Latest news with #antiPersonnelMines
The Guardian
11 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy to pull Kyiv out of convention banning anti-personnel landmines
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday he had signed a decree to pull Ukraine out of the Ottawa Convention banning the production and use of anti-personnel mines as a necessary step in view of Russian tactics in their 40-month-old war. Ukraine ratified the convention in 2005. Other countries bordering Russia, notably Finland, Poland and the three ex-Soviet Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – have either withdrawn from the convention or indicated that they would do so. Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address that Russia had never been a party to the convention 'and is using anti-personnel mines with utmost cynicism' along with other weapons, including ballistic missiles. 'This is a hallmark of Russian killers. To destroy life by all means at their disposal … We see how our neighbours in Europe react to this threat,' he said. 'We also know the complexities of the withdrawal procedure when it is conducted during war. We take this political step and give a signal to our political partners on what to focus on. This concerns all countries that border Russia,' he said. Anti-personnel mines, Zelenskyy said, are 'often the instrument for which nothing can be substituted for defence purposes.' Russia fired more than 500 aerial weapons at Ukraine overnight to Sunday, in a barrage that Kyiv described as the biggest air attack so far of the three-year war. Ukraine's air force said that Russia had fired 477 drones and decoys as well as 60 missiles overnight. While 475 of these were shot down or lost, the onslaught marked the 'most massive airstrike' on the country since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine's air force. Officials confirmed three deaths and said another two died in Russian shelling. A Ukrainian F-16 fighter pilot died in a crash while repelling the Russian air attack. Zelenskyy praised the pilot, Maksym Ustymenko, and bestowed upon him posthumously the title of Hero of Ukraine, the country's highest decoration. The pilot flew the damaged jet away from a settlement but had no time to eject before it crashed, the Ukrainian air force said. 'The pilot used all of his onboard weapons and shot down seven air targets. While shooting down the last one, his aircraft was damaged and began to lose altitude,' the air force said on Telegram. The Kremlin said in remarks published on Sunday that the tougher the sanctions imposed on Russia by Europe, the more painful the recoil would be for Europe's own economies as Russia had grown resistant to such 'illegal' sanctions. The European Commission on 10 June proposed a new round of sanctions against Russia, targeting Moscow's energy revenues, its banks and its military industry, though the United States has so far refused to toughen its own sanctions. Russia's spy chief said on Sunday he spoke to his US counterpart, marking a new official exchange after their first call in mid-March amid rapprochement between Moscow and Washington. 'I had a telephone conversation with my American counterpart, and we agreed to call each other at any time to discuss issues of mutual interest,' Sergey Naryshkin said on Russian state television, without providing further details about his call with CIA chief John Ratcliffe.
Fox News
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Ukraine moves toward withdrawing from treaty banning anti-personnel mines
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree withdrawing his country from an international agreement banning the use of anti-personnel mines on Monday. The 1997 Ottawa Convention bans the use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of anti-personnel landmines under the reasoning that it causes too much danger to civilians after hostilities have ended. Ukraine was one of roughly 160 countries that had agreed to the treaty, though Russia never did. "Russia has never been a party to this convention and uses anti-personnel mines extremely cynically," Zelenskyy said in a statement. "And not only now, in the war against Ukraine. This is the signature style of Russian killers — to destroy life by all methods at their disposal." Zelenskyy's announcement is not the final step in formally withdrawing from the treaty, however, as Ukraine's parliament must now vote on the issue. Ukraine has suffered greatly in recent years from Russia's own use of anti-personnel landmines. Regions that Ukrainian forces have liberated from Russian invaders have been strewn with the devices, leading to injuries for both civilians and soldiers. News of Kyiv's pending withdrawal comes just a day after Moscow fired 537 aerial weapons toward Ukraine, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles, according to Ukraine's air force. Ukraine said it was the largest aerial attack so far in the war. Among the weapons, 249 were shot down and 226 were lost, likely electronically jammed. The attack was "the most massive airstrike" against Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine's air force, told the Associated Press, taking into account both drones and various types of missiles. Several regions were targeted, including western Ukraine, located far from the front line. Poland and allied countries scrambled aircraft to ensure the safety of Polish airspace, Poland's air force said. One person was killed in a drone strike in the Kherson region, according to Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin, while another died when a drone hit a car in the Kharkiv region, its Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said. Six people were wounded in Cherkasy, including a child, regional Gov. Ihor Taburets said. Ukraine's air force said one of its F-16 warplanes supplied by the West crashed after sustaining damage as it was shooting down air targets, killing the pilot.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine on track to withdraw from Ottawa anti-personnel mines treaty, Zelenskiy decree shows
(Corrects spelling of slug. No change to text.) KYIV (Reuters) -President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday he had signed a decree to pull Ukraine out of the Ottawa Convention banning the production and use of anti-personnel mines as a necessary step in view of Russian tactics in their 40-month-old war. Ukraine ratified the convention in 2005. Other countries bordering Russia, notably Finland, Poland and the three ex-Soviet Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - have either withdrawn from the convention or indicated that they would do so. Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address that Russia had never been a party to the convention "and is using anti-personnel mines with utmost cynicism" along with other weapons, including ballistic missiles. "This is a hallmark of Russian killers. To destroy life by all means at their disposal. ... We see how our neighbours in Europe react to this threat," he said. "We also know the complexities of the withdrawal procedure when it is conducted during war. We take this political step and give a signal to our political partners on what to focus on. This concerns all countries that border Russia," he said. Anti-personnel mines, Zelenskiy said, are "often the instrument for which nothing can be substituted for defence purposes." Russia has used anti-personnel mines extensively in parts of Ukraine where its forces have been operating. Ukraine sees the clearing of such mines as a key element in post-war recovery. The decree appearing on the president's website calls for support for a Ukrainian foreign ministry proposal to "withdraw Ukraine from the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction of September 18, 1997." A senior Ukrainian lawmaker, Roman Kostenko, said that parliamentary approval was still needed to withdraw from the treaty. "This is a step that the reality of war has long demanded. Russia is not a party to this Convention and is massively using mines against our military and civilians," Kostenko, secretary of the Ukrainian parliament's committee on national security, defence and intelligence, said on his Facebook page. "We cannot remain tied down in an environment where the enemy has no restrictions," he added, saying that the legislative decision must definitively restore Ukraine's right to effectively defend its territory. Russia has intensified its offensive operations in Ukraine in recent months, using significant superiority in manpower. Kostenko did not say when the issue would be debated in parliament.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy to pull Kyiv out of convention banning anti-personnel landmines
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday he had signed a decree to pull Ukraine out of the Ottawa Convention banning the production and use of anti-personnel mines as a necessary step in view of Russian tactics in their 40-month-old war. Ukraine ratified the convention in 2005. Other countries bordering Russia, notably Finland, Poland and the three ex-Soviet Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – have either withdrawn from the convention or indicated that they would do so. Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address that Russia had never been a party to the convention 'and is using anti-personnel mines with utmost cynicism' along with other weapons, including ballistic missiles. 'This is a hallmark of Russian killers. To destroy life by all means at their disposal … We see how our neighbours in Europe react to this threat,' he said. 'We also know the complexities of the withdrawal procedure when it is conducted during war. We take this political step and give a signal to our political partners on what to focus on. This concerns all countries that border Russia,' he said. Anti-personnel mines, Zelenskyy said, are 'often the instrument for which nothing can be substituted for defence purposes.' Russia fired more than 500 aerial weapons at Ukraine overnight to Sunday, in a barrage that Kyiv described as the biggest air attack so far of the three-year war. Ukraine's air force said that Russia had fired 477 drones and decoys as well as 60 missiles overnight. While 475 of these were shot down or lost, the onslaught marked the 'most massive airstrike' on the country since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine's air force. Officials confirmed three deaths and said another two died in Russian shelling. A Ukrainian F-16 fighter pilot died in a crash while repelling the Russian air attack. Zelenskyy praised the pilot, Maksym Ustymenko, and bestowed upon him posthumously the title of Hero of Ukraine, the country's highest decoration. The pilot flew the damaged jet away from a settlement but had no time to eject before it crashed, the Ukrainian air force said. 'The pilot used all of his onboard weapons and shot down seven air targets. While shooting down the last one, his aircraft was damaged and began to lose altitude,' the air force said on Telegram. The Kremlin said in remarks published on Sunday that the tougher the sanctions imposed on Russia by Europe, the more painful the recoil would be for Europe's own economies as Russia had grown resistant to such 'illegal' sanctions. The European Commission on 10 June proposed a new round of sanctions against Russia, targeting Moscow's energy revenues, its banks and its military industry, though the United States has so far refused to toughen its own sanctions. Russia's spy chief said on Sunday he spoke to his US counterpart, marking a new official exchange after their first call in mid-March amid rapprochement between Moscow and Washington. 'I had a telephone conversation with my American counterpart, and we agreed to call each other at any time to discuss issues of mutual interest,' Sergey Naryshkin said on Russian state television, without providing further details about his call with CIA chief John Ratcliffe.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Ukraine on track to withdraw from Ottawa anti-personnel mines treaty, Zelensky decree shows
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday he had signed a decree to pull Ukraine out of the Ottawa Convention banning the production and use of anti-personnel mines as a necessary step in view of Russian tactics in their 40-month-old war. Advertisement Ukraine ratified the convention in 2005. Other countries bordering Russia, notably Finland Poland and the three ex-Soviet Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – have either withdrawn from the convention or indicated that they would do so. Zelensky said in his nightly video address that Russia had never been a party to the convention 'and is using anti-personnel mines with utmost cynicism' along with other weapons, including ballistic missiles. 'This is a hallmark of Russian killers. To destroy life by all means at their disposal. … We see how our neighbours in Europe react to this threat,' he said. Advertisement 'We also know the complexities of the withdrawal procedure when it is conducted during war. We take this political step and give a signal to our political partners on what to focus on. This concerns all countries that border Russia,' he said. Anti-personnel mines, Zelensky said, are 'often the instrument for which nothing can be substituted for defence purposes'.
