"The legitimacy of President Zelensky is recognized only by the people of Ukraine. It is the people of Ukraine who elect him, and I am very grateful for their support... Putin is elected by Putin. The Russian people are the scenery, and they have only one actor," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin also said he had no plans for another wave of mobilization as Moscow had enough volunteers willing to fight in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held a now-rare press conference with senior editors from international media outlets on June 5. Putin blamed Ukraine and the West for Russia's war crimes, and made a new round of threats and jaw-dropping lies. The Kyiv Independent examines some of the more notable statements. 'World
Speaking in front of 180 World War 2 veterans, Biden linked the struggle against the fascism of Nazi Germany with that of Kyiv's against Russia.
Ukraine's military intelligence spokesperson, Andrii Yusov, disputed Russian President Vladimir Putin's claims on the numbers of Ukrainian and Russian prisoners of war (POW) in a comment for the Liga outlet on June 6.
"Secondly, we think that if somebody considers supplying such weapons to a combat zone to strike our territory... then why don't we have the right to supply comparable weapons to regions where they could be used to strike sensitive targets of countries that do this to Russia?" Vladimir Putin said.
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, the Kremlin has sought to play the nuclear card – both to frighten Ukraine and to deter the West from assisting. Kyiv and its partners cannot ignore Moscow’s nuclear threats, but they should understand that the Russian leadership does not
President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Guardian in an interview he believes such an approach would green light further attacks by Russia, “reducing to zero” the U.S.’s global influence.
Only 17% of respondents thought that Russia was going in the wrong direction, and another 13% said it was difficult to answer.
According to Ukraine's Constitution, the president fulfills his powers until a newly elected president takes office. Therefore, Volodymyr Zelensky remains and will remain Ukraine's president until the end of martial law," Speaker of Ukraine's parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk said.
South Africans will flock to the polls on May 29 for the country’s most important general election since the advent of its non-racial democracy in April 1994. According to most opinion polls, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party, Africa’s oldest liberation movement, is expected to fall below
"According to preliminary estimates, the Verkhovna Rada and its speaker remain the only legitimate authorities in Ukraine," Putin told journalists. "If they wanted to hold presidential elections, they would need to cancel the martial law act, and that's it. But they didn't want to do that for a number of reasons."
According to Russian state-controlled news agency TASS, the step would pave the way for Russia to officially recognize Afghanistan's Taliban government, which seized power in 2021 and has not received de jure recognition from any country in the world.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin arrived in Uzbekistan's capital on May 26 to hold discussions with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, focusing on strengthening bilateral relations.
According to Ukraine's General Staff, over half a million Russian soldiers were either killed or wounded in Ukraine during the 27-month-long full-scale war. The staggering number is in line with the estimates of the U.K. and France, which said earlier in May that the overall Russian losses are set
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) notified Valentina Matviyenko, Russia's Federation Council Chairwoman, who approved the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, of suspicion in absentia.
Key updates on May 24: * General Staff: Russian troops halted in Kharkiv sector, Ukraine conducts counterattacks * Putin looking for ceasefire to cement gains in Ukraine, Reuters reports citing sources * Attack on occupied Crimea damages communications equipment, casualties reported, partisans claim * First group of Ukrainian pilots passes F-16 training in US
Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to disrupt Ukraine's upcoming peace summit in Switzerland, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on May 24 in response to reports about Putin's alleged willing to halt the war at the current front lines.
The regime of dictator Alexander Lukashenko cracks down on the 257 candidates registered to join the exiled opposition council. Over a hundred Belarusians living abroad accused of ‘forming an extremist group’ and ‘discrediting Belarus’ by celebrating Freedom Day in their countries of refuge. Subscribe to the Newsletter Belarus Weekly Join
"(Russian President Vladimir) Putin can fight for as long as it takes, but Putin is also ready for a ceasefire – to freeze the war," a senior Russian source who has worked with him told the news outlet on condition of anonymity.
During his visit to Belarus, Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to discuss the participation of the Belarusian military in Russia's non-strategic nuclear drills, the Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti reported on May 24.
The decree would enable Russian citizens, companies, and the central bank to appeal to courts that the seizure of their assets is unjustified. In turn, the Russian government could offer U.S. assets in Russia as compensation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to revive the Soviet Union, but two can play this game. To complete the Kremlin’s grotesque historical reenactment, the West should launch a new economic Cold War in response. In addition to the war of aggression waged against the civilians and cities of
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a clear signal to the West last week: China stands firmly behind Russia. Putin made his first foreign trip since his inauguration to Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping on May 16. The visit came after a cabinet reshuffle in Russia the week prior,
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk says Poland to bolster its border with Belarus amid warnings of mass migration breach and "hybrid war" threats. Ukraine’s parliament considers a bill to grant citizenship to foreign volunteers fighting in as part of the Ukrainian Army, addressing legal challenges currently facing Belarusians fighting
Russia has no plans to capture Kharkiv "as of today" and is attacking Kharkiv Oblast in order to create a so-called buffer zone in the oblast to prevent shelling in Belgorod, President Vladimir Putin claimed on May 17.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's appointment of a new defense minister, Andrey Belousov, is seen as an attempt to streamline Russia's economy and mobilize it for the war effort. Russia's military has faced numerous supply and logistics problems that thwarted its all-out war against Ukraine from the get-go. Two years later,
Speaking on May 16 at a press conference during Putin's two-day visit to China, the pair put on a united front and cast themselves as partners opposed to a Western, U.S.-led world order.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in China on May 16 for a two-day visit for talks with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.
The Royal Romance, a 92-meter (300-foot) luxury yacht worth an estimated 200 million euros ($218 million), was seized by Croatian authorities in March 2022.
Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed on May 12 that Andrei Belousov, a former aide and Russia's economy minister from 2012-2013, should replace Sergei Shoigu as defense minister in a surprise reshuffle of Russia's security and defense apparatus.
Integrating the military with Russia's economy is a key task for its Defense Ministry, soon-to-be-appointed Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov told the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, on May 14.
