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☆ Romania bolsters defences to stop Ukraine war crossing NATO threshold
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Luiza Ilie | Thomson Reuters | Bucharest-Based General News Reporter Covering A Wide Range Of Romanian Topics Elections | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] A view shows a building of Ukraine's Black Sea Danube shipping company destroyed during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Izmail, Odesa region, Ukraine August 2, 2023. In November last year, a missile hit southern Poland killing two people and prompting a brief security scare, although it was later determined that Ukrainian air defences were to blame. Among the targets were the Ukrainian ports of Izmail and Reni, both of which lie across the Danube from Romanian soil. "They (Russian drones) fly at very low altitudes, sometimes less than 200 metres (above ground) ... they are built in such a way that least reflects radar waves," he said. In July, when the Danube bombing campaign began in earnest, Russians had more targeted success because Ukraine had not set up extensive air defence systems in the area.

Persons: Nina Liashenko, Reni, Tudor Cernega, Jens Stoltenberg, Constantin Spinu, Cernega, Andrew Gray, Mike Collett, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: REUTERS, NATO, Local, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Izmail, Odesa, Romania, Moscow, BUCHAREST, Poland, Ukrainian, Russia, Romanian, Plauru, Ceatalchioi, U.S, ROMANIA, Kyiv, Brussels

☆ Opinion: Ukraine’s bumpy road ahead just got rockier
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( David A. Andelman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

David A. Andelman David AndelmanThat is the clearest and most present danger to the security of Europe and the entire Western alliance. Fissures are appearing across the hitherto united Western front that can only be sending shivers of joy up Putin’s spine. Putin quite rightly appreciated the stakes — and the opportunity — when he first launched his heartless blockade of Ukraine’s grain, grain that helps feed not only Europe but also vast stretches of Africa now plunged into the threat of devastating hunger. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the UN General Assembly last week in New York City. The EU is weighing up a mammoth four-year, 20 billion euro ($21.3 billion) fund to finance weapons purchases for Ukraine.

Persons: David A, David Andelman, Vladimir Putin, shivers, Putin, Hungary —, Volodymyr Zelensky, Bryan R, Smith, hasn’t, ”, Mateusz Morawiecki, Andrzej Duda, Robert Fico, Fico, Olaf Scholz, —, Mitch McConnell, “, ” Robert I, Harvard Kennedy Organizations: CNN, French Legion of, The New York Times, CBS News, America, Republicans, NATO, European Union, UN, Assembly, Getty, Smer Party, ”, World Trade Organization, Ukraine, North, Times, Harvard Kennedy School’s Locations: Ukraine, Europe, Africa, Poland, Slovakia, Bialobrzegi, Warsaw, Hungary, New York City, AFP, New York, Moscow, ” Polish, Banovce nad Bebravou, ” Ukraine, EU, Russia, North Korea, Zelensky, London, America, China, ” China

☆ Georgia accuses ex-official of plotting from Ukraine to oust Tbilisi government
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( Felix Light | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Men wearing traditional clothes stand next to the Georgian flag during the Independence Day celebrations in Tbilisi, Georgia May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze Acquire Licensing RightsTBILISI, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Georgia on Monday accused a former deputy interior minister of plotting from Ukraine to overthrow the Tbilisi government, testing ties with Kyiv as Georgia deepens its relations with Russia. It did not provide evidence, and in Kyiv, foreign ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko said Tbilisi was "trying to demonise Ukraine" for domestic reasons. "The Ukrainian state did not interfere, does not interfere and does not plan to interfere in the internal affairs of Georgia," he wrote on Facebook. The Georgian State Security Service named a former bodyguard to Saakashvili as one of the alleged conspirators, along with the commander of a Georgian unit fighting in Ukraine.

Persons: Irakli, Giorgi Lortkipanidze, Oleg Nikolenko, Andriy Yusov, Russia's, Irakli Garibashvili, Mikheil Saakashvili, Saakashvili, Felix Light, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Georgian, REUTERS, Rights, The State Security Service, Western Georgian, Facebook, European Union, EU, Ukraine, NATO, Georgian State Security Service, Thomson Locations: Tbilisi , Georgia, Rights TBILISI, Georgia, Ukraine, Tbilisi, Kyiv, Russia, Ukrainian, Brussels, Europe, Moscow, Abkhazia, South Ossetia

☆ Finland’s President, No Stranger to Russia, Warns Europe About Complacency
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Steven Erlanger | More About Steven Erlanger | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The president of Finland, Sauli Niinisto, is the person considered most responsible for bringing his country into the NATO alliance — and Sweden, too, which is awaiting ratification — following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. President Biden has consulted him about Russia and its president, Vladimir V. Putin, whom Mr. Niinisto has met numerous times. The war in Ukraine will last a long time, he said, and wars can take unexpected paths, even toward the use of nuclear weapons. The invasion, Mr. Niinisto said, was “a wake-up call” for Europe and NATO. That might be a good question — whether all Europeans realize that this is a European issue.”

Persons: Sauli, —, Biden, Vladimir V, Putin, Niinisto, ” Organizations: NATO, Mr, Ukraine Locations: Finland, Sweden, Ukraine, Russia, Helsinki, Europe

☆ Exclusive: New rules would give Europe more scope for military spending post-Ukraine invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Jan Strupczewski | Thomson Reuters | Jan Is The Acting Bureau Chief In Brussels. He Has Been Covering European Union Policy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

EU fiscal rules underpin the euro currency used in 20 nations by limiting government borrowing. Currently only nine EU members meet a NATO alliance defence spending goal of 2% of national output, with four - Finland, Romania, Hungary and the Slovak Republic - above that only in 2023. After Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, many European countries neighbouring Russia called for military spending to be excluded outright from EU deficit calculations. 'NOT HEARD A NO'Opposition to a full exemption from EU calculations stemmed from concern that military spending could be a very broad category that could help hide a lot of ordinary expenses. By stipulating that military spending would only be a "relevant factor" that could help avoid disciplinary action, the new rules would leave it to the Commission's judgement what spending would be eligible.

Persons: Valentyn, Deal, Jan Strupczewski, Mark John, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Union, NATO, REUTERS, European, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, BRUSSELS, EU, Finland, Romania, Hungary, Slovak Republic, France, Germany, Italy, NATO, Russia, U.S

☆ Opinion | The Articulate Ignorance of Vivek Ramaswamy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( David French | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

If anything, armed Black protesters such as the Black Panthers triggered cries for stronger gun control laws, not looser ones. He’s a very smart man, blessed with superior communication skills, yet he constantly exposes his ignorance, his cynicism or both. The bottom line is this: When a political class still broadly believes in policing dishonesty, the nation can manage the negative effects of widespread civic ignorance. When the political class corrects itself, the people will tend to follow. But when key members of the political class abandon any pretense of knowledge or truth, a poorly informed public is simply unequipped to hold them to account.

Persons: Jim Crow, he’ll, Nikki Haley, Ramaswamy, Haley Organizations: Black, NATO, Washington Post Locations: Ukraine, Russia, China, Taiwan, Milwaukee

☆ Putin says Prigozhin 'made serious mistakes' in first remarks since plane crash that likely killed the Wagner boss
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Yevgeny Prigozhin, owner of the Wagner Group military company, arrives during a funeral ceremony at the Troyekurovskoye Cemetery in Moscow, April 8, 2023. WASHINGTON — Russian President Vladimir Putin broke his silence Thursday in quick, impersonal remarks to the families involved in the fatal plane crash believed to have killed Wagner mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin. "With regard to this plane crash, first of all, I want to express my sincere condolences to the families of all the victims. The Pentagon said Thursday that initial intelligence indicates that the Wagner chief died in the Wednesday plane crash. "No real surprise here, it's a marker of how lethal, and how deadly and how unscrupulous Vladimir Putin is," Stavridis added.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, WASHINGTON, Vladimir Putin, Wagner, Prigozhin, It's, Putin, we're, Pat Ryder, Ryder, Ben Rhodes, Rhodes, James Stavridis, Stavridis, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy Organizations: Wagner Group, WASHINGTON —, Pentagon, Wednesday, . Air Force, CNBC, NBC News, MSNBC, Former U.S . Navy, NATO, Kyiv Locations: Moscow, WASHINGTON — Russian, Ukraine, Russian, St, Petersburg

☆ Ukraine war divides Republicans heading into first GOP debate
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Ukrainian Presidency | Anadolu Agency | Getty ImagesWASHINGTON — The Republican primary debate in Milwaukee Wednesday is expected to showcase the deep divisions within the party over America's role in the Russian war on Ukraine. Scott Olson | Getty ImagesFormer Vice President Mike Pence was the first Republican candidate to travel to Ukraine after Russia invaded. He says the Russia-China axis is by far the top threat to U.S. national security and merits more focus than the Ukraine war. Tim ScottLikely Republican presidential candidate and U.S. Joseph Prezioso | AFP | Getty ImagesThe former New Jersey governor was the second Republican candidate to visit Ukraine after Pence.

Persons: Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Carlos Barria, Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump, could've, Sean Hannity, Zelenskyy, Biden, Mike Pence, Scott Olson, they've, Pence, Putin, Vivek Ramaswamy, Tucker Carlson, Scott Morgan, Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley U.S, Nikki Haley, Kevin Lamarque, Haley, Tim Scott, Brian Snyder, Tim Scott of, Scott, Ron DeSantis, Scott Brown, Reba Saldanha, DeSantis, pushback, Chris Christie, Joseph Prezioso, Christie's, Christie, Francis Suarez, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, Ronald Reagan, Mario Tama, Getty Images Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, Suarez, Will Hurd, Hurd, Republican frontrunners Trump, Doug Burgum, Dan Koeck, Asa Hutchinson, Arkansas Asa Hutchinson, Drew Angerer Organizations: Anadolu Agency, Getty Images WASHINGTON, Republican, Milwaukee Wednesday, GOP, New York Times, U.S, Army, National Defense, Reuters, Fox News, NATO, Getty, NBC News, Marine Corps, Vivek Ramaswamy Republican, Former Fox, Iowa, United, United Nations, American Enterprise Institute, New Hampshire Institute, Politics, Saint Anselm College, NBC, Ron DeSantis Florida Governor, Republican U.S, New Jersey, New Hampshire Town Hall, AFP, New, CNN, Miami Mayor, Library, Getty Images Miami Mayor, National, Harvard, Republican Party of Iowa, Former, CIA, Disney, Doug Burgum North, Reuters North, Asa Hutchinson Republican, Washington Hilton Locations: Ukraine, Kharkiv, Russia, Ukrainian, Milwaukee, United States, Europe, Moscow, Iran, Siena, Fort Drum , New York, U.S, South Carolina, Ankeny , Iowa, Russian, Kyiv, Berlin , New Hampshire, Des Moines , Iowa, China, Eastern Europe, Arlington , Virginia, Taiwan, North Korea, Manchester , New Hampshire, Tim Scott of South Carolina, America, Ron DeSantis Florida, Rye , New Hampshire, Reuters Florida, New Hampshire, Goffstown , New Hampshire, New Jersey, Bucha, Simi Valley , California, Harvard, Former Texas, Texas, Crimea, Desantis, Doug Burgum North Dakota, Fargo , North Dakota, Reuters North Dakota, Arkansas, Washington ,

☆ Sweden Is Not Staying Neutral in Russia’s Information War
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Steven Lee Myers | More About Steven Lee Myers | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Facing a tsunami of disinformation about the treatment of Muslims that has in recent months fueled protests from Stockholm to Baghdad, Sweden decided it needed to fight back. It turned to the Psychological Defense Agency, a part of the Ministry of Defense that its government created last year. The agency has become the first line of defense for a country facing a sustained information attack from abroad. The country’s leaders are borrowing from an old Cold War strategy to steel the country’s 10 million people for the possibility of “total war” with the Soviet Union. The outrage has already had an impact: delaying Sweden’s accession to NATO because of objections by another member, Turkey.

Organizations: Psychological Defense Agency, Ministry of Defense, Kremlin, NATO Locations: Stockholm, Baghdad, Sweden, Soviet Union, Soviet, Russia, Turkey

☆ Russia to build up forces in west to counter NATO threat - Shoigu
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu chairs a meeting with the leadership of the Armed Forces in Moscow, Russia July 31, 2023. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS/File PhotoAug 9 (Reuters) - Russia will build up forces at its western borders following Finland's accession to the U.S.-led NATO alliance, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told the governing board of the ministry on Wednesday. Shoigu called the entry of Finland into NATO and the future entry of Sweden "a serious destabilising factor". Shoigu said the number of NATO military units from outside the region stationed in eastern Europe had increased by two-and- a-half times since February last year and that they were now 30,000-strong in total. "These threats to Russia's military security require a timely and adequate response.

Persons: Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu, Kevin Liffey, Peter Graff Organizations: Russian, Armed Forces, Russian Defence Ministry, REUTERS, NATO, Defence Ministry, Russia, Russian Federation, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, U.S, Poland, Finland, Ukraine, Russian, Sweden, Leningrad, United States, America, Europe

☆ Ukraine has tested its allies' patience with its military strategy and demands
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The phrase "whatever it takes" has become a mantra often repeated at public gatherings of allies assessing the war and the military needs of Ukraine. Most recently, tensions have emerged over Ukraine's military strategy and demands on NATO. And by threatening to boycott the summit, Zelenskyy had played a risky strategy, Shea noted, potentially setting the meeting up for failure. The key thing is to manage that [discrepancy] and prevent it doing lasting damage, and I think the Vilnius summit at least managed to prevent it doing lasting damage." Ukraine's military strategy — and the symbolic value it has put on fighting for every piece of Ukrainian territory — has sometimes collided with its allies' military perspective and pragmatism.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Gitanas Nauseda, Pedro Sanchez, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Joe Biden, Giorgia Meloni, Jens Stoltenberg, —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ben Wallace, Ludovic Marin, didn't, Zelenskyy, Washington, Biden, Jamie Shea, Shea, Beata Zawrzel, wasn't, they're Organizations: Spain's, Joe Biden Italy's, NATO, NATO Summit, Getty, Ukraine's, Kyiv, Britain's, AFP, Washington Post, CNBC, White, Ukraine, Emerging, LITEXPO Lithuanian, Center, Nurphoto, Bakhmut, Libkos Locations: Ukraine, Vilnius, Lithuania, Kyiv, Russia, U.S, Washington, London, United States, Soviet, Donetsk

☆ Old Cold War tool could help in new era of tension
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The United States may soon expand its export controls to cover semiconductors used in artificial intelligence and access to cloud computing. The People’s Republic has responded with tit-for-tat export controls on gallium and germanium, two strategic metals used in chips and other technologies where it has a dominant position. This is what the U.S. and its allies did during the last Cold War, when they established the Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (CoCom). The United States’ subsidies for green technologies via its Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) caused tension with its allies. Its premier, Li Qiang, travelled to Germany last month hoping to persuade it not to row in behind the United States.

Persons: Joe Biden, Hung Tran, Li Qiang, –, Biden, Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Frances Burwell, Canada –, George Hay, Oliver Taslic, Pranav Kiran Organizations: Reuters, NATO, Soviet, Atlantic Council, Reuters Graphics Reuters, European Union, Multilateral Export Controls, United, Republican, Florida, EU, U.S, U.S . Trade, Technology Council, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, China, Republic, U.S, Netherlands, Japan, States, United States, People’s Republic, Germany, Beijing, ’, Russia, Britain, Canada, Australia, South Korea

[1/8] Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shake hands after a joint statement, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 15, 2023. South Korea is a U.S. ally and the world's ninth biggest arms exporter, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) think tank. In a press conference, Yoon said South Korea plans to provide "a larger scale of military supplies" to Ukraine this year, following last year's provision of non-lethal supplies such as body armour and helmets. Yoon said South Korea also plans to provide Ukraine with $150 million in humanitarian aid this year, following about $100 million in 2022. Yoon said on Saturday South Korea has delivered safety equipment and humanitarian aid that Ukraine needs, since May, including mine detectors.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Yoon Suk, Yoon Suk Yeol, Yoon, Zelenskiy, Yoon's, Ramon Pacheco Pardo, Pacheco Pardo, Joyce Lee, Olena, Josh Smith, Hyonhee, William Mallard, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: South, REUTERS, NATO, Russia's, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Ukraine, Brussels School, Saturday, Seoul's, Seoul's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, U.S, Seoul, SEOUL, KYIV, Lithuania, Poland, South Korea, Stockholm, North Korea, Korea, South

☆ Retired US general and former CIA chief says Putin's Ukraine invasion has 'made NATO great again'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

David Petraeus told CNN that Putin's invasion was a "catastrophically bad decision for his country." "He set out to make Russia great again, and really has made NATO great again," Petraeus said. The retired general had led US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan before serving as CIA director. Petraeus told CNN in March 2022 — a month after the invasion — that he thinks the Russian army "clearly have very poor standards when it comes to performing basic tactical tasks." And in February, Petraeus told CNN that it's now clear Putin is waging a ruthless war of attrition in Ukraine.

Persons: David Petraeus, Petraeus, Vladimir Putin's, Putin, CNN's Jake Tapper, James Stavridis, Stavridis, — Organizations: CNN, NATO, Service, CIA, MSNBC, US Army Locations: Russia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Vilnius, Lithuania

Helsinki, Finland CNN —More than 500 days after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, the war loomed over President Joe Biden’s weeklong, three-stop trip to Europe. Drama over Ukraine’s membershipUkraine was the top agenda item for NATO leaders in Vilnius, and the discussion of a pathway for the war-torn country to join the alliance prompted division among leaders. After meeting with Zelensky for more than an hour, Biden told reporters that he was able to reassure his Ukrainian counterpart. The former president raised the prospect of withdrawing from the alliance multiple times in 2018, The New York Times reported. I don’t think NATO’s ever been stronger,” Biden said during his meeting with Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö

Persons: Finland CNN —, Joe Biden’s weeklong, reasserting, Biden, Jens Stoltenberg, Ulf Kristersson, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Monday, Erdoğan, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Donald Trump’s, Trump’s, –, ” Biden, Trump, Rishi Sunak, King Charles III, Putin, “, Stoltenberg, Wang Wenbin, Biden “, “ I’ve, Sauli Niinistö Organizations: Finland CNN, Russia, NATO, Zelensky, Vilnius University, Nordic, Senate, The New York Times, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Ministry, Microsoft, House, Lithuania, State, Government Locations: Helsinki, Finland, Russia, Ukraine, Europe, Washington, Turkey, Sweden, Ankara, Vilnius, London, Finnish, China, Beijing, Asia, Indonesia, Hiroshima

☆ Blinken to meet China's Wang Yi in Jakarta - State Department
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] China's Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission Wang Yi attends during a trilateral meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar UlfianaJuly 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi on Thursday as officials gather in Indonesia for ASEAN meetings, the State Department said in announcing the latest in series of interactions between the rival superpowers. Wang is representing China at the Jakarta meetings involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and partner countries after Beijing said Foreign Minister Qin Gang would not attend due to health reasons. Blinken met Qin and Wang in Beijing last month, marking the first visit to China by a U.S. secretary of state in five years. Wang, who is the foreign policy chief for the Chinese Communist Party, ranks above Qin, who as the foreign minister is the government's foreign policy chief.

Persons: Central Foreign Affairs Commission Wang Yi, Retno Marsudi, Sergei Lavrov, Antony Blinken, Wang Yi, Wang, Qin Gang, Blinken, Qin, Janet Yellen, John Kerry, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Daniel Kritenbrink, David Brunnstrom, Simon Lewis, Dan Whitcomb, Michael Perry Organizations: Central Foreign Affairs Commission, Indonesian Foreign, Russia's, REUTERS, ASEAN, State Department, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Foreign, U.S, Treasury, Chinese Communist Party, Pentagon, NATO, senior State Department, East, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, Indonesia, China, Beijing, United States, Asia, U.S, Lithuanian, Vilnius, Pacific, East Asia

☆ Blinken to meet China's Wang Yi in Jakarta -State Department
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NATO allies, instead, agreed that Ukraine would join eventually, when "allies agree and conditions are met," their statement said but offered no details on when, if ever, Kyiv would meet such conditions. Before leaving the United States to attend the summit, Biden bypassed allies' concerns about approving cluster munitions for Ukraine to battle Russia. Most Republicans seeking to unseat Biden have largely kept silent about Biden's performance during the NATO summit, suggesting they see little to gain by criticizing him. Trump has long admired Russian President Vladimir Putin and has expressed skepticism of extended U.S. involvement in the Ukraine war; on Tuesday he criticized Biden's decision to send munitions to Ukraine. Haley on Tuesday criticized the NATO alliance and Biden for not committing to add Ukraine.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, we've, Donald Trump, Ivo Daalder, Daalder, Trump, Vladimir Putin, Biden's, Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Haley, Steve Holland, Trevor Hunnicutt, Jonathan Landay, Sabine Siebold, Andrew Gray, John Irish, Heather Timmons, Howard Goller Organizations: NATO, White, Atlantic, TRUMP, Trump, Republican, Democrat, Chicago Council, Global Affairs, Thomson Locations: VILNIUS, Europe, U.S, Ukraine, Lithuania, Sweden, Western, Vilnius, Kyiv, United States, Russia, Washington, Cyprus, Asia

☆ NATO Summit 2023: Ukraine's wait for membership -- and Zelensky's frustration -- loom over final day of summit, meeting with Biden
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Betsy Klein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

We’re looking for a continued, united NATO,” Biden said in brief remarks alongside NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the summit site. Participants of the NATO Summit pose for an official photo in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11, 2023. NATO first welcomed Ukraine’s membership aspirations during a 2008 meeting in Bucharest, Romania, but little progress has been made and the timeline remains uncertain. Biden and NATO leaders have “unanimously agreed” to send a “substantial” new aid package to Ukraine, Sloat told reporters Wednesday — but she declined to provide additional details. Biden is also set to give a foreign policy speech that his aides have described as a “major address” later on Wednesday, reflecting on the strength and power of the NATO alliance.

Persons: Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Biden, ”, ” Zelensky, Gitanas Nauseda, Olena Zelenska, Kacper Pempel, Jens Stoltenberg, That’s, Stoltenberg, ” Biden, Andrew Caballero, Reynolds, Amanda Sloat, Sloat, “, ” Sloat, Zelensky’s, Chris Skaluba, Biden’s, ’ Biden Organizations: Lithuania CNN, NATO, Alliance, Reuters, Wednesday, CNN, ” National Security Council, Ukraine ”, Transatlantic Security Initiative, Strategy, Security, Ukraine Locations: Vilnius, Lithuania, Ukraine, Ukrainian, NATO, Russia, United States, Kyiv, Washington, St, Michael’s, Hiroshima, Japan, Bakhmut, Bucharest, Romania, Eastern Europe, NATO’s

☆ Russia to put destroyed NATO equipment on show near Western embassies
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 12 (Reuters) - Russia plans to display NATO equipment it has destroyed in Ukraine outside the embassies of Western countries that supplied it, parliamentary speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said on Wednesday. "The proposal to install burned equipment next to the embassies of those countries that send it to Ukraine is especially interesting," said Volodin, who issued orders for such a display to be organised. Russian officials have repeatedly criticised Western countries for supplying weapons to Ukraine, arguing they risk prolonging the conflict and causing further escalation. Ukraine has asked for the weapons to defend itself and recapture Ukrainian territory occupied by Russian forces since Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been meeting with leaders from the 31-member NATO alliance this week in a bid to secure long-term security commitments.

Persons: Vyacheslav Volodin, Volodin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Mark Trevelyan Organizations: NATO, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine

☆ France to supply Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( John Irish | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A French diplomatic source said they were talking about 50 SCALP missiles produced by European manufacturer MBDA. The missiles would come from existing French military stocks, a French military source told reporters, adding that it would be a "significant number". Paris has previously supplied Mistral shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine and Crotale short-range anti-air missiles, which are used to intercept low-flying missiles and aircraft. The missiles were being integrated into Ukrainian Russian-made warplanes, the French military source said. "There are guarantees for (restricting) the use of these missiles to internationally-recognised borders of Ukraine," the military source said.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Macron, MBDA, Paris, John Irish, Sabine Siebold, Alex Richardson, Alexander Smith Organizations: NATO, Franco, Thomson Locations: VILNIUS, France, Ukraine, French, Lithuania, Paris, United States, Britain, British, Ukrainian Russian, Russia, Kyiv

☆ Russia's Medvedev: NATO's military aid to Ukraine brings World War Three closer
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sputnik/Yekaterina Shtukina/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoJuly 12 (Reuters) - Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy secretary of Russia's powerful Security Council chaired by President Vladimir Putin, said late on Tuesday that the increase in military assistance to Ukraine by the NATO alliance brings World War Three closer. World War Three is getting closer," Medvedev wrote on the Telegram messaging app. He also advocated on Tuesday for using the "inhuman weapon" that is cluster munitions after what he said were reports of Ukraine already using it. The U.S. announced it would supply Kyiv with cluster munitions that typically release large numbers of small bomblets over a wide area and are banned by many countries. Russia and Ukraine have previously accused each other of already using cluster munitions in the 500-day war.

Persons: Dmitry Medvedev, Nikolay Pankov, Vladimir Putin, Medvedev, it's, Sergei Shoigu, Lidia Kelly, Stephen Coates Organizations: Deputy, Sputnik, NATO, Ukraine, Kremlin, U.S, Russian, Thomson Locations: Volgograd region, Russia, Ukraine, U.S, Lithuania, Kyiv, Moscow, United States, Melbourne

☆ Putin went to war for 'less NATO,' military alliance chief says — and that's backfired
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 11, 2023. "[Putin] went to war because he wanted less NATO. He's getting more NATO," Stoltenberg told reporters on Tuesday at the start of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. watch nowStoltenberg's comments come after Turkey on Monday agreed to back Sweden's accession bid into the NATO alliance, after withholding its endorsement for over a year. Stoltenberg has confirmed that Zelenskyy will be attending the NATO summit.

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Stoltenberg, Ankara's, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: NATO, Bloomberg, Getty, Sweden's, He's, European Union, Kyiv, Alliance Locations: Vilnius, Lithuania, Ukraine, Turkey, Moscow, Stockholm, Helsinki, Finland, Bucharest, Georgia, U.S, Russia

☆ Lithuania says on eve of NATO summit that providing Ukraine with a pathway to membership is an 'achievable goal'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Lithuania's president said Monday that establishing a pathway for Ukraine's NATO membership is an "achievable goal," even as lesser security assurances have been touted by members of the military alliance ahead of a two-day summit this week. But this is not a replacement for the full-fledged membership in NATO," Nauseda said. Asked whether Ukraine would receive a pathway to membership at this week's meeting, Nauseda said it was possible. "I think it's [an] achievable goal and this is a very important goal too," he said. Kyiv applied for fast-track NATO membership in Sept. 2022 in retaliation against Moscow after it said it had annexed four Ukrainian regions amid its full-scale invasion.

Persons: Steve Sedgwick, Gitanas Nauseda, Joe Biden, Washington, Olaf Scholz, Nauseda, Vladimir Putin Organizations: NATO, U.S, Sunday, Ukraine Locations: Vilnius, Lithuanian, Ukraine, Israel, Kyiv, Moscow, Russian

VILNIUS, July 10 (Reuters) - Ukraine's largest Western allies are still finalising a joint framework that would pave the way for long-term security assurances for Kyiv, and may wait until the end of a NATO summit this week to announce them, European diplomats say. The 31-member NATO alliance meets in Lithuania on Tuesday, aiming above all to give Ukraine some kind of path to membership, but still divided over how far to go. But it wants a firm commitment at the summit that it will be invited to join after the war. In the meantime, it has sought assurances of current and long-term security commitments to help it defend itself now and deter renewed aggression from Moscow once the war ends. The United States' military aid for Israel is worth about $3.5 billion a year, but the relationship also entails a great deal of political support.

Persons: Joe Biden, Washington, Andrew Gray, Sabine Siebold, Alexander Ratz Organizations: Kyiv, NATO, European Union, European Union . U.S, CNN, United, Thomson Locations: VILNIUS, Lithuania, Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, Britain, France, Germany, United States, Japan, Canada, Italy, Israel, Berlin

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