Poroshenko Calls On UN To Stop Russian Aggression In Ukraine

September 29, 2018 (INTERFAX) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has called on other countries to help stop Russian aggression in his country, saying that combating such "expansionism" is part of the United Nations' mission. Poroshenko used much of his speech before the UN General Assembly on September 26 to lambaste Russia, which annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and since then has backed a separatist war in eastern Ukraine that has killed more than 10,300 people.

Poroshenko said nothing will stop what he called Russia's "aggressive expansionist policies" unless world nations come together to confront Moscow's leaders. "It's up to us to make them care. Otherwise, what's the idea of us being here?" he asked. Russia did not have an immediate response to Poroshenko's speech. The Kremlin has denied any direct involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko speaks before the UN General Assembly in New York on September 26.

In a separate forum at the UN, the Russian news agency Interfax reported that Poroshenko repeated his call for a UN peacekeeping operation in Ukraine, saying that it would help restore Ukraine's "sovereignty and territorial integrity." "I am confident that a multilateral peacekeeping force with a mandate from the UN with the clear goal of restoring the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine could be the key factor in stopping the suffering of the Ukrainian people. We believe there is no better way than to start such an operation under the UN aegis," Poroshenko was quoted as saying at an Action for Peacekeeping meeting. Poroshenko at the forum thanked Germany, France, and the United States for "mobilizing international support for this initiative," though the UN has never approved his request for peacekeepers.

Russia, which has veto power on the UN Security Council, has opposed Kyiv's request for a broad peacekeeping mission, though it has called for a narrower UN mission to provide protection for European war monitors in Ukraine.

Ukraine's army gets brand-new Butsefal armored personnel carrier

September 28, 2018 (UNIAN) The military of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) have received a brand-new armored personnel carrier (BTR) Butsefal ("Bucephalus"), developed by the Kharkiv-based Morozov Machine Building Design Bureau, a state-owned enterprise.

"The newest BTR-4E Butsefal is an eight-wheel drive armored personnel carrier, developed in Ukraine by the Kharkiv-based Machine Building Design Bureau and manufactured at the Malyshev Plant. It is designed for the transportation of soldiers of the mechanized infantry units and fire support in battles," the JFO press service wrote on Facebook on September 28. The BTR is equipped with a powerful 30mm gun and a combat module that includes Stugna anti-tank guided missiles. In addition, it has two water jet propellers and pumps for pumping water, so it is able to force water obstacles. Butsefal can also effectively counter even heavy armored vehicles such as T-72 tanks, which are in the arsenal of Russian occupation troops. The military of the Joint Forces Operation have already managed to assess combat capabilities of the brand-new combat vehicle," the press service added.

The BTR is equipped with a powerful 30mm gun and a combat module that includes Stugna anti-tank guided missiles. In addition, it has two water jet propellers and pumps for pumping water, so it is able to force water obstacles. Butsefal can also effectively counter even heavy armored vehicles such as T-72 tanks, which are in the arsenal of Russian occupation troops. The military of the Joint Forces Operation have already managed to assess combat capabilities of the brand-new combat vehicle," the press service added. The video is available at:

https://www.facebook.com/pressjfo.news/videos/2331698660203766/

CNN: U.S. to transfer ships to Ukraine amid Russia tensions

September 27, 2018 (CNN.com) The U.S. Coast Guard plans to transfer two former 110-foot Coast Guard ships to Ukraine during a ceremony on Thursday in Baltimore. Coast Guard Vice Adm. Michael McAllister and Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko are expected to attend the transfer ceremony, CNN reported.

 The transfer of the two armed Coast Guard cutters come as tensions between Ukraine and Russia in the Sea of Azov have increased in recent weeks, with Kyiv and the U.S. accusing Moscow of interfering with Ukrainian shipping in the region. "The United States condemns Russia's harassment of international shipping in the Sea of Azov and the Kerch Strait," State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement late last month.

Photo from facebook.com/navy.mil.gov.ua

"Russia has delayed hundreds of commercial vessels since April and in recent weeks has stopped at least 16 commercial ships attempting to reach Ukrainian ports," she added. A U.S. defense official told CNN that the cutters Drummond and Cushin were purchased by Ukraine from the Pentagon's Excess Defense Articles program. The Island-class cutters are typically armed with a 25 mm machine gun mount and four .50-caliber machine guns.

President Poroshenko at UNGA: Peacekeepers in Russian-occupied Donbas may end sufferings of Ukrainians

September 26, 2018 (UNIAN) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says that a UN-mandated multinational peacekeeping operation in Russian-occupied Donbas, eastern Ukraine, could be a decisive factor in ending sufferings of Ukrainians. "I am confident that a UN-mandated multinational peacekeeping operation with the only clear goal to restore Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity could be a decisive factor in ending sufferings of the Ukrainian people. We believe there is no better way but dispatching such an operation, under the robust UN mandate," Poroshenko said at the General Debate at the high-level event on Action for Peacekeeping within the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly in New York City on September 26. "As we speak, foreign military aggression against Ukraine, in violation of the UN Charter and contrary to the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and Security Council, is raging on," he said. "The temporary occupation of parts of Ukraine's territory continues to cause suffering of the Ukrainian people and undermine regional and international peace and security." According to conservative estimates by the UN, the number of conflict-related casualties in Ukraine currently stands at over 35,000, including more than 10,000 people killed and almost 25,000 injured. The number of internally displaced persons is well over 1.5 million people. "It could look like yet another dry statistics, which this Organization is full of, but for me and Ukrainians these are scars on the very heart," he said. According to him, it would greatly assist in making Russia fulfil the Minsk agreements in good faith. "I am grateful to Germany, France, and the United States for mobilizing international support of this initiative," Poroshenko said.

Poroshenko said at the 73rd UNGA General Debate / Photo from president.gov.ua

Yet, he said, Russia is against the peacekeepers. "One reason for that is that the Kremlin is afraid. It is afraid that the peacekeepers will see Russian troops and military hardware all over the occupied territory. They are also afraid of losing control over the Ukraine-Russia border used by the Kremlin to keep infiltrating its military into Donbas," he said. "Is it not for the UN to stand up to the challenge with courage?" he wondered. He recalled that Ukraine's request to deploy the UN peacekeepers in Russian-occupied Donbas had not been addressed yet. "We see it as a test for the ability of our Organization to act in a challenging conflict situation. A test, which still remains to be taken," he said.