Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Peter Szijjarto's announcement came after Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) allegedly dismantled a Hungarian military intelligence network operating in Zakarpattia Oblast.
Moscow and Washington discuss the potential resumption of Russian gas supplies to Europe, among other issues related to the peaceful settlement of Russia's war in Ukraine, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed to the Russian state-run Interfax news agency.
"This is a historic decision, as weapons for Ukraine will be purchased at the expense of the proceeds from frozen Russian assets through the European Peace Fund," Denys Shmyhal said.
The approval marks a key step in international efforts to hold Moscow accountable for what is considered the gravest violation of international law committed against Ukraine.
Although Moscow declared on April 28 that it would halt all military actions from May 8 to midnight on May 11 to mark Victory Day, strikes on civilian areas have continued.
NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg on July 10, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
NATO could have provided Ukraine with more arms to prevent Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the bloc's Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, said in an interview published Sept. 14.
"Now we provide military stuff to a war — then we could have provided military stuff to prevent the war," he told the German newspaper FAS.
Stoltenberg said the day the war was launched was the worst in his 10-year stint in the role, from which he is stepping down next month. Former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, will take his place.
"I wasn't surprised because we knew from the intelligence services what was going to happen," he said.
"But seeing it actually happen still shocked me. I realized that this was a turning point in our history: There is a Europe before that day and a different Europe after that day."
Stoltenberg highlighted NATO's reluctance to send weapons Ukraine was asking for before the launch of the full-scale invasion, over Western fears of escalation, something which continues to this day and has led to long delays in weapons systems such as tanks and fighter jets.
He also said the war would only end with "dialogue with Russia at a certain stage," but added it "has to be based on Ukrainian strength."
Stoltenberg has consistently urged NATO allies to increase defense spending amid risks of fracturing among the alliance. Multiple NATO countries, including Slovakia and Hungary have questioned NATO's commitment to supporting Ukraine in the war, calling instead for a peace agreement.
During the recent NATO summit in Washington, the alliance clarified Ukraine's "irreversible" path toward NATO by emphasizing the alliance's ongoing commitments to Kyiv "constitute a bridge to Ukraine's membership."
NATO allies also announced plans to provide Ukraine with a minimum baseline funding of 40 billion euros ($43 billion), a new military command in Germany to train and equip Ukrainian troops, and further air defense commitments.
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Chris York
