Contents tagged with Donbas
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EU approves Kyiv's plan for Donbas
High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Commission Federica Mogherini said at a press conference after a meeting with Foreign Ministers of EU member-countries in Luxembourg that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko presented a comprehensive and satisfactory plan on how to resolve the conflict in the Donbas.
"We have received from him [Prystaiko] a fairly comprehensive and, I would say, satisfactory picture of the plans that the Ukrainian government and …
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Ukrainian General: Russia is not interested in withdrawal of forces in Donbas
The former head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, General of Ukraine's Army Mykola Malomuzh, said in an interview with Fakty news outlet that the withdrawal of troops wouldn't succeed in the Donbas.
According to him, despite the agreements with the EU countries, Russia and the Donbas militias intend to disrupt the withdrawal process, as it is not beneficial for them.
The General is convinced that the Russian authorities intend to push forward their conditions, and they will try to …
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Ukrainian press: Pro-Russian militants will gain ‘gray zone’ territory if the troops are withdrawn in Donbas
It’s pretty obvious that a withdrawal of forces and equipment along the demarcation line (if synchronized) will only play into the hands of the occupation corps. In most places, the illegal armed groups will only nominally withdraw their forces, says military expert Mikhail Zhyrokhov in his article for Business Capital.
According to Zhyrokhov, if one looks at the geography, the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be losing dominant positions almost everywhere, not to mention three dozen settlements. …
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Ukrainian Military Command increases combat readiness ahead of public holidays
The combat readiness of military units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces will be strengthened during weekends and holidays, reads the statement of the press service of the Ukrainian General Staff published on its Facebook page.
"By the order of the Chief of the General Staff, the Ukrainian Armed Forces strengthen the combat readiness during weekends and holidays in the places of permanent deployment and in areas of combat operations," reads the message.
The security of military facilities has …
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Ukrainian Foreign Minister explains failure to withdraw troops in Donbas
The Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko, in an interview with Ukrinform, provided the reasons for the failure to withdraw forces in the Donbas.
Prystaiko admitted that in Ukrainian society withdrawal of the troops deeper into Ukraine is perceived as a retreat. "To move away deeper into our territory is painful," he said. The Minister noted that now it is "a hot topic that causes a lot of emotions" in Ukraine.
"The Ukrainian Armed Forces were withdrawing, but the Ukrainian government, …
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Kyiv: Ukraine is preparing another prisoner swap with Russia
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said that Ukraine is in a crucial stage of preparing an exchange of three groups of prisoners with Russia, reports Radio Liberty.
"This process is at a crucial stage. But I can't report either how many people or the dates of the exchange," said Prystaiko.
Prystaiko added that he does not talk about the dates and number of citizens for exchange because, in such a process, any word can "play a dramatic role," not in favor of the prisoners. Answering …
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Zelensky: Donbas autonomy unacceptable
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a press marathon that the bill on local self-governance in the separate Donetsk and Luhansk regions cannot imply autonomy for the Donbas, but certain humanitarian issues are open for discussion, Interfax-Ukraine reports.
“As for the law on the special status – we cannot talk about autonomy in this law. The important thing now is to talk about what we can’t do, and not what we can do. I know that there are humanitarian issues there, we will also …
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Russia sentences 72 year-old Donbas native to 12 years in prison for espionage
72 year-old Volodymyr Morgunov, a native of the town of Milove in eastern Ukraine who more recently resided in Chertkovo, a Russian town on the border with Ukraine, has been found guilty of high treason.
Morgunov pleaded guilty, Caucasian Knot news outlet reports, citing the regional office of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in the Rostov province.
The pensioner was arrested in November 2018. Multiple SIM cards and two passports – one Russian one Ukrainian – were found in his house …
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Ukrainian President Zelensky holds telephone conversation with Merkel
Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk said that the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a phone conversation with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and German Chancellor Angela Merkel held the fifth telephone conversation. There is an extremely friendly, trusting personal contact between the two leaders, and it is our most powerful political weapon for the restoration of the territorial integrity of Ukraine," said Melnyk.
The Ukrainian …
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Lukashenko: The West has left Zelensky to handle Donbas on his own
Speaking at the “Minsk Dialog” forum, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that the West has left Ukraine to deal with the conflict in the Donbas on its own, Interfax-Ukraine reports.
“We have left Zelensky, who has been laden with this terrible burden, not his problems, alone with these problems,” Lukashenko remarked.
According to the Belarusian president, current events in Kyiv show that “certain forces are using this process indiscriminately to press down the new government and …