Section: The Japan Times (Japan)
Ukraine celebrates independence day as rebels parade captives
As armored vehicles rumbled through downtown Kiev in an ostentatious celebration of Ukraine’s independence, pro-Russian rebels who are battling government forces in the east paraded captured soldiers down the besieged streets of Donetsk and displayed charred wreckage of destroyed Ukrainian tanks. Sunday’s rival demonstrations on...
Rebels parade captured Ukrainian soldiers in east
To shouts of “Fascists!” and “Hang them from a tree!” captured Ukrainian soldiers were paraded through the streets of the rebel stronghold of Donetsk on Sunday as bystanders pelted them with eggs, water bottles and tomatoes. The spectacle of the bruised and filthy soldiers being marched hands bound and surrounded by gun-toting pro-Russian...
Poroshenko plans $3 billion boost for Ukraine’s defense spending by 2017
President Petro Poroshenko announced plans Sunday to boost his country’s defense spending by an estimated 50 percent as government forces seek to overpower pro-Russian separatists in the east. During a speech marking Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Poroshenko made his pledge to spend an extra 40 billion hryvnia...
Russian aid trucks leave; highlight dire needs
Hundreds of Russian aid trucks returned home from rebel-held eastern Ukraine on Saturday, highlighting a dire need for long-term assistance to the region where homes and livelihoods have been destroyed by months of fighting. Ahead of a much-anticipated meeting on Tuesday between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, German Chancellor Angela...
Russian aid trucks begin to leave Ukraine
Hundreds of trucks from a bitterly disputed Russian aid convoy to rebel-held eastern Ukraine on Saturday rolled back across the border and into a Russian border town called Donetsk, which bears the same name as the largest rebel-held city in Ukraine. An Associated Press reporter counted 225 of the white tarp-covered trucks as they drove […] The...
U.S. says Russia must pull convoy from Ukraine or face more sanctions
The United States on Friday demanded Moscow remove an aid convoy it has sent into rebel-held eastern Ukraine without permission, accusing Russia of a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of its former Soviet neighbor and threatening more sanctions. Moscow, which has thousands of troops close to the Russian side of the border, warned against any...
Russian aid convoy starting to enter Ukraine
Fierce fighting raged in eastern Ukraine on Thursday in what appeared to be a last-gasp attempt by government troops to snatch back territory from pro-Russian separatists before the arrival of a Russian aid convoy overseen by the Red Cross. Trucks loaded with water, generators and sleeping bags for desperate civilians in the besieged city of […]...
Ukrainian troops take over much of Luhansk
After days of street battles and weeks of shelling, Ukrainian troops made significant gains Wednesday into rebel-held territory, capturing a large part of the city of Luhansk and nearly encircling Donetsk, the largest rebel-held city, in fighting that left at least 52 dead. Ukrainian troops have been trying for weeks to drive the rebels out […]...
Kiev’s forces press attacks on rebel-held areas; Poroshenko to meet Merkel, Putin
Government troops pressed attacks Tuesday in the two largest cities held by pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine, while Kiev also pursued diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict that has killed more than 2,000 and displaced another 300,000. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko prepared to host German Chancellor Angela Merkel this weekend...
Ukrainian government troops inch closer to rebel city
The Ukrainian government has captured most of a town near Donetsk, tightening the noose around the key rebel-held stronghold, officials said on Tuesday. Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said in a Facebook post that one soldier was killed and four wounded when a volunteer battalion came under mortar fire before entering the town of Ilovaysk, 18 […]...
