Tag Archives: Ukraine

The Helsinki Times reports: Finnish Customs has placed a total of 21 yachts under a transfer ban on grounds of suspicion that they are owned by oligarchs or other individuals falling within the sanctions regime of the EU, Sami Rakshit, the head of the enforcement department at Finnish Customs, confirmed to YLE on Monday. Rakshit told YLE that customs officials …

Reuters reports: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that it would not be possible to negotiate an end to the war in his country without meeting Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin. Zelenskiy told European public television networks such a meeting could discuss the future of occupied Ukrainian territory, but more time would be required to resolve the issue. He also …

The BBC reports: The Moscow stock exchange has partially reopened after a nearly month-long suspension over the war in Ukraine. Only bonds issued by the Russian government can be traded as part of a phased re-opening of the market. The exchange closed hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin sent thousands of troops into Ukraine on 24 February. Andrei Braginsky, a …

CNN reports: President Joe Biden on Monday urged private sector partners to strengthen their cyber defenses immediately, pointing to “evolving intelligence” that suggests Russia could conduct malicious cyber activity against American companies and critical infrastructure. While the Biden administration has been warning the nation of the prospect of cyber attacks by Russia for months, most recently as a response to …

The Hollywood Reporter reports: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his thanks to Mila Kunis and her husband, Ashton Kutcher, for their efforts to help the people there amid its war with Russia. Kunis, a native of Ukraine who moved to the United States when she was a child, and Kutcher have set up a GoFundMe campaign that has so far …

ABC News reports: President Joe Biden has added a stop in Poland to his trip this week to Europe for urgent talks with NATO and European allies, as Russian forces concentrate their fire upon cities and trapped civilians in a nearly month-old invasion of Ukraine. Biden will first travel to Brussels and then to Poland to meet with leaders there, …

The New York Times reports: A Russian missile strike reduced a sprawling shopping mall in Kyiv to a smoldering ruin, one of the most powerful strikes to rock the center of the Ukrainian capital since the war began last month. City officials said at least eight people were killed, though the toll was likely to rise from the explosion around …

The Washington Post reports: In a dingy Russian classroom with worn-out rugs, elementary school students lined up to form the shape of the letter Z: the symbol used on much of Russia’s military equipment in Ukraine and an emblem of support at home, showing up on everywhere from bus stops to car stickers to corporate logos. Now it has become …

The Associated Press reports: Ukrainian officials defiantly rejected a Russian demand that their forces in Mariupol lay down arms and raise white flags Monday in exchange for safe passage out of the besieged strategic port city. Even as Russia intensified its attempt to bombard Mariupol into surrender, its offensive in other parts of Ukraine has floundered. Western governments and analysts …

The Associated Press reports: Ukrainian authorities said Sunday that Russia’s military bombed an art school sheltering some 400 people in the port city of Mariupol, where heavy street fighting is underway weeks into a devastating Russian siege. The strike on the art school was the second time in less than a week that local officials reported an attack on a …

The Associated Press reports:  In a speech on Saturday, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng criticized the far-reaching Western sanctions imposed on Russia after it invaded Ukraine and said the root cause of the war in Ukraine “lies in the Cold War mentality and power politics.” Echoing a Kremlin talking point, the Chinese envoy said if NATO’s “enlargement goes further, …

Politico Europe reports: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson compared the invasion of Ukraine by Russia to the U.K.’s decision to leave the European Union in 2016. He argued both examples showed countries’ willingness to fight for their freedom. “I know that it’s the instinct of the people of this country, like the people of Ukraine, to choose freedom every time,” …

Mediaite reports: Although most GOP voters view him unfavorably, Republicans were twice as likely as everyone else to hold a “favorable” view of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Respondents to a YouGov poll released this week were asked “Do you have a favorable or unfavorable view of Vladimir Putin?” Among all respondents, just 10 percent answered “Somewhat favorable” or “Very favorable,” …

The Guardian reports: A gay rights activist from Kharkiv, Elya Shchemur was killed during the Russian bombardment of the city centre, her colleagues at Kharkiv Pride said on Thursday. She was killed at the local territorial defence office where she volunteered, they said. “Elya was an activist and a patriot: she participated in all possible actions and democratic events of …

The Hill reports: Former Presidents George W. Bush and Clinton visited a Ukrainian church in Chicago on Friday, laying down flowers in a show of solidarity with the nation. A video shared by the George W. Bush Presidential Center shows the 42nd and 43rd presidents each carrying yellow sunflowers in their hands, wrapped in blue and yellow cloth to represent …

Politico reports: The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts last week quietly renamed its “Russian Lounge” — a room featuring the country’s art and culture paid for by one of its richest men, Vladimir Potanin — amid a backlash against Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. In 2011, Potanin [photo] donated $5 million to the Kennedy Center. He paid to …

The Verge reports: PayPal is expanding the services available to its Ukrainian users and waiving fees to help with humanitarian efforts in the country during Russia’s ongoing invasion. According to a news release, Ukrainians will be able to send and receive peer-to-peer PayPal or Xoom payments, and the company won’t apply its normal fees to either side of the transaction. …

Axios reports: Burger King on Friday said that its business partner controlling approximately 800 restaurants in Russia has “refused” to suspend operations in the country. “We contacted the main operator of the business and demanded the suspension of Burger King restaurant operations in Russia. They have refused to do so,” David Shear, the president of Restaurant Brands International, which owns …

Reuters reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin justified the invasion of Ukraine before a packed soccer stadium on Friday but coverage of his speech on state television was unexpectedly interrupted by what the Kremlin said was a technical problem with a server. Speaking on a stage at the centre of Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, Putin promised to tens of thousands of people …

The Washington Post reports: McDonald’s is now closed in Russia, part of a wave of companies exiting the country after its invasion of Ukraine sparked sanctions from the West. But a local alternative, Uncle Vanya, appears to be gearing up to take a bite of the Russian burger business — with a strangely familiar logo. Though none of these new …