As of November 28, the Ukrainian ports at Mariupol and Berdyansk in the Sea of Azov have effectively been blocked by Russia, with ships unable to arrive or depart.

This was reported by Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelyan on Facebook.

“According to operational information, 18 ships are waiting to enter the Sea of Azov: four heading for the Berdyansk port and 14 for the Mariupol port. There is also a queue waiting to leave the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea: three ships are …

Hungary refused to extradite to the US two Russian citizens suspected of arms dealing, the US State Department reported on Tuesday.

The Russians in question are Vladimir Lyubishin Sr. and Vladimir Lyubishin Jr., who were sent by Hungary back to Russia, where it is “unclear if they will face trial”.

“The United States is disappointed in the Hungarian government’s decision to extradite the Lyubishins to Russia,” the State Department spokesperson said, emphasizing that the decision is at odds …

The developments in the Sea of Azov this past weekend show that Russia intends to take sole control over access to Ukrainian ports, said Kurt Volker, the US State Department’s Special Representative for Ukraine, as reported by Ukrinform.

“I think that this is a matter of access to Mariupol for Ukrainians. Russia is claiming the unilateral right to control this access, that’s the problem. This definitely doesn’t mean that Russia is going to undertake a new offensive on land,” the American …

During a meeting with Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg, the speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Andriy Parubiy called on NATO member countries to increase the presence of NATO'S  ships and aircraft in the Black and Azov Seas. The Ukrainian politician said this was the only guarantee of security.

After the meeting between Stoltenberg and Parubiy, NATO published a statement in which it again condemned the Kremlin’s actions. “There is no justification for Russia’s use of military force …

In an interview with three Ukrainian TV channels, Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko said that Russia was purposefully preparing for an attack on Ukrainian ships.

“They knew. They were preparing. These were deliberate actions with the use of aviation and tools for electronic radio combat, with an underwater assault by special forces,” noted Poroshenko.

He added that Russia deployed a large number of warships to the Azov and the Black Sea. These warships   are most densely concentrated in …

Iryna Herashchenko, the First Deputy Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, the Presidential envoy on a peaceful settlement of the Donbas conflict, reported on Facebook that four Ukrainian sailors captured by Russia have been injured and that one of them is in serious condition.

Herashchenko stressed that during the special meeting with the participation of the Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioned, Lyudmila Denisova, representatives of the Navy, the Ukrainian Ministry of Temporarily …

In an interview with three TV channels, Ukrainian President Poroshenko said that Ukraine is under the threat of a full-scale war with Russia. Therefore, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) decided to impose martial law in border areas for a month. The President said he could substantiate his words with intelligence data, the presidential press service reported.

Poroshenko demonstrated satellite images, which, he said, depicted a Russian military base located near the …

Ukrainian Defense Minister, Stepan Poltorak, met with the U.S., Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch. The head of the Ministry of Defense explained the Ukrainian government’s position regarding the imposition of the martial law, reports the press service of the Ministry.

“The imposition of the martial law is a necessary preventive measure in case Russia conducts a full-scale land military operation against Ukraine,” said the minister, adding that army should check its readiness to respond …