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Obama Condemns 'Brutal And Outrageous Murders'
U.S. President Barack Obama has described the deaths of three young Muslims gunned down in North Carolina this week as "brutal and outrageous murders."
Obama said no one in the United States should be targeted for their religion.
Obama's statement on February 13 came as the U.S. Justice Department said it would join the FBI to investigate whether the man accused in the Chapel Hill shooting on February 10 broke any federal laws, including hate crime laws.
The families had called on Obama to insist that federal authorities investigate whether the murder suspect, Craig Stephen Hicks, was motivated by hatred toward the victims because they were Muslim.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has praised the three victims, who were all involved in humanitarian aid work, as representing the best values of global citizenship.
Based on reporting by dpa and Reuters
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Moldovan Government, Energy Firm To Send Supplies To Some Transdniester Settlements
The Moldovan government on January 6 said it will provide natural gas to 14 localities in the Moscow-backed Transdniester breakaway region as residents there suffer through the brutal winter after Russian supplies were cut off on New Year’s Day.
The settlements are those that are already connected to Moldovan networks. Also, Moldova’s Premier Energy Distribution firm said it would supply electricity to two localities that are technically connected to the western -- or government-controlled -- bank of the Dniester River.
The cutoff was the result of Ukraine’s refusal to extend a transit contract with Russian state gas giant Gazprom as Kyiv and its Western partners look to deny Moscow revenue used to fund its war in Ukraine.
Transdniester, the breakaway territory on the eastern bank of the River, has Russian troops on its soil and has governed its own affairs -- with Moscow’s backing --- since a war that erupted as the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s.
Moldovan authorities on January 6 announced the summoning of a Russian diplomat following accusations over the worsening situation in Transdniester amid fears of a complete electricity blackout in the region.
Tens of thousands already are without gas for heating in the separatist enclave, which is experiencing freezing temperatures. People have been forced to burn wood or rely on plug-in electric heaters for warmth.
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
- By RFE/RL
Brazilian Lab Sends Data From Doomed Flight's Recorders To Kazakh Investigators
A lab run by Brazil's air force has sent data from the flight recorders recovered from the Brazilian-made Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed last month to the Kazakhstan authority investigating the crash.
The lab said in a statement on January 6 that it had completed the extraction of the data from the cockpit recorders of the Embraer plane and turned the material over to the investigators.
Kazakh authorities announced on December 29 that the recorders were being sent to Brazil amid accusations by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev that Russia was trying to "cover up" the cause of the tragedy.
The Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane was flying from the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, to Grozny in Russia's Chechnya region on December 25 when it was diverted and crashed in Kazakhstan, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.
The Kazakh Transport Ministry said the commission in charge of the probe had sent the flight recorders to the Center for the Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents in Brazil amid evidence that the jet was hit by a Russian air-defense missile before it went down near Aqtau in western Kazakhstan.
Aliyev said on December 29 that the plane was mistakenly shot at while approaching Grozny. He also said Russia had not admitted guilt or apologized to Azerbaijan but instead had presented “absurd theories" about a bird strike or an explosion of a gas cylinder on the plane.
Those theories, Aliyev said, showed "that the Russian side wanted to cover up the issue."
The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev but did not accept blame for the plane crash.
In a phone call with Aliyev on December 28, Putin said Russian air defenses were repelling an alleged Ukrainian drone attack on Grozny when the plane was trying to land at the airport there, a Kremlin statement said.
Russia's Investigative Committee has opened a criminal investigation into the possible violation of flight safety rules, the statement said.
With reporting by Reuters
2 Georgians Among Detained Crew From Ship Suspected Of Damaging Baltic Sea Cable
The captain and another crew member of the seized oil tanker suspected of damaging an electric power cable in the Baltic Sea last month are Georgian nationals.
Georgia's Maritime Transport Agency told RFE/RL on January 6 that according to the ship's registry and "relevant partner agencies" in Finland, the two are part of the crew of the Eagle S, which was detained by Finnish authorities last month to help secure a financial claim for damages related to the breakdown of the undersea Estlink 2 electricity interconnector.
The cable between Finland and Estonia was suddenly disconnected from the grid on December 25 along with telecommunications lines. The Cook Islands-flagged Eagle S was detained by Finnish authorities and is being held in Finnish waters in the Baltic Sea pending an investigation.
The incident, one of several since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has raised concerns across Europe that energy and communications infrastructure are being targeted as part of what experts and politicians call Russia's hybrid war with Western countries.
"A representative of the Georgian Embassy has already communicated with them [the two crew members]," the Maritime Transport Agency said.
"[We] will await the completion of the investigation and will discuss further steps in accordance with the results," it added.
Investigators have said they found a track on the seabed dozens of kilometers long indicating the ship dragged its anchor, but they have yet to find the anchor.
According to the global ship monitoring website MarineTraffic, the ship significantly reduced speed at the same time interference was detected in the electrical power cable.
The owner of the vessel, United Arab Emirates-based Caravella LLC FZ, has previously asked Finnish authorities to release it. The company has not responded to Fingrid's request to seize the vessel.
Moscow has said it has no connection to the Eagle S and Finland's seizure of the vessel is not a matter for Russia. It has regularly denied that it is involved in any of the other incidents involving Baltic Sea region infrastructure assets.
NATO announced it will strengthen its military presence in the Baltic Sea following the damage caused to the Estlink 2 and similar incidents since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The same day -- December 26 -- that Finnish authorities boarded and took command of the Eagle S, the European Commission said an unnamed cargo ship suspected of having deliberately damaged power and Internet cables in the Baltic Sea was part of Russia's "shadow fleet."
The poor condition of these ships has also raised concerns about environmental disasters.
Investigators have said the damage to the Estlink 2 and the telecommunications cables could have been caused by the ship intentionally dragging its anchor.
The security chief for Finnish telecommunications operator Elisa echoed that assessment on January 6, telling AFP that the damaged cables appeared to have been severed by an anchor.
"There is compelling evidence of the Eagle S at the site," Jaakko Wallenius said, adding that it is up to law enforcement to determine who was responsible.
Wallenius said two of the damaged telecommunications cables had been repaired. One of the others is expected to be fixed by January 10, its operator said. It was unclear when the Estlink 2 power cable would be fixed.
Kyiv Presses On In Kursk As Russians Claim To Take Key Town In Ukraine
Ukraine on January 6 pressed its new assault in Kursk amid claims by Kyiv of major Russian losses there, while Moscow said its forces had taken a key town in eastern Ukraine as both sides bid for strategic positions ahead of any potential cease-fire talks.
The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War said in a report late on January 5 that Ukrainian forces had resumed offensive operations in at least three directions within the Kursk region and achieved "tactical advances."
The scale of the current offensive and whether it will lead to changes along the front line remains unclear, but U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted Ukraine's positioning in Kursk is critical to possible future peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
"Their position in Kursk is an important one because certainly it's something that would factor in any negotiation that may come about in the coming year," Blinken told reporters during a trip to Seoul on January 6.
Ukrainian military agencies and Russian bloggers both reported intense fighting in Kursk, where Ukrainian troops first pushed into in a surprise incursion on August 6. They have since resisted Russian attempts to fully expel them.
Russian military analyst Yan Matveyev told RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service on January 6 that the fresh push of the Kursk operation is more likely to be aimed at short-term goals rather than the longer term.
"It's difficult to assume that Ukrainian forces have enough reserves to occupy vast territories in the Kursk region, including Kursk itself," he said.
"They might try and expand their foothold ahead of negotiations. Besides, an attack like that makes the defensive side, Russia in this case, accumulate additional forces, thus weakening possible attacks in other parts of the front," he added.
The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said there "was good news from the Kursk region" and that Russia was "getting what it deserves.”
According to Russian pro-war accounts on Telegram that closely follow and document frontline developments, the attack is being carried out with armored vehicles, mine-clearing vehicles, and electronic warfare systems, which are said to be successfully countering Russian drones.
Videos online purported to show columns of Ukrainian military vehicles speeding across snow-covered land in the Kursk region.
The MIG Rossyy channel claimed the Ukrainian military has had "local successes," saying, "These are not sluggish maneuvers of small sabotage groups, but a full-scale attempt to attack.”
RFE/RL has not been able to independently verify the reports.
Russian forces, supported by the introduction of thousands of North Korean soldiers, have advanced but failed to eject Ukrainian troops entirely.
The offensive has reportedly been launched from the district center of Sudzha, which has been under Ukrainian control since August, in the direction of Bolshoye Soldatskoye, which lies some 70 kilometers from Kursk city, the region's administrative center.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement it had repelled a Ukrainian assault near the village of Berdin, some 15 kilometers from the border.
About half of the land seized in the initial offensive has been recaptured since August, but Kyiv still holds Sudzha and about 500 square kilometers of Russian territory.
In November, Ukraine reported its forces had engaged in combat with North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region and Ukrainian officials have claimed that North Korean forces are suffering heavy losses.
The introduction of North Korean troops followed Ukraine's cross-border offensive, which Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned as a "major provocation."
Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement on January 6 that Russian forces have lost 1,550 soldiers over the past 24 hours. It did not elaborate.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia has lost 38,000 in five months of fighting in the Kursk region, describing nearly 15,000 of the losses as "irrecoverable."
Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address that Russia had deployed its strongest units to Kursk, including soldiers from North Korea, and Ukraine's operation in the region had prevented them from being deployed to the front line in the Donetsk, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhya regions.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said its troops had taken the Ukrainian town of Kurakhove some 30 kilometers south of Pokrovsk – the strategic logistics hub that has been the target of Russian forces over the past several months.
If Russian forces were to take Pokrovsk, it would represent a major gain for the Kremlin after fighting that has left the city mostly in ruins, with most of its 64,000 prewar population having fled.
The developments come ahead of the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on January 20, who has previously said that ending the war in Ukraine would be a priority for his first day in office.
Keith Kellogg, the Trump administration's incoming envoy for Ukraine and Russia, has been tasked with leading negotiations to end the war and also said that potential cease-fire talks could begin once Trump takes office.
In a December interview with Fox News, Kellogg said the war could "be resolved in the next few months."
Amid speculation that he could visit Ukraine in the coming days, Reuters reported on January 6 that Kellogg had postponed the trip until after Trump's January 20 inauguration.
Citing four sources familiar with the matter, Reuters reported that Kellogg is also seeking to set up meetings in other European capitals, including Rome and Paris.
In his comments, Blinken didn't comment on the actual operations by the Ukrainian troops in Kursk, but he did say that if and when talks finally start, Kyiv would still need "adequate security assurances" against Putin.
"There is going to be, at some point, a cease-fire. It's not going to be in Putin's mind 'game over'," Blinken said.
"His imperial ambitions remain, and what he will seek to do is to rest, refit, and eventually re-attack," Blinken said, calling for an "adequate deterrent in place so that he doesn't do that."
With reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service
Zelenskiy Calls For U.S. Security Guarantees, Seeks Early Trump Meeting
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says any security guarantees for his country to end the war with Russia would only be meaningful if they were provided by the United States and that he hopes to meet with President-elect Donald Trump soon after his January 20 inauguration.
"Without the United States, security guarantees are not possible," he said in a three-hour interview published on January 5 with U.S. podcaster Lex Fridman.
"I mean security guarantees that can prevent Russian aggression."
In the interview, which took place in Kyiv and in English, Ukrainian, and even Russian at times, Zelenskiy stressed his belief that any cease-fire without security guarantees for Kyiv would be used by the Kremlin as an opportunity to resupply and reorganize for new offensives.
As the third anniversary of Russia's unprovoked, full-scale invasion approaches on February 24, the death and destruction continues in many Ukrainian cities -- mainly in the east and in territory occupied by Kremlin forces -- and across the border in Russia's Kursk region.
Uncertain times lie ahead for Kyiv, with Trump set to reclaim the White House on January 20.
Trump, who has vocally criticized the volume of U.S. aid to Ukraine, has repeatedly vowed to bring the conflict to a quick end, though he has provided few details. Many Ukraine supporters are concerned he will press terms unacceptable to Kyiv.
A push for a cease-fire is almost certain, however, in light of Trump's promises to end the war quickly.
The outgoing administration of President Joe Biden shepherded some $60 billion to Ukraine in weapons, equipment, and other aid over the past four years.
Zelenskiy has a long, difficult history with the incoming president.
Trump's first impeachment as president in 2019 was sparked by a phone call between Trump and Zelenskiy in which Trump appeared to condition U.S. military aid on Zelenskiy ordering a criminal investigation of Biden.
Trump has taken aim at Zelenskiy several times. During his presidential campaign, he repeated his description of the Ukrainian president as "the greatest salesman in the world" -- a reference to the tens of billions of dollars in aid that lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have approved since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion.
However, in the interview, Zelenskiy said he is confident Trump will help bring a fair, sustainable peace deal, along with the required security assurances.
"Trump and I will come to an agreement and...offer strong security guarantees, together with Europe, and then we can talk to the Russians," Zelenskiy said.
"We and Trump come first, and Europe will support Ukraine's position," he said.
"I think that President Trump not only has the will, he has all these possibilities, and it's not just talk," Zelenskiy added.
"I really count on him, and I think that our people really count on him, so he has enough power to pressure him, to pressure [Russian President Vladimir] Putin."
Asked what he would need to consider a cease-fire, Zelenskiy said security guarantees, preferably within the NATO alliance -- something Putin has vehemently opposed.
NATO membership was one of the Kremlin's original grievances used to justify the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
In any settlement, Zelenskiy said, Western partners should, at the least, guarantee security in Ukrainian territory not now occupied by Russia, continue to supply military assistance, and to keep in place the economic sanctions that have devastated Russia's economy.
"If we do not have security guarantees, Putin will come again," he said.
Zelenskiy said Putin's goals are to bring about "a weak NATO" and a "Ukraine which cannot survive on the battlefield," and to "prevent me from building a strong relationship with Trump."
Zelenskiy also relayed what he said was a phone conversation with close Kremlin ally Alyaksandr Lukashenka, the authoritarian ruler of neighboring Belarus.
Zelenskiy said that in the first days following Russia's full-scale invasion, Lukashenka apologized for the missiles that were fired from Belarus territory.
"He said that 'it was not me. Missiles were launched from my territory and Putin was the one launching them.'"
Zelenskiy said the Belarus strongman told him: "Volodymyr, this is not me. I'm not in charge.... I’m not in charge. These are just missiles. This is Putin."
"I told him, 'You are a murderer, too, I’m just saying.' He told me, 'You must understand, you can't fight the Russians.'"
With reporting by Reuters
Thousands In Montenegro Protest Response To Mass Shooting, Demand Resignations
PODGORICA -- Thousands of people rallied in the streets of the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, on January 5, protesting what they call an inadequate response to a deadly mass shooting on January 1 and demanding the resignation of top security officials.
“Be fair and correct -- innocent citizens were killed,” said Marko Vukcevic of an informal student group that organized the rally.
“You failed to protect us and that's why you must resign immediately."
Demonstrators specifically called for Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic and the deputy prime minister in charge of security, Aleksa Becic, to step down.
Many protesters chanted "Resignation," "Your hands are bloody," and "Murderers."
The mass shooting -- sparked by a brawl at a local bar -- killed 12 people, including two children, in the city of Cetinje on New Year’s Day. The city, with a population of about 13,000, is some 34 kilometers west of the capital.
The suspected shooter, Aco Martinovic, died on the way to the hospital after attempting suicide following the killings and subsequent manhunt.
Martinovic had previously had illegal weapons confiscated in 2022 and received a three-month prison sentence in late 2024, which he had appealed.
Police have not yet revealed the identities of the victims, but they are believed to have been relatives, friends, and godparents of Martinovic.
In Cetinje, site of the tragedy, some 2,000 residents converged for 12 minutes of silence at 5:26 p.m. -- the exact time on January 1 when the first four people were killed in the Velestovo tavern, located near the gathering site.
In response to the shooting, the government on January 3 announced a raft of new gun-control measures following a seven-hour session of the National Security Council, which is chaired by the country's president.
The proposed law, announced by Prime Minister Milojko Spajic, will mandate the reverification of existing weapons licenses and impose severe penalties for those who fail to surrender illegal weapons within a two-month period.
Spajic also said that hunting clubs would be verified and the authorities would establish an anonymous tip line where citizens can report illegal weapons possession for a reward.
While estimates vary, Montenegro has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in Europe. In the country of just over 620,000 people, there are about 245,000 firearms in use, according to the Swiss-based Small Arms Survey.
Other estimates suggest the figure is lower. According to 2022 police data provided to RFE/RL's Balkan Service, there are over 100,000 legally owned weapons in Montenegro, while illegal firearms are estimated to number between 40,000 and 80,000.
The prime minister also highlighted staff shortages in law enforcement, noting that around 1,000 police officers had retired in the previous two years. He announced his intention to expedite the hiring of 200 additional officers.
Addressing questions about the police response, Spajic said all killings occurred within 20 minutes across five locations, describing it as "a tsunami of violence." He said police only learned about the crimes after the eighth victim was killed. It took five and a half hours from the last victim's death to Martinovic's body being found.
Cetinje Mayor Nikola Djuraskovic also called for the resignation of the political leadership among security officials and called for an urgent meeting of the country's parliament to discuss the matter.
With reporting by Reuters
Armenian General Arrested Amid Ongoing Political Frictions
The former deputy chief of the general staff of Armenia’s armed forces has been arrested on charges of negligence relating to the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, amid ongoing political tensions inside the Caucasus country.
Lieutenant General Tiran Khachatrian was arrested on January 4 and will be detained awaiting trial. State prosecutors allege that Khachatrian failed to perform his official duties during the 44-day war in 2020 between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Khachatrian has denied the accusations and his legal team say they plan to file an appeal. In a January 5 statement, his lawyers called the charges “groundless” and that the detention of the former high-ranking military officer is retribution for his political views and that he is being scapegoated for Armenia’s “defeat in the war” with Azerbaijan.
The arrest is another sign of the political fault lines opened up in Armenia following Yerevan’s losses to Baku in successive campaigns, which have strained Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s relations with his country’s military and put him under increasing public pressure at home.
The 2020 war, when Azerbaijani forces took control of a chunk of Nagorno-Karabakh, was the second that Azerbaijan and Armenia fought in the last three decades over the breakaway region, which had been under ethnic Armenian separatists’ control, but recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan since the 1990s.
That was followed by a decisive one-day military operation in September 2023 that saw Azerbaijani forces take control of the remaining parts of the region.
Khachatrian was awarded the title of National Hero of Armenia in 2020 following the war that year with Azerbaijan, but tensions quickly grew between him and Armenian authorities in its aftermath.
In February 2021, Pashinian dismissed Khachatrian from his post as deputy chief of the general staff of the armed forces, which led to escalating frictions with the military.
The day after Khachatryan was relieved of his duties, more than 40 of Armenia's top military officers -- including Khachatrian -- called for the resignation of the prime minister and his government.
Pashinian condemned the move as part of a coup attempt to depose him.
As part of the January 4 preliminary hearing, Armenia’s investigative committee said that the charges against Khachatrian stem from the “negligent attitude toward the performance of his official duties” in October 2020, including failing to set up adequate defensive lines, which led to Azerbaijani forces making strategic gains.
Khachatrian was also arrested and detained for two months in January 2024 after he fired a gun during a restaurant confrontation. Prosecutors said the former military official injured a bystander at a neighboring table, but Khachatrian denied the charges and said he fired his gun in the air in self-defense.
Following that 2024 arrest, Khachatrian’s lawyer claimed to RFE/RL that the case was being exploited by the authorities as an opportunity to silence and intimidate him for his criticism of the government.
Fierce Clashes In Kursk Region As Ukraine Launches Fresh Drive
The Ukrainian military has launched a new assault in Russia’s Kursk region, according to the Russian Defense Ministry and battlefield reports, with Kyiv stating that "combat clashes" were under way in the region
Ukraine Invasion: News & Analysis
RFE/RL's Ukraine Live Briefing gives you the latest developments on Russia's invasion, Western military aid, the plight of civilians, and territorial control maps. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a January 5 statement that “at about 9 a.m. Moscow time, the Ukrainian armed forces launched a counterattack to stop the advance of Russian troops in the Kursk direction.”
The statement insisted that Russian troops were “continuing to defeat” Ukrainian forces.
Late on January 5, Ukraine’s General Staff said there had been 44 armed battles in the region, at least nine of which were still under way as night fell, although it did not specifically confirm that a new offensive had been launched.
“The Defense Forces of Ukraine continue the operation in the Kursk region,” it said on Telegram.
“At this time, 44 combat clashes are known, 35 of them have already been completed. Fighting continues,” the General Staff added.
The scale of the current offensive and whether it will lead to changes along the front line remains unclear, but some Ukrainian officials have also suggested that a fresh push is under way.
The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said there "was good news from the Kursk Region" and that Russia was "getting what it deserves.”
Andriy Kovalenko, the head of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council's Center for Countering Disinformation, also commented on the development and said that Russian forces in Kursk had been "attacked in several directions, which came as a surprise to them."
“The Defense Forces are at work,” he wrote.
Ukrainian troops first pushed across the border in a surprise incursion on August 6 and have since resisted Russian attempts to fully expel them.
More recently, Russian forces, supported by the introduction of thousands of North Korean soldiers, have advanced but failed to eject Ukrainian troops entirely.
The offensive has reportedly been launched from the district center of Sudzha, which has been under Ukrainian control since August, in the direction of Bolshoye Soldatskoye, which lies some 70 kilometers from Kursk city, the region's administrative center.
In its statement, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had repelled a Ukrainian assault near the village of Berdin, some 15 kilometers from the border.
According to Russian pro-war accounts on Telegram that closely follow and document frontline developments, the attack is being carried out with armored vehicles, mine-clearing vehicles, and electronic warfare systems, which are said to be successfully countering Russian drones.
Videos online purported to show columns of Ukrainian military vehicles speeding across snow-covered land in the Kursk region.
The MIG Rossyy channel claimed that the Ukrainian military has had "local successes,” saying that “these are not sluggish maneuvers of small sabotage groups, but a full-scale attempt to attack.”
RFE/RL has not been able to independently verify the reports.
About half of the land seized in the initial offensive has been recaptured since August, but Kyiv still holds Sudzha and about 500 square kilometers of Russian territory.
In November, Ukraine reported its forces had engaged in combat with North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region and Ukrainian officials have claimed that North Korean forces are suffering heavy losses.
The introduction of North Korean troops came following Ukraine’s cross-border offensive, which Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned as a “major provocation.”
The January attacks launched by Kyiv come as its forces are reportedly suffering from manpower shortages and have been losing ground in eastern Ukraine.
The development also comes ahead of the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on January 20, who has previously said that ending the war in Ukraine would be a first-day priority.
Keith Kellogg, the Trump administration's incoming envoy for Ukraine and Russia, has been tasked with leading negotiations to end the war and also said that potential cease-fire talks could begin once Trump takes office.
In a December interview with Fox News, Kellogg said that the war could "be resolved in the next few months."
During a January 2 interview broadcast on Ukrainian television, Zelenskiy said that operations in Kursk play a key role in countering any international perceptions that Kyiv is losing the war.
"The Kursk operation changed everything. It was an important step," he said.
Meanwhile, in an interview with U.S. podcaster Lex Fridman, Zelenskiy said security guarantees for Ukraine in any future peace deal would only be effective if provided by the United States and that he hopes to meet Trump soon after his inauguration.
"Without the United States, security guarantees are not possible. I mean these security guarantees that can prevent Russian aggression," he said.
With reporting by RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service and dpa
- By Current Time
Russia-Installed Officials Declare Oil-Spill Emergency In Occupied Sevastopol
Russia-installed occupation officials in Crimea declared a regional emergency on January 4 as oil came ashore in the city of Sevastopol from a spill that has plagued the region since last month. Russia’s southern region and the occupied Crimean Peninsula have been covered by fuel oil from two tankers that ran aground in the ecologically sensitive waters on December 15. Authorities in Russia's Krasnodar region also declared a state of emergency on December 25, with officials saying that thousands of people -- crews and volunteers -- were still working to clean up the spill of mazut -- a heavy, low-quality fuel oil -- in what some Russian officials have termed an “ecological disaster.” To read the original story by Current Time, click here.
Moldova's Breakaway Transdniester Region Braces For Power Cuts, Freezing Cold
CHISINAU -- Moldova’s pro-Moscow breakaway Transdniester region is bracing for additional rolling power cuts and business closures after the supply of Russian natural gas was stopped on January 1 due to the expiration of a contract with Ukraine.
As the region suffered throughout a blistering cold spell, Transdniester authorities said rolling power cuts will last four hours on January 5, running from 8 a.m. to noon local time, including in the regional capital, Tiraspol.
The separatist government warned that power outages could be extended and suggested residents gather firewood to burn to generate heat.
The mainly Russian-speaking region of some 450,000 people faced cuts of one hour on January 3 and three hours on January 4. As of the morning of January 4, at least 157 emergency power outages were recorded, officials said.
Most industries, except for those producing food products, have been shut down. On January 4, the closures included a steel factory and bakery in the ancient city of Rybnitsa, with a population of about 48,000.
Separatist authorities announced measures to aid the elderly as temperatures were expected to drop to minus-10 Celsius overnight.
The January 3 "introduction of rolling cuts was a test. And it confirmed that an hour-long break to keep the electrical supply system operating was insufficient," Vadim Krasnoselsky, Transdniester’s de facto leader, wrote on Telegram.
"The power generated is not covering sharply rising demand."
He said that “1,500 multistory apartment buildings have no heating and hot water. Almost 72,000 private households have no gas. One hundred and fifty gas boiler houses have been shut down.
Authorities in the federal capital, Chisinau, confirmed that Moldova is providing electricity to Transdniester after the power plant serving the region switched to coal-fired operation.
According to public data, Transdniester's capital, Tiraspol, has reserves of about 70,000 tons of coal, which could cover consumption of the region for 30-50 days.
But people in at least 11 communities near Tiraspol had no supply of natural gas, heating, and hot water on January 1.
The city has set up 30 meeting points where people can gather to warm up and eat hot meals. Meanwhile, about 115,000 households are receiving natural gas supplies only for cooking, according to supplier Tiraspoltransgaz.
Transdniester, the breakaway territory on the eastern bank of the Dniester River, has Russian troops on its soil and has governed its own affairs -- with Moscow’s backing --- since a war that erupted as the Soviet Union collapsed in the early 1990s.
Analysts and Moldovan officials say Russia is seeking to use the cutoff as a part of a wider effort to weaken the pro-Western government in the small nation situated between Ukraine and European Union member Romania, and where the Kremlin aims to regain influence.
The cutoff was the result of Ukraine’s refusal to extend a transit contract with Russian state gas giant Gazprom, as the West looks to deny Moscow revenue used to fund its war in Ukraine -- a move analysts say is a major blow to the Kremlin.
Much of the gas supply was transported to Europe. Most countries have begun developing alternative sources of gas, although some -- notably Slovakia, Hungary, and Austria -- have said other means will drive up costs prohibitively.
Moldova until recently got 80 percent of its electricity from Kurchugan, a power plant in Transdniester that had been fueled by Russian gas.
Moldova's state-owned energy trader, Energocom, said it has successfully covered 100 percent of the country's electricity needs but that the halt in Russian gas supplies is causing shortages in the breakaway region.
The Eastern European nation is expected to start importing more electricity from Romania this year, though prices are likely to be higher.
Authorities have urged household consumers, businesses, and public institutions to conserve energy to help to help reduce the need to make purchases at high prices on the EU market.
Even before the January 1 cutoff in gas supplies, Gazprom said on December 28 that it would cease gas deliveries to Moldova at the end of 2024 because of a dispute over debt.
With reporting by Reuters and CNN
Arrests Spark Diplomatic Clash Between Iran And Italy
The Iranian Foreign Ministry has summoned the Italian ambassador over the arrest of Mohammad Abedini, who is wanted by the United States for his alleged involvement in a deadly drone attack on an American base in Jordan.
Abedini was detained at Milan's Malpensa Airport on December 16, 2024, at the request of U.S. authorities who have accused him of defying sanctions and transferring sensitive drone parts to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
The components were used in a drone strike in Jordan in January 2024 that killed three U.S. service members, according to U.S. justice authorities. Iran has denied being involved in the attack.
Iran's diplomatic move on January 3 came a day after the Italian Foreign Ministry summoned Iran's ambassador to Rome to protest the arrest of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was detained in Tehran on December 19, 2024.
Italy's Foreign Ministry has said Sala, who has a podcast called Stories that covers life in different places around the world, was in Iran to carry out "journalistic activities."
In a January 3 meeting with the Italian ambassador, Majid Nili Ahmadabadi, director-general for Western Europe in Iran's Foreign Ministry, said Abedini's arrest was "illegal" and called for his immediate release, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.
Ahmadabadi also reportedly said that the United States was attempting to "take Iranian nationals hostage all over the world."
The Iranian authorities have remained silent about Sala's case since her detention in December 2024. After Italian media reported her arrest, Iran's Culture Ministry announced only that she had "violated the laws of the Islamic republic," without providing further details.
The United States has called Iran's detention of Sala, who was arrested three days after Abedini, "retaliatory." Media watchdogs Reporters Without Borders and the International Federation of Journalists have described her arrest as "arbitrary" and aimed at "extortion."
According to the website of the Il Foglio daily, where Sala works, the Milan Court of Appeal will hold a hearing into Abedini's case on January 15.
Several European countries and the United States have characterized the Islamic republic's arrest of Western citizens as "hostage diplomacy," claiming that Iran uses these detentions as bargaining chips in negotiations with the West.
In December 2024, a Tehran court sentenced Reza Valizadeh, a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen and former journalist for RFE/RL's Radio Farda, to 10 years in prison for "collaborating with a hostile government."
After working for Radio Farda for 10 years, Valizadeh left the company in November 2022. He visited his family in Iran in early 2024 before being taken into custody on September 22.
Montenegro Cracks Down On Guns After New Year's Massacre
PODGORICA -- The Montenegrin government has announced a raft of new gun-control measures, following a mass shooting that killed 12 people, including two children.
The shooting took place on January 1 in the western Montenegrin city of Cetinje. Four other people were injured.
Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic announced the proposed new Law on Weapons on January 3 following a seven-hour session of the National Security Council, which is chaired by the country's president.
The proposed law will mandate the reverification of existing weapons licenses and impose severe penalties for those who fail to surrender illegal weapons within a two-month period. Spajic also said that hunting clubs would be verified and the authorities would establish an anonymous tip line where citizens can report illegal weapons possession for a reward.
Manhunt
The suspected shooter, Aco Martinovic, died on the way to the hospital after attempting suicide following the killings and subsequent manhunt.
Martinovic had previously had illegal weapons confiscated in 2022 and received a three-month prison sentence in late 2024, which he had appealed.
Police have not yet revealed the identities of the victims, but they are believed to have been relatives, friends, and godparents of Martinovic.
While estimates vary, Montenegro has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in Europe. In the country of just over 620,000 people, there are about 245,000 firearms in use, according to the Swiss-based Small Arms Survey.
Other estimates suggest the figure is lower. According to 2022 police data provided to RFE/RL's Balkan Service, there are over 100,000 legally owned weapons in Montenegro, while illegal firearms are estimated to number between 40,000 and 80,000.
The prime minister also highlighted staff shortages in law enforcement, noting that around 1,000 police officers had retired in the previous two years. He announced his intention to expedite the hiring of 200 additional officers.
During the incident, Cetinje, a city and municipal area of around 15,000 people, was protected by only about a dozen officers. An additional 150 officers from the capital, Podgorica, and other cities later were brought in to assist with the manhunt.
Police Response Criticized
Addressing questions about the police response, Spajic said that all murders occurred within 20 minutes across five locations, describing it as "a tsunami of violence." He said that police only learned about the crimes after the eighth victim was killed. It took five and a half hours from the last victim's death to Martinovic's body being found.
During the National Security Council session, hundreds of citizens protested outside the government building, demanding changes in the leadership of law enforcement agencies. The country began three days of mourning on January 2.
The prime minister said there were no discussions about resignations in law enforcement, saying: "We need to support the police at a time like this."
When questioned about potentially dismissing Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic, Spajic said that he "never blames the people below him," though he acknowledged that a statement the interior minister made about returning to "normal life" after the incident was unfortunate. Saranovic also reportedly said that the police deserved congratulations for their response to the massacre.
The Action for Human Rights and the Center for Women's Rights NGOs called for a thorough examination of the police response, saying that Cetinje had only a minimal police presence despite being home to 120 known organized crime members and having experienced a similar massacre in August 2022, when an attacker killed 10 people and wounded six before being killed by a passerby.
The organizations questioned what security improvements had been implemented since 2022 and why Cetinje remained vulnerable to such incidents.
Ukraine Can Expect Further U.S. Aid Offers Before Biden Leaves Office, White House Says
Ukraine can expect more announcements in coming days about additional U.S. security assistance, a White House spokesman said as President Joe Biden’s term in office winds down.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told a briefing on January 3 that additional announcements on the provision of U.S. aid to Ukraine can be expected in the coming days. He gave no specifics.
The announcements would follow a $5.9 billion package of additional military and budget assistance for Ukraine announced by the Biden administration last week amid concerns that the new administration under President-elect Donald Trump will significantly reduce or halt arms supplies to Ukraine in order to push Kyiv to negotiate a peace settlement with Russia.
The White House said in a statement on December 30 that the aid includes an additional $1.25 billion drawdown package for the Ukrainian military and a $1.22 billion Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative package. The Treasury Department later on December 30 announced a separate $3.4 billion disbursement to Ukraine in direct budget support.
Biden said in the statement that the United States would continue to work relentlessly to strengthen Ukraine's position in the war, but despite his pledge, the $5.9 million package was thought to be the last during his administration, which is set to end on January 20 with the inauguration of Trump.
Kirby also announced that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin would travel to Ramstein, Germany, for a meeting next week of Ukraine Defense Contact Group on January 9.
Kirby had previously said that there was a possibility that another meeting of the group could take place before Biden leaves office.
Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh confirmed later on January 3 that Austin would leave for Germany on January 7 to attend the 25th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.
The meeting will “reaffirm our enduring commitment to Ukraine,” Singh said at a briefing. “Together with defense ministers and military leaders from around the globe, Secretary Austin will focus on delivering practical and coordinated support that reinforces Ukraine’s ability to defend itself today and deter aggression in the future.”
She said more details about Austin’s schedule would be announced in the coming days.
Asked about plans for future meetings of the contact group, Singh said it would be up to the incoming secretary of defense to decide whether to continue them.
She added that Trump’s transition team had so far met with 79 Pentagon officials about the transition to the new administration.
There has been no confirmation from the Trump team that his designated Ukraine envoy, retired Lieutenant-General Keith Kellogg, will travel to Kyiv in the coming days. Reuters quoted two sources with knowledge of the trip's planning as saying that Kellogg will visit senior leaders in Kyiv.
His team is working to set up meetings with leaders in other European capitals, such as Rome and Paris, they said. He is not planning to visit Moscow during the trip.
The meetings are expected to focus on fact-finding on behalf of the new administration rather than on active negotiations, the sources said.
The trip is seen as a sign of the urgency that Trump, who said he would end the war in Ukraine swiftly after his inauguration, has placed on quickly winding down the war.
Ukraine and other European countries have been skeptical about the claim and are concerned that a deal drafted by Trump could force Ukraine to give up territory to Russia in exchange for peace.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a televised interview broadcast on January 2 that Trump's "unpredictability" could help end the war.
Zelenskiy said that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is afraid of Trump, who could be "decisive" in ending the war.
With reporting by Reuters
Zelenskiy Claims North Koreans Suffer Major Losses In New Kursk Fighting
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said North Korean soldiers, fighting alongside Kremlin forces in Russia’s Kursk region, had suffered heavy casualties over the past two days amid mounting reports of losses for the Asian nation’s forces fighting some 6,700 kilometers from home.
"In battles yesterday and today [January 4] near just one village, Makhnovka, in Kursk region, the Russian army lost up to a battalion of North Korean infantry soldiers and Russian paratroops," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.
"And that is significant," he added, citing information relayed from Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskiy.
The report could not independently be verified.
The size of a battalion can vary in different military alignments, often ranging from 300 to 1,000 troops.
North Korean military support is coming at a critical time in the war. Russia is seeking to overpower an undermanned and under-resourced Ukrainian infantry and gain territory before its own manpower and resources become constrained.
Russia has lost more than 600,000 soldiers in the nearly three-year war, the Pentagon said in early October. It has burned through so much war material that it is struggling to replace its artillery and missile needs amid sweeping Western sanctions.
Zelenskiy on December 23 said more than 3,000 troops, or about a quarter of the North Korean special forces sent to Russia, had been killed or injured, though he acknowledged it was difficult to determine exact numbers.
Western and Ukrainian intelligence and military sources estimate that Pyongyang has deployed about 11,000 troops to Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces still occupy territory after launching a mass cross-border incursion in August.
In his address, Zelenskiy also said "fierce battles" were raging along the 1,000-kilometer front line, with the "hottest spot" near the important logistical hub of Pokrovsk, a city in the Donetsk region with a prewar population of 64,000.
Zelenskiy also said a rescue operation was under way near Chernihiv in north-central Ukraine, where a Russian missile assault had damaged some 40 buildings.
Local officials on January 3 said one person was killed and five were injured when three missiles hit a residential site in the area. A picture posted on social media by Chernihiv regional Governor Vyacheslav Chaus showed the shattered facade of a private home.
The person killed was an associate professor at the Institute of Postgraduate Education, according to Suspilne Chernihiv. Local media said the 72-year-old's house was burned down after it was hit by Russian shelling in March 2022. Since then, he had been living in a barn.
Five people were injured in an earlier drone attack in the Kyiv region, and four were hurt when the town of Slovyansk near the front line in the Donetsk region was shelled, officials said. All four were hospitalized. Among the injured is a 2-year-old boy, whose mother was injured in the attack and was in serious condition, said Mayor Vadym Lyakh.
Russian forces used a guided aerial bomb, which struck a private sector of Slovyansk at about 3 p.m. local time, a police representative at the scene told RFE/RL.
Zelenskiy said on X that in the first three days of 2025, Russia had launched 300 attack drones and nearly 20 missiles on Ukrainian targets. Most, he said, had been downed or intercepted, but he said the attacks had killed and injured people, prompting him to renew his plea for his Western allies to send additional air-defense systems
“We are already preparing for the upcoming meeting in Ramstein,” he said, referring to the next session of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group on January 9 in Germany.
He said Kyiv will be working with partners there to spur additional arms to help fight off Russian drones, guided bombs, and aircraft that have been attacking crucial infrastructure as the winter cold deepens.
On January 3, a White House spokesman said Ukraine can expect more announcements in coming days about additional U.S. security assistance as President Joe Biden’s term in office winds down on January 20.
The announcements would follow a $5.9 billion package of additional military and budget assistance for Ukraine announced by the Biden administration last week amid concerns that the new administration under President-elect Donald Trump will significantly reduce or halt arms supplies to Ukraine in order to push Kyiv to negotiate a peace settlement with Russia.
Meanwhile, Russian newspaper Izvestia said a freelance journalist working for the media outlet was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike near the city of Donetsk on January 4.
Izvestia and a group of journalists traveling with Aleksandr Martemyanov said the man was killed when a drone hit their civilian automobile "for from the line of contact."
With reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service
Polish Farmers Protest EU Policies As Warsaw Assumes Bloc's Rotating Presidency
Polish farmers marched in central Warsaw on January 3 to voice their opposition to European Union policies toward imports from Ukraine ahead of a gala to mark Poland taking the rotating EU presidency for the next six months.
Farmers carrying Polish flags and blowing horns took part in the demonstration to protest the import of Ukrainian agricultural products, which they say has driven down prices for their goods.
"We protested last year and we will continue to protest because nothing has been fixed," said one of the farmers in an address to the protesters.
Imports of Ukrainian grain to the European Union touched off anger last year as farmers blocked border crossings demanding the re-imposition of customs duties on agricultural imports from Ukraine, which were waived following Russian’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
The farmers say imports from Ukraine are flooding Europe with cheap grains, making it impossible for them to compete.
A participant in the Warsaw march on January 3 told RFE/RL that Poland's independence is more important than its membership in the European Union.
"The EU is welcome here, but it is a union of countries, not one country," the protester said.
The march coincided with a gala to mark Poland taking the rotating EU presidency, which featured its own controversy.
The the entire diplomatic corps was invited to attend the gala, held at the National Theater in Warsaw, but the Hungarian ambassador was barred because of Budapest’s decision to grant political asylum to a former Polish deputy minister accused of corruption.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski sent a note to Ambassador Istvan Ijgyarto that he was “not welcome” at the event, said Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka, Poland's deputy minister for European Affairs.
Sobkowiak-Czarnecka told public broadcaster TVP Info that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was also not invited to the evening event.
Sobkowiak-Czarnecka said this was a consequence of Hungary granting political asylum to Marcin Romanowski, a former deputy justice minister in the former government led by the Law and Justice party.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told the Hungarian news outlet HVG that the decision was a "pathetic and childish."
Poland last month summoned Hungary's ambassador over Budapest's decision, calling the move a "hostile act" that runs counter to the principle of loyal cooperation among members of the European Union.
Polish prosecutors have charged Romanowski with 11 offenses, including participation in an organized crime group and attempted embezzlement of funds totaling almost 40 million euros ($41 million) from a fund for crime victims that he supervised.
Romanowski denies the charges and had has argued that he is the victim of political retribution by Tusk's government.
When the Hungarian prime minister's office announced that it had granted asylum to Romanowski, it accused the Polish government of persecuting its political opponents.
The gala featured speeches by Tusk and new European Council President Antonio Costa.
Tusk stressed the importance of “security, competitiveness, innovation, imagination, courage [and] good leadership" as “sources of strength."
"If Europe is weak, it will not survive," Tusk warned.
Costa said the European Union must continue to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
"We must continue to stand with Ukraine as much as necessary for as long as it takes to win a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace," he said.
Costa praised Poland for being "at the forefront of Europe's defense capabilities that we need to develop to protect our countries, our societies, our values."
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
Moldovans Facing Gas Shortages Are Chopping Wood To Get Through Winter
Some Moldovans are scrambling to find ways to heat their homes days after gas supplies from Russia were abruptly stopped. As of January 1, Ukraine refused to transit Russian gas, leaving the breakaway Transdniester region and some nearby Moldovan villages cut off. RFE/RL spoke to locals who are now firing up wood stoves, burning biomass, and hoarding gas cylinders.
Zelenskiy: Ukraine Elections Possible This Year If Martial Law Ends
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said presidential and parliamentary elections could happen this year if negotiations bring an end to the "hot phase" of the war with Russia, allowing for the lifting of martial law.
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Speaking in an interview broadcast on Ukrainian television late on January 2, Zelenskiy said Ukraine's position after it emerges from any settlement of the current battle to repel invading Russian troops will determine whether the country's long-delayed elections could take place.
“When it comes to 2025, should we manage to achieve the end of the hot phase of the war for Ukraine; once we manage to achieve it along with a strong army, strong weaponry package, and strong security guarantees, then this [elections] will happen," Zelenskiy said in the interview where he was accompanied by his wife, Olena.
"After that, in principle, we can think of lifting martial law in Ukraine. Once martial law is over, then the ball is in parliament’s court -- the parliament then picks a date for elections...My thinking is that there is no need to spend years waiting [for elections] once martial law is over.”
Zelenskiy's five-year term in office was supposed to end last year on May 20.
The 46-year-old entertainer-turned-politician would not commit on whether he'd seek another term as the country's leader.
"If I do more than I can, then I will probably look at this decision more positively. Today, this is not my goal," he said.
A presidential election was to have taken place in March or April 2024, but was postponed because the country is still under martial law. Under the Ukrainian Constitution, Zelenskiy must continue to perform his duties until a new head of state is elected.
Parliamentary elections were to be held on October 29, 2023, but they too were postponed due to the implementation of martial law.
Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. It has been extended in 90-day intervals 13 times by parliament, with the most-recent extension running until February 7.
Lawmakers would have to amend the law in order to hold elections during a state of war. Many analysts and politicians have cited concerns over security, displaced voters, and infrastructure as major impediments to Ukraine holding any type of legitimate election under the current circumstances.
While Russia has questioned Zelenskiy's legitimacy because of the delayed election, the European Union has said it had no doubt about his status as leader of Ukraine, while the United Nations has backed him saying Zelenskiy "remains...the person with whom the secretary-general communicates when he needs to contact the Ukrainian leader."
"In Ukraine people have concerns about elections at the time of war and in Russia they strongly want this to happen -- that’s so they keep giving traction to their narrative about the [alleged] illegitimacy of Ukraine’s president,” Zelenskiy said in the January 2 interview.
Speculation that peace talks could start soon has picked up in recent weeks.
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin dangled the prospect of Russian concessions before audiences in Washington and the West, saying more than once during his annual question-and-answer conference that Russia was ready for a compromise.
But he attached numerous conditions to the idea of compromise, suggesting Moscow’s goal of subjugating Ukraine and winning major security guarantees from NATO and the West remain in place, as well as saying he does not consider Zelenskiy a legitimate leader.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump -- scheduled to be inaugurated on January 20 -- has said he would move to end the war quickly, though he has given no details.
Moldovan Electricity Provider Says Demand Will Be Met On Third Day After Halt In Russian Gas Supplies
Moldovan state-owned energy trader JSC Energocom said it would cover 100 percent of electricity consumption on January 3, two days after supplies of Russian natural gas abruptly stopped due to the expiration of a supply contract with Ukraine.
Energocom said on January 2 that consumption is expected to be higher by about 10 on January 3, but it will still cover demand. Electricity consumption of the right bank of the Dniester River was fully covered in the first two days of the year, the government's crisis group announced on January 2.
The company says that in addition to local production from heating plants in Chisinau and Balti and local renewable energy sources, electricity will be purchased from outside the country.
The crisis group, established on December 26, said that on January 1 almost half of the country's electricity consumption was covered by imports from Romania and there was no need to activate contingency contracts or unintended flows.
Authorities in Chisinau, meanwhile, confirmed that the breakaway region of Transdniester, which has not been supplied with natural gas since January 1, is being provided with electricity after the power plant serving the region switched to coal-fired operation.
According to public data, Tiraspol has reserves of about 70,000 tons of coal, which could cover consumption of the region for 30 to 50 days.
The municipal administration in Transdniester's capital, Tiraspol, said it has natural gas reserves of about 13 million cubic meters, which is sufficient for about 20 days.
But people in at least 11 communities near Tiraspol had no supply of natural gas, heating and hot water on January 1. The city has set up 30 meeting points where people can gather to warm up and eat hot meals. Meanwhile, about 115,000 households are receiving natural gas supplies only for cooking, according to supplier Tiraspoltransgaz.
"For now, the situation is not critical," one man from the city of Tighina told RFE/RL's Moldovan service on January 2, noting he has been able to cope so far using his electric stove. "For others, maybe, it's worse," he quickly added.
Ukraine’s decision not to renew the contract allowing the flow of Russian gas through its territory deepened a rift between Kyiv and Bratislava.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on January 2 that the Slovak government will discuss retaliatory measures, including cutting electricity supplies to Ukraine, lowering aid to Ukrainian refugees, and demanding either the renewal of gas transits or compensation for losses.
"The only alternative for a sovereign Slovakia is renewal of transit or demanding compensation mechanisms that will replace the loss in public finances of nearly 500 million euros,” Fico said on Facebook.
Slovakia has alternative gas supplies, but Fico says Slovakia will lose its own transit revenues and pay additional transit fees to bring in non-Russian gas.
Fico said a Slovak delegation would discuss the situation in Brussels next week and then his ruling coalition would discuss retaliation for what he called "sabotage" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Zelenskiy said on January 1 that the end of natural gas supplies to Europe via the pipeline traversing Ukraine is a major defeat for Russian President Vladimir Putin after accusing Moscow of “weaponizing energy.”
With reporting by AFP
Finland Seeks Seizure Of Oil Tanker Suspected Of Damaging Undersea Cable
Finland's national power grid operator (Fingrid) is seeking the formal seizure of the oil tanker suspected of damaging an electric power cable in the Baltic Sea last month.
Fingrid said in a statement it had filed an application with the Helsinki District Court to seize the Eagle S to help secure its financial claim for damages related to the breakdown of the undersea Estlink 2 electricity interconnector.
The cable between Finland and Estonia was suddenly disconnected from the grid on December 25 along with telecommunications lines. The Eagle S was detained by Finnish authorities and is being held in Finnish waters in the Baltic Sea pending an investigation.
Fingrid will begin a new inspection of the cable on January 3 to determine the scale of the damage and begin repairs, a Fingrid official told AFP.
"Further investigations at the damage site are expected to provide more information about the extent of the damages and enable more detailed planning and scheduling of the repair," Fingrid said in the statement.
Investigators have said they found a track on the seabed dozens of kilometers long indicating the ship dragged its anchor, but they have yet to find the anchor.
“The trail ends where the ship lifted the anchor chain, and from this place to the east [the trail] stretches for several tens, if not almost a hundred kilometers,” a representative of the Finnish investigation said in an interview with Finnish news outlet Yle.
Finland's customs service has said it believes the Eagle S, which set sail from a Russian port, is part of a shadow fleet of tankers used to circumvent sanctions on Russian oil. Investigators found it was missing an anchor after it was detained.
The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency on January 2 began an inspection of the tanker that it said is independent of the law enforcement investigation.
According to the global ship monitoring website MarineTraffic, the ship significantly reduced speed at the same time interference was detected in the electrical power cable, according to Finnish media.
Fingrid said last week it expected the cable to return to service in August. The cost of the repair work will be tens of millions of euros.
The owner of the vessel, United Arab Emirates-based Caravella LLC FZ, has previously asked that Finnish authorities to release it. The company has not responded to Fingrid’s request to seize the vessel.
Moscow has said Finland's seizure of the ship is not a matter for Russia.
NATO last week announced that it would strengthen its military presence in the Baltic Sea following the damage caused to the Estlink 2 and similar incidents in the Baltic Sea since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Energy and communications infrastructure in particular have been targeted as part of what experts and politicians call Russia's hybrid war with Western countries.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
Zelenskiy Says Trump Could Be 'Decisive' In Ending War
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a televised interview broadcast on January 2 that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's "unpredictability" could help end the war with Russia.
Trump, who is set to be inaugurated on January 20, has said he would end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office. Ukraine and other European countries have been skeptical about the claim and are concerned that a deal drafted by Trump could force Ukraine to give up territory to Russia in exchange for peace.
Zelenskiy said in the interview that he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is afraid of Trump, who he said could be "decisive" in ending the war.
"He's very strong and unpredictable, and I would really like to see President Trump's unpredictability apply to Russia,” Zelenskiy said in the interview with Ukrainian TV.
He also said Trump promised in a recent conversation that one of his first meetings after the inauguration would be with Zelenskiy.
The Ukrainian leader has sought to build bridges with Trump amid concerns he could slow U.S. military aid or halt it entirely. Zelenskiy met Trump in Paris last month to discuss the war, and the idea of deploying European peacekeeping forces to monitor a potential cease-fire reportedly was on the agenda.
Zelenskiy said in the interview that he supports the idea of France deploying peacekeepers to guarantee a cease-fire but said “France alone is not enough” and stressed this would need to be a step toward joining NATO.
"We support this initiative, but. We would not want it to be one or two countries if it comes to this initiative. It should definitely be on the way to NATO," Zelenskiy said.
The idea of European forces in Ukraine is supported by some countries that have not yet spoken about it publicly, Zelenskiy said. But there are no specifics yet, he said, and a deployment of several thousand "demonstrative" soldiers would not work. There must also be naval and aviation support, he said.
Russia is against the deployment of Western peacekeeping troops to Ukraine as part of any settlement to end the conflict, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier this week.
In an interview published on December 30, Lavrov said Moscow was “not satisfied” with that idea and others being proposed by Trump, including postponing Ukrainian NATO membership for 20 years.
Zelenskiy, who was interviewed together with his wife, Olena Zelenska, also discussed important achievements by the military in 2024, including the defeat of Russian plans to occupy Kharkiv, Sumy, and Zaporizhzhya and the incursion into Russia's Kursk region.
He acknowledged Ukraine's army is fatigued amid Russia's relentless assault on the front line but said the military "will do everything to stabilize the front in January," promising this should happen with the help of weapons due to arrive and with the return of Ukrainian military personnel who are training abroad.
Asked about elections, which have been postponed because of the war, Zelenskiy said he didn't know whether he would run for a second term but added that presidential and parliamentary elections are possible after martial law is lifted.
He suggested that this could even happen in 2025 if Ukraine manages to end the hot phase of the war in a strong position.
With reporting by AFP and Reuters
Montenegrins Express Disbelief In Wake Of Mass Shooting
Residents of Cetinje, Montenegro, said they were shocked over the fatal shooting of 12 people in the community on New Year's Day. The suspected shooter, Aco Martinovic, fired upon people in separate incidents before committing suicide, according to police. The Balkan nation declared three days of mourning in the wake of the killings, in which at least four others were seriously wounded. Cetinje also witnessed the fatal shootings of 10 people by a local man in 2022.
Thousands In Moldova's Transdniester Scramble For Heat, Hot Water After Russian Gas Flow Ends
Tighina, MOLDOVA -- Thousands of households in Moldova's breakaway region of Transdniester have been forced to cope without gas, heating, and hot water after supplies of Russian natural gas abruptly stopped on January 1 due to the expiration of a supply contract with Ukraine, a major transit hub for the gas.
The pipeline that runs through Ukraine, Russia's oldest gas export route to Europe, shut down at the end of 2024 with the expiration of the contract.
Ukraine Invasion: News & Analysis
RFE/RL's Ukraine Live Briefing gives you the latest developments on Russia's invasion, Western military aid, the plight of civilians, and territorial control maps. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.
The stoppage means Ukraine will forego around $800 million a year in transit fees. Russian energy giant Gazprom, meanwhile, will lose out on nearly $5 billion in gas sales.
But the biggest losers in the move may be Transdniester's 450,000 residents, many of whom, especially those living in apartment buildings, have been left without heating and hot water in a region totally dependent on Russian gas supplies.
"For now, the situation is not critical," one man from the city of Tighina told RFE/RL's Moldovan service on January 2, noting he has been able to cope so far using his electric stove.
"For others, maybe, it's worse," he quickly adds.
The municipal administration in Transdniester's capital, Tiraspol, has said it has natural gas reserves of about 13 million cubic meters, which is sufficient for about 20 days. However, the supply is intended mainly for hospitals and other "public and social institutions."
To help, the city said it has set up 30 meeting points where people can gather to warm up and eat hot meals.
Meanwhile, about 115,000 households are receiving natural gas supplies only for cooking, according to supplier Tiraspoltransgaz.
"We have started to adapt," one woman from Tighina told RFE/RL. "We have a stove, an electric hob, and we manage," she added.
The cut in Russian gas supplies to the rest of Europe comes as part of the diplomatic war that has accompanied the battleground fighting sparked by Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which is nearing its third year.
The pipeline brought gas from Siberia to the Russia town of Sudzha, which is now under the control of Ukrainian soldiers in Russia's Kursk region.
From there it flowed through Ukraine to Slovakia, where the Soviet-era pipeline splits into branches going to the Czech Republic and Austria.
Ukraine repeatedly said it would not sign a new deal to replace the one expiring due to the war. The decision also aligns with efforts by Ukraine and its allies to cut off Kremlin sources of funding for the war.
Alternative Energy Sources
Russia used to supply a little under half of the European Union's natural gas, but the EU drastically reduced its dependency on that supply after the outbreak of the war.
Europe has found alternative energy sources, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) provided by the United States and Qatar and a piped supply from Norway.
The remaining buyers of the Russian gas traversing Ukraine, including Slovakia and Austria, have arranged for alternative supplies, and analysts foresee minimal market impact from the stoppage.
Austria's Energy Ministry said the natural gas supply for consumers was guaranteed thanks to purchases made for gas flowing through Italy and Germany and the filling of storage.
Slovakia will also not risk a shortage, though it faces an extra 177 million euros ($184 million) in fees for alternative routes, its Economy Ministry said.
European Commission spokeswoman Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said EU preparations ahead of the end of the contract had included energy efficiency measures, renewable energy development, and a flexible gas system.
Most Russian gas routes to Europe are now shut, including Yamal-Europe via Belarus and the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic, which were blown up in 2022.
Hungary and other countries continue to receive Russian gas from the south via the TurkStream pipeline on the bottom of the Black Sea. Hungary and Slovakia, which have close ties with the Kremlin despite the war, had been keen to continue deliveries through the Ukrainian route.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on January 1 that the end of natural gas supplies to Europe via a major pipeline traversing Ukraine is one of the "biggest defeats" for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
As a result of Russia weaponizing energy and resorting to cynical blackmail of partners, Moscow lost one of the most profitable and geographically accessible markets,” he said.
Zelenskiy Says Ukraine Is Preparing To Reestablish Diplomatic Ties With Syria
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv is making preparations to reestablish ties with Syria after a diplomatic mission led by Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha visited Damascus to meet with the Middle Eastern country's new leadership.
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The Ukrainian delegation met with Syria's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa and other interim government figures on December 30 after the Russia-backed administration of ousted President Bashar al-Assad was toppled earlier this month.
"We are preparing to restore diplomatic relations with Syria and the interaction with international organizations. I would like to thank our intelligence for securing the basis for these contacts as a result of the visit," Zelenskiy said in a video on social media on January 2.
The rebels who ousted Assad were led by Sharaa's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Islamist group, a U.S. and EU-designated terrorist organization.
Sharaa has publicly pledged to adopt moderate policies regarding women's rights, national reconciliation, and relations with the international community, although world leaders say they remain wary of the new rulers pending concrete actions.
Ukraine has moved quickly to establish a line of communication with the new Syrian leaders saying it is interested in stabilizing the situation and believes it is essential for Syria's security to remove any Russian presence from the country.
Zelenskiy announced earlier this week that Ukraine had delivered 500 tons of wheat flour to Syria as part of its "Grain from Ukraine" initiative.
Russia granted Assad and his family asylum earlier this month after they fled Damascus on December 8.
Kremlin aides have said Moscow is in contact with Syria's new administration at both a diplomatic and military level. Russia is concerned, in particular, about the fate of a naval facility and an air base it operates in the country.
Several media outlets, including The Washington Post, have reported that Syrian fighters received about 150 drones as well as other covert support from Ukrainian intelligence operatives ahead of their lightning advance through the country that culminated in the toppling of Assad.
Montenegro In Mourning After Mass Shooting In Cetinje Leaves 12 Dead
Montenegro began a three-day mourning period on January 2 following a deadly mass shooting incident on New Year's Day.
Twelve people, including two children, were killed in Cetinje after a gunman went on a rampage in the western city late on January 1. Four others were injured in the killing spree.
Authorities in Cetinje have announced that all planned events and public gatherings in the city have been canceled for the foreseeable future.
Officials said the suspected shooter, identified as Aco Martinovic, attempted suicide after a manhunt was launched and died while being transported to hospital.
Montenegrin Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic said at a predawn press conference on January 2 that the motive for the killings was unknown.
The victims were killed at five separate locations: four people each at the first and second locations, two children aged 10 and 13 at the third, and one person each at the fourth and fifth locations.
Police have not yet revealed their identities, but Saranovic said they included relatives and friends of the suspect.
Of the three men and one woman who were injured in the incident, one was in extremely critical condition and the three others were in a stable but life-threatening state, said Aleksandar Radovic, the head of the Clinical Center in the capital, Podgorica, where the patients are being treated.
"Two men and one woman are stable, and this morning they are in the process of being weaned off a ventilator," he said on January 2. "The fourth is in critical condition, he underwent surgery early this morning."
The rampage began after a brawl in a bar, officials said. Police said in a statement that the incident was "not the result of a confrontation between organized crime groups."
Martinovic had a conditional conviction in 2005 for violent behavior and had been sentenced to one year in prison, but was not considered a person of significant security interest, according to Saranovic.
He added that in 2022, weapons and explosives had been found in Martinovic's possession, leading to a three-month sentence.
The victims are believed to have been relatives, friends, and godparents of Martinovic.
Prime Minister Milojko Spajic went to the hospital where the wounded were being treated and announced three days of mourning, beginning on January 2. New Year's concerts in Podgorica, Budva, and Kotor were also canceled.
Spajic also announced that the government would be looking to introduce stricter gun laws in Montenegro, which has long had comparatively high rates of gun ownership. "We will consider a complete ban on carrying firearms," he said.
President Jakov Milatovic said he was “shocked and stunned” by the tragedy. “Instead of holiday joy...we have been gripped by sadness over the loss of innocent lives,” Milatovic said on X.
Meanwhile, other regional leaders have expressed their condolences over the killings.
In a statement on his Instagram account, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, said he reacted to the news "with sorrow, disbelief, and regret." He also offered support, pledging "any form of assistance from Serbia."
Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman, conveyed his sympathies in a telegram. "Unfortunately, violence has become an everyday occurrence and knows no borders," he stated.
Zeljko Komsic, a member of Bosnia-Herzegovina's presidency, also expressed his condolences and emphasized his support for Montenegro in a phone call with Milatovic.
The U.S. Embassy in Podgorica joined others in expressing its sympathy, saying in a post on X that "we extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wish a full recovery to those injured."
The rampage was the second in the past three years in Cetinje, which lies about 30 kilometers from Podgorica. In August 2022, an attacker killed 10 people, including two children, before he was shot and killed by a passerby in the city.
Pakistani Shi'ite, Sunni Leaders Reach Peace Deal To End Regional Clashes
Shi’ite and Sunni leaders in northwestern Pakistan on January 1 signed a peace agreement to end tensions and establish a permanent cease-fire after clashes believed to be linked to a tribal land dispute killed more than 100 people in the past 90 days.
A traditional gathering of ethnic, religious, and political leaders known as a Loya Jirga concluded in the regional capital, Quetta, after the parties signed the agreement. The meeting had taken place over the previous three weeks with the support of the provincial government.
The agreement comes after an attack on November 21, 2024, on a passenger convoy in the Kurram district killed around 46 Shi’ites and four Sunnis. Fighting between Shi’ite and Sunni groups subsequently broke out, killing around 130 people and injuring more than 200, including the initial attack on November 21.
An earlier attack on October 12, 2024, initially injured three people traveling to Kunj Alizu mountain before the gunmen attacked a convoy of passenger vehicles in the same area, killing 17.
Malik Abdul Wali Khan, a participant in the Loya Jirga, told RFE/RL on January 1 that Shi’ite leaders had first signed the agreement. Twenty leaders representing Sunnis then added their signatures on January 1. Some of the remaining leaders would sign the agreement soon, Khan said.
He added that after the peace agreement is signed by all the leaders attending the Loya Jirga, roads in the Kurram district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province that have been closed for nearly three months will be reopened and the government will be responsible for protecting them.
Roads in Kurram have remained closed despite repeated calls from the public for them to be reopened. Though the two sides reached a cease-fire brokered by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on December 1, 2024, key public roads have not reopened, according to local residents.
The road closures have led to severe shortages of essential goods, including food, medicine, fuel, firewood, and gas.
The provincial government had previously decided to deploy about 400 special police officers to secure the Parachinar road in Kurram by setting up checkpoints every few kilometers.
According to the agreement signed at the Loya Jirga, a strategy is to be developed within 15 days for the handover of weapons to the government. In return, the bunkers built by both sides in the area will be dismantled, and all people displaced by the unrest will be resettled back home.
The agreement also says that future land disputes will be resolved through oral and written documents and says the government will take action against those who spread hate on social media.
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