LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ever since Russian forces took the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson in early March, residents sensed the occupiers had a special plan for their town. Now, amid a crescendo of warnings from Ukraine that Russia plans to stage a sham referendum to transform the territory into a pro-Moscow “people's republic,” it appears locals guessed right.
LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ever since Russian forces took the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson in early March, residents sensed the occupiers had a special plan for their town. Now, amid a crescendo of warnings from Ukraine that Russia plans to stage a sham referendum to transform the territory into a pro-Moscow “people’s republic,” it appears locals guessed right.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is claiming control over Ukraine's port city of Mariupo l even as its defenders are still holding out at a giant seaside steel mill.
With Russian hopes for storming Kyiv and other major cities in northern Ukraine dashed by stiff resistance, Moscow has refocused its efforts on the country's east, seeking to make gains there and use them to dictate its terms in talks on ending the conflict.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. and its allies said Thursday they're moving to block financial transactions with Russia's Central Bank that involve gold, aiming to further restrict the country's ability to use its international reserves because of Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Monday he was prepared to discuss a commitment from Ukraine not to seek NATO membership in exchange for a cease-fire, the withdrawal of Russian troops and a guarantee of Ukraine’s security.
LVIV, Ukraine -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was thankful to U.S. President Joe Biden for the additional military aid but said he would not say specifically what the new package included because he didn't want to tip off Russia.
MARIUPOL, Ukraine (AP) — Corpses lie in the streets of Mariupol. Hungry people break into stores in search of food and melt snow for water. Thousands huddle in basements, trembling at the sound of Russian shells pounding this strategic port city.
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Well before Russian tanks and troops rolled into Ukraine, Vladimir Putin was using the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s to ostensibly offer justification for the invasion of a sovereign European country.
BERLIN (AP) — Yan Skvyrskyi talks on the phone to his mother in Ukraine at least 12 times a day, spends sleepless nights worrying about her but fears it may be too dangerous to help her flee the war-torn country right now.
LONDON (AP) — FIFA President Gianni Infantino remains the proud holder of the Russian Order of Friendship medal from Vladimir Putin. Not even the invasion of Ukraine by Russia has proved enough for Infantino to publicly distance himself from the autocratic leader.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he plans to open an investigation “as rapidly as possible” into possible war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine.
The Russian TikTok video has it all: a cat, puppies and a pulsing background beat. It's cute, watchable and hardly seems the stuff of state propaganda.
In 2014, Russia flooded the internet with fake accounts pushing disinformation about its takeover of Crimea.
NEW YORK (AP) — Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter has threatened to remove Valery Gergiev as chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic unless Gergiev publicly says by Monday that he does not support Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
NYON, Switzerland (AP) — Russian club Spartak Moscow will play at Leipzig in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Europa League before needing to find a neutral venue outside the country to host the return match.
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — The government of economically-battered Syria decided Thursday to cut spending in an effort to reduce the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, concerned that oil and wheat prices could sharply increase, the state-owned news agency said.
BEIJING (AP) — China called Thursday for talks to resolve the Ukraine crisis and avoided criticizing President Vladimir Putin’s attack while, in a step that could blunt the impact of Western sanctions, Beijing also approved imports of Russian wheat.
MUNICH (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris said Saturday that the world has arrived at “a decisive moment in history” as the Biden administration warns a Russian invasion of Ukraine in the coming days is highly likely.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — One by one, U.N. Security Council members called for a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine. Even Russia’s deputy foreign minister said everything should be done to find a diplomatic solution.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Netherlands and Ukraine argued Wednesday that a top European court should hear their cases that seek to hold Russia responsible for human rights violations in eastern Ukraine including the 2014 downing of a passenger jet that killed all 298 people on board.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The new top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee called Wednesday on President Joe Biden’s administration to ramp up military and intelligence support for Ukraine.
“I believe that the administration should be actively arming Ukraine so it can defend itself,” Rep.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — When Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and threw its support behind separatists in the country's east more than seven years ago, Kyiv's underfunded and disorganized armed forces struggled to mount a credible response.
MOSCOW (AP) — The longtime president of Belarus said Tuesday that his country would be ready to host Russian nuclear weapons if NATO moves U.S. atomic bombs from Germany to Eastern Europe.
In an interview, President Alexander Lukashenko also said for the first time that he recognizes the Crimean Peninsula as part of Russia and plans to visit it soon.
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgarian President Rumen Radev drew criticism from the United States on Monday for his remarks about the status of the Crimean Peninsula — a day after he secured his second term with a landslide victory in a runoff election.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin marked the national Unity Day holiday with a trip to Crimea, declaring the region will always be a part of Russia.
Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move that Western countries regard as illegitimate, in the wake of the overthrow of Ukraine’s Kremlin-friendly president.
MOSCOW (AP) — The presidents of Russia and Belarus signed an array of measures Thursday to deepen the integration of the two countries but stop short of a full merger.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko approved the integration measures during a meeting in Minsk of the bilateral Supreme State Council for the union state; Putin participated by video link from Russia-annexed Crimea.
AMSTERDAM (AP) — An Amsterdam appeals court ruled Tuesday that a trove of historical treasures from Crimea that have been stored for years at a Dutch museum must be given to Ukraine, saying they are “part of the cultural heritage of the Ukrainian state.”
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Ukraine on Tuesday, underlining Washington's support for the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity amid a tense standoff with Russia.
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is considering providing a military training mission to Ukraine amid lingering tensions between Russia and its neighbor, officials said Monday.
Acting on a request from Ukraine for help with “professional military education," the EU sent a fact-finding mission to the country last month.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday launched the construction of new nuclear submarines and other warships, part of a sweeping military modernization effort amid tensions with the West.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's president on Monday vowed to do all he can to bring back the peninsula of Crimea, annexed by Russia seven years ago, and urged international allies to support the effort.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Erfan Kudusov fled Crimea with his wife and four children after Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula in 2014, along with many other Crimean Tatars who resented Moscow’s rule.
TOKYO (AP) — Tokyo Olympic organizers apologized Thursday after Ukrainian athletes in artistic swimming were announced as Russians at a medal ceremony.
“It was purely an operational mistake,” organizing committee spokesman Masa Tanaka said of the error on Wednesday at the Olympic pool.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose hopes for a White House meeting played a central part in former President Donald Trump's first impeachment, will finally get his chance for an Oval Office sit down late next month.
ABOARD USS ROSS (AP) — Ukraine and NATO have conducted Black Sea drills involving dozens of warships in a two-week show of their strong defense ties and capability following a confrontation between Russia's military forces and a British destroyer off Crimea last month.
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Russian warplanes repeatedly flew low over a Dutch navy frigate in the Black Sea last week and carried out “mock attacks,” the Defense Ministry of the Netherlands said Tuesday.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine and NATO on Monday launched Black Sea drills that will involve dozens of warships, an exercise that follows last week's incident with a British destroyer off Crimea.
Moscow said one of its warships fired warning shots and a warplane dropped bombs in the path of British destroyer Defender on Wednesday to force her out of an area near the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
LONDON (AP) — Sensitive defense documents containing details about the British military have been found at a bus stop in England, the BBC reported Sunday.
MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military on Friday launched sweeping maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea featuring warplanes armed with state-of-the-art hypersonic missiles, a show of force amid a surge in tensions following an incident with a British destroyer in the Black Sea.
PARIS (AP) — The best chance of victory for Marine Le Pen’s far-right party in this weekend’s French regional election runoff is a European lawmaker who meets regularly with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and celebrated Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia is prepared to target intruding warships if they fail to heed warnings, a senior Russian diplomat declared Thursday after a Black Sea incident in which a British destroyer sailed near Crimea in an area that Russia claims as its territorial waters.