Ukraine

Listen to the BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspodent BosNewsLife reporting from Uzhhorod, Ukraine UZHHOROD, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Anti-government voters in western Ukraine have expressed concern that the party of Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych has claimed victory in parliamentary elections. Sunday's vote was overshadowed by the jailing of the country's top opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. Her fans and others say the outcome will lead to more social tensions and split the former Soviet nation.

Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife at BosNewsLife News Center BUDAPEST, HUNGARY (BosNewsLife)-- Ukraine says a cargo ship laden with weapons, which was held by pirates off the coast of Somalia since September, has been freed, BosNewsLife monitored Friday, February 6.

By Stefan J, Bos Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- A Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest was kidnapped Saturday, March 15, by pro-Russian forces in Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, adding to concerns the tensions may turn into a religious and ethnic conflict, church sources said.

Listen to BosNewsLife via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife MOSCOW/SIMFEROPOL (BosNewsLife)-- Russia and Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula have agreed to make Crimea part of Russia, despite Western outrage and threats of more sanctions.  Tuesday's announcement came while pro-Russian forces reportedly attacked a Ukrainian military base in Crimea, killing one officer.

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.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife reporting from Uzhhorod, Ukraine UZHHOROD, UKRAINE (BosNewslife)-- Talks between Ukraine and the International Monetary Fund on more than 15 billion dollars in financial assistance have failed. The IMF says it will continue to hold a new round of negotiations. Yet, the troubles come at a difficult moment for the financially troubled former Soviet republic.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife MOSCOW/STOCKHOLM (BosNewsLife)-- Ukraine is celebrating after it won the Eurovision Song Contest with an emotionally charged song about Soviet Union leader Josef Stalin's deportation in 1944 of nearly a quarter of a million Crimean Tatars. Yet the song by Susana Jamaladinova, a 32-year-old trained opera singer who uses the stage name Jamala, has angered critics in Russia, which came in third after Australia.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV/SIMFEROPOL (BosNewsLife)-- Troops of the NATO military alliance and Russian forces are holding war games at different sides of the border with Ukraine, amid mounting concerns of a possible new Cold War between the West and Russia. In Rostov-on-Don where the ousted Ukrainian president Yanukovych has been staying, riffles, machine guns and rocket propelled grenades are used for war games.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife BRUSSELS/KIEV/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- The United States and the European Union have expressed caution about a new Ukraine peace agreement reached during talks in Minsk between the Russian, Ukrainian, French and German leaders. Thursday's accord includes a ceasefire starting Sunday, followed by the withdrawal of weapons, the establishment of a demilitarized zone and the exchange of prisoners.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Bos NewsLife KIEV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- A ceasefire called by President Petro Poroshenko has begun in eastern Ukraine as part of efforts to revive a much-violated truce with pro-Russian separatists, but it remained unclear whether a peace meeting would go ahead as planned on Tuesday.