Ukraine
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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologized to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he called a “tragic incident” following the crash of an Azerbaijani airliner in Kazakhstan that killed 38 people, but stopped short of acknowledging that Moscow was responsible. Putin’s apology came as allegations mounted that the plane had been shot down by Russian air defenses…
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In case you missed it, Joe Biden has asked his defence team to continue its surge of weapons deliveries to Ukraine. After condemning Russia’s Christmas Day attack, Biden said he has already responded by reaffirming Washington’s commitment to Ukraine’s defence. “The purpose of this outrageous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to…
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Vladimir Putin says there is no time left this year to sign a new Ukrainian gas transit deal, blaming Ukraine for refusing to extend the agreement. The current five-year deal that supplies Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Austria with Russian gas via Ukraine expires at the end of the year. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Kyiv…
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Holes can be seen on the side of the Azerbaijani Airlines plane reportedly shot down by Russian air defence systems yesterday. Images from the crash site show what appears to be shrapnel damage littered across the tail section of the plane, which went down in the Kazakh city of Aktau. ‘Early indications’ that Russian air…
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In case you missed it, Moscow has denied claims Bashar al Assad’s wife is seeking a divorce and a route out of Russia, where the couple are staying. The deposed Syrian dictator has been in the Russian capital with Asma al Assad since rebels forced him out of power in a lightning offensive earlier this…
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Russia has received proposals from various countries to host talks between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, according to a Kremlin aide. Yuri Ushakov declined to say which countries had made offers. Trump has said he wants to swiftly end the war in Ukraine but is yet to make public how he intends to do so.…
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We have been reporting today on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s visit to Russia. The Czech government has now criticised the move, pointing to its own decision to wean itself off Russian energy. “It was the Czech government that secured independence from Russian energy supplies so that we wouldn’t have to crawl in front of…
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Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s dependency on Moscow and unwillingness to replace Russian gas is a “big security issue” for Europe, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. In a statement posted online, the Ukrainian leader said Fico did not want to participate “in the common European work on energy independence or seek replacement for Russian gas”, but…
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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has accused Russia of using illegal migration into Europe to destabilise the bloc. Speaking at a news conference in Finland yesterday, Ms Meloni said: “We have to understand the threat is much wider than we imagine.” She went on to say that the danger to EU security from Russia or…
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Vladimir Putin has repeated his assertion that he should have invaded Ukraine earlier, the Institute for the Study of War reports. In an interview with Kremlin journalist Pavel Zarubin yesterday, the Russian leader said his country should have started its full-scale invasion before February 2022 but added that it was impossible to say exactly when that should…
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NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has said he considers the criticism of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz by Volodymyr Zelenskyy to be unjustified. Although Germany has been a vital ally of Ukraine, its hesitation in providing long-range Taurus cruise missiles has been a source of frustration in Kyiv, which is battling a foe armed with a powerful…
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Vladimir Putin yesterday hosted Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico, in a rare visit to the Kremlin by an EU leader since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Fico arrived in Russia on a “working visit” and met with Putin one-on-one yesterday evening, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s RIA news agency. Peskov said the…
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We’ve read reactions over the last 24 hours to Vladimir Putin’s comments encouraging a “missile duel” between Russia and the US. The Russian president suggested the two superpowers could use Kyiv as a target to see which country’s missiles were able to bypass US air defences. His comments drew international condemnation, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy labelling…
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Kyiv church damaged during missile attack There was a missile attack in Kyiv damaged the capital’s second-oldest Catholic church. Windows were broken on the front of the St Nicholas Church, with the business centre located opposite the building severely damaged by the Russian attack. Ukrainian military pulls back from areas in the east Ukraine’s military…
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Viktor Orban says he’s still holding out hope that Russia and Ukraine may agree to a ceasefire and large-scale prisoner exchange before Orthodox Christmas. Hungary’s prime minister noted that Kyiv and Moscow were unlikely to reach such an agreement by Catholic Christmas, celebrated on 25 December. “Therefore, I will try to make it happen by…
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his country has been hit by Christmas attacks on its energy infrastructure for the third time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began. Moscow launched a huge aerial attack on Ukraine’s energy facilities last Friday, which Zelenskyy said was one of the largest yet on the grid. The attack damaged power facilities…
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