Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
Under Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin's rule, millions of Ukrainians died during the Holodomor, a man-made famine in 1932–1933. The dictator also oversaw mass deportations, purges of Ukrainian intellectuals and leaders, and the suppression of the Ukrainian language and culture.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), this marks the first time Ukrainian authorities have exposed a Hungarian military intelligence network conducting activities harmful to Ukraine.
Delegations from 35 countries and the Council of Europe gathered in Lviv as EU officials prepare to approve both new defense aid and steps toward establishing a tribunal for Russian leadership.
The ruling marks a significant victory for RFE/RL amid growing concerns about U.S. funding cuts to independent media countering Russian disinformation.
U.S. Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected the new pope and leader of the Roman Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Pope Leo XIV, a senior cardinal announced on May 8 to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News.
George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party, who won the first round of the presidential election with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania’s focus inward.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed their countries' relationship on May 8, vowing to increase cooperation in all areas, including military ties.
"There is Turkey, which maintains channels of communication. And then, above all, there is the People's Republic of China, which, more than anyone else, has the means to make (Russian President Vladimir) Putin come to the negotiating table and soften his demands," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 8.
Remains of Shahed 136 at an exhibition showing remains of missiles and drones that Russia used to attack Kyiv on May 12, 2023 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Photo by Oleksii Samsonov /Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Leaked documents show that Russia "has made steady progress" with its plans to produce its own version of the Iranian Shahed kamikaze drone for use against Ukrainian targets, the Washington Post reported on Aug. 17.
The documents detail how Russia is setting up a production line in Tatarstan that aims to build 6,000 attack drones by the summer of 2025, improving on "Iran's dated manufacturing techniques," to produce more deadly drones on a greater scale.
Russia often launches drones at night to exhaust and detect Ukrainian air defense to further fire missiles at it from its aircraft or missile carriers. According to the Air Force, drones remain challenging to Ukrainian forces to shoot down.
The Washington Post story follows a U.K. Defense Ministry report on Aug. 16, that said that Russian forces have almost certainly started to deploy domestically-produced drones based on Iranian Shahed drone designs.
Domestic production will enable Russia to establish a more stable supply of kamikaze drones to be used in airstrikes against Ukraine, the ministry noted.
However, Moscow is currently still dependent on components and complete weapons shipped from Iran, mostly via the Caspian Sea, the defense report said.
The White House has raised the issue of Iran's supply of attack drones to Russia with Tehran, the Financial Times reported on Aug. 16, though Iran has long officially denied that it is behind the supply of drones.
According to the FT's sources, Washington has asked Tehran to stop selling drones to Russia at indirect talks in Qatar and Oman this year.
The Washington Post added that researchers from the U.S. Institute for Science and International Security studied the leaked documents and assessed that Russia has not yet managed to produce entire drones yet, their bodies, "and probably for not more than 300" units.
The researchers also said that the project is already "at least a month behind schedule."
However, the research team concluded that if Russia manages to set up the production line, it will have the ability to regularly attack Ukraine with hundreds of drones at a time.
The Washington Post said that the documents, which date from late 2022 to early 2023, were leaked by a person involved in the project who opposes the invasion of Ukraine.
On Aug. 3, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia had so far launched almost 2,000 Shaheds at Ukraine.
Elsa Court
