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.
President Volodymyr Zelensky during his visit to Sumy Oblast's city of Okhtyrka on March 28, 2023. (Ukraine's Presidential Office)
Ukraine will need to look for ways told hold wartime elections if the war continues to drag on, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with BBC published on July 20.
Zelensky's five-year term was supposed to expire in May, but he has continued to serve as president due to martial law.
Ukraine introduced martial law after Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. The Martial Law Act explicitly bans presidential, parliamentary, and local elections.
Zelensky emphasized that many factors make holding fair elections challenging during the war, "but in any case, if the war drags on, it will be necessary to look for new tools."
Zelensky was responding to the interviewer's questions on whether he would still be in office if the war continues for ten years, and whether Ukraine could still be considered a democracy at that point.
"Firstly, no one will agree to a war that will continue for another 10 years, or many years," Zelensky responded, describing that scenario as "impossible."
Holding elections, however, would be "difficult" and require a change in the Constitution, he noted. Furthermore, the Constitution cannot be changed during martial law.
Another complication would be how to ensure free and fair elections, given there are people living in the occupied territories, Ukrainians serving in trenches, and millions of Ukrainians abroad, he noted.
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.
Oleg Sukhov
