Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Further Reading

• US Senate Approves Expanded Military Aid to Ukraine VOA 28 Jun 2019 -- The U.S. Senate's version of the annual authorization for American armed forces earmarks $300 million in military aid to Ukraine, $50 million more than the amount allocated for 2019.
• EU Extends Ukraine-Related Sanctions On Russia For Another Six Months RFE/RL 27 Jun 2019 -- European Union ambassadors have officially prolonged for another six months economic sanctions imposed on Russia for its actions in Ukraine.
• Troop Pullback Starts At Eastern Ukrainian Flashpoint Town RFE/RL 26 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's armed forces have begun to pull back from the town of Stanytsia Luhanska in the Luhansk region, one of only six civilian crossing points along the 450-kilometer line of contact in the Donbas war zone.
• Zelenskiy To Visit Canada In July To Attend Ukraine Reform Conference RFE/RL 26 Jun 2019 -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is scheduled to travel to Canada early next month to take part in a major donor conference and hold talks with top Canadian officials.
• U.S. To Give $4 Million Toward Explosives Depots In Ukraine RFE/RL 26 Jun 2019 -- The United States says it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Ukraine to enhance the safety of the country's stockpiles of conventional munitions.
• Ukrainian Delegation Bolts, Zelenskiy 'Disappointed' In Russia's Reinstatement To PACE RFE/RL 25 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has walked out in protest and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has voiced his "disappointment" over Russia having its voting rights reinstalled at the body after a three-year hiatus.
• Dmytro Firtash: Who Is The Ukrainian Tycoon Wanted By The U.S. On Bribery Charges? RFE/RL 25 Jun 2019 -- Dmytro Firtash, the Ukrainian power-broker that the United States is seeking to put on trial, built his massive fortune on opaque gas trading with a Kremlin-controlled company.
• U.S. Signs New Conventional Weapons Destruction Memorandum With Ukraine US Dept. of State 25 Jun 2019 -- "Today, the United States and Ukraine signed a new memorandum of understanding on Conventional Weapons Stockpile Management. Signed by Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs R. Clarke Cooper and Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs Acting Director of the Directorate of International Security Ruslan Nimchynskyi, the memorandum sets out a $4 million U.S. contribution toward construction of six explosive storehouses over the next two years for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense."
• Bye, Bye, Bankova: Like The President He Played On TV, Ukraine's Zelenskiy To Relocate His Administration RFE/RL 22 Jun 2019 -- In the first few weeks of Volodymyr Zelenskiy's presidency, fact following fiction has been more of a rule than an exception.
• Kyiv Court Rules Saakashvili Eligible To Run For Parliament RFE/RL 21 Jun 2019 -- A Kyiv court ruled on June 21 that former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is eligible to run in Ukraine's snap parliamentary elections on July 21.
• EU Extends Sanctions on Russia Over War in Ukraine VOA 20 Jun 2019 -- The European Union has extended economic sanctions against Russia over the turmoil in eastern Ukraine and demands Russian cooperation with the probe into the shootdown of a Malaysian passenger jet.
• U.S. Hails MH17 Indictments, Urges Moscow To Ensure Russian Suspects 'Face Justice' RFE/RL 20 Jun 2019 -- The United States has welcomed the indictment of four individuals for their alleged roles in the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in 2014, calling it an "important milestone in the search for the truth."
• EU Extends Sanctions On Russia Over Crimea For Another Year RFE/RL 20 Jun 2019 -- European Union leaders have agreed to extend the bloc's investment ban on the Crimean Peninsula by one more year.
• Ukrainian Constitutional Court OKs Parliament's Dissolution, Early Poll RFE/RL 20 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's Constitutional Court has ruled that President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's order to dissolve parliament and call early elections is legal.
• Prosecution of Four Suspects in MH17 Case US Dept. of State 19 Jun 2019 -- "The United States welcomes the announcement today regarding the indictment of four individuals for their role in the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 on July 17, 2014."
• Prosecution of four suspects for downing flight MH17 Joint Investigation Team (JIT) - MH17 19 Jun 2019 -- The Public Prosecution Service of the Netherlands will prosecute four suspects for bringing down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 on the 17th of July 2014 killing all 298 passengers and crew. This decision was made on the basis of the investigation conducted by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT), consisting of law enforcement agencies from Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, Ukraine and the Netherlands.
• Statement by the NATO Secretary General on MH17 investigation NATO 19 Jun 2019
• Russia censures MH17 probe's findings as groundless Press TV 19 Jun 2019 -- Russia's Foreign Ministry has decried as "groundless" the accusations made by an international team investigating the crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17.
• Pentagon announces $250 million in military aid to Ukraine Press TV 19 Jun 2019 -- The United States has announced a 250-million dollar military aid package to Ukraine amid tensions between Kiev and Moscow.
• Dutch Prosecutor Names Four To Be Tried For Murder In Downing Of MH17 RFE/RL 19 Jun 2019 -- Dutch prosecutors say three Russian nationals and a Ukrainian will be tried on murder charges for their alleged roles in the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, which killed all 298 people on board.
• Behind The Four Suspects Who Face Murder Charges For Shooting Down MH17 RFE/RL 19 Jun 2019 -- On July 19, international investigators announced plans to try three Russians and one Ukrainian for murder in the July 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which killed 298 people.
• Kyiv Says One Ukrainian Soldier Killed In Clashes With Russian-Backed Separatists RFE/RL 19 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's government says one of its soldiers has been killed and six others wounded in clashes with Russia-backed separatists in the eastern part of the country.
• Russia-Imposed Authorities In Crimea Search More Crimean Tatars' Homes RFE/RL 19 Jun 2019 -- Police in Ukraine's Russia-occupied Crimea region have searched the homes of a Crimean Tatar activist and his mother -- the latest in an ongoing crackdown by Russian authorities against members of the Turkic-speaking Crimean Tatar community.
• MH17 Downing Investigators Name 4 Suspects, DPR Refutes Claims of Involvement Sputnik 19 Jun 2019 -- Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 with almost 300 people aboard was downed while flying over East Ukraine near the Russian border in July 2014. While Moscow was not included in the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team, it has, however, conducted a separate investigation into the tragedy and delivered the results to the International community.
• Foreign Secretary Statement on the MH17 Prosecution UK FCO 19 Jun 2019 -- Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt calls on Russia to co-operate with the prosecution after 4 suspects are charged with murder and the downing of MH17.
• Investigators Name 4 Suspects in Malaysian Airliner Downing Over Ukraine VOA 19 Jun 2019 -- A Dutch-led international team investigating the shooting down of a Malaysian Airlines passenger jet over Ukraine in 2014 has named three Russians and a Ukrainian as murder suspects.
• Pentagon Gives More Support To Kyiv As Volker Says Kremlin Not Ready To End War RFE/RL 18 Jun 2019 -- The U.S. Department of Defense will provide $250 million to enhance Ukraine's military capabilities as the nation continues to battle Russia-backed separatists in its eastern regions.
• DOD Announces $250M to Ukraine DoD 18 Jun 2019 -- The Department of Defense announced today plans to provide $250 million to Ukraine in security cooperation funds for additional training, equipment, and advisory efforts to build the capacity of Ukraine's armed forces.
• Merkel Backs Extending Russia Sanctions During Ukrainian President's Visit RFE/RL 18 Jun 2019 -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her country's backing for extending sanctions against Russia as she met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Berlin.
• Pentagon To Give Additional $250 Million In Military Aid To Ukraine RFE/RL 18 Jun 2019 -- The U.S. Department of Defense says it plans to provide $250 million to enhance Ukraine's military capabilities as the nation continues to battle Russia-backed separatists in its eastern regions.
• Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Says Dutch Investigators To Name First MH17 Suspects On June 19 RFE/RL 18 Jun 2019 -- Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Olena Zerkal says Dutch authorities plan to name suspects in the downing of flight MH17 five years ago, in which all 298 people aboard the passenger jet were killed.
• US to Provide Ukraine With Additional $250Mln for Arms, Training - Pentagon Sputnik 18 Jun 2019 -- The United States will provide additional funds for Ukraine in the amount of $250 million to strengthen the capacity of the Ukrainian military, the Pentagon announced in a statement on Tuesday.
• New Ukraine president visits areas likely to incense Russia Press TV 16 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's new president, Volodymyr Zelensky who has defined his top priority as ending the conflict in the country's volatile east, made his first official visit to the Donetsk region on Saturday and called for the return of all pro-Russia areas to Kiev's control.
• Ukraine's Zelenskiy To Meet With French, German Presidents This Week RFE/RL 16 Jun 2019 -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is expected to make his first visits to France and Germany as head of state this week, with the European capitals seeking progress on reforms in Ukraine and the country's conflict with Russia-backed separatists.
• Zelenskiy Visits Mariupol As City Celebrates Fifth Anniversary Of 'Liberation' RFE/RL 15 Jun 2019 -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited the Ukrainian port of Mariupol to take part in activities to mark the fifth year of the city being liberated from Russia-backed separatists.
• Russia Begins Handing Out Passports To Ukrainians From Conflict Zone RFE/RL 14 Jun 2019 -- Russia has begun handing out Russian passports to Ukrainians from separatist-controlled areas of eastern Ukraine, a move condemned by Kyiv as "legally void."
• 'It's Time To Pay': Ukraine Detains Donetsk Separatist Referendum Organizer RFE/RL 14 Jun 2019 -- The chief organizer of a 2014 Donetsk separatist "independence" referendum in eastern Ukraine condemned by the international community has been detained by Ukrainian authorities, Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko has announced.
• Brussels To Drop Criticism Of Ukraine's Controversial Education Law RFE/RL 14 Jun 2019 -- A draft statement expected to be issued at an upcoming EU-Ukraine summit will express Brussels' continued recognition of Ukraine's European aspirations while dropping criticism of the country's education law, according to a copy of the draft seen by RFE/RL.
• More Than 500 Torture Cases Documented By UN In Ukraine Conflict RFE/RL 13 Jun 2019 -- The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has documented more than 500 cases of ill-treatment, incommunicado detention, and torture by both Ukrainian government forces and Russia-backed separatists since the conflict erupted in April 2014, the mission's head said in Kyiv on June 13.
• Saakashvili, Party Colleagues To Run In Ukraine's Parliamentary Elections RFE/RL 13 Jun 2019 -- The party of Mikheil Saakashvili, the former Georgian president who served as governor of Ukraine's Odesa region in 2015-16, has presented its list of top 10 candidates for Ukraine's July 21 parliamentary elections.
• Study Ranks Afghanistan As World's Least Peaceful Country, Points To 'De-Escalation' In Ukraine RFE/RL 12 Jun 2019 -- According to a new study, the world became "very slightly" more peaceful for the first time in five years, but remains "considerably less peaceful now" than a decade ago due to conflicts in the Middle East, a rise in terrorism, increasing numbers of refugees, and other factors.
• EU Ambassadors Agree To Extend Crimea Sanctions For Another Year RFE/RL 12 Jun 2019 -- European Union ambassadors have agreed to extend the bloc's investment ban on the Crimean Peninsula by another year.
• Next Up For U.S. Weapons Supplies to Ukraine? Possibly Surface-To-Air Missiles RFE/RL 11 Jun 2019 -- Over the five years of grinding war that has pitted Ukrainian forces against Russia-backed fighters, the United States has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in military gear: night-vision goggles, flak jackets, vehicles, counter-battery radars, among other things.
• Ukraine Slams Russia's 'Complete Disrespect' For International Maritime Law RFE/RL 11 Jun 2019 -- Kyiv has urged an international arbitration panel in the Netherlands to hear its case about alleged Russian breaches of a United Nations maritime convention, accusing Moscow of "wholesale violations" of its rights in waters around Ukraine's Crimea region.
• Russia Argues Against Ukraine's Black Sea Case Before Arbitration Panel RFE/RL 10 Jun 2019 -- An international arbitration panel in the Netherlands has begun preliminary hearings of Kyiv's case over Moscow's alleged violations of its rights to coastal waters around Ukraine's Crimea region, which Russia seized in 2014.
• Zelenskiy Vows 'Tough' Response As More Ukrainian Soldiers Die In The East RFE/RL 07 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine says fresh clashes with Russia-backed separatists in the country's east have claimed the lives of two of its soldiers, raising to six the number of Ukrainian troops reported killed this week and prompting President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to urge Moscow to "rein in" the separatists.
• Lawyer Reveals Details Of Yushchenko Corruption Probe RFE/RL 07 Jun 2019 -- A lawyer for former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has disclosed some details of the corruption charges his client is facing in the high-profile case.
• Ukraine Reports More Casualties In Conflict In East RFE/RL 06 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine says fresh clashes with Russia-backed separatists in the country's east have claimed the life of one of its soldiers, raising to four the number of Ukrainian troops reported killed this week.
• Former Ukrainian President Yushchenko Suspected In Corruption Surrounding Residential Complex RFE/RL 06 Jun 2019 -- Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko has been served on charges of suspected abuse of power and possession of state property in what investigators call the illegal privatization of a residential complex near Kyiv that served as a residence for his prime minister and successor Viktor Yanukovych.
• Zelenskiy, Poroshenko, And The Curious Case Of The 'Plagiarism' In Brussels RFE/RL 06 Jun 2019 -- Volodymyr Zelenskiy seemed to be saying all the right things in Brussels.
• Ukraine's Zelenskiy Calls For Tougher EU Sanctions On Russia RFE/RL 05 Jun 2019 -- On the second and last day of his visit to Brussels, Ukraine's newly elected president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has called on the European Union to step up sanctions against Russia.
• Ukraine's President Promises NATO Referendum As Part Of Path To West RFE/RL 05 Jun 2019 -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has promised to hold a referendum on NATO membership -- a move strongly opposed by Moscow -- as the country embarks on a path of European and Euro-Atlantic integration.
• Kyiv Says Three Ukrainian Soldiers Killed, Three Wounded In Fighting In East RFE/RL 05 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine says three of its soldiers have been killed and at least three others wounded in clashes with Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.​
• Secretary General praises Ukraine's partnership with NATO, calls for continuing reform NATO 04 Jun 2019 -- Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Ukraine's new President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to NATO Headquarters on Tuesday (4 June 2019) for bilateral talks, as well as a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission focused on the security situation in the country.
• Kyiv Tells ICJ Russia Failed To Stop 'Terrorism' In Eastern Ukraine RFE/RL 04 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine has argued before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Russia has failed to prevent "terrorist acts" by the separatists Moscow is backing in the country's east.
• Ukrainian President Says He's Open To Peace Talks With Russia, Commits To NATO Membership RFE/RL 04 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's president said he is ready to negotiate with Russia to end the war in eastern Ukraine, but he also reaffirmed his country's course toward NATO membership -- a move strongly opposed by Moscow.
• ICJ lacks jurisdiction over case on Ukraine's pro-Russians, Crimea's ethnic group: Moscow Press TV 03 Jun 2019 -- Russia says the International Court of Justice (ICJ) lacks jurisdiction over a case filed by neighboring Ukraine against Moscow over its purported funding of pro-Russian separatists in volatile eastern Ukraine and alleged discrimination against an ethnic group in the Crimea Peninsula.
• Ukraine's New President Due In Brussels For First Trip Abroad RFE/RL 03 Jun 2019 -- Ukraine's newly elected president is set to meet with European Union and NATO leaders during a visit to Brussels this week -- his first foreign trip since his inauguration last month.
• Russia Rejects Ukraine's Case Over Separatist Support In UN Court RFE/RL 03 Jun 2019 -- Russia has argued that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) lacks jurisdiction in Kyiv's case over Moscow's seizure of Ukraine's Crimea region and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
• UN Court To Hear Arguments In Crimea Occupation Case RFE/RL 02 Jun 2019 -- The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to hold public hearings this week in Kyiv's case over Russia's seizure of Ukraine's Crimea region and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
• Russia stages air force drills in Crimea Press TV 01 Jun 2019 -- Russia staged large-scale aviation drills at the Crimea peninsula this week with crews from Aerospace Forces from four Russian military districts and the Northern Fleet taking part.