Estonia is in favor of Ukraine joining the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu at a press conference.

“Estonia is the devoted friend of the Ukrainians, and fully supports [Ukraine] joining the political family of the European Union and NATO on the basis of objective reforms and transformation in the country,” the minister said.

He added that Estonia will never recognize the illegal annexation of Crimea and the eastern …

The withdrawal of forces along the third, Petrivske-Bohdanivka stretch is scheduled to begin on November 8, as long as there are no ceasefire violations over the course of the week, said Volodymyr Kravchenko, Commander of Ukraine’s Joint Forces Operation, at a press conference, as cited by Ukrinform.

“We have already submitted a letter to the OSCE. On the 7th (of November) we will begin, and on the 8th we will effectively withdraw, if there is no breach of the silence regime,” he said.

At the …

The Latvian National Armed Forces presented new Rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIB) to the public, reports Delfi.lv news outlet.

"These boats are indispensable for special operations. With this new equipment, we are becoming leaders in the region. These boats are effective, modern, and necessary for our armed forces. With these boats, our country can feel safer. In case of possible crises, it is an indispensable tool for tactical operations," said Latvian Defense Minister Artis Pabriks. …

In an attempt to poach the contract from competitors, Russia plans to offer its own self-propelled surface-to-air missile systems to India while Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh is in the country this week. Singh will be visiting Moscow to attend a session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC).

An anonymous high-level source told Financial Express that during the meeting with Singh, Russian officials will urge India to reconsider …

Lithuania continues litigation in the International Investment Arbitration in Washington against the French concern Veolia. It seeks to annul the decision of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) in the dispute with Russia's gas giant Gazprom. Lithuania has allocated another €3.9 million to pay for the services of lawyers representing Lithuania, reports obzor.lt news outlet.

The Lithuanian government decided to allocate this amount to the Lithuanian Energy …

The Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM) has warned against the danger of rapprochement between Russia and France.

In a corresponding bulletin published by PISM, Polish analysts state that the pursuit of French President Emmanuel Macron of the course aimed at closer cooperation with Moscow can undermine the unity within the European Union and NATO on several issues. The reason for such actions of the French President is an attempt to counteract the growing influence of China in the …

The surface-to-air missiles that were launched successfully destroyed a target ship in the Black Sea, the Ukrainian Navy said in a press release. According to the report, the tests were done at the Yahorlyk Test Range in the Kherson region. The two launched S-125 surface-to-air missiles destroyed a decommissioned Ukrainian naval vessel, which served as the target. The tests were declared successful. “During the combat launches, the missiles launched from the S-125 system destroyed a surface …

The long-term socio-economic development targets for 2020 that Russia set itself in 2008 have proven to be unfeasible, the RBC news agency concluded on the basis of its own analysis. The analysts recognize that the deadline has been extended for a number of targets since they became national targets, marked by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decree in May 2018. Nevertheless, the dynamics of the economic indicators in recent years have shown that the goals of the plan cannot be achieved …