Kremlin spokesman: Only Putin can make a decision on exchanging Savchenko
According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, only Russian President Vladimir Putin can make a decision regarding an exchange of Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko for Russian prisoners held in Ukraine, RIA Novosti reported.
“Russia will act in accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation. In all other respects, only the President can make a decision. What the decision is, I cannot say yet,” Peskov stated.
After the Russian court ruled that Savchenko was guilty of killing two Russian …
Ukrainian city unveils monument dedicated to those who died fighting in the Donbas
On Saturday, the first monument dedicated to Ukrainian soldiers who died during the hostilities in the Donbas region was unveiled in the city of Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The opening ceremony was attended by the city residents, combatants with their families and authorities.
As reported by the City Council of Kryvyi Rih, the demobilized fighters, relatives of military victims and volunteers initiated a monument to be built for the soldiers in the city.
The sketch of the monument …
Millions more Russians living in poverty as economic crisis sinks in
Russia’s economic crisis has driven the country’s poverty rate to a nine-year high, according to data provided by the Russian Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat).
In 2015, the number of people living in poverty reached 19 million (13.4% of the population), up from 16 million in 2014.
Rosstat reported that this is the highest rate since 2006.
The Statistics Service also reported that real incomes fell by 6.7% in February of this year compared to the same month in 2015.
UK and Ukraine sign 15-year defense partnership agreement
As reported on Facebook, by the British Embassy press service in Kiev, the UK and Ukraine are to sign a 15-year defense partnership agreement.
“The agreement will be in place for 15 years. Areas that are covered by the agreement are supposed to exchange information about potential threats, participate in joint exercises, train members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and to cooperate in the sphere of military equipment,” the Embassy reported.
It was also stated that the UK is trying to increase …
Russian official: Ukraine is attempting to destabilize Crimea
The Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation and the former head of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB), Nikolai Patrushev, spoke on Monday about the threat of destabilization in the Crimea. "The threat of destabilization of the political situation in the Crimean Federal District still remains. Primarily, this is due to the political challenges and the economic pressure from our western opponents," Patrushev said at a meeting in Yalta on Monday.
The …