Latest news with #VioletaSantosMoura
Straits Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Many Ukrainians baulk at conceding land to Russia, entangling nascent peace process
Alla Chuhunova, 79, and Anatolii Chuhunov, 77, displaced residents from Mariupol, drink tea at a shelter for refugees from Mariupol, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, Dnipro, Ukraine, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura Displaced Mariupol resident Anastasiia Kovaliova, 40, watches her two children at a playroom at a shelter for refugees from Mariupol, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, Dnipro, Ukraine, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura Liudmyla Lytvyn, 65, and Oleksandr Lytvyn, 65, displaced residents from Mariupol, speak to journalists at a shelter for refugees from Mariupol, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, Dnipro, Ukraine, April 8, 2025. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura KYIV/DNIPRO, Ukraine - Mariupol natives Oleksandr and Liudmyla Lytvyn fled home three years ago during Russia's 86-day siege of the port city in southern Ukraine. Now they are following peace talks between the warring countries anxiously, fearing they may never return. Mariupol, home to more than 400,000 people before the full-scale invasion, was seized by Russian forces in May 2022 when the city's last defenders were ordered to surrender, ending one of the bloodiest chapters of the war. "We lived our entire life in Mariupol. I believe until the very last that it will be Ukrainian. I do not know how," Liudmyla, 65, a retired teacher, told Reuters. Her longing to see occupied land back under Ukrainian control is widely shared, presenting a challenge to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as he comes under pressure to consider territorial concessions under any peace agreement with Russia. Ukraine has given no indication it is willing to do so, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has pushed Kyiv to cede not only occupied territory but also land not controlled by Moscow, while the United States has said loss of land seems inevitable. More than three years into its full-scale invasion, Russia controls nearly one fifth of Ukraine and its troops are making incremental but steady gains in the east. Zelenskiy himself has acknowledged that Ukraine cannot recapture all of its lost territory through military force, but wants to settle the issue through diplomacy. Oleksandr, 65, said the issue of what Ukraine may have to give up in return for peace depends not only on Kyiv. "The issue here is whether there are any limits on weapons," he said, referring to doubts over whether the U.S. will continue military support for Ukraine now that Donald Trump is in the White House and moving closer to Russia. "It depends not only on Zelenskiy but also on other matters, weapons in particular," Oleksandr added, sitting next to his wife in a dormitory in the central city of Dnipro where they have moved temporarily. Without U.S. military backing, Ukraine's position in negotiations would be significantly weakened. RARE DIRECT TALKS This month Kyiv and Moscow held their first direct talks since 2022, yielding little progress on ending the war. After a subsequent phone call between Trump and Putin, the U.S. president appeared to withdraw from efforts to mediate peace, leaving Ukraine exposed against a larger enemy. For displaced residents of Mariupol - the largest Ukrainian city to fall to the Russians since 2022 - that raises concerns not only about territorial concessions but also over whether justice will be served. Vadym Boichenko, Mariupol's mayor-in-exile, said his team gathered evidence showing at least 22,000 civilians were killed in nearly three months of fighting that reduced a city once famous for its vibrant port and giant steel plants to rubble. Human Rights Watch, along with Truth Hounds and SITU Research, estimated 8,000 people died from fighting or war-related causes, although it could not establish how many were civilians and said the true count may be significantly higher. Reuters could not independently verify estimates of the death toll. Russia pounded Mariupol with artillery, rockets and missiles and cut off access to electricity, heating, fresh water, food and medical supplies - creating a humanitarian catastrophe, Boichenko added. "All we ask for is recognition (of the alleged crimes) and punishment," Boichenko said in Kyiv in one of the 'IMariupol' centres set up in 22 cities across Ukraine to help displaced residents with basic needs. Russia's defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment on this article. Russia says it liberated the city from Ukrainian "neo-Nazis", using one of the main justifications for its invasion that Kyiv and its allies dismiss as absurd. Moscow-installed authorities have overseen a major reconstruction programme in Mariupol, and hold it up as a symbol of the benefits of Russia's annexation of four Ukrainian regions as well as the Crimean peninsula. Russia blames Ukraine's armed forces for the city's destruction, alleging they used the local population as human shields. Ukraine rejects that accusation. SWEEPING DEMANDS Moscow has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its troops from four Ukrainian regions where fighting is raging, even though it does not control all of them. The overwhelming majority of Ukrainians - 82% - reject those demands, according to an opinion poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology conducted in May. Slightly more than half of the population - 51% - would support a compromise with a de-facto recognition of currently occupied territories in exchange for robust security guarantees from Europe and the U.S., even though the latter has indicated it would not provide them. But about 40% considered this unacceptable, raising questions over how Ukraine and Russia can break the deadlock in a nascent peace process. "It is not fair to leave them what they took away. It is our land," said Dmytro, 35, who had settled in Mariupol after being forced to leave the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk in 2015. Dmytro, now also based in Dnipro but concerned he might have to flee again, declined to give his last name as his mother and grandmother still live in the occupied Donetsk region. "What we lived through in Mariupol is horror," he said, recollecting how he shielded his son, now 10, from bombardment and cooked food on open fires in the streets. He fled Mariupol in March 2022. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
Arsenal 'ladies saved the club' after Champions League crown, says Wright
Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Final - Arsenal v FC Barcelona - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - May 24, 2025 Arsenal players pose with the trophy after winning the Champions League REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Final - Arsenal v FC Barcelona - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - May 24, 2025 Arsenal's Alessia Russo, Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy, Chloe Kelly and Beth Mead celebrate with the trophy after winning the Champions League REUTERS/Rodrigo Antunes Former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright said the women's team have saved the north London club after they beat defending champions Barcelona 1-0 on Saturday to win their second Champions League title after an 18-year wait. Renee Slegers' Arsenal, featuring in their first Champions League final since lifting the trophy in 2007, held firm to deny favourites Barcelona a third consecutive European crown. Arsenal withstood a flurry of chances from Barcelona before forward Stina Blackstenius struck a winner in the 75th minute, to the delight of their 5,000 travelling fans at the Jose Alvalade Stadium in Lisbon. "The ladies have saved the club. We've got something to celebrate," Wright said, adding that Arsenal should hold a parade in north London for their Champions League win. "They have beaten Barcelona in the Champions League, no one gave them a chance. Even I was saying it was going to be tough because they average four goals a game. "The embarrassment of not getting anything this season when we played so well with the men," he said. The women "deserve everything they are getting, all the accolades because this is a magnificent achievement." Barcelona were playing in their sixth final in seven years, with a team widely regarded as the best in the world, featuring Ballon d'Or winners Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmati, two of the most influential midfielders in the women's game. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
24-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Arsenal stun Barca to win Champions League with late Blackstenius goal
Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Final - Arsenal v FC Barcelona - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - May 24, 2025 Arsenal's Stina Blackstenius scores their first goal REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura LISBON (Reuters) -Arsenal forward Stina Blackstenius struck a late winner as the London team shocked holders Barcelona 1-0 on Saturday to claim their second Women's Champions League title. Arsenal withstood a flurry of Barca chances before Sweden's Blackstenius broke the deadlock in the 75th minute when she latched onto fellow substitute Beth Mead's reverse pass in a crowded penalty area and fired a low diagonal shot past goalkeeper Catalina Coll at the Estadio Jose Alvalade. Renee Slegers's Gunners, who were making just their second appearance in the final in 18 years having won Europe's top competition in 2007, held on for a stunning victory to the delight of their 5,000 travelling fans. The win comes against a mighty Barcelona team playing in their sixth final in seven years and who had hoisted the trophy in three of the past four campaigns. Saturday's reverse was just their fourth loss of the season across all competitions. (Reporting by Lori Ewing; Editing by Ken Ferris)
The Star
23-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Favourites Barcelona not taking Arsenal lightly in women's CL final
Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Final - FC Barcelona Training - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - May 23, 2025 FC Barcelona's Salma Paralluelo during training REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura LISBON (Reuters) - Although Barcelona are strong favourites to hoist the women's Champions League trophy on Saturday for the fourth time in five years, they will be taking nothing for granted. Barcelona play Arsenal at Lisbon's Estadio Jose Alvalade and while the London side were the 2007 champions and once regulars in the competition's latter stages, the pendulum has now swung heavily in the Spanish side's favour. Barcelona players have made 48 collective appearances in Champions League finals, according to Opta Sports, while Mariona Caldentey is their only Arsenal player to have featured in the final, playing in five for Barcelona between 2019-24. "A final is unpredictable. There may be things you can't control," Barca midfielder Alexia Putellas told reporters on Friday. "We know we can do it. It is true that Arsenal are a great team and that they are in the final for a reason." Aitana Bonmati, the Ballon d'Or winner in 2023 and 2024, said the experience gained from previous finals was invaluable. "I've learned a lot of things. It is the path that has fallen to us. The first final in Budapest was an inexperienced team that was going to see what happened. Now we are the team to beat," she said. "Knowing how to be, knowing how to suffer is very important. And never giving up. We have had finals where we have come back. We have had games of all colours." Arsenal were Barcelona's first opponents in Europe's top club competition in the 2012-13 season, when the English side crushed the Catalans 7-0 over two legs. Barcelona were nowhere near as good as they are now, however. They overwhelmed Chelsea, who went unbeaten across the 22-game Women's Super League season en route to winning the title, 8-2 on aggregate in the Champions League semi-finals. "Everything leads you to be what you are now," Putellas said. "In that first match of this competition it was unthinkable what would come next. It's thanks to work. I feel privileged to have been able to live this whole journey." Barcelona coach Pere Romeu described Arsenal as a "brave team" who are strong in the box. "We will have to show our best version," he said. "We know the type of game we want to play. We are a team with records, with mastery at different times. We will try to exploit the space they leave us." (Reporting by Lori Ewing, editing by Ed Osmond)
The Star
10-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Atletico's Sorloth grabs all four goals and sets record in Sociedad rout
Soccer Football - LaLiga - Atletico Madrid v Real Sociedad - Metropolitano, Madrid, Spain - May 10, 2025 Atletico Madrid's Alexander Sorloth scores their second goal REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura MADRID (Reuters) -Atletico Madrid striker Alexander Sorloth scored four goals inside 30 minutes, including the fastest hat-trick in LaLiga history, in a 4-0 home win over Real Sociedad on Saturday. The Norwegian forward completed his treble in the opening 11 minutes, the earliest ever in the competition, before adding a fourth goal to seal the rout on the half-hour. Atletico, who are out of the title race, sit third on 70 points, nine adrift of leaders Barcelona and five behind Real Madrid who face off in a potential title decider on Sunday. Real Sociedad are 12th with 43 points. (Reporting by Anita Kobylinska in Gdansk; Editing by Ken Ferris)
