KYIV, Ukraine — India’s Narendra Modi arrived in wartime Kyiv on Friday to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the first trip by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since Kyiv gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The visit comes at a volatile juncture in the war in Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces still in …
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BEIJING — China and Belarus have agreed to strengthen cooperation in a range of sectors including trade, security, energy and finance, according to a joint statement, after Chinese Premier Li Qiang met Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko in Minsk. The statement released on Friday, a day after the Minsk meeting, said both countries would also strengthen …
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berlin — The NATO air base in the German town of Geilenkirchen has raised its security level “based on intelligence information indicating a potential threat,” it said late Thursday. “All non-mission essential staff have been sent home as a precautionary measure,” the base said in a statement on the social media platform X, without giving details. …
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COPENHAGEN, denmark — A volcano in southwestern Iceland erupted on Thursday, the meteorological office said, spraying red-hot lava and smoke in its sixth outbreak since December. “An eruption has begun. Work is under way to find out the location of the recordings,” the Icelandic Met Office, which is tasked with monitoring volcanoes, said in a statement. …
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brussels — Talks on forming a Belgian coalition government were thrown into turmoil Thursday when the chief negotiator handed his resignation to King Philippe, threatening further political limbo for the country two months after elections. With its linguistic divide between French and Dutch and a highly complex political system, Belgium has a record of painfully protracted …
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The International Atomic Energy Agency said on August 12 that its representatives inspected a damaged cooling tower at the Russia-controlled Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant in Ukraine. But the question remains: Who did the damage? Mariia Prus has the story. …
Ukrainians are reacting with skepticism to the latest claims that Ukraine may be linked to the attacks on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in 2022. The allegations are also raising concerns about Ukraine’s relations with Western allies. Anna Chernikova reports from Kyiv. Videographers: Serhii Rozov, Vladyslav Smilianets …
BELGRADE, Serbia — At least eight people drowned after a boat carrying migrants overturned while crossing the Drina River from Serbia to Bosnia, officials in the two Balkan countries said Thursday. Serbian police received a call around 5 a.m. from their counterparts in Bosnia and a citizen who reported the accident, said Interior Minister Ivica Dacic. …
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PORTICELLO, Italy — Search efforts off the coast of Sicily for two remaining bodies missing from the sunken yacht belonging to the wife of British tech magnate Mike Lynch were due to resume early on Thursday. On Wednesday four bodies were retrieved from the wreck and transported to nearby hospitals, in the city of Palermo. A …
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WASHINGTON — A new Ukrainian law aimed at removing the influence of the pro-Moscow Russian Orthodox Church enjoys broad popular support in Ukraine but is being viewed with reservations by international advocates for religious freedom. Passed on Tuesday by Ukraine’s parliament, the law banning religious organizations that maintain ties to Moscow follows years of controversy over …
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kyiv, ukraine — Ukraine said Wednesday that it had destroyed Russian pontoon bridges with U.S.-made weapons to defend its incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, while Moscow said its forces had halted Kyiv’s advance there and had gained ground in eastern Ukraine. Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since it crossed unexpectedly into the Kursk …
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washington — A journalist with VOA’s sister outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty on Wednesday marked 1,000 days in jail in Belarus on charges that he and his employer reject as politically motivated. Andrey Kuznechyk, with RFE/RL’s Belarusian Service — known locally as Radio Svaboda — has been jailed in Belarus since his arrest on November 25, …
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A Greek-flagged oil tanker traveling through the Red Sea came under repeated attack Wednesday, leaving the vessel “not under command” and drifting ablaze after an assault suspected to have been carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, the British military said. The attack, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, …
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Bucharest, Romania — Romanian authorities on Wednesday searched the home of controversial influencer Andrew Tate, who is awaiting trial over human trafficking and rape charges, as part of a new investigation, officials said. One of the world’s best-known influencers known for misogynist and sometimes violent maxims, Andrew Tate has been accused of having formed an organized …
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PORTICELLO, Italy — Divers resumed a search on Wednesday for survivors after British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch’s yacht sank off the coast of Sicily amid an intense storm two days ago, though hopes dwindled of finding the six missing people alive. The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-meter-long superyacht, was carrying 22 passengers and crew and was anchored …
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New Delhi — Ahead of a visit to Ukraine, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for an early return to peace and stability and said he will “share perspectives” on a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Modi will travel to Kyiv on Friday after visiting Poland. He will hold talks with Ukraine’s …
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NEW DELHI — India Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday he will “share perspectives” on the peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia during his visit to Kyiv this week. Modi departed for Poland on Wednesday and will visit Kyiv on Friday, a first visit to Ukraine by an Indian prime minister since …
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the country’s forces now control 92 settlements and more than 1,250 square kilometers in Russia’s Kursk region, after Ukrainian responses to Russia’s cross-border attacks evolved into a surprising offensive. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb has the latest. …
The Kremlin-appointed governor of Russian-controlled Donetsk in Ukraine said 11 people suffered moderate or minor injuries during the Galaktika mall fire. …