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 U.S. State Department seal is displayed at the International Cybersecurity Forum 2024 in Kyiv on Feb. 7, 2024. (STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The U.S. State Department announced visa bans on approximately 20 Georgian individuals for undermining democracy in the country, according to the department’s statement on Dec. 12.
The ban will extend to Georgian ministers, parliament members, security officials, and private individuals.
The move comes amid daily protests in Georgia that began after Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said the EU accession talks would be suspended until 2028. Hundreds of protestors have been detained, with dozens reported injured as the Georgian police deployed tear gas and water cannons.
The U.S. condemned the ruling Georgian Dream party, saying, "The Georgian Dream party has turned its back on the Euro-Atlantic future for Georgia, which is desired by the vast majority of the Georgian people and enshrined in the Georgian constitution."
The State Department also noted that additional measures are being prepared, including sanctions.
Georgian Dream, which declared victory in the October elections broadly disputed by domestic opposition and international observers, has been accused of democratic backsliding and dragging Georgia into the Kremlin's orbit.
"The United States strongly condemns the Georgian Dream party’s ongoing, brutal, and unjustified violence against Georgian citizens, including protesters, members of the media, human rights activists, and opposition figures," the U.S. State Department’s statement said.
In response to the crackdown, the Baltic countries and Ukraine have imposed sanctions on Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder of Georgian Dream, and other officials for their role in suppressing the protests.
Sonya Bandouil is a North American news editor for The Kyiv Independent. She previously worked in the fields of cybersecurity and translating, and she also edited for various journals in NYC.
Sonya has a Master’s degree in Global Affairs from New York University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Music from the University of Houston, in Texas.
Sonya Bandouil
