List of All Articles with Tag 'euro'

Kyiv's troops are pushing through heavy intense artillery fire from Russian forces to advance in the east of Ukraine, the commander of the country's armed forces has said. Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi said that despite meeting stuff resistance, Ukraine's ground forces are making "gradual advances in the direction of Bakhmut in the eastern Donetsk region. The city, which is now occupied by Russian forces, has gained symbolic significance for both Kyiv and Moscow having been the scene for some of the most intense fighting of the war. "The enemy fiercely clings to every centimetre, conducting intense artillery and mortar fire," Col Gen Syrskyi said in a statement. It comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted a video late on Thursday night in which Ukrainian soldiers said they had taken the village of Staromaiorske, which sits in the western park of Donetsk region the opposite side to Bakhmut. Russian military bloggers said artillery fire at the Ukrainian troops had effectively razed the village and reported more barrages Friday. Capturing the village, which is south of a cluster of settlements that Ukraine capture at the beginning of its counteroffensive last month, would give Ukraine a platform to push deeper into Russian-held territory. Fighting has intensified at multiple places along the more than 600-mile frontline, where Ukraine deployed its recently acquired Western weapons to push back Russia's troops. That includes the southern Zaporizhzhia region. However, Kyiv's troops are attacking without the air support it says is vital – and face an enemy that has had months to fortify their positions as Ukraine prepared its counter punch. Russia is trying to hold on to the territory it controls in the four provinces it illegally annexed in September: Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Kherson and Luhansk. Col Gen Syrskyi said fighting that targets the enemy's artillery as well as its command and control structure is a priority as his troops probe Russian lines for weaknesses. "In these conditions, it is crucial to make timely management decisions in response to the situation at hand and take measures for maneuvering forces and resources, shifting units and troops to areas where success is evident, or withdrawing them from the enemy's fire," he said. Elsewhere, Mr Zelensky marked Ukraine's Statehood Day – which coincides with commemorations of the adoption of Christianity on lands that later became Ukraine, Russia and Belarus – by reaffirming the country's sovereignty. His words were a rebuke to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who used his claim that Ukraine didn't exist as a nation to justify his invasion. "Now, like more than a thousand years ago, our civilizational choice is unity with the world," Mr Zelensky said in a speech on a square outside St. Michael's Monastery in Kyiv. "To be a power in world history. To have the right to its national history, of its people, its land, its state. And of our children, all future generations of the Ukrainian people. We will definitely win!" Moscow also accused Kyiv of firing two missiles at southern Russia, with the Defence Ministry said it shot down a missile in the city of Taganrog, about 20 miles east of the border with Ukraine, and local officials reported 20 people were injured. The Russian Defence Ministry later said it downed a second missile near the city of Azov. Ukraine's secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, Oleksiy Danilov, blamed Russian air defense systems for the explosion in Taganog. Separately, an explosion was reported to have hit an oil refinery in the southwestern Russian city of Samara. In St Petersburg, African leaders pressed Russian President Vladimir Putin to move ahead with their peace plan aimed at ending Russia's invasion and to renew a deal on the export of Ukrainian grain that Moscow tore up last week. While not directly critical of Russia, the words on the second day of a summit with Mr Putin were more forceful than those previously voiced. "This war must end. And it can only end on the basis of justice and reason," African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki Mahamat said. At the summit, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi urged Russia to revive the Black Sea grain deal. Since withdrawing from the deal, Russia has bombed Ukrainian ports and grain depots. Mr Sisi, whose country is a big buyer of grain via the Black Sea route, told the summit it was "essential to reach agreement" on reviving the deal. A senior Ukrainian official accused Russia on Friday of threatening civilian vessels in the Black Sea, urging the international community to condemn Moscow's actions. Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report Read More The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary Baby died after ‘extremely vulnerable’ mother gave birth alone in prison G20 ministers reach agreement on most, but not all, climate issues Why is Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin back in Russia?

Most European banks emerged stronger from a stress test on how they would weather a sharp economic downturn,

Uncertainty over the end point for the European Central Bank’s unprecedented bout of interest-rate hiking will hang over

Solid economic growth in France and Spain, and a very modest recovery in Germany could be enough to confirm that the euro area has already exited a recession that started in the final quarter of 2022.

Vitol’s Turkish fuel distribution company Petrol Ofisi is in advanced talks to buy BP Plc’s gas station network

The Mayor of London’s plans to expand a contentious charge on drivers of older, more polluting cars to

It comes as an American tourist remains in a serious condition after he was assaulted last week.

Bonds around the world extended a retreat as the Bank of Japan, so far a holdout on ultra-loose

Europe’s wildfire threat is spreading to the French Riviera, while firefighters in Greece battle more than 100 blazes.

Ukraine’s military has said troops were seeing battlefield success after recapturing another village at a time Western nations indicated that a major warfare – likely a phase of counteroffensive – is taking place in the besieged country War-time president Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed success on one of the front lines in southeast Ukraine. Mr Zelensky confirmed Ukrainian troops had taken the village of Staromaiorske. “I thank everyone who is fighting for Ukraine! Thank you for the liberation of Staromaiorske. Congratulations again, guys!” he said in his nightly address. Ukraine’s military had earlier said it was “solidifying positions” it had reached in the same area, east of the city of Zaporizhzhia. This comes as Vladimir Putin admitted that Ukrainian attacks have intensified in recent days, as Kyiv ramps up the counteroffensive against Russian troops. Speaking in St Petersburg at a summit of African leaders, the Russian president admitted that attacks by Ukrainian forces have “intensified significantly”, primarily in the Zaporizhzhia region. Battles in recent weeks have taken place on multiple points along the 1,500-kilometer front line as Ukraine wages its counteroffensive. Read More Even Putin admits Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russia’s forces – but progress will be slow Putin promises grain aid to Africa despite withdrawing from Ukraine deal Ukrainian fencer disqualified from world championships for refusing handshake with Russian opponent Russian defence minister meets Kim Jong-un during visit to arms exhibition in North Korea

Hermes’s sales and profit jumped as the maker of Birkin bags stood out from its luxury-industry rivals with

European stocks edged lower on Friday, but were still set for their third straight weekly gain after the