Ukraine

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Fighting raged Sunday in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk despite a request from the pro-Russian separatists for a cease-fire to prevent what they called a "humanitarian catastrophe." At least one person was killed and 10 injured in the latest shelling that started early Sunday and continued throughout the day, officials said.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio: Listen to Stefan Bos' report:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Thousands of Ukrainians have demonstrated against a government decision to suspend preparations for a trade pact with the European Union. The protests come as the country also commemorates a Soviet-era famine that killed millions of people.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio: By BosNewsLife News Center with reporting by BosNewsLife's Stefan J. Bos KIEV/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Ukraine’s security service says it has foiled a Russian-backed terrorist plot aimed at causing mass casualties in the capital Kiev. The alleged plot added to tensions between the West and Russia, which on Saturday threatened to retaliate for new sanctions and warned it would never give up the Crimean Peninsula it annexed from Ukraine.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KIEV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Some pro-Russian rebels have used the Orthodox Christmas to reach-out to their enemy in eastern Ukraine. With Jesus saying in the Bible: "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," they gave Christmas presents to Ukrainian troops. It happened while they provided safe passage to some 50 Ukrainian soldiers.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Braving freezing temperatures, thousands of protesters were weighting their options amid confusion if and when the president would meet their demands for early elections, closer ties with the European Union, and more freedom in this former Soviet nation.

Listen to the BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio: By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KIEV/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Ukraine's main opposition parties, known as the United Opposition, have pledged to impeach President Viktor Yanukovich after European leaders questioned the fairness of recent parliamentary elections. The announcement came at the start of an international gathering on Ukraine's future in neighbouring Hungary.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Ukrainian Christians gathered for prayers as pro-Russian activists attacked a pro-Kyiv rally on Ukraine's disputed Crimea's peninsula with clubs and whips on Sunday, March 9, while thousands took to the streets across Ukraine in rival demonstrations. The protests came while Interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk vowed Ukraine would not cede "an inch" of its territory to Moscow.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- The first contingent of American troops has landed in Poland for military exercises amid regional security concerns over nearby Ukraine, where officials said at least five people have died in clashes.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife UZHHOROD, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- A Christian group fighting corruption in Ukraine's border region with the European Union has urged judges not to celebrate their annual 'Court Workers Day' Monday, December 15, amid evidence that several Ukrainian courts received bribes or other favors in exchange for favorable rulings.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:   By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV/CRIMEA (BosNewsLife)-- Some 95.5 percent of voters in Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula decided Sunday, March 16, to break away from Ukraine and join Russia in a controversial referendum that has raised concerns in the West, election officials said after half the ballots were counted. With thousands of Russian forces more or less looking over their shoulders, most voters in Crimea were expected to choose joining Russia in the referendum.