The US State Department has declined to comment on the possible appointment of Marie Yovanovitch as the new Ambassador to Ukraine. The media had previously reported that Washington intends to transfer the current ambassador, Geoffrey Pyatt, to Greece.

Ukrinform reported that the Director of the Press Office for the Department of State, Elizabeth Trudeau, refrained from commenting during a briefing in Washington on the 9th of May.

“I have no announcements on any appointments,” Trudeau said. …

Pro-Kremlin journalist Graham Phillips confirmed on his Twitter feed that he was detained by the Kerch police. "Quick comment - yes, I was briefly detained in Kerch, because my drone was flying," he wrote.

Phillips clarified that he was arrested only for 15 minutes and was treated well.

On May 8th, the Kerch website ''Argumenty Nedeli” reported that Phillips was arrested during a torchlight procession dedicated to Victory Day. According to the newspaper, the reason for the detention was that …

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is open to sending armed personnel to eastern Ukraine if this proposal is agreed to by all parties. This was declared by the Secretary General of the OSCE, Lamberto Zannier.

The organization is currently supervising a fragile ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and rebels in Donbas.

Comments made by Zannier reflect the extent of the danger that the current unarmed observers are exposed to while monitoring the ceasefire. He says …

The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine stated that the presence of heavy weaponry in Luhansk and Donetsk during Victory Day parades is a violation of the Minsk Agreements, as reported on Facebook page of the Special Monitoring Mission.

“The SMM was entrusted with the task of monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire and other provisions of the Minsk Agreements, including the withdrawal of weapons. In this case, the presence of heavy weaponry in Luhansk and Donetsk during the …

On Saturday, border guard officers in Druskininkai (Lithuania) denied entry to three Russian bikers, Delfi.lt reported. According to the edition, they didn’t have documents justifying their purpose or the conditions of their intended stay in the Schengen country. As it turned out later, these Russian citizens attempted to make their way from Belarus to Poland. However, Polish border guard officers have denied entry to them as well.

This was the third time in a week that Lithuanian border …

The headquarters of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced that the situation in the Donbas has deteriorated significantly over the last several days, Glavnoe reported.

“Yesterday, pro-Russian gangs opened fire on the positions of the Ukrainian defenders 15 times,” the headquarters wrote on Facebook.

It was reported that Ukrainian positions near Avdiivka were attacked by separatists using rocket propelled grenades and small arms.

According to the Ukrainian headquarters, separatists also …

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that one fifth of the state budget is spent on the defense sector, RBC-Ukraine reported.

“Almost one fifth of the state budget we spend on Army and that’s justified,” Poroshenko stated.

“We have created a modern army in two years and every Ukrainian has a legitimate right to be proud of it,” the President noted.

Poroshenko did not rule out the possibility of a partial mobilization in 2016.

 “The only thing I still can’t promise is that there will …

Speaking before the opening of the concert dedicated to the Europe Day at the State Theater of Opera and Ballet in Tbilisi, President Giorgi Margvelashvili stated that Georgia is taking steps in the direction of European integration, and that the forthcoming elections will be held in accordance with European standards, RBC reported.

“Georgia became independent 25 years ago but we are still taking steps in order to become free. We need to build our values to belong to European society. We need …