~theguardian-world | Bookmarks (10)

Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Ukraine with his family when his studio was bombed during the Russian invasionA Ukrainian sculptor who fled to the UK when his studio was destroyed has been accepted into the Royal Society of British Artists.Alex Lidagovsky was forced to leave Kyiv with his wife, Dasha Nepochatova, and 16-year-old stepdaughter after the Russian invasion began on 24 February 2022....

Prime ministers to examine plans to confiscate billions of euros in interest from frozen Russian assets and send the money to KyivEU leaders are to meet in Brussels to discuss ways to radically increase military and financial support for Ukraine amid calls for member states to put their economies “on a war footing”.Fuelled by what one diplomat said was a new “sense of urgency...

Defence secretary warned by British intelligence that Kremlin was aware of his travel plansGrant Shapps was forced to abandon a trip to Ukraine’s southern city of Odesa because of a Russian missile threat.The defence secretary aborted the visit after he was warned by British intelligence that the Russians had become aware of his travel plans. Continue reading...

Popular national figure given new role after being dismissed by Volodymyr Zelenskiy a month agoUkraine’s former commander in chief, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, is to become the country’s next ambassador to the UK, a month after he was fired by the president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, from his job leading the military.The decision makes good on Zelenskiy’s promise to keep the popular former general “as part of the...

Foreign secretary to issue warning to Israeli cabinet minister during London visit that has infuriated Gantz’s rival NetanyahuMiddle East crisis: live updatesDavid Cameron is to tell the Israeli cabinet minister Benny Gantz that UK patience is wearing thin at the lack of humanitarian aid reaching the people of Gaza at a meeting in London.The foreign secretary, on the eve of Wednesday’s visit, issued the...

Chancellor Olaf Scholz says he will not give missiles that could strike at strategic Crimea bridge, as Russia seeks to exploit leakHow significant is Russia’s apparent interception of military talks on Ukraine?Britain has urged a reluctant Berlin to supply long-range Taurus missiles to Kyiv despite an embarrassing leak to Russian television of a top-secret call involving German air force officers who said UK troops...

Government defends decision that opposition politicians say could put vulnerable people at riskA scheme allowing Ukrainians to join family members taking sanctuary in the UK has been unexpectedly closed, in what opposition politicians described as a cruel and “below the radar” move days before the two-year anniversary of Russia’s full invasion.The Ukraine family scheme is being shut but government officials said a separate Homes...

Refugees will have ‘certainty and assurance’ says Home Office, but charities say move insufficient as many face homelessnessUkrainians who sought sanctuary in the UK after the Russian invasion will be permitted to extend their visas for an extra 18 months, the Home Office has announced.More than 200,000 Ukrainians visa holders have arrived in the UK since March 2022, with the first visas to expire...

Budgets expected to increase further amid ‘deteriorating security landscape’ triggered by invasion of UkraineGlobal defence spending increased by 9% to a record $2.2tn during 2023 driven by heightened geopolitical tensions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to an annual assessment by a military thinktank.The International Institute of Strategic Studies added that it expected budgets to increase further in 2024 as the war continued...

Foreign secretary says there are legal, moral and political justifications for using assets of $350bnBritain is ramping up pressure on western governments to use $350bn (£275bn) of frozen Russian assets to help rebuild Ukraine’s war-shattered economy, with David Cameron insisting there were legal, moral and political justifications for action.The foreign secretary said the countries that were backing Ukraine had economies that when combined were...