Politics

Ireland supports Ukraine's accession to the European Union and will make efforts to step up pressure on Russia to end the war. “We have good news: Ireland fully supports Ukraine's accelerated accession to the European Union. And it will do everything to increase the pressure on Russia as much as necessary to end this war,” President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said in his address. The President noted that he had addressed the parliament and the people of Ireland on April 6. “This country was one of the first to come to our aid after February 24. And it is one…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called on the Parliament of Ireland to persuade EU partners to toughen sanctions against the Russian Federation. The relevant statement was made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his speech in Erachtas, Parliament of Ireland, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. “I urge you to show even more leadership in our anti-war coalition! I urge you to persuade your EU partners to toughen sanctions against the Russian Federation. The sanctions that will really stop Russia’s military machine,” Zelensky told. In his words, it is necessary to stop all trade with Russia, block Russian banks’ ties with the…

U.S. defense assistance to Ukraine will be delivered in the largest possible volumes and as quickly as possible. That’s according to John Kirby, spokesman for the Department of Defense, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. “There'll be another one arriving in the next 24 hours. We're prioritizing the kinds of capabilities in those shipments that we know the Ukrainians need the most -- Javelins, Stingers, UAVs,” Kirby said. The official noted that the aid was being prioritized, adding that the goal is to keep the assistance going “as fast as we can, as much as we can,” to make sure that “the…

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com BUCHAREST, April 4 (Reuters) - The United States will ask the U.N. General Assembly to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said on Monday, after Ukraine accused Russian troops of killing dozens of civilians in the town of Bucha. A two-thirds majority vote by the 193-member assembly in New York can suspend a state for persistently committing gross and systematic violations of human rights. "Russia's participation on the Human Rights Council is a farce," U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said on a visit to Romania.…

Russian armed aggression against Ukraine has confirmed the already obvious inability of international organizations to prevent and stop wars of invasion. This especially relates to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), whose main task is precisely that. Permanent Representative of the United States to the organization, Michael Carpenter, believes that it is now time to reconceptualize the architecture of European security. This is including about a consensus which has been blocking the OSCE’s effective work. Besides, the diplomat says Russian violations of the agreements signed and obligations undertaken cast doubt on the feasibility of further signing any…

China will seek peace in Ukraine but says this will be on its own terms, deflecting pressure for a tougher stance towards Russia. That’s according to senior Chinese officials who held a virtual summit with the EU leaders on Friday, Ukrinform reports citing Reuters. Premier Li Keqiang told EU leaders that Beijing would push for peace in "its own way", while President Xi Jinping said he hoped the EU would treat China "independently", in a nod to Europe's close ties with the United States. The EU told Beijing not to allow Moscow to circumvent Western sanctions imposed over Russia's invasion…