Latest news with #Ukraine-held
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bulgaria backpedals on nuclear reactor sale to Ukraine
Bulgaria is backing off from a deal to sell two of its Russian-made nuclear reactors that Ukraine sought for the expansion of the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant, Forbes Bulgaria reported on April 16. The move comes as a turnaround in a deal that has been debated since 2023 and was approved by Ukraine's legislature earlier this year. Bulgaria's deputy prime minister and chairman of the co-ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), Atanas Zafirov, announced the news, arguing that Sofia needs to develop its nuclear energy capacities, especially amid rising electricity prices. Boyko Borisov's GERB party, which originally backed the sale in 2023, also supported canceling the deal. The Ukrainian parliament approved in February the purchase of Bulgaria's older VVER-1000 reactors and other equipment for Units 3 and 4 of the western Ukrainian nuclear power plant, despite heavy criticism. While Ukraine needs to expand its nuclear energy production capacity amid Russian attacks on the power grid, some lawmakers criticized the deal, claiming that the reactors are obsolete and expensive. The parliament has long struggled to pass the law, prompting Bulgaria to extend the deadline for concluding the deal until March. Nuclear power is key in sustaining Ukraine's energy grid, covering more than half of the country's electricity consumption. Russian missile and drone attacks have dealt devastating damage to Ukraine's thermal and hydroelectric generating capacity, necessitating periods of emergency shutdowns. The Khmelnytskyi plant, one of the three remaining operational nuclear stations in Ukraine-held territories, is being expanded to offset the loss of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, currently under Russian occupation. The decision to abort the deal was reportedly preceded by disagreements on price. While Ukraine planned to allocate $600 million for the reactors, Bulgaria requested an additional $100 million, Ukrainian lawmaker Andrii Zhupanyn said. Read also: Can civilian areas ever be legitimate military targets? We asked an expert We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine's military 'preserving maximum of lives of our soldiers' in Kursk Oblast, Zelensky says
Ukrainian troops operating in Russia's Kursk Oblast continue in their tasks despite intense Russian pressure, President Volodymyr Zelensky said during a briefing on March 12. 'The military command is doing what it should do, preserving the maximum of lives of our soldiers," Zelensky said, urging a "sober" assessment of the battlefield situation rather than reacting to Russian information warfare. His remarks come as multiple Ukrainian and Russian sources claimed that Russian troops had entered Sudzha, a key Ukrainian-held stronghold in the Russian border region of Kursk. Russian news agency TASS published purported drone footage showing that Russian troops had entered the town center and raised a Russian flag. The Ukrainian military has not publicly commented on the claims. Roman Kostenko, secretary of the parliamentary defense committee, acknowledged that the situation in Kursk Oblast is "complicated" but said Ukrainian forces are working to stabilize the front line. "I talked to the soldiers in the morning; they do not confirm our complete withdrawal from Sudzha... I have no information that our troops have completely left Sudzha as of two hours ago," Kostenko said at a press briefing. Read also: Ukraine doesn't trust Russia but wants to show US its readiness for peace, Zelensky says on ceasefire deal Sudzha is located less than 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Ukrainian border and 85 kilometers (53 miles) from the regional capital, Kursk. Russia launched a renewed offensive in Kursk Oblast last week and reportedly made rapid advances. The developments coincided with the U.S. instituting a temporary pause on all military and intelligence support for Ukraine. Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said on March 10 that there is no immediate threat of encirclement as Ukrainian forces are repositioning to "favorable defense lines." Ukraine launched the cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast in August 2024, initially seizing around 1,300 square kilometers (500 square miles) of Russian territory. Since then, Russian forces, reinforced by North Korean troops, have steadily pushed back against Ukrainian forces. Read also: Russia reportedly enters Ukraine-held Sudzha in Kursk Oblast; Kyiv hasn't confirmed We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine doesn't trust Russia but wants to show US its readiness for peace, Zelensky says on ceasefire deal
Ukraine wanted to demonstrate to U.S. President Donald Trump and its European partners that it is serious about ending the war, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 12 about why Kyiv agreed to Washington's temporary truce proposal. While Ukraine initially proposed a partial ceasefire that would extend only to aerial and naval operations, U.S. delegates proposed a full truce during talks with Ukrainian officials in Jeddah on March 11. After receiving the proposal, Zelensky said Ukraine was "ready for a 30-day ceasefire format offered by the U.S. side." "I have repeatedly stressed that none of us trust Russia... but we will not play with narratives that we want the war to continue," Zelensky said at a press conference. "I am very serious, and it is important for me to end the war. I want the U.S. president to see this; so that Europe and everybody unites to push Russia toward ending the war." After a heated exchange between Trump and Zelensky in the White House on Feb. 28, the Trump administration accused Ukraine of not being ready for peace and froze military and intelligence assistance. The pause was lifted after Kyiv agreed to the ceasefire deal. The Ukrainian president also noted that the ceasefire would be only the first step toward a full peace. After the war ends, martial law will be lifted, and elections will be held, he added. The Trump administration has been pressuring Ukraine to hold elections even before a full peace agreement, even though the Ukrainian Constitution prohibits this under martial law. According to Zelensky, support from Kyiv's international partners will be required for "technical monitoring" of a full ceasefire. He also raised the question of whether Moscow is open to the agreement. The Kremlin has not voiced an official position on the proposal until it can discuss it with Washington. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said discussions with Russia would be held on March 12. Reuters reported earlier the same day that, according to undisclosed Russian officials, Russia is unlikely to agree to the proposal unless it takes into account Moscow's battlefield advances and other demands. Read also: Russia reportedly enters Ukraine-held Sudzha in Kursk Oblast; Kyiv hasn't confirmed We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Al Arabiya
09-03-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Russia claims counteroffensive into Ukraine's Sumy region
Russia on Sunday announced it had captured territory in Ukraine's Sumy region for the first time since 2022 in a cross-border offensive as Kyiv struggles to hold onto territory in Russia's neighboring Kursk region. Russia also claimed the recapture of four new villages in its Kursk border region as its troops pushed on against Ukrainian soldiers who had seized territory there. Kyiv wants to use the territory it holds in Kursk as a potential bargaining chip in any peace negotiations. US and Ukrainian negotiators are set to meet for talks in Saudi Arabia next week, with US President Donald Trump's administration keen to secure a ceasefire and a 'framework' for a peace agreement. The United States has cut off Ukraine's access to intelligence sharing and satellite data in a bid to force it to negotiate. The Russian defense ministry said in a briefing that its forces, in a counteroffensive, had 'liberated' the small village of Novenke in Sumy near the border with Kursk. Russia briefly occupied parts of Sumy at the start of its all-out invasion in 2022 but has not conquered any territory there since. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in mid-February that his forces had entered this part of northeastern Ukraine, a claim branded a 'lie' by Kyiv, although it has acknowledged isolated attacks. Novenke is located about a kilometer (less than one mile) from Kursk and Russian military bloggers said its capture brought troops closer to blocking a major Ukrainian supply route. Kyiv has not yet commented on Russia's claim to have captured Novenke. Incursion's 'final phase' Ukraine's state Centre for Countering Disinformation on Saturday denied reports of a 'massive breakthrough' by Russia, saying its own forces were destroying small groups trying to cross the border. Russia on Sunday announced the recapture of the villages of Lebedevka, Malaya Loknya, Cherkasskoye Porechnoye and Kositsa in Kursk, bringing its troops closer to taking back the Ukraine-held town of Sudzha, about 10 kilometers (six miles) away. Ukraine launched its incursion into Kursk last August, seizing territory as a buffer zone. But since then, Russia has taken back more than two-thirds of the territory. A Russian army commander, Apti Alaudinov, wrote on Telegram on Saturday that 'all units have launched a large-scale offensive across all areas on the Kursk section of the front.' A Russian military blogger, Yevgeny Poddubny, on Sunday wrote that the Kursk incursion 'is in its final phase.' Prominent Ukrainian journalist Yuriy Butusov wrote on Sunday that holding onto the Kursk territory was no longer tactically justified. Gas pipe Ukraine's General Staff on Saturday confirmed reports that Russian special forces had used an underground gas pipe to reach the outskirts of the main town controlled by Ukraine in the region, Sudzha. Kyiv said its aerial reconnaissance had spotted the troops, who were 'being detected, blocked and destroyed.' Russian military bloggers wrote that troops crawled some 15 kilometers (nine miles) through a pipe with a diameter of 1.4 meters. They hailed the attack as a feat, said the troops had achieved their objective, and that fighting was ongoing in Sudzha. Russia supplied gas to Europe via Ukraine until January of this year and Sudzha was a hub for transferring and measuring gas. Russia also claimed the capture of another village in east Ukraine. Its troops are advancing in the Donetsk region and are close to crossing a symbolic border into the central Dnipropetrovsk region, which so far has been free of fighting. The defense ministry said troops had taken the village of Kostyantynopil, around 13 kilometers from the regional frontier and 50 kilometers west of the large Russian-held city of Donetsk. Russia's advances come as the prospect of peace talks appears increasingly likely, with Ukrainian and US negotiators meeting next week in Saudi Arabia. US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said his team wanted 'to get down a framework for a peace agreement and an initial ceasefire as well' at the talks set for Tuesday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine is 'fully committed to constructive dialogue,' while wanting its interests to be 'taken into account in the right way.'
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia claims counter-offensive into Ukraine's Sumy region
Russia on Sunday announced it had captured territory in Ukraine's Sumy region for the first time since 2022 in a cross-border offensive as Kyiv struggles to hold onto territory in Russia's neighbouring Kursk region. Russia also claimed the recapture of four new villages in its Kursk border region as its troops pushed on against Ukrainian soldiers who had seized territory there. Kyiv wants to use the territory it holds in Kursk as a potential bargaining chip in any peace negotiations. US and Ukrainian negotiators are set to meet for talks in Saudi Arabia next week, with US President Donald Trump's administration keen to secure a ceasefire and a "framework" for a peace agreement. The United States has cut off Ukraine's access to intelligence sharing and satellite data in a bid to force it to negotiate. The Russian defence ministry said in a briefing that its forces, in a counter-offensive, had "liberated" the small village of Novenke in Sumy near the border with Kursk. Russia briefly occupied parts of Sumy at the start of its all-out invasion in 2022 but has not conquered any territory there since. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in mid-February that his forces had entered this part of northeastern Ukraine, a claim branded a "lie" by Kyiv, although it has acknowledged isolated attacks. Novenke is located about a kilometre (less than one mile) from Kursk and Russian military bloggers said its capture brought troops closer to blocking a major Ukrainian supply route. Kyiv has not yet commented on Russia's claim to have captured Novenke. - Incursion's 'final phase' - Ukraine's state Centre for Countering Disinformation on Saturday denied reports of a "massive breakthrough" by Russia, saying its own forces were destroying small groups trying to cross the border. Russia on Sunday announced the recapture of the villages of Lebedevka, Malaya Loknya, Cherkasskoye Porechnoye and Kositsa in Kursk, bringing its troops closer to taking back the Ukraine-held town of Sudzha, about 10 kilometres (six miles) away. Ukraine launched its incursion into Kursk last August, seizing territory as a buffer zone. But since then, Russia has taken back more than two-thirds of the territory. A Russian army commander, Apti Alaudinov, wrote on Telegram on Saturday that "all units have launched a large-scale offensive across all areas on the Kursk section of the front". A Russian military blogger, Yevgeny Poddubny, on Sunday wrote that the Kursk incursion "is in its final phase". Prominent Ukrainian journalist Yuriy Butusov wrote on Sunday that holding onto the Kursk territory was no longer tactically justified. - Gas pipe - Ukraine's General Staff on Saturday confirmed reports that Russian special forces had used an underground gas pipe to reach the outskirts of the main town controlled by Ukraine in the region, Sudzha. Kyiv said its aerial reconnaissance had spotted the troops, who were "being detected, blocked and destroyed". Russian military bloggers wrote that troops crawled some 15 kilometres (nine miles) through a pipe with a diameter of 1.4 metres. They hailed the attack as a feat, said the troops had achieved their objective, and that fighting was ongoing in Sudzha. Russia supplied gas to Europe via Ukraine until January of this year and Sudzha was a hub for transferring and measuring gas. Russia also claimed the capture of another village in east Ukraine. Its troops are advancing in the Donetsk region and are close to crossing a symbolic border into the central Dnipropetrovsk region, which so far has been free of fighting. The defence ministry said troops had taken the village of Kostyantynopil, around 13 kilometres from the regional frontier and 50 kilometres west of the large Russian-held city of Donetsk. Russia's advances come as the prospect of peace talks appears increasingly likely, with Ukrainian and US negotiators meeting next week in Saudi Arabia. US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said his team wanted "to get down a framework for a peace agreement and an initial ceasefire as well" at the talks set for Tuesday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine is "fully committed to constructive dialogue", while wanting its interests to be "taken into account in the right way". bur/sbk/rlp
