Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is reportedly offering a deal that would give U.S. companies access to Syria's natural wealth, reminiscent of the minerals agreement Washington recently signed with Kyiv.
Russia attacked Ukraine with drones and guided bombs during the night, targeting multiple regions after the May 12 deadline for an unconditional ceasefire expired.
"Only member states can take out loans within the 150 billion euros instrument, but they can use these funds for joint procurement with Ukraine," EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said.
"We agreed to pursue ambitious measures to reduce Russia's ability to wage war by limiting Kremlin revenues, disrupting the shadow fleet, tightening the Oil Price Cap, and reducing our remaining imports of Russian energy."
Zelensky on May 12 removed Lieutenant General Ivan Havryliuk from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, the top command and control body for all branches of Ukraine's defense apparatus.
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.
Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) gestures while speaking during a news conference on Capitol Hill on May 22, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Republican Senator and vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance questioned the importance of Ukraine to U.S. strategic interests on a recent episode of "The Tim Dillon Show" podcast, which aired on Oct. 26.
Vance suggested that Ukraine is less crucial than other regions, specifically Taiwan, which he highlighted as the world’s leading producer of semiconductor chips.
"My whole argument with the Russia-Ukraine (war) is that Russia should have never invaded Ukraine, a lot of innocent people are being killed... Our interest is in peace. But part of that is motivated by my view that Ukraine is not nearly as important to us as other regions of the world, right? Just putting my cards on the table," Vance told Tim Dillon, an American stand-up comedian, who questioned Vance on various topics, including those related to foreign policy.
"Taiwan makes so much of the computer chips, which is such a driver of all economic growth, that if the Chinese took over Taiwan, it would be really bad for us."
When asked about the cause of the war in Ukraine, Vance replied: "Did American diplomacy actually create conflict instead of diffusing conflict? In my view, it did."
Vance, who was selected as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's running mate in July, has been outspoken about his opposition to U.S. aid for Ukraine. He repeatedly has said that he "doesn't care about Ukraine," including just days after the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion.
Vance also repeatedly disparaged Ukraine and voiced his unwillingness to continue U.S. support in leaked text messages with far-right conspiracy theorist Charles Johnson, the Washington Post reported on Aug. 7.
Vance also rejected the notion that Russian President Vladimir Putin would extend his military operations beyond Ukraine into Europe. He labeled the idea of Putin marching through Europe as "absurd" and expressed doubt about the likelihood of Putin pursuing goals beyond his current objectives in Ukraine.
Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.
Timothy Ash
