Crimea

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska declined an invitation from the White House to attend President Joe Biden’s State of the Union (SOTU) address.

Russia’s landing ship Caesar Kunikov has been sunk off the coast of Russian-occupied Crimea, Ukraine’s armed forces claimed Wednesday.

Ukraine must be willing to cede some of its territory to Russia for a peace deal, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico said.

Russian air defenses downed dozens of Ukrainian drones in occupied Crimea and southern Russia on Friday, officials said.

The Russian military said a Ukrainian missile strike on a shipyard in annexed Crimea had damaged a Russian ship.

Missile strike that blasted Crimean headquarters of Russia’s navy last week killed 34 officers, including the fleet commander, Ukraine said.

Ukraine on Saturday launched another missile attack on Sevastopol, a Russian official said, a day after an attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet headquarters.

The UK should keep handing over its stocks, former PM and key Zelensky ally Boris Johnson said, as Ukraine continues to strike Russia’s navy.

Russia said its forces destroyed three Ukrainian naval drones being used in an attempt to attack a key bridge linking Russia to Crimea.

During an interview with CNN International Correspondent Paula Newton that was aired on Friday’s broadcast of CNN International’s “Amanpour,” Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and former Secretary of State John Kerry said that Russia is doing “almost nothing sufficient…with respect

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday made his first comments on the death of mercenary leader Yevgeny Priogzhin.

Russia thwarted an attack by 20 Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow-annexed Crimea overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday.

Russia escalated its attacks in Ukraine on Saturday, as President Zelensky denounced a strike on a blood transfusion centre as a “war crime”.

A Ukrainian drone attack on Crimea Saturday blew up an ammunition depot, while the Russians claimed Kyiv deployed cluster bombs in Beglorod.

Lithuania has begun revoking residence permits of Russians deemed to have “disloyal views” such as who is the rightful owner of Crimea.

Russian-controlled officials installed in occupied Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014, said Wednesday that a massive fire at a military base in Kirovske forced thousands of people to evacuate and shut down a major highway nearby.

Traffic on the key bridge connecting Crimea to Russia´s mainland was halted on Monday after reports of explosions.

Russian-installed authorities in Crimea reported shooting down a cruise missile and suspending traffic on the Kerch bridge.

The surprising and short-lived mutiny by Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin on June 24 brought new attention to the shadowy mercenary organization, which has been active in Africa and the Middle East for many years.

Zelensky declared that he will not participate in any peace negotiations until Russian forces have left the Donbas and the Crimean Peninsula.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu resurfaced on Monday, making his first public appearance after an aborted insurrection by Wagner Group mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Ukraine has “de-occupied” 130km², an area a little smaller than Staten Island in New York, since the start of the counter-offensive.

Killer dolphins? Russia has deployed combat-trained marine mammals to its naval base in Ukraine, says an intelligence digest.

President Biden claimed that Ukrainian’s Zelensky vowed American-made F-16 fighter jets will not be used to attack the Russian mainland.

Another embarrassment for Russia as, just days after it boasted of having stopped rail sabotage another train was blasted.

Ukrainian armed forces claimed to have shot down a Russian hypersonic missile using the American-made Patriot missile defence system.

Russia sees “uptick in rail accidents” and country will struggle to protect the tracks it relies on to move military supplies, says UK.

A “new level” of attack may be imminent after an alleged drone strike on the Kremlin — “the symbol of Russian power,” according to retired Army Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, who warned of a major escalation that could determine the war’s outcome.

Russia announced on Wednesday that security would be increased across Moscow, and Victory Day celebrations scaled back, due to the possibility of attacks by alleged Ukrainian saboteurs.

A massive fire erupted at an oil reservoir in Crimea after it was hit by a drone, a Russia-appointed official there reported Saturday.

The three Baltic states condemned comments by China’s envoy to France, who suggested that former Soviet republics aren’t sovereign nations.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin reportedly made his first visit to occupied Ukrainian territory over the weekend, stopping in Crimea on Saturday and the captive port city of Mariupol on Sunday.

Russia is taking passports from “increasingly disaffected” officials to prevent them fleeing abroad, the British Ministry of Defence said. 

Russia’s Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov said on Tuesday that, contrary to the Pentagon’s account, Russian fighter jets did not shoot at or touch an American drone lost over international waters in Europe.

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has called for an immediate end to the war in Ukraine without any conditions. 

The conflict has inflicted horrendous destruction and loss of life, and staggering amounts of money have been poured into Ukraine’s defense by the Western world, but neither side is making much progress toward victory or a negotiated peace settlement.