Europe

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The executive arm of the European Union recommended Friday that Ukraine be granted candidate status to one day join the 27-nation bloc.

The promise of membership in a union created to safeguard peace on the continent holds deep symbolism for the nation at war. But it is only the first step in a process that could take decades.

And it didn’t silence the guns and artillery that continue to kill civilians and flatten cities as well as sending millions fleeing from their homes since Russia launched its invasion of its neighbor on Feb. 24.

16 June 2022; MEMO: Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov summoned the Israeli Ambassador in Moscow Alexander Ben Zvi to express his country's "serious concern" about the Israeli air strikes on Syria's Damascus International Airport.

"The [Israeli] ambassador was told that the justification received from the Israeli side regarding the strike … was unconvincing and that Moscow expected additional clarification," according to a Russian Foreign Ministry statement that was quoted by Reuters.

17 June 2022; MEMO: More than 800 mosques in Germany have been the targets of threats and attacks since 2014 but, in most of the cases, the crimes were not properly investigated, according to Brandeilig, an initiative of rights group FAIR International, Anadolu News Agency reports.

The group, which has founded Germany's first reporting centre for attacks on mosques, recorded nearly 840 incidents of attacks, vandalism and threats between 2014 and 2022.

GENEVA, Jun 16 (APP): Pakistan has called on the UN Human Rights Council to take “credible steps” to uphold Kashmiri people’s fundamental rights, and to hold India accountable for its illegal colonization and rights abuses in the disputed territory.

“Today, Pakistan echoes this call for action to address the growing human rights crisis in occupied Kashmir,” Ambassador Khalil Hashmi, permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN in Geneva, told the 47-member council.

ST. PETERSBURG, June 16. /TASS/: Russia’s envoy to the EU Vladimir Chizhov on Thursday said Russia and the EU prefer not to slam the door shut although their relations reached the lowest point ever.

He made the remarks at a meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, which is taking place at the venue of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

ST. PETERSBURG, June 16. /TASS/: Both strings of Nord Stream 2 are under pressure and gas can be delivered to Germany even now, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said during his speech at SPIEF 2022.

"We were asked to build it, huge sums of money were invested, and when everything was built, you know Nord Stream 2 - two strings are under pressure and gas can be delivered via Nord Stream 2 to Germany today. It has not been launched, because that is not certified. The question that arises is how can one be trusted when it comes to investments in large projects," he said.

ST. PETERSBURG, June 16, /TASS/: Moscow has always kept in touch with both the West and the East, but now contacts with Europe are absent from Russia’s priorities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in a televised interview.

June 15 (Reuters) - The head of Ukraine's military on Wednesday said Russia had concentrated its main strike forces in the north of Luhansk region and were trying to attack simultaneously in nine directions.

"The fierce struggle for Luhansk region continues," Valeriy Zaluzhny, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, said in an online message. The Russians were using aircraft, rocket-propelled grenades, and artillery, he added.

BRUSSELS, June 16 (Reuters) - Latvia on Thursday made a last pitch for the deployment of more NATO troops in the Baltics, two weeks before NATO leaders are set to decide the future military line-up on the alliance's eastern flank in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Latvian Defence Minister Artis Pabriks called for larger forces in the Baltic states and said that any sign of weakness - be it in Ukraine or on NATO territory - would encourage Russia.

AMSTERDAM, June 16 (Reuters) - The Dutch intelligence service said on Thursday it had uncovered a Russian military agent attempting to use a false identity to infiltrate the International Criminal Court (ICC) which is investigating accusations of war crimes in Ukraine.

Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov created an elaborate cover story dating back years to try and enter the Netherlands as a Brazilian national for an internship at the Hague-based ICC in April, the agency's head told Reuters.