Month: August 2022

VOA Interview: Ukraine Defense Chief Believes in Victory, Restoration of 1991 Borders

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said his country’s goal in the current conflict with Russia is complete victory and the restoration of Ukraine’s borders as of 1991. He spoke this week with VOA Ukrainian Service’s Ruslan Petrychka about developments in the country since Russia’s invasion earlier this year. VOA: What goal do you set for Ukraine in the war with Russia? Reznikov: The all-Ukrainian plan is the complete de-occupation of the territories occupied by the Russian Federation and return to the internationally recognized borders as of 1991. Not 2014, ’15. Not February 24, 2022. The ultimate goal is the victory …

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У Севастополі зафіксували завантаження крилатих ракет на підводний човен Чорноморського флоту Росії (фото)

У Південній бухті Севастополя 18 серпня відбувалося завантаження транспортно-пускових контейнерів із крилатими ракетами типу «Калібр» на підводний човен проєкту 636.3 «Варшав’янка». Про це повідомляє кореспондент проєкту Радіо Свобода Крим.Реалії. Завантаження відбувалося за допомогою плавучого крана, який після завершення відійшов від причалу, біля якого пришвартована субмарина. Наразі у Південній бухті залишається лише один підводний човен проєкту 636.3 «Варшав’янка», а загалом їх у складі Чорноморського флоту шість: Б-261 «Новоросійськ», Б-237 «Ростов-на-Дону», Б-262 «Старий Оскол», Б-265 «Краснодар», Б-268 «Великий Новгород» та Б-271 «Колпіно». Кожен підводний човен може нести 4 крилаті ракети «Калібр-ПЛ». Також у складі Чорноморського флоту РФ є підводний човен «Алроса» проєкту …

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Myanmar to Import Russian Oil, Military Says

Military-ruled Myanmar plans to import Russian gasoline and fuel oil to ease supply concerns and rising prices, a junta spokesperson said, the latest developing country to do so amid a global energy crisis. The Southeast Asian country has maintained friendly ties with Russia, even as both remain under a raft of sanctions from Western countries — Myanmar for a military coup that overthrew an elected government last year, and Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a “special military operation.” Russia is seeking new customers for its energy in the region as its biggest export destination, Europe, will …

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Zelenskyy Hosting UN Chief, Turkey’s President in Lviv 

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are set to meet Thursday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv with an agenda expected to include a global food crisis, threats to a nuclear power plant, and finding a political solution to the war launched by Russia.  Efforts to ease the food crisis are ongoing, with ships carrying Ukrainian exports now able to depart under an agreement the U.N. and Turkey brokered in late July with Russia and Ukraine.  Guterres is scheduled to travel Friday to visit a port in Odesa, then on …

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Two More Baltic Countries Quit China-Led Forum Amid Ukraine War

Estonia and Latvia say they are pulling out of a decade-old mechanism established by China to deepen its influence in Europe, following their Baltic neighbor Lithuania, which left the group last year. Sixteen nations joined the China and Central and Eastern European Cooperation (China-CEEC) Forum when it was established in April 2012, with an inaugural summit held in Poland. The 16+1, as it was known, appeared to be gaining influence when Greece joined in 2019. But Lithuania quit the group in 2021 over security concerns and frustrations with growing authoritarianism in Beijing, leading lawmakers from Lithuania told VOA earlier this …

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Russian Police Search Homes of Journalists Contributing to RFE/RL Programs

Russian police have searched the homes of several journalists contributing to programs of RFE/RL’s Russian Service and Idel.Realities, an online project that covers news and events in the Volga-Urals region. On August 17, police in the capital of Russia’s Tatarstan region, Kazan, searched the home of sociologist Iskander Yasaveyev, who is a columnist for the Idel.Realities online project. Yasaveyev’s lawyer, Rim Sabirov, said police took his client to the Investigative Committee for questioning. According to Sabirov, the law enforcement officers confiscated all the mobile phones belonging to Yasaveyev’s family members. At this point it remains unclear why exactly Yasaveyev, who …

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