Month: March 2023

Russia Fires Supersonic Anti-Ship Missile at Mock Target in Sea of Japan

Russia’s navy fired supersonic anti-ship missiles at a mock target in the Sea of Japan, the Russian defense ministry said on Tuesday.  “In the waters of the Sea of Japan, missile ships of the Pacific Fleet fired Moskit cruise missiles at a mock enemy sea target,” it said in a statement on its Telegram account.  “The target, located at a distance of about 100 kilometers, was successfully hit by a direct hit from two Moskit cruise missiles.”  The P-270 Moskit missile, which has the NATO reporting name or SS-N-22 Sunburn, is a medium-range supersonic cruise missile of Soviet origin, capable …

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VOA Interview: Belarus Opposition Chief on Ukraine, Holding Lukashenko Accountable

Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who led a delegation of the Belarusian opposition to Washington, spoke to VOA’s Russian Service on Saturday about the democratic movement in her country and the war in Ukraine.   Tsikhanouskaya fled Belarus after facing President Alexander Lukashenko in the 2020 presidential elections that drew mass protests over allegations of electoral fraud. Lukashenko, who won a new term, has long denied the fraud allegations. Earlier this month, a court in Belarus sentenced Tsikhanouskaya to 15 years in prison after a trial in absentia on charges including conspiring to overthrow the government, the latest move in …

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Germany’s DW to Close Office in Turkey

Germany’s public broadcaster Deutsche Welle is set to close its Turkey office Tuesday after Ankara declined to extend its operating license, a move condemned by media rights groups. The case shows the pressure that Ankara is putting on foreign media to make it harder for them to work in the country, some analysts say. Authorities had already blocked access to the Turkish-language websites of DW and VOA last year when the broadcasters refused to comply with license requirements that they said amounted to censorship. In the case of DW, the broadcaster says the Ministry of Industry and Technology informed it …

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Зеленський повідомив про розмову з Дудою і підготовку до «важливих заходів»

Президент України Володимир Зеленський повідомив про розмову з президентом Польщі Анджеєм Дудою. «Наприкінці цього насиченого дня поговорив з президентом Польщі Анджеєм Дудою. Розповів про перебіг бойових дій, ситуацію на окремих ділянках фронту. Обговорили актуальні оборонні потреби України та спільні дипломатичні зусилля на найближчий час. Готуємося до важливих заходів», – написав він у телеграмі. Пресслужба Дуди не повідомляє подробиць цієї розмови. Ймовірно, йдеться про ініційований США Саміт за демократію, на який запрошені 121 світовий лідер. Як повідомив раніше у своєму відеозверненні Володимир Зеленський, Україна братиме участь у Саміті – «наша позиція на підтримку свободи прозвучить, як завжди, міцно». …

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Ukraine Shuts ‘Post-Apocalyptic’ Battlefield Town to Civilians

Ukraine shut the eastern town of Avdiivka to non-military personnel on Monday, describing it as a post-apocalyptic wasteland, as Kyiv tried to break the back of Russia’s flagging winter offensive before a counter-assault of its own.  A Ukrainian general said Kyiv was planning its next move after Moscow appeared to shift focus from the small city of Bakhmut, which Russia has failed to capture after several months of the war’s bloodiest fighting, to Avdiivka further south.  The Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff said in a Monday evening update that Russian forces were still trying to storm Bakhmut and had shelled …

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German Leopard 2 Tanks Have Reached Ukraine

The 18 Leopard 2 battle tanks pledged by Germany to support Ukraine in its war against Russia have arrived in Ukraine, the German Defense Ministry said on Monday. Germany agreed in January to supply the tanks, regarded as among the best in the West’s arsenal, overcoming misgivings about sending heavy weaponry that Kyiv says is crucial to defeat Russia’s invasion but Moscow casts as a dangerous provocation. “I’m sure that they can make a decisive contribution on the front,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said in a tweet. Besides the 18 tanks, 40 German Marder infantry fighting vehicles, and two …

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Scotland Elects First Muslim Leader

The Scottish National Party elected Humza Yousaf as its new leader Monday. This comes after what analysts describe as a bruising five-week campaign that exposed deep cracks in Scotland’s pro-independence movement. The 37-year-old Yousaf, who is currently Scotland’s health minister, will be Scotland’s first Muslim and first person of color to serve as First Minister. He will succeed Nicola Sturgeon, who unexpectedly stepped down from her position last month after eight years.  Yousaf is widely seen as a ‘continuity of Sturgeon,’ as they share similar social liberal views. Yousaf said his main goals are to concentrate on tackling the cost-of-living …

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New Russian Campaign Tries to Entice Men to Fight in Ukraine

Advertisements promise cash bonuses and enticing benefits. Recruiters are making cold calls to eligible men. Enlistment offices are working with universities and social service agencies to lure students and the unemployed. A new campaign is underway this spring across Russia, seeking recruits to replenish its troops for the war in Ukraine. As fighting grinds on in Ukrainian battlegrounds like Bakhmut and both sides prepare for counteroffensives that could cost even more lives, the Kremlin’s war machine badly needs new recruits. A mobilization in September of 300,000 reservists — billed as a “partial” call-up — sent panic throughout the country, since …

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«Путін розміщує ядерну зброю в Білорусі через контрнаступ ЗСУ» – керівник білоруської ініціативи ByPol

Причиною розташування ядерної зброї у Білорусі є майбутній український контрнаступ, а саме звільнення анексованого Криму. Про це в ефірі «Свобода.Ранок» (проєкт Радіо Свобода) повідомив Олександр Азаров, керівник ініціативи ByPol (створена колишніми силовиками, які не підтримують режим Олександра Лукашенка – ред.). При цьому білоруські партизани можуть чинити спротив навіть в такому питанні, як розміщення ядерної зброї на території Білорусі, каже він. За даними Азарова, в Білорусь вже поставлений один комплекс «Іскандер», який зараховано до ракетної частини під Осиповичем. Це місто розташоване за 130 кілометрів від Мінська. «Де він саме розташований, поки невідомо. Можливо, і біля кордону з Україною. Обслуговування цього комплексу …

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Guard Killed in Gun Attack on Albanian TV Channel

A security guard was killed in a gun attack on Albania’s largest broadcaster early Monday, with the country’s prime minister calling the assault on the media outlet “worrying”.   The 60-year-old guard was in a booth outside the Top Channel headquarters in Tirana when he was hit by a burst of gunfire from a passing SUV. The police gave no possible motive for the attack, saying “the investigation is ongoing”. But they said the attackers used a Kalashnikov rifle.  The SUV was found hours later on the side of the road approximately 40 kilometers away from the scene of the attack, …

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