Tag: conflict

EU split over Russia oil sanctions in face of ‘war crime’

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) – EU nations remained split Monday over banning Russian energy imports, as a top official from the bloc decried “a massive war crime” being carried out by Moscow in Ukrainian city Mariupol. But foreign and defence ministers meeting in Brussels did give the green light to doubling a financial package for arms to Ukraine to 1 billion euros. The EU and Western allies have unleashed a barrage of sanctions that have battered […]

Japan protests Russia move to drop peace talks over Ukraine

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan said Tuesday it “strongly protests” Russia’s decision to abandon talks on a World War II peace treaty because of Tokyo’s strong response to the invasion of Ukraine. “The latest situation occurred as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and Russia’s attempt to shift the issue to Japan-Russia relations is extremely unjustified and absolutely unacceptable,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in parliament. Japan “strongly protests,” he added, condemning Russia for […]

Russia bans Instagram and Facebook as ‘extremist’

MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) – A Russian court on Monday banned Facebook and Instagram as “extremist”, part of sweeping efforts by Moscow to crack down on social media during the conflict in Ukraine. The Russian authorities have accused US tech giant Meta — the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — of tolerating “Russophobia” since President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine on February 24. Facebook and Twitter have been inaccessible in Russia since early […]

Biden calls India ‘shaky’ in Russia confrontation

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden said Monday that India was an exception among Washington’s allies with its “shaky” response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Biden lauded the US-led alliance, including NATO, the European Union and key Asian partners, for its united front against President Vladimir Putin. This includes unprecedented sanctions aimed at crippling Russia’s currency, international trade and access to high-tech goods. However, unlike fellow members of the Quad group […]

Germany to ‘fast-track’ gas terminals as part of Qatar deal

DOHA, Qatar (AFP) – Germany has committed to “fast track” the construction of two liquefied natural gas terminals as part of a new long-term deal with Qatar as it looks to reduce dependence on Russian gas, the Gulf state said Sunday. Economic Affairs Minister Robert Habeck secured the accord during talks in Doha with its emir and energy minister who have been pressing European nations to strike long-term deals to guarantee their supplies. European states […]

Ukraine rejects Russian ultimatum to surrender Mariupol

KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) – Ukraine has rejected an ultimatum to surrender the besieged port city of Mariupol to Russian forces, its deputy prime minister told Ukrainian media Monday. “There can be no talk of surrendering weapons. We have already informed the Russian side of this,” Iryna Vereshchuk told Ukrainska Pravda newspaper. “It’s a deliberate manipulation and it’s a real hostage situation,” she added of the demand. Russia gave the city an ultimatum late Sunday, urging […]

Russia says it has again fired hypersonic missiles in Ukraine

  MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia said Sunday it has again fired its newest Kinzhal hypersonic missiles in Ukraine, destroying a fuel storage site in the country’s south. The Russian defence ministry also said it killed more than 100 members of Ukrainian special forces and “foreign mercenaries” when it targeted a training centre in the town of Ovruch in northern Ukraine with sea-based missiles. “Kinzhal aviation missile systems with hypersonic ballistic missiles destroyed a large […]

Russia claims hypersonic missile strike, Ukraine urges cease-fire

  by Emmanuel Duparcq and Dmytro Gorshkov Agence France Presse KIEV, Ukraine (AFP) — Russia said Saturday that it had unleashed hypersonic missiles against an arms depot in Ukraine, the first use of the next-generation weapons in combat, after Kyiv’s embattled leader pressed for “meaningful” talks to halt an invasion now in its fourth week. Moscow also said its troops had broken through Ukrainian defences to enter the strategic southern port city of Mariupol, prompting […]

Over 3.25 million have fled Ukraine, most to Poland

  GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — More than 3.25 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion, the United Nations said Friday, with more than two million crossing the Polish border. UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said 3,270,662 people had joined the exodus since the war began on February 24, or another 100,765 since Thursday’s update. “We have seen a general slowdown” in flow since the early days of the conflict, said UNHCR spokesman Matthew […]

‘Stop this war’: Arnold Schwarzenegger to Putin

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — “Terminator” star Arnold Schwarzenegger appealed to Vladimir Putin on Thursday to end the “senseless” war in Ukraine and praised Russians protesting the conflict as his “new heroes.” “Ukraine did not start this war,” the former California governor said in an emotional message to the people of Russia and Russian troops posted to his Twitter account and other platforms. “I’m speaking to you today because there are things going on […]

IEA urges ’emergency measures’ to cut oil use over supply fears

PARIS, France (AFP) — The International Energy Agency on Friday urged governments to urgently implement measures to cut global oil consumption within months following supply fears stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The IEA also called on the OPEC+ group of oil-producing nations led by Saudi Arabia and Russia to help “relieve the strain” on markets, while warning that the world faced the biggest shock to supply “in decades”. The outbreak of war in Ukraine […]

Russia strikes near Lviv airport as bombardment expands across Ukraine

  by Joe Stenson with Danny Kemp and Dmytro Gorshkov in Kyiv Agence France Presse LVIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Russian missiles struck near Lviv’s airport in the far west of Ukraine early Friday, as Moscow expanded a countrywide aerial bombardment campaign that has intensified allegations of war crimes and deliberate targeting of civilians. Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said Russian forces had destroyed an aircraft repair plant — which sits near the Polish border. Ambulance and […]