Harris slams Ukraine ‘surrender’ policy as Zelensky visits White House

Harris slams Ukraine ‘surrender’ policy as Zelensky visits White House
US Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, shakes hands with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as they meet in Washington on Sept. 26, 2024. (REUTERS)
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Updated 27 September 2024
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Harris slams Ukraine ‘surrender’ policy as Zelensky visits White House

Harris slams Ukraine ‘surrender’ policy as Zelensky visits White House
  • Harris' statement was clearly aimed at her Republican rival Donald Trump, who earlier implied that Ukraine should just accept defeat from Russia
  • In his meeting with Zelensky, President Joe Biden announced a fresh military aid package worth nearly $8 billion for Kyiv and promised continued us backing

WASHINGTON: Kamala Harris on Thursday criticized her US election rival Donald Trump’s stance on Ukraine, describing it as a policy of “surrender” to Russia as she told President Volodymyr Zelensky that he could rely on her support.
Zelensky also met President Joe Biden to present his “victory plan,” with the White House announcing a fresh military aid package worth nearly $8 billion for Kyiv as it struggles on the battlefield in the third year of Moscow’s invasion.
Zelensky’s visit has been clouded by a blazing row with Republican presidential candidate Trump that underscored how November’s US election could upend the support that Ukraine receives from its biggest backer.
Harris did not mention Trump by name but said there were “some in my country who would instead force Ukraine to give up large parts of its sovereign territory, who would demand that Ukraine accept neutrality.”
“These proposals are the same of those of (President Vladimir) Putin. And let us be clear, they are not proposals for peace. Instead, they are proposals for surrender,” she said with Zelensky by her side.
During a separate meeting in the Oval Office with Zelensky, Biden pledged that “Russia will not prevail” in the war it launched in February 2022.
“Ukraine will prevail, and we’ll continue to stand by you every step of the way,” Biden said after thanking him for presenting the so-called victory plan.
Dressed in his trademark military-style outfit, Zelensky replied that “we deeply appreciate that Ukraine and America have stood side by side.”


ALSO READ: Trump says Ukraine is ‘dead’ and dismisses its defense against Russia’s invasion


Zelensky is looking to shore up support for his war effort as Biden tries to lock in aid for Ukraine, ahead of the white-knuckle US election on November 5.
Biden pledged nearly $8 billion in military aid on Thursday, including $5.5 billion to be authorized before it expires at the end of the US fiscal year on Monday.
Biden said in a statement that the “surge in security assistance for Ukraine” would “help Ukraine win this war.”
Biden also announced Washington would provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition and called a summit of allies in Germany in October.
The White House however played down Ukraine’s hopes that Zelensky’s visit would achieve his long-held goal of getting permission to fire long-range Western-made missiles into Russian territory.
“I’m not expecting there to be any new announcements on this particular action or a decision coming out of this meeting,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.
Zelensky also visited the US Congress — where his government said he had also presented his victory plan — and gave a defiant address at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.
But Zelensky’s visit has prompted fresh nuclear saber rattling from Moscow, which has repeatedly warned the West against giving Ukraine long-range arms.

Putin's nuclear weapons threat
Putin on Wednesday announced plans to broaden Moscow’s rules on the use of its atomic weaponry in the event of a “massive” air attack.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the nuclear threat “totally irresponsible” while EU foreign policy spokesman Peter Stano said Putin was making a “gamble with his nuclear arsenal.”
Kyiv faces an increasingly difficult battlefield situation two and a half years into Russia’s invasion, with Russian forces continuing to push into eastern Ukraine.
The US presidential election means Washington’s now support now hangs on the balance.
Trump had also been due to meet Zelensky during his US visit, but their talks appear to be on ice.
Trump accused Zelensky on the eve of the visit of refusing to strike a deal with Moscow and once again questioned why the United States was giving billions of dollars to Kyiv.
At an election rally on Wednesday, the Republican called the Ukrainian president “probably the greatest salesman on Earth.”
Republicans were livid after Zelensky visited an arms factory in Biden’s hometown in the battleground state of Pennsylvania earlier this week, with House Speaker Mike Johnson calling for the Ukrainian ambassador to be sacked.
Trump has echoed many of Putin’s talking points about previous US policy being to blame for the Russian invasion, and has been critical of Zelensky for years.
 


Ukraine’s path into NATO ‘irreversible’: European foreign ministers

Ukraine’s path into NATO ‘irreversible’: European foreign ministers
Updated 23 sec ago
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Ukraine’s path into NATO ‘irreversible’: European foreign ministers

Ukraine’s path into NATO ‘irreversible’: European foreign ministers
The foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain, and the EU’s foreign policy chief said: “Ukraine must prevail“
“We are committed to providing Ukraine with ironclad security guarantees“

BERLIN: Ukraine’s path to eventual NATO membership is “irreversible,” seven European foreign policy chiefs said at a meeting in Berlin on Thursday.
“We will continue to support Ukraine on its irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership,” said the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain, and the EU’s foreign policy chief.
“Ukraine must prevail,” they stressed in a joint declaration after meeting their Ukrainian counterpart.
“We are committed to providing Ukraine with ironclad security guarantees, including reliable long-term provision of military and financial support,” they added.
Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock hosted the meeting as Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion has raged for more than 1,000 days and into its third winter, with Kyiv’s troops under heavy pressure.
The top diplomats vowed to “remain steadfast in our solidarity” and “continue to support Ukraine in its right of self-defense against Russian aggression.”
US President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office next month, has said solving the Ukraine crisis would be his top priority, but there are fears in Kyiv that he could try to force big concessions on Ukraine in return for a ceasefire.
The European ministers meeting in Berlin stressed: “There can be no negotiations about peace in Ukraine without Ukrainians and without Europeans by their side.”
They vowed to “stand united with our European and transatlantic partners to think and act big on European security.”
The group also said they would “continue to support Ukraine on its path toward accession to the European Union.”

UK aims to boost home-schooling safety after British-Pakistani girl’s murder

UK aims to boost home-schooling safety after British-Pakistani girl’s murder
Updated 12 December 2024
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UK aims to boost home-schooling safety after British-Pakistani girl’s murder

UK aims to boost home-schooling safety after British-Pakistani girl’s murder
  • Ten-year-old Sara Sharif’s father, step-mother were convicted of murdering her this week
  • Months before death, her father had taken Sharif out of school to be taught at home

LONDON: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday called for better safeguards for home-schooled children and said there were “questions that need to be answered” after the brutal murder of a 10-year-old girl.

Sara Sharif’s father and step-mother were convicted of murder on Wednesday in a trial that revealed gruesome details of the abuse inflicted on her, and the failure of child protection services to intervene despite warning signs.

Months before her death, her father Urfan Sharif had taken her out of school to be taught at home, after Sara’s teacher reported her bruises to child services.

At the time, child services had probed the incident but did not take any action.

Starmer said the “awful” case was “about making sure that (there are) protecting safeguards for children, particularly those being home-schooled.”

The Department for Education said it was “already taking action to make sure no child falls through the cracks” and “bringing in greater safeguards for children in home education.”

The government plans to “make sure that schools and teachers are involved in safeguarding decisions,” a Downing Street spokesperson said, adding that details would be included in upcoming legislation.

Parents will also need local authority consent for home-schooling at-risk children under the proposed changes, and a register of children who are not in school will be drawn up.

Sara was found dead in her home in August 2023, with extensive injuries including broken bones, burns and even bite marks after being subjected to years of abuse.

She had also been in and out of foster care after Sharif separated from her mother, Olga Sharif, to marry the step-mother Beinash Batool.

Despite previous allegations of abusive behavior against the father made by Olga, Sharif won custody of Sara in 2019, just four years before she was killed.

Children’s Commissioner Rachel de Souza said Sara’s death highlighted “profound weaknesses in our child protection system.”

De Souza said it was “madness” that an at-risk child could be taken out of school, calling for a ban on home-schooling of suspected abuse victims.

According to a child safeguarding report published on Thursday, 485 children in England died or were seriously harmed by abuse or neglect in the year to April 2024.

Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Sara’s uncle Faisal Malik, who was cleared of murder but convicted of causing or allowing her death, are due to be sentenced on Tuesday.


Finland to host EU leaders for defense, immigration talks

Finland to host EU leaders for defense, immigration talks
Updated 12 December 2024
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Finland to host EU leaders for defense, immigration talks

Finland to host EU leaders for defense, immigration talks
  • Discussions will focus on “key issues facing Europe in a tense geopolitical climate,” the government said
  • Finland has accused Russia of orchestrating a surge of migrants

HELSINKI: Finland’s Prime Minister Petteri Orpo will host four high-ranking EU counterparts in late December for talks on security and immigration, the Finnish government said on Thursday.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will join the summit, which will take place in Saariselka in Finland’s far north on December 21 and 22.
Discussions will focus on “key issues facing Europe in a tense geopolitical climate,” the government said in a statement.
Topics like “European security, defense and preparedness, as well as migration, instrumentalization of migration and border security” will be on the agenda.
“The summit will provide an opportunity to discuss issues confidentially and come up with ideas for new initiatives,” the statement said.
Finland has accused Russia of orchestrating a surge of migrants after nearly 1,000 migrants without visas arrived at its 1,340-kilometer-long (830-mile) eastern border with Russia in the autumn of 2023.
Helsinki dubbed it a “hybrid attack,” but the Kremlin has denied the accusation.
“Europe has to take greater responsibility for its own security,” Orpo was quoted saying in the statement.
“This means that European countries have to be strong leaders, both in the EU and in NATO. Our greatest threat is Russia, which is trying to consolidate power and sow discord in Europe.”


Tusk says no plans to send Polish troops to Ukraine in event of ceasefire

Tusk says no plans to send Polish troops to Ukraine in event of ceasefire
Updated 12 December 2024
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Tusk says no plans to send Polish troops to Ukraine in event of ceasefire

Tusk says no plans to send Polish troops to Ukraine in event of ceasefire
  • Tusk was speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron who was visiting Warsaw
  • Diplomats said the idea of sending European troops to Ukraine if there is a ceasefire and peace accord between Ukraine and Russia would be on their agenda.

WARSAW/PARIS: Poland has no plans to send troops to Ukraine, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, amid speculation that Western powers could put boots on the ground if a ceasefire is reached.
Tusk was speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron who was visiting Warsaw. Diplomats said the idea of sending European troops to Ukraine if there is a ceasefire and peace accord between Ukraine and Russia would be on their agenda.
“To cut off speculation about the potential presence of this or that country in Ukraine after reaching a ceasefire... decisions concerning Poland will be made in Warsaw and only in Warsaw,” Tusk said. “For now, we do not plan such actions.”
Macron said it was up to Ukraine to decide what concessions it wanted to make for peace, but for Europe to be secure the people of the continent as a whole must take responsibility.
“(We have) the same desire to say to the Ukrainians that... nobody can discuss for the Ukrainians in their name the concessions to be made, the points to be raised, it is up to the Ukrainians to do it, but there is no security in Europe without the Europeans,” Macron told a news conference.
European powers are keen to demonstrate to Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated as US president on Jan. 20, that they are willing to assume their share of the burden to end the almost three-year war in Ukraine.
Finance and foreign ministers from France, Germany and Poland are also meeting on Thursday in Warsaw and in Berlin, just weeks before Poland takes over the rotating EU presidency from Hungary.
The talks in Poland and Berlin will look at how to strengthen financial and military support for Ukraine in the immediate term and how Europe can boost defense financing, including through common debt.


Zelensky visits south Ukraine front line

Zelensky visits south Ukraine front line
Updated 12 December 2024
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Zelensky visits south Ukraine front line

Zelensky visits south Ukraine front line
  • “Let the HIMARS not fail, let them hit enemy targets,” Zelensky said
  • In a video published on his Telegram channel, he was filmed addressing soldiers in a bunker

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited troops fighting on the southern front line in the Zaporizhzhia region, he said Thursday in a post on Telegram.
Zelensky said he had visited soldiers from the 27th Rocket Artillery Brigade, dubbed Ukraine’s “HIMARS division” for its use of the US-supplied rockets.
“Thank you for your service and defense of our country and people. Let the HIMARS not fail, let them hit enemy targets,” Zelensky said.
In a video published on his Telegram channel, he was filmed addressing soldiers in a bunker and awarding some state awards.
Russia has occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region since the first days of its 2022 invasion, and claims to have annexed the full region.
The regional capital, also called Zaporizhzhia, has been pounded with Russian aerial strikes in recent weeks.
Ukraine’s interior ministry said earlier on Thursday that 11 people had been killed in a missile strike on Tuesday, after rescue workers spent more than 46 hours sifting through rubble for bodies.
Another 22 were wounded in the strike, including a girl aged five.