Month: August 2022

Inside the Azovstal steel plant, before Ukraine surrendered it to Russian forces …

Dutch aid agencies tended Thursday to hundreds of migrants camped in sweltering heat outside an overcrowded center for asylum-seekers as Dutch authorities investigated the death of a baby in the center a day earlier. The Dutch arm of Doctors Without Borders deployed medics to the tiny village of Ter Apel in the northeastern Netherlands to …

Read more “Dutch Agencies Help Migrants Sleeping Outside Crowded Camp”

At the start of a three-day visit to Algeria, President Emmanuel Macron indicated Thursday that France and the North African country should move beyond their “painful” shared history and look to the future. The trauma of French colonial rule in Algeria and the bitter war for independence that ended it in 1962 has haunted relations …

Read more “France’s Macron Urges Future with Algeria Beyond ‘Painful’ History”

Turkey is deepening trade relations with Russia in the face of Western sanctions against Moscow. Political observers say Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could be relying on Russian support to help ease Turkey’s growing economic woes as he faces reelection next year. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …

An engineer working under Russian occupation since March 4 at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP) has told VOA that Russian forces have placed artillery and missile installations within and around the property of the plant and have themselves caused explosions near the plant in an apparent attempt to discredit the Ukrainian military. The account …

Read more “VOA Exclusive: Ukrainian Nuclear Engineer Details Conditions Inside Zaporizhzhia Plant “

Sweden’s immigration policies are a big factor heading into elections next month on September 11th, when Swedes head to the polls to pick a new parliament, perhaps resulting in a new prime minister. The hard right Sweden Democrats party admits to having a neo-Nazi past and polls just ahead of the election show the party …

Read more “Sweden Campaigning Reflects Changing Political Landscape”

Authorities in Myanmar have detained Britain’s former ambassador to the Southeast Asian nation, where a military junta seized power last year, three people with knowledge of the situation said Thursday.  Vicky Bowman, who currently runs the Myanmar Center for Responsible Business (MCRB), and her husband, Htein Lin, a Burmese artist and former political prisoner, were …

Read more “Britain’s Former Myanmar Envoy Detained in Yangon, Sources Say”

Three journalists went on trial Thursday in Finland on charges of revealing national defense secrets for allegedly publishing classified documents in a newspaper article. The article in daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, which published December 16, 2017, focused on the activities of the Finnish Intelligence Research Center, a military intelligence agency.   The investigative report revealed …

Read more “3 Finnish Journalists on Trial for Revealing Defense Secrets”

Bulgaria’s interior ministry and local police say two police officers were killed Thursday when a bus carrying at least 47 migrants that had entered the country illegally rammed their vehicle as they tried to stop it. Police say the incident occurred about 5 a.m. local time in Burgas, a port city on the Black Sea. …

Read more “2 Bulgarian Police Officers Dead After Migrant Bus Collision”

U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet on Thursday called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to “halt armed attack against Ukraine.” Speaking a day after the conflict reached its six-month mark, Bachelet highlighted the situation regarding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, saying fighting in the area is posing “unthinkable risks” to civilians and the environment. Russia …

Read more “UN Rights Chief Urges Putin to End Ukraine War”

Twelve thousand people in five months — that’s how many older adults received support from a Kyiv charity called “Onuky”, or “grandchildren” in Ukrainian. Anna Kosstutschenko spoke with the group’s volunteers about their work. VOA footage and video editing by Paviel Syhodolskiy. …

Finland’s prime minister, Sanna Marin, has addressed a video posted on social media last week showing her dancing with a group of friends and celebrities. The video of the 36-year-old, taken at a party that included Finnish celebrities, was soon published by several Finnish media outlets and spread internationally. Shortly after the video leaked, pictures …

Read more “Finland’s Prime Minister Addresses Social Media Video”

The US is sending a new tranche of military assistance to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia’s invading force, a package valued at $3 billion dollars. This aid comes on top of the more than $10 billion in military assistance the U.S. has already sent to Ukraine in the past year and a half. VOA …

Read more “US Sending $3B in Military Aid to Ukraine for ‘Long-Term Defense’”

The White House announced its largest-ever security assistance package for Ukraine on Wednesday — six months to the day since Russia invaded — with a $3 billion commitment that brings the U.S. price tag for this 184-day conflict to $13.6 billion. Unlike previous aid packages that addressed immediate military needs, this new package focuses on …

Read more “US Announces Largest-Ever, $3B Ukraine Aid Package as War Hits 6-Month Mark”

Russian forces Wednesday launched a rocket attack on a Ukrainian train station on the embattled country’s Independence Day, killing 22 people, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after warning for days that Moscow might attempt “something particularly cruel” this week.  The lethal attack took place in Chaplyne, a town of about 3,500 people in the central Dnipropetrovsk …

Read more “22 Reported Killed in Independence Day Attack in Ukraine “

President Joe Biden on Wednesday praised the “extraordinary courage and dedication to freedom” of the Ukrainian people in fending off Russian fighters, six months into Moscow’s invasion, while demonstrating continued U.S. support for Kyiv’s forces with nearly $3 billion in new military aid. On Ukraine’s Independence Day marking 31 years since escaping Soviet rule in …

Read more “Biden Praises Ukraine’s ‘Extraordinary Courage,’ Sends Nearly $3 Billion in New Military Aid”

As Ukraine marks the six-month anniversary of Russia’s invasion, VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports on the fallout from the conflict. Millions of refugees have fled the country, food exports have plummeted and the United Nations is warning that the world faces “maximum danger” over the situation at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. …

The number of coronavirus deaths reported worldwide fell by 15% in the past week while new infections dropped by 9%, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. In its latest weekly assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.N. health agency said there were 5.3 million new cases and more than 14,000 deaths reported last week. WHO …

Read more “WHO: COVID Deaths Down by 15%, Cases Fall Nearly Everywhere”

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that Ukrainians are “fighting for our destiny” as the country marked its Independence Day along with six months since Russia launched its invasion. Speaking in a video address from Kyiv’s Independence Square, Zelenskyy said Ukraine will fight for its land “until the end,” and that while once the end …

Read more “Zelenskyy Says Ukraine Will Fight ‘Until the End’”

Russia’s leading internet firm Yandex on Tuesday said it had agreed to sell its news aggregator and yandex.ru homepage to rival VK in a move likely to further limit Russians’ access to independent media. The all-share deal, in which Yandex will acquire 100% of food delivery service Delivery Club, marks a significant shift in Russia’s …

Read more “Russia Tightens Grip on Media as Yandex Sells Homepage, News to Rival VK”

Unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, are playing a huge part in the war in Ukraine. But keeping them in the air can be challenging. One Ukrainian company is doing just that and more. Kateryna Markova has the story. Camera – Viktor Petrovych. …

Turkey, a strong supporter backer of the Syrian opposition, is indicating that it could now be ready for talks with the Damascus regime. Ankara severed its diplomatic ties with the government of President Bashar al-Assad at the start of Syria’s civil war but is now looking to return millions of Syrian refugees. Referring to his …

Read more “Turkey’s Erdogan Eyes Reset With Syria”

The United States warned Tuesday that Russia is “stepping up efforts to launch strikes against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days.” The message posted by the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv followed similar warnings from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about potential Russian actions against Ukraine coinciding with his country’s Independence Day. “Russian …

Read more “US Warns of Russian Strikes on Ukrainian Infrastructure”

Ukraine marks six months on Wednesday since Russia invaded the country in what Russian President Vladimir Putin calls a “special military operation.”  Ukraine and its Western backers accuse Moscow of waging an unprovoked war of aggression with the aim of grabbing land and erasing Ukrainian national identity.  Putin said his aim was to disarm the …

Read more “Timeline: Ukraine’s Turbulent History Since Independence”