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.
One of the 103 Ukraininan POWs returned on Sept. 14 (X/President Volodymyr Zelensky)
President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced that 103 Ukrainian POWs were returned from Russian captivity on Sept. 14.
"Our people are home," he said in a post on social media.
In a separate post, the Azov Angels charity fund said 23 of those released were Azov fighters, returning "after more than two years of captivity."
Azov fighters became a symbol of Ukraine's resistance through their tenacious defense of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol in the first three months of the all-out war.
Russian forces eventually occupied Mariupol in May 2022, capturing the remaining defenders.
Our people are home.
We have successfully brought back another 103 warriors from Russian captivity to Ukraine.
82 privates and sergeants. 21 officers. Defenders of the Kyiv and Donetsk regions, Mariupol and Azovstal, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv regions. Warriors of the… pic.twitter.com/M9YsZjpFct
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 14, 2024
Zelensky said the released POWs consisted of 82 privates and sergeants, and 21 officers, adding they were "defenders of Kyiv and Donetsk oblasts, Mariupol and Azovstal, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv oblasts. Warriors of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard of Ukraine, border guards, and police officers."
"The vast majority of those released are people who had been held (in captivity) since the first days of the war,” said Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets in a statement.
Lubinets stressed that people who returned need serious rehabilitation, as their health has deteriorated severely during captivity.
Previously, the United Nations commission published several reports describing the torture of Ukrainian POWs as “widespread and systematic,” and the conditions of their detention as "shocking." Some Ukrainian POWs died in captivity from causes such as "blunt force trauma".
This is the 57th prisoner exchange since the outbreak of the full-scale war, and the second exchange carried out in the last two days.
Earlier on Sept. 13, 49 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians were released from Russian captivity. They included personnel of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the National Police, and border guards.
A total of 3,672 Ukrainians have been brought back from Russian captivity.
We are the news team of the Kyiv Independent. We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Feel free to contact us via email with feedback and news alerts.
Kate Tsurkan
