Ukraine

Russia’s Unilateral Cease-Fire Order Comes Into Effect

NBC reports: The cease-fire ordered unilaterally by Russian President Vladimir Putin to coincide with the start of Orthodox Christmas began Friday but was rejected by Ukraine and its allies as a cynical move designed to buy time on the battlefield and favor in the eyes of the public. The 36-hour truce declared by Russia came into effect at midday Moscow …

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Putin Calls For Cease-Fire To Mark Orthodox Christmas

NBC News reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed his military to observe a cease-fire in Ukraine for 36 hours and called on Kyiv to do the same, the Kremlin said Thursday, in a move that coincides with Russian Orthodox Christmas. Ukraine indicated earlier it wouldn’t support such a move, and has long viewed suggestions of a truce as favoring …

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Russia Blames Soldiers’ Phone Use For Deadly Strike

The Associated Press reports: Unauthorized use of cell phones by Russian soldiers led to a deadly Ukrainian rocket attack on the facility where they were stationed, according to the Russian military, as it raised the death toll from the weekend attack to 89. Gen. Lt. Sergei Sevryukov said in a statement late Tuesday that phone signals allowed Kyiv’s forces to …

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Kremlin Blamed After Ukraine Strike Kills 63 Soldiers

The Associated Press reports: Ukrainian forces fired rockets at a facility in the eastern Donetsk region where Russian soldiers were stationed, killing 63 of them, Russia’s defense ministry said Monday, in one of the deadliest attacks on the Kremlin’s forces since the war began more than 10 months ago. Ukrainian forces fired six rockets from a HIMARS launch system and …

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Zelensky To Russians: “No One Will Ever Forgive You”

The Hill reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Russia that “no one will ever forgive you” for spreading terror following a series of missile attacks on the day of New Year’s Eve. Zelensky said in an address on Saturday that the missile attacks will not mark the end of the year but the outcome of Russia’s fate in that it …

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Russia Bombards Ukraine With Dozens Of Missiles

Reuters reports: Russia fired scores of missiles into Ukraine early on Thursday, targeting Kyiv and other cities including Lviv in the west and Odesa in the southwest, sending people rushing to shelters and knocking out power in one of Moscow’s largest aerial assaults.  Ukraine’s military said it had shot down 54 missiles out of 69 launched by Russia. Air raid …

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Ukraine To Request February Peace Summit At UN

The Associated Press reports: Ukraine’s foreign minister on Monday said that his government is aiming to have a peace summit by the end of February, preferably at the United Nations with Secretary-General António Guterres as a possible mediator, around the time of the anniversary of Russia’s war. Asked about whether they would invite Russia to the summit, he said that …

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Pope Laments “Icy Winds Of War” In Xmas Speech

ABC News reports: Pope Francis used his Christmas message Sunday to lament the “icy winds of war” buffeting humanity and to make an impassioned plea for an immediate end to the fighting in Ukraine, a 10-month-old conflict he decried as “senseless.” At noon local time, Francis delivered the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” (Latin for “‘to the city and to the …

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Putin Claims Russia Is Ready To Negotiate With Ukraine

Reuters reports: Russia is ready to negotiate with all parties involved in the war in Ukraine but Kyiv and its Western backers have refused to engage in talks, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview aired on Sunday. “We are ready to negotiate with everyone involved about acceptable solutions, but that is up to them – we are not the …

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Putin Calls Fighting In Ukraine “War” For First Time

CNN reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday used the word “war” to refer to the conflict in Ukraine, the first known time he has publicly deviated from his carefully crafted description of Moscow’s invasion as a “special military operation” 10 months after it began. “Our goal is not to spin the flywheel of military conflict, but, on the contrary, …

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LIVE VIDEO: Zelensky Addresses Joint Congress Session

CBS News reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to address a joint meeting of Congress Wednesday night as part of his first trip outside Ukraine since Russia launched its assault on his country in February. The trip comes as Congress considers a massive government funding bill that includes $45 billion for Ukraine aid. The Ukrainian president addressed Congress virtually in …

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LIVE VIDEO: Biden And Zelensky Hold Joint Presser

Yahoo News reports: President Biden and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky will hold a joint press conference Wednesday afternoon following their bilateral meeting in the Oval Office. Zelensky’s visit is his first foreign trip since Russia invaded his country in February, and was kept secret while it was planned. The press event precedes an address by Zelensky to Congress, which may …

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TODAY: Zelensky To Address Joint Session Of Congress

Axios reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit Washington on Wednesday to meet President Biden, hold a press conference at the White House and address a joint session of Congress, a senior administration official told reporters. Zelensky had not left Ukraine since Russia launched its brutal invasion on Feb. 24. During the visit, Biden will announce another $2 billion in U.S. military aid …

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Departure Of Telecoms Poses Trouble For Russia

Reuters reports: When telecoms gear makers Nokia and Ericsson leave Russia at the end of the year, their departure could steadily cripple the country’s mobile networks over the long-term, setting off a deterioration in communication for everyday Russians. Ericsson and Nokia, which together account for a large share of the telecoms equipment market and close to 50% in terms of …

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REPORT: Zelensky To Visit US Capitol Tomorrow

Axios reports: Capitol Hill is preparing to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for a joint session of Congress this week, Axios has learned. This would be Zelensky’s first in-person visit to the U.S. since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. While the details are not yet finalized, U.S. Capitol Police is beefing up security for a potential Wednesday visit, multiple senior …

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FIFA Won’t Play “Peace” Message By Zelensky At Final

CNN reports: A request by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to share a message of world peace prior to kickoff at the World Cup final on Sunday has been rebuffed by FIFA, a source told CNN. The source said Zelensky’s office is offering to appear in a video link to fans in the stadium in Qatar, ahead of the game and …

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Pope Francis: Spend Less On Santa, Give To Ukraine

Yahoo News reports: Pope Francis on Wednesday encouraged people to spend less on gifts and parties this Christmas and send the difference to Ukrainians in need. “Let’s have a more humble Christmas, with more humble gifts,” Francis said. “They are hungry, they are cold, many die due to lack of doctors or nurses.” “Let us not forget them, Christmas in peace …

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PolitiFact’s 2022 “Lie Of The Year” Award Goes To Putin

PolitiFact reports: Ukraine wasn’t being led by neo-Nazis and it wasn’t committing genocide. Putin employed those lies to co-opt Russian citizens whose family members would be sent to fight a war, kill others and possibly die themselves. The lies have permeated the assault. When hundreds of bodies were discovered lying in the streets and homes of Bucha after weeks of …

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Beleaguered Putin Cancels Annual Press Conference

The Guardian reports: Vladimir Putin will not hold a year-end press conference for the first time in at least a decade, in what Kremlin-watchers view as a break with protocol due to his war in Ukraine. The marathon press-conferences are traditionally an occasion for the Russian president to burnish his image, a campy spectacle that allows Putin to play the …

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Zelensky Named Time Magazine’s Person Of The Year

TIME Magazine reports: The process of choosing the Person of the Year—who or what most influenced the events of the past 12 months, for good or for ill—can be agonizing. How could one person represent an entire year? Do we lean into the light, reach into the darkness, or land somewhere in between? This year’s choice was the most clear-cut …

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