Connect with us

World

In Kyiv, US and UK diplomats offer aid but no breakthrough on strikes into Russia

Blinken announced more than $700 million in support for Ukraine. Lammy said Britain would provide a further 600 million pounds ($781 million).

Published

on

The U.S. and British foreign ministers met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday on a visit interrupted by air raid warnings, unveiling new support but no breakthrough on the long-range strikes into Russia desperately sought by Ukraine, Reuters reported.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and British foreign minister David Lammy, in Kyiv at a critical juncture in Ukraine's struggle against Russia, said they talked about Ukraine's war goals and what they could do to help.

"Among other things, we discussed long-range fires, but a number of other things as well. And as I said at the outset, I'm going to take that discussion back to Washington to brief the president on what I heard," Blinken told reporters.

Zelenskiy has been pleading with Kyiv's allies for months to let Ukraine fire Western missiles including long-range U.S. ATACMS and British Storm Shadows deep into Russian territory to limit Moscow's ability to launch attacks.

"We are listening carefully and, of course, we are having discussions on a range of issues, including the military equipment that Ukraine needs to win," Lammy told a news conference alongside Blinken and Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.

The British foreign minister suggested those discussions could continue for a few more weeks, a remark that will disappoint Ukrainians hoping the West would quickly discard fears of escalation.

Ahead of the news conference, Zelenskiy was asked whether he was optimistic the United States and Britain would greenlight deeper strikes into Russia, and he quipped that it depended instead on the "optimism" of Ukraine's partners, read the report.

"Let's count on some strong decisions at least. For us it's very important for today," he told reporters in Kyiv.

In a comment posted on his Telegram channel, Zelenskiy described the talks as "long and meaningful".

"All the key issues were discussed," he wrote.

"What's important is that all the Ukrainian arguments were heard. And that concerns long-range weaponry, supplying our front-line brigades and the general strategy of moving strategically towards a just peace."

There is nervousness in Washington and some European capitals that lifting the restrictions on long-range attacks could provoke Russia towards a direct conflict with the West, at the same time as a recognition that Ukraine needs more help if it is to swing the war in its favour, Reuters reported.

The speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, Vyacheslav Volodin, said Moscow would consider the United States and its allies to be parties to the war if they allowed Kyiv to use long-range weapons to strike deep in Russia.

Overnight, U.S. President Joe Biden suggested there was room for compromise, saying his administration was "working that out now" when asked if the United States would lift the restrictions on the use of long-range weapons.

The air raid alert sounded twice during Blinken and Lammy's visit to Kyiv, before and after the news conference. A wreath-laying ceremony they were due to attend was cancelled.

Both alerts appeared to have been sounded over ballistic missile threats, but it was unclear what any missile had been targeting or what happened to the missiles.

Blinken announced more than $700 million in support for Ukraine. Lammy said Britain would provide a further 600 million pounds ($781 million).

More than 2-1/2 years since the invasion, Russian forces are inching forward in the east as Kyiv's forces try to hold a pocket of land they seized in western Russia in a surprise incursion last month.

After making rapid progress initially, Ukrainian advances have stalled, and on Wednesday a senior Russian commander said his forces had taken back control of about 10 settlements.

Ukraine has not commented on the latest Russian reported gains. Reuters was not able to independently verify battlefield developments, read the report.

Later this month, Zelenskiy travels to the United States and will present a plan to Biden and his two potential successors in November's presidential election that he hopes will bring the end of the war closer.

World

NATO’s Stoltenberg says each country must decide if Ukraine can use its long-range missiles on Russia

Some U.S. officials are deeply skeptical that allowing the use of such missiles would make a significant difference in Kyiv’s battle against Russian invaders.

Published

on

The outgoing head of NATO Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday he welcomed talks on Ukraine's use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russian territory, but any decision on the issue would have to be made by individual allies, Reuters reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been pleading with allies for months to let Ukraine fire Western missiles including long-range U.S. ATACMS and British Storm Shadows deep into Russia to limit Moscow's ability to launch attacks.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and U.S. President Joe Biden held talks in Washington on Friday on whether to allow Kyiv to use the long-range missiles against targets in Russia. No decision was announced.

"I welcome these developments and these decisions but its for individual allies to make the final decisions," Stoltenberg told LBC radio. "Allies have different policies on this."

Some U.S. officials are deeply skeptical that allowing the use of such missiles would make a significant difference in Kyiv's battle against Russian invaders, read the report.

President Vladimir Putin has said the West would be directly fighting Russia if it allowed Ukraine to strike with Western-made long-range missiles.

Asked about possible Russian retaliation, Stoltenberg said there were "no risk-free options in the war".

"But I continue to believe that the biggest risk for us, for United Kingdom, for NATO, will be if President Putin wins in Ukraine," he added.

Continue Reading

World

Trump safe after assassination attempt thwarted at Florida golf course

The suspect left an AK-47-style assault rifle and other items at the scene and fled in a vehicle and was later arrested

Published

on

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was safe on Sunday after the Secret Service foiled what the FBI called an apparent assassination attempt while he was golfing on his course in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Several Secret Service agents fired on a gunman in bushes near the property line of the golf course after he was spotted a few hundred yards from where Trump was playing, law enforcement officials said.

The suspect left an AK-47-style assault rifle and other items at the scene and fled in a vehicle and was later arrested, Reuters reported.

The apparent attempt on Trump's life came just two months after he was shot at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, sustaining a minor injury to his right ear.

Both incidents highlight the challenges of keeping presidential candidates safe in a hotly contested and polarized campaign with just over seven weeks to go before the Nov. 5 election.

"I would like to thank everyone for your concern and well wishes - It was certainly an interesting day!," Trump said on social media late on Sunday, thanking Secret Service and police for keeping him safe.

CNN, Fox News and The New York Times identified the suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Hawaii, citing unidentified law enforcement officials. The FBI declined to comment and Reuters could not independently verify his identity.

It was not clear if or how the suspect knew Trump was playing golf at the time, or what his motive was, but the attempted attack was sure to raise new questions about the level of protection he is given.

 

Continue Reading

World

Houthi missile reaches central Israel for first time, no injuries reported

At a weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said the Houthis should have known that Israel would exact a “heavy price” for attacks on Israel.

Published

on

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would inflict a "heavy price" on the Iran-aligned Houthis who control northern Yemen, after they reached central Israel with a missile on Sunday for the first time, Reuters reported.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the group struck with a new hypersonic ballistic missile that travelled 2,040 km (1270 miles) in just 11 1/2 minutes.

An Israeli military official said the missile was hit by an interceptor and fragmented in the air, rather than being completely destroyed.

Air raid sirens had sounded in Tel Aviv and across central Israel moments before the impact at around 6:35 a.m. local time (0335 GMT), sending residents running for shelter. Loud booms were heard, read the report.

Missile pieces landed in fields and near a railway station. There were no direct casualties, but nine people were lightly hurt while seeking cover. Reuters saw smoke billowing in an open field in central Israel.

At a weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said the Houthis should have known that Israel would exact a "heavy price" for attacks on Israel.

"Whoever needs a reminder of that is invited to visit the Hodeida port," Netanyahu said, referring to an Israeli retaliatory air strike against Yemen in July for a Houthi drone that hit Tel Aviv.

The Houthis have fired missiles and drones at Israel repeatedly in what they say is solidarity with the Palestinians, since the Gaza war began with a Hamas attack on Israel in October, Reuters reported.

The drone that hit Tel Aviv for the first time in July killed a man and wounded four people. Israeli air strikes in response on Houthi military targets near the port of Hodeidah killed six and wounded 80.

Previously, Houthi missiles have not penetrated deep into Israeli air space, with the only one reported to have hit Israeli territory falling in an open area near the Red Sea port of Eilat in March.

Israel should expect more strikes in the future "as we approach the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 operation, including responding to its aggression on the city of Hodeidah," Houthis spokesperson Sarea said.

The deputy head of the Houthi's media office, Nasruddin Amer, said in a post on X on Sunday that the missile had reached Israel after "20 missiles failed to intercept" it, describing it as the "beginning".

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 Ariana News. All rights reserved!