New foreign secretary David Cameron meets Zelensky
Vladimir Putin has spoken at a G20 virtual summit today, repeating the propagandistic line that Russia remains open to peace talks in Ukraine and calling the “special military operation” a “tragedy” despite ordering the invasion.
“Yes, of course, military actions are always a tragedy,” Putin said. “And of course, we should think about how to stop this tragedy. By the way, Russia has never refused peace talks with Ukraine.”
The Russian leader said the invasion was necessary to overcome what he called a “coup”.
During his brief speech, which was roughly 17 minutes long, it appeared that only a handful of countries tuned in to hear him speak, including Spain, Singapore, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Korea and the hosts India. China and the US had declined to attend, according to a report in Bloomberg.
It comes as Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian troops face “difficult” defensive operations on parts of the eastern front with bitter winter cold setting in. Images from the frontline in Donbas, as well as in Kyiv, show that snow has already begun to fall.
Russia has never abandoned peace negotiations with Ukraine, says Putin
Vladimir Putin has said Russia has never abandoned peace negotiations on Ukraine.
“The situation in Ukraine cannot but shock, but the coup in Ukraine and the extermination of the civilian population there and in Palestine is not shocking,” he said, according to state media.
Tom Watling22 November 2023 13:28
Sweden’s Nato bid unlikely to be ratified by summit next week, sources say
Turkey has informed Nato that ratification of Sweden’s membership bid will not be completed in time to allow the country’s accession ceremony at a meeting of alliance foreign ministers next week, two sources familiar with the matter have told Reuters.
Last week, the Turkish parliament’s foreign affairs commission delayed a vote on Sweden’s Nato membership bid in order to hold further talks on the subject.
One source said the commission will likely resume its debate on the matter on Tuesday or Wednesday, when Nato foreign ministers will meet in Brussels – a gathering that some had hoped would mark Sweden’s accession.
Andy Gregory23 November 2023 07:52
Finland considering shutting entire Russian border
Finland’s foreign minister has revealed they are considering closing some of the four remaining crossing points – or even the entire border – with Russia.
More than 600 people without valid travel documents to the EU have come to Finland via Russia so far this month, prompting Helsinki to shut several crossings.
Alexander Butler23 November 2023 07:00
Russia claims Ukraine attacked a group of journalists
Moscow has claimed a group of Russian journalists have come under attack from Ukrainian forces.
The Russian Defence Ministry said the incident happened in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region, which is partially under Russian occupation.
Russia annexed the region, illegally, in September last year.
Alexander Butler23 November 2023 05:01
The Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban has now written to European Council President Charles Michel arguing EU leaders should not endorse the European Commission’s recommendation that Ukraine be allowed to join the bloc.
“The European Council is not in a position to… agree on the future of the enlargement process unless a consensus on our future strategy towards Ukraine is found,” he said.
The Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban
(Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Alexander Butler23 November 2023 03:01
After more than a thousand of its workers went to fight Russia’s invasion, a coal mining enterprise in eastern Ukraine suffered a huge staff shortage. Its answer was to allow women to work underground for the first time in its history.
Over a hundred took up the offer. “I took this job because the war started and there were no other jobs,” 22-year-old Krystyna said.
For five months, she has worked as a technician 1,542 feet below ground, servicing the small electric trains that haul workers more than 2.5 miles from the lift shaft where they descend to the seams of coal.
Alexander Butler23 November 2023 01:00
‘It’s like Covid’: Zelensky says Putin has made ‘five or six’ attempts on his life
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has claimed that at least “five or six” Russian attempts to assassinate him have been foiled by his security services.
The wartime leader, speaking from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, said the volume of attempts had turned him almost numb to the danger. He compared the later attempts to catching the Covid-19 infection.
“The first one is very interesting, when it is the first time, and after that it is just like Covid,” he said in a new interview.
Alexander Butler23 November 2023 00:01
Ukrainian sniper ‘breaks world record after killing Russian solider nearly 2.5 miles away’
A Ukrainian sniper claims to have broken the world record by killing a Russian soldier almost 2.5 miles away, with a custom rifle called ‘Lord of the Horizon’, Holly Evans reports.
The previous record was held by a Canadian special operations sniper at a distance of 2.2 miles in Iraq in 2017.
In a press statement, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said: “The SBU sniper set a world record for a successful shot.
“He hit a Russian soldier from an incredible distance.
“SBU snipers are changing the rules of world sniping, demonstrating the ability to work effectively at fantastic distances.”
Alexander Butler22 November 2023 23:00
Estonia accuses Russia of helping migrants to its border
Estonia‘s interior minister accused Russia on Wednesday of being involved in “a hybrid attack operation” to bring migrants to its border, aiming to undermine security and unsettle the Baltic state’s population.
A total of 75 migrants, largely from Somalia and Syria, have attempted to enter Estonia from Russia through the Narva crossing point since Thursday, Estonia‘s public broadcaster ERR reported. None have asked for an asylum and all were turned back, the interior ministry said.
Estonia has made preparations to close border crossings if “the migration pressure from Russia escalates”, and to deal with migrants if they try to enter outside official crossings, Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets told Reuters through a spokesperson.
“Unfortunately, there are many signs that Russian border officials and possibly other agencies are involved”, said the minister.
“Quite frankly, (the) ongoing migration pressure on Europeâ€Âs eastern border is a hybrid attack operation”, he added.
Russian officials were not immediately available to comment.
Estonia‘s neighbour Finland said on Tuesday Russian authorities were likely directly involved in more than 500 asylum seekers, mostly from Yemen, Somalia, Syria and Iraq, arriving in a sudden surge from Russia over the past two weeks.
On Monday, the Kremlin denied Russia was deliberately pushing illegal migrants towards the Finnish border and said Russian border guards were carrying out their duties in line with the rules.
Migrants look at a Finnish Customs official’s dog at the international border crossing with Russia earlier this week
(AP)
Tom Watling22 November 2023 21:00
10 years later, a war-weary Ukraine reflects on events that began its collision course with Russia
It happens every November, when the cold descends on Kyiv. The change in weather always makes Dmytro Riznychenko think back, and he is overwhelmed by his emotions.
“This is where it truly began,” Riznychenko said, walking through central Kyiv’s Independence Square recently, reflecting on the uprising that unleashed a decade of momentous change for Ukraine, eventually leading to the current war with Russia.
“Ten years of war and struggle,” the 41-year-old psychologist continued, wearily and reluctantly. “And it seems like the blood has only just begun to flow, truly. I regret nothing. But, God, it’s just so tiresome.”
Tom Watling22 November 2023 20:00
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