled intense Ukrainian attacks, confirming the interception and destruction of a total of 133 drones. The Ministry of Defense's statement explained that 93 of these drones were destroyed overnight over 10 Russian regions, including 19 drones around Moscow. This followed the downing of 40 more drones on Saturday evening. On the other side, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said the total combat losses of Russian forces have reached approximately 1,041,990 personnel, with 1,040 killed or wounded in the past 24 hours alone, according to Ukrinform. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday that Kiev has proposed to hold a new round of peace talks with Moscow next week. 'The dynamics of the negotiations must improve. We need to do everything possible to achieve a ceasefire,'' Zelensky said. 'A meeting at the leadership level is essential to genuinely secure peace. Ukraine is ready for such a meeting,' he added
Perth Now
7 days ago
- Business
- Perth Now
Aussie Abrams tanks arrive in Ukraine
Australia is providing 49 M1A1 Abrams tanks – valued at $245m – to Ukraine to help bolster its war against Russia's illegal invasion. The first tranche of the retired tanks are now in the possession of the Armed Forces of Ukraine after they were shipped from the Port of Geelong. Australia first purchased the fleet of 59 Abrams tanks – which were never deployed into a combat zone – in 2007. The Australian Army has since replaced the fleet with newer M1A2 tanks. An Australian Army M1A1 Abrams main battle tank is lifted onto a ship in Australia, bound for Ukraine. Supplied Credit: Supplied Last year, Ukraine expressed interest in taking the M1A1 fleet after Australia refused to donate its retired fleet of Taipan helicopters – which have since been dismantled and buried – due to concerns they would be too complicated to maintain and operate. The current $245m support package involving the M1A1 Abrams fleet is part of the $1.5bn in assistance Australia has provided to the war-torn nation since the start of Russia's conflict in 2022. 'The M1A1 Abrams tanks will make a significant contribution to Ukraine's ongoing fight against Russia's illegal and immoral invasion,' Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles, who met the army personnel who helped deliver the tanks, said. 'Australia remains steadfast in our support for Ukraine and seeing a just and lasting peace.' The first tranche of M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks gifted to Ukraine are prepared for servicing at a port in Europe. Supplied Credit: Supplied Part of a support package worth $245m, the tanks have been retired by the Australian Army but were gifted to Ukraine as part of its fight against Russia. Supplied Credit: Supplied Ukraine has now taken possession of the majority of these tanks, with delivery of the final tranche to occur in the coming months. Australia is also due to deploy a Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail to Europe to help protect a vital international gateway for assistance to Ukraine. Since 2003, the Australian Defence Force has helped train hundreds of Ukrainian troops as part of the UK-led and based multinational training mission Operation Kudu, which continues today. Ukrainian ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko thanks Australian Army soldiers for their efforts in loading M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks onto a ship. Supplied Credit: Supplied 'Australia stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine,' Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said. 'These modified M1A1 Abrams tanks will deliver more firepower and more mobility to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. 'They meet a direct request from the Ukrainian government and form part of Australia's unwavering commitment to protect the global rules-based order.' The major update follows Russia handing over the bodies of 1000 slain soldiers to Ukraine, as further peace talks between both countries appeared to break down. Ukraine also agreed to return the bodies of 19 soldiers to Russia as part of the agreement. Earlier in the week, a 'very unhappy' US President Donald Trump set a 50-day deadline for Russia to reach a ceasefire deal with Ukraine, or risk tariffs that could cripple the eastern superpower. Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far rejected calls for a ceasefire. 'The US president's statements are very serious. Some of them are addressed personally to President Putin,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier in the week.
Novaya Gazeta Europe
7 days ago
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Russian former news anchor sentenced in absentia to 8 years for Freedom of Russia Legion interview — Novaya Gazeta Europe
Russian former national news anchor Farida Kurbangaleyeva has been sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison, independent news outlet Mediazona reported on Friday. Kurbangaleyeva, who resigned from her role in protest over the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea and went into exile, was convicted of spreading 'false information' about the Russian military and 'justifying terrorism'. The second defendant in the case, Alexey Baranovsky, who fought for Ukraine as part of the Freedom of Russia Legion, which fights alongside the Armed Forces of Ukraine against the Russian military, was also sentenced in absentia to six years in a penal colony. The prosecution said that Kurbangaleyeva had 'consciously used her reputation and media resources as a former presenter on a national TV channel' to publish an interview with Baranovsky on her YouTube channel in May 2024, which included 'assertions of … heroism' regarding the legion's activities. The prosecution also considered posts on her Telegram channel to be 'false information' about the army. Kurbangaleyeva hosted the Vesti news programme on Russian state TV channel Rossiya-1 until 2014, and after going into exile she hosted the news on the Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty-affiliated TV channel Current Time from 2018 to 2021. She now lives in Prague and runs her own YouTube channel. Reacting to her sentence on her Telegram channel, Kurbangaleyeva wrote: 'I've decided to recover from the blow with a glass of rosé in a café in the town of Châteaufort near Paris. I have to think about how to live with all this…' A Moscow court first issued a warrant for Kurbangaleyeva's arrest in absentia in June 2024, when she was also added to the Russian government's list of 'foreign agents' and 'extremists and terrorists'. In February, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office lodged a formal request with Czechia for the extradition of Kurbangaleyeva, which was turned down. This was the first known instance of Russia submitting an extradition request to an EU country for a Russian citizen facing charges of justifying terrorism or spreading false information.
Novaya Gazeta Europe
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Trump pledges Patriot missiles for Ukraine amid growing frustration with Putin — Novaya Gazeta Europe
A Patriot air defence system unit placed at the Sliač airbase in central Slovakia, 10 May 2022. Photo: EPA/MARTIN DIVISEK US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Washington would provide Kyiv with additional Patriot air defence systems amid his growing frustration with Vladimir Putin. 'We will send them Patriots, which they desperately need, because Putin really surprised a lot of people,' Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, outside Washington. 'He talks nice and then he bombs everybody in the evening'. 'So, there's a little bit of a problem there. I don't like it,' Trump said of Russia's continued aerial attacks on Ukrainian cities in defiance of US calls for a ceasefire. The US would also send other pieces of 'very sophisticated' military equipment to Ukraine through NATO, with European countries to pay '100% for them', Trump added. On Thursday, Washington partially resumed arms and munition shipments to Kyiv, just days after the Trump administration suspended the supply of key weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Later that day, Trump said in an interview with NBC News that he was 'disappointed' with Russia and that he planned to make a 'major statement' on the war in Ukraine on Monday during a visit to Washington by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. On Sunday, Axios reported that Trump would announce an 'aggressive' plan to arm Ukraine on Monday, which would include supplying Kyiv with offensive weapons in a significant shift of the Trump administration's policy on the conflict. According to two unnamed diplomatic sources, among those weapons would be 'long-range missiles that could reach targets deep inside Russian territory, including Moscow', Axios said. Russia has escalated its aerial attacks on Ukraine in recent months, killing and injuring more Ukrainian civilians in June than in any other month since the initial period of its full-scale invasion in spring 2022, according to a UN report. Following one of Russia's deadliest attacks on Kyiv of the war so far on 17 June, in which 28 people were killed, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said large-scale Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities had become increasingly common since Trump took office in January, with Moscow emboldened to 'ramp up' its attacks as it faced 'no new consequences' from the West. According to Axios, Trump has become increasingly exasperated with Putin amid those continued attacks and Russia's resistance to a US-brokered ceasefire, with a call with the Russian leader earlier this month — in which Putin insisted Russia would 'not give up on its goals' in the war — reportedly convincing the US president to arm Ukraine.
