Diplomats say that Ukraine’s former Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Aivaras Abromavičius, and his advisers sought to overcome the corruption that hinders the development of Ukraine.

Diplomatic representatives of six Western countries issued a joint statement in Kiev with regard to the resignation of Abromavičius.  The Ambassadors of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania and Sweden have expressed “deep disappointment” at the resignation of Abromavičius and his group of advisers. …

A Russian Military Adviser died in Syria on the 1st of February.  The Military reported this to Interfax yesterday.

According to the Defense Ministry, the Military Adviser was in Syria to assist the Syrian army in supplying new weapons under existing contracts of interstate military-technical cooperation.

On the 1st of February, the officer received a mortal wound as a result of a mortar attack by terrorists of the so-called Islamic State.  This occurred at one of their military garrisons, …

Syrian opposition sources reported that 15 servicemen were killed in the Syrian region of Turkmandagy on the border with Turkey. Eight of these servicemen were Generals. According to the information provided, the meeting place of high-ranking officers of Assad’s regime and the Russian Army came under armed attack. The meeting was held last night in order to review the state of affairs in the region and to plan future actions.

It was reported that 15 servicemen, including four Russian and four …

Russia accused Turkey of violating the International Open Sky Treaty. A representative of the Russian Ministry of Defence, Sergei Ryzhkov, stated that Turkish servicemen refused to allow inspectors to conduct an observation flight over regions bordering Syria and the area where the airfields for NATO countries are located.

According to Ryzhkov, the Russian observation mission was denied prior to its members’ arrival in Turkey. Meanwhile, Turkish servicemen deferred to the instructions of the …

Ukraine’s Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Rivaras Abromavičius, has resigned from office. Speaking at a press conference, the Minister indicated his decision was motivated by the increased opposition to his ongoing reforms.

“My team and I have no desire to be a cover for obvious corruption or controlled puppets for those who want to gain control of public money, as was the way with past authorities,” Abromavičius stated. He referenced a Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Igor …

The Committee on EU Affairs of the German Bundestag is concerned over the process of reforms in Ukraine. The members of the delegation of the German Parliament stated this on the 2nd of February at a press conference in Kiev after a number of meetings with representatives of the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian government and other non-governmental organizations.

“We recognize the progress of Ukraine in the process of making reforms. Many laws were adopted but now they should be brought to life. …

The European Commission intends to obtain access to all agreements on commercial gas supplies to the European Union countries, as reported by Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on the 3rd of February, referring to draft documents that they received. Next week the European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy, Miguel Arias Cañete, is planning to formally present this proposal.

According to the prepared documents, businesses involved in supplying gas will be required to report all contract …

The official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Maria Zakharova, said in a radio interview with Govorit Moskva that the statements made by the UK about the destructive role of Russia in the Syrian conflict were “dangerous injections of disinformation”. The Secretary of the State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Philip Hammond Hammond, recently expressed the view that the actions of the Russian Air Force have worsened the internal conflict in Syria, …