Contents tagged with Ukraine

  • German Foreign Minister: Russia's annexation of Crimea a ‘fatal violation of international law’

    On the anniversary of the Crimea’s annexation by Russia, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas deplored Russia’s actions in the peninsula. “This fatal violation of law is now in its fifth year. Russia tried to shift boundaries by resorting to military force. Those who act like this destroy trust and put in question basic principles of peaceful coexistence,” Maas stated on Twitter.

    Earlier, the Foreign Ministry of the Czech Republic stated that although the Crimea has been annexed by Russia, it is …

  • President Poroshenko promises to do everything possible to return Crimea to Ukraine after elections

    President Petro Poroshenko, in an interview with the TV channel Ukraina, stressed that there is no more important task for the Ukrainian government than to ensure the restoration of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of the Ukrainian state, reports the press service of the head of state.

    “We need to understand who we are facing. One of the largest military machines in the world is totalitarian, and today it has set the task of the illegal annexation of the Crimea. And the …

  • Klimkin wants to issue Ukrainian passports to Ukrainians living abroad

    Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin supports the provision of dual citizenship to Ukrainian living abroad.

    “Ukrainians are forced to leave Ukraine and work abroad. This is not a disaster, but it is a great challenge for Ukraine. These people are also part of Ukraine,” the foreign minister said in an interview with the Kultura Radio Channel.

    “I generally support dual citizenship for these Ukrainians and I consistently speak for it. I believe that we should just establish the criteria [ …

  • Russian Foreign Ministry: Western sanctions against Russia are ‘hypocritical'

    On Saturday, Moscow condemned the “hypocrisy” of new Western sanctions imposed against a number of Russian officials because of their involvement in the seizure of Ukrainian vessels in the Kerch Strait last year. The Kremlin warned that Russia will respond to the Western states’ actions.

    On Friday, the United States, Canada and the European Union introduced new sanctions against more than a dozen Russian officials and companies in response to the ongoing Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine.

    “ …

  • President Poroshenko begins to reform Ukraine’s defense procurement system after corruption scandal

    Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, signed a decree enacting the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine( NSDC) "On the reform of the military-industrial complex and increasing the level of transparency in the implementation of the state defense order," reports the press service of the President of Ukraine.

    The decision was made because of “the need to strengthen the role of domestic defense enterprises <...> in fulfilling the tasks of providing security and defense …

  • Washington: Russia's 'referendum' in Crimea 'a farce at the barrel of a gun'

    The so-called “’referendum’ at the barrel of a gun”, conducted by Russia in the Crimea five years ago, was a farce, wrote State Department Deputy Spokesperson Robert Palladino on Twitter. He remarked that it was “rightfully condemned by the international community”.

    On July 25, 2018, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued the Crimea Declaration whereby the United States rejected Russia’s annexation of the Crimea. Pompeo stated that the United States pledged to maintain this policy until …

  • Ukraine will not receive macro-financial assistance from the EU in March

    The Ukrainian Financial Ministry stated that Kyiv might not have time to get macro-financial assistance from the EU in the amount of 500 million euro by the end of March 2019.

    "Now, the [EU] assessment mission is working and drawing its conclusions. We have very little time left till the end of this month and we should count on future periods [for funding],” Deputy Minister of Finance Vasyl Shkurakov said. He estimated that Ukraine should receive about 4 billion dollars from external creditors …

  • Russia postpones satellite launch due to lack of components from Ukraine

    RIA Novosti reports, citing its source in the rocket and space industry, that the launch of three Gonets-M low orbit communication satellites using the Rokot carrier from the Plesetsk cosmodrome had been postponed from May to June due to the lack of control system equipment produced by Ukraine.

    “They cannot launch Gonets-M [satellites] since 2017 due to a lack of components from Ukraine, needed to control systems of the upper stage Briz-KM. System hardware equipment is produced at the Kharkiv …

  • Ukraine resumes construction of the wall on the border with Russia

    An assistant to Head of State Border Service of Ukraine Oleh Slobodyan stated that on March 1, Ukraine resumed construction of the so-called "Wall" on the Russian-Ukrainian border.

    According to him, since the beginning of March, workers laid about 500 meters of ditches bringing the total to 4.5 kilometers since the start of the year. They have also installed 120 meters of Yegoza-type fences for a total of 6 km since the start of the year. 1200 meters of road has been prepared. In Zolochiv …

  • Russia promises ‘a practical response’ to new U.S. and Canadian sanctions

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation responded to the new sanctions against Russia, imposed by the US and Canada because of Moscow’s actions against Ukraine, promising a “practical response”, which “will certainly ensue”.

    "At the same time for everyone except, perhaps, the authors of such decisions, it is obvious that the sanctions, no matter how many, do not lead to the desired results for the United States and Canada. By believing in their own infallibility, they …