Ukraine Archives

Polish President Andrzej Duda, speaking in Kyiv on Sunday (22 May), underscored his nation's key support for embattled Ukraine as Russian forces pursued a relentless bombardment of frontline cities in the east.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday (21 May) said Turkey would not look "positively" on Sweden and Finland's NATO bids unless its terror-related concerns were addressed, despite broad support from other allies including the United States.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned only a diplomatic breakthrough rather than an outright military victory can end Russia's war on his country, while pushing its case for EU membership.

Germany and Italy told companies they could open ruble accounts to keep buying Russian gas without breaching sanctions against Moscow following discussions with the European Union, sources said.

The last Ukrainian forces holed up in Mariupol's smashed Azovstal steelworks surrendered on Friday (20 May), Russia's defense ministry said, ending the most destructive siege of the war as Moscow fought to cement control over the Donbas region.

In a sign of Russia's urgent need to bolster its war effort in Ukraine, parliament said on Friday (20 May) it would consider a bill to allow Russians over 40 and foreigners over 30 to sign up for the military.

The European Union is looking into ways of using the frozen assets of Russian oligarchs to fund the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday (19 May).

The world's political and business elite will hobnob in Davos next week after a two-year break caused by Covid, with the Ukraine war set to dominate the exclusive Swiss mountain summit.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia on Thursday (19 May) of using food as a weapon in Ukraine by holding "hostage" supplies for not just Ukrainians, but also millions around the world.

In an interview with EURACTIV, the former Ukrainian economy minister and current advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Tymofiy Mylovanov welcomed EU help but called for the use of grants instead of loans since an over-indebted Ukraine would scare off private investors and make reconstruction more difficult.

The White House is working to put advanced anti-ship missiles in the hands of Ukrainian fighters to help defeat Russia's naval blockade, officials said, amid concerns more powerful weapons that could sink Russian warships would intensify the conflict.

The Group of Seven's financial leaders agreed on $18.4 billion to help Ukraine pay its bills in coming months and said they were ready to stand by Kyiv throughout its war with Russia and do more if needed.

The top US military officer, General Mark Milley, spoke by telephone with Russia's Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the Pentagon said on Thursday (19 May), the first conversation between the two since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.

The surrender of the Azov battalion in Mariupol is a milestone in Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine. In terms of what will follow, there are two options.

The recently announced EU measures to help Ukraine export grain despite the Russian blockade of its seaports are not enough as they will be mostly based on the country's obsolete railways, a Ukrainian lawmaker has told the European Parliament.

Russia on Wednesday (18 May) said it was using a new generation of powerful lasers in Ukraine to burn up drones, deploying some of Moscow's secret weapons to counter a flood of Western arms.

Along with a €9 billion increase in short-term budgetary aid to the Ukrainian government, the European Commission proposed on Wednesday (18 May) setting up a reconstruction platform for Ukraine to help with the massive financing needs of rebuilding the country.

G7 partners meet Thursday (19 May) hoping to find a solution for Kyiv's budget troubles as the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to roil the global economy.

Russia said on Wednesday (18 May) nearly 700 more Ukrainian fighters had surrendered in Mariupol, while the United States became the latest Western country to reopen its Kyiv embassy after a three-month closure.

When Finland and Sweden signalled they were thinking of making the historic decision joining NATO, the alliance expected a tough response from Moscow, not from one of its own.

A Russian soldier accused of war crimes in Ukraine pleaded guilty on Wednesday (18 May) to killing an elderly unarmed civilian.

The areas in Ukraine suffering from water and sanitation infrastructure damage are at risk of a potential cholera outbreak, the World Health Organisation warned on Tuesday (17 May), adding it was already deploying cholera kits on the ground. 

More than 250 Ukrainian fighters surrendered to Russian forces at the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol after weeks of desperate resistance, bringing an end to the most devastating siege of Russia's war in Ukraine and allowing President Vladimir Putin to claim a rare victory in his faltering campaign.

The finance ministers of the Group of Seven economic powers want to put together a €15 billion aid package for Ukraine at their meeting in Bonn this week, a senior German government official said on Tuesday (17 May).