Month: June 2022

Britain’s governing Conservatives will hold a no-confidence vote on Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday that could oust him as Britain’s leader.  Party official Graham Brady says he has received enough letters from lawmakers demanding a vote on Johnson’s leadership to trigger one. That happens if 54 Tory lawmakers — 15% of the party’s group in the House of Commons — write to Brady.  “The threshold of 15% has been passed,” Brady said. He said the vote would take place in person in the House of Commons on Monday evening.  If Johnson loses the vote among the 359 Conservative lawmakers, …

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After making gains in recent days, Ukrainian fighters fighting in the city of Sievierodonetsk have lost some ground back to Russian forces, the region’s governor said. “Our defenders managed to undertake a counterattack for a certain time; they liberated almost half of the city. But now the situation has worsened a little for us again,” Serhiy Haidai, governor of the Luhansk region that includes Sievierodonetsk, said Monday. Britain’s defense ministry said Monday that heavy fighting continued in Sievierodonetsk. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a rare trip Sunday away from Kyiv, traveling to eastern Ukraine where he met with troops and …

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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. 3:10 a.m.: As fighting continues between Russian forces and Ukraine, explosions were heard Monday in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, Reuters reported, citing Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych’s post on the Telegram messaging service.  3:05 a.m.: Russia’s gas producer Gazprom said its supply of gas to Europe through Ukraine via the Sudzha entry point was seen at 40.1 million cubic meters (mcm) on Monday, unchanged from 40.1 mcm on Sunday, Reuters reported.  An application to supply gas …

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When D-Day veterans set foot on the Normandy beaches and other World War II sites, they express a mix of joy and sadness. Joy at seeing the gratitude and friendliness of the French toward those who landed on June 6, 1944. Sadness as they think of their fallen comrades and of another battle now being waged in Europe: the war in Ukraine. For the past two years, D-Day ceremonies were reduced to a minimum amid COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. This year, crowds of French and international visitors — including veterans in their 90s — were back in Normandy for the 78th …

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NATO kicked off nearly a two-week U.S.-led naval exercise on the Baltic Sea on Sunday with more than 7,000 sailors, airmen and marines from 16 nations, including two aspiring to join the military alliance, Finland and Sweden. The annual BALTOPS naval exercise, initiated in 1972, is not held in response to any specific threat. But the military alliance said that “with both Sweden and Finland participating, NATO is seizing the chance in an unpredictable world to enhance its joint force resilience and strength” together with two Nordic aspirant nations. Finland and Sweden both have a long history of military non-alignment …

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The United Nations estimates Ukraine is now one of the most mined countries in the world. In territories no longer occupied by Russian troops, experts from the country’s emergency services are now defusing hundreds of mines a day. VOA’s Lesia Bakalets has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. …

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Ukraine missed out on qualifying for the World Cup Sunday after the war-disrupted team was beaten 1-0 by Wales in the European playoff final for the FIFA soccer showpiece. Andriy Yarmolenko inadvertently headed the ball into his own net while trying to clear Wales captain Gareth Bale’s first-half free kick. While Wales heads to a first World Cup in 64 years — opening against the United States in November — this was an agonizing end to Ukraine’s emotionally charged mission to qualify for Qatar while remaining under invasion by Russia. The right leg of Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey kept out …

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s visit to Serbia has been canceled after countries around Serbia closed their airspace to his aircraft, a senior foreign ministry source told the Interfax news agency on Sunday. The source confirmed a Serbian media report that said Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro had closed their airspace to the plane that would have carried Moscow’s top diplomat to Belgrade on Monday. “Our diplomacy has yet to master teleportation,” the source said. There was no immediate comment from the Russian foreign ministry. Serbia, which has close cultural ties with Russia, has fended off pressure to take sides …

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In a crowning moment for her Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II appeared at the balcony of Buckingham Palace Sunday, delighting fans who had hoped to catch a glimpse of her during the final day of festivities marking the monarch’s 70 years on the throne. The 96-year-old monarch has curtailed her schedule in recent months due to problems moving around. Prior to Sunday, the queen had only appeared in public twice during the four-day holiday weekend celebrations. Officials said she experienced “discomfort” during those events on Thursday. Thousands massed outside Buckingham Palace for the climax of a boisterous, colorful pageant cheered …

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