Politics & Economics

German officials consider it important for Ukraine to hold elections, which is a sign of democracy, but they do not say directly whether they are ready to put pressure on Kyiv to bring citizens to the polling stations in wartime conditions. Federal government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit addressed the question on any potential pressure, speaking at a briefing on Monday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "In principle, we believe that the values of democratic expression of will and elections are correct, but we must take into account the special situation that is and will for the foreseeable future remain in place in…

Ukraine will definitely be invited to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization because it is beneficial to member states. Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov expressed this opinion in an interview with Ukrinform. "We will definitely be invited to NATO because it will be beneficial for them. But it will happen after our victory. Then there will be a political vote as it will be a political decision, not a legal one, because de facto we are already a NATO ally by all indicators," Reznikov noted. Read also: Day of war costs Ukraine $100M - outgoing defense minister He expressed hope that…

Ukraine’s Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov has submitted his letter of resignation to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. “I have submitted my letter of resignation to Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine. It was an honor to serve the Ukrainian people and work for the Ukrainian Army for the last 22 months, the toughest period of Ukraine’s modern history,” Reznikov posted on the social platform X, Ukrinform reports. Reznikov also published a photo of his resignation letter. As Ukrinform reported, on September 3, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that within a week he would table in the parliament a…

President of Moldova Maia Sandu has strongly condemned Russia's attacks on the port infrastructure of Odesa region. She said this in a post on the social platform X (formerly known as Twitter), Ukrinform reports. “I strongly condemn Russia's brutal attack on port infrastructure in Odesa region. Russia must be held accountable for every piece of infrastructure destroyed. My thoughts are with all those affected,” she wrote. Sandu assured that Moldova stands firmly with Ukraine. Read also: Border guards show wreckage of Shahed UAVs shot down in Odesa region As reported by Ukrinform, on the night of September 3, the Russian…

President Volodymyr Zelensky called on people's deputies to support a number of draft laws, laid down in the recommendations put forward by the European Commission. Zelensky stated this in his latest address to the nation, Ukrinform reports. He emphasized that Ukraine has seven specific recommendations from the European Commission, some of which have already been implemented. In order to fulfill the remaining part - the adoption of a number of draft laws - effective work is required on the part of Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada. "Each of these laws is of fundamental importance. And voting on them will be of fundamental…

The Group of Seven ambassadors welcomed the progress in resuming asset declaration of Ukraine officials and lawmakers. This is reported by Ukrinform with reference to a posting on the X social network by the representative office of the G7 ambassadors. "G7 Ambassadors welcome progress to restore asset declarations for public officials. To ensure transparency and accountability, we note the importance of avoiding loopholes for rented or leased assets and of minimizing security exceptions, including on publication, to those directly involved in defending Ukraine," the statement said. Read also: Anti-graft watchdog explains risks of possible Constitutional Court ruling on asset declarations…

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus summoned the temporary charge d'affaires of Poland, Wojciech Filimonovic. This was reported by the ministry’s press service on September 1, Ukrinform reports with reference to Radio Liberty. According to the report, the reason was the alleged violation of the state border of Belarus by a Polish military helicopter. "We demand appropriate explanations and a thorough investigation of the incident from the Polish side. The Belarusian side must be informed about the outcome of the probe and the causes of the incident, as is customary in international relations, in an acceptable time frame," the…

The decentralization reform in Ukraine did not stop during the full-scale war, an important issue now is the regulation of control and monitoring of the decisions of local self-government bodies. "Ukraine not only can but continues the development of the reform in the conditions of the full-scale invasion. To date, Ukraine has raised the bar high, particularly in front of international partners. An important issue of completing the reform is the issue of control and monitoring of decisions of local self-government bodies. Primarily, control from the public is needed. And we have to take this into account in our legislative…

The Ministers of the European Union have not reached an agreement on the eight tranche of military aid for Ukraine. The relevant statement was made by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell during a press conference, following the meeting of EU ministers in Toledo, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. Today, EU ministers have held an informal meeting in Spain’s Toledo and expressed political support for the EU High Representative’s initiative regarding the creation of a Ukraine Assistance Fund for the period 2024-2027. However, the ministers did not reach an agreement on the allocation of the eighth…

Failure to give Ukraine the support it needs to defend itself against the Russian invasion will have a higher cost for everyone, including European countries, Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Gabrelius Landsbergis believes. That's according to EURACTIV, Ukrinform reports. “Either the situation was not considered serious enough (…), or there was fear of what would happen if with Russia if we give Ukraine a big enough stick and leverage was effective and a nuclear power lost a war it had started,” Landsbergis told EURACTIV. “If this [fear] is a driver of a policy not to give Ukraine the big stick it needs,…