48 minutes ago
Putin speaks with leaders of Israel and the Palestinian Authority
Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold separate telephone conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
“Today we have, you could say, a ‘powerful shot’: five telephone conversations. The president has already spoken to the president of Syria.” [Bashar Assad] and the President of Iran [Ebrahim Raisi]. Further telephone contacts with the Presidents of Egypt will take place later today – [Abdel Fattah] al-Sisi, Palestine – Abbas as well as Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu,” presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov said in Google-translated comments reported by Russian state news agency Tass.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a press conference at the Commonwealth of Independent States Heads of State Meeting at the Ala-Archa State Residence on October 13, 2023 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
Getty Images
Earlier Monday, Putin and Assad called for an end to the violence that has erupted between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The conflict, sparked by the October 7 terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas, led to Israel declaring a full siege of the fenced-in Gaza Strip and asking residents of the northern half of the region to evacuate south of the Wadi Gaza wetland.
Russia – which is itself conducting a full-scale invasion of Ukraine – has had to strike a delicate balance in maintaining its ties with both Israel and Iran, a historic backer of Hamas. Moscow, heavily sanctioned by Western nations, has not yet fully condemned Hamas, instead calling the group’s conflict with Israel a failure of U.S. diplomacy.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
Yellen says the US will fight to ensure robust economic aid for Ukraine
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Monday that supporting Ukraine remains a “top priority” for the United States and Europe, calling it crucial to supporting Ukraine’s military fight against Russian invasion.
She said the Biden administration is committed to supporting Ukraine “for as long as it is needed” and will fight to ensure that a bipartisan majority in the US Congress enacts “robust” and uninterrupted aid for the war-torn country.
“We cannot allow Ukraine to lose the war on economic grounds when it has demonstrated its ability to succeed on the battlefield,” Yellen said in a speech prepared for her third meeting with Eurogroup finance ministers .
Rescuers stand atop a destroyed residential building as they clear debris after a Russian missile attack in Kharkiv on October 6, 2023, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by SERGEY BOBOK / AFP) (Photo by SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty Images)
Genya Savilov | Afp | Getty Images
Yellen’s meeting with the Eurogroup comes as the Biden administration prepares to push through a new military aid package worth well over $2 billion for both Ukraine and Israel, following a deadly attack by the ruling Hamas militant group. Group prepared a ground invasion of Gaza on October 7th.
Yellen did not address the escalating crisis in the Middle East in her remarks, but previously told Sky News that America can “certainly” afford to stand with both Israel and Ukraine.
Some Republicans in Congress have questioned Kiev’s funding, including Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, who has been nominated to be speaker of the House of Representatives and leads a faction of Republican Party hardliners led by former president and presumptive 2024 nominee Donald Trump , is supported. Some EU countries, including Hungary, have also challenged Brussels’ plans.
Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko told Portal on Saturday that it was more difficult for Ukraine to receive financial support.
—Portal
An hour ago
Putin remotely opens the bridge in Russian-occupied Mariupol
According to Russian news agency RIA Novosti, Russian President Vladimir Putin remotely opened a bridge in the Russian-occupied city of Mariupol in Donetsk.
Putin reportedly took part in a video conference about “the opening of road construction projects in the regions of the Russian Federation,” the news agency said, adding that the repaired bridge was “a key element of Mariupol’s road network.”
The bridge is located near the Azov Valley Metallurgical Plant, which became a focal point of Ukrainian resistance before Russian troops eventually captured the entire city.
Russia said it annexed four regions of Ukraine last September after “referendums” on Russia’s accession were held in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. The votes were widely viewed as coercive measures and the results were not recognized by Ukraine or its Western allies.
People hold Russian flags while attending a concert marking Russia’s National Flag Day at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on August 22, 2023.
Natalia Kolesnikova | Afp | Getty Images
Russian forces occupying Mariupol in southern Ukraine have since begun construction projects aimed at putting a Russian stamp on the region and attempting to erase Ukrainian identity in the city and its civilians.
Putin visited Mariupol earlier this year, defying an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes.
– Holly Ellyatt
An hour ago
Russia and Syria are calling for an end to violence against civilians
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad called in a phone call for the immediate provision of humanitarian aid to the civilian population in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Both the Russian state news agency Tass and the state Syrian Arab news agency reported on the conversation.
Assad’s regime has historically been supported by Iran, which also supports the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Tehran has praised Hamas’ October 7 terror attacks against Israel but denied involvement in the operation. The following week, Syria announced that its international airports in Damascus and Aleppo had been hit by Israeli missiles, raising fears of a possible spread of the Israel-Hamas conflict across the Middle East.
Responding to a social media post outlining the scenario of Iran moving strategic weapons to Syria to open a northern front against Israel, Joshua Zarka, head of strategic affairs at the Israeli Foreign Ministry, responded: said on Sunday“They are.”
Throughout the conflict, Moscow pushed for an end to civilian suffering and violence, but walked a fine line to avoid angering its Israeli or Iranian allies. The Kremlin instead blamed the conflict on a failure of Western – and particularly US – diplomacy.
— Ruxandra Iordache
2 hours ago
After 600 days of war, Zelensky thanks the Ukrainians
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Ukrainian citizens for their resilience as he marked the 600th day of the war against Russia.
“600. The will that doesn’t give up wins freedom. Freedom based on unity always wins. It’s about not wasting time. Not to lose unity. Not allowing doubts to corrode the will,” Zelensky said in a post on Facebook.
An aerial photo taken by a drone shows workers digging graves for victims of an airstrike earlier this month at the cemetery in the village of Groza in the Kharkiv region on October 9, 2023, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Genya Savilov | Afp | Getty Images
“Every day we must strengthen Ukraine’s strength. Every day we have to destroy the occupier. Every day we must do everything to ensure that the future of Ukrainians belongs only to Ukrainians,” he added.
Six hundred days after Russia’s invasion, it is estimated that both sides have suffered several hundred thousand military casualties. Thousands of Ukrainian civilians were also killed and millions were displaced by the war.
Zelensky’s comments come at a difficult time for Ukraine’s armed forces, as they have just weeks left to make progress on their counteroffensive before the seasons change, bringing rain and muddy conditions and complicating the battlefield. War weariness and some dismay over Ukraine’s continued heavy funding are also worrying some of Ukraine’s Western allies.
– Holly Ellyatt
2 hours ago
Three Ukrainian children are to be returned after Russian deportation
Three Ukrainian children brought to Russia are now expected to be returned to Ukraine following Qatar’s intervention, a Qatari official briefed on the plans told Portal on Monday.
Last Friday, Qatar facilitated the return of another seven-year-old Ukrainian child who was reunited with his grandmother and is en route to Ukraine via Estonia, the official said. The other three children are a 2-year-old boy, a 9-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl, Portal reported.
Qatar’s foreign ministry released a statement earlier on Monday saying it had reunited Ukrainian children with their families after negotiating with Russia and Ukraine for their safe return, but did not say how many children would be repatriated.
Refugee children who fled Ukraine received blankets to keep warm from Slovak rescue workers at the Velke Slemence border crossing in Slovakia on March 9, 2022.
Christopher Furlong | Getty Images
4 hours ago
Russian and Chinese officials discuss conflicts between Israel and Ukraine
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meet on the sidelines of a G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, in 2021.
Handout from the press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
China’s foreign minister on Monday called for a ceasefire to stop bloodshed in Israel, suggesting in a meeting with his Russian counterpart that major world powers should work to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed the conflict between Israel and Hamas with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing ahead of a visit to China by President Vladimir Putin.
“The United Nations Security Council must take action, and major powers should play an active role,” Wang told Lavrov, according to a Chinese transcript of the meeting.
“It is imperative that a ceasefire is concluded, that both sides are brought back to the negotiating table and that an emergency humanitarian channel is established to prevent another humanitarian disaster.”
Russia and China, both permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, have said the fundamental problem at the heart of the conflict is the lack of justice for Palestinians.
The Palestinians want a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital – all areas that Israel captured in the 1967 war.
Russia has condemned violence against both Jews and Palestinians, but Putin has repeatedly criticized the United States for its flawed approach that has ignored the need for an independent Palestinian state.
“A detailed exchange of views took place on a wide range of international and regional issues, including the greatly aggravated situation in the Middle East,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said of the meeting with Wang.
During the bilateral talks, Lavrov and Wang Yi also discussed the military conflict in Ukraine and efforts to resolve it using “political and diplomatic methods,” the ministry said.
“China appreciates President Putin’s high appreciation and support for building the Belt and Road Initiative and welcomes the continued active participation of the Russian side,” Wang said.
—Portal
4 hours ago
Qatar says it has reunited some Ukrainian children with their families
Children in an orphanage on the outskirts of the city in Lviv, Ukraine, on March 25, 2022.
Adri Salido | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
The Qatari Foreign Ministry thanked the Ukrainian and Russian governments “for their cooperation and commitment to ensuring the safety and proper care of these children during this process.”
“Qatar strongly supports the efforts of both the Ukrainian and Russian sides to protect the rights and well-being of children affected by the ongoing crisis,” it said. Like Turkey, Qatar has positioned itself as a sort of mediator between Ukraine and Russia during the ongoing war.
In its statement on Monday, the State Department said the success of this latest operation “reaffirms Kata’s unwavering commitment to serve as a trusted partner.”
“These mediation efforts underscore Qatar’s continued commitment to promoting peace, stability and security both regionally and internationally,” it said, adding that Qatar “remains fully prepared to play a constructive role in addressing crises and conflicts to play all over the world.”
– Holly Ellyatt
4 hours ago
Putin is struggling to maintain ‘fragile balance’ in Middle East response, analyst says
Russian President Vladimir Putin with senior Saudi officials in 2014.
Rob Griffith | Afp | Getty Images
Vladimir Putin wants to strike a “fragile balance” in Russia’s response to the unfolding unrest in the Middle East, giving the impression that he supports Israel without being critical of the Iran-backed militant group Hamas.
Russia has tried to take a good diplomatic line in the Israel-Hamas conflict and is one of the few countries that maintains good relations with Israel and Hamas-backer Iran, as well as other surrounding Middle Eastern countries. One analyst said Putin’s position in the war was essentially anti-American.
“Despite the aggressive stance of state-controlled television in Russia (which reinforces anti-American narratives over anti-Israel ones), Putin is more nuanced,” Russia analyst Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of the analysis firm R.politik, said on Sunday.
“His own rhetoric suggests that he is willing to condemn the Hamas attack, but not to the extent that it threatens bilateral relations and maintains Moscow’s bilateral diplomatic channels – a prerequisite for Russia to play a mediating role “, she remarked.
“However, maintaining this balance – partly to maintain open communication with Israel – is becoming increasingly difficult for Moscow,” Stanovaya said, adding that the core of Putin’s position is ultimately anti-Western and not just pro-Palestinian or ” not pro-Israel.”
“Ultimately, the core of Putin’s decision is anti-American… This sentiment shapes his views toward Hamas, Israel’s actions and the broader conflict,” she noted.
– Holly Ellyatt
5 hours ago
The Russian Foreign Minister will visit North Korea later this week
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a Security Council meeting at United Nations Headquarters on April 24, 2023 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit North Korea later this week, the ministry said on Monday.
Lavrov will visit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea on October 18-19 at the invitation of Pyongyang’s Foreign Ministry, a statement said.
The visit comes as Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin are in China for talks this week and the Belt and Road Forum is taking place in Beijing.
Lavrov’s visit to North Korea following the trip to China comes against the backdrop of deepening relations with Pyongyang. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Russia in early September as part of a rare trip abroad.
Kim and Putin welcomed closer military, economic and geopolitical cooperation, while Western officials feared that the talks were actually focused on possible North Korean arms sales to Russia. Both countries denied the allegations. Following the trip, North Korea invited Lavrov and Putin to visit.
– Holly Ellyatt
6 hours ago
Ukraine says it ‘cannot be conquered’ after Putin claims
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country could not be conquered after his rival counterpart in Russia claimed Kiev was suffering “huge losses” in its counteroffensive.
“Ukraine cannot be conquered because our people cannot be conquered,” Zelensky said in his evening speech.
“Every day our towns and villages in the border regions with Russia and along the front are subjected to terrorist attacks by the occupiers… No matter what happens, Ukrainians take care of each other and the state remains functional,” he said.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said on Facebook on Monday that “the Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to defend in the east and south of Ukraine, conduct the offensive on the Melitopol axis and offensive operations on the Bakhmut axis. While destroying the enemy, they liberate the temporarily occupied territories and consolidate new positions.”
In the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, smoke rises from the area towards Avdiivka, seen on October 11, 2023 from Donetsk in Russian-controlled Ukraine.
Alexander Ermochenko | Portal
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed in an interview published on Monday that Ukraine had suffered “huge losses” and made little progress in its counteroffensive.
Meanwhile, he said, Russian forces were conducting “active defense” and improving their position along almost the entire front line, including the Kupiansk, Zaporizhzhia and Avdiivka regions, the latter being a hotspot where Russian forces were attempting to to defend themselves in order to conquer the city.
Analysts at the Institute for War Research noted that “Putin may be trying to dampen expectations of significant Russian advances around Avdiivka in Donetsk Oblast.” [region] … Putin’s characterization of Russian offensive operations near Avdiivka as “active defense” rather than “active combat operations” … may be an attempt to dampen expectations of significant Russian progress.”
The ISW noted that “Russian forces are unlikely to make significant breakthroughs or cut off Ukrainian forces in the settlement in the near future, and that potential large-scale progress would likely require a significant and lengthy commitment of personnel and materiel.”
– Holly Ellyatt
6 hours ago
Putin claims Ukraine is suffering huge losses in the counteroffensive
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a joint press statement with his Kyrgyzstan counterpart after talks in Bishkek, October 12, 2023.
Vyacheslav Oseledko | Afp | Getty Images
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed in an interview with Chinese media that Ukraine’s losses were eight times higher than Russia’s and said that Kiev’s counteroffensive had been unsuccessful.
“It’s been since June 4th [Ukraine’s counteroffensive began] has continued. So far there are no results, there are only big losses,” Putin said in an interview with China Media Group, Russian news agency Tass reported on Monday.
“The losses are simply enormous – about one in eight,” Putin said.
Putin said Russian troops were conducting an “active defense” and improving their position along almost the entire front line, including in the Kupiansk, Zaporizhzhia and Avdiivka regions, the latter having been a flashpoint of fighting in recent weeks.
CNBC was unable to verify the claims and Ukraine has not commented. Analysts agree, and Ukraine admits, that its counteroffensive has not made as much progress as expected or hoped, but Ukrainian forces have managed in places to break through deep layers of Russian defenses and recapture some areas. However, in many places the war remains a conflict of attrition with high losses on both sides.
Putin is visiting Beijing this week to attend the Belt and Road Forum, which begins on Tuesday, and Sino-Russian talks. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is also a guest.
The trip comes just days after Putin’s visit to Kyrgyzstan as part of his first foreign trip this year and for the first time since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Putin, charging him with responsibility for the war crime of unlawful deportation and rendition of children during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
– Holly Ellyatt