The Zapad 2017 exercises have a broader context than it has been announced by Russia. They have the goal of preparing the Russian forces for offensive action, and are a threat both to NATO and to the states of the post-Soviet space, stated Viktor Muzhenko, Chief of the General Staff and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as reported by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.

“We are considering various scenarios of enemy action, including offensive action,” he noted.

According to …

In a statement posted on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website on Sunday , Russia has accused the U.S. of seizing its Consulate-General in San Francisco and a trade mission in Washington.

 “On September 2, U.S. authorities seized buildings of the Russian Consulate-General in San Francisco and a trade mission in Washington, which are Russian property and have diplomatic immunity. Russian representatives were also denied access to the leased premises of a trade mission in New York,” the Russian …

NATO Agile Spirit 2017 multinational military exercises began in Georgia on September 3, reported News-Georgia news agency.

The Agile Spirit exercises have been held annually since 2011. They are one component in an effort to improve Georgia’s cooperation with the U.S. and NATO. The purpose of the exercises is to improve the interaction between the Georgian military and its counterparts from the United States and partner countries, as well as improve preparedness to respond to crises and …

Lithuania is extremely concerned about human rights violations in the annexed Crimea, including the rights of the Crimean Tatars, with whom Lithuania has close historical ties.

Ukrinform reports that Lithuanian Ambassador to Ukraine Marius Janukonis, who took part in the 4th Baltic-Black Sea Economic Forum as part of a delegation led by the Lithuanian Seimas Chairman Viktoras Pranckietis, spoke about this topic on September 1 at a briefing in Kherson.

"This is the first such visit at the …

Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin are not going to leave the "occupied territory" because he regards the war in the Donbas as a lever of pressure on Europe.

Secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov stated this at a meeting with the head of the World Congress of Ukrainians, Eugene Czolij, the press service of the National Security and Defense Council reported.

"Putin is not going to get out of the occupied territory, and for him, the war in the Donbas is …

The withdrawal of the Russian military from Transnistria was initiated by those who want a war between Russia, Ukraine and Moldova, stated Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during his conversation with MGIMO (Moscow State University) students.

"I do not think that we can predict a war. Nobody wants this, except for those who were directing the hand of representatives of the Moldovan government, when they wrote a statement on the need to withdraw our military personnel from Transnistria. …

The average life expectancy of a man in Russia is 65.9 years but employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country die much earlier, Lidove Noviny writes. Case in point, eight acting Russian diplomats have passed away in less than a year.

Russian Ambassador to Sudan Mirgayas Shirinsky, according to Russian official sources, was the latest victim of stress, a destructive schedule and bad genes. As the newspaper recalls, colleagues found him dead in a residence in Khartoum. Sudanese …

Russian President Vladimir Putin is increasingly afraid of the Ukrainian army as it is getting stronger. This opinion was expressed by the former Commander of the Polish Land Forces and Deputy Minister of National Defense of the Republic of Poland, Waldemar Skrzypczak, in the commentary section of Ukrinform.

"Ukraine can be afraid of some actions [during the Zapad-2017 exercises], which will in no small part weaken the Ukrainian army. In my opinion, Putin fears the Ukrainian army more than …