26 minutes ago
Ukraine's Zelensky welcomes diaspora support and proposes dual citizenship
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday thanked Ukrainians abroad for their support during the Russian invasion and proposed a constitutional amendment to allow dual citizenship.
The Constitution of Ukraine does not grant Ukrainian citizens the right to dual citizenship, so millions of people of Ukrainian origin living abroad cannot hold a Ukrainian passport.
A Ukrainian citizen stands with a passport in front of a mobile passport office for Ukrainians who fled to Poland without papers after the outbreak of the Russian invasion and now want to obtain a passport or ID card. Krakow, Poland on September 29, 2022. The office, located in four vans, is operated by the State Migration Service of Ukraine. (Photo by Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Photo only | Photo only | Getty Images
In a seemingly symbolic gesture on Ukrainian Unity Day, the anniversary of the unification of eastern and western Ukraine in 1919, Zelensky said he was submitting a draft law to parliament that would allow dual citizenship.
“Today I am submitting to the Verkhovna Rada an important draft law that will allow the adoption of comprehensive legislative changes and the introduction of multiple citizenship,” Zelenskyy said in a statement.
“And it will allow all ethnic Ukrainians and their descendants from around the world to have our citizenship. Of course, with the exception of the citizens of the aggressor country.”
Ukrainian officials often refer to Russia as an aggressor country after its full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022 and the occupation of large parts of Ukrainian territory. Zelensky has repeatedly stressed the need for unity as Russia's war in Ukraine drags on and Kiev relies heavily on military and financial aid from abroad.
Zelensky thanked the diaspora for their support, including those who came to fight for Ukraine, saying the words “I am Ukrainian” had a special meaning and praising the “indomitability of our people.”
Constitutional changes require parliamentary approval, a process that can take about a year, and approval from the Constitutional Court.
—Portal
An hour ago
Kremlin calls Donetsk market strike a “monstrous act of terrorism”
The Kremlin described the suspected Ukrainian shelling of a marketplace in Donetsk on Sunday as an “outrageous act of terrorism”.
“The Kiev regime continues to show its bestial face and attack civilians,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.
At least 25 people died and 20 others were injured in the attack on the market in the city of Donetsk.
Ukrainian forces operating in the region denied carrying out the attack and said they “did not conduct hostilities using means of destruction.”
A screenshot taken from a video shows Russian President Vladimir Putin making a statement amid escalating tensions between the Kremlin and the head of the paramilitary group Wagner on June 24, 2023 in Moscow.
Kremlin Press Office| Handout | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
Russia claims Donetsk in eastern Ukraine as its own territory after unilaterally annexing the region in late 2022. Ukraine and its allies reject this claim.
Peskov added on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had received reports of the Donetsk attack and that Russia's “special military operation” – as it calls its invasion of Ukraine – to “protect” the people would continue.
– Holly Ellyatt
An hour ago
Analysts say operations at Russia's damaged fuel complex are expected to resume within weeks
Russian energy company Novatek is expected to resume large-scale operations at its Ust-Luga processing complex and Baltic Sea terminal within weeks after a suspected drone attack disrupted naphtha flows to Asia, analysts said on Monday.
Tightening supply from Russia due to fears of disruption to European naphtha exports to Asia due to attacks by Yemen's Houthis on ships in the Red Sea is driving up naphtha prices and refining margins in Asia.
The profit margin for producing naphtha in Asia rose around $6 to $91.70 a tonne against Brent crude on Monday, after four straight losses.
Novatek said on Sunday that it had been forced to suspend some operations at the giant Baltic fuel export terminal and the “technological process” at the complex due to a fire that Ukrainian media said was caused by a drone strike.
Kommersant newspaper also said on Monday, citing local authorities, that two storage tanks and a pumping station were damaged as a result of the incident.
“We expect the plant will likely return to significant capacity within weeks or, at worst, months,” analysts at Moscow-based brokerage firm BCS said in a note.
Russian Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov answers a question during a meeting with journalists in Vladivostok, Russia, in this picture released September 12, 2023.
Sputnik | Via Portal
Novatek declined to comment. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that the Russian military and other government agencies would take necessary measures, including in terms of air defense, following the suspected Ukrainian drone attack on the terminal.
—Portal
3 hours ago
Russia declares a day of mourning for the victims of the market attack on Monday
A day of mourning has been declared for the victims of the shelling of a market square in the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk on Sunday.
Moscow accused Kiev of launching a rocket attack on the market in Donetsk that killed at least 25 people and injured 20 others, calling the incident a terrorist attack.
Ukrainian forces operating in the region denied carrying out the attack and said on Sunday that they “did not conduct combat operations using means of destruction.”
A view of damage after shelling at the market square in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk, currently under Russian control, in the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war on January 21, 2024.
Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images
Both Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians, although thousands have died in missile and drone attacks in the last two years of the war.
Russia-appointed Donetsk chief Denis Pushilin said on Telegram on Monday that there would be a day of mourning for the dead.
“We mourn those who lost their lives at the hands of Ukrainian terrorists as a result of yesterday's shelling,” he said.
Pushilin, the head of the self-proclaimed, pro-Russian “Donetsk People's Republic,” said the strike was carried out “on Sunday, when it was at its most crowded.”
Russia said the attack by Ukrainian forces on Donetsk would be discussed at a UN Security Council meeting on Monday. “The Russian Foreign Ministry called on all responsible governments and international structures to condemn this terrorist attack,” Tass news agency reported.
– Holly Ellyatt
3 hours ago
According to the United Kingdom, the intensity of Russian offensive activity is increasing
Russian offensive activity is increasing in intensity, as confirmed by data collected by Ukrainian forces in mid-January, the British Ministry of Defense said on Sunday.
Ukraine's General Staff reported on Friday that there was a 27% increase in Russian attacks on the front line compared to the previous day, with 81 airstrikes and 45 multiple missile strikes.
It's a trend that's been emerging since the new year. according to the additional data collectedstated the United Kingdom an intelligence update on X.
“These data suggest that the intensity of Russian offensive activity on the front has steadily increased over the past two weeks. A key trigger for this is most likely the icy ground conditions that allow the movement of armored vehicles over land,” it said.
Ukrainian soldiers in Avdiivka, Ukraine, on December 7, 2023.
Libkos | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Data from the Ukrainian General Staff compared the period from January 14 to 18 with the previous five-day period. There was a trend of increasing losses for Russia as offensive activity increased.
“In these five days, the number of losses of Russian military vehicles increased by 88% and the number of losses of Russian tanks increased by 95%. The number of Russian casualties also increased by 15% during the same period,” the ministry noted.
– Holly Ellyatt
5 hours ago
Russia and Ukraine carried out retaliatory strikes over the weekend
DONETSK, UKRAINE – JANUARY 21: A view of the damage after shelling in the market square in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk, currently under Russian control, ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war on January 21, 2024. At least 25 people were killed and 20 others were injured on Sunday by shelling in the Ukrainian city of Donetsk, currently under Russian control. (Photo by Leon Klein/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images
Russia and Ukraine retaliated over the weekend after another Russian oil terminal was attacked on Sunday, as were the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk and nine Ukrainian regions.
Moscow accused Kiev of launching a rocket attack on a market in the city of Donetsk that killed at least 25 people and wounded 20 others, Russian officials said. Ukrainian forces operating in the region denied carrying out the attack and said they “did not conduct hostilities using means of destruction.”
Elsewhere, a fire broke out at a Baltic Sea terminal belonging to Russia's largest liquefied natural gas producer Novatek, a regional official said on Sunday, amid reports of drone sightings in the area. Several other Russian oil terminals in the Bryansk and Leningrad regions have been attacked in recent days.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian forces shelled nine regions of the country on Sunday.
“On this single day, the Russian Inhumans shelled over a hundred cities and villages of our Ukraine in nine regions: from the Chernihiv region to the Sumy region, the Mykolaiv region, the Kirovohrad region and our regions. Particularly serious Russian attacks are occurring in the Donetsk region,” Zelensky said in his evening speech.
Zelensky described 60 clashes yesterday and said the heaviest fighting took place in the Avdiivka area, as well as in Bakhmut, Maryinka and Kupyansk. “There have been more than 50 Russian shelling incidents from multiple rocket launcher systems alone, as well as dozens of airstrikes and rocket attacks,” he said.
Both Russia and Ukraine deny attacks on civilian infrastructure. CNBC was not able to immediately verify the battlefield reports.
– Holly Ellyatt
6 hours ago
A fire breaks out at the Russian Baltic Sea terminal Novatek after a suspected Ukrainian drone attack
After a suspected Ukrainian drone attack, a fire broke out at a Baltic Sea terminal owned by Novatek, Russia's largest liquefied natural gas producer, forcing the company to suspend some operations there.
According to Novatek's website, the Ust-Luga complex on the Gulf of Finland, about 170 km (110 miles) west of St. Petersburg, processes stable gas condensate into light and heavy naphtha, kerosene, fuel oil and gas oil. The port is used to ship processed products to international markets.
The Interfax-Ukraine news agency, citing unnamed sources, said the fire was the result of a special operation by the Ukrainian security services.
SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA – June 15, 2022: Novatek logo at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2022 (SPIEF 2022). (Photo by Maksim Konstantinov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Sopa pictures | Light rocket | Getty Images
“The Ust-Luga oil terminal in the Leningrad Region is an important facility for the enemy. Fuel is refined there, which is also supplied to Russian troops, among other things,” a source quoted.
“A successful attack on such a terminal not only causes economic damage to the enemy and deprives the occupiers of the opportunity to earn money to wage war in Ukraine, but also significantly complicates fuel logistics for the Russian military.”
Portal could not confirm that the fire was the result of a Ukrainian drone strike.
—Portal
6 hours ago
Zelensky is worried about the prospect of Trump's presidency
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks with CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, January 16, 2024.
Adam Galici | CNBC
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was worried about the prospect of Donald Trump returning to the White House, calling Trump's claim that he could end Ukraine's war with Russia in 24 hours “very dangerous.”
In an interview with Britain's Channel 4 News broadcast on Friday, Zelensky invited the former president and front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination to visit Kiev, but only if Trump keeps his promise.
“Donald Trump, I invite you to Ukraine, to Kiev. If you can stop the war within 24 hours, I think it will be enough,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader also expressed concern about unilateral US actions that did not take Ukraine's perspective into account and pointed to the lack of details on Trump's “peace plan.”
—Associated Press