World

Ukraine says it has killed Zaporizhzhia NPP security chief

Published

3 months ago

October 4, 2024

Ukraine says it has killed Zaporizhzhia NPP security chief

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, located in southern Ukraine, is the largest in Europe and prior to the 2022 Russian invasion, supplied Ukraine with around 30% of its electricity. It was seized by Russian forced in the early weeks of the war.

Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (GUR) has claimed responsibility for the killing of the head of security at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, branding him a “war criminal” and a “collaborator” with Russia.

The GUR posted a video on its Telegram channel showing a SUV exploding and hours later, the Russian Investigative Committee confirmed that Andrei Korotkiy was killed in Enerhodar, where the nuclear plant is located.

The GUR claimed that Korotkiy, a Ukrainian national, “voluntarily collaborated” with Moscow after it seized control of the nuclear facility in the early weeks of the war.

The agency alleged he had passed on personal data of the facility’s workers to Russian forces, highlighting those with a “pro-Ukrainian position”, as well as organising events which supported the “occupation”.

“The Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence reminds people that every war criminal will be fairly punished,” the GUR said in a post on Telegram.

But Zaporizhzhia authorities quickly condemned the killing and vowed those responsible for Korotkiy’s would be punished.

“This is a horrific, inhumane act,” said the facility’s director, Yuri Chernichuk.

“An attack on employees ensuring the safety of the nuclear facility is a reckless, outrageous step.”

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, located in southern Ukraine, is the largest in Europe and prior to the 2022 Russian invasion, supplied Ukraine with around 30% of its electricity.

Meanwhile, at least three people – including a six-year-old girl – have been killed when the Russian military hit a car carrying liquefied natural gas in the northern village of Hirsk.

Village head Andrii Apryshko said the strike caused the gas cylinders to explode causing a fire which spread to a nearby house.

“They dropped a shell later when we were already putting out the fire here. And there were three more drones, I think. They did not let us put out the fire,” he said.

Local officials said one man had a leg blown off in the blast while one other suffered shrapnel wounds and burns.

Pokrovsk strikes

And in eastern Ukraine, residents of Pokrovsk have begun patching up their homes after overnight Russian strikes caused extensive damage and injured four people.

According to the regional police, the Russian military dropped six bombs on the city damaging a multi-story building, three houses and a shop.

Around 80% of the city’s infrastructure was wiped out as a result of the assault, according to international media reports.

In July, Russia made a renewed effort to seize Pokrovsk, prompting authorities in the city to urge residents, particularly the elderly and families with children, to evacuate.

The city’s military administration said that as of 4 October, around 13,000 people remain in Pokrovsk, down from its pre-war population of around 60,000.

And in Sumy, near the border with Russia, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenksyy met soldiers recovering in hospital, handing out state awards.

“Thank you for defending our country,” he said.

Sumy lies some 32 kilometres from Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian troops have been deployed since 6 August in a bid to divert the Kremlin’s military focus away from the front line in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy’s visit to Sumy comes a day after he met new NATO chief Mark Rutte in Kyiv where he repeated his appeal for faster deliveries of Western weapons to the battlefield.

Click to comment

World

Who is Europe's top investor in space in 2023?

Published

12 minutes ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

Who is Europe's top investor in space in 2023?

Luxembourg remains Europe’s top investor in space in a year when defence spending on space exceeded civil space budgets for the first time since the 1990s.

Global public investment in space hit a record high of €106 billion in 2023, an 11% increase compared to 2022.

In Europe, the total funding was €11.9 billion, showing a modest 1% rise in its share of global space investment.

According to the European Space Agency, defence spending on space exceeded civil space budgets last year for the first time since the 1990s. Defence expenditures in space are projected to grow faster than civil spending, making up 53% of the budget in 2024.

The US continues to dominate global space investment, accounting for 64% of the total budget, while China holds a strong second place, growing its share from an estimated 2% in 2000 to 12% in 2023 through long-term programmes in both civil and defence.

Europe ranks third, contributing 11% of the global space budget in 2023.

What share of their GDP do EU countries spend on public space budgets?

Luxembourg remains Europe’s leading investor in space, dedicating 0.135% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to the sector.

Globally, the country ranks third behind the US (0.262%) and Russia (0.169%).

In Europe, Luxembourg is followed by France, which invests 0.167% of its GDP, Italy at 0.103%, and Belgium at 0.095%.

On the other hand, private investment in space has continued to decline in 2023, dropping by 32% compared to 2022.

Europe also saw a 14% decrease in 2023 compared to the year before, with private space ventures receiving just below €980 million.

Although the US accounts for most of the global decline in 2023, its space sector continues to attract the largest share of investments at 60%, followed by Europe with 16% and China with 9%.

What was the state of space activity in 2023?

There were 221 orbital launches in 2023, an 18% increase compared to 2022.

Yet, a total of 212 launches were successful.

The US carried out more than half of the launches, with 96 of them conducted by SpaceX.

China accounted for 30% with 67 launches, a 5% increase from 2022, and Russia completed 19 launches.

The European launch service provider conducted three launches in 2023, including Europe’s first mission to Jupiter, which aimed to explore whether the planet’s three moons — Callisto, Europa, and Ganymede — could support life in their oceans.

Video editor • Mert Can Yilmaz

World

Armed men fire on Haiti hospital reopening, killing at least 2

Published

7 hours ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

Armed men fire on Haiti hospital reopening, killing at least 2

At least two people were killed and others injured on Tuesday when armed men opened fire on a group of journalists who gathered for a government press conference set to announce the reopening of Haiti’s largest public hospital, a witness to the attack told Reuters.

World

US citizen imprisoned in Russia given new 15-year sentence in wake of espionage conviction

Published

7 hours ago

December 25, 2024

Press Room

US citizen imprisoned in Russia given new 15-year sentence in wake of espionage conviction

A Russian-born U.S. citizen who was already behind bars in Russia on a bribery conviction has been handed a second sentence for espionage.

Eugene Spector was sentenced to a new 15-year term for his espionage conviction, according to Russian news agencies. Spector was born and raised in Leningrad, Russia, but later moved to the U.S. and became a citizen.

A Moscow court brought espionage charges against Spector in August of last year, although details surrounding the case were not made publicly available.

RUSSIA ARRESTS US CITIZEN ON ESPIONAGE CHARGES: REPORT

Eugene Spector, a Russian-born U.S. citizen already imprisoned in Russia on a bribery conviction, has been handed a second 15-year jail term for espionage. (AP)

The U.S. State Department said it was aware of reports of a U.S. citizen in Russia being sentenced and that it was monitoring the situation.

Spector, a former executive at a medical equipment company in Russia, was sentenced in September 2022 to three and a half years in prison for enabling bribes to an aide of former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich.

WALL STREET JOURNAL’S EVAN GERSHKOVICH REVEALS SHADOWY KREMLIN FIGURE BEHIND IMPRISONMENT IN RUSSIA

A Moscow court brought espionage charges against Spector in August of last year. (iStock)

The aide, Anastasia Alekseyeva, was sentenced to 12 years in April for accepting bribes of two expensive overseas vacation trips.

Dvorkovich was a deputy prime minister under former Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in 2012 to 2018. Dvorkovich is currently head of the international chess federation FIDE.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.