Contents tagged with Ukraine

  • Ukrainian President Zelensky: preparations for the Normandy format meeting have started

    President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, at a joint briefing with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, said that the advisers of the member-countries of the Normandy format will meet soon to prepare for the meeting of the leaders of Ukraine, Germany, France, and Russia, reports Ukrinform News Agency.

    "We agreed on the importance of restoring cooperation within the Normandy format. Our foreign policy advisers will meet soon and prepare the next meeting of the leaders. This is a key issue," …

  • Macron does not want Russia completely excluded from Council of Europe

    During a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron said that he intends to prevent a full withdrawal of Russia from the Council of Europe. He also said that restricting the rights of the Russian Delegation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) cannot be considered as a sanction against Russia for its aggression against Ukraine.

    “There are matters of sanctions on Russia, and in this regard France is adhering to …

  • Ukrainian President Zelensky: No direct dialog with DPR and LPR possible

    Ukraine is not willing to negotiate directly with the Donbas separatists, but will continue to operate in the Minsk format, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a press conference after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Ukrayinska Pravda reports.

    Macron’s interpreter had said on his behalf: “Zelensky has given signs from his side that he is willing to enter a ceasefire, and is open to dialog with the separatists”.

    The Ukrainian president denied this.

    “There has been a …

  • Kremlin: Putin adopts wait-and-see approach with Ukrainian President Zelensky

    In an episode of the program “Moscow. Kremlin. Putin”, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Putin has taken a wait-and-see attitude towards Ukraine’s new president, Volodymyr Zelensky, because it is not yet clear what his approach will be towards the essential items on the agenda, Interfax reports. In particular, it is unclear whether Ukraine will maintain its “hostile” stance toward Russia. The Kremlin would also like to understand the new president’s attitude to the Minsk Agreements. …

  • Ukraine considers anti-corruption agency ‘reset’

    In three months, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky may submit a bill to the the Verkhovna Rada to “reset”  the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO), said the Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Ruslan Ryaboshapka, as reported by UNIAN.

    According to him, such a measure will be taken if in this time the agencies fail to prove that they are able to work effectively. “If they fail to do this, then the president …

  • Ukrainian President Zelensky's party names opponents and allies

    In an interview with the newspaper Ukrainska Pravda, the chief of staff of Ukrainian President Zelensky's party Servant of the People (Sluha Narodu) Alexander Kornienko said that their party does not consider any of the "old political forces" as their allies. At the same time, the party has the same values as Svyatoslav Vakarchuk's new political party the Voice (Holos).

    In his opinion, the plans of Servant of the People intersect with Voice "in some regions in the West and a little in Kyiv."

    " …

  • Italy demands more than €1 million compensation from Ukraine for reporter’s death in Donbas

    On 14 June, a court in Pavia, Italy, held one of the final sessions of the trial of Ukrainian National Guard commander Vitalii Markiv, who is accused of complicity in the death of the Italian photojournalist Andrea Rocchelli in the Donbas five years ago.

    The attorneys of the civilian plaintiffs – Rocchelli’s family and various journalist organizations – made their final addresses to the jury, Radio Svoboda reports.

    They voiced their support for the prosecution’s theory, which states that on 24 …

  • Moldovan ‘Democrats’ flee the country

    Oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc, the éminence grise of Moldovan politics and the primary patron of the Democratic Party that has been in power in recent years, left the country on 14 June in a black aircraft heading for Istanbul (the unusually colored private jetliner had been seen on standby at the Chisinau Airport for several days). According to other reports, he left Moldova by car through Transnistria and boarded an airplane in Odessa.

    Plahotniuc is currently believed to be in the USA. The …

  • Ukrainian President Zelensky promises investments in Donbas

    President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Mariupol with a working visit, reports the website of the Ukrainian President.

    The President noted the need to develop the infrastructure of the Donbas with the help of foreign investors.

    "Soon, there will be investment injections into the infrastructure of the Donbas. I am talking about this with all foreign investors," Zelensky said.

    During his visit to the Donbas, the President met with representatives of local business. The President …

  • Ukraine offers Moldova help in bypassing Gazprom and importing gas from the EU

    The Ukrainian national oil and gas company Ukrtransgaz sent Moldova a proposal to delay the construction of the Romania-Moldova interconnector, which makes the Moldovan side vulnerable during its next meeting with Gazprom, as  stated in Ukrtransgaz’ press release.

    It was noted that taking advantage of the Ukrainian gas transmission system would minimize the potential risks associated with possible interruptions in the transit of natural gas from the Russian Federation and guarantee gas …