Contents tagged with Russia

  • Ukrainian State Border Service: all ships are at sea and combat ready

    Chairman of the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service Petro Tsyhykal stated on the television channel UATV,  that all ships and boats of the State Border Service of Ukraine are combat ready.

    “Virtually the entire crew is at sea today,” states the State Border Service website, quoting Tsyhykal.

    Tsyhykal noted that from December 1st, the border guards are part of the staff of the Maritime Security Administration. Also, he stated that a regional maritime office had been created.

    Starting …

  • Muzhenko: Russia amassing military equipment along Ukrainian border

    The amount of military equipment which Russia has on the Ukrainian border has recently increased dramatically, said Ukrainian Chief of General Staff Viktor Muzhenko.

    “The nature of the deployment (of Russian military groups and equipment) shows that, in the shortest possible time, the corresponding attack groups could be formed, and the direction of their activity would be Ukraine,” Muzhenko said in a broadcast of ICTV. “This is why we are considering more than one direction – the Luhansk and …

  • Russian diplomatic mission in The Hague suspected of coordinating hacker attack on Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons

    A senior diplomat from the Russian embassy in The Hague is suspected of coordinating a hacker attack on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW, headquartered in The Hague). As reported on Monday, December 3, by the French newspaper Le Monde citing the Dutch press and its own sources, the former second secretary of Russia’s diplomatic mission, Konstantin Bakhtin, is considered "one of the organizers of this special operation by Russian special services."

    Le Monde writes …

  • Media: Russia preparing to hand over Kuril Islands to Japan

    Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin have appointed special representatives to negotiate the signing of a Japanese-Russian peace treaty.

    Russia and Japan have chosen their respective deputy foreign ministers Igor Morgulov and Takeo Mori to represent them, the newspaper Mainichi reported.

    Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kotaro Nogami, who attended the meeting between Abe and Putin, explained that the two leaders “will closely coordinate their actions …

  • Czech Republic accuses Russia of cyber-attacks against its Foreign Ministry

    The Security Information Service (BIS) of the Czech Republic annual report published on Monday states that Russia’s intelligence services were behind last year's cyber-attacks targeting the Czech Foreign Ministry. Attackers broke into Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) information systems and got access to over 150 employees email addresses, copying letters and attachments to them.

    According to the document, the responsibility for two separate attacks on the country's Foreign Ministry …

  • Kerch Strait crisis: 34 member countries of International Maritime Organization support Ukraine

    Ukraine protested at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Committee for Maritime Safety because of the armed attack on Ukrainian military boats. The Ukrainian Embassy in the UK reported  that 34 IMO member countries supported Ukraine’s position.

    "The Ukrainian government has condemned numerous instances of discriminatory inspections of vessels traveling to Ukrainian ports, which are a violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and bilateral Ukrainian-Russian agreements. …

  • Estonian Parliament adopts declaration in support of Ukraine after Russia’s attack in Kerch Strait

    On Monday, December 3, the Estonian Parliament adopted a declaration to support Ukraine after Russia’s direct aggression in the Kerch Strait. As reported on the website of the Estonian Parliament, 79 deputies voted in favor of “In support of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine due to aggression in the Kerch Strait.”

    In the adopted declaration, the Estonian Parliament expressed its support for Ukraine and the country's right to protect its territorial integrity and sovereignty. …

  • Stoltenberg: NATO increases presence in the Black Sea and is watching Russia

    NATO is closely monitoring the security situation in the Black Sea and increases its military presence in the region, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference in Brussels.

    “NATO has increased its military presence in the Black Sea region. With more naval presence. Last year the number of days with NATO ships or ships on the NATO command in the Black Sea increased from 80 to 120 and there are also, of course, NATO Allies which have deployed ships in the Black Sea …

  • Ukrainian Prosecutor General proposes to seize Russian assets

    Interfax Ukraine reports that the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko intends to send letters to the President of Ukraine and National Security and Defense Council with a proposal to introduce sanctions against certain legal entities and individuals of the Russian Federation for armed aggression against the Ukrainian Navy and Armed Forces.

    “Today I will send (I am a member of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC)) a letter to the president and secretary of the NSDC with a …

  • Ukraine moves troops to Russian border

    Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko stated that starting December 3, the Ukrainian troops will be redeployed to the Russian border, as reported on the President’s website.

    “Certain units will be redeployed to strengthen the defense of the border. Military exercises will be conducted in the regions where martial law was imposed. Training with the stand-by reserve will take place,” he said. Poroshenko also pointed out that protection of the country’s nuclear and hydropower plants has been …