Category Archives: Ukraine

‘We will find every bastard’: Zelenskiy condemns Russian killings of Ukraine civilians – video

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In his latest address Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on the west to do more as he spoke of the destruction across Ukraine and the suffering faced by his people. 'We will not forgive. We will not forget,' he said. 'We will punish everyone who committed atrocities in this war on our land.'

In Irpin, a town about 25km (16 miles) north-west of the capital of Kyiv, men, women and children trying to escape heavy fighting in the area were forced to take cover when missiles struck nearby, according to witnesses

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Russian gymnast with ‘Z’ symbol on podium next to Ukrainian faces long ban

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Gymnastics’ governing body has condemned the “shocking behaviour” of the Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak, who now faces a lengthy ban for wearing a symbol in support of the invasion of Ukraine on the medal podium of a World Cup event.

After winning bronze in the parallel bars final at the Apparatus World Cup in Doha, Kuliak taped the letter “Z” to the front of his outfit before standing next to the gold medallist, Illia Kovtun of Ukraine, for the national anthems.

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‘Impossible’: Bolshoi music director quits over calls to denounce Ukraine invasion

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Tugan Sokhiev resigns without stating his position, saying he could not choose between ‘my beloved Russian and beloved French musicians’

The Bolshoi Theatre’s music director and principal conductor Tugan Sokhiev announced his resignation Sunday, saying he felt under pressure due to calls to take a position on the Ukraine conflict.

The Russian said in a statement he was resigning “with immediate effect” from his post at the Moscow theatre, as well as his equivalent position at France’s Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse.

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Denmark to hold referendum on scrapping EU defence opt-out

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PM urges voters to overturn existing policy in June and pledges boost to defence spending following Russian invasion of Ukraine

Denmark’s prime minister has called for the country’s citizens to overturn the country’s opt-out from EU defence policy in a referendum to be held on 1 June, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Historic times call for historic decisions,” Mette Frederiksen told a news conference on Sunday, adding that the government “very clearly calls on Danes to lift the opt-out on defence”.

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Blinken vows to escalate sanctions on Russia but warns war could last ‘some time’

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Speaking from Moldova, US secretary of state warns Russia holds military advantage that western allies are finding hard to counter

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a pledge on Sunday to increase pressure on Russia through sanctions and provide more aid to Ukraine, but warned that Russia held a military advantage that western allies are finding hard to counter and the war was set to last “some time”.

“Vladimir Putin has, unfortunately, the capacity with the sheer manpower he has in Ukraine and overmatch he has, the ability to keep grinding things down against incredibly resilient and courageous Ukrainians. I think we have to be prepared for this to last for some time,” Blinken told CNN.

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Poutine not Putin: classic Quebec dish off the menu in France and Canada

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French restaurant threatened for selling fries, cheese and gravy snack that sounds like the Russian leader

Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine has prompted demonstrations around the world, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets to condemn the war.

But anger towards the Russian leader has also ensnared an unlikely casualty: a French-Canadian delicacy of potato fries, cheese curds and gravy.

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US officials fly to Venezuela for talks in apparent bid to further isolate Russia

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Experts believe rare meeting with Moscow ally could signal significant shift in US policy towards Caracas

Senior US officials have flown to Venezuela for rare talks with Nicolás Maduro’s government in an apparent bid to prise the South American country away from its Russian backers after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

White House and state department negotiators met Maduro representatives in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, on Saturday in what was the first such encounter in years.

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Pope says invasion of Ukraine is ‘not just a military operation but a war’ – video

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In his weekly address to crowds gathered in St Peter’s Square, Rome, the pontiff rejected Russia’s assertion that it is carrying out a 'a special military operation'. 'In Ukraine, rivers of blood and tears are flowing. This is not only a military operation but a war which is leading to death, destruction and misery,' Pope Francis said

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‘Do not be silent’: Zelenskiy urges Russians to protest against Ukraine invasion – video

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Volodymyr Zelenskiy has appealed for Russians to challenge their government and voice opposition to the invasion of Ukraine. 'If you keep silent now, only your poverty will speak for you later. And only repression will answer,' he warned. 

Russians face an uncertain and isolated future after international sanctions plunged the economy into crisis and authorities cracked down on independent media and restricted access to Facebook and other social media sites.

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Clear picture of war in Ukraine clouded by large areas of unknowns

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Analysis: lack of reliable information has made it hard to assess the Russian military’s successes and failures

In conflict, where information is everything, what is striking about the war in Ukraine is not what is known but the very large areas of unknowns.

And even as commentators have picked over and analysed everything that is known about the Russian military’s operations and performance in Ukraine in an effort to predict the trajectory of the conflict, it’s what is poorly understood that may yet be more significant still.

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Brazilian politician’s sexist remarks about Ukraine refugees spark outrage

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Arthur do Val heard in leaked audio messages calling women fleeing war ‘easy because they’re poor’

A prominent member of the Brazilian right is facing calls to resign after he was exposed in leaked audio messages making a succession of callous and misogynistic remarks about Ukrainian refugees during a purportedly humanitarian mission to the recently invaded country.

Arthur do Val, a São Paulo congressman and former supporter of Brazil’s rightwing president, Jair Bolsonaro, made a three-day trip to the region last week, supposedly to raise awareness of the human cost of Vladimir Putin’s attack.

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Russia-Ukraine war: Ukraine and Russia blame each other as Mariupol evacuation fails again – live

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Hopes of establishing a humanitarian corridor out of besieged city of Mariupol dashed for second day running

The Ukrainian military is reporting that Russia has suffered losses of more than 11,000 military personnel since the invasion began.

A total of 285 Russian tanks and 985 armoured combat vehicles were also reported to have been destroyed as well as 109 artillery systems, 44 aircraft and 48 helicopters, according to a report by the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine and published to the website of the Ukrainian ministry of defence.

The scale and strength of Ukrainian resistance continue to surprise Russia.

[Russia] has responded by targeting populated areas in multiple locations, including Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Mariupol.

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Defeating Putin in Ukraine may take years, says Dominic Raab

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Deputy PM says Nato will need ‘strategic stamina’ as Starmer accuses ministers of moving too slowly on sanctions

It may take years for Vladimir Putin to be defeated in his conquest of Ukraine, Britain’s deputy prime minister has admitted, as Labour accused the government of moving too slowly over sanctions.

Dominic Raab said people who thought the crisis could be resolved in days were “deluding themselves” and that Nato would need to “show some strategic stamina” in its bid to force the Russian army to retreat.

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Nervous residents of Mariupol prepare to leave during second ceasefire

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Hundreds of thousands hope to flee city in south-east Ukraine despite Russia allegedly breaking last ceasefire

More than 430,000 people trapped in the port city of Mariupol by encircling Russian forces are nervously preparing to evacuate after a ceasefire was announced, a day after a similar plan fell apart amid accusations that Moscow had failed to respect the agreement.

Local authorities in the south-eastern Ukrainian city said an evacuation supervised by the Red Cross would begin at noon local time (10am GMT) during a nine-hour cessation in Russian attacks.

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Social media turn on Putin, the past master

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Disinformation and fake accounts were used against the west for years – now the Kremlin is under attack

• Russia-Ukraine war latest


One of the wildest aspects of the first Great Information War is not just that you can follow Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in real time, minute by minute and step by step, but you can also join in.

Because in 2022, information is power. And one of the many huge unexpected geopolitical shifts of the last week is that this power has been returned to the people.

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Antony Blinken enters Ukraine after meeting foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba – video

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The US secretary of state briefly crossed into Ukraine after meeting with the country's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba. The pair met at the border with Poland to discuss western efforts to support Ukraine after Russia invaded 10 days ago 

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The people of Ukraine need our solidarity. But not just because they’re ‘like us’ | Kenan Malik

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The outpouring of sympathy and help for Ukrainian refugees has prompted debate about European attitudes to identity and ethnicity

In 1857, the English poet and Chartist leader Ernest Jones wrote a series of articles in the People’s Paper about the “Indian Mutiny” of that year. It was, he observed, no “mutiny” but a “national insurrection” that Britons should support as much as they had supported similar struggles in Europe. Britons were “on the side of Poland” when it “struggled for its freedom against Russia”. If Poland was “right”, Jones insisted, then “so is Hindostan”.

I was reminded of his argument as I read and listened to some of the commentary about Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion. The invasion is brutal and unacceptable, an assault on democracy and sovereignty. We should oppose it just as we should oppose the Saudi assault on Yemen. We should support the people of Ukraine just as we should the people of Syria.

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