The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers the decision of the U.S. Department of State to authorize departure of the personnel of the American Embassy in Kyiv to be premature, said the speaker of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Oleg Nikolenko.

"While respecting the right of foreign states to ensure the security of their diplomatic missions, we consider such a step by the American side premature and a manifestation of excessive precaution," said Nikolenko.

Nikolenko noted that in …

The EU plans to tighten sanctions against Russia, introduced in connection with Russia’s annexation of Crimea, reported Spiegel, citing a confidential report of the German diplomatic mission in Brussels.

According to the newspaper, new restrictions were requested last week in the EU by countries such as Bulgaria, Denmark, Lithuania, Romania. They would like to include five more individuals or organizations in the EU sanctions list. Names and titles are not known yet. As the newspaper notes, …

It is virtually impossible to disconnect Russia from the interbank payment system SWIFT due to Russia’s oil and gas supplies, said Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian delegation at the talks in Vienna on military security and arms control.

"It reminds me of an animal eating a cactus. It is hurting, but it still continues to eat,” Gavrilov said.

According to him, there are no discussions about disconnecting Russia from SWIFT. "It's not easy, de facto. Well, Iran was shut down, so what? …

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is disappointed by Germany's refusal to grant permission for the supply of defensive weapons.

"Germany's refusal on this issue also disappoints the Ukrainian public. Unfortunately, Ukrainians will remember this for decades to come, and this is very sad for me as minister of foreign affairs," Kuleba said in an interview with Welt am Sonntag.

He added that he respects Germany's explanation about its history with regards to the policy on arms exports but …

For the second year in a row Russia loses to Saudi Arabia the competition for the world's largest oil market.

China, which buys more than 10% of world oil  production daily, reduced imports of Russian oil in 2021, TASS reports, citing statistics from the General Administration of Customs of China.

During the year, Russian oil companies sold 79.64 million tons of oil to Chinese customers, which is 4.5% less than a year earlier. The volume of supplies shrank to the levels of 2 years ago: in 2020 …

Ukraine will not be able to take the annexed Crimea back, and Russian President Vladimir Putin "may deserve respect," said the Chief of German Navy, Vice Admiral, Kay-Achim Schönbach, during a discussion at the Indian Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.

"The Crimean Peninsula is lost. It cannot be returned. That's a fact. And we need to understand that political issues are matters of facts and emotions," Schönbach said.

He believes that Russia does not really want to …

The first shipment of the security assistance package, which was recently approved by US President Joe Biden, has arrived in Kyiv, reported the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine on Twitter.

That cargo includes about 200,000 pounds of lethal weapons, including ammunition for Ukraine's military on the front lines.

"This assistance, as well as security assistance, amounting to more than $2.7 billion that the U.S. has provided to Ukraine since 2014, demonstrates the United States' strong commitment to …

In order to support Ukraine’s sovereignty and counter possible Russian aggression, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, along with diplomatic support, will provide Ukraine with military assistance, said Lithuanian Defense Ministry.

As part of this assistance, Lithuania and Latvia will send Stinger anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine, and Estonia will send Javelin portable anti-tank missile systems.

“Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia speak together in support of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial …