Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Moscow and Washington discuss the potential resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe, among other issues related to the peaceful settlement of Russia's war in Ukraine, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed to the Russian state-run Interfax news agency.
"This is a historic decision, as weapons for Ukraine will be purchased at the expense of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets through the European Peace Fund," Denys Shmyhal said.
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.
President Volodymyr Zelensky during a press briefing in Kyiv on June 2, 2023. (Photo: President's Office)
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on June 22 that he signed the law banning the import and distribution of books from Russia and Belarus, adopted last year by the parliament.
"I signed the Law 'On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine Regarding the Establishment of Restrictions on the Import and Distribution of Publishing Products Concerning the Aggressor State, the Republic of Belarus, and the Temporarily Occupied Territory of Ukraine," Zelensky wrote on Telegram.
The text was also sent to the EU to assess whether the law infringes on minority and language rights, he added.
The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, adopted the bill banning books published in Russia, Belarus, or the occupied territories of Ukraine in June 2022. The legislation still required a presidential signature.
Ukrainian cultural figures requested Zelensky to provide his signature, arguing the law will support domestic publishing and free the information space from Russian influence.
In May 2023, a petition was launched asking for an immediate signing of the bill, gathering over 26,000 signatures.
Zelensky initially responded to the petition by mentioning concerns of the Justice Ministry that the bill may violate certain articles of the Constitution. The Foreign Ministry warned that it does not comply with the EU norms on human rights.
Both ministries asked the president to veto the law, Zelensky said.
Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.
Kate Tsurkan
