Новости за 20.02.2017

AVDIYIVKA, Ukraine — Despite an attempt to restart a cease-fire on Feb. 20, sporadic firefights and shelling continued all over the frontline in the embattled Donbas. The Russian-backed militant troops combat activity significantly reduced, but did not stop completely, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense spokesperson Olexander Motuzyanyk said on Feb. 20. “By this midday, we have […]

Now ex-Radical Party member of parliament Andrey Artemenko came under criticism from all sides after the New York Times revealed on Feb. 19 that he was trying to broker his own peace plan to end Russia’s war against Ukraine. The plan was distinctly pro-Russian, but even the Russians rejected it and his freelance, amateurish diplomacy […]

MOSCOW – Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, has died in New York, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Feb. 20. Read more here.

It seems everything is getting smart these days: your phone, your watch, and your home appliances too. And now even jewelry is getting the “smart” treatment. A new Ukrainian device, Senstone, promises to ease notetaking by recording and organizing voice memos, without any fiddling around with a smartphone. “We started Senstone because we were forgetting […]

France and Germany have condemned the Kremlin’s decision to accept passports issued by authorities controlled by pro-Russian rebels. Meanwhile, a new ceasefire deal is going into effect in Eastern Ukraine. Read more here.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has gained some ground on her main election rivals, independent Emmanuel Macron and conservative Francois Fillon, but would still lose to either of them in the May 7 runoff for the presidency, a poll showed on Feb. 20. Read more here.

The European Commission has allocated 18 million euro more of immediate assistance to victims of armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, the European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides said. He said that the recent escalation of violence in the east of Ukraine and its impact on the civilian population raise concern. Stylianides […]

MOSCOW – A dossier on Donald Trump’s psychological makeup is being prepared for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Read more here.

One of Germany’s best-loved postwar actors has been exposed as a Soviet agent following the declassification of top secret intelligence documents. Read more here.

Russia hopes to get around European Union sanctions by reaching a deal with Iran for the supply of gas turbine equipment for two power plants in Crimea, the head of Russian state defence conglomerate Rostec said on Feb. 20. Read more here.

Gibraltar has impounded a Russian billionaire’s superyacht – one of the world’s biggest – because the German shipbuilder says he still owes 15.3 million euros (£13.3 million; $16.3 million) in fees. Read more here.

Moscow – A ceasefire aimed at putting an end to fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists that started Feb. 20 is already on shaky ground. Read more here.

The Ukrainian soldier who was seriously wounded in the village of Zaitseve in eastern Ukraine on Feb. 16 died in a hospital on Feb. 19, according to a Ukrainian defense ministry spokesman. Read more here.

OUN Battalion chief Mykola Kokhanivsky detained during Feb. 19 clashes in Kyiv between police and protesters against trade with separatist-held territories in Donbas has been released from Kyiv’s Desniansky district police station, according to 112.ua. Read more here.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs no longer works with a Russian company providing gun forensic services based on database of cartridges identification, Internal Affairs Minister Arsen Avakov said. “Fortunately, we refused the services of the Russian company providing us with this service. We cannot allow Russia to continue providing this service in the current situation. […]

Kyiv’s Pechersky District Court has ruled to reinstate CEO of state-run Nuclear Fuel Concern Tetyana Amosova, who was discharged by Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov’s government under former President Viktor Yanukovych in 2013. Read more here.

Having issued the decree on recognition of passports and other documents issued by the pseudo-authorities in the parts of Ukraine not under the control of the government, the Russian president has legally recognized the quasi-public groups and left the Minsk process, Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) secretary Oleksandr Turchynov said. “This step by […]

An appeal to the Constitutional Court seeking to lift a farmland sale moratorium signed by 55 lawmakers has been sent. “The Constitutional Court could lift the moratorium. We would receive the freest market among all possible options. This could happen in six months, according to the Constitutional Court regulations,” the initiator of the appeal MP […]

For five decades, western political leaders have gathered at an annual security conference in Munich to grapple with crises in the unstable, violent world beyond their democracies. This year the focus of their conversations was noticeably different: the challenge for the liberal world order is the most powerful man within it. Read more here.

Oil prices rose on Feb. 20 but the gains were limited as investors gauged whether an increase in U.S. drilling rigs and record stockpiles would undermine efforts by producers to cut output and bring the market into balance. Read more here.

WASHINGTON – When North Korea fired a ballistic missile into waters between South Korea and Japan, President Donald Trump moved quickly to show U.S. resolve. He appeared within hours alongside visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and said the U.S. “stands behind Japan, its great ally, 100 percent.” Read more here.

A fire that broke out on the base of the 16th Separate Motorized Infantry Battalion in Sumy region on Feb. 18 has left two soldiers dead and one injured, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on its website. “Two servicemen have died and another one have been traumatized as a result of a fire that broke out […]

Ukraine’s tennis player Alexandr Dolgopolov has claimed his first ATP singles title for five years after beating Japan’s tennis player Kei Nishikori in the final of the Argentina Open. Read more here.