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☆ Ukraine lawmakers just passed a bill that'll allow the country to mimic Russia's tactic of drafting convicts to fight in the war
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The bill, if enacted, imitates the Russian approach of using prisoners to fuel its war efforts. AdvertisementLawmakers in Ukraine passed a bill on Wednesday that would allow the country's military to recruit prisoners to fight on the battlefield. The bill, which has yet to be signed into law by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, will allow Ukraine to mimic the Russian tactic of drafting convicts for their war effort. Related storiesBut while Russia hasn't imposed many restrictions on which prisoners they conscript, the Ukrainian bill is a lot more particular on who gets selected. The passing of the bill comes at a precarious time for Ukraine, which has to reckon with what US officials are calling a reinvigorated Russian army.

Persons: —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vsevolod Vukolov, Russia hasn't, Shulyak, Christopher Cavoli, didn't Organizations: Service, Lawmakers, Russian, Kommersant, Washington Post, Pravda, US, Armed, BI Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian

☆ Ukraine’s Parliament Passes Bill Allowing Some Convicts to Serve in the Army
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Constant Méheut | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine’s Parliament passed a bill on Wednesday that will allow some convicts to serve in the military in exchange for the possibility of parole at the end of their service, a move aimed at replenishing the army’s depleted ranks after more than two years of war. The bill must still be signed into law by President Volodymyr Zelensky. It was not immediately clear if he would do so, given the sensitivity of the matter. The policy echoes a practice used by Russia, which has committed tens of thousands of convicts to the war, allowing it to gain the upper hand in bloody assaults by sheer force of numbers. Olena Shulyak, the leader of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Servant of the People party, said that the decision to mobilize and parole a prisoner would be made by a court and would require the prisoner’s willingness to join the army.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Olena Shulyak, Volodymyr Zelensky’s Organizations: People Locations: Russia

☆ An alleged plot to assassinate Zelenskyy gives an alarming look into how deeply Russia can penetrate his inner circle
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewUkraine's security service, the SBU, said on Tuesday that it had foiled the latest Russian plot to assassinate Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other top officials. Among those allegedly involved in the planned assassinations were senior members of Ukraine's government protection service. Last year, the Ukrainian president said he was aware of so many plots against his life since the start of the war he'd lost count. Related storiesAccording to SBU, the men involved in the latest plot were working as part of a network of agents for the Russian FSB security service. It's alleged that the plotters had planned to kill Budanov by Orthodox Easter (May 5) and the mission was "supposed to be a gift to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's inauguration."

Persons: —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mark Episkopos, he'd, SBU, Artem Dehtiarenko, Vasyl Malyuk, Kyril Budanov, It's, Budanov, Vladimir, Putin's, Maxim Mishustin, Dmytro Perlin, Aleksii Organizations: Service, Business, Eurasia Research, Quincy Institute, Responsible Locations: Eurasia, Russia, Russian

☆ Prisoners in Ukraine to be granted parole for military service
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Radina Gigova | Olga Voitovych | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Some Ukrainian prisoners will be able to apply for early parole and join the army under a new law aimed at boosting Kyiv’s manpower in its fight against the Russian invasion. The new law requires that convicts join the military of their own free will. Those who leave the military before their contract is up face additional prison terms of between five and 10 years. Shuliak said those released on parole to serve would have the status of “military personnel,” and therefore be subject to the same restrictions governing their behaviour. Contracts can be terminated in some circumstances, such as ill health or if the former prisoner commits a new crime.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Kostiantyn, ”, Olena Shuliak, Shuliak Organizations: CNN, Russian, Verkhovna Rada, Organization of State Power, Self, Government, Regional, Urban, National Guard Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Russia

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russians inflict 'massive attack' on Ukraine's energy network, leaving power plants damaged
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Russia used more than 50 missiles and 20 drones to attack Ukraine's infrastructure overnight, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday morning, with the country's energy network suffering a "massive attack." "The enemy does not abandon plans to deprive Ukrainians of light. Again a massive attack on our energy!" Ukraine's Energy Minister German Galushchenko said on Facebook Wednesday. Power plants and transmission facilities were attacked in a number of regions, he said, including the southern Zaporizhzhia region and Vinnytsia and Lviv in central and western Ukraine.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, German Galushchenko Organizations: Ukraine's Energy, German, Facebook Locations: Russia, Vinnytsia, Lviv, Ukraine

☆ Russia pounds Ukraine with biggest airstrikes in weeks
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Olga Voitovych | Martin Goillandeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Russia carried out a “massive” missile attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure overnight into Wednesday, according to local authorities, in the biggest aerial onslaught by Russian forces for weeks. Russia used 76 air attack weapons in the assault, including 55 missiles and 21 drones launched from Russia and Russian controlled areas, according to Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk. Rescuers assess the ruins of a building, damaged by a Russian missile attack in Kyiv region, Ukraine on May 8, 2024. Handout/Ukrainian Emergency Service/APMoscow has stepped up efforts to paralyze Ukraine’s energy system in the past month, as Kyiv’s troops struggle to hold positions on key frontlines particularly in the east. The latest Russian attack hit three thermal power plants run by Ukraine’s biggest power company, DTEK.

Persons: Mykola Oleshchuk, Herman Halushchenko, ” Halushchenko, Maksym Kozytskyi, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian Air Force, country’s Energy, Emergency, AP, Ukraine’s, Nazism Locations: Russia, Russian, Ukraine’s Poltava, Kirovohrad, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Ivano, Frankivsk, Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Kyiv region, Ukraine, Handout, AP Moscow, Avdiivka, Ukraine’s, Chervonohrad, Stryi

☆ Putin's Crimea bridge has been out of military use for at least 3 months, satellite images suggest
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewRussia has all but stopped transporting military equipment via a strategic Crimean bridge, Ukrainian analysts say, based on satellite imagery. In an examination of Maxar satellite images by open-source intelligence agency Molfar, analysts said that between February and mid-April, they saw no Russian freight trains carrying military equipment on the Kerch Bridge. It also said it saw no trains carrying military equipment on the bridge between May and September 2023. Built in 2018 following President Vladimir Putin's annexation of Crimea, the bridge is considered an illegal construction by Ukraine. AdvertisementA potent symbolAn explosion causes fire at the Kerch bridge in the Kerch Strait, Crimea on October 08, 2022.

Persons: —, Molfar, Vasyl Malyuk, Vladimir Putin's, Kyrylo Budanov, Artem Starosiek, Vera Katkova, Starosiek, Putin, Oleksii Neizhpapa, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Inna Sovsun, Sovsun, Artem Organizations: Service, Business, Ukraine's Security Service, The Telegraph, Anadolu Agency, Getty Locations: Russia, Kerch, Ukraine, Crimea, Russia's Rostov, Ukrainian

☆ Ukraine Says It Foiled Russian Plot to Kill Zelensky
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Constant Méheut | More About Constant Méheut | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine’s security services said on Tuesday that they had foiled a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and other top military and political figures. Two Ukrainian colonels accused of participating in the plot have been arrested on suspicion of treason. According to the Ukrainian agency, the agents working at Russia’s direction were tasked with identifying people close to Mr. Zelensky’s security detail who could take him hostage and later kill him. It is not the first time that Ukraine has reported a potential assassination attempt aimed at its top leaders. Mr. Zelensky himself said in an interview with an Italian television channel earlier this year that his security services had told him of more than 10 such attempts.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, —, Vasyl Malyuk, Kyrylo Budanov, Zelensky Organizations: Russia’s Federal Security Service Locations: Ukrainian, Ukraine, Italian

☆ Zelensky assassination plot: Two Ukrainian security officials detained over plan to kill president
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Olga Voitovych | Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Two Ukrainian security officials have been detained for planning to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to the country’s State Security Service (SBU). Two Ukrainian government protection unit colonels have been detained and are accused of leaking classified information to Russia, the SBU said Tuesday, after it “exposed a network of agents” belonging to Russia’s state security service (FSB). A woman from the southern Ukrainian region of Mykolaiv was arrested in August 2023 in connection to a plot to assassinate Zelensky. She was accused of gathering intelligence about Zelensky’s planned visit to Mykolaiv in order to plan a Russian airstrike to kill him. The plot was uncovered by Ukrainian authorities and the man was later detained and charged in Poland.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, Zelensky, SBU, Vasyl Maliuk, Kyrylo, Zelensky’s, Prosecutors, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Mitsotakis Organizations: CNN, country’s State Security Service, State, Ukrainian, Defence Intelligence Locations: Russia, “, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Mykolaiv, Russian, Polish, Republic of Poland, Jasionka, Poland, Odesa

☆ Putin orders tactical nuclear weapon drills to deter the West
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Russia's defense ministry said it would hold military drills including practice for the preparation and deployment for use of non-strategic nuclear weapons. "During the exercise, a set of measures will be carried out to practice the issues of preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons," the ministry said. Russia and the United States are by far the world's biggest nuclear powers, holding more than 10,600 of the world's 12,100 nuclear warheads. No power has used nuclear weapons in war since the United States unleashed the first atomic bomb attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Major nuclear powers routinely check their nuclear weapons but very rarely publicly link such exercises to specific perceived threats in the way that Russia has.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexey Danichev, Natalia Kolesnikova, Joe Biden, Andriy Yusov, Sergei Shoigu, Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ludovic Marin, David Cameron, Dmitry Peskov, Putin, Abrams, Sean Gallup Organizations: Federal Assembly's Council, Reuters, Missile, Southern Military District, Military, Victory Day, Afp, Getty, Russian Federation, Federation of American Scientists, CNN, Ukraine, Kremlin, U.S . Senate, AFP, British, NATO, U.S . Army, British Amphibious Engineer Battalion Locations: Saint Petersburg, Russia, Reuters Russia, Moscow, France, Britain, United States, Ukraine, U.S, China, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Russian, Paris, London, Soviet Union, Gniew, Poland

☆ A Ukrainian war reporter's story: Why I refused to make a 'deal with the devil'
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

He was a student at Mariupol State University in 2014 when war broke out in the Donbas, and Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula. "I refused to make a deal with the devil. Ponomarenko said he believes the war has "shown what ordinary people are capable of" and has helped reveal "their true selves," pointing to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as evidence. AdvertisementCapturing it would put Russian forces within striking distance of Ukrainian operational and supply centers in the area. "Bucha was the greatest moment for me because it shows that life prevails," Ponomarenko said.

Persons: —, Ponomarenko, Viktor Yanukovych, Libkos, Rushing Organizations: Service, Mariupol State University, Business, Kyiv, Kyiv Independent Locations: Volnovakha, Ukraine's, Donetsk, Russia, Kyiv, Dnipro, Avdiivka, Ukraine

☆ Ukraine: Russia is capturing its biggest swath of territory since July 2022, as Kyiv desperately awaits US weaponry
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Russian forces have used the “artillery drought” hampering Ukraine’s defenses since December to push forward on the eastern front near Avdiivka, making the largest advance since the early months of the war. Only on Sunday did the top Ukrainian military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, admit the fall of a series of villages that his subordinates had insisted for days were still contested. The resulting fallback showed Russian forces had, in just over two months, made the most substantial and swift progress since July 2022’s advances near Severodonetsk, according to a CNN analysis. DeepStateMap, which updates the frontline situation daily, showed significant losses near Avdiivka. Yurii Fedorenko, commander of the Achilles attack drones company at the 92nd separate assault brigade in that area, said the next two months marked a “window of opportunity” for Russian forces.

Persons: Chasiv, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ruslan Mykula, ” Mykula, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, Oleksandr Ratushniak Oleksandr Ratushniak, Chasiv Yar, Col Nazar Voloshyn, ” Voloshyn, Druzhkivka, Novozhenina, Yurii Fedorenko, “ Organizations: CNN, Sunday, Kurakhove, Ukraine’s, Airborne, REUTERS, Reuters, Russian Locations: Ukraine, Avdiivka, Donetsk, Mariupol, Russia, Pokrovsk, Chasiv Yar, Bakhmut, Ukrainian, Russian, Avdiivka’s, Severodonetsk, Ocheretyne, Kurakhve, Kupiansk, Kharkiv, Moscow

☆ First British royal visits Ukraine since Russian invasion began
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Catherine Nicholls | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Duchess of Edinburgh has become the first member of the British royal family to visit Ukraine since Russia’s invasion in 2022, Buckingham Palace announced on Monday. The duchess is a champion of the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative and the United Nations’ Women, Peace and Security Agenda. Sophie met survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and torture, as well as children who were allegedly forcibly separated from their families by Russia, according to Buckingham Palace. Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh lights a candle as she visits Saint Andrew's Church on April 29, 2024 in Bucha, Ukraine. In March 2023, Prince William visited the Ukrainian-Polish border to meet British and Polish troops and learn more about their collaboration in supporting Ukraine.

Persons: Duchess, Buckingham, Sophie, Edinburgh, Prince Edward , King Charles ’, “, ” “, ”, Anatolii, Volodymyr Zelensky, Olena Zelenska, ” Buckingham, Prince William Organizations: CNN, United Nations, CNN’s Royal, Ukraine, Andrew's Church, Democratic Locations: Edinburgh, Ukraine, Russia, Buckingham, Bucha, Kyiv, Kosovo, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of, Congo, Colombia

☆ Exhausted Ukrainian soldiers need more troops on the front line, not just more artillery, says former US general
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Related storiesUkraine has long faced problems recruiting enough troops to renew its military, exhausted and badly depleted after more than two years of brutal war with Russia. AdvertisementAccording to reports, units on the front line are seriously overstretched, and troops have to fight for weeks in some cases before they are rotated away from the front line to recuperate. "Truthfully, and I know some of my artillery brethren would chide me for this, but artillery and long-range systems do not win war," he said. Ukraine has not been able to do that to the extent they need to with some of the terrains they've lost to Russia."

Persons: —, Mark Herlting, Hertling, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Service, CNN, Business, US Army Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Europe

☆ Ukraine is defying the US over strikes on Russian oil refineries. Experts say it's a necessary risk.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

While the US dithered over aid, Ukraine had a robust argument for prosecuting the war pretty much as it pleased. "Taking out a particular refinery is not going to immediately undermine Russia's war effort," said Dailey, the RAND strategist. "But consistently putting pressure on Russia's oil sector would have a significant impact on Russia's ability to fight this war." AdvertisementVakulenko, in his article, also noted that that strikes on Russian oil refineries have "little impact on Russian export earnings." Later, Ukraine said that its attacks had reduced Russian oil production and processing by 12%.

Persons: —, Ann Marie Dailey, Rafael Loss, Joe Biden's, Marina Miron, Dailey, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Olga Tokariuk, Tokariuk, Donald Trump, Miron, Whittling, Celeste Wallander, Lloyd Austin, Sergey Vakulenko, There's, Sir Tony Radakin, Biden, James Patton Rogers, Patton Rogers Organizations: Service, White, Telegraph, Business, RAND Corporation, European Council, Foreign Relations, Washington Post, Department of, King's College, London's, House, Carnegie, RAND, Financial, Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, Krasnodar, King's College London, Russia

☆ The US is rushing to get new Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine before Russia can destroy more targets
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Pentagon said it would "rush" Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that Patriot missiles would not be a "silver bullet." AdvertisementThe US will "rush" Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine as part of a military aid package, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said. He said earlier this month that Ukraine needed "seven more Patriots or similar air defense systems" to defend its cities from Russian strikes. "'Patriots' can only be called air defense systems if they work and save lives rather than standing immobile somewhere in storage bases," Zelenskyy added on X.

Persons: Lloyd Austin, —, Austin, Mykola Oleshchuk, German Galushchenko, El, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy Organizations: Pentagon, US, Patriot, Service, Defense, Ukrainian Energy, German, Facebook, Frankivsk, Patriots, for, El Pais, EU, NATO Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano, Lviv, Russian, Spanish, Spain

☆ F-16s headed to Ukraine this summer will face their most dangerous battlefield ever
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Ukraine is slated to receive its much-anticipated fleet of F-16 fighter jets this summer. AdvertisementThe long-awaited delivery of F-16s to Ukraine is on the horizon, and these advanced American-made fighter jets can't come soon enough for its forces. The fighter jets are expected to arrive at some point this summer, reportedly as early as June. Romanian air force F-16 fighter planes fly above the Baza 86 military air base, outside Fetesti, Romania, Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. US Air Force F-16's stand ready with bombs loaded to take off during the first daylight attack to liberate Kuwait in 1991.

Persons: —, Falcon, SAMs, Alexandru, Egypt —, John Baum, Russia —, Baum, KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV Russia's, Tannehill, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mark Rutte, Peter Dejong Organizations: Service, Russia's, Rygge Air Force Base, OLE BERG, Getty, NATO, Kyiv, Israeli Air Force, AP, US Air Force, Operation, Allied Force, Yugoslavia, Air Force, Defense Technical Information, Reuters, Storm, Russia, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, US Navy, SA, Russian, AIM, INA Locations: Ukraine, Balkans, Kyiv, Romania, Norway, AFP, — Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Europe, Lebanon's, Israel, Yom, Romanian, Fetesti, Storm, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Afghanistan, Islamic, Kuwait, Russian, Zhukovsky, Moscow, Bekaa, East, Syria, Russia, Ukrainian, Eindhoven, Rzeszow, Jasionka, Poland, Crimean

☆ US announces $6 billion long-term military aid package for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Haley Britzky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Friday a $6 billion long-term military aid package for Ukraine — the largest to date — which will allow the US to purchase new equipment produced by the American defense industry for the Ukrainian military. The announcement comes just days after the US announced a $1 billion package that would quickly provide equipment to Ukraine from US stocks, following President Joe Biden’s signing of a much delayed $95 billion supplemental aid package on Wednesday. Biden said moments after signing the legislation that shipments of aid to Ukraine would begin within hours. Equipment under the $6 billion package announced Friday, however, will take much longer to arrive. The USAI is intended to provide Ukraine with a long-term supply of weapons and equipment.

Persons: Lloyd Austin, ” Austin, Joe Biden’s, Biden, Austin, CQ, “ They’ve, ” Brown, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Organizations: CNN, US, Ukraine —, Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, Joint Chiefs, Staff, Contact Locations: Ukraine, Germany, Ukrainian

☆ Spain to send Patriot missiles to Ukraine amid mounting pressure from EU and NATO allies, report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

It follows Ukraine's urgent plea to NATO for more air defense systems. AdvertisementIt comes after German defense minister Boris Pistorius hit out at Spain and Greece for not having sent their Patriot systems to Ukraine. Spain has decided not to send any of its launchers for the Patriot system to Ukraine, however, the El Pais report said. It currently has three Patriot systems, all purchased from Germany in 2004 and 2014, the report added. "However, from the very beginning, we stated that we cannot give out defense systems that are crucial for our deterrence capabilities," he added.

Persons: —, El, Boris Pistorius, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Putin, Zelenskyy, El Pais, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Olaf Scholz, Scholz Organizations: NATO, Service, EU, Spanish Ministry of Defense, Business, Patriot, Telegraph, Patriots, El Locations: Spain, Ukraine, El Pais, Spanish, Turkish, Syrian, Greece, Germany, Soviet, Ukrainian

☆ Ukraine Could Use New Weapons to Hit Russian Targets in Crimea, Pentagon Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Helene Cooper | More About Helene Cooper | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Pentagon officials refused to specify the exact number of long-range systems that have been sent to Ukraine. The Biden administration sent the longer-range ATACMS secretly, to avoid alerting the Russians. President Biden’s decision in February to send more than 100 of the longer-range systems to Ukraine was a major policy shift. But more than two years into Russia’s invasion and occupation of Ukraine, Mr. Biden’s calculus has changed, administration officials said. As Congress spent months considering another aid package for Ukraine, its troops ran out of ammunition and equipment and lost territory to a slow but steady Russian advance.

Persons: Biden, ATACMS, Volodymyr Zelensky, Gen, Oleksandr Syrsky, they’ve, Charles Q, Brown Jr, Biden’s Organizations: Joint Chiefs of Staff, Georgetown University Institute of Politics, Service Locations: Ukraine, Berdiansk, U.S, Dzhankoi, Crimea, Russia

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russian strikes hit Ukrainian critical infrastructure; UK finance minister visits Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Ukraine came under attack from Russian aerial strikes overnight, which hit critical infrastructure in the central region of Cherkasy, local officials said. In the southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia, which is occupied by Russian forces, Moscow-installed officials there reported that Ukrainian drone strikes killed two civilians. U.K. Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt is in Kyiv meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and will meet with other officials throughout the day. The visit comes a day after U.S. President Joe Biden signed a massive Ukraine aid bill into law, which will provide the embattled country with tens of billions of dollars in more military and financial funding for its fight against Russia's invasion.

Persons: Jeremy Hunt, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Joe Biden Organizations: Finance Locations: Ukraine, Cherkasy, Zaporizhzhia, Moscow, Ukrainian, Kyiv

☆ Biden signs foreign aid bill providing crucial military assistance to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Michael Williams | Arlette Saenz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington CNN —President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law an aid package providing crucial military assistance to Ukraine, capping months of negotiations and debate. The aid package, passed by the Senate late Tuesday evening and worth $95 billion in total, includes nearly $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific. Hardline House conservatives opposed further US funding to Kyiv and threatened to oust Johnson over his handling of the negotiations. Conservatives in Congress have opposed additional assistance for what they view as an unwinnable war. Earlier this year, Biden signaled his intentions to make significant immigration-related concessions if Congress were to move forward with the aid bill.

Persons: Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Mike Johnson, Johnson, Biden, Bill Burns, Donald Trump, Trump, Sen, Bernie Sanders, ” Sanders, Benjamin ] Organizations: Washington CNN, Senate, House Republican, Conservatives, Congress, CIA, Ukraine, Republicans Locations: Ukraine, Israel, United States, Kyiv, Europe, Russia, Gaza

☆ Live Updates: Biden Speaks About Aid Package for Ukraine and Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Zolan Kanno-Youngs | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

Artillery ammunition has been in short supply for the Ukrainian military for more than a year. Now that the Senate has approved a nearly $61 billion aid package to Ukraine, and with President Biden poised to sign it, desperately needed American weapons could be arriving on the battlefield within days. The Senate has approved a nearly $61 billion aid package to Ukraine. The Pentagon has prepared what a U.S. official said on Tuesday was a $1 billion military aid package to be rushed to Ukraine once Mr. Biden signs the funding bill. Jens Stoltenberg, NATO’s secretary general, said on Tuesday that the American aid package would allow for “advanced air-defense systems” to Ukraine but did not specify which kind.

Persons: Biden, Yehor Cherniev, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Mr, —, Doug Mills, ATACMS, Lynsey Addario, Jens Stoltenberg, Stoltenberg, Mark Warner, ” Mr, Brendan Hoffman, Oksana Markarova, Markarova, “, Ms Organizations: Artillery, House Republicans, Ukrainian, Tactical Missile Systems, New York Times Artillery, NATO, Pentagon, U.S, Reuters, Artillery Rocket Systems, The New York Times, Patriot, “, Air Force, Democrat, Senate Intelligence, NBC, ., The New York Times Weapons, Ukrainska Pravda Locations: Donetsk, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, United, Kherson, United States, Germany, ”, American, Virginia, Kyiv, Ukraine’s, Europe

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy talked about what it will take to maintain Ukrainian independence, his soldiers’ morale, and the country’s next presidential election in an exclusive video interview with German media house Axel Springer.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Axel Springer

☆ Inside the White House’s monthslong push for Ukraine aid
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Arlette Saenz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Sullivan followed up four days later with a call to Johnson to highlight the measures in place to track aid in Ukraine. They spoke often with Johnson’s staff, including meetings at the White House and on Capitol Hill. Meanwhile, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients, Ricchetti and Goff spoke with Schumer and Jeffries and their staff almost daily to strategize on how to push Ukraine aid forward. Biden and Johnson spoke by phone the next day as the speaker briefed him on his plan to move the aid package forward. “We discussed the contents of the next US military aid package,” Zelensky said.

Persons: Mike Johnson, Joe Biden, Johnson –, speakership, Biden, Johnson, Vladimir Putin, Jake Sullivan, Shalanda Young, Sullivan, Taiwan –, Hamas, Putin, ” Biden, Hakeem Jeffries, Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, “, ”, Steve Ricchetti, Richetti, Shuwanza Goff, Ricchetti, Goff, Jeff Zients, Schumer, Jeffries, Young, McConnell, Michael McCaul, Intelligence Michael Turner, Bill Burns, Ukraine Bridget Brink, Chip Roy, Texas, Ralph Norman of, Biden’s, Anita Dunn, Jon, Lloyd Austin, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, National Intelligence Avril Haines, Donald Trump’s, Burns, ” Zelensky Organizations: Washington CNN, Ukraine, White House, GOP, Management, Senate, Biden, Russia, House Democratic, White, Capitol, House Foreign, Intelligence, CIA, Republican, The Defense Department, House Republicans, National Intelligence, Democratic, CNN Locations: Ukraine, Europe, Russia, Israel, Taiwan, Ricchetti, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Washington ,, Johnson’s

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