Europe

MOSCOW, June 25. /TASS/: The industrial area and airport of Severodonetsk, Lugansk People’s Republic, have been completely liberated from Ukrainian forces, head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov said on his Telegram channel Saturday.

"The industrial area of Severodonetsk and the airport have been completely liberated," Kadyrov said.

According to Kadyrov, the cleanup of the airport is in progress, and its entire territory is under control.

He also said that 800 civilians were liberated from the Azot plant in Severodonetsk.

MOSCOW, June 25. /TASS/: Moldova’s membership in the EU is possible, not directly, but through creation of the "new Greater Romania," Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev says.

"Moldova has entered the long queue for accession to the EU, stretched across decades. Bon voyage! But [they] want is sooner! Therefore, there is another way to obtain the EU membership: creation of a new Greater Romania (Romania Mare)," the politician said on his Telegram channel, answering a question from TASS as to how soon Moldova could join the Union.

LISBON, June 25 (NNN-KBC) — The Governments of Kenya and Portugal are set to co-host the Ocean Conference from next week in Lisbon.

The event seeks to scale up ocean action based on science and innovation.

Currently, the ocean is facing threats as a result of human activities.

According to the UN, the ocean covers about 70% of the Earth’s surface and is home to up to 80% of all life in the world and also generates 50% of the oxygen we need.

MOSCOW, June 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow’s military action in Ukraine was not responsible for the global food crisis, instead blaming the West for preventing the export of Russian grain.
 
  “The food market is unbalanced in the most serious way,” Putin said, addressing a “BRICS Plus” virtual summit that brought together the leaders of 17 countries, including China, India, Brazil and South Africa.
 

June 24 (Reuters) - Russia on Friday said the decision by European Union leaders to accept Ukraine and Moldova as membership candidates would have negative consequences and amounted to the EU's "enslaving" neighbouring countries.

Although it could take years for the countries to join the European bloc, the decision to accept them as candidates is a symbol of the EU's intention to reach deep into the former Soviet Union.

KYIV, June 25 (Reuters) - U.S.-supplied HIMARS rocket systems are already working and hitting targets in Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine, the country's top general said on Saturday.

"Artillerymen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine skillfully hit certain targets - military targets of the enemy on our, Ukrainian, territory," Chief of Ukraine's General Staff Valeriy Zaluzhnyi wrote on the Telegram app.

June 25 (Reuters) - The British defence ministry said on Saturday that Russia had likely withdrawn several generals from key command roles in the Ukraine conflict this month.

"Since the start of June, the Russian high command has highly likely removed several Generals from key operational command roles in the war in Ukraine," the ministry said in its daily Twitter update.

Ukrainian forces have been ordered to withdraw from the battleground city of Sievierodonetsk after weeks of fierce street fighting, in order to limit more casualties and regroup.

BRUSSELS, June 24 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Friday announced plans to issue 50 billion euros (52.8 billion U.S. dollars) of EU-Bonds to finance the NextGenerationEU recovery program between July and December.

The funds for the temporary recovery instrument were aimed at supporting member states' economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and helping build a greener, more digital and more resilient Europe.

To finance NextGenerationEU, the European Commission aims to raise around 800 billion euros from capital markets between mid-2021 and the end of 2026.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian forces are trying to block a city in eastern Ukraine, the region’s governor said Saturday, after their relentless assault on a nearby city forced Ukrainian troops to begin withdrawal after weeks of intense fighting.

Russia also launched missile attacks on areas far from the heart of the eastern battles.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Ukraine’s largest LGBTQ rights event, KyivPride, is going ahead on Saturday. But not on its native streets and not as a celebration.

It will instead join Warsaw’s yearly Equality Parade, the largest gay pride event in central Europe, using it as a platform to keep international attention focused on the Ukrainian struggle for freedom.

“We are marching for political support for Ukraine, and we’re marching for basic human rights for Ukrainian people,” KyivPride director Lenny Emson said. “It is not a celebration. We will wait for victory to celebrate.”