Section: The Washington Free Beacon (USA)
Pro-Western Parties Dominate Ukraine Elections as Clashes with Russian-Backed Forces Continue
Pro-Western parties prevailed in Ukraine’s parliamentary elections over the weekend, but the country’s armed forces continued to suffer casualties amid fighting with Russian-backed separatists in the east. President Petro Poroshenko’s political group began talks with Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk’s People’s Front...
Biden: World Is ‘Literally Fraying At The Seams’
Vice President Joe Biden said the world is “literally fraying at the seams” during a speech to students at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government on Thursday. Biden chronicled recent international crises including unrest in Ukraine and the Middle East and the potential Ebola epidemic. He underscored America’s commitment to combatting...
The Ceasefire in Ukraine is Being Ignored by Moscow
As exercises in cognitive dissonance go, it’s hard to beat the first sentence of this Washington Post report on events in Ukraine: Fighting intensified in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday despite a fragile cease-fire, as pro-Russian rebels appeared to be close to capturing the strategically important Donetsk airport. This ceasefire appears to...
Ukraine Elections: Darth Vader Can’t Vote
Darth Vader may have fought for the Empire, but in the Ukraine he fights for democracy and the right to vote. The man previously known as Viktor Shevchenko arrived at a Kiev polling station Sunday dressed in full Vader regalia. Along with other Star Wars characters such as Yoda, Chewbacca, and Palpatine, Vader is running as a representative of...
Ukrainian Prime Minister Says ‘Terrorist Acts’ Possible During Parliamentary Elections
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arsenic Yatseniuk has warned that Russia and its proxy forces in eastern Ukraine could seek to destabilize the country’s parliamentary elections on Sunday with attacks, Reuters reports. Ukraine is holding its first parliamentary elections since pro-Russia leader Victor Yanukovich was deposed last winter after street...
Russia and Ukraine Fail to Make Progress in Testy Milan Talks
By Andreas Rinke and Alexei Anishchuk MILAN (Reuters) – Russia, Ukraine and European governments failed to make any progress towards solving the crisis in Ukraine on Friday in talks that the Kremlin said were “full of misunderstandings and disagreements.” Further discussions were scheduled later in the day, but there were few expectations of any...
Putin Warns U.S. Spat Over Ukraine Threatens Global Stability
By Alexei Anishchuk MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin warned Washington that a spat between nuclear powers over the Ukraine crisis could threaten global stability and said in remarks published on Wednesday that Russia would not be “blackmailed” by sanctions. Taking a tough line on the eve of talks with Ukrainian President Petro...
Meanwhile, in Ukraine
At least 331 people have died since the signing of a “truce” between Ukraine and the Russian-backed militants waging war in the eastern part of the country. The United Nations says fighting has continued “on an almost daily basis.” The airport in Donetsk, a crucial transportation hub, has been flattened by shelling. According to the Ukrainian...
Russian-Backed Rebels Launch Assault on Donetsk Airport
The ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels in the country’s east has all but collapsed as the separatists continue to launch attacks on the crucial Donetsk airport, according to reports. The Russian-backed separatists are reportedly firing artillery at the airport grounds that are controlled by Ukrainian government...
Death Rate 10 a Day in East Ukraine Despite Ceasefire
By Robert Evans GENEVA (Reuters) – The conflict in eastern Ukraine is still claiming about 10 lives a day among government troops, pro-Russian separatists and civilians despite a ceasefire agreed in early September, the United Nations said on Tuesday. Over 3,660 people have died and 8,766 been wounded in eastern Ukraine since fighting broke out...