Month: May 2022

For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine. The latest developments in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. All times EDT: 3:45 a.m.: Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said the European Union will impose a sixth sanctions package on Russia as he arrived in Brussels for a meeting Monday, Reuters reported.   “There really is no excuse not to get the package done,” Asselborn said, speaking to reporters.   3:30 a.m.: Russian forces focused their latest attacks in Ukraine on the Donetsk region in the east, targeting civilian and military sites in multiple towns, the Ukrainian military …

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Pope Francis on Sunday declared 10 people saints of the Roman Catholic Church, including an anti-Nazi Dutch priest murdered in the Dachau concentration camp and a French hermit monk assassinated in Algeria.    The 85-year-old pope, who has been using a wheelchair due to knee and leg pain, was driven to the altar at the start of the ceremony, which was attended by more than 50,000 people in St Peter’s Square. It was the one of the largest gatherings there since the easing of COVID-19 restrictions earlier this year.    Francis limped to a chair behind the altar but stood to individually …

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Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra, fresh off its Eurovision victory, released a new music video Sunday of its winning hit “Stefania” that features scenes of war-ravaged Ukraine and women in combat gear, as the annual song contest took on ever more political tones given Russia’s war. “This is how we see Ukrainian mothers today,” Kalush frontman Oleh Psiuk said of the video, which had already racked up millions of views within hours of its release. “We were trying to deliver the message of what Ukraine looks like today.” The video was released hours after Kalush Orchestra brought Ukraine its third Eurovision …

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Intellectuals, broadcasters and cultural figures from Hungary’s Roma community are using the airwaves to reframe narratives and elevate the voices of the country’s largest minority group. Radio Dikh — a Romani word that means “to see” — has broadcast since January on FM radio in Hungary’s capital, Budapest. Its 11 programs focus on Roma music, culture and the issues faced by their community, and aim to recast the way the often disadvantaged minority group is perceived by broader society. “Roma people in general don’t have enough representation in mainstream media … and even if they do, it’s oftentimes not showing …

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Finland has formally announced that it intends to apply for membership into NATO. President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin announced the move Sunday at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki. “This is a historic day,” Niinisto said. “A new era begins.” Finland’s announcement that it is seeking entry into the 30- member Western military alliance had been expected in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sweden is also expected to seek entry into the alliance. The two Nordic countries’ NATO applications will likely move swiftly. “Finland and Sweden are already the closest partners of NATO,” NATO Deputy-Secretary General …

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For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine. The latest developments in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. All times EDT: 4:05 a.m.: Kyiv is shortening its curfew, The Washington Post reports. It’ll start an hour later and will now run from 11 p.m.-5 a.m. Additionally, public transit will extend its hours and run from 6 a.m.-10 p.m. 3:04 a.m.: The New York Times reports that a missile hit military infrastructure in the Lviv region early Sunday. 2:04 a.m.: In its latest intelligence update, the U.K.’s defense ministry says Russia’s assault on Donbas has “lost momentum.” “Despite small-scale …

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Yelena Osipova barely slept ahead of Russia’s pomp-filled Victory Day celebrations on May 9. The 76-year-old artist was up late, making placards to protest about the conflict in Ukraine. But the moment she stepped out of her home in St. Petersburg on her way to demonstrate, two unknown men snatched the work from her and ran off.  “It was upsetting. I’d worked half the night and really liked those placards,” the white-haired painter told AFP.  “It’s obvious that it was an organized attack.” Indefatigable as ever, within an hour, the tiny, stooped woman, who moves with difficulty, already had a …

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Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest in the early hours of Sunday in a clear show of support for the war-ravaged nation. The six-man band that mixes traditional folk melodies and contemporary hip hop in a purposeful defense of Ukrainian culture was the sentimental and bookmakers’ favorite among the 25 bands and performers competing in the grand finale. The public vote from home was decisive in securing their victory. The band’s front man, Oleg Psiuk, took advantage of the enormous global audience to make impassioned plea to free fighters still trapped beneath a sprawling steel plant in …

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