Europe

Ukraine’s desperate farmers trapped by grain blockade

by Blaise Gauquelin Agence France-Presse MYKOLAIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Nadiia Ivanova should have been harvesting her crop soon. But so far on her farm in southern Ukraine, she has only managed to collect bombshells. “We planted really late because we needed to clear everything beforehand,” the 42-year-old told AFP, standing in the middle of a field in a zebra print dress. Russian troops bombarded her 4,000-hectare (9,900-acre) farm near the town of Mykolaiv as they […]

Russians bid to encircle Severodonetsk, Zelensky pleads for arms

by Anna Malpas with Benoit Finck in Kyiv Russian forces on Tuesday stepped up efforts to cut off Ukrainian troops in the key industrial city of Severodonetsk in the east of the country despite Ukrainians insisting they were holding on. Moscow has laid siege for weeks to the cities of Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, which are separated by a river, as the last areas in the eastern Donbas region of Lugansk still under Ukrainian control. The […]

Britain and Falklands mark 40 years since Argentine surrender

by Charles Onians  Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain on Tuesday marks 40 years since Argentine forces surrendered after 74 days of conflict on the Falkland Islands, with many veterans still paying the physical and mental price of the gruelling South Atlantic war. The Royal British Legion is to host a remembrance ceremony at the National Memorial Arboretum in central England for veterans, bereaved family members and civilian support staff. The Act of […]

Lithuania to buy howitzers from France

VILLEPINTE, France (AFP) — Lithuania has agreed to buy 18 howitzers from France, both sides’ defense ministers announced Monday, as the Baltic country bolsters its arsenal due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lithuania, a European Union and NATO member, decided to inject an additional 300 million euros ($312 million) into its 2022 defense budget as the Ukraine war ramped up security fears. “Lithuania will buy 18 Caesar MarktII howitzers from France,” Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas […]

Ukraine forces pushed back from Severodonetsk center

by Anna Malpas with Benoit Finck in Kyiv Agence France-Presse KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AFP) — Ukraine said Monday its forces had been pushed back from the center of key industrial city Severodonetsk, where President Volodymyr Zelensky said the fighting was taking a “terrifying” toll as casualties soar. With Russia’s 16-week war of attrition pushing Ukrainian resistance to the limit, Kyiv has reiterated its plea for Western nations to provide additional arms to help it contain Moscow’s […]

More than 600 abuse victims in German diocese: report

At least 600 young people were documented as having been abused by Catholic priests in the German diocese of Muenster, but the actual number of victims could be 10 times higher, a report published Monday said. The diocese has official records on 610 abuse victims, according to the report by the University of Muenster — around a third more than indicated by a previous study from 2018. However, historian Natalie Powroznik, who was involved in […]

Spain in grip of heatwave as France braces for soaring temperatures

Spain was on Monday already in the grips of a heatwave expected to reach “extreme” levels, and France is bracing for one, too, as meteorologists blame the unusually high seasonal temperatures on global warming. The “unusual” temperatures for the time of year follow the hottest May in at least 100 years in Spain, Ruben del Campo, spokesman for the Spanish Meteorological Agency (Aemet) said. He told AFP that the current heatwave would bring “extreme temperatures” […]

Russia’s McDonald’s renamed ahead of grand re-opening

Former McDonald’s restaurants in Russia have been renamed “Vkusno i tochka” (“Delicious. Full Stop”), the new owner said ahead of their grand re-opening later on Sunday. “The new name is Vkusno i tochka,” Oleg Paroyev, the director general of the new group, told a press conference in Moscow. Replete with a new logo to replace the Golden Arches, the restaurant on Moscow’s Pushkin Square — where the very first McDonald’s opened its doors to long […]

Finland to build fences on border with Russia

  HELSINKI, Finland (AFP) — Shaken by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Finland is rushing to beef up security on its border with Russia in order to protect itself from hybrid threats, the interior ministry said Friday. Fearing that Moscow could use migrants to exert political pressure, Helsinki plans legislative amendments that would facilitate the construction of sturdier fences on its 1,300-kilometre (800-mile) eastern border with Russia. “The aim of the proposed law is to improve […]

Russia, China unveil first road bridge

  MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia and China on Friday unveiled the first road bridge between the two countries as Moscow pivots to Asia amid its confrontation with the West over Ukraine. The kilometre-long bridge over the Amur River links the far eastern Russian city of Blagoveshchensk with Heihe in northern China. The construction of the bridge was completed two years ago but its inauguration was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. During a ceremony […]

The Mariupol diary: Ukraine war seen by 8-year-old boy

by Marina Moyseyenko Agence France-Presse ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AFP) — The horrors of the bloodiest chapter so far in the Ukraine conflict are poignantly captured in the words and drawings of an eight-year-old boy. Yegor Kravtsov kept a secret diary in Mariupol as Ukrainian forces fought an increasingly desperate defense against Russian troops. Spending weeks in a basement with his family, Yegor filled the pages of a small blue book with an idyllic image of Greece […]

Foreign fighters in Ukraine sentenced to death by pro-Russians

by Quentin Tyberghien  Agence France-Presse LYSYCHANSK, Ukraine (AFP) — Pro-Russian rebels sentenced to death two British fighters and a Moroccan who were captured while fighting for Ukraine, as a Ukrainian governor called for Western arms on Thursday to win the battle for a crucial eastern city. The death sentences come as Moscow concentrates its firepower on the strategic industrial hub of Severodonetsk, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said forces are “holding on” amid fierce fighting […]