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Ukraine has responded to media reports about its purported plans to develop an atomic bomb, saying that it has no intention of acquiring nuclear weapons.
The Ukrainian foreign ministry was responding to reports on a briefing document, apparently prepared for the Ukrainian defence ministry, detailing how Kyiv could develop a rudimentary atomic bomb if the US withdraws its military assistance.
“Ukraine is committed to the NPT (the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons); we do not possess, develop or intend to acquire nuclear weapons,” foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said on X.
Earlier, the head of Ukrainian national security warned that Vladimir Putin’s forces are ready to launch a “massive” missile attack on Ukraine targeting its civilian infrastructure ahead of the onset of winter.
And in occupied Crimea, a senior Russian naval officer has been killed in a bomb attack claimed by Kyiv. According to a Kyiv security source, the bomb attack in Sevastopol was a Ukrainian hit on one of its highest-ranking targets to date.
Two killed in Russian attacks on Ukraine in past day
At least two civilians were killed and 28 others were injured in Russian attacks across Ukraine yesterday, regional authorities said.
Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with a sophisticated combination of missiles and drones for the first time in 73 days yesterday.
Air raid warnings blared for hours as Russia targeted eight regions of Ukraine, firing six ballistic and cruise missiles and 90 drones, the Ukrainian air force said.
Air defences downed four missiles and 37 drones, and another 47 drones were stopped by electronic jamming, the statement said. The damage was being assessed.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 07:57
Ukraine’s military shoots down 21 Russian drones overnight
The Ukrainian military shot down 21 out of 59 Russian drones launched during an overnight attack, its air force said on Telegram.
The air force said 38 of the drones were lost from its radar. In total almost “Shahed” type drones were fired by Russia, all from the Kursk region, it said.
Another air raid warning was issued for Kyiv at around 8.45am local time, with the air force saying it was countering the threat.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 07:44
Russian power creeps across West Africa with Equatorial Guinea mission
Russia has deployed up to 200 military instructors to Equatorial Guinea in recent weeks to protect the presidency, sources told Reuters, showing Moscow is expanding its footprint in West Africa despite a recent defeat in Mali.
The sources said the Russians were training elite guards in the two main cities of the tiny oil-exporting country of 1.7 million people, where US energy firms invested billions of dollars in the first decade of the century before scaling down.
The deployment fits into a wider pattern of waning Western influence and increasing Russian interventions in West and Central Africa, where Moscow has sent thousands of mercenaries to protect military regimes and help them fight insurgents.
For Russia, the assignments are a way to make money from government fees and economic opportunities in mining or energy, while defying the West as part of a global geopolitical confrontation playing out most dramatically in Ukraine.
Tara Cobham14 November 2024 07:00
Ukrainian soldiers aim to keep Russian advances at bay after Trump’s return
The unit commander who goes by the callsign Kit, or “cat,” pilots the tiny uncrewed aircraft from a basement room he jokingly calls their Airbnb.
Guided by the drone’s night-vision camera, he drops the 10kg (22-pound) packages one by one as close as he can to the position where as many as five infantrymen battle Russian forces in the late autumn chill. The delivery will hold them for two or three days.
That’s about as far as Kit dares look into the future. He knows that the reelection of Donald Trump will change something in his life, but as far as he and other Ukrainian soldiers on the front are concerned, trying to figure out how is a game for politicians.
For him, all that matters is the distance he measures in the meters (yards) that Russian forces advance or retreat in the front-line sector that is his responsibility.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 06:22
Trump may look to rekindle dialogue with North Korea ‘sooner rather than later’, analyst says
Donald Trump may look to rekindle a conversation with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “sooner rather than later”, an analyst has suggested.
With reports of 10,000 North Korean troops being deployed to Russia, as both nations ratified a new military pact, Bulent Gokay, professor of international relations at Keele University, suggested the US president-elect could also soon look to reopen a dialogue with the pariah state.
Professor Gokay said: “Since Trump last met with Kim, the North has greatly expanded its military arsenal, in particular massive intercontinental ballistic missiles and hypersonic and short-range weapons that could deliver nuclear warheads against the US mainland or military bases in the region.
“Despite this, Trump may feel that his engagement worked well during his first presidency in that he feels that he can ‘solve’ the North Korean nuclear issue without any violent encounter. So, he may look to rekindle a conversation with Kim sooner or later.”
Tara Cobham14 November 2024 06:00
Trump to appoint envoy tasked with ending Ukraine war, Fox News reports
Donald Trump is expected to appoint a Ukrainian peace envoy tasked with negotiating an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine, reported Fox News.
One of the sources aware of the matter said the diplomatic appointment will happen “in short order”.
“You’re going to see a very senior special envoy, someone with a lot of credibility, who will be given a task to find a resolution, to get to a peace settlement,” the sources said.
During his campaign, the US president-elect repeatedly said he could quickly end the fighting in Ukraine but did not offer details of how he would accomplish that. The Kremlin earlier welcomed Mr Trump’s claim that he could negotiate an end to the conflict in Ukraine “in 24 hours” but emphasised that it will wait for concrete policy steps.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 05:52
Ukraine responds to nuclear bomb reports
Ukraine has denied media reports suggesting it is “months away” from developing a nuclear bomb, saying that it has no intention of acquiring nuclear weapons.
“Ukraine is committed to the NPT (the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons); we do not possess, develop or intend to acquire nuclear weapons,” foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said on X.
His remarks come after The Times reported on a briefing document apparently prepared for the Ukrainian defence ministry, detailing how Kyiv could develop a rudimentary atomic bomb, similar to those used against Japan in 1945, if US military assistance under the incoming Trump administration were to stop.
Mr Tykhyi added that Ukraine “works closely with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) and is fully transparent to its monitoring, which rules out the use of nuclear materials for military purposes”.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 05:17
Wacth: Britain’s chief of defence staff ‘confident’ that the UK could fight full-scale war
Tara Cobham14 November 2024 05:00
Biden is sending aid to help Ukraine keep fighting next year, Blinken says
The Biden administration is determined in its final months to help ensure that Ukraine can keep fighting off Russia’s full-scale invasion next year, sending it as much aid as possible so that it might hold Russian forces at bay and possess a strong hand in any potential peace negotiations, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said.
“President Biden has committed to making sure that every dollar we have at our disposal will be pushed out the door between now and 20 January,” when president-elect Donald Trump is due to be sworn in, Mr Blinken said.
Nato countries must focus their efforts on “ensuring that Ukraine has the money, munitions and mobilized forces to fight effectively in 2025, or to be able to negotiate a peace from a position of strength,” Mr Blinken said during a visit to Brussels.
The US will “adapt and adjust” with the latest equipment it is sending, Mr Blinken said, without providing details.The almost three-year war has shown no signs of winding down.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 04:35
Kyiv ‘cautiously optimistic’ after discussing strikes on Russia with US
Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said he was “cautiously optimistic” after discussing with US secretary of state Antony Blinken the possibility of conducting strikes deep inside Russia as well as Euro-Atlantic integration.
“We discussed issues of long-range strikes and Euro-Atlantic integration. And here we also are cautiously optimistic,” Mr Sybiha said in televised comments.
His talks with Mr Blinken in Brussels come at a turbulent time, just one week after Donald Trump won the US presidential election.
Trump has long criticised the scale of US financial and military aid to Ukraine and has vowed to end the war quickly, without explaining how.
Kyiv has long been lobbying for Western allies to allow long-range attacks on military targets inside Russia, while also pressing for an invitation to join the Nato alliance.
Allies including the US have been unwilling to permit long-range attacks for fear of further escalating the conflict, and some are opposed to inviting Ukraine to join Nato.
Mr Sybiha said his talks in Brussels had also touched on military aid. “We have a clear picture – a clear timeframe, clear volumes – of what will be delivered to Ukraine by the end of the year. This helps us strategically to plan our actions on the battlefield,” he said.
The assistance, he added, would include weapons and funds for arms production deals.
Arpan Rai14 November 2024 04:12
