Ukraine

The so-called elections held by Russia in occupied areas of Ukraine “have no legal grounds”, a senior political affairs official said on Friday, reiterating UN’s commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

The Pentagon said on Wednesday that depleted uranium ammunition for US-made Abrams tanks would be part of a new military package worth up to $175m, out of more than $1bn in civilian and defence support that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

A senior Ukrainian official on September 5 rebuffed a suggestion by Turkey that Kyiv should soften its stance to revive the Black Sea grain deal, saying Ukraine would not support sanctions relief for Moscow or a policy of "appeasement." 

Turkey said Monday that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will “soon” visit Russia for talks with Vladimir Putin on reviving a Black Sea grain deal that could be used as a springboard for broader Ukraine peace negotiations.

Rights activists says migrants from Central Asian countries are being pressured into signing contracts with Russia's Defense Ministry as the Kremlin tries to bolster the pool of recruits to help fight its war against Ukraine.

The World Court will hear Russia's objections to its jurisdiction in a genocide case brought by Ukraine in hearings starting on September 18, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said on August 22. Ukraine filed a case with the ICJ shortly after Russia's invasion began on February 24, 2022, which accused Moscow of falsely applying genocide law to justify the attack.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday welcomed a recent Saudi-led summit on a peace settlement to end the fighting in Ukraine and called for further diplomatic efforts. Representatives from around 40 countries, including China, Germany, India and the United States, took part in last weekend's gathering in Jeddah, though Russia was not invited.

The United States is providing up to $200 million in additional military aid for Ukraine, two U.S. officials told VOA, in a package that is expected to include more rockets for HIMARS and more munitions for Patriot surface-to-air missile defense systems.

Several recruitment ads in the former Soviet republic showed Russian and Kazakh flags with the slogan, “shoulder to shoulder.” … Kazakhstan prohibits its citizens from joining military conflicts abroad for pay.

China on Friday (4 August) said it would send a senior official to Saudi Arabia for weekend talks on finding a peaceful settlement to the war in Ukraine, a forum that excludes Russia, in a diplomatic coup for Kyiv, the West and the Saudi hosts.