NATO approves comprehensive package of assistance for Ukraine

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated at a joint press conference with Petro Poroshenko in Warsaw that the NATO countries have approved a new comprehensive assistance package for Ukraine to reform the defense sector,  Evropeyskaya Pravda reported.

"The Trust Funds we set up at our last Summit are already assisting Ukraine in areas such as cyber-defense, logistics and the rehabilitation of wounded soldiers," the Secretary General noted.

Stoltenberg added that Ukraine has already …


Obama: There cannot be 'business as usual' with Russia until Minsk agreements are implemented

Speaking at the NATO Summit in Warsaw on Saturday, US President Barack Obama said that relations with Moscow cannot normalize until Russia implements the Minsk agreements, Radio Svoboda reported.

“Our 28 nations [NATO] are united in our view that there can be no business as usual with Russia until it fully implements its Minsk obligations,” Obama said.

At his first NATO summit in 2009, Obama stressed that one of the Alliance’s main goals should the pursuit of “a constructive relationship with …


Ukrainian Foreign Ministry: Russia is the only country blocking the expansion of OSCE's mandate in eastern Ukraine

The spokesperson for the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mariana Betsa, stated during a briefing that the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes that the Russian opposition to the proposal to extend the OSCE's Observer Mission at Russian Checkpoints Gukovo & Donetsk in eastern Ukraine is another example of Russia’s failure to implement the Minsk Agreements.

“Another example of Russia’s failure to implement the Minsk Agreements is their blocking of the OSCE proposal to extend the …


Russia expels two US diplomats

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced the expulsion of two employees from the US Embassy in Moscow, identified as CIA agents. The Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said this on Saturday, July 9. According to him, it’s a response to the US having reported the expulsion of two Russian officials from the US the day before.

Ryabkov added that the two US Embassy employees have been declared persona non grata.

Moscow called these diplomats CIA agents.

Earlier on July 8, the US …


Kazakhstan offers Ukraine an option to transport cargo bypassing Russia

Kazakhstan has offered Ukraine the option to use an alternative transport route through the Kazakh port of Aktau to bypass the Russian territory. This was reported by the Atameken National Chamber of the Entrepreneurs (NCE) of the Republic of Kazakhstan, citing the Deputy Chairman of the NCE Dana Zhunusova.

Due to the introduction of additional restrictive measures by the Russian Federation as of July 1st imposed on the transit of Ukrainian products through Russian territory to Kazakhstan and …