Sleepless in Kyiv: Nighttime Russian air campaign terrorizes citizens in Ukrainian capital
May 29, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The attacks come at night, when most in Kyiv are sound asleep. The sirens wail across the Ukrainian capital, rousing bleary-eyed residents, who, after 15 months of war, have customized individual routines to cope with Russia’s latest air campaign.
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won reelection Sunday, extending his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade as the country reels from high inflation and the aftermath of an earthquake that leveled entire cities.
Russia launched ‘largest drone attack’ on Ukrainian capital before Kyiv Day; 1 killed
May 28, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's capital was subjected to the largest drone attack since the start of Russia's war, local officials said, as Kyiv prepared to mark the anniversary of its founding on Sunday.
Ukraine claims Russia is plotting ‘a provocation’ at nuclear plant, offers no evidence
May 27, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's military intelligence has claimed, without offering evidence, that Russia is plotting a “large-scale provocation” at a nuclear power plant it occupies in the southeast of the country with the aim of disrupting a looming Ukrainian counteroffensive.
A growing number of LGBTQ+ Russians seek refuge from war, discrimination in Argentina
May 27, 2023 GMTBUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Anastasia Domini and wife Anna Domini walked hand in hand on a recent sunny day in Argentina’s capital while their four restless children played nearby.
It's a common sight in a country where same-sex marriage has been legal for more than a decade.
Former US diplomat Henry Kissinger celebrates 100th birthday, still active in global affairs
May 27, 2023 GMTFormer diplomat and presidential adviser Henry Kissinger marks his 100th birthday on Saturday, outlasting many of his political contemporaries who guided the United States through one of its most tumultuous periods including the presidency of Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War.
GENEVA (AP) — Two soccer teams exiled from cities in war-battered eastern Ukraine play each other Sunday in the safer western part of the country with the league title at stake.
The showdown between competition leader Shakhtar Donetsk and second-place Dnipro-1 at Arena Lviv can be decisive in a soccer season that is finishing on schedule in remarkable circumstances.
Russia says its border regions attacked; Moscow’s forces hit clinic in central Ukrainian city
May 26, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia’s southern Belgorod region bordering Ukraine came under attack Friday from Ukrainian artillery fire, mortar shells and drones, authorities said, hours after two drones struck a Russian city in an area next to the annexed Crimea Peninsula.
Russia acknowledges Vatican peace initiative, says no steps yet for a mission to Moscow
May 26, 2023 GMTVATICAN CITY (AP) — Russia on Friday indicated that it views Pope Francis’ Ukraine peace initiative positively, but stressed that there are no immediate plans for a Vatican mission to Moscow.
The statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry to the state RIA Novosti agency was the first public acknowledgment by Moscow of the pope’s move.
Japan adopts new sanctions on Russia, criticizes its deal to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus
May 26, 2023 GMTTOKYO (AP) — Japan on Friday approved additional sanctions against Russia over its war on Ukraine, including freezing the assets of dozens of individuals and groups and banning exports to Russian military-related organizations.
Today in History: May 26, ABM treaty signed
May 26, 2023 GMTToday in History
Today is Friday, May 26, the 146th day of 2023. There are 219 days left in the year.
Pentagon says allies will unite to train Ukrainians on F-16s, but warns jets aren’t ‘magic weapons’
May 25, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday that European allies are developing a coordinated program to train Ukrainian forces on the F-16 fighter jet, but Pentagon leaders warned that it will be a costly and complex task and won't be a magic solution to the war.
Head of Russian private army Wagner says his forces are handing control of Bakhmut to Moscow
May 25, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The head of the Russian private military contractor Wagner claimed Thursday that his forces have started pulling out of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine and handing over control to the Russian military, days after he said Wagner troops had captured the ruined city.
US sanctions head of Russia’s Wagner Group in Mali, accused of arms trafficking for Ukraine fight
May 25, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. on Thursday sanctioned the leader of Russia's paramilitary Wagner Group in Mali, citing what it said were indications that the Kremlin was trying to use the West African nation as a way-station for arms shipments to Russian forces in Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivers surprise commencement speech to Johns Hopkins
May 25, 2023 GMTBALTIMORE (AP) — During a surprise commencement address to graduates of Johns Hopkins University on Thursday morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told them to take advantage of the time and resources they have to pursue their passions and uphold the democratic values at stake in his country’s war against Russia.
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — A U.S. senator on Thursday said he hopes Serbia would adopt Western sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, telling the Balkan country that “there is no future” in an alliance with Moscow.
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden's defense minister says the Nordic country is considering whether to let Ukrainian pilots test its JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets.
So far, Sweden has ruled out sending any Gripen fighters to Ukraine, saying it needs them for its own territorial defense.
LYSOHIRKA, Ukraine (AP) — The rising waters came as a relief at first, for both the tiny community living on the islands in the southern Kakhovka Reservoir and for everyone who had feared the low levels risked a meltdown at the nearby Russian-occupied nuclear power plant.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The chairman of Ukraine’s parliament on Thursday offered words of reconciliation over World War II-era mass murders that have strained relations with its neighbor and strategic ally Poland for 80 years.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Energy security concerns — worsened by the war in Ukraine — and policy support from rich countries are likely to help investments in clean energy outpace spending on fossil fuels, the International Energy Agency said in a report issued Thursday.
Inviting Brazil, India and others to G7 summit hints at what a fairer liberal world order might look like
May 24, 2023 GMTThe invitation of Brazil, India and Indonesia, among others, to the Group of 7 (G7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, last week highlighted the changing international order.
Who’s behind the attack on a Russian region bordering Ukraine?
May 24, 2023 GMTTALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Russia alleges that dozens of Ukrainian militants crossed into one of its border towns in its Belgorod region, striking targets and forcing an evacuation, before over 70 of the attackers were killed or pushed back by what the authorities termed a counterterrorism operation.
Were Ukrainian children forcibly transferred to Belarus? Ukraine’s top prosecutor is investigating
May 24, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's prosecutor-general says it's investigating the forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Belarus, adding to allegations that Russia is also transferring them to its territory.
Who is the head of the Russian mercenary group bashing the military’s role in Ukraine?
May 24, 2023 GMTThe head of the Russian private military contractor Wagner returned to a familiar theme this week — bashing the country's military leadership for failures in the war in Ukraine.
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski has been transferred to a notoriously brutal prison in Belarus and hasn't been heard from in a month, his wife said Wednesday.
Head of Russian private army Wagner says more than 20,000 of his troops died in Bakhmut battle
May 24, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The head of the Russian private army Wagner has again broken with the Kremlin line on Ukraine, saying its goal of demilitarizing the country has backfired, acknowledging Russian troops have killed civilians and agreeing with Western estimates that he's lost more than 20,000 men in the battle for Bakhmut.
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is urging African countries to abandon their stances of neutrality towards his country’s war with Russia.
Many African countries have refused to take sides in the European conflict, with several abstaining from votes at the United Nations General Assembly condemning Russia’s invasion.
Czech government approves $2.7-billion plan to acquire 246 armoured vehicles from Sweden
May 24, 2023 GMTPRAGUE (AP) — The Czech government approved a Defense Ministry plan on Wednesday to acquire 246 CV90 armoured combat vehicles as part of a massive modernisation of the military amid the Russian war against Ukraine.
Half of US public approves of Washington’s arms deliveries to Ukraine in 2nd year of Russia’s war
May 24, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Like the blue and yellow flags that popped up around the U.S. when Russia invaded Ukraine 15 months ago, U.S.
Japan to provide 100 military vehicles to Ukraine
May 24, 2023 GMTTOKYO (AP) — Japan held a ceremony on Wednesday marking its planned donation of about 100 military vehicles to Ukraine, as Tokyo seeks to provide equipment that can be of broader military use than its earlier shipments of helmets and hazmat suits.
GENEVA (AP) — Russian and Belarusian sailors are set to get their only path to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics at a last-chance event in France next year – an option described as “madness” by Russia’s top sailing official on Wednesday.
German business confidence heads downhill after 6-month rise
May 24, 2023 GMTBERLIN (AP) — German business confidence has dropped for the first time after a six-month rise as inflation recedes only slowly in Europe's biggest economy and interest rates continue to increase, a closely watched survey showed Wednesday.
On Beijing visit, Russian prime minister says pressure from West is strengthening ties with China
May 24, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — Pressure from the West is strengthening Russia’s ties with China, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said in a meeting with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing Wednesday.
Mishustin’s visit comes as Russia is increasingly turning to China for diplomatic and economic support amid growing isolation over its invasion of Ukraine.
UK inflation falls to lowest level in over a year but food prices keep decline in check
May 24, 2023 GMTLONDON (AP) — Inflation in the U.K. has fallen to its lowest level since the immediate aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, though elevated food prices meant it didn't fall as much as anticipated.
MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian court on Tuesday extended the arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich by three months in a closed-door hearing emblematic of the secrecy that has marked the case against the first United States correspondent since the Cold War to be detained in Russia on spying charges.
China presses Dutch minister for access to chipmaking tech blocked on security grounds
May 24, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — China’s foreign minister pressed his Dutch counterpart Tuesday for access to advanced chipmaking technology that has been blocked on security grounds and warned against allowing what he said were unfounded fears of Beijing to spoil relations.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia's military said Tuesday it quashed what appeared to be one of the most serious cross-border attacks from Ukraine since the war began, claiming to have killed more than 70 attackers in a battle that lasted around 24 hours.
WASHINGTON (AP) —
President Joe Biden will host Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of Denmark at the White House next month for talks on their joint efforts including supporting Ukraine.
Biden picks new National Security Agency head, key to support of Ukraine, defense of US elections
May 23, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has chosen a new leader for the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command, a joint position that oversees much of America's cyber warfare and defense.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. chief on Tuesday decried the “terrible truth” that the world is failing to live up to its commitments to protect a growing number of civilians caught in conflicts. The International Committee of the Red Cross, the guardian of treaties enshrining those commitments, lamented that countless civilians are experiencing “a living hell.”
China presses Dutch minister for access to chipmaking tech blocked on security grounds
May 23, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — China’s foreign minister pressed his Dutch counterpart Tuesday for access to advanced chipmaking technology that has been blocked on security grounds and warned against allowing what he said were unfounded fears of Beijing to spoil relations.
Russia’s key gas exporter announces 41% profit fall
May 23, 2023 GMTMOSCOW (AP) — Gazprom, the state-owned natural gas company that is a pillar of Russia's economy, announced Tuesday that its profit for 2022 plunged by more than 40% and said it wouldn't pay a full-year dividend.
EU welcomes F-16 jet decision for training Ukraine pilots
May 23, 2023 GMTBRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's foreign policy chief said Tuesday that the U.S. green light to allow Ukrainian pilots to get training to fly F-16s has created an inexorable momentum that will inevitably bring the fighter jets to the Ukrainian battlefield.
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — When Yekaterina Maksimova can't afford to be late, the journalist and activist avoids taking the Moscow subway, even though it's probably the most efficient route.
That's because she's been detained five times in the past year, thanks to the system's pervasive security cameras with facial recognition.
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis’ peace envoy for Ukraine, a veteran of the Catholic Church's conflict-mediation efforts, blasted war as a “pandemic” on Tuesday and said all Christians are called to be peacemakers.
Russia’s sanctioned interior minister visits Saudi Arabia just after trip by Ukraine’s Zelenskyy
May 23, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A top Russian official who faces sanctions in the West over Moscow's war on Ukraine visited Saudi Arabia and held talks with his counterpart in the kingdom early on Tuesday, state media reported.
Unable to fight now, two Ukrainian amputees walk to raise funds for a military hospital
May 23, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The task for the Ukrainian war veterans was clear: From different cities, Oleksandr Shevtsov and Serhii Khrapko would walk 120 kilometers (75 miles) and meet somewhere in the middle in honor of their comrades wounded in Russia’s war against their homeland.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's decision to allow allies to train Ukrainian forces on how to operate F-16 fighter jets — and eventually to provide the aircraft themselves — seemed like an abrupt change in position but was in fact one that came after months of internal debate and quiet talks with allies.
AP PHOTOS: Ukraine insists battle for Bakhmut is not over
May 22, 2023 GMTDespite Russian claims to have captured the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, top military leaders in Ukraine insist the grinding nine-month battle there is not over.
Although Ukraine now controls only a small part of the city, Kyiv says its troops played a key role in the strategy of exhausting Russian forces and will carry on fighting.
NEWTON, Mass. (AP) — Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova welcomed pledges of F-16 fighter jets to her country Monday while also urging patience for the launching of a spring counteroffensive against Russia's full-scale invasion.
Russia TV celebrates as it reports the capture of Bakhmut, comparing it to Berlin in 1945
May 22, 2023 GMTTALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Russian TV went into a full frenzy of celebration as it reported Moscow’s capture of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. There were comparisons to the Red Army liberating Berlin in 1945, congratulations relayed from President Vladimir Putin and announcers emphasizing the victory by using the city’s nearly century-old Soviet name of Artyomovsk.
Russia alleges border incursion by Ukrainian saboteurs; Kyiv claims they are disgruntled Russians
May 22, 2023 GMTKYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian officials claimed that Ukrainian military saboteurs launched an attack across the border Monday, wounding eight people in a small town. Kyiv officials denied any link with the group and blamed the fighting on a revolt by disgruntled Russians against the Kremlin.
Strategic partners Poland and Ukraine spar over painful past
May 22, 2023 GMTWARSAW, Poland (AP) — Officials in Poland and Ukraine, staunch strategic partners, have unexpectedly exchanged bitter remarks regarding a painful mutual past that includes mass murder.
This year is the 80th anniversary of the massacres of tens of thousands of Poles by Ukrainians that Poland calls genocide.
Security on NATO’s eastern flank tops agenda as Northern European defense ministers meet in Poland
May 22, 2023 GMTLEGIONOWO, Poland (AP) — Defense ministers and senior defense officials from 12 northern European countries met in Poland Monday to discuss stepping up deterrence and security on NATO’s eastern flank and strengthening Ukraine’s defenses, ahead of NATO’s summer summit.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — When Polish filmmaker Maciek Hamela first began evacuating Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s war on their country, he wasn't intending to make a film. He was one of the many Poles extending humanitarian aid to neighbors under attack, and had turned down an offer to film a television investigation there.
FIFA extends rule to let players, coaches suspend contracts with Ukrainian, Russian clubs
May 22, 2023 GMTZURICH (AP) — FIFA extended a rule Monday that lets players and coaches continue to suspend their contracts with clubs in Ukraine and Russia for another season, even while it faces a legal challenge from Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk.
South Korea, EU agree to boost pressure on Russia, condemn North Korean missile tests
May 22, 2023 GMTSEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Leaders of South Korea and the European Union agreed Monday to increase pressure on Russia over its war against Ukraine and condemn North Korea’s ballistic missile tests.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Seoul, after the three leaders attended the weekend summit of the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations in Hiroshima, Japan.
Vatican confirms August trip by pope to Lisbon for World Youth Day, including Fatima stop
May 22, 2023 GMTROME (AP) — Pope Francis will travel to Portugal for World Youth Day in the first week of August and include a stop at the popular Marian shrine in Fatima, the Vatican said Monday.
The Aug. 2-6 visit is longer than originally expected and covers almost the entire week of the big Catholic rally that St.