Latest Ukraine government News

Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — As Russia asserted progress in its goal of seizing the entirety of contested eastern Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin tried Saturday to shake European resolve to punish his country with sanctions and to keep supplying weapons that have supported Ukraine's defense. ...

Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia asserted Saturday that its troops and separatist fighters had captured a key railway junction in eastern Ukraine, the second small city to fall to Moscow's forces this week as they fought to seize all of the country's contested Donbas region. ...

War surges Norway's oil, gas profit. Now, it's urged to help
STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — Europe’s frantic search for alternatives to Russian energy has dramatically increased the demand — and price — for Norway's oil and gas. As the money pours in, Europe's second-biggest natural gas supplier is fending off accusations that it's...

Live updates | Communist deputy demands Russian withdrawal
Breaking with the party line in a rare show of opposition to his country’s war in Ukraine, a Communist Party legislative deputy in Russia’s Far East demanded an end to the military operation and withdrawal of Russian forces. “We understand that if our country doesn’t stop the...

China criticizes US as tensions rise in South Pacific
BEIJING (AP) — China on Friday criticized a speech by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken focused on relations between the world’s top two economic powers, saying the U.S. was seeking to smear Beijing's reputation. In his Thursday address, Blinken said the administration of...

Russia slams sanctions, seeks to blame West for food crisis
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow pressed the West on Thursday to lift sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, seeking to shift the blame for a growing food crisis that has been worsened by Kyiv’s inability to ship millions of tons of grain and other agricultural products while under...

Live updates | Mayor: Some 1,500 killed in Sievierodonetsk
KYIV, Ukraine — The Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk is the center of fierce fighting in the east. Mayor Oleksandr Stryuk says it’s holding out even though a Russian reconnaissance and sabotage group went into a city hotel. Stryuk said at least 1,500 people have been killed in...

West mulls having Russian oligarchs buy way out of sanctions
BERLIN (AP) — Western allies are considering whether to allow Russian oligarchs to buy their way out of sanctions and using the money to rebuild Ukraine, according to government officials familiar with the matter. Canadian Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia...

Davos updates | Iran's foreign minister talks war, nuke deal
DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister sat before an audience of Western business executives and policymakers at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, fielding questions about why Iran has yet to condemn Russia for its invasion in Ukraine and why efforts to...

Russia takes steps to bolster army, tighten grip on Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin issued an order Wednesday to fast track Russian citizenship for residents of parts of southern Ukraine largely held by his forces, while lawmakers in Moscow passed a bill to strengthen the stretched Russian army. Putin’s...
