Ukraine remains the most mined country in the world. Nearly one-third of Ukraine's territory, approximately 174,000 square kilometers, had been mined since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The phone call comes as Moscow once again rejected a 30-day ceasefire, with Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova claiming that a ceasefire would give "Kyiv a break to restore its military potential and continue its confrontation with Russia."
Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport en-route to Kuala Lumpur International Airport on July 17, 2014. Three hours into the flight, the Boeing-777 was shot down by Russian proxy forces using a Buk surface-to-air missile above Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast.
"I am grateful for the support and the readiness at the highest level to promote diplomacy," President Volodymyr Zelensky said of the phone conservation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "We share the same view on the need for a ceasefire."
The convictions mark a significant development in Britain's efforts to counter Russian intelligence operations amid heightened tensions stemming from Moscow's war against Ukraine and repeated Kremlin threats toward Kyiv's allies.
According to the Verkhovna Rada's website, Ukraine completed the ratification of the U.S.-Ukraine minerals agreement on May 12. President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the deal.
"I myself have heard relatives talking: our village is being attacked, let's roll the car out of the garage, maybe they will shell it — at least we will get money. The car is old, we can't sell it," Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
The new tranche brings total recent EU defense support for Ukraine to 3.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion), marking a significant expansion of European efforts to boost Kyiv's defense industry.
A Belarusian soldier walks through a newly-built camp on a site previously used by the Belarusian army that was said to be able to accommodate up to 5,000 Wagner troops, on July 7, 2023. (Adam Berry/Getty Images)
The Belarusian Defense Ministry announced on Sept. 30 a new stage of inspection of its Armed Forces' military units, with a focus on the air force and air defense troops, according to the statement.
The combat training tasks will involve all training areas of the Belarusian Armed Forces. During the inspection, military conscripts from the country's reserves will be called up, the ministry said.
Two anti-aircraft missile and two radio-technical brigades, five anti-aircraft missile regiments, and three air bases may be involved in the inspection, according to the monitoring group Belarusian Hajun.
Minsk is Moscow's closest ally and hosts Russian troops and missiles, but has so far not been directly involved in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko said in an interview on Aug. 15 that Belarus moved a third of its army to the border with Ukraine earlier in the summer.
Speaking to the Rossiya TV channel, Lukashenko claimed it was in response to a build-up of Ukrainian troops that had been prompted by a misinterpretation of preparations for Belarus's Independence Day celebrations on July 3.
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry released a statement on Aug. 25 that Belarus is "concentrating a significant number" of weaponry and personnel at the border with Ukraine, including some former Wagner Group mercenaries.
The Foreign Ministry warned, "in case of a violation of Ukraine's state border by Belarus, our state will take all necessary measures to exercise the right to self-defense guaranteed by the UN Charter."
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Karina Piliuhina
