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.
Defense Ministry's Intelligence Directorate Head Kyrylo Budanov (C) attends a press briefing on the release of Ukrainian POWs from Russian captivity in Kyiv on Sept. 22, 2022.
Russian troops are creating the illusion that they are leaving Kherson; instead, they are bringing new military units there to prepare for defense, Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine's intelligence chief, told Ukrainska Pravda.
Budanov called the evacuation of top Moscow-installed proxies and displacement of civilians, announced on Oct. 18, "an information operation and manipulation in many aspects," adding that it can't be said for sure that "they are fleeing from Kherson right now."
On Oct. 23, the National Resistance Center reported that Russian forces plan to leave Kherson without mobile connection, television and radio broadcasting to create an information blockade in the city during Ukraine's counter-offensive.
Regarding the military threat from Belarus, Budanov said there is currently no indication of any strike force formation as Russia transferred only about 3,200 of its troops to Belarus.
Russian troops may be using Iranian-made drones to terrorize Ukrainians "for a long time," according to Budanov; however, their missile reserves "are almost exhausted." Budanov added that Russia orders kamikaze drones "all the time" with a one-time batch delivery of about 300 units.
Russian troops have used about 330 Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones, of which 222 were shot down, according to Budanov. He said 30% of the launched drones hit their targets or explode somewhere close to them.
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