Contents tagged with Ukraine

  • Ukrainian energy companies file suit against Russia for lost assets

    Two Ukrainian energy companies have brought a claim to the UN Arbitration Court asking for compensation for losses due to the inability to control assets in the Crimea after the peninsula was annexed by Russia, as reported by Reuters on Monday, May 2nd.

    According to the agency, the two companies involved are Ukrnafta and Stabil.

    They contend that Russia violated its obligations under the Russian-Ukrainian bilateral investment agreement by "expropriating" the investments of these companies …

  • New negotiations of the 'Normandy Format' to be held in Berlin

    German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has requested that representatives of the Normandy Four hold a meeting focusing on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine.

    He has invited his colleagues from Russia, Ukraine and France to discuss a way to resolve the crisis in the Donbas. Negotiations in the Normandy Format will be held on the 11th of May in Berlin.

    “I consider it necessary to make a new attempt to overcome the relationship barrier between Kiev and Moscow. Too much time has …

  • Naftogaz: Ukraine could receive $50 billion if the court rules against Gazprom

    The Director of the Business Development at Naftogaz, Yuriy Vitrenko, has said that if the Stockholm Arbitration Court rules against Gazprom, the Russian company would be liable to pay $50 billion in damages to the Ukrainian company. He said this during an interview with Ukrainian Hromadske TV Channel.

    “The total claim amount is $50 billion, of which $30 billion is compensation for gas that was not provided by Gazprom, or gas that we overpaid for. The remaining $20 billion is related to …

  • Putin promises to launch the fourth string of the Energy Bridge to Crimea in early May

    The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin expects that the fourth string of the Energy Bridge to Crimea from neighboring Kuban will be launched in early May. Putin stated this at the meeting with the members of the Council of legislators on the 29th of April, the Kremlin press service reported.

    “Power engineering specialists had this well-planned ahead of schedule, but now the weather is unfavorable in the channels and vessels are forced to reduce the work for a few days. That’s why everything …

  • Stoltenberg: NATO should respond to Russia with force

    According to NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, NATO should respond to Russia’s actions from the position of strength and deterrence. Deutsche Welle reported that he made these statements in his interview with a German newspaper, Die Welt, as well as the Leading European Newspaper Alliance (LENA).

    “Moscow illegally annexed Crimea, they support separatists in eastern Ukraine and they have violated international law. This is why we have expanded our presence along the eastern borders of …

  • Delegates in Minsk acknowledge that breakthroughs can only be made by the states' Presidents

    Despite the seeming ineffectiveness of the Minsk negotiation format, as is obvious to all the participants, no one feels the need to put an end to it. Several participants of the Minsk process have admitted that the negotiations held in the capital of Belarus are a screen and believe that any possible breakthroughs can only be made by the Presidents of the involved States, as noted in an article written by the Deputy Editor-in-Chief of ZN.UA, Sergey Rakhmanin.

    “Recently, the Ukrainian position …

  • Intelligence: Putin's aide Surkov traveled to the Donbas and met with separatists

    Ukrainian intelligence has evidence that Russian presidential aide, Vladislav Surkov, has visited occupied Donbas to meet with separatists. This was reported by the press service of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

    “On the 29th of April, a closed meeting of the leaders of the so-called DPR and Russian representatives was held in Snizhne. It was attended by: presidential aide, Vladislav Surkov; the Deputy Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, Colonel- …

  • Polish citizen known for spreading Russian propaganda was denied entry into Ukraine

    The Security Service of Ukraine prohibited the entry of Tomasz Maciejczuk, who is well-known for his participation in spreading Russian propaganda in Europe, into Ukraine for five years, as Maciejczuk wrote on his Facebook page.

    “This morning, I came to the Polish-Ukrainian border in Dorohusk. The border guard took my passport and checked the information in the computer. I was invited into the office and told that I’m banned from entering Ukraine for five years. The ban was issue by the …

  • Emergency services of Sevastopol work on heightened alert because of power outages

    The press service of the Sevastopol Government, controlled by Russia, reported after a meeting of the Operational Headquarters on Emergency Situations that power outages continue in annexed Sevastopol. The local authorities, controlled by Moscow, explained that these outages are the result of the ongoing work installing the energy bridge from neighboring Russia.

    “In this regard, the emergency services of Sevastopol work on heightened alert. The limit (162 MW.) was set for the city at 10 p.m. …

  • US accuses separatists of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine

    The State Department's Deputy Spokesperson, Mark Toner, stated that pro-Russian separatists are responsible high number of ceasefire violations in the Donbas.

    “We are certainly concerned at the level of violence in eastern Ukraine which has reached its highest level since the ceasefire agreements in September,” Toner said.

    He emphasized that about 30,000 ceasefire violations were registered in April; which he described as “a huge number.” At the same time, as Toner noted, “The OSCE reports …