Russia puts its air defense systems into a state of high readiness following North Korea’s missile launch
The air-defense systems in the Far East region of Russia have been placed into a state of high readiness following North Korea’s missile launch. While Russia understands that it is not the target of the launch, it must protect itself from possible incidents, stated the Chairman of the Defense and Security Committee of the Russian Federation Council, Victor Ozerov, RIA Novosti news agency reports.
On Sunday, North Korea fired a missile from its launch site near its border with China, in the …
S&P: Ukraine to pay $20 billion of state debt by 2020
According to the assessment of experts from Standar & Poor’s, Ukraine must pay $20 billion of state debt by 2020.
The agency notes that the large payments of the principal debt and interest on it in 2017-2020, amounting to more than $20 billion (nearly 21% of the GDP in 2017) is the primary negative rating factor for Ukraine.
“We expect Ukraine to completely fulfill its short-term obligations regarding sovereign debt in 2017 ($2.7 billion) and in 2018 ($3.9 billion), taking into account the …
EU allocates Ukraine €10 million for reform of state administration
The European Union allocated Ukraine the first tranche amounting to €10 million in the context of the EU program to “support a thorough reform of the state administration in Ukraine”, the press service of the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers reported.
The European partners noted that they highly appreciate the government’s efforts to reform the state administration, and noted the presence of a political will to implement these changes,” the report states.
The report notes that at the government …
Germany: military parades in separatist republics violated the Minsk agreements
Germany said that military parades in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) violated the Minsk agreements and represented a threat to the population of the region, Ukrinform news agency reports.
The military parades were held in Donetsk and Luhansk on May 9. In the DPR, from 50 to 80 units of military equipment were involved while in the LPR more than 60 units of military equipment and weapons and 1,200 soldiers took part in the parade.
The German government …
US Navy cruiser escorts Russian submarine to the Mediterranean Sea
The Krasnodar cruise missile submarine of the Russian Navy entered the Mediterranean Sea under escort of an American Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported.
According to the news agency, the Russian submarine navigating above water passed Europa Point, located in the south of the Gibraltar peninsula under "close watch" of the American warship.
Earlier, on May 5, the British warship Somerset shadowed the Russian Krasnodar submarine during its passage …