Ukraine’s U-19 national football team secured a hard-fought 3:2 victory against Italy, the reigning European Champions, in a crucial Group A match of EURO 2024.
Following the results of this match, the Ukrainian team advanced to the semifinals.
Ukraine initially took the lead but conceded two goals before equalizing in the 54th minute and scoring a decisive penalty in the 75th minute.
Despite tying their previous group stage matches against Northern Ireland and Norway, the Ukrainian team managed to advance with this crucial win.
This victory ensures their participation in the U-20 World Cup 2025 in Chile.
The FIFA U-20 World Cup is a biennial football championship for men's national teams composed of players under the age of 20.
Sonya Bandouil is a North American news editor for The Kyiv Independent. She previously worked in the fields of cybersecurity and translating, and she also edited for various journals in NYC.
Sonya has a Master’s degree in Global Affairs from New York University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Music from the University of Houston, in Texas.
Ukrainian, U.S., and European senior officials are set to meet in the U.K. ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's planned summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week, Axios reported on Aug. 8, citing three sources with knowledge of the plans.
The news comes as the U.S. president is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin for a high-level summit on Aug. 15 in Alaska to discuss ways toward ending the war in Ukraine.
"For more than 35 years, Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought a bitter conflict that resulted in tremendous suffering for both nations… Many tried to find a resolution… and they were unsuccessful. With this accord, we’ve finally succeeded in making peace," U.S. President Donald Trump said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin introduced a sweeping proposal for a ceasefire in Ukraine during a meeting with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, offering a halt in hostilities in exchange for Ukraine's eastern regions, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Aug. 8, citing European and Ukrainian officials.
"It is legitimate and lawful for China to conduct normal economic, trade and energy cooperation with all countries around the world, including Russia," China's Foreign Ministry said in response to question about Russian oil purchases posed by Bloomberg. "We will continue to adopt reasonable energy security measures in accordance with our national interests."
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Russian President Vladimir Putin presented the Order of Lenin award to U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to pass along to a senior CIA official whose son died fighting for Russia in Ukraine, CBS News reported on Aug. 8.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters on Aug. 8 that a potential peace deal between Moscow and Kyiv would likely include "some swapping of territories," as Trump prepares to hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin next week.
The EU Council approved a regular tranche payment of 3.2 billion euros ($3.7 billion) under the Ukraine Facility mechanism on Aug. 8, a smaller amount than initially planned due to Kyiv's failure to complete key reforms.
A summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is tentatively scheduled to occur late next week, NBC News reported on Aug. 8, citing a senior White House official.
According to the sources, the memorandum permits the Pentagon to reclaim weapons produced for Ukraine under the U.S. Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) and return them to U.S. stockpiles.
"They (Russian troops) are now regrouping for further attempts, but remain positioned in Donetsk Oblast," said Victor Tregubov, spokesperson of the Dnipro group of forces.
"Parents of some of them were killed by occupation authorities, others were simply issued Russian identification documents to legitimize their abduction," said Mykola Kuleba, head of the Save Ukraine organization.
At the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, foreigners flocked to Ukraine to join its defense against Russian forces. More than three years later, the foreign fighters who remain are a different breed — driven by a deep commitment to Ukraine.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
