Archive for the ‘Ukraine’ Category

Russia stages Ukraine invasion drills with 40 warships & 30 planes in huge show of strength in the Black… – The US Sun

RUSSIA has staged massive "invasion" drills in Crimea with more than 40 warships and 30 jets taking part in a terrifying show of strength.

The war games involved missile launches, practice bombings and simulated landings with footage released by Defence Ministry TV channel Zvezda.

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This is the latest in a succession of major military exercises ordered by Putin this year.

A Russia military spokesperson said forces conducted simulated hostilities involving mock armed groups entered (Crimea) with the aim of carrying out terrorist attacks and destabilising the situation in other regions of the Southern Federal District.

The coastal troops of the Black Sea Fleet worked out practical actions to secure anti-sabotage defence of a section of the coast and fought with naval assault groups and naval landing forces," said a Black Sea Fleet statement.

Among the ships taking part was the Black Sea Fleet's flagship the Moskva while the Kamov Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopters were also on display.

A Russia defence source said: The militants were blocked by the forces of motorised rifle units of the army corps with the support of tactical airborne assault forces.

Reports said the exercises involved some 8,000 soldiers and around 500 military vehicles.

Military drones Forpost and Orlan-10 were deployed in the drills.

The show of strength was part of the large-scale Southern Military District military operations including Russian troops based in Abkhazia, Armenia and South Ossetia plus the Black Sea Fleet and Caspian Flotilla.

Crimea was annexed from Ukraine by Russia in 2014.

In June, Russia opened fire when the Royal Naval destroyer HMS Defender sailed close to Crimea in a deliberate act of support for Ukraine.

A FSB security service coastguard vessel fired shots in the direction of the UK warship, claiming the vessel had sailed into Russian territorial waters.

Moscow also claimed to have dropped bombs from an Su-24 warplane in a bid to push the British ship away from the Crimean coast.

A major diplomatic incident followed in which Boris Johnson defended the show of support for Ukraine as entirely right.

But there were Russian threats to sink the next Royal Navy warship to sail in the same waters.

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This comes as China appears to have taken a lead in the hypersonic arms race as the world's powers battle it out for the next generation of nuclear weapons.

Revelations that Beijing flew a nuclear-capable missile around the globe throws down a gauntlet to the other nations chasing hypersonics including the US, Russia and North Korea.

US intelligence were reportedly left stunned after China launched a rocket in space carrying a hypersonic glide vehicle which circled the planet before before speeding towards its target.

The next generation of weapons can hit speeds of up to 21,000mph - and potentially even faster - and are seen as devastating new frontier for warfare.

China - followed closely by Russia - were already regarded as having the most potent hypersonic missile arsenals pouring billions into them but others had been seen as catching up.

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Russia stages Ukraine invasion drills with 40 warships & 30 planes in huge show of strength in the Black... - The US Sun

Ukraine Is the Most Crypto-Aware Country Followed by Russia and the US: Survey – CryptoPotato

According to a resent research, the population of the Eastern European state Ukraine is the most interested in digital assets. Russia and the USA ranked respectively second and third.

The cryptocurrency brokerage firm BrokerChooser took into account several factors such as the total number of digital asset owners and the global adoption index to determine which is the most crypto-aware country across the globe.

Google searches with the phrases cryptocurrency, compare cryptocurrency, what cryptocurrency to invest in, cryptocurrency to buy, cryptocurrency trading, cryptocurrency trends, and cryptocurrency brokers also played a significant role in the survey.

Despite its financial problems, war issues, and a high percentage of poverty, Ukrainians have reportedly shown major interest in digital assets recently and topped the chart with a 7.97 score (out of 10). The largest nation by landmass Russia ranked second, while the biggest economy the USA landed in the third position.

It is worth noting that the fourth place belongs to another country that experiences economic difficulties Kenya. This should not come as a surprise since, as the research outlined, people from emerging markets often turn their sight towards the digital asset industry to protect their savings in the face of currency devaluation.

On the other hand, adoption in well-developed areas like North America, Western Europe, and Eastern Asia is powered mainly by institutional investors, BrokerChooser noted.

The cryptocurrency environment in the ex-Soviet state is somewhat confusing, as of the moment, since digital tokens are neither legal nor prohibited. While Ukrainians cannot use bitcoin or the altcoins as payment options for goods or services, traders and investors can buy and sell them on exchanges within the country.

Last month, though, the local parliament passed a bill that could legitimize and regulate digital assets within Ukraines borders. Once approved by President Volodymyr Zelensky, the new legislation will offer protection to investors and trading venues from fraud.

Mykhailo Fedorov Minister of Digital Transformation highlighted the popularity of the asset class among the Ukrainian population. He raised hopes that the Eastern European nation could become one of those where it has legal status.

In his turn, Oleg Kurchenko CEO of the platform Binaryx opined that if successful, the bill will reduce stereotypical attitudes towards cryptocurrencies and will help them become normal financial instruments. There was a concern that mistrust of the state could drive some investors away, Kurchenko added.

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Ukraine Is the Most Crypto-Aware Country Followed by Russia and the US: Survey - CryptoPotato

Halya Coynash: Ukraine to answer before ECHR over arrest that sparked anti-Roma riots – KyivPost – Ukraine’s Global Voice – Kyiv Post

Published Oct. 19. Updated Oct. 19 at 9:24 am

This screenshot from the TV Ukraina film, shows Mykhailo Chebotar, arrested in August 2016 over the murder of a 8-year-old girl in Loshchynivka (Odesa oblast).

Photo by Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group

The European Court of Human Rights is to examine several alleged violations, including torture and discrimination, in the case of a young man arrested in August 2016 over the murder of a 8-year-old girl in Loshchynivka (Odesa oblast). Mykhailo Chebotar was 21 and lived locally yet his Roma ethnicity was used as a pretext for shocking anti-Roma disturbances, abetted by the local authorities. The defence has also succeeded in adding documents to the case regarding the alleged torture, with the State Bureau of Investigations having initiated an investigation.

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Halya Coynash: Ukraine to answer before ECHR over arrest that sparked anti-Roma riots - KyivPost - Ukraine's Global Voice - Kyiv Post

Russia in stark warning against Ukraine accession to NATO ‘Scenario goes beyond red line’ – Daily Express

Vladimir Putin's government has described the entry of Ukraine into NATO as the worst-case scenario as a fierce row breaks out over Kyiv's bid to join the powerful western military bloc. Russia has been engaged in a low-running conflict in the Donbas, eastern Ukraine which has claimed more than 14,000 lives. The Kremlin has said that Ukraine joining the NATO pact would be a "red line" for Russias national interests.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Parisian TV channel France 5: "Ukraines accession to NATO would be the worst-case scenario.

"This is a scenario that goes beyond the red lines of Russias national interests.

"This is a scenario that could force Russia to take active measures to ensure its own security.

"Of course, we can understand your feelings.

"But we prefer that you Europeans become better informed.

"Because, before the Russian troops were moved to that region, there were large NATO exercises held near the Russian border.

"Everyone talks about the concentration of Russian troops all the time, but nobody talks about the concentration of NATO troops."

He added: It is not clear whether Americans will stay in Europe and continue to defend Europeans against those terrible Russians."

"Because they, they don't they cannot veto, what neighbors can do.

"We will not return to an age where we had spheres of influence where big powers decided what small neighbours could do."

It comes as Russia took the dramatic move of booting out NATO's mission to Moscow amid escalating tensions.

The Kremlin's Foreign MinisterSergei Lavrov announced:"In response to NATO's actions, we are suspending the work of our permanent mission to NATO."

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Russia in stark warning against Ukraine accession to NATO 'Scenario goes beyond red line' - Daily Express

Ukraine at OSCE calls on Russia to comply with all documents within Minsk Agreements – Ukrinform. Ukraine and world news

Russia is attempting to avoid fulfilling the Minsk Protocol and the Memorandum on its provisions, insisting on the implementation of the Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements exclusively.

Thats according to Ukraines Permanent Representative to international organizations in Vienna, Yevhen Tsymbaliuk, who spoke at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council on Monday, October 11, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

Russia is trying to convince the Permanent Council of a special legal nature of the package of measures and give it some advantage over the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum, the diplomat said, at the same time noting that the political approval of the measures by the UN Security Council does not release Russia from its obligations under the other two agreements," said Tsymbaliuk.

The diplomat explained why the Russian delegation was so tense when other countries delegates demanded that the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum be implemented

For example, Paragraph 4 of the Minsk Memorandum provides for the withdrawal of multiple rocket launcher systems such as the Tornado. In fact, the Tornado is a new system used exclusively by the Russian armed forces, which is a vivid example proving Russias participation in the conflict, certified by a Russian signatory, Tsymbaliuk said.

He also recalled that Paragraph 10 of the Minsk Protocol provides for the withdrawal of illegal armed groups and military hardware from the territory of Ukraine, which he emphasized means this is about those whose presence has not been allowed by the Ukrainian parliament. Therefore it is only about Russian armed groups operating in the occupied territories, despite Russia's attempts to manipulate Paragraph 10 of the Package of Measures, said the Ukrainian diplomat.

In addition, he pointed out that Paragraph 4 of the Minsk Protocol provides for constant monitoring and verification of the Ukrainian-Russian state border, along with maintaining a security zone in the Ukrainian-Russian border areas.

As Ukrinform reported, the U.S. and EU missions to the OSCE reminded Russia that the Minsk Agreements, signed by the Russian Federation, consist of three documents - a protocol, a memorandum, and a package of measures.

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Ukraine at OSCE calls on Russia to comply with all documents within Minsk Agreements - Ukrinform. Ukraine and world news