Section: Australia&NZ
US army walks cultural minefield training Ukraine troops (AFP)
Yavoriv (Ukraine) (AFP) – US paratrooper Gregory Crocker is giving a group of Ukrainian soldiers lesson one in dealing with an unexploded bomb: don’t touch it until the experts arrive. …read more Source: The West...
Leading Ukraine politician says billionaire inciting unrest
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) ” A leading politician in Ukraine has accused the country’s richest man of inciting public unrest to ensure the government steers clear of reforms that would hurt his businesses.Mustafa Nayyem, a respected former… …read more Source: The New Zealand...
Kazakhstan votes for continuity while keeping eye on Ukraine
ALMATY, Kazakhstan (AP) ” As oil-rich Kazakhstan votes for a president Sunday, the governing elite is pounding home a mantra of stability as fears percolate about the country’s massive Russian minority taking inspiration from the… …read more Source: The New Zealand...
Ukraine PM says welfare boost requires economic growth
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) ” Ukraine’s prime minister says there will be no increase to welfare payments until the poverty-stricken country emerges from its security and economic crisis.Arseniy Yatsenyuk told lawmakers Friday that the immediate… …read more Source: The New Zealand...
Dutch expert fired after showing MH17 victim photos (AFP)
The Hague (AFP) – A Dutch expert helping to identify victims from last year’s MH17 airliner crash in Ukraine has been fired after showing photographs of the dead at a public lecture, the government said Thursday. …read more Source: The West...
Ukrainians see rebel colours in Elle magazine cover (AFP)
Kiev (AFP) – Women’s magazine Elle has angered patriotic Ukrainians by putting on its front page the US actress Michelle Williams dressed in the colours of the pro-Russian separatist movement that their government is fighting. …read more Source: The West...
OSCE says little point expanding Ukraine mission at present (AFP)
Vienna (AFP) – The chief OSCE monitor in eastern Ukraine said Thursday there was little point increasing the size of its mission while its access to conflict areas remains restricted, saying the situation remains “fragile”. …read more Source: The West...
Dutch expert suspended over MH17 photos
A Dutch expert helping to identify victims from last year’s MH17 airliner crash in Ukraine has been suspended. …read more Source:...
Kerry urges Russia to remove forces from Ukraine
WASHINGTON (AP) ” Secretary of State John Kerry has urged Russia to remove forces from eastern Ukraine and press Ukrainian separatists into observing a cease-fire.The State Department says Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey… …read more Source: The New Zealand...
Russia claims US troops in eastern Ukraine
MOSCOW (AP) ” Russia’s Defense Ministry says U.S. military instructors are training Ukrainian national guardsmen in urban fighting techniques in the eastern regions where Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatist rebels have fought… …read more Source: The New Zealand...
