A Huge EU Loan For Kyiv

RFE/RL’s Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Western military aid to Kyiv, worldwide reaction, and the plight of civilians and refugees. For all of RFE/RL’s coverage of the war, click here.

Latest Developments At A Glance The European Commission will provide Ukraine with a new loan of up to $39 billion, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in Kyiv on September 20, calling it ‘another major EU contribution to Ukraine’s recovery.’ In his farewell after leading NATO for a decade, Jens Stoltenberg warned against ‘isolationism’ among members of the military alliance, saying its 32 members must be ‘willing to pay the price for peace’ in the face of an emboldened Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on September 19 that Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s southwestern Kursk region had resulted in the Russian military diverting 40,000 troops to the area. U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee, will hold separate meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on September 26, the White House said in a statement on September 19. Satellite images have revealed the devastation wrought by a massive Ukrainian drone strike on an important Russian arms depot 400 kilometers west of Moscow. Zelenskiy said on September 18 that Kyiv has ‘fully prepared’ its ‘victory plan’ to end the war with Russia and the most important thing now is the determination to implement it. Artillery shells sold by Indian arms makers have been diverted by European customers to Ukraine and New Delhi has not intervened to stop the trade despite protests from Moscow, according to Indian and European government and defense industry officials. Ukraine’s Kursk Incursion: Interactive Updating Map RFE/RL Meets Shocked Russian Civilians In Town Captured By Ukrainian Forces

Residents of the Russian border town of Sudzha appeared shocked and disorientated at its capture by Ukrainian forces, in interviews with an RFE/RL reporter during a media tour organized by Ukrainian authorities on August 20. Ukraine launched a surprise cross-border attack into Russia in early August and now holds a swath of territory. Video report by Roman Pahulych, RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service, and Ray Furlong

Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Republished with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Washington DC 20036

Source link