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☆ Senior Ukrainian officials depart in corruption crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office quit Tuesday, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pledged to launch a staff shake-up amid high-level corruption allegations during the war with Russia. Media reports have linked at least one official departure to a scandal involving the purchase of food for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Bulent Kilic / AFP via Getty Images fileZelenskyy vowed to drive out corrupt officials in comments on Sunday, when a deputy minister was dismissed for being part of a network embezzling budget funds. Ukraine’s infrastructure ministry later identified the dismissed official as Vasyl Lozynsky, a deputy minister there. In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine’s focus on the war would not stop his government from tackling corruption.

☆ Boris Johnson visits Kyiv, pledges help
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Nacho DoceKYIV, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Kyiv on a surprise trip on Sunday, meeting President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and pledging that Britain would "stick by Ukraine as long as it takes". "I can tell you that the UK will be sticking by Ukraine for as long as it takes," Johnson told the mayor of Bucha. Johnson has dismissed suggestions that his activity in Ukraine could be seen as undermining British Prime Minister Rusni Sunak. While in office, Johnson visited Kyiv several times and called Zelenskiy frequently. In Bucha, Johnson took selfies with residents and laid flowers in tribute to victims of the war.

☆ Ukraine withstood the Russians in 2022. Can it drive them out in 2023?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Peter Graff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Dec 6 (Reuters) - When Russia invaded Ukraine, Vadym Khlupianets, a 26-year-old ballet dancer at Kyiv's National Operetta Theatre, joined the army. Ukrainians astonished the world - and themselves - in 2022, withstanding an all-out military assault by a superpower meant to crush them within days. [1/6] A civilian trains to throw Molotov cocktails to defend the city, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues, in Zhytomyr, Ukraine, March 1, 2022. As 2022 winds down, Russia has been hurling missiles at Ukraine's energy infrastructure, plunging millions of Ukrainians into darkness and cold. Moscow claims a military justification; Ukraine says this serves no purpose but to harm civilians.

☆ - Have patience, Russia sanctions will work, Lithuania PM says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Poland and other Western states have said the missile was a Ukrainian air defence missile that went astray in pursuit of a Russian missile. "The better air defence system Ukraine has, the less probability of incidents like that might happen... It is important not only for NATO to provide a decent (air) defence system, but also provide Ukraine with a decent (air) defence system," she said. Since the invasion, NATO has named Russia a persistant threat, nearby Sweden and Finland have applied to join the alliance and the NATO presence in the Baltics has increased. The Belarus military did not take part in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but Russian troops used Belarus territory for their offensive.

☆ Donetsk battles are 'hell', Ukraine's Zelenskiy says as Kherson mops up
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/3] Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news conference with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala (not seen), as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 31, 2022. Ukraine's success in Kherson, where its troops now control more than 60 regional settlements, as well as in other places, benefited partly from resistance in the Donetsk region, despite repeated Russian attacks, Zelenskiy added. "There it is just hell - there are extremely fierce battles there every day," he said. In a telephone call, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi emphasised "further enhancing cooperation in the political, trade and economic fields, including the transport and logistics sector," the Kremlin said on Saturday. The visit followed accusations by Ukraine and the West that Russia has used Iranian drones to target Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

☆ Zelenskiy: 'We are getting Kherson back', hails historic day
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 11 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday said special units of the armed forces were already in the southern city of Kherson following Russia's withdrawal and described the moment as historic. We are getting the south of the country back, we are getting Kherson back," Zelenskiy said in an evening video address. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news conference with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala (not seen), as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 31, 2022. But special units are already in the city," he continued. Zelenskiy said that measures to make Kherson safe - in particular, efforts to remove what he called a lot of mines -would start as soon as possible.

☆ Ukraine's Zelenskiy discusses financial aid, Iran sanctions with EU's von der Leyen
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news conference with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala (not seen), as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 31, 2022. REUTERS/Viacheslav RatynskyiKYIV, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy spoke with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Sunday to discuss macro-financial aid for Ukraine and further sanctions on Iran, Zelenskiy said. "Noted the importance of continuing the grain initiative for world food security. Discussed increasing sanctions & opposing actions of Iran, which supports aggression," Zelenskiy wrote on Twitter. Reporting by Max Hunder; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Ukraine war has often been a grinding artillery battle. These are the big guns being sent in to pound Russian forces.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Its array of 122 mm, 152 mm and 203 mm cannon mirrored those used by Russia's military. Denice LopezGermany and the Netherlands have already delivered 10 of the German-designed Panzerhaubitze 2000 armored self-propelled 155 mm howitzers to Ukraine. 1st Class Mikki SprenkleFrance's Caesar is a 155 mm howitzer mounted on a six-wheeled truck. Jacob BradfordThe Zusana-2 is a Slovakian wheeled 155 mm self-propelled howitzer. RCH-155The turret of the RCH 155, armed with a 155 mm gun, is unmanned and controlled from the drive module.

☆ Russia is making excuses for why it can't stop US-made HIMARS from shredding its military in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Russian forces have struggled to counter Ukraine's use of US-made HIMARS rockets. One Russian defense blog has an explanation: HIMARS has a secret feature that prevents Russian artillery from targeting it. "This greatly distinguishes American systems from conventional MLRS [multiple launch rocket systems], where the projectiles fly along a ballistic trajectory. "Unless the radar happens to be looking in the right place at the right time, it will not detect a HIMARS launch," Cranny-Evans said. While this Avia article appears groundless, Russian defense blogs — which often have links to the Russian government and military — can be quite illuminating.

Excluding Russia's 91 million-tonne crop projection, USDA shows 2022-23 world wheat output dropping nearly 2% on the year, placing more weight on Russia's crop success and its ability to access world markets. China is routinely excluded from world wheat analyses because of its small part in global trade compared with its massive stockpiles, which will account for a record 54% of global wheat supply by mid-next year according to USDA figures. That major exporter ledger does not include India or Brazil, who have been increasingly relevant in global trade and could potentially expand that footprint. But adding them in does not change the previous conclusion: 2022-23 world wheat stocks-to-use is still set for a 15-year low. Wheat stocks-to-use in major exportersKaren Braun is a market analyst for Reuters.

☆ The ‘Wild Field’ Where Putin Sowed the Seeds of War
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-17 | by ( Jeffrey Gettleman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Viacheslav Boitsov, an emergency services official, said there were “no military facilities nearby.”But according to Mr. Mohyla and Oleksandr Nevydomskyi, another Ukrainian military officer, Ukrainian soldiers were staying in that building. The night before, they said, a mysterious man was seen standing outside flashing light signals, most likely pinpointing the position. The military calls such spies “correctors,” and they relay navigational information to the Russians to make missile and artillery strikes more precise. Ukrainian officials have arrested more than 20 and say correctors are often paid several hundred dollars after a target is hit. “For sure there are Russian agents in this town,” Mr. Mohyla said.

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