14 minutes ago
“They started the war,” Putin says, accusing the West of provoking Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed on Tuesday that Western allies “started the war” in Ukraine during his annual State of the Nation address.
Speaking in Moscow, Putin accused the West of developing military units on Russia’s borders.
“I would like to repeat, they started the war, and we used force to stop it,” Putin said translating the speech.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Moscow has referred to the conflict as a “special military operation”.
“We have done everything possible to solve this problem in a peaceful way. We have been patient in our negotiations to get out of this terrible conflict. But behind our backs, a completely different scenario was being prepared,” he said.
Karen Gilchrist
35 minutes ago
Blinken calls Putin’s war a “strategic failure”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday called President Putin’s war a “strategic failure”.
“One year after President Putin attacked Ukraine, it is clear that his war was a strategic failure in every way,” Blinken said during a press conference with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias in Athens.
It comes as Putin is set to present his assessment of Russia’s so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine during his state of the nation address in Moscow.
Karen Gilchrist
44 minutes ago
China warns countries against “fanning the fire” in the conflict in Ukraine
Chinese Foreign Minister Chen Gang has warned some countries against “fanning the fire” in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
Greg Baker | Afp | Getty Images
Today, Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Minister Chen Gang called on some countries to stop “fanning the fire” over the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, in a clear response to Western allies.
“China is very concerned that the Ukraine conflict will continue to escalate or even get out of control,” Chen said during a speech at the Foreign Ministry in Beijing. We urge some countries to immediately stop fanning the fire.”
The comments come as the United States has warned China against providing military support to Russia, which Beijing has said it is not doing.
China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, is scheduled to visit Moscow on Tuesday and may meet with President Vladimir Putin.
President Xi Jinping is also expected to deliver a “peace speech” on Friday, the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Karen Gilchrist
one hour ago
Italian Prime Minister Meloni meets Zelensky in Kiev
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a press conference in Berlin, Germany.
Maja Hatig | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, will meet President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev on Tuesday to reaffirm her country’s support for Ukraine as it seeks to calm tensions in its right-wing alliance.
The trip comes a week after its coalition partner, Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi, blamed Zelensky for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Her visit comes a day after US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital on Monday, days before the first anniversary of the war.
Karen Gilchrist
one hour ago
Putin delivers a keynote speech revealing the latest views on Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin will deliver a closely watched speech at 9:00 am London time, in which he is expected to detail his latest thoughts on what he continues to call the “special military operation” in Ukraine.
“At such a crucial and very complex stage in our development and life, everyone is waiting for a message in the hope of hearing an assessment of what is happening and an assessment of the military special operation,” a Kremlin spokesman told state television. Per translation from Reuters.
The speech will be delivered in Moscow in front of both chambers of the Russian parliament, military leaders and soldiers.
It comes as the war approaches its one-year anniversary, on February 24.
– Jenny Reed
one hour ago
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