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By Shaun TANDON WASHINGTON, Dec 22, 2023 (AFP) – The United States said Friday it will impose sanctions on foreign banks that support Russia’s war in Ukraine, in a new bid to exert pressure on Moscow as it diversifies from the West to China. Under an executive order signed by President Joe Biden, the United States will slap so-called secondary sanctions against financial institutions that back companies already targeted for supporting Russia’s defense industry. “We […]
WASHINGTON, Dec 21, 2023 (AFP) – The White House said Thursday it was preparing a new proposal to Russia to seek the release of two imprisoned Americans after Moscow rejected an earlier attempt. “We’re working hard to see what we can do to get another proposal that might be more successful,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. The State Department said earlier this month that Russia rejected a “substantial” proposal to free the […]
By Victoria LUKOVENKO with Anna MALPAS KYIV, Ukraine, Dec 20, 2023 (AFP) – President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that there was no end in sight to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as fatigue builds among Kyiv’s allies nearly two years into the war and the Kremlin voices growing confidence of victory. Zelensky said he had turned down a request from the military — for now — to mobilise as many as 500,000 Ukrainians for the army, […]
By Camille CAMDESSUS WASHINGTON, Dec 20, 2023 (AFP) – The Democratic and Republican leaders of the US Senate said Tuesday that Washington will not be able to approve new aid for Ukraine before year’s end, as the two sides continue to seek a compromise. “As negotiators work through remaining issues, it is our hope that their efforts will allow the Senate to take swift action… early in the new year,” Democrat Chuck Schumer and Republican […]
By Emmanuel PEUCHOT NEAR BAKHMUT, Ukraine, Dec 19, 2023 (AFP) – After 22 months of war with a horrific human cost, the Ukrainian army is struggling to find recruits to battle Russian forces that are once again on the offensive. Some Ukrainians who joined the fighting at the February 2022 start are still in combat and exhausted, while volunteers to replace those killed or wounded are becoming rarer. “Our units are understaffed. We need young, […]
PARIS, Dec 19, 2023 (AFP) – French sports retail giant Decathlon has secretly continued selling clothes in Russia despite officially pulling out in protest at Russia’s war in Ukraine, a media report published Tuesday said. The multinational retailer, which posted sales of 15.4 billion euros ($16.9 billion) last year, announced within weeks of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that it would withdraw from the Russian market. In October of this year, it sold its 60 […]
MOSCOW, Dec 17, 2023 (AFP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday vowed to make Russia “sovereign and self-sufficient” in the face of the West, in his first campaign speech before a March vote to extend his long rule until at least 2030. Putin will stand for a fifth Kremlin term in an election with no real opposition that will come just over two years since he launched the seismic Ukraine offensive. The 71-year-old came […]
GENEVA, Dec 18, 2023 (AFP) – A United Nations rights expert said Monday that the “enforced disappearance” of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was alarming, demanding that Moscow immediately release him. The Kremlin critic’s lawyers have been prevented from meeting him since December 6, and he did not appear for a scheduled court hearing last Friday. “I am greatly concerned that the Russian authorities will not disclose Mr. Navalny’s whereabouts and well-being for such a […]
MOSCOW, Dec 15, 2023 (AFP) – Hungary is “defending its interests” by blocking EU aid to Ukraine, the Kremlin said Friday, after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban derailed the bloc’s new 50 billion euro aid package for Kyiv. “Hungary is a sovereign country. It has its own interests. And Hungary, in contrast to many European countries, firmly defends its interests, which impresses us,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Moscow sees Hungary as one of its […]
By Max Delany and Dave Clark BRUSSELS, Dec 15, 2023 (AFP) – Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday blocked 50 billion euros ($55 billion) in EU aid for Ukraine, after leaders side-stepped his opposition to agree to open talks with Kyiv on joining the bloc. A crunch summit in Brussels broke up after a day of wrangling as the Hungarian authoritarian leader refused to greenlight funding to help prop up Ukraine’s government over the […]
MOSCOW, Dec 14, 2023 (AFP) – President Vladimir Putin talked up Russia’s offensive in Ukraine Thursday as he staged a marathon press conference a week after saying he plans to stay in the Kremlin until at least 2030. Clearly bolstered by Kyiv’s recent struggles on the battlefield, the 71-year-old looked relaxed as he brushed off nearly two years of Western sanctions and reaffirmed his maximalist goals in Ukraine. “There will be peace when we achieve […]
SEOUL, Dec 14, 2023 (AFP) – South Korea’s military said Thursday it scrambled fighter jets as two Chinese and four Russian military planes entered its air defence zone, an area wider than the country’s airspace. The Chinese and Russian planes entered and exited the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone (KADIZ) in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, from 11:53 am (0253 GMT) to 12:10 pm, Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. […]
