Latest news about Russia and the war in Ukraine

The lifting of public access restrictions on the social media platform X in Russia appears “premature”, the Russian Cabinet of Ministers said on Tuesday, as not all “illegal materials” have yet been removed.

The decision was published in a Google-translated Telegram update broadcast by the Russian state news agency Tass.

Russia began restricting access to X following its large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Other social media platforms Facebook and Instagram were also blocked.

As a part of its anti-extremism and disinformation policy, the Kremlin has restricted public access to information for the reason that starting of the war in Ukraine. At the identical time, it’s taking a more comprehensive approach against journalists and significant voices on the bottom.

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The absence of US President Joe Biden from a planned peace summit in Switzerland would profit Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.

The US president's participation within the summit in June, which is able to concentrate on the war in Ukraine, is needed to make the event successful, Zelensky said at a press conference in Brussels, in keeping with Reuters.

The Kremlin has repeatedly stated that the planned peace summit can be pointless without Russia's participation.

Ukraine’s “biggest need” stays for ammunition, Estonia’s Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said on Tuesday.

“The urgency is very, very acute,” said Pevkur told Journalists on the Foreign Ministers' Council meeting in Brussels noted that excellent news was coming from some member states, resembling Spain.

“We see what is happening in the Kharkiv region and that is why I think it is very important to send ammunition. But I also believe that we need to send a very clear message to Russia, but also to Ukraine, that we are ready to increase training operations,” he said.

The minister added that it was essential for the European Union to push ahead with its plans to make use of the profits from the frozen Russian assets to strengthen the Ukrainian military. “I hope that we can take further steps quickly at the EU level,” Pevkur said regarding using the frozen assets.

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Ukraine and Belgium signed a bilateral security and long-term assistance agreement on Tuesday that features the availability of 30 F-16 fighter jets and Belgian military assistance price at the least 977 million euros ($1.06 billion).

The agreement was concluded in Brussels in the course of the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Belgium.

The F-16 jets are to be delivered to Ukraine by 2028, with the primary to reach this 12 months. The two countries also promised to deepen their cooperation within the areas of intelligence, cybersecurity and combating disinformation, Zelensky said. said in a post on the social media platform X.

“The agreement guarantees Belgium timely security assistance, modern armored vehicles, equipment for the needs of the Ukrainian Air Force and Air Defense, naval security, mine clearance, participation in the artillery-ammunition coalition and military training,” Zelensky said.

The Netherlands offered to contribute core parts from its existing stocks to assemble a Patriot air defense system in cooperation with other countries and deliver it to Ukraine. the Dutch government said in a press release on Tuesday.

“We are in talks with partners to put together a Patriot system, including training Ukrainian crews,” said Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren. “With our offer and in consultation with partner countries that supply several key parts and ammunition, we can deliver at least one fully functional system to Ukraine in a short time.”

The Netherlands said it had already identified which countries could offer additional parts and ammunition for a Patriot surface-to-air missile system, which is principally utilized by the United States and its allies.

Ukraine currently operates a handful of Patriot systems and has asked for more donations of such systems in light of increased long-range bombing of its infrastructure by Russian invading forces. The US has committed to supplying more Patriot munitions as a part of the $60 billion air package for Ukraine. agreed in spring.

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Reuters reports that Volodymyr Zelensky will travel to Belgium on Tuesday and sign a security pact with Prime Minister Alexander De Croo.

The diplomatic trip follows the Ukrainian president's visit to Spain, which has pledged 1 billion euros (1.09 billion dollars) price of military assistance to Ukraine this 12 months. under a recently signed agreement.

“In this context, where it is crucial to increase support for Ukraine, your visit to Spain allows us to reaffirm our firm commitments to Ukraine in all areas,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. said during a press conference on Monday alongside Zelensky, in keeping with a translation by CNBC.

During his visit, the Ukrainian head of state also received the Spanish King Felipe VI.

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According to the Moscow Region Governor, a Russian air defense system shot down a drone within the town of Balashikha, east of the Russian capital Moscow, last night.

The incident occurred at 9 p.m. local time in Kuchino district and resulted in debris falling on a personal house, Andrey Vorobyov said in a Google-translated Telegram post.

“The people in the house managed to evacuate, no one was injured,” he added, noting that residents of Balashikha heard “popping sounds.”

CNBC couldn’t independently confirm the attack.

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A fireplace broke out within the Russian-occupied city of Luhansk in eastern Ukraine last night in consequence of an offensive using cluster munitions, a Russian official said.

“Ukrainian nationalists have launched another rocket attack with cluster munitions on Lugansk. The attack sparked a fire,” Russian-appointed governor Leonid Pasechnik said in a Google translation. Telegram post.

“Employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, law enforcement agencies and doctors went to the scene of the accident. Information on damage and casualties is currently being clarified,” he added.

Rodion Miroshnik, a senior Russian diplomat, suggested that a second attack may need taken place in Luhansk.

“A second attack on the site where rescue workers are working to clear the consequences of the recent rocket attack cannot be ruled out,” he noticed in a Telegram update translated by Google, without providing further details.

Luhansk was annexed by Russia in September 2022, together with the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhia.

CNBC couldn’t confirm the developments on the bottom.

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Six NATO countries bordering Russia are joining forces to construct a “drone wall” to guard their borders, Lithuania’s Interior Minister announced on Friday.

“This is something completely new, a drone wall stretching from Norway to Poland, and the goal is to use drones and other technologies to protect our borders,” Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite said in an interview with local news agency BNS.

“Not only with physical infrastructure, surveillance systems, but also with drones and other technologies that would enable us to protect ourselves from provocations from hostile countries and prevent smuggling,” she said.

Other participating countries include Lithuania's Baltic neighbors Latvia and Estonia, in addition to Poland, Finland and Norway. Details resembling financing, timeline and technical features of the project haven’t been disclosed.